Premier League GW34 - Aston Villa vs Bournemouth

Aston Villa vs Bournemouth | Picture Credits: Premier League Website

In today's Premier League match, Aston Villa overcame Bournemouth 3-1 at Villa Park thanks to a spectacular comeback. Villa overcame an early deficit to win all three points in a match that was vital to their hopes of finishing in the top four.

Aston Villa:

Aston Villa will now resume their quest for a spot in the Premier League's final top four after edging past Lille 4-3 on penalty kicks in a thrilling penalty shootout match to go to the Europa Conference League semi-finals. Ollie Watkins, the team's top scorer, once again found the goal in last week's victory over title-chasing Arsenal, which helped achieve that goal. Even if Unai Emery's team leads Tottenham in the fight for Champions League qualification, they can't take anything for granted today because they only came away from their previous match with Bournemouth with a point.

Bournemouth:

Despite Watkins' late equaliser in the 2-2 draw that resulted from the rematch in December, Bournemouth had won four of their seven Premier League encounters with Aston Villa thus far. Only the top four teams in England have performed better since mid-November than the mid-table Cherries, who have amassed 10 victories and 36 points during that time. Last week, Andoni Iraola's team nearly defeated Manchester United twice, but they ultimately had to settle for a 2-2 home draw despite taking the lead twice.

Line ups:

ASTON VILLA (4-4-2): Emi Martinez; Matty Cash, Ezri Konsa, Pau Torres, Lucas Digne; Leon Bailey, Youri Tielemans, John McGinn, Morgan Rogers; Moussa Diaby, Ollie Watkins.

SUBS: Robin Olsen, Diego Carlos, Calum Chambers, Clement Lenglet, Jhon Duran, Kaine Kesler-Hayden, Tim Iroegbunam, Finley Munroe, Omari Kellyman.

BOURNEMOUTH (4-2-3-1): Neto; Adam Smith, Illia Zabarnyi, Marcos Senesi, Lloyd Kelly; Lewis Cook, Ryan Christie; Dango Ouattara, Justin Kluivert, Milos Kerkez; Dominic Solanke.

SUBS: Mark Travers, Alex Scott, James Hill, Antoine Semenyo, Enes Unal, Philip Billing, Max Aarons, Callan McKenna, Michael Dacosta Gonzalez.

Villa Park Stadium | Picture Credits - The Guardian

Solanke scored a goal through penalty which gave Bournemouth a 1-0 lead | Picture Credits: Premier League Website

First Half: Solanke's Penalty Gives Bournemouth the Lead

After a well-executed penalty by Dominic Solanke, Bournemouth led at halftime. Solanke coolly converted the penalty kick after Ezri Konsa had fouled Milos Kerkez in the box, sending Aston Villa custodian Emi Martinez the wrong way to give the visitors the lead.

Morgan Rogers gave Aston Villa the equaliser just before the halftime siren. After a ball from Leon Bailey, the Villa winger scored a soaring goal over Bournemouth goalkeeper Neto to tie the score at one and give Villa momentum going into halftime.

Second Half: Villa's Comeback

Aston Villa scored two more goals in the second half to complete their comeback and win. Ollie Watkins set up Moussa Diaby for a clever finish to give Villa the lead, and Bailey added a close-range finish after Watkins' accurate pass into the area.

Villa Secure Crucial Victory

Aston Villa's convincing 3-1 victory over Bournemouth was confirmed by the full-time whistle, which was a big step in their pursuit for a top-four Premier League finish. Villa's chances of qualifying for the Champions League are enhanced by the comeback win, and Bournemouth will be devastated to lose after having the early advantage. With the victory, Aston Villa overtakes Tottenham Hotspur in fifth place by six points, while Bournemouth stays in 13th place.

Rogers scored a late goal for Villa which leveled the score to 1-1 | Picture Credits: Aston Villa Website

Diaby scored a goal for Villa which gave then a 2-1 lead for the first time in the match | Picture Credits: Premier League Website

Bailey scored a goal for Villa and increased their lead to 3-1 | Picture Credits: Aston Villa Website