April 19, (THEWILL) – Aston Villa delivered a commanding performance against Newcastle United, winning 4-1 at Villa Park and narrowing the gap in the UEFA Champions League qualification race to just two points.
The home team established dominance immediately when Ollie Watkins found the net after only 33 seconds, his strike deflecting off Fabian Schar past goalkeeper Nick Pope.
Though Schar equalised with a header, Watkins continued to trouble Newcastle’s defence throughout the first half, hitting the woodwork twice.
Villa pulled away after the interval when Watkins set up Ian Maatsen for his first English Premier League goal.
The lead extended further through an unfortunate Dan Burn own goal from Jacob Ramsey’s cross before Amadou Onana completed the scoring with a powerful finish 15 minutes from time.
The victory propels Unai Emery’s squad to sixth position in the EPL table with 57 points, trailing fifth-placed Nottingham Forest only on goal difference.
Newcastle, who were again managed by Jason Tindall due to Eddie Howe’s absence, remain third with 59 points.
Chelsea and Forest may alter the standings further with their upcoming fixtures, with Chelsea playing on Sunday and Forest visiting Tottenham the following day.
The result is a significant shift in the battle for European qualification spots as the season progresses towards its term.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
