FULL-TIME MATCH REPORT: Aston Villa 1-1 Spurs - Agbonlahor & Dawson Strikes Share Spoils

Aston Villa have drawn 1-1 with Tottenham Hotspur in their Premier League match at Villa Park on Saturday evening.

A first-half strike from Gabriel Agbonlahor gave the Villans an early lead, but Tottenham commanded the remainder of the match, but it wasn’t until the 77th minute that Spurs managed to find a breakthrough, with Michael Dawson equalising with a rare goal.

The game started at a decent pace, with both sides eager to take control of the match and creating chances at both ends of the pitch.

Spurs were the first side to have a shot on-target, with Tottenham midfielder Niko Kranjcar blasting a shot from the edge of the penalty area, with Villa keeper Brad Friedel making an excellent save to deny the Croatian.

Gabriel Agbonlahor opened the scoring in the 10th minute, bundling the ball home from close-range after Carlos Cuellar’s shot was blocked on the line by Benoit Assou-Ekotto to make it 1-0 to Villa.

Cuellar was on hand at the other end of the pitch to deny Michael Dawson’s shot from 10-yards, with the Spaniard clearing Dawson’s shot off the line, much to the relief of the watching Villa fans.

Tottenham pressed for an equaliser, with Jermain Defoe shooting just over the crossbar and Tom Huddlestone forcing Friedel into a save, but the game slowed slightly after the half-hour mark, with both sides taking a bit of a breather.

Tottenham had a free-kick awarded in a dangerous area in the 42nd minute, but Niko Kranjcar failed to properly test Friedel.

The game went into half-time 1-0 to Aston Villa, with the home-side shading possession, but with Spurs having the better chances at goal in the opening period.

Tottenham Hotspur came out for the second-half with more intent, and controlled large parts of the second period and continued having the majority of attempts on goal.

Tottenham Hotspur had an excellent chance to equalise in the 49th minute after a great piece of interplay between the Spurs players, with Niko Kranjcar having the final shot, a powerful strike from 22-yards that was palmed away brilliantly by Friedel to keep the score at 1-0.

John Carew missed a decent chance to double the scoreline a couple of minutes later, but the Norwegian striker failed to get his header on-target from close-range.

Habib Beye was alert enough to head away a dangerous cross from Kranjcar which was heading towards Peter Crouch at the far-post, while Villa always threatened on the break.

Jermaine Jenas replaced Wilson Palacios in the 66th minute as Tottenham, who were controlling possession, tried to find a way through the Villa defence.

Steve Sidwell replaced Nigel Reo-Coker with less than twenty minutes remaining, with Sidwell’s first touch a speculative shot from long-range that went high and wide of Huerelho Gomes’ goal.

Referee Phil Dowd waved away a goal from Jermain Defoe after the England striker handled the ball prior to knocking it in from close-range.

Emile Heskey replaced John Carew for Villa, while minutes later Tottenham Hotspur finally found the equaliser, with Michael dawson striking home from just inside the penalty area, past Friedel’s right arm to make it 1-1 in the 77th minute.

Robbie Keane replaced Niko Kranjcar in the 79th minute as Spurs tried to seal a win, but Aston Villa defended brilliantly to deny the visitors and to hold on to the draw to secure a valuable point against their Premiership rivals.

Emile Heskey had a late headed effort go just over the Tottenham crossbar, while Jermain Defoe saw his shot go wide in the final seconds of the match.

The match finished 1-1, with Tottenham Hotspur, who had 17 attempts on target, compared to Aston Villa’s three shots on goal, will wonder how they failed to capitalise on their chances.

Meanwhile Aston Villa will be relieved to have weathered the storm throughout the match and will be happy to have sealed a point from the match.

Aston Villa v Tottenham Hotspur Full Teamsheets:

Aston Villa Team: Friedel, Luke Young, Beye, Cuellar, Dunne, Milner, Petrov, Reo-Coker (Sidwell, 71), Ashley Young, Agbonlahor, Carew (Heskey, 76).

Aston Villa Substitutes Not Used: Clark, Guzan, Gardner, Delph, Downing.

Tottenham Hotspur Team: Gomes, Corluka, Dawson, Bassong, Assou-Ekotto, Lennon, Huddlestone, Palacios (Jenas, 66), Kranjcar (Keane, 79), Defoe, Crouch.

Tottenham Hotspur Substitutes Not Used: Alnwick, Bentley, Rose, Bale, Hutton.