Aston Villa broke the curse. After seven years, they’re finally through to the third round of the FA Cup

Aston Villa fought a tough battle at Middlesbrough, beating them 1-0 in the FA Cup. Aston Villa’s patient conquest paid off in the 88th minute when Matty Cash made the difference. Middlesbrough must knock quickly, they play Chelsea in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday.

Aston Villa started very actively, with Jhon Duran scoring in the sixth minute. But Tom Glover was able to intervene. Middlesbrough made the match more difficult for themselves, either losing balls already in their own defensive half or kicking them far away.

The Villans didn’t have any great chances. It wasn’t until the 30th minute that they had a header, but they couldn’t get it between the three posts. Four minutes later, the home goalkeeper had to do his part, striker Duran tried his luck from distance, but Glover converted a great save.

At the other end, young striker Morgan Rogers had his first chance, but he failed to surprise Emiliano Martinez from an angle and only won a corner. Both teams took a long time to get used to the referee’s metre, who let the controversial tackles go to make the game flow better.

The second half was scoreless. It was basically a one goal game, with Middlesbrough threatening only from breakaways. After the change of sides, John McGinn headed into the left post, but home goalkeeper Glover continued the show and again pulled off a superb save.

The Villans pressed, first in the 53rd minute after a corner kick Leon Bailey headed against the back post. He ran to celebrate, assuming he had scored, but prematurely. Just a minute later, Alex Moreno had space in the small area, but he missed the ball well from a volley and shot over.

The pressure then subsided, to which Unai Emery responded with a big substitution in the 70th minute. Aston Villa continued to patiently dominate and came through in the 88th minute. Polish full-back Matty Cash fired over from distance. The goalkeeper probably lost the ball in flight and reacted too late.

Middlesbrough had two more corners at the very end, but the experienced Aston Villa held on to the finish. So after seven long years, the Villans have made it through to the third round of the FA Cup. Middlesbrough can’t be sad, they play the Carabao Cup semi-final against Chelsea on Tuesday.

Source: FA Cup