Dean Smith was pleased to come out on top against Everton after a tough game was turned on its head with three goals in quick succession.
The nerves around Villa Park had been steadily building during a cagey clash before Matty Cash slammed home his first goal for the club after 66 minutes.
With the crowd rocking, Aston Villa kicked on and put the game to bed with another two strikes, leaving Smith to savour three points.
He said: “I’m really pleased. It wasn’t a 3-0 scoreline. I felt last week was an unjust 3-0 scoreline and I felt tonight was a tight game and a bit of an arm wrestle at times.
“With the territory we had, we had the upper hand, but they had the upper hand for the five minutes before we scored. That’s sometimes how momentum swings in football.
“The goal took the roof off the stadium and lifted us in the latter stages of the game and we went onto score two good goals.”
Smith called for Leon Bailey in response to a spell of Everton pressure with the score at 0-0, and the winger had the desired impact.
Bailey’s corner was flicked in by Lucas Digne before the Jamaican netted on his Villa Park debut, with his manager more than happy with what he saw.
Smith said: “He’s going to be a special player for us, I know that.
“He’s a really, really good lad. The lads like him in the dressing room and he’s settled in really well. Unfortunately, he came off injured.
“His delivery from set-pieces is excellent, as we saw with the second goal. We ended up getting the corner and then he scored the goal.
“The switch of play from Danny Ings was excellent and the finish was just as good.”
