Brighton & Hove Albion 0-2 Aston Villa

Aston Villa got back to winning ways with a hard-fought victory against Brighton & Hove Albion in the Premier League on Saturday.

Matty Cash showed superb technique to put the visitors ahead at Amex Stadium, firing home from outside the area after 17 minutes.

Villa were in control of the game for large parts and were rewarded with a second goal when Ollie Watkins slid the ball home with just over 20 minutes to play.

Young midfielder Tim Iroegbunam made his debut as a late substitute, capping off a stellar away day for the Villans.

Steven Gerrard recalled Watkins and Ezri Konsa to the starting XI in place of Emiliano Buendia and Calum Chambers as he set about ending a run of two defeats.

And after a cagey opening 16 minutes, Villa were given the perfect platform to build upon when Cash netted his second goal for the club.

The full-back, lurking outside the box, found himself in plenty of space as a headed clearance came his way, taking a touch before cutting across the ball and drilling it in off the far post.

Brighton, themselves looking to bounce back after consecutive losses, came close to levelling within five minutes when Alexis Mac Allister’s drive clipped the crossbar.

Villa were looking much more potent in attack than their last two outings, and they saw both Jacob Ramsey and John McGinn denied by last-ditch Brighton tackles as they looked to double the lead.

A lengthy spell of controlled possession to end the half emphasised the improvement in Gerrard’s side before they headed down the tunnel for half-time.

Minutes into the second half, a loose back pass from Lewis Dunk led to Ramsey being felled on the edge of the box and a chance for Philippe Coutinho to work his magic.

The Brazilian got the ball up and over the wall, sending it towards the bottom corner, where only a superb save from Robert Sanchez kept it 1-0.

Goalscorer Cash then found himself in prime position to net his second after being picked out by a sublime Coutinho pass, pulling his shot just wide of the far post on this occasion.

After 68 minutes, the away side finally bagged the second goal their display deserved.

Watkins raced onto Tyrone Mings’ searching ball into the left-hand channel, advanced on goal and cooly slotted the ball past Sanchez before celebrating in front of the travelling fans.

Danny Welbeck flashed a header wide in a rare moment of worry for the away team, who handed Iroegbunam a senior bow late on to finish off a positive afternoon on the South Coast.