
Aston Villa have secured their return to the Premier League after deservedly beating Derby County 2-1 in the Championship play-off final at Wembley, one year on after the Villans lost in the play-off final to Fulham who went on to be relegated from the Premier League after just one season.
Given that the game is considered world football's richest (richer than even the Champions League final) - it is said to be worth £170m to the winning team, it was no surprise that the first half was a tight and tense affair, so much so that the first shot on target did not arrive before the 37th minute when Mason Mount's shot was easily saved by Aston Villa goalkeeper Jed Steer.
Aston Villa in the first half put in a succession of poor crosses into the box, but just before half-time Ahmed Elmohamady put in a brilliant ball and Amwar El-Ghazi gave them the lead.
Then, just under a quarter of an hour into the second half, Amwar El-Ghazi took a shot which got deflected, and the ball looped up in the air, and thanks to some poor goalkeeping from Derby's Kelle Roos, John McGinn was there to double Aston Villa's lead.
In reaction to that goal, Frank Lampard decided to put on Jack Marriott for Derby, and it had the desired effect as it was an improved performance, and Marriott himself did hit a shot which via Martyn Waghorn went in and brought Derby right back into the game. However, it was not enough and it is Aston Villa who will be joining already-promoted Norwich City and Sheffield United next season in the Premier League.
Speaking after promotion, Aston Villa manager Dean Smith said to Sky Sports:
"It feels very good," “To be honest, the lads are a terrific bunch. They take on different ideas, they deserve it. I believe pressure is what you put on yourself, we work hard every day, the only difference is expectation. We’ve got two owners who have got a lot of money, and are in it for the long haul. The potential now is massive.” “We’re (we were) playing Stoke away, John McGinn was suspended and Grealish was out,” he says. “Too many heads went down and I gave them a roasting. From that moment on they’ve been brilliant. But I wouldn’t just put it down to that. We’ve got Jack back since then Tuanzebe came back. We had some great players who missed big chunks of the season." “It somebody had told me at the end of February I’d be standing here as a Premier League manager I’d have said ‘you’re crackers’. But we made history by winning ten games on the spin.”
We at Zarb times would like to congratulate Aston Villa on returning to the Premier League.