Manchester City 4-1 Aston Villa

Aston Villa endured a tough night at the hands of Manchester City in the Premier League.

After falling behind to Rodri’s 11^th-minute strike, the visiting Villans fought back and levelled matters when Jhon Durán finished a clinical counter-attack.

The sides looked as though they would head into half-time level before Phil Foden’s free-kick squirmed through the wall and past Robin Olsen in stoppage time.

Stefan Ortega made fine saves to deny Douglas Luiz and Clement Lenglet minutes before Foden made it 3-1 just past the hour mark.

City’s playmaker completed his hat-trick with a rasping shot from the edge of the box to round off the win for the hosts.

Head coach Unai Emery freshened his team up with five changes from the weekend’s 2-0 win at home to Wolves, while a sixth was enforced ahead of kick-off when Emi Martínez pulled out through illness.

The rejigged XI made a composed start, building out from the back confidently before the reigning champions struck in the 11^th minute.

Jeremy Doku avoided the offside trap by the slimmest of margins to reach Foden’s through ball, setting the ball back to Rodri, who sent a first-time finish past Olsen.

Far from letting the setback dent their confidence, Villa mounted a swift response and equalised via Durán’s sixth goal of the season.

After breaking up a City attack on the edge of their own box, the visitors rapidly swept up the pitch and were celebrating after the Colombian beat Ortega with a smart finish following a crisp one-two with Morgan Rogers.

An organised defensive effort kept the hosts at arm’s length until a sharp exchange between Rico Lewis and Julián Alvarez put the striker through on goal, with only a super save from Olsen denying him.

However, City did score their second before the half-time whistle when Foden’s free-kick pierced the Villa wall and nestled in the unguarded portion of Olsen’s net.

The Swedish goalkeeper was called into action twice in the early stages of the second half, saving efforts from Doku and Bernardo Silva.

It was Ortega’s turn to ride to his team’s rescue shortly after when another swift counter-attack ended with the ‘keeper tipping Luiz’s shot over before he kept out Lenglet’s header from the resulting corner.

Those missed opportunities proved costly when Foden found a third just after the hour mark, sweeping home from inside the box after being picked out by Rodri.

The England international went on to complete his hat-trick seven minutes later, arrowing a shot into the top corner after winning the ball just outside the box.

Homegrown youngster Omari Kellyman gained valuable experience off the bench in the latter stages of a difficult night at Etihad Stadium.