Martinez cleans up his mess but Villa still untidy

VILLA failed to get their season off the ground following the September international break, settling for a goalless draw against Everton.

- By JOHN TOWNLEY

The result means they remain both winless and goalless in four Premier League games, sitting in the bottom two after the opening month of the campaign.

Everton had the better chances in the first half and finished the game stronger as well, while Villa struggled to create much resembling a real goalscoring opportunity.

Here are the talking points from the Hill Dickinson Stadium.

Martinez's perfect response

It was a messy end to the summer transfer window for Emi Martinez, but he reacted in the best possible way by keeping a clean sheet.

Without his standout performance, Villa would likely have suffered a third straight league defeat.

He denied Beto early on by clawing a header off the line, then blocked Jack Grealish's deflected effort from inside the box. In the second half, the Argentina number one tipped Michael Keane's header over the bar as Grealish sent in a teasing cross. Martinez was determined not to be beaten on his return to the starting XI.