Villa problems CRYSTAL clear after a sorry display

VILLA'S 22-match unbeaten home run came to an end last night with a 3-0 defeat to Crystal Palace at Villa Park.

- By JOHN TOWNLEY

Jean-Philippe Mateta opened the scoring in the 21st minute, converting from the penalty spot after Marco Bizot was adjudged to have tripped Daichi Kamada inside the box.

Bizot, starting in place of Emi Martínez, was beaten low to his left by Mateta’s well-taken effort.

Martinez was absent from the matchday squad as his head wasn’t in the right place amid interest from Manchester United ahead of tonight's 7pm transfer deadline.

Villa struggled to create clear-cut chances throughout the first half but should have gone into the break level.

John McGinn lofted a perfectly weighted ball over the Palace defence to find Ollie Watkins, but the striker was denied from close range by Dean Henderson.

Unai Emery’s side remain goalless this season - marking only the second time in his managerial career that one of his teams has failed to score in four consecutive league games.

The last such instance came in October and November 2007, when his Almería side endured a similar run in La Liga.

Palace doubled their lead with just over 20 minutes remaining, as Marc Guéhi bent a composed finish past Bizot after McGinn failed to control Ezri Konsa’s attempted clearance.

The result was sealed 10 minutes later, when Ismaïla Sarr - a regular thorn in Villa's side - popped up at the back post to head home and complete a miserable evening for the hosts.