Villa's penalty and an own goal did the damage at Viking

Aston Villa beat Viking 3-1 at Villa Park, with a VAR penalty and an own goal doing most of the work while Viking's chances stayed thin.

The penalty mattered most. A VAR check, the video review that referees use on big decisions, confirmed a spot kick for Aston Villa in the 35th minute, and Emiliano Buendía scored from it two minutes later. Ross Barkley had already put Villa ahead at 23 minutes, after Ibrahim Mbaye set him up, so the home side had a comfortable cushion well before half-time.

Villa's attacking output was heavy. They had 21 shots, 17 of them from inside the box, in a league where a side typically takes around 14.6 shots a match. Their expected goals figure, which scores how good each chance was based on where and how it was struck, came to 2.78, against a league norm of 1.76 per side. In other words, Villa were not just shooting often, they were getting into dangerous positions.

Viking had the ball more than they usually do. Their 44% possession sits well above their away average of 37.8%, and they still managed only seven shots. Their expected goals of 0.63 was close to what they normally produce away, which tells us the problem was not a sudden drop in quality but a chance count that stayed low in a match where they were not short of the ball. Viking also committed 13 fouls, the most of either side.

Viking's goalkeeper, A. Østbø, was the busiest player on the pitch, making eight saves that kept the score from being worse for the visitors. The third Villa goal, at 62 minutes, came from an own goal by Henrik Heggheim, and it came at a moment when Viking were still in the game. Only the two goals after that, one each side, changed the look of the scoreline in a meaningful way.

Viking did pull one back late on. Peter Christiansen scored at 84 minutes, set up by Kristoffer Askildsen, and VAR confirmed the goal at 86. That is one goal for the visitors, and it sits below the 2.3 they usually score on their travels. Three conceded is also above their usual figure, so the match was the wrong way round for them on both counts.

Villa arrive at this result with a strong start to their season. They have won both of their matches so far and sit fourth in the table, with six points. Viking have had a harder time, with one draw and one defeat in their two games and a position of 30th in the standings.

Viking have one point from two matches, and the table records it that way.

Player of the matchR. Barkley1 goal8.2

I. Mbaye1 assist7.7

Pau Torres1 chance created7.3

V. Lindelöf3 duels won7.2