Captain Bailey Scores as Aston Villa Secure Victory Over Spartak Trnava
Aston Villa continued their impressive pre-season form with a commanding 3-0 victory over Spartak Trnava in Slovakia on Saturday.
The match, held at the Anton Malatinsky Stadium, saw Leon Bailey take centre stage, providing the spark that set Villa on their way to another win.
Bailey, donning the captain’s armband, opened the scoring in the 38th minute with a moment of sheer brilliance.
Picking up the ball inside the box, the Jamaican international shifted it onto his favoured left foot before curling a sublime effort inside the far post, giving the visitors a 1-0 lead at half-time.
The second half saw Villa continue their dominance, with Morgan Rogers doubling the lead on 53 minutes.
After a neat exchange with Kadan Young on the edge of the box, Rogers pounced on the rebound from Young’s shot to tap home from close range. Rogers, who had netted twice at Walsall midweek, was in fine form again and nearly added a second after a dazzling run through the Trnava defence.
Trnava, who finished third in their domestic league last season, were further along in their pre-season preparations and looked lively in the opening stages.
However, they struggled to contain Villa’s forwards as the match progressed.
Villa’s goalkeeper, Joe Gauci, had little to do in the first half aside from a routine save to deny Milan Corryn.
Unai Emery made wholesale changes at the break, introducing a fresh XI that continued to control the game. Robin Olsen, who replaced Gauci, was called into action twice but dealt comfortably with Trnava’s attempts.
Villa sealed the victory in the 89th minute when Cameron Archer, set up by Rogers, thrashed a powerful shot past the goalkeeper at his near post.
The win means Villa maintain their perfect pre-season record and can now look forward to their upcoming tour of the USA, where they will play three more matches.
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