Steven Gerrard got the better of his old England team-mate Frank Lampard as Aston Villa defeated Everton 2-1 for their first victory of the new Premier League season.
Danny Ings found the net in the 31st minute and substitute Emiliano Buendia looked to have sealed the points when he claimed a deserved second four minutes from time.
Everton gave a debut to new defensive signing Conor Coady but had looked toothless in attack until their new recruit Amadou Onana forced an own goal from Lucas Digne a minute later and left Villa hanging on.
Gerrard found himself facing uncomfortable questions after an opening defeat by Bournemouth last weekend but Tyrone Mings, stripped of the captaincy and then left on the bench, returned to a great reception and this result will provide a shot of optimism at Villa Park.
Having narrowly avoided relegation last season, Everton have now lost their opening two games, although their finish to the game was at least something to hold on to.
Villa responded to a noisy welcome from their fans with a high tempo start but they were unable to test Jordan Pickford.
Coady, signed on loan from Wolves this week, was straight into the action organising his new defensive partners and Everton withstood the early barrage, helped by referee Michael Oliver waving away penalty appeals after Vitalii Mykolenko grabbed hold of Matty Cash’s shirt.
Oliver was similarly unmoved when Anthony Gordon went down holding his face after a hand-off from Mings.
Gordon did his best as a makeshift centre-forward but Everton’s need for reinforcements up front was all too evident.
They would have had a decent opening had Dwight McNeil not overhit a simple pass to Demarai Gray, and the visitors thought they had taken the lead in the 24th minute when James Tarkowski headed down a corner and Gordon tucked it away.
However, Everton celebrations were quickly drowned out by cheers from the home fans as the offside flag was correctly raised against Gordon.
Seven minutes later the deadlock was broken at the other end thanks to a fine strike by Ings.
John McGinn picked out Ollie Watkins on the right with a precision long pass. It appeared Philippe Coutinho was better placed than Ings to take on his ball into the box but the forward turned away from his marker and curled a pinpoint shot into the bottom corner.
Everton’s injury situation worsened when Abdoulaye Doucoure had to be replaced by Tom Davies.
Both teams had sniffs of goal just before half-time but Gray could not control a cross from Alex Iwobi in front of goal while Jacob Ramsey’s low ball was just ahead of Coutinho.
Everton possessed a greater threat at the start of the second half and Gray forced Emiliano Martinez into his first save with a well-struck shot from the edge of the box in the 53rd minute.
Coutinho went down with an injury and was replaced by Buendia, while Lampard introduced a striker into his team in the 64th minute with Salomon Rondon coming on for McNeil.
The impetus was with Villa again, though, and they piled pressure on the Everton defence with a series of raids into the box, including a hooked effort by Buendia that deflected off Coady before being cleared off the line by Mykolenko.
Lampard brought on his other signing of the week, young Belgian midfielder Onana, for the final 10 minutes along with Dele Alli.
All the momentum was with Villa, though, and the lively Buendia created and scored their second, playing a one-two with Watkins before tapping in.
That appeared to be that but Onana gave Everton fans cause for encouragement with his late cameo.
As well as setting up the goal – not a moment former Everton defender Digne will want to watch again – the midfielder caused problems and might have scored the equaliser but for a last-ditch tackle from Calum Chambers just after coming off the bench, while Gordon also saw a shot saved.
Electric scooters: some rules to remember
- Riders must be 14-years-old or over
- Wear a protective helmet
- Park the electric scooter in designated parking lots (if any)
- Do not leave electric scooter in locations that obstruct traffic or pedestrians
- Solo riders only, no passengers allowed
- Do not drive outside designated lanes
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
ABU DHABI CARD
5pm: UAE Martyrs Cup (TB) Conditions; Dh90,000; 2,200m
5.30pm: Wathba Stallions Cup (PA) Handicap; Dh70,000; 1,400m
6pm: UAE Matyrs Trophy (PA) Maiden; Dh80,000; 1,600m
6.30pm: Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak (IFAHR) Apprentice Championship (PA) Prestige; Dh100,000; 1,600m
7pm: Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak (IFAHR) Ladies World Championship (PA) Prestige; Dh125,000; 1,600m
8pm: Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan Jewel Crown (PA) Group 1; Dh5,000,000; 1,600m
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
In-demand jobs and monthly salaries
- Technology expert in robotics and automation: Dh20,000 to Dh40,000
- Energy engineer: Dh25,000 to Dh30,000
- Production engineer: Dh30,000 to Dh40,000
- Data-driven supply chain management professional: Dh30,000 to Dh50,000
- HR leader: Dh40,000 to Dh60,000
- Engineering leader: Dh30,000 to Dh55,000
- Project manager: Dh55,000 to Dh65,000
- Senior reservoir engineer: Dh40,000 to Dh55,000
- Senior drilling engineer: Dh38,000 to Dh46,000
- Senior process engineer: Dh28,000 to Dh38,000
- Senior maintenance engineer: Dh22,000 to Dh34,000
- Field engineer: Dh6,500 to Dh7,500
- Field supervisor: Dh9,000 to Dh12,000
- Field operator: Dh5,000 to Dh7,000
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, Leon.
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
GOLF’S RAHMBO
- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)
Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
