Dean Smith says debutant Pepe Reina’s “charisma” rubbed off on his Aston Villa players after they fought back from 1-0 down to claim a point at Brighton.
The 37-year-old, who joined on loan from AC Milan earlier this week, made a superb late save to deny Neal Maupay and preserve a point for Villa, who had equalised through Jack Grealish’s fine strike with 15 minutes left.
“The players know that they have a calm head behind them,” Smith said of the former Liverpool goalkeeper. “His charisma is rubbing off on people because our back-three were superb in the second half.”
Brighton had taken the lead in the first half when Leandro Trossard hit a first-time shot into the corner after a fine run by Maupay.
The former Brentford striker was then involved in an angry confrontation with Ezri Konsa at the final whistle, in what was a fiery conclusion to a game that rarely sparked into life.
Aston Villa remain in the relegation zone despite the draw. Brighton stay 14th but are now three points clear of the bottom three.
Grealish and Reina shine for Villa
Villa boss Smith wanted a reaction from his players after their humbling 6-1 defeat by Manchester City last weekend, their worst result since 2016.
He made five changes to his side, including a debut in goal Reina, who could do little to stop Trossard’s fine opener.
But with a £10m deal for Genk striker Mbwana Samatta yet to be completed, Villa started the match without a recognised centre-forward for the third game in a row.
Anwar El Ghazi was pushed furthest forward, but struggled to get much from Adam Webster and Lewis Dunk.
That placed most of the creative burden on Grealish, who once again looked the player most likely to change the game for the visitors.
The 24-year-old had a great chance to open the scoring in the first half but he drove the ball wide from the edge of the area after a breakaway from the halfway line.
But with the game drifting away from Villa in the second half, he showed a moment of genuine quality to control Douglas Luiz’s pass, shimmy away from the defender before firing beyond Mat Ryan for his ninth goal of the season.
“It’s a super ball and a super strike from Jack,” said Smith. “He’s in great goalscoring form; he’s in great form full stop and it just shows the sort of player he is.
“At the moment everyone knows we are playing without a recognised striker and it is down to Grealish, Trezeguet and Anwar El Ghazi to come up trumps with goals and they are managing to do that.”
Brighton struggle in front of goal
Brighton enjoyed the better of possession and made most of the running in the first half, but they showed a lack of composure in the final third, highlighted by the fact they could only manage two shots on target all game.
They scored with their first attempt, with the lively Maupay central in the build-up.
The former Brentford striker went on a mazy run from just inside the Aston Villa half before teeing up Trossard, who fired an unstoppable drive across Reina into the bottom corner for his third goal of the season.
Maupay and Aaron Connolly formed a hard-working strike partnership and they hassled and harried the Villa defence all afternoon, but without really testing Reina until the closing stages.
That lack of cutting edge cost them, with Grealish’s late equaliser meaning Brighton have now dropped 14 points from losing positions in the Premier League this season.
This game marked the start of a run of matches against sides around Brighton in the table, with Bournemouth, West Ham and Watford lying in wait in the next few weeks.
Graham Potter has been praised for the way he has developed Brighton’s playing style, but he needs a greater attacking threat from his side in those matches if they are to pull themselves away from danger.
Man of the match – Neal Maupay (Brighton)
‘A tale of two halves’ – what they said
Brighton head coach Graham Potter speaking to BBC Match of the Day: “It was an important game for us and we’re disappointed not to win.
“I thought first half we were really good. Deservedly 1-0 up and maybe with a bit more luck it could be more. But we weren’t and you expect the response from Aston Villa.
“If we could have seen that period out maybe we could have hung onto the game. We responded really well to their goal and had chances at the end but it wasn’t to be, in the end it’s a point and we move forward.
On Grealish’s equaliser: “We had the ball and positionally made a mistake, but it’s a fantastic finish and probably the only player on the pitch who can do that. That’s the Premier League for you. You can do a lot right in the game but the opposition always have a player of high quality and that’s a great strike.”
Aston Villa head coach Dean Smith, also speaking to BBC Match of the Day: “I thought the game was a tale of two halves. We were a little bit too passive in our pressing and not good enough on the ball in the first half. But we played well second half and deserved that goal.
On responding to Manchester City defeat: “Man City are another level to a lot of the other teams in this league. These are the teams, Brighton, Watford on Tuesday, we’ve got Bournemouth coming up as well, that will define our season.”
Grealish haunts Brighton again – the stats
- Brighton have dropped 14 points from losing positions in the Premier League this season – only West Ham (17) have dropped more.
- Aston Villa are the only side without an away clean sheet in the Premier League this season.
- Aston Villa have earned four points from their last two Premier League away games (W1 D1), as many as they had in their previous 17 on the road in the competition (W1 D1 L15).
- All three of Leandro Trossard’s Premier League goals for Brighton have been scored at home.
- Aston Villa’s Jack Grealish has scored more goals against Brighton in all competitions than he has versus any other side in his professional career (4).
What’s next?
Brighton travel to south coast rivals Bournemouth on Tuesday (19:30 GMT), while Aston Villa host Watford at the same time.
