*Conor Hourihane grabbed a double and Jack Grealish scored a breathtaking volley on his return from injury as Aston Villa thumped a dire Derby County side to get their Championship play-off challenge back on track in style.*

Hourihane started the first-half onslaught when he slotted home after Tammy Abraham’s shot had been saved and Abraham slid in the second soon after.

Derby’s third consecutive defeat in a four-game winless league run was as good as confirmed when Hourihane scored his second from close range.

But the away side’s desperate first half got even worse when Grealish’s thunderous volley found the net from 25 yards to make it 4-0.

Villa, who had gone five games without a win and managed just two league victories in 14, continued to dominate as they coasted to an 11th win in 12 against Derby, with keeper Scott Carson making several fine saves.

Carson, one of six changes to Frank Lampard’s side, continued to be busy behind a sloppy defence that never coped with the movement and pace of Abraham, Hourihane and the captain Grealish.

Abraham’s 21st goal of the season made it 2-0 after a fine cross by Ahmed Elmohamady.

And Abraham was also involved in the third when he outmuscled Richard Keogh, ran on and slipped the ball to Hourihane, who found the net with a composed finish.

Grealish, who left the field to a standing ovation after 70 minutes, then grabbed a sensational fourth when he volleyed in a Glenn Whelan corner for the goal of the day and one of the best seen at Villa Park all season.

Abraham, Grealish and Anwar El Ghazi could all have added to the margin of victory after the break, while Derby’s fans resorted to cheering when they won a second-half corner and saw their side end the match without mustering a shot on target.

*Aston Villa manager Dean Smith told BBC WM 95.6*: “It was a really good performance. We started very well and had a big chance cleared off the line.

“We’ve had a few of those over recent weeks when it hasn’t quite gone for us, but we scored shortly afterwards which has given everyone a lift.

“We scored some great goals and saw the game out very well. I told them I wanted a clean sheet and I thought if anyone was going to score in the second half, it would have been us.

“Jack’s got great leadership qualities and he’s a Villa boy so I had no qualms about making him captain today. The armband isn’t a burden to him and I thought it’s a good statement for the future and for him. In training he couldn’t hit the target but it was a great goal he scored.”
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*The Guardian*
Saturday, 2 March 2019

Jack Grealish imperious on his return in Aston Villa’s thrashing of Derby

A Jack Grealish-inspired Aston Villa romped to a one-sided victory over an injury-hit Derby, who slumped to their 11th defeat in 12 games at Villa Park. The talented midfielder was in outstanding form on his return to first-team duty and lit up Villa’s easy win and his own display with a brilliant goal from 25 yards.

Villa completely dominated the game, sealing the victory with a blitz of goals in the first half, two of them coming from Conor Hourihane and one apiece from Tammy Abraham and Grealish. The belated return of Grealish, who was named as Villa’s captain, produced an immediate improvement.

Villa had won just two of their 13 games without Grealish but completed a well-deserved double over Frank Lampard’s side, who slipped to their third successive defeat. Derby, showing six changes from the side beaten in midweek by Nottingham Forest, came under pressure from the off and there was an ominous warning of what lay in store, with only poor finishing by Hourihane saved them from falling behind in the opening five minutes.

The Irishman made amends in the ninth minute, however. Derby’s goalkeeper Scott Carson was left stranded in the middle of the penalty area when Abraham nudged the ball back into the middle to the unmarked Hourihane, who had the simplest of tasks to turn the ball into the empty net. Carson continued to have an anxious time behind a Derby defence that opened up far too easily, and Villa should have increased their lead in the 18th minute when Albert Adomah casually lofted his shot over the bar with the opposition defence badly wrongfooted.

As it was, Derby struggled to find their promotion-chasing form. Eventually Duane Holmes began to make an impact, setting up several promising attacks to expose Villa’s uncertain defence. But in the 37th minute Derby’s rearguard was again stretched and a long, low crossfield pass was turned into the net at the far post by the sliding Abraham.

With Derby’s defence being torn to shreds, a Grealish-led Villa attack notched their third goal in the 44th minute. Abraham again unselfishly set up Hourihane to score his second goal from close range.

The coup de grâce for Derby’s hopes came in the second minute of added time in the first half. Glenn Whelan’s corner from the left was delivered directly to the edge of the penalty area where Grealish met it with a ferocious right‑footed volley into the far top corner.

Villa calmly closed out the win in the second half, with the day marred only by the sight of the defender Tommy Elphick departing the pitch on a stretcher. Grealish was substituted with 20 minutes left to a standing ovation as Villa’s fans revelled in an almost perfect afternoon.

The Villa manager Dean Smith said: “We finished comfortable winners and Jack Grealish’s goal topped the display. He is a top footballer and a level-headed lad which is very important.

Explaining why he made Grealish captain after such a long time out, Smith said: “He has a long-term contract at the club and giving him the captaincy he can certainly grow.

“He leads by example and, knowing his character, I knew it would not be a burden. It was quite an easy decision for me to make. It was a proud moment for him. Like myself he is a Villa fan and to captain the team and score the goal he obtained topped his performance.”

Despite the win, Smith refused to discuss Villa’s prospects of making the play-offs, with his side now six points off the top six.