Aston Villa

West Ham and Brazil midfielder Lucas Paqueta, 27, is of interest to Aston Villa and Tottenham. (Mail), external

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Pundits Alan Shearer and Micah Richards join host Kelly Cates to bring you the action and talking points from Friday and Sautrday's Premier League fixtures.

Watch on BBC iPlayer here

And listen back to full match commentaries on BBC Sounds:

• Brentford 1-0 Aston Villa

• Burnley 2-0 Sunderland

• Arsenal 5-0 Leeds

Timothy Abraham
BBC Sport Journalist

Image source, Getty Images

In contrast to Brentford's direct and up-and-at-them style Aston Villa were largely subdued at the Gtech Community Stadium - leaving Unai Emery with much to ponder.

When faced with a wall of Brentford players, Villa frequently passed the ball sideways or backwards.

Morgan Rogers fired just wide after a counter-attack, while Caoimhin Kelleher saved a low shot from John McGinn before the break.

But Villa had only two shots on target and most of their efforts were speculative at best.

Without real panache or intensity, Villa's endeavour in the final third – set-pieces aside - was snuffed out too easily by the Bees.

If you include the final game of last season, Villa have now gone three Premier League matches without scoring for the first time since July 2020 under Dean Smith.

They last failed to score a single goal across their opening two matches of a top-flight season in the 2002-03 campaign.

In truth, this all felt a little stale, considering Villa finished sixth last season, a whisker away from a Champions League spot.

They need new forward Evann Guessand, who showed a couple of nice touches on his debut, to get up to speed quickly.

Emery will also surely have his eye on at least one more new face to freshen things up before the transfer window closes on 1 September.

Unai Emery spoke to BBC Match of the Day after Aston Villa's defeat against Brentford: "We reacted well to going behind, we created chances but didn't score. There are some things tactically we need to improve. In the first half and second half we had chances to score. We had corners and we had a lot of crosses.

"Yes, it was a clear mistake [for the goal]. We are not like we want. Today we are very disappointed with the result."

On the possibility of more signings he added: "We are going to try and recover first mentally and continue working."

Did you know?

Aston Villa have failed to win either of their opening two games to a Premier League season for the first time since 2019-20, while they last failed to score a single goal across these two matches in 2002-03.

Listen to Emery's chat with BBC radio WM here

Whether you were at the game or following from elsewhere, we want to know what you learned.

Have your say on Brentford's performance

What did you make of Aston Villa's display?

Come back to this page on Monday to find a selection of your replies

Brentford boss Keith Andrews has handed a first start to Jordan Henderson as he makes four changes following their opening day defeat at Nottingham Forest.

Former Liverpool man Henderson starts in midfield while Mikkel Damsgaard, Kevin Schade and Dango Ouattara are also included.

Rico Henry, Fabio Carvalho, Antoni Milambo and Mathias Jensen all drop to the bench.

Striker Yoane Wissa is absent as speculation continues over his future.

Brentford XI: Kelleher, Van Den Berg, Henderson, Schade, Thiago, Yarmoliuk, Ouattara, Collins, Lewis-Potter, Damsgaard, Kayode

Subs: Valdimarsson, Hickey, Henry Jensen, Carvalho, Onyeka, Milambo, Ajer, Peart-Harris

Aston Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez returns to the starting line-up against the Bees.

The Argentina international missed their Premier League opener against Newcastle but starts in place of Marco Bizot, who kept a clean sheet against the Magpies on his debut.

Villa boss Unai Emery makes one other change with the suspended Ezri Konsa replaced in defence by Pau Torres.

Villa XI: Martinez, Digne, Mings, Torres, Cash, Onana, Kamara, Rogers, Tielemans, McGinn, Watkins

Subs: Bizot, Proctor, Buendia, Malen, Maatsen, Bogarde, Guessand, Rowe, Burrowes

There are five games in the Premier League on Saturday and BBC Sport will bring you every moment.

• Manchester City v Tottenham (12:30)

• Bournemouth v Wolves

• Brentford v Aston Villa - BBC Radio 5 Live

• Burnley v Sunderland - BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

• Arsenal v Leeds (17:30) - BBC Radio 5 Live

Kick-off times 15:00 BST unless stated

Follow all of the action and reaction here

Brentford under Keith Andrews were really disappointing in their opener, conceding after just a couple of minutes against Nottingham Forest. It doesn't bode well - in fact, I'm worried about Brentford.

They have lost all the goals of Bryan Mbeumo, while they have had this summer's problems with Yoane Wissa.

They still have battle-hardened players with Premier League experience, but they need that first win under their belt to get that real belief in their new head coach.

I thought Aston Villa were really stale against Newcastle. They were lucky to get a point, but I'm going to pick them to bounce back. I think Ollie Watkins will score against his old club.

Sutton's prediction: 1-2

Read the full predictions and have your say here

Image source, Getty Images

Aston Villa defender Alex Moreno has signed for La Liga side Girona for an undisclosed fee.

The 32-year-old was Unai Emery's first signing for the club when he moved to Villa Park from Real Betis for £13.2m in January 2023.

Moreno made 29 appearances in his first full season, including 21 in the Premier League as Villa finished fourth to qualify for the Champions League.

However, he spent last season on loan at Nottingham Forest having falling behind Ian Maatsen and Lucas Digne in the pecking order at Villa and now returns to his native Spain.

Alex Rice
BBC Sport journalist

Brentford host Aston Villa this weekend with both sides seeking a first win of the new campaign.

If you wanted to see goals last season, Brentford's Gtech Stadium was the place to be - 75 Premier League goals were scored there (3.9 per game), the most of any venue.

Brentford scored 40 of them, thanks largely to the outstanding form of top scorer Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa, who is Brentford's all-time leading scorer in the Premier League with 45 goals. With Mbeumo now at Manchester United and Wissa keen to move on, Bees fans may not be quite as spoilt this campaign.

Rookie Brentford boss Keith Andrews described his young side's display during last weekend's 3-1 defeat at Nottingham Forest as "naive", with Forest opening the scoring from a corner five minutes into the new season. The Bees conceded just three times from corners in the entirety of the 2024-25 Premier League campaign when Andrews was set-piece coach.

A consolation goal from Igor Thiago did at least keep Brentford out of the bottom three on goal difference, preserving their proud record of never having been in the Premier League relegation zone.

It was a deflating opening weekend – after a difficult summer – for Aston Villa, too. Unable to refresh the squad because of football's financial rules, they lacked any attacking spark during the goalless draw with Newcastle.

The absence of wingers and decision to push forward 2024-25 player of the season Youri Tielemans into a number 10 role meant Villa lacked guile, with their forward-thinking players starved of service. They failed to even attempt a shot in the first half, while their meagre expected goals tally of 0.20 was the lowest of any Premier League side.

However, manager Unai Emery has repeatedly found ways to get the best out of his Villa side and boasts the fourth-best record in the Premier League since his arrival in October 2022.

One of his immediate challenges will be to address his side's away form. Nine of Villa's 10 league defeats last season came on the road – a statistic that left them in the bottom half of that particular table.

They won away to Brentford though, with a goal from former Bees striker Ollie Watkins, and have scored in all eight meetings between the clubs.

Nicola Pearson
BBC Sport journalist

Aston Villa boss Unai Emery has been speaking to the media before Saturday's Premier League game against Brentford at Gtech Community Stadium (kick-off 15:00 BST).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Emery confirmed there were no new injuries after the draw with Newcastle, with goalkeeper Emi Martinez available again and defender Ezri Konsa suspended after his red card last weekend.

• On the absence of Konsa: "He is a very important player. But when we are playing four competitions this year, and hopefully more than 50 matches, we will have circumstances like we have now. Tomorrow, we have enough players and there are another three centre-backs."

• The Villa boss said players "were and are so, so friendly" with Jacob Ramsey, who was sold to Newcastle, after John McGinn and Tyrone Mings' social media comments about the sale: "I wish the best for him [Ramsey] in Newcastle. I really enjoyed the moment we had together. The players' emotions are more close to think about him leaving. When one player is leaving, we always have to accept for different circumstances."

• He added: "There is always three reasons for players when leaving. One is the club, second is the team and the third one is the players. We have to link those three circumstances – the wishes of the club, the wishes of the team and the wishes of the players. Or the needs of the club, players or team. Normally it is getting the objectives with two wishes rather than [just] one."

• On Leon Bailey, who joined Roma on loan this week: "Sometimes we were missing one right-winger. But when he was playing, he was not performing and we were missing something more. Bailey is a fantastic player and he left as he was thinking something [needed] to change for him, expecting better in his career. We extended his contract two years ago because he did fantastic, but last year he did not achieve same performances."

• Emery praised "mature" Morgan Rogers after his PFA Young Player award: "He is showing us as well he can lead playing, and he can lead even in the dressing room. He has the respect of every team-mate we have, and he has the respect as well of all the teams we are facing. Our level is increasing with him, through him - we are being better and we are stronger."

• On the transfer window: "We are involved in it, and the club is working hard to get our structure as strong as possible with the players in the squad, trying to get two players for each position. Still work to do."

Listen to BBC Radio 5 Live commentary of Brentford v Aston Villa on Saturday

Catch up on all of Friday's Premier League news conferences and the rest of the day's football news

On last night's WM Football Phone-In, BBC Radio WM's Aston Villa pundit Garry Thompson said the next step for the club is to prove they can win something - and it's time to take it.

Villa have reached a Conference League semi-final, a Champions League quarter-final and FA Cup semi-final under Unai Emery over the last two seasons - but a final-day defeat last season cost them another chance in the biggest European competition this time round.

Thompson says they've done very well under Unai Emery but they have to show they can win a trophy soon.

Listen to the show here

Unai Emery's summer business has been restricted by ensuring they stay within financial regulations, and it was with a heavy heart that talented local product Jacob Ramsey was sold to Newcastle United.

Emery still needs reinforcements in attack, hence talk of an interest in Chelsea's Nicolas Jackson, while recruits could arrive in midfield. Whether Villa would meet the suggested £60m price tag for the striker is another matter.

Marco Asensio made an impact on loan at Villa from Paris St-Germain last season, and even though he returned to France, there may be a resurrection of a deal before the deadline.

Read what Phil thinks every club in the Premier League needs

Image source, Aston Villa FC Website

Aston Villa have unvieled their third kit for the 2025-26 season.

A club statement says the kit is inspired by the stained glass windows which have been found at Villa Park since it first opened in 1897.

"We are delighted to present this unique third kit for 2025/26, which includes the adidas Trefoil logo for the first time," the club said.

"The stained glass windows are synonymous with Villa Park and are a unifying factor of the matchday experience for generations of fans. We are very pleased that adidas have brought their unique brilliance to life with this design."

Arsenal are weighing up an offer for England midfielder Morgan Rogers, 23, but Aston Villa will only entertain offers in the region of £80m. (Sun), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Thursday's full gossip column

Follow the gossip column on BBC Sport

Arsenal are weighing up an offer for England midfielder Morgan Rogers, 23, but Aston Villa will only entertain offers in the region of £80m. (Sun), external

Nottingham Forest are exploring the possibility of reuniting with 28-year-old Poland and Aston Villa defender Matty Cash. (Athletic - subscription required), external

Aston Villa's Alex Moreno, 32, is on the verge of joining Girona after the Spanish left-back agreed to reduce his wages. (Athletic - subscription required), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Thursday's full gossip column

Follow the gossip column on BBC Sport

Mike Taylor
BBC Radio WM reporter

Image source, Getty Images

The lasting memory of an unproductive opening day may be the odd kinship that appears to have developed between Aston Villa and Newcastle - two clubs who have arrived at a similar status by different routes.

Both have proven potential to break into the top bracket of the Premier League and owners with the financial muscle to back their ambition.

And their fans united on Saturday to claim loudly that their clubs are being held back by the Premier League's Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR), designed to protect clubs from financial ruin.

Those fans might say that last sentence is contentious, since the very point many of them have made is that the only protecting being done by PSR – and in Villa's case, Uefa's Squad Cost Rules too – is of the established wealthy giants from the perceived nouveau riche like Villa and Newcastle.

And how bizarre that we should be considering clubs with such proud histories as Villa and Newcastle as some kind of insurgent anyway.

Yet it is hard to argue that football does not need some sort of financial control when so many clubs have ended up in trouble - and in extreme cases, ended altogether.

Whether there is a fairer method is a debate likely to outlive both you and me. But if the current system appears to make a transfer like Jacob Ramsey's move to Newcastle more likely, a rethink may be necessary.

Ramsey, an authentic local boy done good, represents "pure profit" for Villa. Unai Emery and his colleagues only ever spoke glowingly of him.

Ramsey himself obviously revelled in playing for the club that nurtured him since just after he started school, and he deserves a warm reception whenever he plays at Villa Park in future.

Should he feel any homesickness, his new club will understand – in another parallel between the sides, Newcastle sold Elliot Anderson, apparently for similar reasons, last year.

Ramsey and Anderson will both prosper. They may play together for England one day.

Perhaps this sort of transfer is caused not by the rules themselves, but the way clubs choose to observe them. We can debate that.

But for now, it may be that the best way for a young player to have a long career at their dream club, if they are in a position like Villa or Newcastle, is to join somebody else's academy first.

"It works from an accounting point of view," said football finance expert Kieran Maguire on these pages this week. "But it's absolutely awful from a footballing perspective."

Villa fans might well agree.

Listen to full commentary of Brentford v Aston Villa at 15:00 on Saturday on BBC Radio WM DAB Birmingham/Freeview 714

And tune into The West Midlands Football Phone-In from 18:00 on weeknights

Explore Aston Villa content on BBC Sounds

Image source, Getty Images

We asked for your views on the departure of Leon Bailey to Roma in a loan deal.

Here are some of your comments:

Prit: Sad to see Bailey go, especially for the woefully low fee of £1.7m. I think the combination of Diaby and Bailey was very productive, but when Diaby went Bailey sadly lost his form. I hope he does well at Roma but it leaves Villa woefully short, especially as we had to sell Ramsey to satisfy the altar of PSR. Time for Villa to think very creatively.

Martin: He has had his time at Villa. I found him to be frustrating at times when he had to try and beat a player two or three times before attempting to pass or cross a ball. Good player but I don't think he will be missed.

Miles: Good riddance. He was the same as every right winger we buy. Traore, Diaby, Bailey. Fast but erratic. No control over the ball. Not good enough.

Shak: I fully expect Bailey to be back at Villa next summer. Italian clubs are ridiculous with loaning players with "options" to buy that they never intend to take up. That being said, if it gets his wages, or some of them, off the books for this season and helps against the FA and Uefa rules - which are a joke by the way - then it is what it is.

Paul: We know he can be devastating but since Diaby left he's rarely shown it. I expect they will have the loan then he will come back and Villa will be left with another unwanted player past his peak. Thanks for your efforts Leon.

Mossy: For me no issues with Bailey going - a very talented player but so delicate. Very injury prone and just not consistent enough. Glimpses of brilliance but Villa need more robust players who can give it all season long.

Image source, Getty Images

Aston Villa have confirmed winger Leon Bailey has joined Roma on a season-long loan deal with an option to buy.

Bailey joined Villa in the summer of 2021 from Bayer Leverkusen and has made a total of 144 appearances, scoring 22 goals.

The Jamaican international helped Villa to the quarter-finals of the Champions League last season, scoring and registering an assist in the last-16 tie against Club Brugge.

Bailey signed a new contract with Villa in February 2024 that runs until 2027.

He played a big role in Unai Emery's first two seasons in charge but found himself with limited game time in the second half of last season due to injury.

How do you feel about the transfer?

Get in touch with your views here