Summary

  • Liverpool: Mignolet, Can, Skrtel, Sakho, Clyne, Lucas, Milner, Moreno, Coutinho, Ings, Sturridge.

  • Aston Villa: Guzan, Hutton, Richards, Lescott, Amavi, Sanchez, Westwood, Gana, Grealish, Gestede, Sinclair.

Live Reporting

Emlyn Begley

  1. Derek Mountfield
    Former Aston Villa defender on BBC WM

    You can tell Villa’s confidence is low, they are not playing as a team, Villa’s attacks are not working. They are not supporting each other when they go forward, they are off the pace at the moment.

    Lucas LeivaReuters

  2. Get Involved

  3. Horrific by Scott Sinclair but he gets away with it, the Villa winger, who is back in a defensive position, tries to volley a long ball clear but he totally air-kicks it and Alberto Moreno, who is behind him, takes on a volley of his own from an angle but fails to score.

  4. Get Involved

  5. Milner involved at the start as well as the finish

    Liverpool 1-0 Aston Villa

    It is exaggerating things slightly to say James Milner (7) was involved at the very start and finish of that Liverpool goal, which involved 14 passes and saw the ball spread from right to left, but he played a one-two with Nathaniel Clyne (2) before running forward to score from a central position on the edge of the Villa area.

    Milner goalBBC Sport/Opta

  6. Emre Can finds Danny Ings on the edge of the box, the ex-Burnley man turns and shoots but his effort is a bit scuffed and rolls into the hands of Villa keeper Brad Guzan. 

    And seconds later James Milner plays a long ball to Ings, who fires over from 18 yards out.

  7. Villa have their first chance as Jack Grealish goes for a little dance down the left wing and he pulls it back for Jordan Amavi who crosses it into Rudy Gestede.

    The Villa striker absolutely dominates Mamadou Sakho but his header drops wide of Simon Mignolet's right post.

  8. Derek Mountfield
    Former Aston Villa defender on BBC WM

    Poor start from Villa - they stood off Liverpool’s runners and they’ve been punished and the way Liverpool are set up they will cause Villa a lot of problems.

  9. It's all Liverpool so far and Emre Can gets his head onto a free-kick but it's straight at keeper Brad Guzan. Villa have barely been past halfway.

  11. goal

    GOAL - Liverpool 1-0 Aston Villa

    James Milner

    How Brendan Rodgers needed that goal - although the Liverpool manager doesn't react.

    Philippe Coutinho finds James Milner centrally about 20 yards out and the England midfielder fires past Brad Guzan into the bottom corner.

    He used to play for Villa but does that stop him celebrating? No, it does not.

    James Milner scoresReuters

  12. KICK-OFF - Liverpool 0-0 Aston Villa

    As we get under way, here's a reminder of the line-ups.

    Liverpool: Mignolet, Can, Skrtel, Sakho, Clyne, Lucas, Milner, Moreno, Coutinho, Ings, Sturridge. Subs: Toure, Gomez, Lallana, Allen, Origi, Ibe, Bogdan. 

    Aston Villa: Guzan, Hutton, Richards, Lescott, Amavi, Sanchez, Westwood, Gana, Grealish, Gestede, Sinclair. Subs: Clark, Bacuna, Veretout, Ayew, Traore, Gil, Bunn.

  13. Both sets of players almost ready to go at Anfield. 

  14. 'It's not about Rodgers'

    Liverpool v Aston Villa (15:00 BST)

    Martin Keown
    Former Arsenal defender on BBC Final Score

    "Last week was a little bit better, but to fail to beat Carlisle - alarm bells are ringing. He's just got to go and win games and do his talking on the pitch. It's not about the manager, it's about the club and the players, doing the talking on the pitch. Win today and it will all be OK."  

  15. Match stats

    • Villa are unbeaten in their last four matches at Anfield and have lost just two of their last eight games at the ground.
    • Liverpool could go five league games without a win for the first time since doing so in Brendan Rodgers' first five games in charge in 2012.
    • Villa are winless in five league games for the first time under Tim Sherwood.
    • Four points is their lowest points tally after six matches since the 1986-87 season, when they were last relegated.
    • The home side has not won any of the last eight league fixtures between these clubs since Aston Villa beat Liverpool 1-0 at Villa Park in 2011.

  16. 'Fans only interested in wins'

    Tim SherwoodAP

    I believe that points tally-wise we haven't got what we have deserved this season. The performances have been encouraging with a new group of players. But it's about wins. I know the fans are interested in wins. They are not dissecting the game like I do every week.

    Aston Villa manager Tim Sherwood

  17. 'Gestede can destroy defenders'

    Trevor Sinclair
    Former England winger on BBC Radio 5 live

    Rudy GestedeAP

    "Rudy Gestede’s bread and butter is for his team to get the ball wide and into the box and he’ll score. His movement and the timing of his headers is great. 

    "Like John Hartson, he’s difficult to mark. On his day if he’s up for it, he will destroy any defender - the sheer size of this guy. 

    "But if you’re not playing that way then you’re losing a lot of his game."

  18. 'Grealish needs to track back'

    Chris Sutton
    Former Aston Villa striker on BBC Radio 5 live

    Jack GrealishGetty Images

    "Villa have a lot of good young players including Jack Grealish. They are very good with the ball, they can control games, but defensively Grealish doesn’t track back. That’s a problem for Villa. 

    "He has to learn that other side of the game. A lot of it is mental. In Spain, the big teams can leave the forwards up – but Villa aren’t Real Madrid. They need to have a structure when they lose the ball. 

    "It’s not just Grealish. Your system doesn’t matter, when you lose the ball you have to have a structure and players with a desire to get back."

  19. 'Good neighbours become good friends?'

    Aston Villa manager Tim Sherwood, who revealed he is neighbours with Brendan Rodgers with their Spanish properties, thinks the Liverpool boss could have gone on to manage Real Madrid had they won the title two seasons ago.

    After that season they finished second, if they'd won the league could they have kept hold of Brendan Rodgers? All of a sudden he doesn't turn into a bad manager, it's fine margins. We might have seen him at Real Madrid. He would have been the hottest property in football. He's paying the price for overachieving a couple of seasons ago.

    Aston Villa boss Tim Sherwood

  20. Tim Sherwood