Match Analysis: Sunderland 0-1 Aston Villa

Aston Villa got back to winning ways with a 1-0 win against Sunderland in the Premier League.

With 15 minutes gone, Gabriel Agbonlahor pounced on a mistake by Lee Cattermole before rounding Vito Mannone to put his team 1-0 ahead.

Despite dominating possession, Sunderland were unable to find a way through the Villa defence.

Below, Sports Mole takes a look back at the action from the ​Stadium of Light.

Match statistics:

Sunderland: Shots 17 On target 1 Possession 65% Corners 10 Fouls 8

Aston Villa: Shots 13 On target 5 Possession 35% Corners 2 Fouls 11

Was the result fair?

Based on possession and chances created, probably not. However, Villa were strong in defence and always a threat on the counter-attack, particularly when Gabriel Agbonlahor was on the ball. Their goal came after a terrible mistake by Cattermole, but overall Sunderland should have got at least a point.

Sunderland's performance

Gus Poyet will be delighted with the amount of possession that his players had and they did cause Villa plenty of problems, before and after Agbonlahor's goal. However, they failed to make the most of their opportunities and paid the price for that. Poyet might also be concerned by some of the defending when Villa came forward in the second half, but the Black Cats were trying to force the equaliser. The main issue is a lack of goals.

Aston Villa's performance

Even though the goal was extremely fortunate, Villa can point to two great chances in the second half, and Agbonlahor was a danger throughout. Christian Benteke got better during the second half and the signs are promising as he looks to regain his form of last season. Villa also showed grit and determination to keep out their opponents.

Sports Mole's man of the match

Gabriel Agbonlahor: Emanuele Giaccherini started strongly for Sunderland, but Agbonlahor caused the home defence trouble all afternoon. He grabbed the winning goal and worked hard for his team.

Biggest gaffe

There wasn't any danger when Valentin Roberge played a pass across goal 30 yards out, but Cattermole got his feet in a muddle and failed to control the ball. Agbonlahor ran on to it and rounded Mannone.

Referee performance

On a few occasions Michael Jones was called into action to lower the temperature of some players, particularly when Agbonlahor caught Ki Sung-Yueng in the face. Sunderland also appealed for a penalty after believing that the ball had struck a Villa hand, but Jones wasn't convinced. He got most decisions right, so his exam paper gets marked with a B.

What next?

Sunderland: Poyet's men host Carlisle in the FA Cup third round and Manchester United in the League Cup semi-final first leg, before making the trip to Fulham in the Premier League on Saturday, January 11.

Aston Villa: Villa have Sheffield United in the FA Cup and then welcome Arsenal to Villa Park on Monday, January 13.