Craig Gardner was the hero as West Bromwich Albion beat 10-man Aston Villa 1-0 at The Hawthorns today for their first victory in five Premier League outings.
Kieran Richardson's red card after just 22 minutes gave the visitors a mountain to climb, but the Villans repelled wave after wave of attack to earn half-time parity.
However, Gardner - a former Villa player - popped up on 72 minutes to tap home from close range as the Baggies secured their first win since November 1.
Here, Sports Mole takes a look at how West Brom earned their elusive fourth win of the season, against their local rivals.
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Match statistics
WEST BROMWICH ALBION
Shots: 11
On target: 6
Possession: 48%
Corners: 4
Fouls: 11
ASTON VILLA
Shots: 5
On target: 2
Possession: 52%
Corners: 2
Fouls: 15
Was the result fair?
It's very difficult to argue that Aston Villa, with two shots on target in 90 minutes, deserved anything more than a sound defeat based on the above stats. Paul Lambert's side did defend remarkably well for the most part, but, overall, the result was just about fair.
Ebenezer Scrooge would have found it hard to begrudge West Brom what was a very hard-fought victory. They kept asking questions of Villa's defence and their patience was rewarded this afternoon with a huge win.
West Bromwich Albion's performance
Manager Alan Irvine tested the adage of 'fortune favours the bold' this afternoon by dropping top goalscorer Saido Berahino for Brown Ideye, who is yet to score a Premier League goal since becoming Albion's record signing in the summer. Did the gamble pay off? No. The £10m man endured an anonymous first half, before spurning two glorious chances to break the deadlock in the second.
Despite the best efforts of Stephane Sessegnon, the Baggies fashioned next to nothing in the final third throughout a rather uninspiring first-half display. Things picked up a little in the second, and the hosts grew more threatening as the minutes ticked on, before eventually breaking the deadlock on 72 minutes. However, this victory need not have been so laborious had Irvine stuck with the tried-and-tested Berahino.
It was a massive three points for a team who had only won once in their last nine games, but the manner of the victory does not inspire confidence that Irvine remains the right man to lead West Brom's ascent up the table.
Aston Villa's performance
It is difficult to gauge Villa's overall performance considering that they played with a major handicap for well over an hour, with Richardson's red card on 22 minutes giving them a mountain to climb. Despite this, they made it to half time without ever really looking like conceding, which is testament to how solid they were at the back, with Ciaran Clark and Jores Okore particularly impressive in the heart of their defence.
It was more of the same in the second half, but West Brom were growing stronger with each attack, and, for all of Villa's heroic defending, it was an error from goalkeeper Brad Guzan that ultimately undermined the team and the efforts of those four players in front of him.
Sports Mole's man of the match
Stephane Sessegnon: Clark deserves a mention for his performance in Villa's rearguard, but it is hard to look past Sessegnon, who was West Brom's heartbeat from the first minute to the last. It would have been a major injustice had he not been on the winning side this afternoon.
First, the Benin international won the free kick which led to Richardson's dismissal, which initially looked to have seriously injured him, but Sessegnon dusted off the challenge and continued to be a menace in Villa's half. He gave left-back Aly Cissokho a constant headache throughout the 90 minutes and found himself equally effective when drifting infield at times in the second half.
Gardner will make the headlines, while Berahino deserves credit for an extremely positive impact, but Sessegnon, perhaps the smallest player on the field, was head and shoulders above the rest.
Biggest gaffe
It just has to be Richardson. The ex-Manchester United man had to wait two months to earn another Premier League start, and it lasted just 22 minutes as he overran possession before going through Sessegnon for a shortcut, and was correctly sent off for the challenge. It was a moment of brutal stupidity that significantly jeopardised his side's chances of a third straight victory, and he might just be waiting a little longer than two months for his next starting berth.
Referee performance
The spotlight was quickly on Mike Dean this afternoon as the official was forced to make a decision over Richardson's rash challenge on Sessegnon. Did he get it right? Absolutely. Richardson overran the ball and sent Sessegnon flying with a really dangerous tackle that could have ended the 30-year-old's afternoon and worse. Dean had no choice.
The veteran referee did miss what looked a certain penalty later on in that half, with the assistant equally as culpable for missing that incident because he would have had a better sight of it than Dean. Overall, it was a very fine refereeing performance.
What next?
West Bromwich Albion: Irvine and company face a tricky trip to Queens Park Rangers next Saturday.
Aston Villa: The Villans also have a tough match to prepare for next week as they host Manchester United at Villa Park.
Shane Callaghan
