The clinching moment at Villa Park arrived two minutes from time. With Aston Villa leading 2-1 on 24 October 2026, Erling Haaland rose unmarked to meet a cross and sent a header toward goal. Ian Maatsen was on the line to clear it a yard off the line, finishing a performance that had already helped drag Nicolas Jackson’s double over the line.
Jackson had struck twice. An early Marc Guehi error teed up his opener, and his second squirmed under Gianluigi Donnarumma just after the hour. Haaland’s header had briefly levelled it. It was Enzo Maresca’s first Premier League defeat since returning to Manchester City, snapping a run of seven straight league wins.
‘A wonderful footballer’
The loudest verdict on Villa’s left-back came from Tony Cascarino. The former Ireland striker put the Dutchman some distance ahead of the man he has effectively succeeded at Villa Park.
“Maatsen on the left side is a wonderful footballer. He’s better than Digne for me, by a long way,” Cascarino said, according to Aston Villa News.
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Lucas Digne had been Villa’s first-choice left-back for most of three seasons under Unai Emery before joining Paris Saint-Germain in the summer. Cascarino’s point was that Villa have replaced him and gained ground in the process.
The Chelsea pickup pays off
Maatsen arrived from Chelsea in 2024, a few weeks after a loan spell at Borussia Dortmund that reached the Champions League final. His first season at Villa was fitful, with Digne ahead of him in the pecking order. The Digne sale cleared the path, and this is now his shirt.
Emery still measuring the climb
Villa rose to sixth with the win, their first home league victory of the season. Unai Emery was careful not to overread it.
“We are progressing, but we are under our expectation from the beginning of the season because we started so poorly,” the Spaniard said after the match.
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He left no doubt where Villa are aiming.
“The objective is to compete with these teams, City and Arsenal,” Emery said.
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