Aston Villa 1-1 Leeds: Tammy Abraham grabs equaliser for hosts after Anton Stach goal of the season contender
Report and free match highlights as Anton Stach nets goal of the season contender for Leeds; Tammy Abraham levelled matters for Aston Villa
Saturday 21 February 2026 18:39, UK
Tammy Abraham sprang from the bench to net a late leveller for Aston Villa to cancel out Anton Stach's stunning free-kick in a 1-1 draw.
The visitors roared into the lead courtesy of Stach's sumptuous effort from 35 yards that completely caught out Emi Martinez in what was one of the goals of the season.
Lukas Nmecha almost doubled Leeds' advantage with his first contribution off the bench when he dived to meet a fantastic cross from Jayden Bogle but Martinez got across well to stop his header from making it 2-0.
And that Martinez save proved to be crucial.
Apart from a spell of pressure before the break where Ollie Watkins put one straight at Karl Darlow and Amadou Onana's point-blank effort was saved by the Leeds keeper, Villa had barely threatened.
However, Abraham managed to loop home a flicked finish from a set piece to snatch the home side a point. Villa have now won 19 points from losing positions in the Premier League this season, more than any other team.
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Since the start of December, Leeds have now lost just two of their 14 Premier League games as their resurgence under Daniel Farke continues to impress.
Leeds remain in 15th place after picking up a point and, despite missing an opportunity for maximum points, Unai Emery's side actually maintained their advantage in third on the team in fourth because Chelsea could only draw at home to Burnley.
Emery calls for perspective after Leeds draw
Aston Villa boss Unai Emery said:
"We can see it in two ways. One way is losing two points at home.
"How we were feeling here, so, so strong, it was so difficult for teams to get points here, beaten the best teams in the league, Arsenal and Man City.
"Now, four matches at home. We won against Brighton but Everton and Brentford we lost and we draw.
"And then there is overall, how we are in the table after 27th match [in Premier League]. We can analyse it all.
"In minute 90, we were thinking to get two more points. After 10 minutes, the only objective was to win. Accept this point was a good point. Keep going forward, improving.
"The Premier League is very difficult but we are third. The objective is clear, focus each match. Now, we are third with 51 points. Next step, Wolverhampton."
Asked to explain the dip in their home form, Emery added: "Sometimes we were performing like now but winning. Maybe because we were more clinical, energy was full, we were excited. Now we are trying to recover our energy, our mood. I am happy with how we are reacting.
"We beat Brighton and we draw today. It is not bad."
Farke praises 'warriors' after draw at Villa
Leeds boss Daniel Farke said:
"It is crazy that you travel away as a Premier League promoted side to one of the title contenders, one of the best teams in this country and also in Europe, and you are slightly disappointed with just one point.
"But it's the overall feeling. You concede so late and get a chance to score the second goal in the second half. And also keep in mind the goal was avoidable and there was also a second phase out of the corner kick in the 89th minute.
"You feel, of course, in the first moment a bit disappointed. But I have to say my warriors today deserve all the praise and lots of compliments. It's a really good point for us and another top performance.
"We came so close, really, to win all three, but the moment of disappointment, I have to say, is another really valuable point."
Analysis: Bailey's struggles sums up Villa's edginess
Sky Sports' Adam Bate:
Leon Bailey and Emery had made all the right noises about the winger's return to the fold after his unsuccessful loan move to Roma came to an end last month. But on his first Premier League start since coming back to Aston Villa, he struggled badly.
There were jeers when Bailey was substituted with Villa a goal down and though they managed to claim a draw that extends their advantage over the team in fourth to six points, the situation with Bailey highlights the challenge for Emery.
With Emi Buendia another who had previously been out on loan but now counting as a starter for Villa, the manager is making a habit of reintegrating players. Tammy Abraham and Douglas Luiz have both returned to the club on loan in the winter transfer window.
It has given Villa some depth, Abraham coming off the bench to equalise. No team in the Premier League has picked up more points from losing positions. But on this evidence, Villa must now focus on holding off those below rather than chasing a title.
The home form has dipped alarmingly, winning just two of their last six games at Villa Park, and there was an edginess in the crowd, never more evident than when Bailey was losing the ball. It is going to be a scramble to hold onto this Champions League place.
Analysis: Hard to beat Leeds are wonderfully robust
Sky Sports' Lewis Jones:
Leeds are not the great entertainers of the Premier League. They won't seduce you with 30-pass sequences or produce artistic patterns of play. What they will do, however, is give you 90 minutes of clarity. Of structure and purpose.
And right now, that is proving incredibly difficult to stop. Just two defeats in 14 Premier League matches tells its own story. In a division that chews up momentum and spits it out without warning, that kind of consistency is not an accident. As Villa found out, when Leeds drop into a mid-block, it's compact and stubborn. When they go after you, it's coordinated and sharp.
And they possess players with game-changing quality like Stach, whose free-kick from 35 yards was a special moment.
Farke has played a blinder to construct a team of such robustness. One which could end up surviving quite comfortably based their consistency.
