Phillips goal sees Villa through
Kevin Phillips' goal sent Aston Villa through 1-0 against Burnley.
Aston Villa avenged their 3-1 defeat to Burnley at the same stage last season by beating the Championship side 1-0 at Villa Park.Kevin Phillips' goal mid-way through the first half sealed the victory in what was a disappointing spectacle which produced few chances for either side.
With no urgency and passes going astray, the game failed to produce the quality expected from the Premiership side and in the end, one goal was enough for Villa.
The game started slowly, with the home side having the majority of the possession whilst Burnley were mainly taking the high route, with Ade Akinbiyi the only real outlet for the Championship side.
The Villa Park crowd sparked into life after 22 minutes when the home side took the lead with the first real chance of the match, Phillips linking up well with James Milner to slot home past Brain Jensen in the Burnley goal.
Chances were few and far between during the first half with the game seemingly being played in first gear.
With the Premiership side dominating possession, the home fans would have hoped for them to create more chances, however poor quality at the vital point meant there were very few opportunities for the second.
In a second half of very few chances, only a deflected Mark Delaney cross brought any sort of chance. His ball eventually fell to Gareth Barry, but his far post shot from a tight angle went wide.
Luke Moore had the best chance to double Villa's lead late on when his shot was tipped round the post by Jensen, but the chances were at a premium as Villa comfortably held on to go into the fourth round of the Carling Cup.
| Aston Villa | Team Statistics | Burnley |
| 1 | Goals | 0 |
| 1 | 1st Half Goals | 0 |
| 3 | Shots on Target | 1 |
| 4 | Shots off Target | 5 |
| 0 | Blocked Shots | 1 |
| 3 | Corners | 6 |
| 7 | Fouls | 14 |
| 6 | Offsides | 1 |
| 0 | Yellow Cards | 0 |
| 0 | Red Cards | 0 |
| 46.6 | Possession | 53.4 |
 | ||
