Malen hails Aston Villa character after ‘stressful’ Brighton win | OneFootball

Donyell Malen hailed Aston Villa’s character after the club’s thrilling 4-3 win at Brighton.

Villa’s impressive recent run looked in danger after falling two goals down to the Seagulls inside the opening half an hour. Ollie Watkins’ brace, the forward’s first goals in eight Premier League games, brought Villa back level before half-time.

Amadou Onana completed the comeback for the visitors before Malen netted a fourth to seal the win. A late effort from Brighton defender Jan Paul van Hecke set up a tense finish, but Villa held on to win a nine-goal thriller.

The win was Villa’s eighth in nine Premier League games, a run that has taken Unai Emery’s team up to third. Villa are just six points behind leaders Arsenal ahead of facing the table-topping Gunners this weekend.

“It was a big win,” Dutch forward Malen said.

“The first half was very difficult but we showed character and got an amazing win. It says a lot about this team to go 2-0 down and score two good goals and keep fighting. They played well as well, so it’s a very good result.

“They scored quite quickly after [the fourth goal] and it was very stressful at the end. The way we defended and the way we worked hard to keep pressing them and clear balls was amazing.

“If you want to do something in this league you have to beat this type of opponent and win these games. In the last two games we’ve shown a lot of character.”

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