Villa still winless as ten-man Sunderland earn draw | OneFootball

Sunderland’s unbeaten home run stayed intact as Wilson Isidor’s composed finish earned a point against  Aston Villa after a 1-1 draw at the Stadium of Light.

The match swung dramatically in the first half when full-back Reinildo Mandava was shown a straight red card just after the half-hour mark for reacting angrily to a challenge with Matty Cash.

Down to ten men, the Black Cats were forced to reshuffle, but they showed plenty of grit to frustrate the visitors.

Villa began to make the extra player count after the break, though Sunderland nearly stunned them when Omar Alderete's towering header crashed off the bar.

Moments later, however, Unai Emery's side finally broke the deadlock in the 67th minute. Cash picked up a short corner and let fly from distance, his strike swerving past Robin Roefs to put the away side in front.

The lead didn’t last long. On 75 minutes, Granit Xhaka met a cross with a clever knockdown into Isidor’s path, and the Frenchman calmly slotted home to level the scores.

Villa pushed hard in the closing stages, with substitute Harvey Elliott dragging a shot just wide and Cash again testing his range, but Sunderland dug in through a nervy stoppage-time spell to secure a share of the spoils.

The result means Régis Le Bris's men have now collected eight points from their opening five fixtures, while Villa sit in the bottom three, their winless run stretching to five matches.

Incidents: The story of the match

1':

The match begins

13':

Missed opportunity! Wilson Isidor from Sunderland attempted a header from the center of the penalty area but couldn't convert.

33':

Opportunity wasted. Chris Rigg from Sunderland took a right-footed shot from the middle of the penalty area...

33':

Red Card for Reinildo Mandava (Sunderland)

Reinildo Mandava has now picked up 0 red in the competition (5 matches)

41':

Opportunity wasted! Emiliano Buendía from Aston Villa takes a left-footed shot from outside the penalty area, but it sails over the crossbar.

45 +2':

Missed opportunity! Dan Ballard from Sunderland attempted a header from outside the penalty area, but it went wide. The assist came from Noah Sadiki.

46':

Opportunity wasted! John McGinn from Aston Villa takes a left-footed shot from outside the penalty area, but it sails over the crossbar.

47':

Opportunity wasted. John McGinn from Aston Villa takes a left-footed shot from outside the penalty area, but it sails over the goal.

49':

Missed opportunity! Chemsdine Talbi from Sunderland takes a left-footed shot from the left side of the penalty area, but it sails high and wide to the right.

49':

Missed opportunity. Chemsdine Talbi from Sunderland attempts a left-footed shot from the left side of the penalty area, but it goes over the bar and to the right.

64':

Missed opportunity! Wilson Isidor from Sunderland took a right-footed shot from just a few meters out following a corner, but it narrowly missed the target.

Aston Villa takes the lead against Sunderland with a score of 1-0. Matty Cash scores with a powerful right-footed shot from outside the penalty area, sending the ball to the top center of the net. The assist came from Boubacar Kamara following a corner kick.

67':

GOAL Aston Villa: Matty Cash (Aston Villa) scores!

Matty Cash scores goal number 1 in the competition (5 matches)

It's now Sunderland 1, Aston Villa 1. Wilson Isidor scores for Sunderland, firing a right-footed shot from the center of the box into the left corner of the net. The assist comes from Granit Xhaka, who set him up with a header.It's now Sunderland 1, Aston Villa 1. Wilson Isidor scores for Sunderland, firing a right-footed shot from the center of the penalty area into the bottom left corner. The assist comes from Granit Xhaka, who set him up with a header.

75':

GOAL Sunderland: Wilson Isidor (Sunderland) scores!

Wilson Isidor scores goal number 3 in the competition (5 matches)

83':

Missed opportunity! Harvey Elliott from Aston Villa took a left-footed shot from the center of the box, but it went just wide to the left. The assist came from Donyell Malen.

998':

The referee whistles for the end of the match