Aston Villa finally found their scoring touch, cruising to a 4-0 victory over Bournemouth at Villa Park to move into seventh place in the Premier League.
The win also lifted their season goal tally to 13 as they asserted early dominance over their visitors.
Bournemouth suffered an early blow when captain Adam Smith was forced off after a head clash with teammate Tyler Adams, disrupting the team’s rhythm from the outset.
Villa took full advantage, with Emi Buendia opening the scoring before halftime with a spectacular free-kick that left the visitors reeling.
Shortly before the break, Amadou Onana doubled the lead, firing a crisp strike past Djordje Petrovic to mark his first goal of the season.
Villa maintained control after the restart, while Bournemouth showed signs of life, with Evanilson hitting the post from a corner.
Their best chance to turn the game around came from the penalty spot, but Antoine Semenyo’s effort was brilliantly saved by Emi Martinez following a handball incident involving Morgan Rogers.
Villa capitalized on Bournemouth’s missed opportunity, with substitute Ross Barkley adding a third soon after coming on by glancing in a corner.
The rout was completed late when Donyell Malen’s deflected effort from Youri Tielemans’ long-range strike sealed a comfortable four-goal triumph.
The victory marked Villa’s fifth win in six league matches, closing the gap to second-placed Chelsea to just two points.
Meanwhile, Bournemouth’s struggles continued as they slipped to ninth following back-to-back defeats, having started the weekend in third place.
