Thierno Barry on target as Everton dent Aston Villa’s Premier League title hopesBy Jonathan Veal, Press AssociationAston Villa’s Premier League title ambitions suffered a damaging blow as an 11-game home winning streak ended with a 1-0 defeat to Everton. Villa could have cut the gap on leaders Arsenal to four points with victory at fortress Villa Park but they were undone by Thierno Barry’s second-half strike. Everton became the first team to win at Villa Park since August and they are just four points behind city rivals Liverpool – who currently occupy fourth position – and are also in contention for European contention. Everton threatened with Vitaliy Mykolenko forcing Martinez into a strong save with a shot from distance. With nothing to turn to from the bench, they ran out of ideas and Everton enjoyed the rare treat of an away win at Villa Park.

Source: Irish Independent January 18, 2026 19:26 UTC