Premier League, Round 8Aston VillaAST 2 1 Full Time Manchester CityMCI Venue Villa Park Referee Peter BankesNicolas Jackson 6Nicolas Jackson 60 Erling Haaland 52Manchester Citys perfect start to the Premier League season came to and end as they were beaten 2-1 by in-form Aston Villa. Nicolas Jackson scored either side of an Erling Haaland header to give Unai Emerys side a memorable win their first of the campaign and inflict a first defeat in the league for City boss Enzo Maresca. The result opens the door for defending champions Arsenal to move level on points with City if they can beat Everton later today.Meanwhile, for Villa, the result means the West Midlanders move up to sixth and have now won seven of their last nine matches in all competitions. Jackson strikes earlyA frantic opening saw Villa break the deadlock after just six minutes when John McGinn pounced on a heavy touch from Marc Guehi before finding Jackson. The Senegal international took the ball into the box, skipped beyond the sliding Elliot Anderson, before blasting the ball high into the roof of the net. City were stunned. Amid a raucous home crowd at Villa Park, Marescas men struggled to establish a foothold in the game. However, the league leaders still managed to carve out chances, the best coming courtesy of their brightest creative spark, Iliman Ndiaye, who rattled the post with a low drive. Ndiaye had earlier seen an effort palmed away impressively by Zion Suzuki in the Villa goal, while, at the other end, Jackson dragged a shot wide. An electric second half After an underwhelming first 45, Maresca made two changes at the break, replacing Guehi and Rayan Cherki with Rico Lewis and Phil Foden, fresh from scoring a hat-trick in midweek. It took just eight minutes after the restart for City to draw level, and it came from a familiar source. From Ndiayes free-kick out wide, Haaland rose highest to direct a firm header past Suzuki. The Villa keeper was called into action to prevent City completing the comeback moments later, when he saved well from Josko Gvardiol at close range. With the visitors on top, Jeremy Doku, who was largely kept quiet by an impressive Matty Cash, bent an effort the wrong side of the post before the hosts delivered a sucker punch on the hour mark. After a sweeping counter, substitute Ibrahim Mbayes first action of the game saw him race down the right before cutting the ball back to Jackson who rifled a first-time shot that squirmed under Gianluigi Donnarumma, who perhaps should have done better. It proved to be the decisive moment of the match. Villa saw out the game to become the first team to take points off City in the league this season. Aston Villa Manchester City 2 Goals 1 0.6 xG 1.53 37% Possession 63% 8 Total Shots 15 2 Shots on Target 7 3 Shots off Target 4 4 Corners 7 21 Fouls 17 1 Offsides 2 4 Yellow Cards 4 6 Saves 0 314 Passes 527 254 Passes Completed 471 81% Pass Accuracy 89% Home Away The Premier League Table Premier League 2026 England #TeamPlayedWonDrawnLostGFGAGDPtsLast 5 1 Manchester City77001971221 L W W W W 2 Arsenal7601115618 W W L W W 3 Brighton75112351816 W W W W D 4 Chelsea74121713413 W W L D L 5 Liverpool733198112 W L W D W 6 Brentford7241138510 L D W D D 7 Leeds724196310 D L D W D 8 Everton724187110 L D W D D 9 Ipswich83141216-410 D L W L W 10 Hull City72328719 L D L D D 11 Newcastle72231014-48 L L W L D 12 Aston Villa7223711-48 W W D W L 13 Manchester United7142101007 D D D L D 14 Crystal Palace7214917-87 L W D L W 15 Bournemouth7133913-46 W L L D D 16 Tottenham7133610-46 W D L D D 17 Nottingham Forest8134610-46 D L L L W 18 Coventry7205614-86 L W W L L 19 Fulham7124710-35 W L D D L 20 Sunderland7115614-84 L L L L D Position 1, 2, 3, 4 : Promotion Champions League (League phase) Position 5 : Promotion Europa League (League phase) Position 18, 19, 20 : Relegation Championship Upcoming fixtures for Aston Villa and Manchester City Upcoming Fixtures : Aston Villa League Cup Bournemouth BOU 19:45 2026-10-28 Aston Villa AST Premier League Aston Villa AST 20:00 2026-10-31 Fulham FUL UEFA Champions League Barcelona BAR 20:00 2026-11-03 Aston Villa AST Premier League Manchester United MUN 15:00 2026-11-07 Aston Villa AST Premier League Aston Villa AST 15:00 2026-11-21 Sunderland SUN Upcoming Fixtures : Manchester City League Cup Manchester City MCI 19:30 2026-10-28 Brighton BRI Premier League Manchester City MCI 15:00 2026-10-31 Brighton BRI UEFA Champions League RB Leipzig LEI 20:00 2026-11-04 Manchester City MCI Premier League Nottingham Forest NOT 15:00 2026-11-07 Manchester City MCI Premier League Manchester City MCI 15:00 2026-11-21 Fulham FUL Topics Aston Villa F.C. Manchester City F.C. If you enjoy reading this article, you can help support our independent football journalism by adding 101 Great Goals as a preferred source You Should Also Read WATCH: Jackson gives Villa early advantage against Premier League leaders Lauren Lister 24th October, 2026 LIVE Aston Villa v Manchester City: Commentary, updates, goals and stats Jon Fisher 23rd October, 2026 Aston Villa v Manchester City: Confirmed line-ups as league leaders look to maintain perfect start Lauren Lister 24th October, 2026 Tip of the Day: City to edge Villa and Arsenal to beat Everton Lauren Lister 24th October, 2026 Unai Emery praises Enzo Marescas fantastic job at Manchester City ahead of Aston Villa clash Mitch Fretton 23rd October, 2026 Fantasy Premier League: Dump Semenyo and Saka ahead of Gameweek Eight Jon Fisher 23rd October, 2026
