Pressure on Bruce as Villa suffer
ASTON VILLA manager Steve Bruce is already under big pressure – just three games into the season.
After Saturday’s 3-0 defeat at Cardiff, Villa went down 2-1 at Reading to a Glenn Whelan own goal and a Modou Barrow strike.
Conor Hourihane pulled one back for Villa.
It could have been so different for Villa had Andre Green not shot tamely at Vito Mannone in a one-on-one situation only moments into this contest following Scott Hogan’s pass.
But Hogan soon went off injured and Reading exerted almost total control.
They really should have been ahead before the break with John Swift a whisker away from giving his side the lead from distance while Popa was denied twice in the space of a minute by impressive Sam Johnstone saves. Ryan Hedges lifted the early season concern around Barnsley and ended Nottingham Forest’s perfect start to the campaign with a superb second-half goal in a 2-1 victory.
The young Welsh winger beat Jordan Smith with a crisp strike into the far corner. Team-mate Matty Pearson had headed the hosts into a first-half lead.
On 26 minutes Forest’s Daryl Murphy continued his superb scoring record with an unstoppable header.
Jordan Spence extended Ipswich’s perfect startin a 4-3 win after Tom Elliott thought he had secured a point for Millwall. Elliott drew the home side level in the 80th minute, seven minutes after stepping off the bench. But Spence headed home from Grant Ward’s 88th minute free-kick to make it three wins from three league games for Mick McCarthy’s side – their best start since 1999.
Ollie Watkins and Neal Maupay combined to give Brentford’s a 2-1 lead against Bristol City.
But Bristol’s Josh Brownhill and Bobby Reid made it 2-2.
Britt Assombalonga netted in each half for Middlesbrough against Burton Albion and
A second-half Matej Vydra penalty gave Derby their first win of the season as a stubborn Preston side suffered a 1-0 defeat at Pride Park.
Alex Neil’s North End side went 238 minutes at the start of the season without conceding before Vydra beat goalkeeper Chris Maxwell from the spot 13 minutes after half-time.
And the visitors’ tenacity was on display again with Preston old-boy David Nugent denied brilliantly by Maxwell in the first half and defender Darnell Fisher with a sliding block in the second.
Preston captain Greg Cunningham conceded the crucial penalty when he wrestled with Curtis Davies at a corner and Derby’s new £7m signing Tom Lawrence, watching from the stands, saw Vydra cash in.
Birmingham dominated but struggled to break down stubborn Bolton in a game which ended goalless.
Leeds were held 0-0 by Fulham.