Bailey, Antonio score as Villa, Hammers win

LONDON, England (CMC):

Reggae Boys Leon Bailey and Michail Antonio both scored their first goals of the new English Premier League season as their respective clubs, Aston Villa and West Ham, both pulled off stunning victories yesterday.

Winger Bailey netted in the 51st minute as Villa pummelled bottom-of-the-table Everton 4-0 at Villa Park after leading 2-0 at the break.

At London Stadium, meanwhile, Antonio produced an absolute gem in the 53rd minute, helping the Hammers upset a rejuvenated Chelsea, 3-1, and keep them winless under new manager Mauricio Pochettino.

David Moyes’s side were in front after only seven minutes when Morrocan international Nayef Aguerd rose unmarked at the far post to head in James Ward-Prowse’s corner.

Chelsea managed to equalise through 19-year-old Carney Chukwuemeka in the 28th minute and should have been 2-1 up at the half-time break but for Enzo Fernandez’s penalty miss in the 43rd after Man-of-the-Match Raheem Sterling had been brought down in the box.

Antonio then turned the contest on its head, eight minutes after the break, when he got on to the end of Ward-Prowse pass, turned French centre back Axel Disasi, and fired a low shot past goalkeeper Robert Sanchez from just inside the 18-yard box.

“It was a very difficult game. Obviously, Chelsea are an unbelievable team – they play some quality football,” said Antonio, who featured for Jamaica last month at the Concacaf Gold Cup in North America.

“They had a lot of possession, so there was definitely a lot of running off the ball and not much on it, so it was definitely a difficult game, and to be the lone striker up there is a lot of grafting on your own, but we’re buzzing – three points, we go again.”

West Ham were reduced to 10 men in the 67th when Aguerd was sent off for a second yellow, but the hosts held on grimly, Manchester City target Lucas Paqueta adding insult to injury deep in stoppage time with a well-taken penalty.

Midfielder Moises Caicedo, on debut following his 100 million pounds move from Brighton last week, brought down Emerson Palmieri, and Paqueta sent Sanchez the wrong way.

In the West Midlands, captain John McGinn’s close-range finish in the 18th put Villa ahead before goalkeeper Jordan Pickford brought Ollie Watkins down in the box and Douglas Luiz converted the resulting penalty in the 24th.

Sailing at the break, Villa compounded Everton’s misery when the 26-year-old Bailey, who also featured for the Reggae Boyz at the recent Gold Cup, stroked home a calm finish from 10 yards after the visitors failed to clear a loose ball.

Jhon Duran, on the field for only seconds as a 74th-minute substitute, then capitalised on another defensive error to add a fourth for Villa in the 75th.

The win for Villa was a crucial one following their 5-1 thumping away to Newcastle in their season-opener last week.