BIRMINGHAM: Aston Villa’s Micah Richards (left) scores his side’s first goal of the game against Watford during the English Premier League match at Villa Park yesterday. — AP

BIRMINGHAM: Rock-bottom Aston Villa were beaten 3-2 by an Odion Ighalo inspired Watford yesterday and have just five points after a deflating 11th defeat in 14 Premier League games. Villa’s recently-installed boss Remi Garde oversaw a draw with Manchester City in his first game in charge before last week’s 4-0 thumping at Everton. Watford’s Spanish coach Quique Sanchez Flores seems to have instilled a vibrant feelgood factor in his charges, who have now notched up 19 points from 14 games. Their 26-year-old Nigerian striker Odion Ighalo was the man of the match as he scored one and had a hand in Watford’s other two goals. First he took his season’s tally to eight on 17 minutes when a loose ball fell to him eight yards out and he stroked it past Brad Guzan in the Villa goal.

Former Manchester City defender Micah Richards bagged an equalizer for Villa just before the break with a glancing header after he rose to meet a deep free kick. Play was held up for six minutes as Watford ‘keeper Heurelho Gomes was stretchered off after a nasty head collision with his own defender Craig Cathcart. But an Alan Hutton own goal put Watford back in front as play restarted on 69 minutes when he toe-poked the ball past his own ‘keeper in a desperate attempt to stop the ball rolling to Ighalo to make it 2-1. The Nigerian was in the thick of the third goal too, swiveling before lashing in a shot from the edge of the area that Richards blocked before the onrushing Troy Deeney headed powerfully home to make it 3-1 for the visitors. Ghana international Jordan Ayew then curled in a peach of a consolation goal late in the game to peg it back to 3-2.— AFP