Once the scoreline hit 4-2, the momentum of the match shifted entirely in favor of Aston Villa.
In the closing minutes, Everton's morale visibly plummeted, their body language showing total defeat.
Dean Smith pragmatically ordered his team to drop deep, reinstating a rigid defensive block that offered the visitors absolutely no way through.
The match concluded at 4-2, securing Aston Villa their third consecutive Premier League victory!
With this result, Villa remained second in the league table, but they had closed the goal difference gap with Manchester City to just a single goal.
This meant a win in their next fixture, provided they outscored Pep Guardiola's side by two goals, would place the newly promoted club at the absolute summit of the Premier League!
The Man of the Match award was handed to Theodore Bjorn once again.
With a goal and a hat-trick of assists, the teenager had unequivocally proven his class on the pitch.
In the post-match press room, Everton manager Marco Silva faced a hostile local press.
A reporter from the Birmingham Mail took the microphone.
"Marco, do you recall your comments from yesterday's press conference? Do you still believe Aston Villa's success is purely down to luck?"
Silva's expression darkened considerably.
He practically forced his response through gritted teeth. "I have nothing else to add. Villa won the match, so they will naturally receive the praise from the media and the fans. But I believe if we played that match ten times over, the outcome would be completely different."
Silva flatly refused to admit he was wrong, but the scoreboard spoke for itself.
His failure was absolute.
...
Within an hour of the final whistle, the English sporting press released their morning headlines, giving the match extensive coverage.
Sky Sports: "Villa Secure Third Straight Victory. Seventeen-year-old prodigy commands the midfield, registering three assists and a goal to sink Everton."
Daily Mail: "The Villa Miracle Continues. Promoted side thrashes Everton 4-2 at Villa Park."
The Times: "Aston Villa Make It Three From Three. Dean Smith's men sit second, trailing Manchester City on goal difference alone. Theodore Bjorn runs riot, formally introducing himself to the rest of the division with three incisive assists."
The Guardian: "A Shift in the Premier League Hierarchy? Led by a teenage Norwegian sensation, Villa dismantle Everton. Crystal Palace awaits. Can the Birmingham club maintain this red-hot form?"
Almost every major sports section highlighted Theodore's performance.
Online, the football community was in absolute overdrive.
@Pinkpussy: He is an absolute genius. Hate to admit it as a United fan, but Villa could genuinely push for top four with him pulling the strings.
@EPL_Stats: Been watching him since the Championship. 33 assists and 6 goals in one season. Lampard and Gerrard weren't doing that at seventeen.
@CityZen: We tabled a massive bid for him this summer and they rejected it. Hopefully, the board goes back in for him in January. Generational talent.
@GlobalFooty: Can someone clarify, is the Villa number 33 Asian or Norwegian? He plays like a future Ballon d'Or winner.
@VillaTillIDie: Replying to @GlobalFooty: He is Norwegian but of his father is chinese. Already capped for the Norway senior team in the Euro qualifiers.
@ThreeLionsFan: Absolute tragedy he isn't English. The national team is crying out for a creative midfielder like Bjorn!
Beyond the English media, social networks in China were equally abuzz.
Theodore's name dominated the trending charts across short-video platforms and sports forums.
In South Korea, the sports community was flooded with comments, largely spilling over from the opening day clash with Tottenham.
A significant number of South Korean fans had tuned into the Villa broadcast to monitor the player who had rivaled their national captain.
Korean fan 1: Son was defeated by a Chinese-Norwegian teenager? This is completely unacceptable.
Korean fan 2: Tottenham losing to a promoted side with that kid running the show is a total disgrace.
Korean fan 3: Pochettino needs to be sacked. He set the team up to fail and ruined Son's opening day.
Korean fan 4: Even though Spurs lost, Son's individual performance was still brilliant. He didn't lose his personal battle against the Villa kid.
..
Theodore ignored the media circus entirely.
After boarding the team bus and returning to Birmingham, he received a flood of congratulatory texts from his friends, including Reba, and the Norwegian princess.
He politely replied to each, but to maintain his physical conditioning, he headed straight back to his empty villa and went to sleep, cutting out all nightlife.
Jack Grealish, however, was his polar opposite.
While Theodore recovered in bed, Grealish was out celebrating at a Birmingham nightclub until the early hours of the morning.
Unsurprisingly, the Villa captain missed the recovery session the following day.
Dean Smith barely reacted, the manager was already thoroughly accustomed to Grealish's extracurricular habits.
Aston Villa's next test was Crystal Palace.
Palace had finished twelfth the previous season.
They opened the current campaign with a goalless draw against Everton and an away loss to Sheffield United.
However, they had recently pulled off a stunning 2-1 upset over Manchester United at Old Trafford.
They currently sat tenth in the table.
Dean Smith approached the fixture with heavy caution, reminding his squad that there were no easy points in this division.
Palace's shock victory in Manchester was proof enough that they could hurt anyone.
...
August 31, 2019. 8:00 PM. Selhurst Park.
The clash officially kicked off under the London lights.
Crystal Palace's veteran manager, Roy Hodgson, deployed a highly conservative tactical setup.
From the first whistle, he ordered his men to sit deep in a rigid defensive shape, refusing to engage Villa in an open, end-to-end battle.
Hodgson was clearly wary of Villa's recent goal-scoring form.
The low block worked perfectly in the opening stages.
For the first fifteen minutes, Villa enjoyed the lion's share of possession but failed to threaten the Palace goal.
The attackers couldn't register a single clean shot through the crowded penalty area.
This defensive success gradually instilled a false sense of security in the Palace ranks.
The home side began to believe Villa's attack wasn't as lethal as the media claimed.
Around the twentieth minute, Palace finally committed men forward to mount an attack.
Midfielder James McArthur intercepted a loose pass and launched a long ball directly upfield, searching for Wilfried Zaha on the forward line.
"McArthur finds Zaha in space," Steve hermon noted, watching the play develop.
"Crystal Palace finally look to stretch this Aston Villa backline."
As one of the most dangerous one-on-one dribblers in the Premier League, Zaha brought the ball down smoothly and immediately turned to run at the Villa defense, looking to wreak havoc!
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