60th Minute.
Gomes threaded a sudden through ball from midfield, finding Walcott in stride.
Having just come on, Walcott was bursting with energy.
Utilizing his pace, he immediately put the Villa defense under immense pressure.
Down the left flank, Walcott used successive bursts of acceleration to surge past Guilbert.
Nearing the byline, he glanced up at the box and whipped in a left-footed cross.
The delivery was poor. Walcott intended to find Calvert-Lewin, but he horribly overhit the cross. The ball sailed clean over the striker's head and floated straight toward the far post.
By a stroke of pure luck, the ball fell perfectly to Richarlison.
Crucially, Neil Taylor had been sucked inside, leaving the Brazilian completely unmarked.
Richarlison didn't waste the golden opportunity. He didn't bother to take a touch. He locked his right ankle and unleashed a thunderous, first-time volley.
The ball rocketed into the Aston Villa net like a cannonball!
The shot was so pure and fast that Heaton had absolutely no time to react.
2-2.
"Richarlison scores his second of the match!" Steve hermon announced. "The young Brazilian levels the score for Everton with a stunning volley! Heaton was left completely flat-footed!"
An ecstatic Richarlison sprinted toward the away end, celebrating with a massive knee slide.
Fans in the stadium expressed their frustration!
"Aston Villa's defense has collectively gone to sleep again!"
"Why was no one marking Richarlison? You can't just leave him wide open!"
"It's over! Everton are hitting their stride."
"Once they find their rhythm, they are terrifying."
"Don't worry, Theo hasn't even gotten started yet. We just need one corner."
On the Villa bench, Dean Smith immediately turned to John Terry.
The two began a frantic tactical discussion.
They needed a unified strategy. Should they shut up shop and settle for the draw, or push for the win? If the players weren't on the same page, Everton would tear them apart.
Smith made his decision.
When two brave warriors meet on a narrow path, the bolder one wins.
He made a substitution.
The ineffective Jota Peleteiro was hooked, replaced by Conor Hourihane.
With Hourihane slotting into the midfield, Theodore shifted out to take Jota's position on the right wing.
"Jota off, Hourihane on," Steve hermon analyzed. "The formation remains a 4-1-4-1, but Theodore Bjorn has moved out to the right wing. It looks like Dean Smith wants to keep piling the pressure on the Everton goal!"
After the restart, Villa controlled possession.
McGinn received the ball deep in his own half but refused to rush the attack, patiently exchanging passes with the backline until Theodore and Grealish had settled into their wide positions.
Only then did McGinn push the ball forward to Hourihane, who immediately distributed it to Grealish on the left wing.
"Grealish has it!"Steve hermon shouted. "Gomes and Coleman are right in front of him!"
Steve hermon stared at the monitor, hoping Grealish would take his men on.
But Grealish didn't like the numbers.
After a moment of hesitation, he recycled possession back to McGinn.
With the left flank choked off, McGinn switched the play entirely, pinging a long ball out to Theodore on the right wing.
Theodore had logged significant minutes on the right wing last season in the Championship.
He knew exactly what to do.
Thump!
Theodore didn't hesitate. The moment McGinn's pass reached him, he didn't even take a touch to settle it. He hit a stunning, first-time curling cross that carved a beautiful arc over the entire Everton penalty area!
He didn't aim for Wesley in the center, he sent the ball deep toward the far post.
And arriving at that exact spot was Jack Grealish.
After playing the ball inside to McGinn, Grealish hadn't stayed wide.
He had immediately hit a dead sprint straight into the opposition's penalty area.
Although an Everton defender was desperately trying to track him, Theodore's cross was mathematically perfect, dropping right onto Grealish's boot.
All Grealish had to do was guide it home.
He smashed the volley through the Everton defense!
Pickford threw himself at it, but from point-blank range, the keeper was helpless.
3-2.
"A GOAL-FEST AT VILLA PARK!" Steve hermon roared. "Aston Villa take the lead once again! And it is the captain, Jack Grealish!"
The moment the ball hit the net, Grealish sprinted straight to Theodore, the two locking in a massive embrace near the touchline.
The stadium erupted into absolute chaos!
Forty-three thousand fans pumped their fists, hysterically chanting Grealish's name.
"The Villa Gemini combine!" Steve hermon shouted, his voice trembling with excitement. "The moment Theodore and Grealish link up, the Everton defense collapses! Just when everyone expected a cross to Wesley, Theodore finds Grealish at the back post! Elite technical execution matched with elite tactical awareness!"
On the Everton bench, Marco Silva finally lowered his head.
With the score 3-2, the reality of the situation crashed over him.
Aston Villa's opening day victory over Spurs wasn't luck. It was pure, undeniable quality.
But Silva refused to roll over. He made his second substitution.
"Schneiderlin comes off, replaced by Moise Kean!" Steve hermon announced. "The twenty-year-old Italian striker is on. Marco Silva is hoping to disrupt the Villa backline with fresh legs."
"Silva is going all-in," Steve noted with concern. "Taking off a defensive midfielder for a striker leaves their backline incredibly vulnerable to the counter."
Soon after, Everton mounted an attack. Sigurðsson drove the ball into the final third, but McGinn and Luiz were instantly on him.
Throughout the match, the two Villa midfielders had shadowed the Icelander relentlessly.
Aware of the trap, Sigurðsson slipped a pass out to the newly substituted Kean on the edge of the penalty area.
Kean used his body to hold off Mings.
The moment the ball touched his boot, the desperate striker took a heavy touch with his left foot and tried to violently burst past Mings into the box.
With fresh legs and raw explosive power, Kean's charge put the Villa backline under immediate pressure. In a flash, he broke into the penalty area.
Engels quickly shifted over to block the shooting lane.
Seeing red, Kean ignored the defender and decisively unleashed a shot with his left foot.
"He shoots!"
"Smothered by Heaton!" Steve hermon yelled. "The angle was too tight, Engels closed it down, and Heaton gathers it cleanly! Quick release from the keeper!"
Heaton immediately hurled the ball out to Theodore in the midfield.
"This is the counter!" Steve hermon roared.
Tens of thousands of fans rose to their feet as Theodore picked his head up and drove the ball forward.
One more goal would kill the game!
With Everton's midfielders caught high up the pitch, their entire defensive structure was in absolute chaos as Theodore surged across the halfway line.
In a desperate attempt to stop the bleeding, Yerry Mina abandoned the penalty area, charging out aggressively to confront the teenager.
It was exactly what Theodore wanted.
As the massive Colombian rushed him, Theodore calmly slipped a pass with his right foot. It wasn't a long ball, nor a lofted cross
It was a perfectly weighted, needle-sharp through ball that split the gap Mina had just vacated.
Thump!
The ball zipped past Mina and rolled perfectly into the path of Wesley.
"Wesley is through!" Steve hermon screamed. "A pure one-on-one! He shoots!"
"GOAL! Into the top corner! Pickford had absolutely no chance!"
"4-2! Aston Villa kill the match!"
The moment Wesley's strike hit the net, Villa Park exploded!
Wesley performed a massive knee-slide near the corner flag, buried instantly by his swarming teammates.
"Wesley is a beast! He is every bit as good as Abraham!"
"Another assist from Theo! One goal and three assists tonight!"
"Silva looked down on us before the match, look at him now. Humiliated!"
"Three straight wins for a promoted side! Are we witnessing a miracle?"
Down on the touchline, Marco Silva stared blankly at the pitch, his face was a portrait of crushing despair.