Grealish found himself with oceans of space. Liverpool, perhaps still shaking off the travel rust in the opening minutes, hadn't yet settled into their defensive shape.
There wasn't a red shirt within five yards of the Villa captain.
Boom!
A thunderous strike sent the ball flying toward the goal. But Alisson Becker didn't earn his reputation by accident.
With a swift dive to his left, the Brazilian keeper palmed Grealish's effort away with two firm hands.
"Brilliant save!" Martin Tyler's voice echoed over the broadcast. "Alisson proves just how reliable he is between the sticks. Grealish caught that well, but it poses no real threat to a keeper of that caliber."
Alan Smith chimed in, "It gave the home crowd a scare, though, Martin."
Virgil van Dijk brought the loose ball under control, scanned the pitch, and launched a sweeping diagonal pass.
The ball dropped onto the right flank.
Mohamed Salah killed it with his left foot and chopped inside. With a seamless blend of control and pace, he bypassed Matt Targett with ease.
The Egyptian King is the razor-sharp edge of Liverpool's attack, his footwork earning him the "Egyptian Messi" moniker early in his career.
"Salah weaves his way past Targett! A silky breakthrough!" Tyler noted.
Reaching the edge of the penalty area, Salah shaped to shoot. He set his feet and swung his boot. Unfortunately for him, the Villa midfield tracked back hard.
Just as Salah went to strike the ball, Theodore threw himself into a brilliant sliding tackle, disrupting the attempt.
Douglas Luiz scooped up the loose ball.
Within a heartbeat, Liverpool's high press suffocated him.
Jurgen Klopp demands relentless pressure, and Adam Lallana, Gini Wijnaldum, and Sadio Mané swarmed the Brazilian.
Recognizing the danger, Luiz shoved a quick pass back to Theodore.
As the engine of Villa's transitions, Theodore receiving the ball meant the counter was on.
Thwack!
Theodore release a trademark sweeping cross-field pass.
Seconds later, the ball landed on Grealish's boot on the left wing.
Villa threatened the Liverpool box once more.
Down in the technical area, Klopp paced with furious energy.
"The edge of the box! Watch the edge of the box! Don't let them shoot!" he roared.
Both teams had already found space there.
Grealish stuck to his usual tricks, throwing two step-overs to try and unbalance Trent Alexander-Arnold.
But the Liverpool players closed ranks. Jordan Henderson arrived to double-team him.
Trapped against the touchline, Grealish lost possession.
Henderson shoved a quick pass to Roberto Firmino. The Brazilian's role in Klopp's system is incredibly fluid; nominally a striker, he roams everywhere, operating as a false nine.
Facing Björn Engels on the edge of the box, Firmino ignored a risky dribble and slipped a pass out to Mané on the left.
As Liverpool's lethal weapon on the flank, Mané wasted no time. He knocked the ball past Frédéric Guilbert and accelerated hard.
Leaving the Villa right-back grasping at air, he drove to the byline and whipped in a cross.
Thump!
The delivery was low and vicious.
Tyrone Mings and Engels reacted a step too slow, allowing the lurking forward to ghost between them!
"Firmino pounces!" Martin Tyler shouted. "He beats Heaton, and Liverpool draw first blood! 1-0 to the visitors!"
"That burst of pace from Mané was frightening," Alan Smith added. "Guilbert simply couldn't live with him."
The Villa fanbase groaned in collective frustration.
@Villan82: "Sigh, Liverpool score first. What a shame."
@LFC_Hub: "Mané is a beast. Built like a tank and so strong on the ball."
@EPL_Nerd: "Liverpool haven't even hit top gear yet!"
@HolteEnder: "I told you, Liverpool are a different animal compared to City. If we keep this up, we'll concede a second and a third."
@UTV_Fan: "Theo hasn't been in the game for the first ten minutes. Give the kid the damn ball!"
The broadcast camera focused on Dean Smith.
His face held a tight knot of tension.
Following the restart, the manager urged his men forward, desperate for a quick equalizer.
Wesley passed back to Theodore in midfield. Within three seconds, Liverpool's trap closed. Henderson and Wijnaldum applied heavy physical pressure, boxing the teenager in.
Theodore shoved a rushed pass back to Mings.
Mings opted for the direct route, hoofing a long ball up the pitch. Wesley challenged Van Dijk in the air, but against the towering Dutchman, he stood no chance.
Van Dijk won the header, sending the ball back into the midfield.
Theodore and Henderson crashed into each other battling for the second ball. As a tough Premier League veteran, Henderson boasts excellent physicality.
The two collided hard, neither yielding an inch.
However, Theodore reacted a fraction faster, stretching a boot out to poke the ball away.
It rolled to John McGinn.
Without a second thought, the Scotsman glanced at the goal and unleashed a shot from midfield.
A massive strike!
But the ball whistled past the right post and out of bounds.
Even though it missed, Theodore was the first to applaud him.
"Great shot! Keep your head up, victory belongs to Villa!" he said, giving McGinn a firm pat on the shoulder.
Goal kick. Alisson launched a long ball to Salah on the right.
The winger showcased his world-class dribbling, weaving past defenders before chopping inside.
Firmino dropped back to the edge of the box. Seeing the movement, Salah slipped a pass into his feet.
A lightning-fast one-two combination left Salah with a clear sight of goal just outside the penalty area.
Boom!
The ball curled toward the far post.
Tom Heaton reacted fast, but the placement was too precise.
His dive fell short, and the ball nestled into the net!
2-0! The visitors doubled their advantage!
"The Egyptian King strikes!" Tyler announced. "A brilliant assist from Firmino and a sublime finish from Salah. Villa's defense crumbled right there. The attack is just too fluid."
"They lead by two! Dean Smith needs to change something, or a defeat is a foregone conclusion."
Alan Smith nodded. "The chemistry between that front three—Salah, Firmino, and Mané—is outstanding. They don't need many bodies forward; those three can win games on their own."
The home fans at Villa Park fell into a stunned silence, their faces painted with fear and disappointment.
The traveling Kopites, meanwhile, were deafening, chanting Salah's name nonstop.
On the bench, Klopp unleashed his trademark fist pumps.
@VillaFanTV: "It's over. We are going to lose at home. The defense is way too weak."
@BrummieBoy: "Why did nobody close Salah down? You can't give him that space."
@FootballCrazy: "2-0 down already? Might as well turn the TV off."
@EPL_Scout: "Salah is just too good. The defenders look lost."
@Kopite99: "Are we heading for a massacre?"
@TacticsGuy: "I've said it before, Villa are mid-table at best. They rely entirely on Theo. Klopp already neutralized him, so Villa are bound to lose."
@UTV_Always: "I'm scared to watch. We'll be four goals down by full-time. Just go to sleep, lads."
...
Dean Smith huddled with his assistant, John Terry.
The dilemma was agonizing: attack or sit back? Pushing forward meant risking Liverpool's lethal counter-attack.
The front three possessed terrifying pace. But sitting back meant accepting a home defeat.
"Attack!" Terry shouted assertively. "We can't afford to lose! We have Theo!"
Smith agreed.
He stood on the touchline, urging the players forward.
31st minute.
Theodore collected a pass near the center circle.
Since conceding the second goal, his teammates frequently forced the ball to him, hoping he could salvage the situation.
Klopp, however, had done his homework.
He assigned Henderson to man-mark the teenager.
Whenever Theodore received the ball in the attacking third, the Liverpool captain breathed down his neck. It mirrored Guardiola using Gündoğan to stifle him.
To find breathing room, Theodore dropped deeper.
Finally, he gathered the ball near the center circle with no immediate pressure.
"Theodore finally finds some space!" Tyler noted, watching the screen closely. "What will he manufacture here?"
Two seconds later, Theodore launched a long pass and the ball dropped with pinpoint accuracy into the penalty area.
Near the penalty spot, Wesley leaped, giving everything to win the header.
But Van Dijk gave him absolutely no chance.
As the premier center-back in world football, Van Dijk treated Wesley like a minor nuisance.
With a slight exertion of strength, he bumped the striker off balance in the air and headed the ball straight to Wijnaldum.
The nightmare scenario unfolded for Aston Villa as Liverpool broke on the counter.
Receiving the ball, Wijnaldum didn't indulge in a solo run.
He shoved a first-time pass out to Mané on the left wing. As one of the quickest players on the pitch, Mané showcased his raw speed.
He surged down the flank with the ball glued to his feet!