BirminghamLive brings you the talking points from Aston Villa’s 1-1 draw with Leeds United in the Premier League
07:00, 22 Feb 2026Updated 09:07, 22 Feb 2026
Tammy Abraham scored a late equaliser against Leeds(Image: Anna Gowthorpe/Shutterstock)
Tammy Abraham rescued a point for Aston Villa against Leeds United on Saturday afternoon.
The striker came off the bench to bag an 88th-minute equaliser, his first Premier League goal for the club.
Anton Stach had put Leeds ahead in the first half, beating Emi Martinez from more than 30 yards with a stunning, curling free-kick.
Here are the talking points from Villa’s draw…
Villa must rediscover home comforts
It’s now just one win in four home league games and, with respect to Everton, Brentford, Brighton and Leeds, none of those teams will be finishing above Villa come May.
There’s no doubt Villa have dropped a number of points at home in recent weeks. However, after winning 11 matches across all competitions at B6, perhaps results have simply levelled out.
Unai Emery suggested as much in his post-match press conference, admitting that his side’s performances during their best spell of the campaign may not have been drastically different from Saturday’s showing.
Yet Villa lacked control for large periods against Leeds, who looked like the home side for much of the first half.
Villa were slow out of the traps and only registered their first shot on target towards the end of the half. Ollie Watkins and Amadou Onana then passed up presentable chances before the break.
It was hardly an onslaught in front of the Holte End in the second half, but Abraham did what all strikers do best – picking up the loose pieces in the box.
He did something similar against Brentford earlier this month after Jadon Sancho’s shot was saved by Caoimhin Kelleher, but VAR ruled the goal out, going back 19 seconds to determine the ball had gone out of play.
Content cannot be displayed without consentWatkins or Abraham – or both?
After scoring in successive matches and hitting the ground running on his return to the club, there will be few Villa fans not calling for Abraham to start against Wolves on Friday.
Emery may have delayed introducing Abraham, but he still made a vital contribution, turning the ball home after Ezri Konsa won the first contact from Sancho’s in-swinging delivery.
The big question Emery will be asking himself in the coming days is who starts at Molineux – or whether he can deploy both Abraham and Watkins in partnership.
Based on his post-match comments, Emery seems reluctant to use two centre-forwards, as doing so could unsettle his team’s structure.
“It depends each match tactically. When I arrived here, sometimes we played with Watkins and Danny Ings, and then Jhon Duran,” Emery said when asked if Abraham can play with Watkins.
“They played together performing well, but that was the moment we needed it in the circumstances we were in. It is very important for Tammy to add numbers and both compete for this position as a striker and feeling comfortable and confident.
“He [Abraham] is adapting again because he left the Premier League to Italy and Turkey. He is adapting again to everything we are being demanding of. We are trying to exploit his qualities.
“The duels are also stronger in the Premier League with the players. We have to fight a lot of duels. His adaptation is going well because his commitment is a huge commitment to try to help us as much as possible with his qualities and wishes. Today he showed it. He played 25 minutes being motivated and excited – he scored for it.”
Abraham, for his part, believes that the last 20 minutes of the Leeds match proved that he can operate alongside Watkins.
“We spoke about it a few times in training [playing together], and luckily we were able to grab the goal so the gaffer can see that it can work,” he told BBC Final Score.
“We know he is a top striker and he has been here for a few years and scored many goals, so is fantastic competition to have. I’m happy to be back home, I just need to find myself a house!”
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Bailey fails to take his opportunity
Bailey made his first league start since being recalled from a loan spell at AS Roma.
It was always likely to be either Bailey or Sancho starting on the right-hand side. While both can operate in the same team either side of Rogers in the number 10 role, Emi Buendia offers more balance in the starting XI.
Bailey, meanwhile, has struggled to make an impact in his month back under Emery.
He looked shot of confidence against Leeds, often turning back when receiving the ball out wide. More concerning was that when he did take on his man, he lacked the quality and conviction to beat him.
There is quality in Bailey, but since the end of the 2023/24 season he has not shown it nearly often enough, nor with any consistency.
After being dispossessed and substituted shortly afterwards, sarcastic cheers were audible from sections of the Villa Park crowd.
Whether Bailey heard them or not is irrelevant – such reactions are unnecessary. Similar sarcastic applause was directed at Morgan Rogers after he completed a simple pass late on against Bologna earlier this season, and that kind of response does nothing to help the player or the team.
Bailey’s level was poor on Saturday, but jeers from his own supporters will not improve the situation or change Emery’s mind on whether he starts the next game.
Villa’s level was bound to drop after injuries
Since McGinn went off against Everton, Villa have not quite looked like the same side capable of beating anyone in the division.
Youri Tielemans lasted only one more league game after that 1-0 defeat to the Toffees, coming off injured late on in the impressive win at Newcastle.
It goes without saying that losing Boubacar Kamara for the rest of the campaign is a significant blow, though one that could be manageable once McGinn and Tielemans return.
The issue is that Tielemans is not expected back until after the international break, while McGinn has been targeting a return for the first leg of Villa’s Europa League round-of-16 tie, following the home game against Chelsea.
A drop in performance levels was always likely without even two of those three players available – let alone all of them.
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Where the draw leaves Villa
Villa could have moved to within five points of league leaders Arsenal with a win over Leeds. Instead, the draw may finally quieten the outside talk of a title race.
It was still a topic raised post-match during Abraham’s round of interviews, but realistically, Villa now face a battle to maintain their position rather than chase the summit.
“When I first arrived I spoke with a few of the boys and watching from afar you can see that the team has a lot of qualities,” he began. “We’re delighted to be where we are today but we are so close, so we have to just keep pushing and keep believing in ourselves.
“Who knows what can happen? We are not too far from Arsenal who are at the top. Unfortunately today we didn’t get the win but we just have to keep pushing.”
Looking behind them, Villa remain in a strong position with 11 matches left to play, although Liverpool will have the chance to move to within six points of Emery’s side when they travel to Nottingham Forest on Sunday.
After Chelsea dropped two significant points at home to Burnley, the ideal scenario next weekend would see Villa win at Wolves while Chelsea fail to win away at Arsenal.
Villa then host Chelsea just days later on Wednesday night, presenting an opportunity to move 11 or even 12 points clear of the Blues if results next weekend go in their favour.
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