Aston Villa Without a Victory Yet, Newcastle and Bournemouth End in Stalemate

Aston Villa continue their trophyless run this term following a 1-1 tie away to Sunderland where they squandered a goal lead and numerical superiority, as Newcastle played out a goalless draw against Bournemouth on Sunday.

The progress Villa made in recent seasons under Unai Emerys guidance has stalled, leaving them rooted in the lower reaches with only three points from five initial matches.

Emery's squad appeared to have the ideal chance to secure their first win when Sunderland defender Reinildo Mandava received a red card after 33 minutes for lashing out at Matty Cash.

After going four league outings without finding the net, Villa finally scored as Cash unleashed a shot from distance that fooled Sunderland keeper Robin Roefs with its pace and bend.

That advantage endured for merely eight minutes before Wilson Isidor capitalised on a header from Granit Xhaka, netting his third Premier League goal in three appearances at the Stadium of Light.

Ollie Watkins squandered a couple of opportunities near the end to claim a full haul for Villa, with the England forward yet to score this campaign.

Sunderland have begun strongly in their bid to avoid the typical fate of promoted teams dropping back to the Championship.

The Black Cats occupy seventh spot, having dropped points in just one of their first five outings.

Newcastle too are finding goals hard to come by since Alexander Isaks exit.

Eddie Howes team has ended all three road fixtures this season without scores, content with a share of the spoils at Bournemouth following a quick recovery from Thursdays 2-1 Champions League loss to Barcelona.

Howe rotated seven players to revitalise his lineup, featuring record acquisition Nick Woltemade as the central striker.

With scant opportunities on offer, Bournemouth reserved their clearest moment for added time, only for Nick Pope to deny Justin Kluiverts free kick.

This result lifted Bournemouth to third place temporarily.

Arsenal could narrow the gap on frontrunners Liverpool and claim second if they overcome Manchester City in Sundays blockbuster clash.

Liverpool lead Arsenal by six points and City by nine, buoyed by a flawless record through five games.