Aston Villa’s ninth consecutive win confirmed Bolton’s relegation from the Championship.
It was a day of contrasting emotions at the University of Bolton Stadium on Friday.
While Aston Villa celebrated a ninth consecutive Championship win which edged them into the record books and further consolidated their top-six place, Bolton Wanderers were officially relegated from the second tier due to their 2-0 loss.
The first half saw the visitors enjoy most of the proceedings as Anwar El Ghazi fired wide following Jack Grealish’s cross, while John McGinn had his effort cleared off the line by Harry Brockbank.
Bolton then lost both captain David Wheater and veteran midfielder Gary O’Neil to injury before the break but were able to hold out until the half-time whistle, the scoreline still goalless and thus giving them hope of delaying the inevitable.
However, Villa claimed the lead just two minutes into the second half through Grealish’s header, who in turn set up Tammy Abraham to nod home, and Phil Parkinson’s charges could not muster up a response.
After the game, the official Villa Twitter account tweeted their commiserations towards the North-West club:
Some fans of both clubs involved in the action at the University of Bolton Stadium had their say:
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
