If Villa were hoping for relief and a return to order following a devestating loss against Sheffield United, then they will have to continue their search after drawing against Blackburn at Ewood Park. Blackburn quickly set the stage with a rapid attack that required Ørjan Nyland to pull off a last gasp reflex save on the goal line. However, it wasn’t just the keeper coming to their rescue. Villa were saved by the offside flag in the first half on two occasions, once when Blackburn had a free break after the ball bounced loose following an Axel Tuanzebe challenge, and again when Bradley Dack buried the ball into the net from an offside position. Unfortunately it seems they paid the price for these favourable decisions as John McGinn’s strong claim for a penalty was waved away after the Scottish midfielder was hacked down in the box. Despite Villa coming close from a Tammy Abraham header, Steve Bruce’s side didn’t look at all comfortable on the ball, with Blackburn happy to defend comfortably before launching spring loaded attacks. A breathless first half ended with the scoreline lacking a goal. Villa quickly asserted dominance in the second half, but their early chance in the face of goal could only be struck directly at the goalkeeper. Ørjan Nyland carried on his antics by deflecting Danny Graham’s header over before it was flagged for offside while Tammy Abraham again came close from a header. Abraham once more came close to opening the scoreline up, but his snap shot after a neat link up with Jonathan Kodjia could only bounce wide. It would be Blackburn that took the lead though, after Bradley Dack’s neat backheel restored order following a chaotic goalmouth scramble. Villa attempted to find an equaliser, but the usual frustration set into the match. AVFC put their forward on an island and simply waited for ‘magic’ to happen. Steve Bruce’s glassy eyes stared across the pitch searching for answers. Magic did happen. Of course Conor Hourihane would climb from the bench to bury home a 90th minute free kick. It's destiny. It's what he does. That's his story and there might be a deeper meaning there entirely, with Hourihane falling completely out of favour at Villa Park. With that Steve Bruce may have a lot to think about - namely the fact that his time at Aston Villa may have been extended by a signing he has looked past on multiple occasions.<doc-sep>Aston Villa return. Yay? It feels very weird to be following the Villa right now (we always say that), and despite the table and points tally not looking anything near ugly, Villa’s playstyle and tempo displayed thus far has been tepid and disappointing. Manager Steve Bruce will be hoping for a revolution, injected by new singings Yannick Bolasie and Tammy Abraham with both yet to play a minute of football for Villa. Today, they travel up to Blackburn for the prime time Saturday Championship match. The eyes of the world will be on these pair as Blackburn look to continue their fairly stylish start to the season, while Villa will hope to actually find a start to their season. Mowbray’s side are fairly easy on the eye at times and can strike lethal blows. They punch above their weight and are looking to claim a stake in the top half of the table. They’ll do so by slaying Villa today. It won’t be easy, but when has it been easy? A big thanks to Bennett Berry for creating all of our match-day images throughout the season. Give him a follow. We’re here. Kick-off commences soon, and you can find out how to watch Villa vs Blackburn below. UTFV TV and Streaming Location: Ewood Park, Lancashire, England Kick-off time: 17.30 pm UK, 12.30 pm Eastern, 09.30 am Pacific Weather: Windy and wet up north, 13c. Open Match Thread: Join in the comments below! Predictions welcome. Available TV: Sky Sports in the UK, BeIn Sports two in Australia. Available video streaming: AVTV for International Plus, ESPN PLUS for USA, Now TV or SKY GO in the UK, BeIn Sports Connect in Australia, DAZN in Canada. Other listings are available from livesoccertv.com. Available radio: BBC WM 95.6 FM (not online), AVTV (If audio doesn’t work, try using Safari). Twitter: You can find our live updates @7500toHolte, and we’d also recommend @VillaReport for updates as well. Injuries + Suspensions Aston Villa will miss Keinan Davis and Scott Hogan. Yannick Bolaise may not play the full 90. Aston Villa squad Blackburn squad Live twitter stream<doc-sep>Steve Bruce's blushes were spared at Ewood Park as Conor Hourihane curled home a last-gasp free-kick to prevent Aston Villa slipping to another defeat. The claret and blues put in another bog-standard showing and were heading home with nothing before substitute Hourihane stepped up in stoppage time. Bradley Dack gave Rovers the lead with a neat flick after Danny Graham had shot through a crowd of bodies after 75 minutes. The hosts might have grabbed another as Villa threw caution to the wind in search of the equaliser but they didn't, and Hourihane made them pay. With a packed out away end of 4,000 Villans calling for Bruce's head, Hourihane whipped the ball home for his first of the season. Villa might have won it late on but Jack Grealish couldn't connect cleanly from the edge of the area. Villa are without a win in six league and cup matches and sit mid-table in the Championship after seven games.<doc-sep>The Championship resumes this weekend after a two-week break to accommodate the autumn internationals. Ewood Park is the venue as Blackburn Rovers host Aston Villa on Saturday evening. Both sides are coming off the back of heavy defeats, both sides losing 4-1 to their respective opponents last time out. But having had two weeks to lick their wounds, Tony Mowbray and Steve Bruce will be urging their sides forward in an attempt to get back to winning ways. Villa sit above Rovers on goal difference with both teams dead level on points in the table after their first six matches. In what looks to be a close encounter, Sky Sports pundit David Prutton has offered his thoughts on the clash between the two former Premier League mainstays. Prutton explains: “Both of these sides suffered humbling defeats in their last game and have been forced to dwell on them during the international break. “While Blackburn threw away a lead to lose 4-1 at Bristol City, Aston Villa were thumped pretty much from the off at Sheffield United. “There’s no doubt that Blackburn have been missing Bradley Dack because he is absolutely crucial to their hopes this season. “Villa score and concede plenty, and for that reason, I’m going for a score draw. 2-2 with Jonathan Kodjia to score first.” The Verdict Both are coming into this fixture after 4-1 defeats, while their victors play one another – funny how football works! Blackburn and Villa have had similar seasons; both sit side by side in the division with the Midlands club two goals better off. Steve Bruce is under pressure and needs a win more than Tony Mowbray, but it will be tough for either side to get three points tomorrow. A draw will be the outcome of this fixture between two evenly matched teams. It will finish 1-1.<doc-sep>
Aston Villa fans breathed a sigh of relief after watching their side grab a late equaliser against Blackburn Rovers. The claret and blues were heading home with nothing before substitute Hourihane stepped up in stoppage time. In the video above you can see what the fans had to say about the game. Here's what some other fans were saying on Twitter: Dozza: If the boo boys and girls get their way , and Bruce goes , we might as well forget this season ZNG AVFC: Blaming Bruce creates a smokescreen for a number of players not performing. Some of our big name players need to take a look at themselves Danny Salsbury: First time I’ve said it but Brice OUT. If that’s what he calls a response then we’re in trouble Michael Norbury: Bruce played his get out of jail free card today. If we were told it would be 1-1 before the game I can’t think of anyone who would have taken it. Fed up with the excuses In a nutshell Steve Bruce's blushes were spared at Ewood Park as Conor Hourihane curled home a last-gasp free-kick to prevent Aston Villa slipping to another defeat. The claret and blues put in another bog-standard showing and were heading home with nothing before substitute Hourihane stepped up in stoppage time. Bradley Dack gave Rovers the lead with a neat flick after Danny Graham had shot through a crowd of bodies after 75 minutes. The hosts might have grabbed another as Villa threw caution to the wind in search of the equaliser but they didn't, and Hourihane made them pay. With a packed out away end of 4,000 Villans calling for Bruce's head, Hourihane whipped the ball home for his first of the season. Villa might have won it late on but Jack Grealish couldn't connect cleanly from the edge of the area. Villa are without a win in six league and cup matches and sit mid-table in the Championship after seven games.