Delfouneso helps Villa to pre-season win

Nathan Delfouneso scored the game’s only goal as Aston Villa edged the Philadelphia Union 1-0 in their pre-season friendly at PPL Park on Wednesday night.

England captain Darren Bent captained an experienced Villa line-up, with boss Paul Lambert including new signings Brett Holman and Karim El Ahmadi in his starting line-up along with American goalkeeper Brad Guzan.

Delfouneso made the breakthrough two minutes before half-time when he turned and fired a long-range shot into the bottom-left corner after latching onto a pass from Holman.

The Union’s Zac MacMath was by far the busier of the two keepers, keeping out an early Holman effort from point-blank range and denying Delfouneso when he was clean through on goal.

Villa continue their United States tour with a match in Chicago on Saturday before heading to Portland for a game on Tuesday.