Villa trio help England beat Austria

Jack Grealish and Tyrone Mings started at the Riverside Stadium on Wednesday night as England continued their preparations for Euro 2020.

Taking on Austria in the first of two warm-up games, the Aston Villa duo made an impact at both ends of the pitch as Gareth Southgate’s Three Lions won 1-0.

Mings formed part of a back four and helped keep the Austrians at bay before he was substituted after 62 minutes.

Playing in the No.10 role, Villa skipper Grealish was one of England’s main attacking threats, starting and almost finishing the move for the only goal of the match, with Bukayo Saka eventually scoring.

Ollie Watkins also featured on the night, replacing Jesse Lingard after 62 minutes as he won his second cap. 

Having played 71 minutes, Grealish, speaking post-match, said: “It’s been a great few days. Being named in the squad was what I’ve worked for all season – I’ve not shied away from saying that.

“That was my aim for the whole season, as soon as I got into that first squad. I’ve had an injury recently, so to get 70 minutes under my belt was a perfect week.

“It was a hard game, but you can’t knock Austria. They’re a good team and they’ve got good players. You’ve also got to bear in mind that we’ve got seven or eight players still to come back.

“It was another good test for us and another win under our belt.”