Diego Llorente earns Leeds parity after Villa Park thriller

Diego Llorente earned Leeds a battling Premier League point in a breathless draw at Aston Villa.

The defender struck in the second half as the visitors hit back from 3-1 down.

Philippe Coutinho pulled the strings in a whirlwind first half where he cancelled out Dan James' opener before twice setting up Jacob Ramsey.

James made it 3-2 before the break and Llorente ensured a pulsating game at Villa Park ended even.

Ezri Konsa was also dismissed late on for a second yellow card for Villa but Leeds were unable to capitalise. The draw edged Marcelo Bielsa's side, now with just three wins in their last 12 games, six points clear of the relegation zone and denied Villa a place in the Premier League's top 10.

But Villa began brightly enough with Illan Meslier ensuring Llorente did not turn Douglas Luiz's corner into his own net. Yet the hosts faded quickly, allowing Leeds to grab the initiative and a ninth-minute lead.

Tyrone Mings twice failed to deal with a ball on the right, with a weak first challenge on Mateusz Klich allowing Llorente to steal the ball from him on the edge of the area.

He found James and the winger stepped inside Konsa to drill in low across Emi Martinez.

The goalkeeper then stopped a fizzing James effort while Lucas Digne needed to be alert to clear ahead of Raphinha with Villa on the rocks.

Mings should have levelled but headed Douglas Luiz's corner wide and the entertainment continued when Jack Harrison's quick break teed up James only for his rising 20-yard drive to clatter the bar.

There was purpose and pace from the visitors while Coutinho had been anonymous - until he levelled things after half an hour and tore Leeds apart in a devastating spell.

Matty Cash was the architect, latching onto Emi Buendia's pass