Premier League strugglers Aston Villa were looking for some respite and a first win in 16 when they travelled to face League Two side Wycombe Wanderers in the third round of the FA Cup on Saturday lunchtime.
Villa led at half time thanks to Micah Richard's 22nd-minute strike, but will have to host a replay after Joe Jacobson's shortly after half time earned the Chairboys a trip to Villa Park.
Read all about the match at Adams Park with Sports Mole's minute-by-minute updates below.
12.16pmHappy FA Cup third-round weekend! The early kickoff on a jam-packed Saturday of action takes place at Adams Park and it should be a belter as Premier League strugglers Aston Villa face League Two side Wycombe Wanderers. Team news coming right up...
12.18pmWYCOMBE XI: Lynch; McCarthy, Jacobson, Stewart, Pierre; Harriman, O'Nien, Bloomfield, Wood, Thompson; Amadi-Holloway
Subs: Richardson, Jombati, Rowe, McGinn, Kreztschmar, Udumaga, Ugwu
Subs: Richardson, Jombati, Rowe, McGinn, Kreztschmar, Udumaga, Ugwu
12.19pmGareth Ainsworth has made two changes to his Chairboys lineup. One is in goal as highly-rated Matt Ingram drops out through suspension to be replaced by Alex Lynch. The other switch sees Max Kretzschmar drop out in favour of Welsh youth international Aaron Holloway.
12.20pm
The atmosphere is building at @wwfcofficial's Adams Park ahead of their #EmiratesFACup clash with @AVFCOfficial pic.twitter.com/EmmWPtsEHX
— The Emirates FA Cup (@EmiratesFACup) January 9, 2016
12.22pmWith Ingram missing today, Ainsworth has named 46-year-old coach Barry Richardson as the back-up keeper on the bench today. Imagine if he came on!
12.23pmVILLA XI: Bunn; Richards, Okore, Clark, Richardson; Bacuna, Gana, Westwood, Gil, Sinclair; Gestede
Subs: Guzan, Lescott, Veretout, Ayew, Kozak, Lyden, Cissokho
Subs: Guzan, Lescott, Veretout, Ayew, Kozak, Lyden, Cissokho
12.25pmRemi Garde makes a host of changes to his side, with Micah Richards, Leandro Bacuna, Idrissa Gana and Carles Gil the only players keeping their place from the 3-1 defeat at Sunderland last week.
12.27pmHere is Villa's head-scratching form in all competitions since they beat local rivals Birmingham City in the Capital One Cup in September: LLLLLLDLLDLDDLL
© Getty Images
© Getty Images12.29pmIn the Premier League, Villa have not won since the opening day of the season, going on a club-record 19-game winless streak since to sit 11 points adrift of safety at the foot of the table.
12.31pmSpeaking of that opening-day win, Rudy Gestede scored the only goal on his Villa debut and he leads the line today. The big striker has not adapted all that well to the top flight after some fantastic performances in the Championship last season. Facing a gritty, lower-league side might just suit him today.
© Getty Images
© Getty Images12.33pmWycombe, meanwhile, come into this game sixth in League Two having won four of their last six matches. They did, however, lose their last match by going down 2-0 at home against Morecambe last weekend.
12.35pmThis is the first time in five years that Wycombe have reached the third round. Their best-ever run was to the 2001 semi-finals when they lost to eventual winners Liverpool (Michael Owen's late double at the Millennium Stadium against Arsenal). Villa are seven-time winners of the competition, but have not etched their name onto the trophy since 1957. They got to the final last season before going down 4-0 to defending champions Arsenal.
12.37pmPREDICTION: OK then, not long until kickoff now. Wycombe definitely have a good chance of causing an upset today, but I reckon Villa might get some respite from their awful Premier League displays of late - 3-1 to the visitors.
12.39pmJack Grealish is not playing because of illness today, but here is the rest of the Villa squad warming up..
Build-up pictures: Players get set for today's Wycombe encounter in the #EmiratesFACup. #AVFC #WYC pic.twitter.com/LgQHQEESqh
— Aston Villa FC (@AVFCOfficial) January 9, 2016
12.41pmH2H: Villa won 8-3 the last time these sides met in the 2005-06 League Cup at Adams Park. The only other meeting was two years before that when Villa again won by five goals (0-5). So they quite like playing at this ground!
12.43pmAlthough this is earmarked as one of the best chances of a cupset this weekend, Villa are still 54 places above their opposition today and the stats don't exactly favour the hosts - the Chairboys have only beaten a higher-ranked side in the third round of the FA Cup once, defeating Grimsby in a replay in 2001. Villa have also won their last seven FA Cup ties against fourth-tier opposition, last losing to a side from that level in 1972,
12.44pmAnd we did get an upset last night, with Exeter holding Liverpool to a 2-2 draw and earning a replay at Anfield.
0 minKICKOFF! Today's referee is Michael Oliver and he gets us underway at Adams Park.
2 minThe whole match so far has been played in the Wycombe half and Villa have an early corner...
2 minDecent delivery by Gil, but it's headed up by Jacobson before Lynch rises highest to claim the ball. That's a confidence-booster for the stand-in stopper.
4 minWycombe striker Amadi-Holloway gets in behind the Villa defence before Clark is able to hack clear. Moments later Wycombe win their first corner and left-back Jacobson has a great delivery on him...
5 minCHANCE! And it is a fabulous ball in from the full-back that causes problems in the box. The ball is loose momentarily before Thompson gets his boot to it and prods wide.
7 minWycombe winger Wood is lucky not to be booked after blatantly tripping up Richards, who was charging down the right.
7 minCLOSE! Pierre with a vital clearance in his own six-yard box after Sinclair produced a low cross from the right that beat Lynch. Had Pierre missed that, Gestede would have had a tap-in.
11 minSo both teams had half-chances in the early stages, but it's quietened down a little in the last few moments. Here's where they are playing today, proper lower-league ground.
Adams Park is the venue for the first FA Cup third-round tie of the day. Lovely little ground. pic.twitter.com/fO5cwG46l8
— Squawka Football (@Squawka) January 9, 2016
15 minRichards is keen to get forward whenever he can down the right and his latest cross almost reaches Gil before Wycombe clear.
16 minCHANCE! Best chance of the match so far as Wood beats the offside trap on the left-hand side of the area. Okore gets back and takes all the power off the winger's cross-shot, which might have reached Harriman in the middle for a tap-in. Awful defending from Richards to not track his man there.
17 minBack come Villa and they have their clearest sight of goal as Gueye's initial effort ricochets out to the overlapping Richardson. He tries to find Gestede with a dinked cross, but doesn't get enough on it. Wycombe fail to fully clear the ball and it reaches Westwood on the edge of the box. His shot is high, wide and not-so-handsome, though.
19 minGood again from the visitors as Gil works his way into the box before finding Gueye with a cutback. The midfielder tries to fake a shot, but his touch is too heavy and Wycombe clear. You get the feeling that Villa will create plenty of openings, but at the moment they look completely devoid of confidence when it comes to the crucial moment.
21 min
#WYC 0-0 #AVFC – MATCH PIC: Kieran Richardson and @JoresOkore defending strongly here at Adams Park. #EmiratesFACup pic.twitter.com/d30YX3HYqL
— Aston Villa FC (@AVFCOfficial) January 9, 2016
22 minGOAL! WYCOMBE 0-1 VILLA (MICAH RICHARDS)
22 minIt really felt like that goal was coming. Richards was at fault a few minutes ago at the other end, but he's been eager to get forward and finds the net with an accurate side-foot finish from Gil's cutback. Gil has been a good outlet down the right and it's no surprise that the opening goal came from that side.
24 minWell, well. Richards appears to have been caught as he took that goalbound shot and now it looks like he might have to be substituted. He's hobbling around very gingerly at the moment.
25 minIt looks like he's trying to run it off, but Villa will not want further damage to their captain. Is it worth Garde keeping him on?
26 minJacobson again with a wicked delivery from a corner, but this time Bunn is out of his goal and up to punch the ball clear.
29 minAnother Wycombe corner from the right that Jacobson swings in and this time the hosts load up the six-yard box and try to put Bunn under pressure. Amadi-Holloway seemed to be pushing the Villa keeper, but he does well to punch away.
31 minApart from Wood's half-chance, the only time Wycombe have looked dangerous is from these inswinging Jacobson corners. Ainsworth said before the match that the left-back's delivery was the best in League Two and it's clear to see why he thinks that.
32 minDecent opening for the Chairboys as Wood gets across his man in the middle but can only volley high over the bar. Since the goal, Villa have seen much less of the ball in the Wycombe half.
34 minSTATS: Villa have had 61% possession and five shots to Wycombe's three. The hosts have had three corners to Villa's one and all three have been dangerous.
36 minAnother set-piece causes trouble for Villa as Pierre wins the flick-on, but it skids off the surface and through to Bunn with Amadi-Holloway and Stewart lurking.
37 minCHANCE! Far too lazy from Richards on the touchline as Jacobson beats him to the ball and then crosses low into the middle. Harriman is arriving and he should be able to get a shot off but waits too long and Richardson slides in to clear away.
39 minVilla's second corner of the match and it almost results in a second goal as Gestede charges to the front post to flick Bacuna's corner towards the far stick. Richards is arriving and he wants a penalty as Stewart seemed to haul him over. Nothing given.
42 minCLOSE! Yet again Jacobson puts a corner on the six-yard line right in the middle of goal and there is Pierre to meet it, but he can't get on top of it and powers it over the bar. I keep going on about it, but these corners from Jacobson are causing Villa so many problems.
45+1 minTwo minutes of added time at the end of the first half. Can Villa retain their lead going into the break?
45+2 minMoments after Gil's free kick was too long for any Villa teammates, Wycombe have one last chance to get off a shot, but Thompson's pass through to the onrushing Wood is just too strong.
45+3 minHALF-TIME: WYCOMBE 0-1 VILLA
1.35pmIt's the Premier League side in front at the break and as things stand, Garde is going to end his winless start as Villa boss in his 10th game. Micah Richards scored the goal in the 22nd minute and then perhaps should have had a penalty later in the half. Wycombe have threatened from set-pieces, but that's about it as far as they're concerned. We'll be back soon for the second half.
© AFP
© AFP1.47pmBoth teams back out for the second half and it doesn't look like either manager has made a change yet.
46 minKICKOFF! Wycombe get us back underway at Adams Park.
47 minGood start here from Wycombe as Wood delivers a deep cross that Harriman heads back into the middle. Thompson is there but he can't get any power on his header and Bunn gobbles it up in the six-yard box.
48 minPENALTY TO WYCOMBE!
48 minStupid from Westwood as he knees Bloomfield in the side while challenging for a high ball right in the corner of the penalty area. That does seem a little harsh and considering Richards was clearly hauled over in the first half, Villa can feel hard done by. Jacobson to take...
50 minGOAL! WYCOMBE 1-1 VILLA (JOE JACOBSON, PEN.)
50 minJacobson calmly strokes home from 12 yards to level things up at Adams Park. Oliver was certain about the call and you have to say it was silly from Westwood, even if there wasn't too much contact.
51 minOFF THE LINE! Wycombe's tails are up and they go close to taking the lead as a deep cross reaches Wood and his first-time volley is heading into the corner until Okore hacks clear. What a game we have on our hands now!
52 minBOOKING! Loads going on now as Adami-Holloway picks up the first yellow card of the match for a foul on Richards.
55 minAlmost a nightmare moment for Wycombe keeper Lynch as he spills Bacuna's free kick before gathering at the second attempt just as two Villa players were about to tap home.
57 min
12 - Aston Villa haven't kept a clean sheet away from home in the FA Cup since January 2009, a run of 12 games. Leak.
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) January 9, 2016
59 minBoos ring around Adams Park after Oliver blew for a foul on Bunn by Pierre. It was Jacobson again with the cross in and that seems a bit harsh on the Chairboys as Pierre's challenge was fair.
62 minAll Wycombe at the moment as they win a sixth corner of the match. For most of the first half you could tell that Villa were three divisions higher just in general play, but the visitors have done very little in the second half. Surely time for a change or two?
63 minIt's the first corner from the left and Jacobson again takes it, although his outswinger is dealt with easily.
68 minSHOT! Better from Villa the last few minutes and they go close to retaking the lead as Jacobson invites Sinclair into the box before the latter cuts onto his left and fires in a shot that is blocked.
69 minHere's the penalty incident, make up your own minds..
Was this a penalty? #WYCvAVL #EmiratesFACup https://t.co/fh6HHSmehL
— BT Sport Football (@btsportfootball) January 9, 2016
70 minWYCOMBE SUBS: A change in attack for the hosts, with Amadi-Holloway off and Gozie Ugwu on.
71 minVILLA SUBS: And Garde also makes a pair of changes - Sinclair and Gil off, Ayew and Veretout on. The Villa fans actually booed Gil's dismissal and sung "You don't know what you're doing!" He certainly has been one of their better players.
76 minI'm really surprised how little Gestede has been in the game. Against lower-league defenders you would have expected the big striker to cause all sorts of problems, but he's had a very quiet game.
77 minThe rarely-seen Libor Kozak is the striker that Villa have on the bench and it's hard to imagine him being able to make a difference.
79 minGueye injects some life into Villa with a strong run from defence up into the Wycombe half. It results in Bacuna having a shot that's deflected out for a corner, but from the resulting set piece Bacuna's delivery is poor.
80 minCLOSE! Ayew scored a cracker at Newcastle last month and he's almost done so again here with a zig-zagging run and shot that missed the target by a yard or so.
81 minWYCOMBE SUB: Chairboys captain Bloomfield, who won the penalty, is replaced by Stephen McGinn.
82 minOFF THE BAR! Almost a fortuitous goal for Villa as Gestede's shot takes a big deflection and loops up before hitting the angle of post and crossbar.
83 minAyew with a decent chance to test Lynch as he gets to the front post and meets Veretout's corner, but he gets too much on it and sends it into the stand.
83 minVILLA SUB: Third and final change for the visitors and it's a Villa debut for Australian teenager Jordan Lyden, who replaces Richards.
85 minVilla look like the fitter team as we enter the final five minutes. Richardson storms down the left and crosses low, but Gestede hasn't carried on his run and Wycombe clear.
88 minSuperb defending from Pierre as he prevents Ayew, Villa's brightest player since coming on, getting down the right wing.
90+1 minLynch with a good piece of goalkeeping by clutching Ayew's cross as three minutes of added time are signalled. Wycombe will take a replay at Villa Park!
90+3 minLast-gasp corner for Villa...
90+4 minFULL-TIME: WYCOMBE 1-1 VILLA
2.37pmIt comes to nothing and Oliver quickly blows his whistle to bring an end to proceedings. Ainsworth is absolutely delighted as his team earns a replay at Villa Park. No win in 16 for Villa, whose manager Remi Garde has still not tasted victory.
2.39pmYou have to say that that's a fair result over the 90 minutes. Wycombe did little in the first half, but they came back into it after half time and will be in the fourth-round draw on Monday.
2.40pmThat's all we've got time for here, but there's plenty more live FA Cup coverage on SM, so just have a click around and find the game you fancy!
