Jordan Pickford 6
Saved well from former team-mate Lucas Digne and Ollie Watkins in the second half and was perhaps unsighted by Mason Holgate for the first goal but distribution could have been better with some over-hit passes upfield early on.
James Tarkowski 5
Has brought a much-needed streak of steel into Everton’s defence this summer but this wasn’t one of his best days as he allowed the ball into his area too easily for the goal while some of his passing was off.
Mason Holgate 6
Slotted into the back three after impressing off the bench against Chelsea and was kept on his toes here, forced into an impressive early recovery tackle on Jacob Ramsey while offering an outlet when playing out from defence.
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Conor Coady 6
Appeared comfortable from the start as you’d expect from this proven Premier League performer on his Everton debut but while he sensed the danger for Ings’ goal, he was unable to get close enough to the ball.
Nathan Patterson 6
Plenty of youthful energy up the flank, he looked good going forward and enjoyed a competitive battle with Everton old boy Lucas Digne, keeping the Frenchman in check for prolonged periods.
Abdoulaye Doucoure 4
Found himself undone by Danny Ings for the opening goal as he afforded the striker too much space to pick his spot from the edge of the area, although given that he went off injured straight afterwards he may well have been hurt before the incident.
Alex Iwobi 6
Up until the last nine minutes he was deployed again in an unfamiliar defensive midfield role and while it is not a natural position for him and surely not a long-term option, he produced a disciplined display, ensuring he did not let his manager down and applied the pressure on Digne to force the own goal.
Vitalii Mykolenko 5
Tried to push forward whenever possible but while he was neat and tidy, there remained a general lack of penetration.
Dwight McNeil 5
Unable to take a grip on proceedings like he did so spectacularly on his debut off the bench in the final pre-season friendly against Dynamo Kyiv and miscued his big opportunity when it came, over-hitting a pass to Gray during a promising counter-attack.
Anthony Gordon 6
Doing his best to help his team as a false number nine, forced a late save from Martinez as Everton pushed for an equaliser and even had the ball in the Aston Villa net – only to be denied by a late assistant referee’s flag for offside – but it is not the most-effective deployment of his attributes.
Demarai Gray 5
Spurned one of Everton’s best opportunities to draw level when they trailed 1-0, his pace makes him a constant threat but he is struggling to replicate his impressive early season form of last season.
Tom Davies (on 34 for Doucoure) 6
Forced into the action during the first half after Doucoure’s injury, he produced a steady display.
Salomon Rondon (on 64 for McNeil) 5
Finally got his opportunity to lead the line in the second half and might have even drawn Everton level from Gordon’s low delivery had he been a bit quicker.
Dele Alli (on 81 for Coady) n/a
His late introduction corresponded with a grandstand finish as the game opened up but we’re still waiting for the old magic.
Amadou Onana (on 81 for Gray) n/a
A dramatically contrasting late introduction to life in the Premier League as he lost possession in the build-up to Villa’s second but then fashioned Everton’s goal down the other end just moments later.
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