Bent, who made an acrimonious move from Sunderland earlier this week, slotted home in the 18th minute after Joe Hart had parried Ashley Young's effort. "It was a difficult game, they always say the first goal is the most important and we got it early," he told ESPN. "It's been a hard week but these are the occasions we enjoy and I'm going to enjoy it tonight." Villa had to withstand heavy pressure in the second half and Richard Dunne praise the performance of his central defensive partner James Collins. "James Collins was brilliant and we defended well as a team," he added. Villa boss Gerard Houllier was also keen to praise the performance of his whole team. He said: "I'm pleased for Darren because its his first goal for us, also his first game, but I thought the whole team were fantastic today. We've beaten a great team. "We kept a clean sheet, sometimes with a bit of luck, but you don't win games only with luck, also a bit of talent."
