Nathaniel Clyne strikes late as Southampton grab a point at Aston Villa

Nathaniel Clyne scored a late equaliser to make it six games without defeat for Southampton in a 1-1 draw against Aston Villa.

The full-back, who impressed for England last week, ran onto a Ryan Bertrand pull-back to bury the ball with his instep for his third goal of the season.

Villa took the lead in the first half when Saints keeper Fraser Forster rushed out into no-man’s land, allowing Gabriel Agbonlahor to gallop past and slide the ball home.

The hosts might have put the game out of sight just minutes before the equaliser as Andreas Weimann blasted a golden opportunity over the bar after a pacey counter-attack.

Villa still hover two points above the relegation zone but they will take heart from aspects of their performance, particularly the way they defended without Ron Vlaar, Philippe Senderos and Nathan Baker.

Southampton remain second in the Premier League, two points ahead of Man City, who are their next opponents on Sunday.

29’ - GOAL! Villa 1-0 Southampton. Villa take the lead through Agbonlahor! It's a long hoof downfield and Forster chooses to come for it but is outpaced by the striker, who nicks it round him and calmly slots home.

36’ - SOUTHAMPTON NEARLY EQUALISE! Tadic lays it to Mane on the left edge of the box, who tries to curl one into Guzan's bottom left corner, but the keeper dives and gets his fingertips to it.

72’ - SOUTHAMPTON GO CLOSE! Clyne slips in Fonte on the byline, who fizzes the ball across the face of goal but no one is there to turn it home.

77’ - WHAT A MISS! Villa clear from a corner and break through Weimann. He picks out Agbonlahor who cuts it back again, only for the Austrian to bring out the sand wedge and send the ball flying over the bar.

81’ - GOAL! Villa 1-1 Southampton. Bertrand breaks free down the right and pulls the ball back for Clyne to run onto and bury.

Villa are winless in eight games in the Barclays Premier League (L6, D2).

Southampton have conceded only six league goals, five fewer than any other club, and the same as Villa have scored.

This was Villa boss Paul Lambert’s 100th game in charge. His record reads: W30, L48, D22.

Are televised games spoiling matchday attendances? Just 25,311 went to Villa Park tonight – the lowest attendance there for 15 years. On a bitterly cold night, watching from the warmth of home might have seemed preferable. With talk of more Premier League games – even Saturday 3pm kick-offs – being shown live in the near future, attention is back on the debate over whether television is a good or a bad thing for football.

Ciaran Clark (Aston Villa): Without Vlaar, Senderos and Baker, Villa might have had worries about the centre of their defence. But they held strong for large periods and that was largely due to the organisation and interventions of Clark. He also provided the assist for Agbonlahor’s goal, albeit with a long clearance.

Aston Villa: Guzan 7, Hutton 6, Okore 6, Clark 7, Cissokho 6, Sanchez 6, Westwood 6, Cleverley 6, Weimann 6, N’Zogbia 6, Agbonlahor 8. Subs: Richardson 6, Bent 6.

Southampton: Forster 4, Clyne 6, Fonte 6, Alderweireld 6, Bertrand 6, Wanyama 6, Schneiderlin 6, Tadić 7, Long 5, Mané 7, Pelle 6. Subs: Cork 6, Mayuka 6.