Aston Villa 1-2 Middlesbrough: Villa fortunes dive as Tuncay profits

Bank of England governor Mervyn King was at Aston Villa yesterday after cutting interest rates... only to see his own team's fortunes dive.

King, who supports Villa, is the toast of most households after slashing interest rates by a whopping 1.5 per cent.

Villa's wealthy owner Randy Lerner has no mortgage worries after investing over £50million on new players this summer for boss Martin O'Neill.

Lerner wants his spending spree to bankroll fifth-placed Villa into the Champions League.

And the club's American chairman was hoping for another dividend on his investment yesterday as UEFA Cup hopefuls Villa returned to domestic action.

But O'Neill's side fell behind when Nicky Shorey's error allowed Tuncay to fire Gareth Southgate's Boro ahead at his old stomping ground in the first half.

Steve Sidwell, signed from Chelsea for £5.5m in July, headed in a leveller minutes later to get his close pal and former Reading team-mate Shorey off the hook.

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But Boro's Turkish striker Tuncay, 26, struck his third of the season two minutes from time after Sidwell committed a howler of his own to condemn Villa to a second successive Premier League loss. Tuncay's fierce finish atoned for an astonishing miss from Afonso Alves in the 82nd minute and ended Villa's unbeaten home league record.

"It's the most disappointing result of the season," rued O'Neill, who was missing top scorer John Carew with a hip injury.

"If you can't win it, don't lose it but we contrived to lose it. It is hard to imagine a softer winner - it was a lapse in concentration.

"Sidwell will be very disappointed and the last two results in the Premier League after losing at Newcastle have showed we need to do better.

"It has been a tough old week with three games in seven days but the top teams do it and go and play Champions League and get themselves prepared for

the weekend.

"I didn't think it was real tiredness which beat us as when we got the equaliser I thought we would go on and take the game.

"Despite not playing well in the match we were always in it.

"But it is going to be a tough period between now and the end of December."

Also among the crowd was Fabio Capello's deputy Franco Baldini but Villa's large contingent of English players failed to shine on their return from beating Slavia Prague.

Boro winger Stewart Downing was the best home-grown performer on show and he flashed a left-foot pile-driver just past Brad Friedel's post in the 14th minute.

Villa forced Ross Turnbull in the Boro goal into his first save of the afternoon in the 28th minute to tip over Ashley Young's free-kick, which deflected off Gary O'Neil.

But it was Boro who took the lead in the 34th minute through Tuncay, who capitalised on a bad mistake by Shorey to fire in from a Downing cross.

Villa were level just three minutes later as Sidwell headed in at the back post from James Milner's looping cross.

Boro could still have gone in ahead at the interval, though, as Downing tested Friedel twice with shots from distance while Alves side-footed wide from six yards.

Villa started the second half brighter with the lightning Gabriel Agbonlahor sprinting clear of Chris Riggott only to be denied by Turnbull.

The Boro keeper then kept out Milner's low shot before also saving Young's effort.

Young was needed in his own penalty area to head off the line in the 78th minute as Riggott's header from a corner seemed destined for the net.

And Boro then missed an astonishing chance to make it 2-1 when Alves side-footed wide after Friedel could not hold Didier Digard's long-range shot.

But Tuncay struck his third of the season two minutes from time following a howler from Sidwell, who miscued a simple pass on the edge of his area.

And few people in the credit crunch will now be putting their hard-earned money on Villa to break into the top four.

Get your hands on this week's estimated jackpot of £100,000 by playing the New Football Pools .

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