Aston Villa's Premier League title hopes suffered a blow as they were held to a scoreless draw at Crystal Palace in a high-octane Premier League clash on Wednesday that produced plenty of entertainment, but no goals.
With Arsenal topping the standings on 48 points, Villa are in third place on 43, behind Manchester City following their home draw with Brighton & Hove Albion on goal difference. Palace are 13th on 28 points.
Brennan Johnson, a recent arrival from Tottenham Hotspur, set the tone with an energetic display for the home side, but his luck deserted him in the penalty box and he must wait for a first goal in the Palace colours.
Johnson made his presence felt early on, latching onto a ball played in behind the defence by Adam Wharton in the 17th minute, but Villa keeper Emi Martinez got a touch on Johnson's left-foot shot to push it away for a corner.
As the action rolled from one end of the field to another, in-form Villa striker Ollie Watkins found himself on the receiving end of a similar pass, but Palace keeper Dean Henderson came off his line quickly to block the England striker's shot.
Johnson went close again for the hosts in the 59th minute and, desperate to make an impact on the game, he was booked shortly afterwards for diving in the box following an innocuous challenge from Villa defender Victor Lindelof.
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The visitors had to replace keeper Martinez at the break due to a calf injury and substitute Marco Bizot was given plenty to do, but the best chance fell to Lindelof, who sent a bouncing header onto the far post late in the game.
Villa forced a succession of corners but could not make the breakthrough, with their manager Unai Emery visibly irritated at the final whistle as his side missed a golden opportunity to move second in the table.
Emery remonstrated with referee Andy Madley after the final whistle following an incident at a set-piece where the Villa boss thought Youri Tielemans had been held by his marker, but neither Madley nor the VAR intervened.
“To speak about the referee is one minute or 30 seconds; it is more important to speak about the match,” Emery told reporters. “I respect the referees, but they must check the action on Youri Tielemans. It is a potential penalty."
"Tielemans’ possible penalty in the corner should have been checked, he was being held for one, two, three seconds," he added.