Aston Villa stun Man City in 3-1 cup final triumph at Wembley

Villains finally overcome Guardiola's men after years of hurt, inspired by inspirational skipper Grealish

Sterling and Aguero on target but it's not enough as rampant Villa run riot to claim first silverware in 24 years

Long into the night Villa supporters were still pinching themselves barely able to believe their team had finally ended years of hurt.

Goals from Jack Grealish, Anwar El Ghazi and John McGinn secured a 3-1 victory at Wembley Stadium to secure Villa's first major trophy in 24 years.

Jack Grealish inspired Villa's performance to secure one of the club's greatest nights of all time. He was later named man of the match after assisting one and creating the other two goals.

The victory will live long in the memory for supporters who have suffered two painful defeats at the hands of Manchester City in the space of just eight days.

They were outplayed for large parts of Villa's 6-1 Premier League defeat last weekend by the relentless champions and had to endure more of the same during the first half.

It seemed like only a matter of time before City would score but just as the half-time whistle loomed, Villa captain Grealish produced a moment of inspiration.

The 25-year-old collected a loose ball in the inside right area and cut inside before unleashing an unstoppable right-footed drive into the far corner.

Villa's resilience was evident as they managed to hold onto their lead going into the break.

And their belief was rewarded within five minutes of the restart when Ezri Konsa climbed highest to head a corner back across the face of goal where El Ghazi turned the ball in at the far post.

The goal sparked wild celebrations among Villa supporters who had not seen their team lift a major trophy since capturing the League Cup in 1996.

City eventually reduced the deficit through Sergio Aguero and missed several chances to draw level as goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez proved to be an inspired choice.

But the most dramatic moment was still to come as Grealish powered forward on the counter-attack and set-up McGinn for the decisive third goal.