When the second half commenced at St Mary's, Dean Smith showed zero sentimentality.
With a 3-0 lead secured by another Theodore Bjorn masterclass, the manager hauled the teenager off after just ten minutes, throwing Conor Hourihane into the midfield.
Without Theodore pulling the strings, Villa's attack lost its ruthless edge.
They continued to probe the Southampton defense, creating several half-chances, but lacked the clinical finish required to extend the lead.
It didn't matter.
The final whistle blew with the score unchanged at 3-0.
Aston Villa had secured their 27th consecutive Premier League victory, an almost incomprehensible feat, entirely fueled by Theodore Bjorn's first-half hat-trick.
...
Following the domestic triumph, the squad immediately shifted focus to Europe.
The second leg of the Europa League Round of 32 awaited in Catalonia against Espanyol.
Given the ridiculous 7-0 advantage from the first leg at Villa Park, Dean Smith took the opportunity to heavily rotate.
He left Theodore Bjorn, Jack Grealish, Wesley, and John McGinn back in Birmingham to rest.
The rationale was clear: the EFL Cup Final against Manchester City loomed just days away.
This was Villa's first opportunity to secure major silverware this season.
Without their core attacking quartet, the Villa side that stepped onto the pitch in Spain lacked creativity and cutting edge.
They controlled possession but failed to register a single goal. However, their defensive structure remained solid, denying Espanyol's forwards any consolation.
The match ended in a sterile 0-0 draw, sending Aston Villa comfortably through to the Round of 16.
The squad reunited at Bodymoor Heath, fully focused on the showdown at Wembley.
Aston Villa had already beaten Pep Guardiola's Manchester City twice in the Premier League this season—a remarkable double.
Now, they had the chance to inflict a third, agonizing defeat on the reigning champions, this time for a trophy.
....
March 2nd.
By 7:00 PM, the atmosphere around Wembley Stadium was electric.
The 90,000-capacity arena was split perfectly down the middle: a sea of sky blue facing a wall of claret and blue.
Ten minutes later, the teams emerged from the tunnel to a deafening roar.
Despite the fixture congestion, neither manager rotated.
Guardiola, desperate to avoid a third defeat to the promoted side, fielded his strongest possible XI, making only minor tactical tweaks, such as giving 19-year-old Phil Foden the nod over Riyad Mahrez on the wing.
Jon Moss blew his whistle. The EFL Cup Final was underway.
"And we are off at Wembley!" Ian Darke announced. "The unstoppable force of Aston Villa takes on the wounded pride of Manchester City."
Early on, Phil Foden looked lively.
The young Englishman went at Villa right-back Frédéric Guilbert relentlessly, even managing to slip a cheeky nutmeg through the defender's legs.
"Foden is turning on the style!" Stewart Robson noted. "He's got the beating of Guilbert, but the final ball is lacking."
Robson was correct.
Foden's inexperience showed when he repeatedly opted for lofted crosses into the box.
Against the towering presence of Tyrone Mings and Ezri Konsa, those crosses were meat and drink for the Villa defense.
City dominated territory but failed to test Emiliano Martínez.
In the 5th minute, Villa flipped the script.
McGinn intercepted a loose pass in midfield and instantly drove forward.
Seeing Theodore finding a pocket of space, McGinn slid a sharp pass into the teenager's feet in the attacking third.
The moment Theodore received the ball, alarm bells rang across the City defense.
"Bjorn on the ball... City have to close him down!" Darke warned.
But City's midfield structure had momentarily collapsed. Not a single sky-blue shirt was within five yards of the teenager.
Theodore didn't hesitate. He looked up, measured the distance, and set his feet.
"He's going to hit it!"
Boom!!
Theodore unleashed a ferocious, dipping strike. The ball rocketed off his right boot like a heat-seeking missile.
Ederson, spotting the danger late, launched himself into the air, extending every sinew in his body.
But the sheer velocity of the shot was terrifying.
It ripped past the Brazilian keeper's outstretched fingertips and buried itself into the absolute top corner!
1-0.
"WHAT A START! WHAT A GOAL!" Darke roared over the deafening noise. "Just five minutes in, and Theodore Bjorn draws first blood at Wembley!"
"He is Manchester City's worst nightmare!" Robson added. "That is his eighth goal against them this season! Ederson had absolutely no chance with that strike. Pure, unadulterated power!"
Half of Wembley erupted.
Over forty thousand Villa fans waved their scarves, bouncing and chanting the teenager's name.
They believed the trophy was already theirs.
@CityZen_Hub: "He does it every single time against us. It's actually a joke now."
@VillaFanTV: "THE NORWEGIAN KING STRIKES AT WEMBLEY! We are massive!"
Down on the touchline, Guardiola was a bundle of frantic energy. He paced his technical area, furiously gesturing to his midfield to tighten the gaps.
Losing to Villa three times was an unthinkable humiliation.
In the 15th minute, City orchestrated a stunning, intricate attacking move.
Rodri zipped a line-breaking pass straight through the gap between McGinn and Douglas Luiz, finding Sergio Agüero dropping deep.
Agüero took one touch and fired a diagonal pass out to Raheem Sterling on the right flank.
The 'Happy Boy' received the ball and instantly hit the accelerator, driving forcefully at Matt Targett.
Using his rapid footwork, Sterling reached the byline.
Instead of whipping a cross toward the near post, Sterling had the presence of mind to pull a smart cut-back into the penalty arc.
İlkay Gündoğan was waiting.
The German midfielder possessed a lethal shot from distance. He took a touch to set himself and pulled his leg back, ready to pull the trigger.
But a claret and blue blur appeared out of nowhere.
It was Theodore.
He had read the play perfectly.
Knowing Foden and Agüero posed little aerial threat against Mings and Konsa, he anticipated the cut-back.
"Gündoğan lines it up—brilliant block by Bjorn!" Darke exclaimed.
Theodore threw his body into the path of the shot, deflecting the ball away from danger.
Douglas Luiz scooped up the loose ball.
Spotting Grealish peeling away on the left flank, Luiz instantly pinged a pass into his captain's stride.
"Villa counter!" Robson noted. "This is where they are most dangerous!"
The Villa fans roared as Grealish surged forward. He drove deep into the City half, isolating Kyle Walker.
Knowing Walker possessed elite recovery pace and physical strength, Grealish opted against taking him on.
Instead, he slipped a pass inside to the arriving John McGinn.
McGinn found himself in a prime shooting position. He wound up for the strike.
But Rodri had sprinted back. Desperate to stop the shot, the City midfielder shoved McGinn hard in the back just as the Scotsman swung his leg.
McGinn lost his balance and crashed to the turf.
Peep!
Referee Jon Moss blew his whistle instantly. A clear foul.
A dangerous free-kick was awarded to Aston Villa.
Theodore stepped up.
Having witnessed his dead-ball mastery just weeks prior, genuine fear gripped the Manchester City players forming the wall.
Ederson stood on his line, taking deep breaths, his eyes locked on the teenager's boots.
Five agonizing seconds passed.
Theodore began his run-up.
Thwack!
He didn't go for placement. He struck it with pure venom.
The ball flew like a bullet, violently piercing through a gap in the City wall.
It scorched past Ederson before the keeper could even twitch a muscle, burying itself in the back of the net.
2-0.
"HE HAS DONE IT AGAIN!" Darke bellowed. "A free-kick of the absolute highest order! Theodore Bjorn is tearing Manchester City to shreds at Wembley!"
"Ederson didn't even move, Ian!" Robson marveled. "The sheer pace on that strike... if it hits you, it takes you into the net with it!"
The cameras immediately cut to Guardiola. The Catalan manager stood perfectly still, his expression entirely blank.
He didn't yell at his players; he knew there was nothing they could do against a strike of that quality.
With a two-goal cushion secured, Dean Smith immediately deployed his defensive failsafe. Aston Villa dropped into a rigid, impenetrable low block.
For the remainder of the half, City dominated possession, passing the ball endlessly around the perimeter of the Villa penalty area, but they couldn't find a way through the claret and blue wall.
The halftime whistle blew. 2-0.
In the dressing room, Guardiola remained calm.
He didn't rage.
He methodically explained the tactical adjustments, convinced his side possessed the quality to overturn the deficit.
His confidence was misplaced.
Just five minutes into the second half, the final nail was driven into the coffin.
Theodore drifted out to the right flank to receive the ball.
He found himself isolated against the diminutive Oleksandr Zinchenko.
It was a total physical mismatch.
Theodore engaged the Ukrainian left-back, lowering his shoulder and simply bulldozing his way past him down the wing.
Reaching the edge of the box, Theodore whipped a vicious cross into the mixer.
Wesley and Grealish both launched themselves at the ball, causing panic in the City defense.
As the ball dropped, it struck the outstretched arm of Fernandinho.
Peep!
The referee pointed straight to the spot.
Penalty to Aston Villa!
It was an absolute disaster for City!
Theodore placed the ball on the spot.
Ederson crouched on his line, staring the teenager down, bouncing on his toes.
Wembley fell completely silent.
Boom!!
Theodore ran up and smashed the ball straight down the middle with terrifying power. Ederson dove early to his left, grasping at thin air.
The net bulged.
3-0.
"HAT-TRICK AT WEMBLEY!" Darke roared. "Theodore Bjorn is the undisputed king of English football! The EFL Cup is heading to Villa Park!"
The final twenty minutes were a formality.
City laid siege to the Villa goal, but the sheer psychological weight of a 3-0 deficit crushed their execution.
They made unforced errors, their passes missing the mark.
The final whistle blew.
Aston Villa had defeated Manchester City 3-0!
They were the EFL Cup Champions!
It was their first major trophy since their promotion, and the celebrations were wild.
On the podium, Jack Grealish grabbed Theodore by the shirt, pulling him to the front.
The two friends hoisted the trophy together as fireworks exploded into the London sky and "Sweet Caroline" blared over the PA system.
During the on-pitch celebrations, Sky Sports grabbed Theodore for a quick word.
"Theo, you've just won the EFL Cup with a hat-trick at Wembley. How does it feel?"
Theodore smiled, his tone brimming with supreme confidence.
"Winning this is just the beginning. We have the Premier League, the FA Cup, and the Europa League to win next. We aren't stopping here."