Mark Oldacres
Aston Villa fans walked away from Villa Park on Saturday evening with a familiar feeling of extreme frustration, tinged with optimism. After a tenacious performance against the reigning Champions of Europe, Villa came up agonisingly short of a momentous result, leaving Dean Smith’s side with no points from their four games against the Premier League’s upper class.
Villa’s performances against Tottenham, Arsenal, Manchester City and Liverpool have shown their ability to hang with some of the very best that football has to offer, as well as some consistent themes, for better or for worse.
Attack is the Best Form of Defence
Upon promotion to the top flight, Dean Smith claimed that he would approach his clashes with the likes of Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp with a mindset of wanting to win. This is the kind of statement that any manager can make, only to later be proven a hollow promise, once faced with such a daunting assignment, but no-one can accuse Villa’s boss of not sticking to his word.
Deano’s team started aggressively against Tottenham, Arsenal and Liverpool as they took a deserved lead in all three games, using various strategies. At Spurs on the opening day, Villa caught their opponents napping with a long ball. At The Emirates, Villa were unafraid of playing in a defensively fragile Arsenal’s half and reaped the rewards from well timed surges into the penalty area, leaving McGinn and Wesley unmarked for tap-ins. Against Liverpool, aided by a raucous atmosphere, Villa hassled Jurgen Klopp’s side and made them uncomfortable, before scoring from a set-piece for the first time this season. The only game in which The Villains failed to score was against Manchester City and even then, there were chances.
Contests against teams of this calibre are a free hit and any points collected are a bonus. It’s been pleasing to see this Villa team approach each game without fear and with designs of causing an upset.
Defensive Jekyll & Hyde
In the positive starts to Villa’s bouts with football’s heavyweights, the defence has also played its part, displaying discipline, rigidness and an ability to frustrate their opponent. Unfortunately, “John Terry’s Aston Villa” is yet to keep this up for 90 minutes.
At half-time in the matches in question, Aston Villa led Tottenham, Arsenal and Liverpool 1-0, (they also led all three games with 20 minutes to go) and were drawing 0-0 with Man City, yet they emerged with no points.
Against Spurs, Jack Grealish was caught dwelling on the ball just outside his own penalty area, setting up Harry Kane’s go-ahead goal. Bjorn Engels giving away a penalty and Tyrone Mings failing to clear his lines contributed to two goals as Villa fell to 10-man Arsenal. Versus Man City, Villa switched off during a simple, long kick from Ederson just seconds after half-time.
Liverpool’s goals were not caused by glaring mistakes, more like a result of a rising red pressure finally spilling over.
Nonetheless, there is an alarming theme – not just against the big teams – of Villa conceding the majority of goals in the second half and plenty in the late, late stages. Smith has pointed to not keeping the ball well enough as games wear on, further demonstrating his desire for his team to keep their foot on the gas. This is easier said than done, though, as it’s the exact opposite of what your brain tells you to do. When the stakes are high, the pressure is on and your legs and mind are tiring, it is only human nature to think of one thing, “protect”. Regrettably, “protect” is one thing Villa haven’t been able to do this term.
Hi Ho Silver Lining
It feels like people often forget that this is an almost entirely new, promoted team with very little experience at Premier League level, such is the hunger for success of Villa fans. But don’t underestimate how impressive it is that this young side has gone up against some of the best teams in the world and has left each one of those clubs disappointed with their own performance and with a memory of how difficult it was to play against Aston Villa. That’s a testament to the coaching staff at Bodymoor Heath and to the players as well. This team will only get better with time and if the Claret and Blue Army can create an environment like the one on show against Liverpool, Villa’s signature win will come sooner rather than later.
The Villa Ramble 
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