What a start for Steven Gerrard at the Villa. Two games, two wins, six points means that the new Villa boss could not have wished for a better start in charge of the boys in Claret and Blue.
Targett was, well on target to score the opening goal to give his team the lead and a wonder goal from John McGinn sealed all three points for the Villans. So what did we learn?
Nakamba was Marvelous
One of the biggest problems that emerged and became prominent prior to Gerrard’s arrival was the lack of protection for the defence and poor defensive performances as a whole. Nakamba was not playing his best football and was not sufficiently protecting the Villans’ defence.
However, against Crystal Palace he was transformed and looking like every bit of the type of defensive midfielder that Aston Villa need. The Zimbabwean was all over the park, in a good way, as he was making numerous important challenges and his passing was looking much improved, helping his team progress the play forward and threaten the Palace backline on regular intervals.
If you are not convinced that Nakamba had a fantastic match, here are some stats for you. The midfielder completed a total of 33 passes, with an outstanding four tackles won for his team. On top of this, his desire to progress Villa’s play is clear with a successful dribble and a key pass to boot.
An all round fantastic day for Marvelous Nakamba.
Villa’s defence back to their best
It’s obvious that Villa’s defence in recent times has been nowhere near good enough – conceding to many shots on target and of course too many goals. The Villans have conceded on twenty one occasions this season, which whilst the same as Manchester United is the joint fourth worst defence in the division so far this season.
These defensive frailties have, so far since Gerrard’s arrival disappeared and the likes of Mings and Targett look rejuvenated and back in-form. This is backed up by the fact that Villa have only conceded once in the last two games and have also faced drastically less shots on goal last weekend and also at Selhurst Park. Villa’s record of two clean sheets in two would have been the case, only for Marc Guéhi to score in the final moments of the match. A shame, but not a disaster – with Villa’s defensive improvement proving evident on the scoreline.
The improvement in defence is even more clear, as in the four games prior to Gerrard’s appointment, Villa conceded a total of eleven goals which is a dreadful record of course. Albeit in only two games, one goal conceded in two matches is a good sign indeed.
Experience could be key
No-one expected Ashley Young to be starting the match in south London against the in-form Crystal Palace, despite his great performance in Villa’s previous outing against Brighton. Young soon showed why he had been given the start by Steven Gerrard, looking sharp and was showing flashes of the ability and form he showed in his previous spell at Villa Park.
Young was a key figure defensively against Palace, helping Targett deal with the dangerous Michael Olise by doubling up on the ex-Reading man and stop him from causing problems for the Villa backline. Young has also been a key figure in Villa’s defensive improvement, and he showed that once again against the Eagles.
Given Gerrard and Young have been teammates with the England National Team, the Liverpool legend will know Young better than most and will know how to get the best out of the ex-Inter Milan man. Young will have been used to assisting goals for John Carew in his previous spell at Aston Villa, but these days he is providing goal scoring opportunities for Ollie Watkins and Matt Targett. Targett was the player Young picked out from a corner and the ex-Southampton defender was on hand to score a vital goal.
With his second assist in as many games on Saturday, Young could prove to be a valuable asset for Gerrard’s Aston Villa.
Villa’s midfield will certainly be benefitted by Gerrard
Villa’s lack of protection of the backline has already been mentioned earlier, but it cannot be understated how much the likes of McGinn and Ramsey could benefit with the influence of Gerrard who by all accounts is one of the best midfielders the Premier League has ever seen.
McGinn has been in fine form for Scotland in front of goal and Gerrard has certainly not been coy in his admiration of the ex-Hibernian man. With his clear goalscoring ability it would be a mistake not to try and get the Scot to score more goals for his club as well. McGinn showed his goalscoring prowess against Viera’s Palace with a wonderful curling strike into the top corner past a flailing Vicente Guaita. If McGinn consistently provides Villa goals the Villans’ good form is more likely to continue.
Ramsey is of course a Villa academy graduate and will certainly not be the last academy product to feature for Gerrard given his willingness to give youngsters a chance. Ramsey could not many better to coach him and give him advice. Ramsey played well alongside McGinn on Saturday and can only get better under Gerrard’s stewardship.
The Villa attack will gain confidence from a solid defence
It is of course well documented that Villa haven’t struggled too much to score goals, even when the defence was shaky. However, having a strong defence and midfield behind them will only benefit the likes of Watkins, Buendia and Bailey – this is because they will have more freedom to strut their stuff and have confidence that should they lose the ball their teammates will win the ball back and get the ball back forward towards them.
This was on full show against Palace with Villa creating more and looking far more confident with their rejuvenated backline. The Eagles were a huge test for Villa who passed both on a defensive and attacking sense with flying colours and will be hoping this continues for the remainder of the season and beyond. Manchester City will be the ultimate test of Villa’s renewed defensive and attacking confidence.
What a huge win this was for Aston Villa giving Gerrard a perfect start. Six points out of a possible six is huge, especially with the Champions coming to B6 on Wednesday evening. UTV.
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