Aston Villa 0-0 Sunderland match report 30th November 2013

“The future king of England won’t be watching this game on Match of the Day”. That was the verdict of Aston Villa manager Paul Lambert after his team’s 0-0 bore draw against bottom club Sunderland at Villa Park.

Villa fan Prince William was in the crowd to watch his favourite team but even his Royal support could not influence a match which was pretty poor entertainment for the 32,000 who escaped the Christmas shopping frenzy.

The best chance of the match fell to Sunderland midfielder Emanuele Giaccherini just before the stroke of half time after some good play on the wing by former Liverpool man Fabio Borini. The ball was headed across the box to the Italian on the six yard line but with Villa keeper Brad Guzan closing in on him Giaccherini put the ball over the bar when it looked easier to score.

Sunderland could have a had a penalty in the first half when Black Cats’ defender Wes Brown scooped a shot into the box from the left which hit the arm of Villa defender Ciaran Clark but referee Neil Swarbrick waved away the Sunderland players’ frantic claims for a spot-kick.

In the second half The  Mackems had another chance to clinch the three points from a barren match when former Birmingham man Sebastian Larsson put in a good delivery from the left hand side but Fabio Borini’s header hit the woodwork with Guzan well beaten.

Arguably the best chance for the home team was a header from Gabriel Agbonlahor. After slipping his man right back Leandro Bacuna played the ball down the line into the path of Andreas Weimman who put a cross in from the right corner flag but Agbonlahor headed wide after pressure from the Sunderland defence.

Villa's treasured front man Christian Benteke ran riot in last season's fixture scoring a clinical hat trick in a 6 – 1 thrashing but since returning from an early season injury the Belgian striker has struggled to hit anywhere near his best form. In the first half, full back Leandro Bacuna whipped in a cross from the right and as it fell to Benteke on the left of the area the Holte End faithful waited for the net to burst. Unfortunately, the dream finish did not materialise as the big Villa striker blasted over. Benteke was later replaced by Libor Kozak and showed his frustration by proceeding to chuck his gloves on the floor and slouch into the dugout.

Sunderland were much improved from the team’s turbulent start to the season. Despite creating only two clear chances they looked impenetrable with the former Manchester United defender's Wes Brown and Jon O'Shea providing a stable platform at the back aided by an understated performance from defensive midfielder Ki Sung Yeung.

Sunderland’s flamboyant manager Gus Poyet described this game as his team’s best away performance this season and reiterated his intentions to keep his solid centre back pairing as fit as possible throughout the upcoming busy Christmas period. When told that the Duke of Cambridge was in attendance at the dreary game he replied jokingly: “Did I upset him?”

 

West Bromwich Albion 2-2 Aston villa match report 25th November 2013

Ashley Westwood and Karim el Ahmadi inspired Aston villa to a remarkable comeback against a West Bromwich Albion side that looked to have the game wrapped up after 11 minutes.

Shane Long netted a brace with just 10 minutes of the game gone. His first goal came on three minutes when the Irishman brought down a long Chris Brunt pass with a Bergkamp-like deft touch  on the right side of the box before cutting past Villa defender Nathan Baker and  firing past ‘keeper Brad Guzan with a powerful left foot drive. Long’s second goal on 10 minutes was gifted to him by Villa's right back Leandro Bacuna who’s square pass was latched upon by the Baggies striker who elegantly chipped past  Guzan from a narrow angle on the right.

Stephane Sessignon should have added a third but missed a simple tap-in at the far post which proved costly in the second half.

After the break however, West Brom continued to dominate until the hour mark when a triple substitution by Villa boss Paul Lambert changed the game. On came Andy Weimann, Gabby Agbonlahor and Fabian Delph and Villa were a different team.  The Baggies’ lost their grip and on 67 minutes a right-wing cross by Bacuna was headed forward by Weimann and Karim El Ahmadi found himself behind the Baggies defence from where he coolly lifted the ball over keeper Boaz Myhill from the right hand side of the six yard box.

That goal lifted the Villa and on 76 minutes their pressure was too much for the team in dark blue and white. Defender Goran Popov's headed clearance fell into the path of Villa midfielder Ashley Westwood who controlled superbly before lashing the ball home from 25 yards to complete the unexpected comeback.

Villa manager Paul Lambert was the happier of the two bosses after the ‘game of two halves’ while Baggies manager Steve Clarke said he was disappointed with his team’s loss of concentration which led to the two Villa goals. ‘From 2- 0 up at home, we should win the game,’ he lamented.

Aston Villa 2-0 Cardiff city match report 9th Novmber 2013

Aston Villa finally ended their four game goal drought as Leandro Bacuna and Libor Kozak struck late to ensure a comfortable 2-0 victory over Cardiff City.

For 74 minutes the game looked odds-on to be a bore-draw as both teams toiled away but created few real chances. Then on 75 full-back Bacuna was moved into midfield and curled in a beautiful free kick from the right of the penalty area, leaving Cardiff ‘keeper David Marshall stranded.

Minutes later a cross from the left by Aleksandar Tonev found its way to the far post where it was headed back by substitute Matthew Lowton for Kozak to head the ball into the net.  

The double strikes were a great relief to manager Paul Lambert, his players and the Villa faithful who had suffered for over seven hours without seeing the ball hit the net at Villa Park.

The first half of the game started off as a typical Villa performance of recent weeks with a bright start which saw both Kozak and fellow striker Christian Benteke going close. But for the rest of the half Villa were wasteful with their chances. Karim El Ahmadi had two shots from outside the box but both were wide of the goal.

Villa’s squad was incredibly different to the one that faced West Ham last week as key players Gabriel Agbonlahor, Andreas Weimann and Antonio Luna were all missing through injury and in form midfielder Fabian Delph absent due to illness. The bench showed how stretched Lambert’s team was with youngsters Daniel Johnson, Calum Robinson joining Jordan Bowery in the first team line-up.

Bowery later replaced the goal scorer Kozak and had a good chance to make it 3-0 but the best he could muster was a shot that hit the side netting.

The depleted team didn’t stop the Villians from securing the victory and more importantly a first clean sheet in 17 matches.

Villa manager Paul Lambert described the free kick by man of the match Bacuna as "world class" and said he was proud of his team's performance. Bluebirds manager Malky Mackay refused to blame his defence saying ‘sometimes you just have to say it was a brilliant strike’.

Dutchman Bacuna, who scored another spectacular free-kick against Manchester City in September, said he had been taking set piece kicks, including penalties, all the time back in his native Holland where he originally started as a striker. However, he was quick to add that he had no intention of taking the spot-kick role from next-door neighbour Benteke.

“I am happy taking the free-kicks but will leave the penalties to Christian unless the gaffer says otherwise,” he joked.

West Bromwich Albion 2-0 Crystal Palace match report 2nd November 2013

Saido Berahino came off the bench to set an average West Bromwich Albion team on the road to victory and root Crystal Palace firmly to the bottom of the Premier league table.

The England under-21 international replaced the injured Billy Jones and on the stroke of half time controlled a great pull back from Stephane Sessegnon from the left edge of the penalty area before poking the ball home with a left foot volley. The goal was the home team’s first shot on target in a poor first half which saw Palace striker Adlene Guadiora go close with a left foot volley which was saved well by Baggies keeper Boaz Myhill.  Guadiora was later stretchered off after a mid air collision with Myhill left him with what looked like damage to his ribs.

 The second chance demonstrated why the Eagles are currently facing a long stretch in the relegation zone. Striker Marouane Chamakh received the ball after Baggies midfielder James Morrison was dispossessed in his own half. He strode forward and instead of pulling the trigger, the former Arsenal player attempted to run through two defenders and lost the ball.

The second half started exactly the same as the first with both teams struggling to create openings. Palace grew in confidence and captain Mile Jedinak nodded a corner narrowly wide.

The game was settled in the 83^rd minute when Baggies midfielder Chris Brunt whipped in a pinpoint corner from the left and defender Gareth McAuley rose above the Palace defence to power the ball  home with his head.

The away team finished the stronger but couldn’t convert any of their chances, a point which caretaker manager Keith Millen highlighted after the match. He said his team were unlucky to leave the Hawthorns empty handed but the defeat leaves Palace firmly fixed to the bottom of the table with just three points to their name. When questioned about a possible successor to the recently departed manager Ian Holloway, Millen said no-one was close to being appointed but the sooner a new manager was put in place, the better it would be for all at the club.

West Brom manager Steve Clarke praised the performance of Saido Berahino but pointed out he was still a young player with much to learn and he didn’t intend to push him too far too soon. When asked about contract negotiations, Clarke said the club was keen to get the England U 21 star tied down with a new contract as soon as possible.

Berahino has scored 10 goals for club and country and being touted as a possible late entry into the full England team for next year’s World Cup in Brazil. Clarke was quick to point out that in his opinion his prize asset was not yet ready to step up to Roy Hodgson’s side.