Aston Villa’s Lack of Dimension Undone by Cooper’s Simple Plan
After a week of hype surrounding Aston Villa’s Champions League potential, the shortcomings of the team’s potential Champions League push were exposed by Nottingham Forest, and a manager who had worked out Unai Emery’s game plan and successfully disrupted it.
While a defeat at the City Ground in isolation is no big deal, Villa now have only two wins in their last 10 away games, a run that needs improving fast.
In the latest My Old Man Said podcast episode, we look back on Villa’s trip to the City Ground and shed light on the critical factors contributing to Villa’s disappointment. Some of the key topics from the insightful podcast discussion, include:
Starting Line-up Discrepancies
Aston Villa’s have had a consistent starting line-up with eight ever present players, emphasising the team’s stability and cohesion. Forest, in contrast, had only one ever-present starter, and he was dropped for the Villa game.
Forest’s Game Plan
The podcast looks at Forest’s simplistic yet effective game plan, which involved minimal players in Villa’s half and quick counter attacks and challenging the high-line.
Villa’s Lacklustre Performance
Villa’s performance was a little under cooked in the final third and lacked the usual creativity and spark – why was that? Despite having the advantage of a new goalkeeper making his debut for Forest, Villa failed to mount consistent offensive pressure and convert crucial opportunities.
Set Piece Failures
The discussion touched upon Villa’s uncharacteristic inefficiency in set pieces during the game, after their set pieces have shown promise and dimension in recent weeks. With a lack of variety in corner kicks and a failure to challenge the Forest goalkeeper, Villa missed an opportunity to continue on their set-piece improvement. Do they need more of a physical presence up top from the bench?
Forest’s Effective Defence
Forest’s defensive discipline and organisation were lauded in the show, with their set-up effectively neutralising Villa’s attacking prowess and blunting their effective possession.
Lessons Learned
The episode concludes by emphasising the need to guard against complacency and not underestimate any opponents, which Forest isn’t the only example of. it’s noticeable that Villa’s league away form in recent months has slipped compared to their away record at the start of Emery’s Villa reign
Also on the show, we catch up on all the latest Villa news, The Three Points of the week from the world of football, Media Muppets and Emery’s Clipboard.
Listen to the show below or on any good podcast app
UTV
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Credits:
David Michael – @myoldmansaid
Chris Budd – @BUDD_music
Phillip Shaw – @prsgame
