Since beating Cardiff comfortably and then Bruce finally being defeated at Leeds, it was now time for the team to bounce back against a fairly poor outfit in Wigan. Despite the Latics being undefeated away from home in their last five, the Villa fans were relying on the team to produce three points.
Visitors Valuation
Before the game Wigan were in 23rd and after the 1-0 win, they stayed there. Wigan came to Villa Park with a plan to stay compact and keep men behind the ball, making sure Villa were only ever on the edge of the box. However, they were unable to keep Villa at bay for the whole of the game despite some brilliant defending from the likes of Jake Buxton, who probably won man of the match for them.
After that performance I’m expecting Wigan to go down this season due to their lack of fire power. Will Grigg is no longer on fire and they’ve still got the record for being the worst goal scorers this season with only 16 converted.
Wigan didn’t have any star men who caused us much trouble and failed to have a shot on target so it’s probably going to be a long season for their fans. They’re only two points from safety but it’ll be tough for them unless they do good business in January.
Potential Finish this Season – Relegation
Atmosphere
On a very rainy day in Brum, the 29,000 Villa fans didn’t create anything special when it comes to atmosphere. However, due to the lack of quality on the pitch for 88 minutes, no one can blame them. The match was dull and there were points where the volume picked up, but you could definitely feel frustration from the crowd. The Lower North was still creating an atmosphere but it was focused on the game rather than the away fans.
The peak point of the atmosphere was obviously when super Jacky Grealish picked up the ball and fired it into the top corner. That moment led to the whole ground erupting and you could feel the sense of relief. A special moment of quality like that was definitely needed to grab us the three points. The most notable song that was sung out from all four stands was the 21-year-old’s own ‘Super Jack’ hymn when he was subbed off to a standing ovation.
Away Fans – 5/10
The Wigan fans created a viral chant last season that you could hear in every party holiday venue over the summer and also the Euros in France. People in the likes of Malia, Ibiza and many more were singing Will Grigg’s name, before supporters of other teams stole it for their own players. However, the Northern Irish International hasn’t managed to replicate his form and neither have the rest of his teammates in a higher division. This meant that the away fans didn’t even try out their favourite chant once.
In fact, they only filled the bottom tier of the two they were given and the right side of their fans were sat down. On the whole it was a poor effort from the away following that made the trip to Birmingham. They didn’t add much to the atmosphere at all.
UTV
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