“Villa did fantastic today” – Sir Alex Ferguson
Well, lets know dwell too much on throwing another 2-0 lead away against Manchester United…there was probably more positives for the Villa fan in this game then even the wins of last week.
1. The Villa team managed to create this priceless picture below. Taken after either one of Weimann’s goals or when the United players were informed Villa had gone further than them in the League Cup this season.
2. Christian Benteke is maybe twice as good as we first thought. Even though he didn’t score against United, this was perhaps his best performance (MOTM). His setting up of the first was immense – pace, power and skill ala Alan ‘Rambo’ McNally and Dalian Atkinson – to run at and destroy Smalling (putting him on his back side). The second goal saw Benteke do a smooth step over dummy in the build-up ala Socrates in the 1982 World Cup for Brazil vs USSR. The boy seems to have a few weapons in his armoury.
3. We really do have four decent strikers. Weimann finally contributed goals and scoring a brace against United will be a massive boast to his confidence. Ghosting in from the right and working his socks off, he’s a decent option on the right. While it may not be his number one position, at least he’s getting game time. Our forward line certainly has dimension once everything else gels into place in the rest of the team.
4. This Villa team’s average age is 24. I haven’t got my calculator out myself, but I’ll go along with the maths of the press who have been using that figure. It’s a vibrant and promising foundation to add one or two more experienced heads to in the January window. These young lions will only get better with experience and playing more games together. A team with genuine endeavor that even the more cynical fan can back is quickly forming.
5. Villa’s plan of leading West Brom fans into a false sense of security in terms of who will be crowned the Pride of the Midlands at the end of this season is working nicely.
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