Progressing a point at a time and a new player at a time..
Progressing a point at a time and a new player at a time..
Villa’s trip to Derby proved to be less than a thrilling affair as both teams had their periods of possession and neat passing but it never looked like it was ever going to be a goal-fest. Villa hit the frame of the goal a couple of times but once big Rudy went off with a pulled hamstring Villa didn’t pose much of threat and to be fair neither did Derby. In the end the travelling fans had to make do with the satisfaction of depriving one of last season’s top performers of two home points, give a big thumbs-up to the clean sheet, and see the result in terms of the long run of the campaign.
Kozak’s ring-rusty performance suggested that Villa are a bit short of finishers at the moment and unless it is possible to somehow fix the Libor rate, Villa probably need to sign another striker if they are to score the sixty-odd goals they need to make it into the play-offs. Naturally, desire coalesced into rumour and helped along by something Dr X Tweeted, Didier Drogba was soon being reported as having been spotted in Birmingham. Who, at 38 years young, is still banging them in across the pond. There is still plenty of time before the transfer window closes but as things stand, Villa can’t be more than a couple of injuries and suspensions away from giving Gabby a recall. Personally, I would like to see that happen, because I really love to see a football redemption, but a majority of Villa fans would probably disagree. And, vehemently.
I think it would be true to say that most Villa fans would have been doubtful about Villa’s ability to dominate Derby last Saturday as soon as they saw that Aaron Tshibola was absent from Villa’s midfield, and therefore it was good news to see that Jedinak finally got his papers stamped this week and he is now available. The arrival of Ritchie De Laet to add some pace to Villa’s defence seems like good news too, especially as he seems to have the ability to be in two places at the same time. He somehow managed to simultaneously win the Premier League with Leicester and promotion with Middlesbrough. The fact that he looks exactly like Billy Whizz out of the Beano probably explains this. I am definitely looking forward to seeing some afternoon De Laet.
In the meantime Villa have a three o’clock appointment for a thorough examination by Bristol City this Saturday, who enjoy slightly superior form to Villa after two wins and then two losses in a row, which gives them a point more than Villa but possibly less optimism. Their losses came against Norwich and Newcastle who must be considered strong contenders over the season and both games finished one-nil. From such results it might be assumed that they have a decent defence and their goal-difference standing at zero seems to confirm that. With Villa still without Gestede and Tshibola (groin), RDM won’t be able to field his
strongest side but the inclusion of Jedinak should add more power to Villa’s midfield. With Villa looking more competent in defence and with a more balanced midfield Villa should be able to control the game but it is hard to see where the goals are going to come from. I don’t expect anything spectacular but a sign of further progress would be nice.
Keep the faith!
