Has The Defence Turned A Corner?

After conceding just once in our last 3 games, has our defence finally sorted itself out?

There is no doubt that the injury to Richard Dunne has been a blessing in disguise due to the fact it has forced Mcleish to play King Carlos in his favoured position. Since he has been there he has been virtually MOTM every game. Lets just hope we offer him a new contract very soon!

Collins alongside him seems to have cut out the silly errors which were costing us vital points which is another bonus. Perhaps that is down to playing next to a calming influence for a change!

Also our full backs seem to be turning their form around. Warnock seems to have recovered after a horrendous couple of months and Alan Hutton has actually been looking pretty decent in the last few games. Both could be better going forward but seem to have at least cut out the mistakes at the back.

Im not going to go overboard and say we have a top defence but we certainly do not have a poor one at this moment in time. I still believe we need to replace Warnock in the summer, or perhaps try out Lichaj, but maybe we dont need the massive defensive overhaul we thought we did earlier in the season.

Cuellar Wants To Stay

Carlos Cuellar has lifted the lid on the his current situation regarding contract talks at Villa.  He claims that he has not yet recieved a contract offer, but despite recieving interest elsewhere he is holding out for an offer from AVFC.  He says he is enjoying it here and wants to stay so will put AVFC to the top of his priority list, which is great news!

There is no denying that Carlos is a top professional and more than competent defender and has earnt a place in Villa fans hearts, including mine.  The one thing that I'm not happy about is that we are yet to offer him a deal.  Perhaps Mcleish is just biding his time but if he isn't offered a new deal I'm certain there will be quite a few disgruntled supporters.

Sunderland: PREVIEW

Another match day and once again I feel as though we need at least a point from the game.  Results have not been going our way recently for one reason or another, and it's about time we added to our points tally.

Sunderland are a vulnerable side at the moment.  They enjoyed a good victory over Bolton last week but I feel that if we can get at them early on and maybe take an early lead, we should be able to control the game.  We should be looking to start like we did against West Brom and hope that the ref doesn't ruin the game again.

Despite the loss of Bannan, we will go into the game with a strong looking squad.  Herd's suspension written off, Hutton fit and so is Jermaine Jenas who could make his debut finally.  Lets just hope he doesn't pick up another knock in the next 24 hours!  I expect Mcleish to look to try and steady the ship with a solid point, even though this is a very winnable game, so I expect the following line up:

                     Given

Hutton  Collins  Dunne  Warnock

              Petrov  Delph

  N'Zogbia  Ireland  Agbonlahor

                     Bent

I don't think Jenas will start but I expect him to play some part in the game.  I would love to see Herd keep his place but I can't see it happening and the same applies to Cuellar.  He's so reliable but managers always seem to want him as back up which is very unfair to him.

Hutton Doubtful For Sunderland (Thank God!)

Another good bit of news coming out of Villa today is that Alan Hutton is still a major doubt after a facial wound that forced him off against West Brom.  I'm not going to lie to you, I think he's a liability and we're better off without him.  I know I said i wanted to give him games to give him a chance but to be honest, he looks like he's getting worse! He could have seriously injured Shane Long last week and I think it's better for evryone if he doesn't play.  It also gives King Carlos a chance to show what he can do at right back (a much better job than Hutton for sure).

Clark To Be The Main Man

Defensive duo Richard Dunne and Carlos Cuellar have praised the ability and potential that young centre back Ciaran Clark Possesses.  It was clear for all of us to see last year that he was a very talented footballer.  Not only is he a good defender, but he is also comfortable in possession which is a quality that none of our current defenders seem to have.  I would love to see Clark get some more game time alongside Dunne but I'm sure that Collins will take his place if he is fit.

Dunne said:

“Ciaran just has to be patient this year, he is a great lad and is going to be a brilliant player, but he is still young, especially for a centre-back.

“Last year he played a lot of games in midfield and at left-back but I think he wants to be a centre-back. He had a couple of injuries over the summer but it just takes time to develop sometimes.

“Ciaran will get games and I’m certain he’ll become a regular at Villa soon enough, so he has to be patient. Maybe ten or 15 games might just be enough for him in the learning process this season.

“Eventually he will take over and become the main man at the back. He will kick on with Ireland as well. The lads who are playing at the moment have played a lot of games and Ciaran is still at the stage where he is learning.

“But it will come to him at some point and I’m sure he will be back in the Ireland squad soon enough.”

Cuellar said:

“He is one of the best defenders I have played with – he is superb,”

“He is young, but he has some amazing assets.

“He is quick, he has good technique, he can play, he can tackle and he’s good in the air. He’s got everything you need to succeed and flourish.

“He is also incredibly versatile. He can play centre-back but he’s done an amazing job at left-back too when he’s been asked to play there and he’s even impressed in central midfield.

“He will be one of the best defenders in the Premier League and in Europe too. He’s that good.

“If he keeps up this kind of progression, keeps learning, he will definitely be one of the best defenders around. I rate him that highly.

“The quality of his left foot is amazing. He is so comfortable on it.”

Injury Latest

Good news for us coming out today that we could have as many as 5 players back from injury for the Wigan game on Saturday.  Darren Bent, Emile Heskey, Jermaine Jenas, Ciaran Clark and Carlos Cuellar are all back in training and hopeful of making the squad this weekend.

• Bent has apparently overcome his groin injury that kept him out of the QPR game but he thought he had shaken it off one time already so it will be interesting to see if there is any reaction on Saturday.
• Heskey is also back after his hamstring strain, though I'm hoping this doesn't mean he will be taking back his place in the team at the expense of someone more worthy.
• Jenas should finally make his debut at last! I've been really looking forward to seeing him in our midfield to see if he can add that spark that we have been lacking.
• Clark has recovered from a knee injury but this just means that our bench will look a bit stronger as there is no chance he will get a start.
• Finally Cuellar is making a return!!! I rate him highly but sadly I see no way of him breaking the current partnership at the back.  I agree with the saying "If it's not broke, don't fix it" and I think this statement should apply here.

This is what Mcleish had to say:

"Darren trained today which is good news. The injury wasn't as bad as first feared so it will be good to get him back in action and unleash him again.
"Emile will train later this week with the group. He has already started preliminary training but he will be with us when we are preparing for the weekend game so he will be available.
"The good news on Jermaine is that he started training yesterday and he had a good session.
"He had another good session today and looked very lively and he is ready to go as well.
"James played through the pain barrier and was hobbling about a wee bit at the end of the QPR game but he is one of these that will run through brick walls.
"We feared the worst afterwards but the scan was good and there was nothing broken.
"He has suffered severe bruising and his ankle is a little bit swollen but we think he might make it at the weekend.
"Ciaran Clark is another one who will join us later and will be available for the weekend."