Ireland And N'Zogbia Hold The Key

With 11 games left to go, as I posted yesterday, we are pretty much safe.  Despite this, I still can't see us picking up many more points looking at the teams we still have to face.  I think the key to our success in these games is the performances of Ireland and N'Zogbia.

In the first half at Blackburn they were terrific.  I know many of you will say it was because Blackburn were so poor but at the end of the day they capitalised on that and showed the quality they possess.  Obviously it is going to be tougher for them to produce that kind of performance against the better sides but I believe they have turned a corner recently and will continue to get better and better.

If they do get better and better then we can definately expect to score a few goals along the way to the end of a dismal season, and possibly win a game!  However if they don't then we can expect to see the same old dross such as the Wigan game where we will settle for a point under any circumstances.

Another Draw - More Chances Wasted

Our football was a breath of fresh air in the first half, but it was clear that it was only because Blackburn were afraid to go anywhere near us!  Ireland and N'Zogbia were given so much room and they took advantage with very good performances, a cracking goal by the latter and things were all looking very good indeed.

But the fact we were only 1-0 up at half time meant we all knew what the second half was going to be.  It was obvious we would go out there to hold on to the lead at any cost, but even I was stunned at just how much of a Blackburn precession it was!  We couldn't string 2 passes together for most of it and our goal was becoming increasingly more threatened.  Finally the inevitable goal came and surprise, surprise it came from a cross.

But then the most frustrating part is that as soon as they equalised we came back into it!  So why couldn't we have played like that at 1-0?  Whether it's the mindset of the players or the influence of Mcleish, it is quite simply not good enough.  We have been like it all season and has cost us a hatful of points.  We quite simply are not good enough to sit back for 45 minutes.

Weimann must have been pretty cheesed off at only getting a 2 minute run out, I mean what's the bloody point of that!?  Even it that 2 mins he won a corner with a deflected header, he simply has to play longer.  At least give him 20 mins at the end of the game because just giving him stoppage time every now and then is never going to aid his development.

Anyway, a point is a point.  I feel like I have said that a lot this season!  I'm fairly comfortable of staying up now as I can't see the teams below us earning much more than 10 points for the rest of the season so if we can pick up a point here and there we will be fine.  Mcleish has certainly done himself no favours today but it could have been worse so all we can do now is just continue to get behind the team (once again fantastic away support) and hope things take a turn for the better.

Man City: PREVIEW

Possibly the toughest game we will play all season. We rolled over twice last season at Eastlands and Man City have strengthened a lot since then. However, despite the departures of key players in our squad I believe we will put up much more of a fight this time around. A new found solidity at the back means we should hopefully not concede any cheap goals and force them to use the undoubted quality at their disposal to break us down. Last season it was all too easy for them, but I think we could be a much tougher task than they are anticipating.

Now we get on to the injuries. Man City are thankfully without Sergio Aguero for the match tomorrow so it will most likely be Balotelli to replace him. For us we are without Jenas still as he looks to overcome an achilles injury and Nathan Delfouneso is out with a minor hamstring tear. Ireland, Bannan and Agbonlahor have all overcome injuries to be fit for the trip to the Etihad Stadium so at least we can put out a strong team to have a realistic chance of perhaps taking something back to Villa Park.

My team prediction:

                    Given

Hutton  Collins  Dunne  Warnock

              Petrov  Delph

     Bannan  Ireland  Agbonlahor

                     Bent

From what Mcleish said in an interview after the Wigan game he made it seem quite clear that he wouldn't stick with the diamond for this match. I think he will play a much more solid base and try and hit them on the break with the pace of Gabby, and I think this is the only way we can be competitive against a side better than us in all parts of the pitch. I honestly believe we could win a hard earned point if we put in a real gutsy performance. A win would be unbelievable and I don't think anyone is predicting a Villa win, but it's not an impossibilty. Keep believing and it might just happen!

Players Must Live Close

Alex Mcleish has imposed a new rule at Villa that every player must live within a 30 mile radius of Bodymoor Heath. He hopes that this rule will help to reduce the number of injuries within the squad.

Now it was much publicised last year when Gerard Houllier tried to do something similar. His attempts failed though as players such as Stephen Ireland refused to move closer to the training ground because they felt it wasn't worth it if they knew that no matter what they did, they would be training with the reserves. Good news for Mcleish however as both Ireland and Warnock have both recently relocated closer to Bodymoor. Obviously that is down to the fact that they are being given game time so they actually have a good enough reason to move.

Injury Update

Alex Mcleish today revealed the extent of the injuries picked up by midfield duo Jermaine Jenas and Stephen Ireland. Jenas picked up his injury in training whilst Ireland suffered an ankle injury in the victory over Wigan at the weekend.

Mcleish said:

“Stevie turned his ankle, he was clearly struggling at the start of the second half but still contributed with a great through-ball,” he said.

“We felt it was right to take him off and he didn’t argue about that at all.

“He wants to keep that run of games going, and the more confidence he gets the better player he will be for Aston Villa.”

With regard to Jenas he said:


“He is going to be out for four weeks,”

“He’s hurt his Achilles and it’s a devastating blow first and foremost for Jenas. We’ll support him to get back to fitness.

“I could be doing with that extra competition in central midfield.”

Player Profile - 7. Stephen Ireland

Stephen Ireland is a player that I rate very highly. There is certainly no doubt that when he is playing to his full potential, he can be a very good player indeed. The only question is how good can Stephen Ireland be in a Villa shirt. There is only one way to find out the answer to that question, and that is to give him a sustained run of games. I'm very excited at the prospect of Ireland at his best, but it's clear to see that he still has a long way to go.

Last season was a complete disaster from start to finish for him. Houllier never took to him and was subsequently banished to the reserves before picking up a few niggly injuries and being forced out on loan to Newcastle against his will. It's fair to say that had Houllier have stayed this season, Ireland would have left in the summer, if anyone would take him that is.

Thankfully though Mcleish has come in and is trying to get the best out of him. He is still far from his best but the fact that he has started a few games already this season is a very good sign. I can see gradual improvements from him game by game. Especially in the Wigan game he was getting much more involved than in previous games which suggests that he is growing in confidence. The final pass/shot is still far from great but I feel that given time that will come back to him and soon we will see the Stephen Ireland we saw at Man City.

The rating is very tough to decide because if I was rating him on his Villa career so far it would be shocking but I need to consider his potential so it will be an average overall score.

Rating - 6.5/10

Jenas Out For A Month

I'm sure most people have already found out but I felt that I should touch on it anyway. News came out yesterday that the reason for Jenas missing out on the Wigan clash with an achilles injury that will keep him out for around a month. This is very annoying because I can't wait to see what he could bring to the team but every cloud has a silver lining I suppose. The silver lining on this cloud is surely the fact that against Wigan our midfield started to look quite good so it will be good for them to get a few more games together.  It also means that Stephen Ireland can get a few more games under his belt which I feel is essential for his Villa career.

Gabby Steals The Show

Such a nice feeling to be relaxing on a Saturday evening on the back of 3 points for the Villa!  And I think it's fair to say that we owe pretty much all of it to Gabby Agbonlahor.  I actually thought he started the game poorly, giving the ball away a bit too easily and not making the most of promising positions.  However as soon as he scored his goal he seemed to turn into a man possessed.

First things first I think that goal deserves a mention.  Bannan, who had a very impressive game before fading late on, sending an inch perfect ball down the left for Gabby to run on to.  He then ran at his marker, cut inside and rifled an unstoppable shot into the roof of the net.  It was a taster of what Gabby has to offer this season if he can keep up his level of performances.  He has the speed to terrorise any defence in the league and now he is starting to develop some skill to go with it which can make him unplayable at times.  He is also starting to improve his level of finishing which makes him even more dangerous as now he doesn't need 3 or 4 chances before he will take one.

For the second goal he went on a magnificent run down the left, leaving Emmerson Boyce for dead before delivering a perfectly placed cross for Bent to volley home his first goal in front of the Holte End so a special congratulations to him.  As for Gabby's role in the goal, there is nobody else in our squad who has the ability to do that, his pace being the key factor but now he is finally starting to use his pace more effectively.

Other than Gabby, I felt there were plenty of other positives to take from the game.  As mentioned earlier, I felt that Barry Bannan looked very creative and created pretty much all of our chances in the first half before almost scoring a cracking 25 yarder in the second half.  Stephen Ireland is far from the finished article but I saw moments of promise and I feel that given a lengthy run of games in the first team he could become a key figure this season for us.  As ever the defence looked solid, and I was especially pleased with Warnock's display.  I thought he was terrific today.  Last but not least another mention to Shay Given, who after being so quiet for most of the game came up with a couple of quality stops to preserve a clean sheet which will go down well in the camp.