The match against Norwich City was a complete disaster. As Steve Bruce admitted, it was by far the worst performance since he took the helm at Aston Villa Football Club. It was blatantly obvious that we were not up for it and the loss inevitably followed. We were lucky to escape Carrow Road with just the one goal loss. However, what has been a recurring theme over the last few weeks is our slow build up play.
This year we have a wealth of attacking options. The likes of Jonathan Kodjia, Jack Grealish, Jordan Ayew, Ross McCormack and Albert Adomah are all capable of opening up any defence, especially in the Championship, therefore a meagre return of just twenty two goals in twenty one games is simply not good enough. We have seen glimpses of sparkling football from Villa’s attacking options but this has not been a regular feature of the season so far. The fact that we know what the players are capable of makes it all the more frustrating that they can’t seem to click at the moment.
To put it simply, we have been too lethargic and slow when we are in attacking positions. Primarily, this is down to the Villans’ movement off the ball: whenever the ball falls to Grealish, Kodjia or Adomah, for example, the rest of the players stand there motionless, waiting for something to happen. This just leads to them trying a few step-overs then turning back and passing backwards or sideways. If players make runs then they will create space for others to move into and penetrate the defence of our opponents. Not only will this create options for the person on the ball, it will also draw opposition players out of position.
It feels that whenever we play away from home, the pitch seems overcrowded. Fundamentally, this is because most of our players are virtually stationary, making us very easy to defend against. Scoring six goals in eleven away games just emphasises our away day woes. We have fired blanks in six of those games and we have only scored more than a solitary goal in one game – our only away win of the season, a 2-1 triumph against Reading.
Clearly, we need to have more fluidity and energy in attack. If our build up play continues to be as slow as it has been in recent weeks then achieving promotion will be onerous. Without a doubt, we have the players to score the goals and create the chances. They just need to work as a team rather than a group of individuals. If they can, hopefully we can end our away day misfortunes with a win on Sunday at Loftus Road.
Yes you are right miles too slow out of the blocks, it would help however if Bruce played players in their best positions Kodja completely wasted on the wing, and as for playing flabby while Mc Cormack, Gestede, and Adoma are on the bench beggars belief.