Aston Villa fell to a 4-1 defeat to Columbus Crew on Sunday morning, as we began our pre-season tour in the USA on a disappointing note.
Naturally, at this stage of our preparations this summer, the results aren’t the most important thing, but Unai Emery won’t have been best pleased with some of the defending on show from his side.
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While we showed positive signs with our build-up and attacking play, defensively we were sloppy, and that in turn led to us conceding some poor goals and our heavy defeat, albeit against a side in an entirely different stage of their season as Columbus looked fitter, sharper and more clinical.
Coupled with what are likely to be intense training sessions, it will have been a difficult experience for the Villa players, but it will hopefully give the coaching staff plenty to analyse and work with as we look to improve and become stronger ahead of the new Premier League season.
Aston Villa player ratings vs Columbus Crew:
Joe Gauci, 5 – Comfortable in dealing with crosses and his distribution wasn’t too bad despite coming under pressure. However, he was arguably too indecisive and hesitant to come off his line, as with Columbus breaking in behind our high line, the shot-stopper must surely have a better starting position and be ready to sweep up danger rather than backing up and be exposed in 1v1 situations.
Kosta Nedeljkovic, 5.5 – Looked positive again with his passing and ability to push forward to add width down the right. Although he has good recovery pace to get back into position, he did get caught out a couple of times defensively which he’ll have to work on.
Josh Feeney, 5 – Started well and looked really assured on the ball and with our offside trap as Pau Torres was seen giving him plenty of encouragement. However, he has a long way to go still to be a solid centre-half at the top level and he looked vulnerable for at least two of the goals.
Pau Torres, 5 – Made a mistake which led to Columbus scoring their second, and although he didn’t really do much else wrong in a steady performance, that was a key moment in the game as he looks to cut out errors in his distribution.
Alex Moreno, 6 – Put in a positive shift as he was composed on the ball and pushed up to add width and an attacking threat when possible. Had an attempt on goal which he couldn’t keep under the bar, but a good effort overall.
Enzo Barrenechea, 6 – Rarely gives the ball away as he continues to show calmness, composure and technical ability in possession to set the tempo and control proceedings. Still adapting and has a lot of room for improvement, but the promising signs continue.
Ross Barkley, 5.5 – Mixed bag from our summer signing, as he looked sharp and played key passes at times but looked sloppy and out of sync on occasion too. All part of the process as he continues to settle into his new team.
Leon Bailey, 5.5 – Tightly marked throughout and so it was difficult for him to make a decisive impact, but every time he picked up the ball, the Jamaican winger always looked to be positive and play with intent in the final third.
Morgan Rogers, 6.5 – Continues to look one of the sharpest and most in-form players through pre-season as he was a real threat in the first half with his movement and attacking play when picking up possession in space. Again, looks primed for a big season.
Samuel Iling-Junior, 5 – Produced a really good cross early on which he was unfortunate not to find a teammate with and register an assist, but that was pretty much all that he was able to contribute in the opening 45 minutes.
Cameron Archer, 6 – Will be frustrated he didn’t finish off a 1v1 opportunity earlier in the first half, but he showed great composure and a top finish to score our only goal of the night. It remains to be seen if he’s showing enough through pre-season so far to earn a spot in Emery’s plans this season.
Substitutes:
Oliwier Zych, 5.5 – Boost for him to get the second half to gain some valuable experience. Not really at fault for the goal as a mistake from Cash left him exposed.
Matty Cash, 5 – Looks strong on the ball when he’s striding forward, but again, some shaky moments defensively in this one. Made the mistake which led to the fourth goal and was beaten quite easily on that side on a couple of occasions.
Diego Carlos, 6 – Decent shift as he used his physicality and reading of the game well to give us some solidity in the backline.
Lucas Digne, 5.5 – Had to play out of position as a centre-half next to Carlos, and given that context, he did a good job filling in and getting minutes to build his fitness.
Jaden Philogene, 5 – Looked sharp at times and played with intent as he looked to give us a threat down the left flank. Will be itching to make a better impression on Emery and get more minutes.
Lewis Dobbin, 5 – Showed good movement and technical quality on the ball at times, but didn’t provide much of a direct threat.
Emiliano Buendia, 6 – So good to see him back. Hard to analyse his performance too critically given his lack of football over the past year, but he showed glimpses and this was a fundamental step in getting back to his best.
Ian Maatsen, 6 – Immediately looked comfortable on the ball and showed the attacking dynamic he’s capable of giving us with some great runs down the left.
Kaine Kesler-Hayden, 6 – Another decent showing as he was energetic and positive with his play to give us fresh impetus on the right side.
Leander Dendoncker, 6 – Looked solid as he was physically more imposing, but also confident to break forward with the ball from deeper areas and give us a different dynamic in midfield.
Amadou Onana, 6.5 – A glimpse of what we can expect as he added control and gave us a foothold in the last half hour or so. Physical presence who can break play up and regain possession, but he looked assured with his passing too as we built play well with him in midfield.
