Aston Villa fell to a 3-2 defeat at Man Utd on Tuesday night, as we frustratingly threw away a two-goal lead and returned home empty-handed.
Goals from John McGinn and Leander Dendoncker put us in a strong position after just 26 minutes, with the Old Trafford crowd growing in frustration and anger.
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However, a response was always likely from the hosts after the break, and Villa didn’t have any of the answers needed to withstand their pressure and secure a positive result.
It was arguably the worst 45 minutes of football under Unai Emery given how badly we struggled, and so a strong reaction will be needed now at home against Burnley on Saturday afternoon.
Sloppy Villa punished as defeat our own doing
In truth, the warning signs were there early as although our offside trap was working well and we scored two well-worked set-piece goals, our sloppy play was a concern.
Eventually, it was punished. Whether it was the lazy pass from Diego Carlos in the build-up to the first goal we conceded or Clement Lenglet being dispossessed cheaply and giving away the corner that resulted in the winner, we contributed significantly to our own downfall.
We simply can’t make those kind of mistakes at this level as they will get punished, and that in turn changed not only the complexion of the game but got the home crowd right back into it and added to the pressure on the players.
Brutal lesson for players to learn from
Our composure and control abandoned us after going 2-0 up, and the inability to respond by either shutting up shop at the back or exploiting the counter-attacking opportunities that were available to us was really poor, albeit we did have a couple of big chances as the game was turning.
If we want to take the next step and win consistently against the top six or seven sides in this league, we need to use this experience and become more mature in how we handle situations both individually and collectively.
It would be ideal if we could play our brand of football every week and win. However, we need to show the necessary physicality and resilience in tough environments and situations to get a positive result as collapses like this one can’t happen if we want to be at the top level.
Adaptability a key attribute moving forward
It was clear that the momentum was switching and we were starting to collapse as the second half played out, and so our game management wasn’t good enough.
That started on the pitch with our key ball-playing individuals not getting their foot on the ball and taking the sting out of the game to play at our preferred tempo, but perhaps Emery will feel as though he could have done some things differently too.
Whether that was earlier substitutions to break up the game or tweak our set-up slightly given we were constantly getting overrun and bypassed in midfield while also getting exposed in behind over and over again. Villa still need to adapt better in some games and make the required adjustments.
Absence of Pau, Kamara a real issue coupled with off night for Luiz
One issue that was particularly glaring as the game unfolded, was that we badly missed the presence of Pau Torres and Boubacar Kamara in the heart of the Villa side.
Without their calmness, composure and ability to impose themselves both in and out of possession, we didn’t play with any control and it all became frantic and not in keeping with the style Emery wants.
Combined with another off night from Douglas Luiz who was sloppy and ineffective for the most part, compared to his usual high standards, that inability to keep the ball, cope with Utd’s press and exploit the gaps out wide was a big factor in the defeat as it went from a potentially comfortable victory to a complete nightmare.
Emery takes bigger-picture look amid disappointment
We can be critical of a game in isolation, and so some of the reactions after the full-time whistle were warranted and fair, as throwing away a two-goal lead at Old Trafford by playing the way we played was so poor and disappointing.
Importantly though, Emery is right to reflect on the bigger picture and remind everyone of our 39-point haul from the first half of the season, which is still a brilliant achievement.
These are fundamental learning experiences that we’ve had over the last two games against Sheffield Utd and Man Utd, and so while it’s a horrible feeling to have only come away with one point given the positions we were in in both games, they will hopefully better prepare us for similar tests ahead and be the catalyst for improvement in the long run.
