After a challenging week, Aston Villa produced the ideal response as we ran riot in a 4-1 win over Newcastle Utd on Saturday evening.
Goals from Ollie Watkins, Ian Maatsen, Amadou Onana and a Dan Burn own goal saw us secure a deserved three points, in what will hopefully prove to be a decisive outcome in the battle for Champions League qualification.
READ MORE: Villa player ratings vs Newcastle Utd: Decisive quartet shine in superb 4-1 win
Villa made an excellent start after breaking the deadlock in less than a minute, while our second-half performance was a joy to watch as we dominated and controlled the game.
The win leaves us in sixth place in the Premier League standings, level on points with Nottingham Forest, a point adrift of Manchester City and two points behind Newcastle, albeit Forest have played a game less. In turn, with just five games remaining for us, the stakes couldn’t be higher but we look in great shape.
Emery continues to get rotation, changes spot on
While it’s a welcome headache for Emery, it’s a headache nonetheless as he continues to manage his squad and make difficult decisions over who is not only left out of the starting line-up, but also the matchday squad as a whole.
However, as we registered a fifth consecutive win in the Premier League and an 11th victory in our last 13 outings across all competitions, it’s testament to the Villa boss and his ability to rotate effectively, to not only keep his players fit and fresh, but to also find the right combinations and tactical solutions to get the better of that particular opposition when devising his gameplan.
Further, this time round it was the turn of Jacob Ramsey and Onana to make a decisive impact off the bench in the latter stages of the encounter, and so it’s the personnel and timing of his changes that the Villa boss is getting spot on too as we continue to win consistently and enjoy these bursts later in games.
Delight for Maatsen after first Premier League goal
While he still has room for improvement from a defensive perspective, Maatsen showed his class going forward as he bagged his first Premier League goal, and it was a pivotal goal in the context of this particular game.
The run was brilliant as he overlapped Watkins and ran clear on goal, but it was the composure to lift his finish over the goalkeeper to find the back of the net that showed real class.
He still has a big fight on his hands to displace Lucas Digne more regularly at left-back, but the important thing right now is that he’s growing, improving, developing and becoming a more trusted option for Emery.
Tielemans is class
That’s all that really needs to be said as Youri Tielemans is operating at an elite level this season, and the tireless nature of his effort is staggering when you consider he has been one of a few constants in the team in a relentless show of work ethic and professionalism.
Aside from his tenacity and work-rate off the ball, his composure, vision and technical ability in possession is so fundamental to how we play, and not only was that reiterated in this win, but he was decisive in the final third again too with his assist for the opening goal.
Along with Emiliano Martinez and Morgan Rogers, the Belgian midfield metronome has become a pillar of Emery’s Villa, and he hopefully has plenty left in the tank to continue to run the show in the closing weeks of the campaign.
Watkins produces the perfect response
Although he spoke candidly about his frustration over playing a limited role in recent weeks in his post-match interviews, what matters most is what Watkins does on the pitch when involved, and he’s continuing to deliver for the team.
It took just 33 seconds for him to open the scoring, as you could see in his body language and approach that he was up for this game and wanted to make a point.
His movement was excellent throughout as he gave us an outlet up front while stretching the Newcastle defence to allow others to exploit space, but he was direct, determined and confident in his play and was unlucky not to add to his tally having hit the woodwork twice. Brilliant attitude, mindset and performance.
Villa gaining momentum, peaking at right time
Although last season was a memorable journey, there’s no denying that Villa eventually limped over the line as we looked shot of energy after such a gruelling campaign.
Lessons have clearly been learned from that, as although we had our dip earlier in the season, we’re turning it on when it really matters at the business end, and that is a hallmark of the top sides competing for major honours.
With every win we’re gaining momentum, confidence and belief, and it’s hoped that we’re peaking at just the right time with players avoiding injury setbacks and staying fresh. Ramsey recently said that the last two months of the season had to be our best two months, and that message, which would have come from Emery, is translating into big performances on the pitch.
