Aston Villa battled to secure a 0-0 draw at Ajax in the first leg of our Europa Conference League tie, and subsequently go into the return leg in a strong position.
It was a difficult night in the Dutch capital, as Villa struggled to play to the level we’re capable of, and that in turn allowed the hosts to have the better of the encounter.
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In a scrappy and cagey contest, a goalless draw to take back with us ahead of the second leg at Villa Park next week was a decent outcome, and Unai Emery reflected on it the same way as he’ll now look ahead to two huge games in our season against Tottenham and Ajax respectively in the coming days.
Emery opts to rotate in big week for Villa
The big decision before the game was that the Villa boss decided to rotate and make five changes to his starting XI, albeit given our strength in depth, it was still a strong line-up.
If we want to compete across both fronts, we’ll need to get the balance right and keep our players fit and healthy, and so it was partly expected that there would be changes on Thursday.
Albeit the result wasn’t ideal, Emery gave others an opportunity to impress while resting key individuals such as John McGinn and Leon Bailey, and so it’s hoped we’ll be in a good place against Tottenham this weekend, before perhaps going full strength again in the second leg vs Ajax.
Iroegbunam steps up and plays his part
It was a big night for the 20-year-old in particular, as he was tasked with coming into our midfield and being the anchor alongside Douglas Luiz to give us control.
Albeit he had some shaky moments, it was a decent shift overall, and he’ll hope he’s done enough to earn the trust and faith of Emery to feature more prominently between now and the end of the season.
The partnership between Luiz and McGinn will now likely be the first-choice pairing for Emery in Boubacar Kamara’s absence, but Iroegbunam needs to be ready to come in when called upon, and so this was an important night for him.
Konsa suspension will be blow in second leg
After receiving two bookings, Ezri Konsa will now be suspended for the second leg, which will be a key blow for us given how important he is to Emery.
Not only in terms of his defensive solidity, but also his technical ability and composure to play out from the back in the way Emery wants as well as his versatility to give the Villa boss different options, it will be a headache to have to plan without him.
That said, he’ll now likely be free to start against Tottenham and complete that game knowing he won’t feature next week, and so it’s hoped that he can have a stellar outing on Sunday to help us get three invaluable points.
Crucial experience and learning curve for Villa players
Although Ajax aren’t the force that they have been over the years, this was still a big test for Villa and an experience that they would have learned a lot from.
The atmosphere at the Johan Cruyff Arena was electric before the game, and it would have been hostile during the encounter too while being very different to Premier League stadiums.
As we continue on our journey, which will hopefully feature Champions League football next season, this would have been a critical experience and learning curve for the players in this squad to continue to progress and develop, and ultimately get used to competing at this level.
Emi Martinez once again decisive in big moments
We didn’t see the best of many of our key players on the night, but Emiliano Martinez didn’t disappoint as he produced a stand-out performance.
As well as making two key saves, he was brilliant in his positioning to sweep up danger behind our high line, and so he played a fundamental role in our ability to keep a clean sheet.
His leadership and experience in big games will be crucial for us now, and it’s hoped he can play a big role next week in helping us get over the line to advance to the next round.
