Aston Villa secured a 1-0 win over Fulham on Tuesday night, as we made it 10 games unbeaten in the Premier League and moved up to fifth place.
A first-half goal from Tyrone Mings was enough to see off a poor Fulham side who had just one attempt on goal, with a resolute and disciplined Villa keeping things tight at the back.
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It was a flat performance for large periods in truth, and this certainly wasn’t anywhere near our best, but ultimately the most important thing was the result and it’s another crucial three points as well as a clean sheet as we continue our pursuit of European football.
There was arguably an element of fatigue too as Villa appeared to be conscious of managing the game throughout, and so it’s another crucial victory that strengthens our grasp on a European qualification spot, while that’s now five straight wins at home and five clean sheets on the bounce at Villa Park too.
Aston Villa player ratings vs Fulham:
Emi Martinez, 7 – Had very little to do given the top defensive display in front of him, but his distribution was accurate and at times even sparked quick counter-attacking opportunities.
Ashley Young, 7 – Did a solid job defensively to keep things tight on that side, and even crept forward and threatened on occasion too before being replaced in the latter stages.
Ezri Konsa, 7.5 – Always composed and in full control of the situation. Granted, Fulham didn’t exactly pose a huge threat, but he was alert and well positioned while also being efficient in possession.
Tyrone Mings, 8 – Strong defensive display as part of another top defensive effort from the entire team. Popped up and scored the all-important winning goal to seal the three points too, and that’s an area we hope to see him improve and be a more consistent danger in the opposition box.
Alex Moreno, 7.5 – Slightly quieter in the second half, but his attacking intent and threat down the left flank was a joy to watch again in the opening 45 minutes. A constant outlet and got into dangerous positions to cause Fulham real problems.
John McGinn, 7.5 – Did an important job defensively to nullify Fulham’s threat out wide, but also combined that with showing quality at times in our build-up play. Went close with an effort of his own late on but produced the delivery from a corner that helped break the deadlock.
Leander Dendoncker, 7 – A tidy performance as he did well to sweep up in front of the defence and not only break up Fulham’s rhythm and attacking play, but to win back possession and get us moving on the front-foot again.
Douglas Luiz, 7 – Struggled to get on the ball in the early part of the game with Fulham refusing to press higher up the pitch, but was accurate in possession as his influence grew and was important in our ability to control the game for the most part.
Jacob Ramsey, 6 – Glimpses of his ability but lacked a decisive impact on the game. Worked hard for the team though in doing a similar job to McGinn on his side to keep Fulham’s full-backs quiet, but just needed to be show a bit more in the final third.
Emiliano Buendia, 6 – Frustrating night for him as although he tried to add a bit of quality and flair to our play, wasn’t really impactful enough to make the difference. Fulham made it difficult by dropping deep and occupying those spaces in which he can thrive, but we need more from him to unlock stubborn opposition.
Ollie Watkins, 6 – Threatened on occasion as he looked to be more direct than his teammates, but often led to blocked shots and not enough of a goalscoring threat. Villa aren’t finding him as frequently in dangerous areas in the last two games, so it’s hoped that we can get back to that on Sunday and give him more to feed off while his end product needs to be on point too.
Substitutes:
Lucas Digne, N/A
Bertrand Traore, N/A
Calum Chambers, N/A