Aston Villa secured a 3-1 win over Fulham on Sunday, as we signed off in style ahead of the international break with three crucial points.
Villa saw off AZ Alkmaar in midweek, but after the disappointment of losing at Nottingham Forest last weekend, it was important that we responded in the Premier League and got back on track.
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An own goal as well as efforts from John McGinn and Ollie Watkins ensured we picked up all three points, with Villa solidifying our place in fifth spot in the standings having picked up eight wins in 12 games so far this season.
Additionally, that’s now six straight home league wins to start the campaign, 13 consecutive home league wins, and 21 league wins in a calendar year, which equals a club record.
Aston Villa player ratings vs Fulham:
Emiliano Martinez, 7.5 – Will be frustrated and annoyed that we failed to keep a clean sheet again, but was alert to danger when needed, and pulled off a brilliant save in the second half, albeit the offside flag eventually went up.
Matty Cash, 8 – Made a superb last-man tackle just moments before our second goal, and that proved to be a decisive passage of play. Provided energy and width going forward, and defended well with some key interventions.
Ezri Konsa, 8 – Another top display as he marshalled the backline well, and used his recovery pace expertly at times to sweep up the threat in behind when Fulham looked set to be in on goal.
Pau Torres, 7.5 – Great with his distribution again, both in setting the tempo with his short-range passing as well as his long-range passes finding their target to get us moving up the pitch quickly. Will be disappointed with the goal conceded though as although Fulham did well to beat our offside trap, he then lost Jimenez for the pass across.
Lucas Digne, 7.5 – Impressive again for the most part with his ability to stretch the pitch and provide an attacking outlet in advanced areas. Caught out at times defensively, but still, another important shift.
John McGinn, 8.5 – MOTM. Showed grit, tenacity and physicality in his defensive work to give us a foothold and control in midfield, and got into good areas on the ball to create openings. Capped it off with a brilliant goal as he drilled a fine effort in from the edge of the box.
Boubacar Kamara, 8 – Important display in giving us control in midfield with his ability to break play up and retain possession. Looks assured and confident when dropping into that defensive role on the right side of the backline and interchanging into his usual midfield position.
Douglas Luiz, 8 – Similar to Kamara in that they helped us dominate possession and control proceedings. Calms things down when we need him to take the sting out of the game and regain that all-important sense of control that Emery demands, and his probing, incisive passes are always causing the opposition problems.
Youri Tielemans, 8 – Backed up his positive effort in midweek with another solid performance in this one. Provided the dangerous cross that forced the own goal for the opener, and although he faded in the second half, there were definitely more promising signs from the Belgian even despite playing in a wider role on the left.
Moussa Diaby, 7 – Continues to provide a threat for us in the final third with his pace and movement, but couldn’t quite get that decisive touch right in front of goal to make a bigger impact. Replaced after an hour given he’s had a heavy workload this week.
Ollie Watkins, 7 – Good movement and positioning for his goal to tap home and extend our lead. Worked hard and put pressure on the Fulham backline out of possession, while his running and ability to stretch defences was key in creating space and openings for others to exploit. Did miss a sitter though that he should have buried.
Substitutes:
Leon Bailey, 7 – Provided an assist immediately after coming on to help us kill the game, while he spurned a chance of his own to make it four which he’ll be disappointed with. Good impact off the bench though.
