Aston Villa played out a goalless draw with Leicester City at the King Power Stadium as we produced a battling performance to pick up a point.
Off the back of four consecutive Premier League defeats, Steven Gerrard will have been desperate to see his side produce a positive performance and stop the rot as we’ve been bitterly disappointing in recent weeks and have subsequently tumbled down the standings.
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Villa successfully did that with a crucial clean sheet and a share of the spoils, and while it wasn’t a top display by any means, it’s a result that we can hopefully build on in the coming weeks and start climbing the table.
Aston Villa player ratings vs Leicester City:
Emi Martinez, 6 – Didn’t have a huge amount to do as his defence protected him well but delivered when called into action to earn an important clean sheet.
Matty Cash, 6 – Wasn’t as much of a threat going forward down that right flank as we know he can be, but a tidy defensive performance to keep things tight on that side of the pitch.
Ezri Konsa, 6 – Solid performance as he dealt with Leicester’s attacking threats well for the most part to restrict their ability to cause us problems in that third of the pitch.
Tyrone Mings, 6 – Similar to his defensive partner, produced a solid display that was an important part of our overall efforts to shut Leicester out and earn a much-needed point.
A. Young, 6.5 – Back in the side with Digne out, the experienced stalwart put in a great shift as he showed his know-how to provide us with steeliness and composure on that flank.
John McGinn, 5 – A battling performance that we come to expect from him, but didn’t do much beyond that to influence the game and give us a real foothold in midfield.
Douglas Luiz, 5 – Decent effort from the Brazilian, kept things ticking over and tidy in midfield but without doing anything of significance throughout to really impact the game.
Jacob Ramsey, 5.5 – A threat at times with his ability to drive forward with the ball, but couldn’t get going and have a major impact on the game by producing something in the final third.
Leon Bailey, 4.5 – A really disappointing afternoon for him as he was given a big opportunity by Gerrard in the starting XI to impress, but came up short throughout as he couldn’t use his technical quality or speed to cause Leicester any major issues.
Ollie Watkins, 6 – Didn’t receive the greatest of service, but worked hard throughout as he pressed off the ball and put Leicester’s defenders under pressure constantly. Was more effective as an attacking threat in the second half, with Villa going longer and allowing his movement and running to give Leicester a real headache.
Philippe Coutinho, 5 – Tried to make things happen, but wasn’t at his best as he couldn’t unlock the Leicester defence and struggled to have an overall impact on the game which we need from him given he is our creative hub in the side.
Substitutions:
Tim Iroegbunam, 6.5 – A great cameo appearance from the youngster. Looked confident, composed and mature in the 20 minutes he got, and it’s hoped that’s earned him more playing time in the coming weeks as he’ll learn a lot from it and continue to develop.
Emiliano Buendia, 6 – Looked really bright after coming on, adding more quality to our play and tempo to create some dangerous moments. Will hope to be more heavily involved next week.
Marvelous Nakamba, N/A – Big boost seeing him back on the pitch after his spell on the sidelines through injury, and it will be important for us to see him get more minutes and build up his fitness for the run in.
