As Aston Villa kicked off their pre-season campaign with a win against League Two oppositions Burton Albion, there were many positives that could be drawn from the game in particular the performances of the recent signings Brett Holman, Karim El Ahmadi, and Matt Lowton.
It would be wise for Villa fans to stay restrained because as much as a winning start can be a good first step in Paul Lambert’s tenure at boss of the club from B6, it is also a result that needs to be viewed in context.
After all, Burton Albion are a small team and Villa will have to overcome many larger hurdles put before them than the opposition presented on this occasion.
Fans may well have been surprised to see a change in formation from the recent adoption of a 4-2-3-1 formation, especially when Villa were the first team to concede. However, as Lambert has stated in initial interviews, the results and performances found in pre-season are not necessarily any kind of indicator of future performances, merely a chance for the team to grow and otherwise learn (or re-learn) how to play together.
With Lambert starting two complete teams apart from Andy Marshall who played the full game, this was clearly a case of a man with a plan working out how players fit into his plans.
It is impossible to make any kind of sensible assessments after such a short period of time against one lower league club, but the initial stages look pleasing. Whilst Lambert showed grace towards Burton by acknowledging that winning any game is a challenge, much can be gleaned from the Villa performance.
As stated at the top of the article, all three new signings look like they can offer much for the team with Lambert joking that Lowton’s performance in an unusual central defensive position showed that the player had much more potential than his former League One team he played for may have illustrated.
So, in short, the signs are there. Villa are starting on a journey towards the new season with a fresh sense of optimism, one that is a marked contrast to the dark clouds that hovered over the club as Alex McLeish started his period of managing the club.
If Lambert can continue to harness the positive energy at the club, and utilise that energy to produce both positive and effective football for Villa, then the fans will appear renewed in vigour as the season approaches.
The win at Burton may well not be anything to get carried away with but, in its earliest stages, the Paul Lambert revolution shows massive potential. As a once-beaten and bruised football club look to rise like a phoenix from the flames out of the ashes, the future of a team that finished far closer to the relegation zone than the title looks increasingly bright.
The Author
