Oh ye of little faith. As golden rays of sunshine shone brightly into the eyes all around me in the Witton Lane stand, a resurrection was occurring in B6, and it wasn’t even Easter. And all this, after a time not too long ago, when the transfer dealings being pulled out of the hat by Paul Lambert were being rubbished by pundits and some of our fans. Players like Ashley Westwood and Matthew Lowton were seen as unknown punts, and a far cry from the expectations Aston Villa fans should be having.
Except, funnily enough, it turns out that this manager knows a bit about unearthing players and making them play together. You know, as a team. As opposed to how we have played over the past two years. Even after today’s result, Robbie Savage remains committed to his prediction that Villa will still go down. I remain committed to the fact that I believe Savage should becommitted for the nonsense he comes out with.
The match vs Swansea City displayed the hallmarks of positive football. After a nihilistic two year adventure that even Nietzsche would have been proud of, this was a different team, though I doubt even the German philosopher would have bought Alan Hutton. Even Nietzsche, with his regular monologues about how “God is dead” probably would have looked like a children’s TV presenter dressed in neon clothing compared to the last campaign’s miserable footballing ethea. The long ball is dead, long live the short passing game.
As for Villa on that Saturday afternoon, not only were the team passing the ball around, they were being dangerous too, with the full backs providing the necessary width required due to Lambert’s eschewing of wing play. Frem – try to remain calm. Sit down and relax my old boy, wingers may not be coming in the near future, I’m sorry to say.
Speaking of width, some may have thought that playing Eric Lichaj and Matthew Lowton was a tad risky considering at least half of that duo has issues when operating defensively, but Lambert’s call turned out to be the right one following the mantra that the best form of defence is attack.
As the Mrs text me at half time from her holiday in sunny Spain with the in-laws to ask how Villa were getting on (I don’t let things like holidays get in the way of football, obviously), I replied that we were 1-0 up and figured both Ashley Westwood and Christian Benteke would be getting their debuts around the hour mark. Turns out Lambert must have had the same idea as me, only choosing to replace Stephen Ireland where I would have took Barry Bannan off.
On reflection, I can see why Ireland made way as Lambert focuses strongly on developing players’ confidence. In this instance, Bannan may well have needed that boost, especially since he continues to try long passes that look beyond his capabilities a lot of the time. Keep it simple Barry – it’ll do you good.
Away from the players for a moment, the away fans were, for the most part, a lively bunch. Not long after I had got sat down with my Bovril – I knew it would be a good day when I had secured a cup of beef tea – it was the Swansea fans who were of a stronger voice. Villa, by comparison, started meekly in crowd terms with an atmosphere that could only be described as pensive. Here was a crowd that was waiting for evidence to be entertained. On the basis of the past two seasons, perhaps they are right to be a little less than expectant.
Once Lowton’s goal went it, the Swansea fans broke out into an almost predictable “You only sing when you’re winning” chant. On the face of it, it’s very hard to argue with that view, largely because of the true nature of said statement – most fans at Villa Park do only seem to be in fine voice when the team are ahead.
Anyway, enough of the fans, for now at least. Not like it was a huge surprise to those of us who follow European football, but turns out this Benteke lad can play a bit. Despite his height, the player we saw the first glimpse of in claret and blue certainly isn’t in the Nikola Zigic mould – Benteke is a veritable tank of a player. Although the Belgian international only got a brief chance to show his ability on the pitch, the instinct and nonchalance of his lobbed goal said it all – you don’t pull that out your bag, on your debut, as a substitute, because you’re average. Make no mistake of it, Benteke will be a good value signing.
One concern I have from a player perspective is how Gabriel Agbonlahor might fight his way into the team. Though the ability to count more players amongst the ranks of a squad is a good thing, not only did Agbonlahor fail to start, he didn’t manage to get on the pitch either. Some of this is invariably down to his return from injury, but if Benteke can keep up the form he promises to offer, can anyone see a first choice front line partnership long term that isn’t Darren Bent and Christian Benteke?
Speaking of players who may find it hard to get back in the team, on Brad Guzan’s recent performances, is Shay Given likely to come back? Or is Ben Siegrist likely to be the next understudy to Villa’s dominant number 22? I can’t see a way back in for Given on Guzan’s present form at least, and the American keeper has been responsible for points already this season delivering wonder saves against Newcastle United as well as showing a stability at the back today that led the home fans to shout “Guuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu-zan” as the strangely boo-like sounding call of appreciation rang out around the pitch.
Come the end of the match, I stood and applauded the whole team off the pitch. Whilst I am always appreciative of the efforts the players put in to the game, I felt they deserved that kind of extra support because here, before our very eyes, a metaphorical dawn was breaking just as the actual sun started to dip from view on Saturday’s autumnal stage. Here, in the September late afternoon, was a manager who knows how to change things, who knows how to find players and, as we have already seen in his past achievements, who knows how to make a team that is greater than the sum of its parts.
Of course, Martin O’Neill was of a similar nature, and the era Lambert promises to deliver to Villa fans has just as much, if not more, potential as the success the once-loved Ulsterman brought to the city. By saying that, I don’t intend to imply that I am getting ahead of myself, or that we should all be doing so collectively, but the signs are there. After a period of doom and gloom over the past few seasons, those signs are a welcome relief from an era that tested my faith in the club – right now, I have all the faith in the world in a Lambert revolution.
So it was the first competitive win of the Lambert era, and a game that showed progress is likely over the coming months and years. If Benteke can keep up the strike rate he has managed in the Belgian Pro League, Villa’s concern won’t be whether he will be a success, but rather a case of how they can stop a talent such as him from leaving in the long term.
Still, don’t worry about that for now. Sit back, breathe deeply, and relax. The future’s bright – it even glows in the dark on occasion! Thankfully, for Villa fans, the time of toiling in the dark under poor football looks to be over. Ladies and gentlemen, enjoy your Sunday.
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