Well, it certainly could’ve been worse. With Robin van Persie wrapping up a hat-trick inside of 32 minutes after putting Villa in arrears after only 83 seconds, the ghosts of Stamford Bridge were rearing their heads at Old Trafford. Not exactly what Villa would’ve been wanting to be reminded of.
One might ask whether things would’ve been different had Christian Benteke converted his early, and best, chance in between van Persie’s first and second. But he didn’t.
If you’re going to go at United, you’ve got to take your chances. While Villa created two or three, including one cleared off the line by who else but van Persie, only El Ahmadi’s late long-range effort called De Gea into any meaningful action.
What went wrong? Paul Lambert got the tactics wrong in this one, starting Charles N’Zogbia along with Gabriel Agbonlahor, Andreas Weimann and Benteke, with Delph and Westwood anchoring the midfield.
Villa were too open, United started on the front foot, had too much time, and picked our high line to pieces. Joe Bennet was having a torrid time with Valencia, and the back four in general were all at sea. It certainly didn’t help that van Persie came to play, apparently intent on getting his first EPL title and confirming why United splashed the cash for him in the summer. His second was a stunning strike.
While there looked to be offside shouts in at least two of the goals, they were very narrow. And given the number of other opportunities United spurned, Villa couldn’t have had too many complaints being just three down at the half.
To his credit, and certainly with an eye on damage limitation, Lambert somewhat surprisingly brought El Ahmadi on at the half for CNZ, and Villa concentrated on pressing and denying United, and Carrick, the time to do what they’d done in the first half. With three midfielders in midfield, and United looking forward to parading around the pitch in 45 minutes’ time, Villa finally gained a foothold, made it harder for United to pick their passes up- and crossfield, generally thwarting the home side’s attacking intent.
Indeed, as if to underline the importance of not conceding again, Lambert later brought Clark on for Bennett and moved Baker to left back.
While Villa weren’t particularly threatening, Jones and Evans handling Benteke well, the players at least salvaged a little self-respect. And kept the goal difference from taking any further damage. While Villa went in one goal worse than Wigan, they came out four worse with four to play.
Naturally it wasn’t a game that many of us really thought Villa were going to win. And while the second-half set-up was much more the way I’d have started things, it isn’t necessarily Lambert’s style. I never really thought Villa could actually get a bore draw, but I thought we could’ve approached the game differently.
But it’s also fair to ask whether, on the night, anything would really have made that much difference. United played about as well as this iteration is able to in the first 35 minutes. It’s also fair to say that Villa didn’t do much to hinder them.
Lambert will likely be pointing to the second half as Villa now face four fixtures as important as any during their uninterrupted tenure in the Premier League. And he’ll be right to, as the team kept their heads up, kept working, and showed that they do have character. Andi Weimann in particular was tireless, making run after run. The back four was much more settled and cohesive.
Villa could easily have rolled over and died, but they didn’t. Is that an encouraging sign to be found in an otherwise forgettable performance? One can only hope.
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