Steven’s obviously still in search of his best XI, but at least he’s moving some pieces around. Sitting Coutinho and Ings may not seem ballsy to Villans, but that’s a lot of money on the bench (figuratively, anyway). It’s also a lot of money coming on, even if it doesn’t seem like it.
You’d think we should be past this, but it’s the first home match of the season and supporters are already on edge. A poor 0-2 defeat away to newly promoted Bournemouth will do that. I can’t pretend I have a lot to say that hasn’t already been said. Bottom line, Villa desperately need a win. That tends to be the case when there’s no feel-good factor and the team’s run of form under a new manager mirrors Gary Neville’s at Valencia. Villa basically seem to have stalled out.
Needless to say, Villa’s 0-2 setback triggered a sort of meltdown. What’s the problem? For one, Villa aren’t playing to their strengths.
And here we are. After what seemed one of the shortest off-seasons in memory, football and Villa are back. Well, the Premier League was back yesterday because TV, but you know what I mean. It’s Bournemouth away to open for us, and Gerrard’s team sheet has a couple surprises: No Mings or Watkins in the starting XI for chapter one of 38.
I won’t say I was thrilled by the season or even satisfied. Far from it. But. I do think Villa have a real chance to make some telling strides this summer, and that the side will ultimately be better and deeper. And as Gerrard has seemingly shown a little more tactical flexibility down the stretch, I’m hopeful that we can see that depth used effectively.
