Aston Villa succumb to Wednesday, John Terry succumbs to injury
By Josh Tonti
It was a woeful Saturday at Villa Park for Steve Bruce and sons. A pair of early goals saw Sheffield Wednesday defeat Aston Villa.
The match started innocently enough. It was a pleasant Autumn afternoon in the United Kingdom. Aston Villa began the day in fifth place.
All was good.
Then this happened:
Adam Reach’s screamer of a goal for #SWFC (No sound sorry) pic.twitter.com/fVKb9r5Tgd
— Rob Harris (@rharris_22) November 4, 2017
That thundering volley from Adam Reach deflated Villa thereafter. Sheffield Wednesday set-up in a very tidy 4-4-2 that transformed into a 2-4-4 without the ball. Wednesday’s high set-up congested the midfield and flustered Villa wide players all afternoon.
Albert Adomah had little room to dribble. Robert Snodgrass (before coming off injured? Maybe?) was forced to find room inside in the number ten role to operate. Scott Hogan was anonymous at striker before being shoe-horned into a wide midfield role in the second-half.
To add injury to insult, John Terry exited in the 20th-minute after a hard tackle. Christopher Samba entered the match, promptly gave up The Owls’s second goal, and scored in the sixth minute of second-half extra time.
Villa lost and now, for some, their attention turns towards international duty.
GK. Aston Villa. SAM JOHNSTONE. 5.0. Not at fault for either goal, but had a relatively quiet afternoon – making just two saves.
Aston Villa. AHMED ELMOHAMADY. 6.0. One of the few who impressed for Aston Villa, Ahmed Elmohamady was a model of consistency on Saturday. 79% pass accuracy on 84 touches.. RB
Aston Villa. JAMES CHESTER. 6.5. Sharp match from James Chester – being forced to play with a new partner in central defense. All of Villa’s sideways passing resulted in 86 touches for the Wales international. Switched sides with Samba.. RCB/LCB
Aston Villa. JOHN TERRY. N/A. Get well soon, sweet prince. Aston Villa needs you ready following the international break.. LCB
6.5. Alan Hutton, First-Team Left Back, continues his torrid pace. Completed 86% passing on 98 touches with three aerial duel victories. Provided a lot of width on the left side, but not much end product.. LB. Aston Villa. ALAN HUTTON
5.0. Not hugely influential, and was a bit out of position on Reach’s volley. Substituted out in the second-half for Jack Grealish. CDM. Aston Villa. GLENN WHELAN
6.0. Far better second half than first half from the Republic of Ireland international. Ended up with 4 key passes on the afternoon, but was operating far too deep for his skill set. Steve Bruce needs to get his closer to the opposing eighteen yard box.. CM. Aston Villa. CONOR HOURIHANE
RM. Aston Villa. ROBERT SNODGRASS. N/A. Substituted off for Callum O’Hare in the 39th-minute through injury. Snodgrass re-aggravated his rib injury, but played well in the early stages of the match.
Aston Villa. ALBERT ADOMAH. 5.5. Much better in the second half, but Adomah didn’t quite live up to his incredible form on Saturday. Wednesday’s set-up did not allow for any blistering counters.. LM
4.5. Aston Villa was playing with ten men in the first half. At least, that is what it felt like because Scott Hogan rarely got into the match. Performed better in the second half, but needs to do a lot more to get a place in the starting lineup anytime soon. Big drop off from Jonathan Kodjia.. CF/RM. . SCOTT HOGAN
6.0. Not always the prettiest from the 19-year old, but Keinan Davis held the ball up really well. The ball just sticks to his person, allowing additional runners in the attack. Big element to Aston Villa’s attack.. CF. Aston Villa. KEINAN DAVIS
Some much needed rest for Villa follows. Hopefully, John Terry and Jonathan Kodjia return to full fitness against Queens Park Rangers.