Aston Villa, Albert Adomah down Sunderland at home
By Josh Tonti
A furious second half revitalization pushed Aston Villa to three points over bottom dwellers, Sunderland. Josh Onomah and Albert Adomah excelled at Villa Park on Tuesday evening.
A 10th-minute Albert Adomah counter put Aston Villa in the lead in mid-week EFL Championship action. Despite a less-than-stellar first half, the claret and blues never looked back.
Captained by James Chester at center back, he, alongside Christopher Samba formed an impressive central defense partnership against the Black Cats. Former Wales national team manager Chris Coleman took charge of Sunderland for the very first time.
You may remember he had resigned after the European Championship semi-finalists failed to qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
Adomah’s strike was all that separated the two sides at half time. It was Sunderland, however, that held the better chances.
Josh Onomah took a deflected hit early after the break that fell into Robbin Ruiter’s net. Sunderland pulled one back via Lewis Grabban, but it was too little, too late. Aston Villa held on for three points.
Held to a single save due to stiff, organized defending from the outfield players. Not too much Johnstone could have done on Grabban’s finish in the box. A relatively quiet evening for the Manchester United loanee.. GK. Aston Villa. SAM JOHNSTONE. 6.0
6.0. Heavily involved in the attack. After a rough spell in September and early October, Alan Hutton is on another late-career resurgence.. RB. Aston Villa. ALAN HUTTON
Registered a decent header on target and started the counter that led to Adomah’s opening goal. Mix in a few poor lumbering moments, and it’s a typical Samba performance.. RCB. Aston Villa. CHRIS SAMBA. 6.5
Aston Villa. JAMES CHESTER. 6.5. Fairly strong performance – completed over 90% passing accuracy, but left more to be desired on Grabban’s finish.. LCB
6.5. Good to see Neil Taylor reclaim his left back role – and play better than in previous months. Won three aerial duels and a pair of important sliding challenges.. LB. Aston Villa. NEIL TAYLOR
CDM. Aston Villa. GLENN WHELAN. 6.0. Taken off for Mile Jedinak with a half hour to play. Reasonably solid shift completing 81% of his passes.
CM. Aston Villa. CONOR HOURIHANE. 6.0. Like most, a solid shift from the Republic of Ireland international. However, we would still like to see more attacking incisiveness from one of the league’s best midfielders.
7.5. Two assists. Constantly looking for the ball. Strong in defensive pressure. Robert Snodgrass is showing his quality as of late for Aston Villa.. RM. Aston Villa. ROBERT SNODGRASS
7.0. Josh Onomah is perhaps England’s brightest young footballer. Scored Villa’s second and completed 90% of his passes in the number ten hole. He’s so good, he is keeping Jack Grealish rooted to the bench.. CAM. Aston Villa. JOSH ONOMAH
LM. Aston Villa. ALBERT ADOMAH. 7.5. Villa’s leading scorer, scores again. Adomah registered his eighth in league play, just two off the top mark – and he’s doing it all from the wing.
. KEINAN DAVIS. 6.0. Not the prettiest of displays, but an effective one. Keinan Davis once again held-up play for midfield runners. Only thing missing from his arsenal are the actual goals. Davis is playing with a maturity far beyond his 19 years.. CF
Jack Grealish and Mile Jedinak both impressed from the bench as Aston Villa saw off a late Sunderland challenge 2-1. We go again at the weekend.