Aston Villa and Manchester United played out a goalless draw at Villa park on Sunday afternoon. Here’s five talking points from the game…
United show they can be tough to beat
There is already significant pressure on United boss Erik ten Hag following a poor start to this season, made worse by his side squandering a 2-0 lead and drawing 3-3 with Porto in midweek. But United showed they can be a tough to beat opposition against a good Villa side. They were well organised without the ball, gave Villa’s danger men very little opportunities to hurt them, and defended well in the box when they did, most notably Diogo Dalot’s excellent block to keep out Jaden Philogene right at the end of the game. United fans will expect their side to be better when they do have the ball having also failed to create much of note but for where United have been of late this was more of a positive display than a negative one.
Hojlund’s poor afternoon
It is a welcome sight for Manchester United fans to see Rasmus Hojlund back in the starting line-up following his latest injury blow but it looks as though he will need time to get back up to speed again. The striker had a disappointing afternoon against Villa, failing to hold up the ball well enough, losing possession too often and failing to really cause any problems before he was replaced just after the hour mark.
Villa fail to make the most of their set pieces
In a tight game like this where both sides looked slightly hesitant to take too many risks, set pieces become all the more important as a way of breaking the deadlock. But Villa’s delivery was very disappointing despite having numerous opportunities to cause problems for their opposition. They had a flurry of free-kicks from great crossing positions at the end of the first half but so often found the gloves of Andre Onana or failed to beat the first man, from corners too. Villa’s blond, long-haired set-piece coach Austin MacPhee, who makes an appearance on the touchline every time Villa are attacking or defending a set piece, looked especially animated.
Concerns for Lee Carsley’s England defence
England’s interim boss Lee Carsley will not have enjoyed this game, with Three Lions defender Ezri Konsa being forced off through injury in the first-half, meaning he may have to pull out of the squad to face Greece and Finland later this month. To make matters worse, his possible replacement, Harry Maguire, who was left out of Carsley’s latest squad, was then forced off at half-time after too sustaining an injury. It leaves Carsley with limited options in the centre of defence for the upcoming fixtures.
Duran can’t save Villa this time
There was much anticipation when Villa’s not so secret weapon Jhon Duran entered the pitch following another goal off the bench in their midweek Champions League win over Bayern Munich. With Morgan Rogers and Ollie Watkins not at their best, the excitement to see Duran was heightened and he was met with cries of “shooooooooot” every time he was within sight of goal. It is rare to see such excitement for a player coming on as a sub but Duran has more than earned that reputation, though sadly he could not repeat his heroics to hand his side a win over United.
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