Half Season Report Card

[Ivo Stas]

Could you copy and paste it, please? I flatly refuse to clink on links to that rag.

As requested (and I've even copied and pasted the one comment on the article too!)

Aston Villa's half term report: At the mid point of the season, Mat Kendrick rates the players

Birmingham Mail football editor Mat Kendrick gives his verdict on the claret and blues after 19 Premier League games
 
GOALKEEPER

Brad Guzan 4

Appearances: 19 starts

Perhaps it is the stress of being one of the busiest goalkeepers in the Premier League, but Guzan has creaked this season. Errors have crept into his game with his kicking and he now punches crosses he would previously collect. He can still make top draw saves, but not as many as he used to. Several of the goals Villa have conceded have prompted the question 'could the American have done better?'.


DEFENDERS

Alan Hutton 4

Appearances: 15 starts, 1 sub

Aggression and fighting spirit in abundance. Hutton shows a willingness to get forward and at least try to raise the tempo. Sadly his efforts going forward are often undermined by costly lapses that have resulted in Villa conceding soft goals.


Micah Richards 5

Appearances: 14 starts

He certainly doesn't lack passion. However he seems to be lacking the cool head Villa require to lead them out of this rut. Prone to excitable bursts rather than the calm and composed guidance the struggling team requires. Sometimes his positional sense and awareness let him down and he might be better employed at right-back.


Leandro Bacuna 4.5

Appearances: 12 starts, 2 subs

The Dutch utility player is an interesting one. He deserves to be cut some slack for constantly being played out of position, although three years into his Villa career it is still not clear what his best position is. One moment he will impress with a bit of quality, the next he will waste a cross, lose concentration or fail to show quite enough desire.


Joleon Lescott 4.5

Appearances: 11 starts

Thank goodness he has improved! Calling Lescott a heavy-legged liability in his first few appearances would be harsh, but he certainly wobbled when he arrived on the scene. In the winter of his Premier career, he obviously lacks pace and mobility, but after a nervy beginning he is showing more signs of solidity and using his quality and experience.


Jordan Amavi 6

Appearances: 10 starts

Until his season was cruelly cut short by a serious knee problem, Amavi was arguably the most impressive of the summer signings. He impressed with his pace and energy getting up and down the left-flank. His attacking ability was undermined slightly by occasional defensive lapses such as the one that proved costly in the defeat at Crystal Palace.


Ciaran Clark 4.5

Appearances: 9 starts

It's been a frustrating first half of the season for Clark. Last season he really started to come of age and he was hoping to carry on where he left off, only to lose his place to Lescott. This term it has been a mixed bag. Fans never know whether they will see Clark switch off and concede needlessly, or come crunching in with a last ditch tackle. Needs to show more consistency.


Kieran Richardson 3

Appearances: 6 starts, 2 subs

Just doesn't seem to be up to the required standard, either at left-back or further forward. It's an extreme example but the runaround he was given by Everton's Gerard Deulofeu summed up his struggles. On numerous occasions his lack of communication and/or awareness has left Villa in deep defensive trouble, while they must surely boast better left midfield options?


Jores Okore 5

Appearances: 4 starts

Steady, if not spectacular return to first team duty for Okore whose knee problems have never allowed him to really build up any momentum at Villa. Hasn't looked 100 per cent right since coming back in last month and needs a run of games to get physically and mentally sharp, but his desire is always there.


Jose Angel Crespo 3

Appearances: 1 start

Did okay on his one and only performance - the home defeat to Stoke - but has been hampered by injuries. The fact he has not made it onto the pitch since then says much about his form and fitness on the training ground.


MIDFIELDERS

Idrissa Gana 4

Appearances: 16 starts

Something of a nearly man so far. Gets about the pitch without ever really making a telling impact. He is mobile enough, does the basics and his passing is mostly accurate. But with holding midfielders alongside him there is an onus on Gana to get forward to create and score goals and to date he has been able to deliver in that area.


Ashley Westwood 4.5

Appearances: 14 starts, 1 sub

Continues to split opinion more often than he splits defences. One of the few survivors of Paul Lambert's signings he tries to receive the ball off his defence as often as possible to start things off. Would like to see him doing more in advanced areas when the opportunity allows - and his setpiece deliveries have room for improvement - but it is difficult when there is little forward movement ahead of him.


Carlos Sanchez 4

Appearances: 12 starts, 3 subs

Yet to work this fella out. His party piece seems to be playing one-twos with the opposition by getting the ball off them and then giving it back to them. If his passing was as good as his knack of disrupting opponents then Villa would have a cracking player. It's not, so they have a defensive midfielder that blows hot and cold.


Jordan Veretout 5

Veretout (11 starts, 2 subs)

A slow starter, but Veretout has been the pick of Villa's centre-of-the-park options in recent weeks. His deadball deliveries have created a series of chances and, in a No.10 type role, he has taken up more advanced positions lately. Has obvious quality and has started to add tenacity to his game as he adapts to the Premier League.


Jack Grealish 3.5

After playing a part in Villa's survival during his first team breakthrough late last season, much was expected of Grealish in 2015-16. So far he has attracted attention for the wrong reasons. There have been glimpses of his ability to influence games (most notably his first senior goal at Leicester) but they have been too fleeting.

Appearances: 8 starts, 3 subs


Carles Gil 4

How the claret and blue faithful are willing this bloke's clever feet to work some magic. He is aesthetically pleasing on the ball, but he continues to lack that end product, probably because no sooner has he got a feel for being in the first team he is hauled back out again.

Appearances: 7 starts, 5 subs


Charles N'Zogbia 1

Appearances: 2 subs

In his own hashtag words, Charles N'Zogbia continues to enjoy the Premier League #lifestyle without ever consistently earning it on the pitch. It says much that Remi Garde binned the French winger almost as quickly as he recalled him after two uneventful cameos from the substitutes bench. Not to worry, he'll be gone soon.


FORWARDS

Scott Sinclair 4

Appearances: 14 starts

Had high hopes for Sinclair after his scoring spree in pre season and at the start of the campaign, but he just doesn't do enough to make an impact on games. Without confidence he is a peripheral figure at best. He doesn't seem to have enough pace, power, nous or desire to hurt opponents.


Jordan Ayew 7

Appearances: 12 starts, 3 subs

Won over his dubious critics in recent months. There have been too many flat collective performances to dwell on, but even when his team-mates are anonymous, Ayew does something to come to the fore. Of his five goals, many have been cracking efforts conjured from nowhere, while his workrate and desire to drive forward has also been impressive.


Rudy Gestede 4

Appearances: 9 starts, 10 subs

Needs to work harder, needs to show more aggression, needs to be more mobile. Whether or not he has sufficient quality to shine in the Premier League, time will tell. But there is nothing to stop him grafting and scaring opponents with his physique. Needs a goal since his early season scoring streak dried up before it really got going.


Gabby Agbonlahor 2.5

Appearances: 7 starts, 1 sub

Whether Agbonlahor is judged as a striker or a wide player nowadays, the conclusion is still the same - he is not doing enough. Since his last start at Tottenham - when his inactivity was mocked by pundits - the long-serving Brummie has played just eight minutes of football and the message from Remi Garde is simple - do more, or there's the door.


Adama Traore 4.5

Appearances: 8 subs

Depending on who you believe, Adama is either the super-charged saviour who can rescue Villa with his speed, strength and step-overs or a selfish showboater not responsible enough to be a team-player. The reality is probably somewhere in between, but with Villa lacking match-winners I would like to see more of him.


Comments (1)

fussybeggar

Kendrick you joker. Sanchez deserves the same rating as gana? Guzan deserves 4 yet crespo gets 3 for one appearance where he easily gave an above average performance And showed clear signs of getting the ball forward? As for the others you got one right. Gabby. And your working in sports as a football editor?

[Legion]

Cheers.

[DaveD]

Jesus. For once I agree with Kendrick.

[Olof's Beard]

Sanchez deserves a higher mark if anything. Yes he makes mistakes, yes he is miles away from perfect BUT when he doesn't play, we massively miss him. Under Garde we have generally looked much more solid than we did earlier in the season and conceded less goals aside from during three games - Everton, Norwich and Sunderland. Sanchez didn't play in any of them.

Unless we buy a better replacement, then Sanchez should be one of the first names on the team sheet.

[Risso]

4 for Gestede?

[Olof's Beard]

4 for Gestede?

Four goals including two winners when we have only won three games all season in all competitions. Christian Who?

[OzVilla]

I think that's generous to be quite honest. Can't believe there's not more 2's and 3's.

[martin o`who??]

Reads like the charge-sheet of someone on their way to the gallows.

[stuart r]

Whether Agbonlahor is judged as a striker or a wide player nowadays, the conclusion is still the same -

Definitely a wide player nowadays