From The Athletic - Analysis
RIGOROUS DEFENSIVE ORGANISATION HELPS ASTON VILLA BUCKS ST JAMES ’ PARK TREND
By Jacob Tanswell
Lyrics from Herman’s Hermits echoed. “Something tells me I’m into something good,” sang those positioned high and overlooking Newcastle’s city centre.
The final minutes of an enthralling, combative contest were played out in relative serenity. Aston Villa were toying with an increasingly disheartened Newcastle United, keeping the ball and, like a singer’s encore, bathing in all its glory.
Empty seats appeared around St James’ Park. Villa supporters were not used to this. Their team had not won at this stadium since 2005, in the infamous game when Lee Bowyer and Kieran Dyer squared up and Steven Taylor handballed a shot off the line, only to collapse to the floor as if he was badly wounded.
It was a period of famine on Tyneside. Even this iteration of Unai Emery’s Villa suffered, in his words, “horrible” experiences. A 5-1 and 3-0 defeat in successive campaigns failed to cauterise scars and illuminated particular themes: Villa would invariably be overrun, routinely broke upon, and outgunned physically.
They would concede early and never recover. Something similar threatened to transpire once again inside the opening 40 seconds, with Emiliano Martinez’s legs saving from Sandro Tonali.
Yet unlike nearly every match in recent memory where they have been swept away, Villa bucked the trend. The 2-0 victory was a lesson in executing an overall game plan and delivering in each facet. Most impressively, though, was the level of defensive organisation.
Two clean sheets inside 66 hours away to Fenerbahce and then Newcastle displays an obvious mental fortitude. More acutely, it speaks of how well-oiled and prepared Villa now are defensively.
The fire and brimstone nature of both fixtures, played in potentially imposing and intimidating stadiums, carries the risk of heightening the level of a player’s tension, in turn hindering their concentration or ability to follow a plan. However, there is a distinct savviness to this Villa side, one that only comes through learning lessons from past experiences and the habit of winning.
Take before kick-off. Captain Ezri Konsa won the toss and asked to swap ends. The Gallowgate End booed, yet it was all part of Villa’s meticulous and unwavering approach.
Even when bodies were tiring towards the end, minds did not. Villa’s second goal came from a sensible decision by Morgan Rogers after an attacking corner was cleared.
Rather than hold onto the ball, knowing there was a lack of cover behind him and a chance for Newcastle to break provided they regained possession, Rogers played the odds in Villa’s favour. He swept a diagonal pass back to where the corner came from, picking out Lucas Digne, who in turn crossed for Ollie Watkins to head in.
At the other end, Martinez exclusively went long from goal kicks, unwilling to allow Newcastle to press and build momentum. This suited Villa; Emery’s box midfield ensured that they were all in conducive positions to win the second ball and progress upfield that way. In trademark fashion on the road, every Martinez kick carried a long pause beforehand, much to home supporters’ ire.
“Today here, they are so so strong in their high press,” said Emery. “They are jumping always. We planned to avoid giving them confidence and being comfortable doing the press against us. We were doing long balls for the second action.”
Resilience has been the overarching theme of Villa’s campaign. They have enduring and lasting traits, rarely buckling under pressure.
The outright defensive numbers epitomise this. Villa made 19 blocks to Newcastle’s four. Demonstrating the effectiveness of their tactical setup without the ball, Villa have only made more interceptions and ball recoveries in one other match this season.
Afterwards, Emery singled out every defensive player for praise, as well as the intelligence of “fantastic” Amadou Onana, who sat just in front.
Villa had one low-intensity training session after flying home from Turkey in the early hours of Friday morning, mainly consisting of tactical walkthroughs. Set pieces and rest defence are critical areas of preparation before any match.
Here, Emery would bark relentlessly when Villa had possession. He demanded that Onana and Youri Tielemans stayed behind the ball, with the two central defenders and Matty Cash behind them, avoiding counter-attack opportunities centrally.
Out of possession, Villa’s organisation was evident. Only 28 per cent of Newcastle’s first-half attacks came down the middle, with Villa forcing the hosts into wide areas and, aside from one Lewis Miley header that drew an exceptional save from Martinez, mostly aimless crosses.
Villa crouched in a 4-4-2 shape. During regular stoppages that broke Newcastle’s rhythm, Tielemans gestured and shouted at the rest of the midfield four, comprising of Onana, Emiliano Buendia, and Jadon Sancho, to continue shuffling from one side of the pitch to another, remaining compact in their distances and refusing passes being played through them.
What makes Villa so astute is how well-versed they are in recognising defensive triggers. When Newcastle had the ball out-wide, for instance, Sancho would drop into right-back as Villa moved into a 5-3-2. Emery would invariably yell, “Show inside!”
If a cross did come in, one of the midfielders would drop into the back line, helping with Villa’s capacity to clear danger.
Villa’s full-backs, Ian Maatsen and Matty Cash, were intense and aggressive. Cash cajoled Leon Bailey into positions ahead of him, either shuffling backwards to mark Newcastle’s left-winger or shifting inside to track Lewis Hall, who was inverting from left back.
This was a defensive performance that took away Newcastle’s best strengths and made them predictable. “We defended, high, middle and low,” said Emery after.
Knowing Eddie Howe’s side has struggled to break down low blocks, Villa ceded space in midfield and defended deeper in the second half. Newcastle’s only solution was more crosses into the box — 34 of them dwarfed Villa’s 10 — so the additional aerial presence of Tyrone Mings was introduced with a quarter of an hour to play.
Victor Lindelof came on in midfield during the final throes to shut the match down. He replaced Onana, who was understandably gasping for air after a dominating performance. Even when the locals lost faith, Villa remained focused, forever shuffling side to side and defending with the same urgency.
It was the first time Newcastle had failed to score at home this season, contributing to Villa managing to break a cycle stretching two decades without victory here. Emery animatedly explained that he would wait “until day 35” before delivering a true assessment of Villa’s credentials, but this was a defensively resolute performance worthy of Champions League football.
