Aston Villa put in a five-star performance against Sheffield United on Saturday, with fans all saying the same thing about a moment of magic from Douglas Luiz.
Unai Emery’s Aston Villa leapfrogged Tottenham Hotspur to occupy 4th place on Saturday, claiming their 14th win of the Premier League season with a thumping 5-0 victory over Sheffield United.
The visitors left Chris Wilder with a difficult half-time team talk to articulate at Bramall Lane, going in at the interval with a four-goal lead.
A fifth was added just two minutes after the restart, signing off what was a memorable day for the Midlands side, who recorded the club’s biggest away win since 2008.
It was John McGinn, Leon Bailey, Ollie Watkins, Youri Tielemans and Alex Moreno who saw their names on the scoresheet however, one man has been the subject of high praise following the result.
Douglas Luiz provided Aston Villa with some magic
16 minutes in to the fixture, Douglas Luiz reminded fans of his innate ability to dictate play from the midfield, playing a magnificent ball through to his striker to hand Watkins his 11th goal of the campaign.
On BBC Match of the Day, pundit Jermaine Jenas described Luiz’s connection with Watkins as “telepathic”, a description that was reinforced by the duo at Brammall Lane.
Many took to social media to applaud the Brazil international’s passing ability for the goal, with one fan commenting on the club’s tweet to laud the 25-year-old as “better than Kevin de Bruyne”, praise indeed.
Journalist and Villa fan Tom Nightingale declared the outside of the boot pass as “madness”, an opinion shared by many who have enjoyed the rise of the midfielder in the Midlands.
Football fans have been in admiration over the assist since the ball left the Brazilian’s boot, with a host of supporters dubbing his brilliance as ‘the assist of the season’.
How important is Douglas Luiz to Aston Villa?
After being voted Aston Villa’s Player of the Season for the 2022/23 campaign, Luiz has solidified himself as one of Emery’s most important and skillful players.
With an ability to act in a defensive light when called upon, as well as incorporate the illusive playmaking strengths to his game, the £75k-a-week conductor is thriving at Villa Park under the manager’s instructions.
In terms of creativity, no player plays more key passes per game than Luiz, who averages 1.6 per fixture, communicating his authoritative presence in the final third.
Emery is getting the best out of his players, with Luiz being one of those individuals who has flourished under the Spaniard’s regime, earning his plaudits for his excellence on Saturday.
