Aston Villa weren’t the only ones showcasing their bench strength at the weekend.
Manchester City and Arsenal played out a chaotic 2-2 draw at the Etihad on Sunday, with the London club down to ten men for the entirety of the second half and then conceding a last-minute equaliser thanks to Jack Grealish‘s quick thinking and John Stones’ poacher instincts.
That result helped Aston Villa because it meant that they remained in third place in the Premier League table – they are one point behind leaders, Manchester City.
This comes after Villa produced another comeback against Wolves on Saturday, with Unai Emery looking towards the bench to change the tide of the game.
Jhon Duran has been the super-sub for Villa this season, scoring three winning goals, and whilst his goal against Wolves wasn’t a winning one, it was still him getting on the scoresheet again.
Leon Bailey, Ian Maatsen and Ross Barkley were also introduced into the action by Emery, as they all played a huge role in Villa securing another three points.
After Manchester City and Arsenal’s draw, Roy Keane was keen to ‘remind everyone’ about some of the squads Premier League teams have.
The former Manchester United star spoke about the heroics of Grealish against Arsenal and Stones’ goal, whilst also mentioning what Villa’s bench did against Wolves.
Keane added how their bench quality and impact is going to be ‘huge’ for these ‘top teams’ come the end of the season, as he told Sky Sports Premier League (22/09/24 at 7:00 pm).
Jack Grealish and John Stones help Manchester City draw against ten-man Arsenal
“Reminder to everyone as well, look at the squad,” said Keane. “Of course, Grealish comes on and has an effect towards the goal, but also Stones. Players off the bench.
“We saw it with Aston Villa (against Wolves). These top teams, the influence of the subs coming on is going to be huge come the end of the season.”
Jhon Duran Aston Villa’s super-sub
Is there anyone in world football making or having a bigger impact from the bench than Duran? It’s just incredible what he is producing.
Villa fans will be glad that Duran stayed this summer because, without him, they probably wouldn’t even be sitting in the top half of the Premier League table.
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There is no doubt that Ollie Watkins is still the main guy and now he is up and scoring again.
But Villa take on Wycombe in the League Cup on Tuesday, which will probably see Emery start players like Duran and rotate his squad ahead of some huge games in the Champions League.
