Aston Villa recovered from their recent slump by thrashing Sheffield United 5-0 at Bramall Lane.
Unai Emery’s side were simply too hot to handle as the Blades struggled to live with their magnificent attacking play.
Once John McGinn opened the scoring in the 12th minute, the floodgates opened and Villa ran riot as Ollie Watkins, Leon Bailey and Youri Tielemans made it four goals in the space of half an hour.
The Villans, however, began the second period in the same vein they started the first with left-back Alex Moreno even getting his name on the scoresheet.
Emery would have ordered his players to bounce back from their 3-1 loss against Newcastle United on Wednesday, and they did so in style.
The majority of the Villa squad deserved plaudits for their magnificent display, but there was one player who blew Jamie Redknapp away with what he did against the Blades.
Jamie Redknapp raves over Douglas Luiz in Aston Villa’s 5-0 win over Sheffield United
Douglas Luiz has been one of Villa’s standout performers this term.
The Brazilian is as complete as they come in the middle of the park. While he’s relentless at winning possession back, he’s shown his capabilities further up the pitch since Emery took charge.
He has combined his vision and superb passing range to orchestrate attacks for his side, and that’s exactly what he did against the Blades this evening.
Jamie Redknapp was on punditry for Sky Sports, and he was left star-struck by the pass he executed to Watkins for his goal, claiming it was one of the greatest you’ll ever see.
It was a sumptuous outside-of-the-foot ball and it drew comparisons to one of Premier League’s greatest-ever playmakers, Kevin De Bruyne.
Speaking at half-time, he said: “This is one of the best passes you could ever see. If Kevin De Bruyne made this pass we’d be talking about it being one of his greatest-ever assists.
“The way he flicks it with the outside of his right foot, it’s magnificent. What a pass.”
What a player
Redknapp is right; if De Bruyne pulled off that pass, it would be spoken about as one of the greatest the Premier League has ever seen.
But this is just the level that Luiz has reached throughout this season. He’s been the fulcrum of Villa’s midfield and the majority of their attacking play has gone through him.
The pass he pulled off Watkins is just one of many strings to his bow and while it’s this piece of skill that has raised the biggest plaudits, his all-round game has been magnificent.
Qualifying for the Champions League will be difficult, but as long as Luiz performs to a high standard, they’ll have every chance.
