Jermaine Jenas has pinpointed one tactical flaw that cost Aston Villa against Liverpool.
Unai Emery’s tactics have been criticised following Liverpool’s 3-0 win over Aston Villa at Anfield on Sunday.
Emery set his side up in a typically progressive fashion, but Aston Villa were expertly undone by the hosts. Goals from summer signing Dominik Szoboszlai and talismanic attacker Mohamed Salah, along with a Matty Cash own goal, saw Liverpool cruise to victory.
Former Tottenham Hotspur midfielder and pundit Jermaine Jenas believes that the Villans were the architects of their own downfall.
Speaking on the BBC’s Match of the Day 2 (03/09/2023), Jenas said, “their game plan today defensively was quite worrying I thought…you are asking for trouble at Anfield when you start playing like this. You have to be much more incisive…if you are going to play with a high line you have to have pressure on the ball, that’s set in stone, because otherwise, you have players like Trent [Alexander-Arnold] who is one of the best passers in the league, with this time on the ball, Lucas Digne is just a sitting duck.”
“Then on the other side of the coin, when they [Aston Villa] do press high up the pitch, it is like they are forcing the ball to the best passer on the pitch. They should be forcing the ball to [Joel] Matip, or someone like that. It’s all just too easy.”
Emery must make Aston Villa more unpredictable
This match wasn’t the first time this season that Aston Villa’s high defensive line has proved a weak point. Emery saw his defensive set up exposed on the opening day of the campaign, when Newcastle United exploited his tactics to grab a 5-1 win at St James’ Park.
Whilst between these two defeats Villa have had success, with Premier League wins over Everton and Burnley, consistency is required to take the Midlands outfit to the next level.
Emery must consider adapting and tailoring his tactics more dramatically to suit the needs and challenges presented by each opponent. Aston Villa have not yet reached the level where they can impose their own preferred style of play onto every game they play.
Until Emery introduces a greater degree of tactical flexibility, he will find that certain opponents are able to brutally punish his team.
The Spanish coach deserves a great deal of credit for all he has achieved since his appointment at Villa Park. However, this naivety could quickly become a serious obstacle to the club achieving their long term objectives and building upon the success they enjoyed last season.
