Aston Villa victory over Manchester United will leave Steven Gerrard ‘pulling his hair out’ – Rio Ferdinand
Ex-Aston Villa manager Steven Gerrard will be “pulling his hair out” following his old side’s 3-1 victory over Manchester United on Sunday, according to Rio Ferdinand.
Unai Emery’s first game in the dugout at Villa Park proved to be a glorious one, with goals from Leon Bailey, Lucas Digne and Jacob Ramsey enough to secure all three points for the previously struggling West Midlands side.
Speaking on the Five YouTube channel, Ferdinand explained how impressed he was with the bold game plan implemented by Emery but also how frustrated Gerrard would be seeing his players perform so impressively in his absence.
He said: “Steven Gerrard must be pulling his hair out.
“What I’ve seen since he’s gone. Obviously, they got beat in one of the games, but in two of the games they have been looking like world-beaters. So it was in there.
“To be fair to Villa, they played well. I think brave. They played two up top, old school, and said can your two centre-halves deal with our two centre-forwards.
“The third goal kind of epitomized it. It was like get the ball up there, put them under a bit of pressure and it was an unbelievable finish from Jacob Ramsey.”
Villa’s potential untapped
Ferdinand’s assessment of this Villa side is correct. The squad possesses an abundance of talent and should not be lamenting in the bottom half of the Premier league table.
However, pointing the finger at the players instead of Gerrard just doesn’t quite sit right.
Gerrard had almost 12 months to implement a philosophy, a game-plan, even some sort of identity on his Villa side, but he struggled to do so, sticking rigidly to a 4-3-3 formation which did not suit the players at his disposal.
In just four training sessions Emery had Villa working as a tight cohesive unit, playing a clear 4-2-2-2 formation in possession and dropping into a 6-2-1 in defence at points.
Although fans must not get carried away by one performance, the signs are promising. Emery has already produced a clear style of play while on the ball, managing to hold possession comfortably for sustained periods of play against an in-form Manchester United side.
Yes, Gerrard should be pulling his hair out. With the backing he had and with the squad he possessed, he really should have done better. It might become an even harder watch as Emery’s tenure begins to come to fruition.
In other Aston Villa news, Leon Bailey criticises Anthony Taylor after Aston Villa beat Manchester United