Aston Villa can climb table further under Unai Emery with improved finishing amid worrying woodwork stats
Aston Villa have already come on leaps and bounds under Unai Emery, with the manager helping the club steadily rise the table during his brief reign so far.
But it seems that Villa could be much better off at this stage, if they either had more luck or were more clinical in the final third, or perhaps a combination of both.
Under previous manager Steven Gerrard and his successor Emery, Aston Villa have been consistent in one area this season, but unfortunately for supporters, it involves the team hitting the woodwork.
Three Aston Villa players currently sit inside the top 10 for the players to have hit the woodwork the most this season, more than any other club, according to the official Premier League website.
Only Liverpool’s Darwin Nunez (five) has hit the woodwork more times than Ollie Watkins (four), with the latter’s fellow attackers Leon Bailey and Emiliano Buendia both hitting it three times.
The unlucky attempts from the Villa trio have led to the Midlands outfit sitting third in the list of clubs to have hit the woodwork the most this season, with only Newcastle (16) and Liverpool (15) above Villa (14) in this respect, according to the official Premier League website.
It would be foolish to suggest that a bit more luck in the final third could have saved Gerrard from being sacked earlier this season, with the aforementioned issue of not being clinical enough also part of the picture.
Fortunately for Villa supporters, Gerrard has been replaced by Emery, with the manager rapidly turning things around, with the club currently sitting 11th in the Premier League table.
But the woodwork issue may just be being discussed by the Spaniard and his coaching staff, who will perhaps lean towards the poor finishing side of the argument as opposed to the unfortunate aspect.
One major issue is, of course, the lack of sources when it comes to goals. While Ollie Watkins is expected to score goals as a striker, he is the only player who has hit double figures this season, netting 10 times in all competitions.
His nearest competitor is Danny Ings (seven), who left the club for West Ham in the January transfer window.
There cannot be much blame placed on Watkins, but a closer look at his – and his teammate’s – proficiency in front of goal may be something that Emery wants to focus on.
The striker has a goal conversion rate of 20% in the league this season, well below that of fellow forwards Erling Haaland (38%), Harry Kane (29%), Marcus Rashford (27%) and Ivan Toney (26%), according to BBC Sport.
Wingers Phil Foden and Miguel Almiron meanwhile boast tallies of 35% and 34% respectively.
In other Aston Villa news, Caleb Chukwuemeka’s time at the club looks like it is drawing to a premature end after a barren run of form while on loan at Crawley Town.