John McGinn and Youri Tielemans earn ‘magnificent’ Aston Villa praise with 100% performance v Fulham
Aston Villa duo John McGinn and Youri Tielemans have received high praise from Ian Wright after their dominant midfield display in the 3-1 win against Fulham on 12 November.
The two linked up seamlessly as the more advanced of Unai Emery’s midfield options, causing all kinds of danger for the Fulham defence and contributing effectively at both ends of the pitch.
McGinn scored his third league goal of the season to keep up his flying form while Tielemans made his first start in 11 games and proved why he should remain in the side.
Speaking live on Match of the Day 2 [12 November, 46:42], Wright was full of praise: “McGinn, magnificent captain’s performance today, but Tielemans as well. Obviously, after leaving Leicester in a bit of a cloud, you look at him now he looks fit and we know the quality he’s got.
“I’ve seen a lot in the way he was playing, Tielemans, that I didn’t see at Leicester. It was the energy he had breaking from these positions. He looks very fit, he looks very strong.”
Both McGinn and Tielemans shone in the victory against Nottingham Forest which led to such high praise from Wright, and Villa fans will be hoping they can continue to build on this partnership after the latter had a shaky start to his career at Villa Park.
In the clash against Forest, Tielemans was imperious at both ends of the pitch. He recorded a key pass and created a big chance, had a shot on target, and drew four fouls to ease the pressure on his team and give them set-piece opportunities high up. [Sofascore]
The Belgian also won seven of his 11 attempted duels, with a 100% success rate in the air, making two interceptions and one tackle and he proved to his boss he could provide assistance both going forward and in defence.
McGinn, meanwhile, scored a lovely goal from the edge of the box with his only shot on target in the game at a 100% shot-to-goal rate, completed seven of nine attempted dribbles, drew a massive seven fouls and made a key pass as his creative influence was clear again. [Sofascore]
Defensively, he was equally as impressive as his midfield partner, winning 15 of 22 attempted ground duels, making one interception and one tackle to break up play.
This duo in the more advanced midfield positions ran the show at Villa Park and proved they could be the first-choice starting duo under Emery’s guidance.
In other Aston Villa news, one ace continued his form which was described as the best of his career.