Michael Carrick masterclass shuts out John McGinn v Middlesbrough, shadow of normal self
There were a few mixed displays against a defiant Middlesbrough side as Aston Villa progressed to the FA Cup Fourth Round for the first time since 2015/16.
Amongst a congested midfield was a lost-looking John McGinn, who was faced with one of the worst performances of his season so far. But that was not down to his ability, but to how Michael Carrick squashed him out of the game.
The Scot was limited to just 29 touches, as per FotMob, against Boro at Riverside Stadium – night and day between his average of 48.4 touches in the Premier League this season, as per Sofascore.
In all honesty, McGinn’s display on Saturday night will no longer matter due to Matty Cash’s buzzer-beating winner from outside the box. And McGinn could have scored one of those himself, seeing his curler from the edge of the box smartly saved by Thomas Glover, boasting a 100 per cent shot accuracy. [FotMob]
However, it cannot be ignored how well Carrick was able to diminish the 29-year-old’s impact on the match with 38 per cent possession, with many spotting him failing to get on the ball in Middlesbrough’s tightly-packed midfield.
Without the possession on his side, McGinn was forced to fend for himself. He only won 25 per cent of his ground duels (2/8), lost 100 per cent of his tackles and was dispossessed twice.
The average positions (below) show how narrow Boro were against the Premier League side, with the midfield duo of Daniel Barlaser and Hayden Hackney being pinned into a slim tunnel, Isiah Jones dropping back into right-midfield and the back-three meaning Alex Bangura could push up to make a midfield of five.
Not only was the midfield squeezing the life out of Leander Dendoncker, Boubacar Kamara and McGinn, but the attack of Morgan Rogers, Sam Greenwood and Josh Coburn all playing to the same striker position stopped the passes into the midfield from Unai Emery’s defenders, thwarting McGinn from his usual antics.
Jacob Ramsey was probably the most dangerous of Villa’s attacking players, staying as wild as possible, which was not a difficult task. His 66 touches were abnormal, in comparison to his fellow attackers, with McGinn, Jhon Duran and Leon Bailey totalling a measly 84 touches.
Just Ezri Konsa and Clement Lenglet together had 209 touches, which shows a stark difference in the midfield’s influence. That can be ratified with substitutions sometimes, but McGinn is a difficult player to replace. [FotMob]
In the end, he was substituted after 70 minutes as Unai Emery brought on the cavalry – Douglas Luiz, Nicolo Zaniolo, Ollie Watkins and Moussa Diaby. It was needed, and in the closing moments, it probably made the difference between a victory and a replay.
In other Aston Villa news, Emery has handed one “highly-rated” youth star the perfect chance to develop with a new loan switch