Aston Villa player ratings v Tottenham: John McGinn lets Unai Emery down with 3/10
Aston Villa suffered a new dent to their Champions League hopes as they tasted defeat once again at Villa Park in the Premier League at the hands of Tottenham.
Spurs dominated the second half thanks to goals from James Maddison, Brennan Johnson Son Heung-Min and Timo Werner to claim all three points with a 4-0 win on Sunday (10 March) after John McGinn’s sending-off.
The defeat means Tottenham move within two points of Unai Emery’s side in the hunt for the top four and Ange Postecoglou’s side have a game in hand to leapfrog Aston Villa.
Villa News have rated the players out of 10;
Emi Martinez – 4
The Argentine could do little to stop Maddison’s opener from such close range and the same was true of Johnson’s strike. Could have been better when passing over a long distance as he only managed to complete 17 per cent of his efforts. Could do little about the goals but can’t concede four goals, according to Fotmob.
Ezri Konsa – 3
An awful pass from the Englishman left Youri Tielemans in trouble for Spurs’ second goal as he misplaced a simple ball. The 26-year-old completed 88 per cent of his attempted passes but failed to complete any of his long balls. After a disappointing night against Ajax, Konsa and Emery would have hoped for better.
Pau Torres – 4
The Spanish centre-back managed to play more than 45 minutes for the first time in three games but was nowhere near his best. Torres was caught out of position for Maddison’s opener and lost 80 per cent of his four ground duels in the match. A terrible day for the Aston Villa defence.
Clement Lenglet – 5
Lenglet was fairly consistent on the ball, finding a teammate with 90 per cent of his 29 attempted passes but did very little to stop Spurs’ attacking threat before he was substituted as he won zero per cent of his duels and failed to even enter a single tackle in the clash. Seemed to be out of position for both goals.
Matty Cash – 5
Restored to the starting XI in a right-wing-back role and offered a rare attacking force with a couple of strong runs. Mad eight passes into the final third but lost more duels than any other player for either side. The Polish international was also dribbled past on three occasions as he proved to be too lightweight defensively.
Lucas Digne – 5
One of three hooked before the hour mark and the left-back only had 19 touches before he was substituted. Out of possession, Digne was strong winning both his tackles and 67 per cent of his duels, but he failed to find a teammate with his only attempted cross. He was caught out of position for Tottenham’s opener and he should have done better with his first-half effort.
Will John McGinn be suspended for Aston Villa against West Ham United?
John McGinn – 3
The Scotsman had been arguably Villa’s best player in the first half as he created three goal-scoring chances for his teammates. Off the ball, he won 10 of his 15 ground duels and won five free-kicks with some excellent work off the of the ball. But he only won 33 per cent of his tackles and his challenge was ridiculous and let his side down when they needed their captain to step up.
Douglas Luiz – 5
Luiz can often be Villa’s best player at the heart of midfield and as much as he tried against Spurs, he couldn’t have much of an impact on proceedings. The 25-year-old completed 100 per cent of his dribbles and found a teammate in claret and blue with 86 per cent of his passes. Did waste a couple of set-piece opportunities but arguably the best of a bad bunch.
Youri Tielemans – 4
The Belgian was almost a bit of a passenger throughout the game as he only attempted 10 passes in the contest. Tielemans had two efforts well blocked in the first half but was anonymous in a deeper role as the game passed him by. The midfielder did win his only tackle and 75 per cent of his duels in a reasonable defensive performance before he lost the ball in the lead-up to the opener.
Leon Bailey – 4
Back in the starting XI having been dropped to the bench against Ajax. The Jamaican didn’t see loads of the ball but wasted a couple of great opportunities with poor passes as he finished the clash with a 36 per cent completion rate. Bailey failed to complete any of his two attempted crosses as he struggled to make an impact in a more central role.
Ollie Watkins – 4
The England international had to work off scraps for much of the game because of Spurs’ dominance but still carried an attacking threat. Only had 28 touches and was dispossessed on four occasions. Lost 86 per cent of his ground duels and saw his only shot blocked. A bad day at the office but not because of a lack of effort.
Substitutes
Alex Moreno – 5
Moussa Diaby – 6
Nicolo Zaniolo – 6
Tim Iregbunam – 6
Diego Carlos – N/A
In other Aston Villa news, Tottenham are understood to have the advantage over Villa in the race to sign Jaden Philogene this summer
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