Moussa Diaby must hold hands up for what he did as Aston Villa lose to Olympiacos
Moussa Diaby struggled to impact the game as Aston Villa were knocked out of the Europa Conference League against Olympiacos, losing 6-2 on aggregate in the semi-final.
The Villans’ journey in Europe came to an end on Thursday (9 May) as Unai Emery’s side fell to defeat in the second leg.
After a 4-2 loss at Villa Park there was an uphill task ahead but another two Ayoub El Kaabi goals saw Olympiacos come away as clear winners.
The result was highly frustrating for Villa fans, who were left disappointed by the level of performance across the two legs.
Moussa Diaby disappoints for Aston Villa v Olympiacos
Despite scoring and assisting in the home leg of the tie, Diaby was poor and was lucky to remain on the pitch throughout the game.
He failed to complete a dribble while having just five touches in the opposition box [FotMob] – as a second striker this wasn’t enough.
He didn’t get any better in the second leg, this time starting on the left-hand side of midfield, which didn’t suit him.
Diaby often fails to win 50:50 challenges, which is of great frustration. In the away clash against Olympiacos, he won just 20 per cent of his ground duels.
Add to this the fact he failed to make a tackle throughout and contributed just one defensive action.
This is in line with his overall performances for the Villans, with his 0.48 tackles per 90 placing him in the bottom two per cent of attacking midfielders across Europe’s top five leagues [FBref].
There may be clamour suggesting that this isn’t his primary role for the side but he wasn’t any better going forward.
According to FotMob, he managed just one successful dribble, with a 25 per cent success, no accurate crosses and just four passes into the final third.
As a winger who has also played as a second striker, who cost £51.9million [BBC Sport], you would expect a lot more.
In other Aston Villa news, a doctor has issued an “unfortunate” response as footage has emerged of Tyrone Mings with an update on his current situation.
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