Micah Richards blown away by ‘outstanding’ MOTD footage of Aston Villa midfielder
Micah Richards was stunned as Aston Villa secured a 3-0 win against Southampton on Saturday.
The Villans travelled to St Mary’s on 13 April and came away with a huge three points in their mission to secure Champions League qualification.
Goals from substitute trio John McGinn, Ollie Watkins and Donyell Malen were the difference in a hard-fought victory on the south coast.
Unai Emery’s changes had the desired impact against the Saints, as former Villa skipper Richards was left blown away after the win was secured.
Richards gushes over Youri Tielemans v Southampton
Villa did struggle at times against the Premier League’s bottom club, who stood firm in their defensive stance throughout the clash.
It took a moment of magic from Watkins to open the scoring after Marco Asensio had missed one of his two failed penalties.
Although the finish from the England international was superb, the pass over the top has to be appreciated just as much.
Tielemans played a perfect curling ball into the path of the striker, who was able to finish with aplomb off the bar.
The quality of the through ball wasn’t wasted on ex-Villa captain Richards, who was left blown away by the Belgium international on Match of the Day (12 April).
He said: “Tielemans has been outstanding this season, the run [from Watkins], the finish is just excellent.”
Tielemans shines once again for Aston Villa
The 27-year-old has simply been one of the unsung heroes in the Premier League this season, despite starting every single game.
Villa’s number eight has already made 47 appearances in all competitions this season and bagged his ninth assist against the Saints.
| Competition | Appearances | Goals | Assists |
| Premier League | 32 | 3 | 6 |
| Champions League | 11 | 1 | 3 |
| FA Cup | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| TOTAL | 47 | 3 | 9 |
There is no doubting how important the Belgian is to the success of Emery’s side, and it is positive to see him earn recognition for his efforts.
Alongside Amadou Onana or Boubacar Kamara, he has been excellent and has proved any doubters wrong after his free transfer from Leicester City.
Now, Tielemans has a home clash against PSG in the Champions League quarter-final to look forward to, and he will be hopeful of having a similar impact.
It will be interesting to see if he is looking for Watkins or Marcus Rashford over the top against the Parisians, but if given the chance, the midfielder will find them almost every time.