In the home win over Manchester City, Unai Emery's Villa shot a stunning 22-2 on goal, but that was just the beginning.
With a 1-0 win over Arsenal, Villa set a new all-time record of 15 consecutive home wins. Originally, it was thought that Villa were expected to steal a place in the Champions League next season, but at this time, some people hope that this will be the new Blue Fox fairy tale.
a.The 15-game winning streak set a new record of 149 years in the team's history
After the win over Manchester City, many people began to look forward to Aston Villa, who could break the 149-year home winning streak in the club's history.
When they do win against Arsenal, it will not only mean that Emery will raise his eyebrows in front of his old boss, but also a new breakthrough for Villa. To knowThe last visitors to win here were Arsenal, and Unai Emery managed to cross that hurdle and prepare for the next one.
The only goal of the game showed that Unai Emery's side had a strong ability to change the tempo of the attack.
Because Unai Emery has built a top-class midfield combination in the Premier League, the team has the ability to make smooth passes in the centre circle, while suddenly getting up to speed in the vertical space to deliver the fatal blow.
This time it was a triangle on the flank, with Kamara picking up a return pass from Leon Bailey and passing it to Tielemans in time. Villa's success lies in the reception of the off-ball, ensuring that there is always someone waiting for the ball to pass the ball behind the opposition's pressing circle.
The Belgian in the midfield position played the ball without pause, allowing Leon Bailey, who was forward to speed through the Arsenal defence. McGinn, who followed up in the middle, won the ball and hit a beautiful shot to help Villa win the game.
As can be seen from the current standings, Villa is already in third place in the league, and even two points away from Liverpool at the top of the table.
It is worth mentioning that Liverpool will go to Villa to play at home in the 37th round of the league, and I don't know if it will be the focus of the championship decision.
b.Tactical win over Manchester City: 22-2 on goal was terrible
In contrast, Arsenal were far better than Manchester City, and even said that if it weren't for the controversial decision, the Gunners would have had a chance to turn around and at least pick up the points.
WhileManchester City had a slight advantage in possession on the same pitch, but the 2-22 shot ratio and the number of times they entered the opponent's penalty area were only a third of Villa's, plus the number of corners was 0-6, which showed everyone how completely Manchester City lost.
The key point is that Unai Emery found City's goal, and by quickly playing long balls or through balls up front, he opened up for City's holes in the deep space. Previously, speed attackers such as Opponda and Son Heung-min gave lesson plans, and Emery successfully upgraded on this basis.
This time the overhead ball was very clear to Leon Bailey, the Manchester City defenders faced the speed point, first, they couldn't keep up, and secondly, they didn't dare to pounce, for fear of being overcome, so they released a certain amount of space to handle the ball.
Leon Pele had a good quality shot and despite not scoring, it played Emery's mind.
Looking at the long ball again, the City players were looking for offside, but they only noticed Watkins at the near end and ignored Leon Bailey at the far end.
Villa's midfielders have good passing ability, and McGinn is one of them. It was a stunning pass, but Leon Pele's handling of the ball was a bit rough and his final shot wasn't the best.
The problem is that City's flaws are still too well understood by Emery, even if he misses a few chances, but this time Leon Bailey cut inside and attacked, and found the Manchester City defense against the inefficient Gvardiol.
Coupled with Watkins' forward without the ball, Stones was scared to retreat quickly (afraid that the opponent would go straight to the single knife, but he actually looked down on Leon Pele), and gave Pele space to cut the ball inside.
Leon Bailey easily took the ball and turned around, cut inside to attack, the rest of Manchester City could not come back, the central defender was afraid of being passed, and the defense was too fast to give the opponent more room to operate.
It was a frustration that led to Leon Pele's goal and Emery's first win over Pep Guardiola's side in his coaching career.
a.Consistency at the back is the foundation of success
Unai Emery led Villarreal from winning the Europa League to reaching the semi-finals of the Champions League, and in one year, he eliminated giants such as Arsenal, Manchester United, Juventus and Bayern Munich in succession, writing a yellow submarine fairy tale.
The basis for the success comes from the line of central defender Pao Torres Parejo Lo Celso (Moreno). So he brought Pau Torres to Villa, at the same timeAssemble a top-class midfielder, plus a wide range of speed points, and replicate the successful tactics of the past to Villa.
Douglas Luiz has a good passing footwork, McGinn is good at defending and dribbling the ball, and can also wash the dirty ball for Kamara if necessary (he has a strong ability to get rid of it) and let Douglas and Tielemans in the open space as much as possible to unleash their passing advantage.
It can be seen from the pressure of Manchester City at the back that Guardiola once let Arsenal Tottenham Hotspur and even Liverpool play a little scrambled, which is ineffective for Villa.
Pau Torres stepped back into the depths of his penalty area after seeing his opponent pressing at high risk, and then relied on a precise pass to break down City's press.
Pau Torres' drop-back movement is important to reduce the pressure on the goalkeeper to get on the ball, shorten the distance of the pass and avoid the possibility of mistakes. Of course, the reason for this is that Pau Torres has very good technique and he can really deliver beautiful passes under pressure.
Kamara is still very good at catching and getting rid of the ball, and he has the ability to catch some of the ball that is a little rushed, or to complete the steering maneuver under pressure from the opposition, which also adds further stability to the ball in the central midfield.
Pau Torres' movement can be clearly seen from the camera, and the key is to pass the ball without pause, allowing Villa to get out of the crisis in an instant and get the opportunity to attack forward.
Douglas Luiz dragged on a little and slowed down the overall tempo, but he was still consistent with the ball, making City's counter-attack useless while playing a beautiful overall pass in the centre circle. Suddenly, from the penalty area of his own side, he steadily advanced to the core area of Manchester City's defense.
b.Fast-paced midfield: Pick up anytime, anywhere
As can be seen from the statistics up to last month, although Manchester City have more than 10 consecutive passes and attacks, they are far ahead.
However, from the beginning of the own half, more than 50% of the possession and passing are towards the opponent's goal, and finally successfully hit the opponent's penalty area in terms of statistics (referred to as direct rapid attack), Villa is the first in the Premier League, even ahead of Ten Hag, who has always emphasised acceleration while devoting a lot of troops to it.
To put it simply, Unai Emery's approach doesn't require too many detours, and he will ask the midfielders to complete more timely responses to prepare for the next step of acceleration.
Just like Manchester City's team pressure in the center circle this time, Villa's success lies in the accuracy and timeliness of receiving the ball off the ball.
Behind the Manchester City pressing circle, there will always be an unmarked Villa player, and at the same time, a player like Kamara in the pressing circle will pass the ball in time and not delay.
Villa's midfielders are highly technical, with those who can hold the ball, those who can dribble the ball, as well as those who pass the ball with good footwork and the power points that can be countered.
Kamara's non-stop pass to Tielemans was beautiful, and despite the latter's mistake in stopping the ball, the ball was able to get into the relatively weak area of City's defence through Paulo Torres' secondary playmaking on the halfway line.
PlusVilla's forward line has no shortage of speed points, and in addition to Leon Bailey, winger debutant Watkins also has a good starting pace.
Coupled with Watkins' right-footed, left-footed and header scoring ability, as well as the ability to pull the ball on the side, it can adapt to multiple tactics. McGinn's long ball was of high quality, and Watkins' left-footed shot from the back foot was even more impressive.
a.McGinn is one of the best midfielders in the Premier League
Scottish midfielder McGinn has a strong individual abilityHis physical strength and running ability are excellent, allowing him to fight frequently and get in touch with his teammates.
In the middle circle, he can make long passes, go to the front court and attack directly into the penalty area, and can also pull the side to send high-quality crosses in time, and he is good at controlling the second landing point on the periphery to launch a second attack.
Fame aside, McGinn is even one of the best midfielders in the Premier League at the moment.
This goal showed McGinn's characteristics very clearly, Leon Bailey got the ball and pushed the counterattack, and McGinn stepped forward without the ball at high speed.
After winning the ball, seeing that no team-mate could keep up with his pace, McGinn was able to protect the ball on the spot and turn around, followed up with Leon Bailey, who set up Watkins for a beautiful counter-attacking goal.
Let's take a look at the corner kick attack this time, Manchester City players cleared out,McGinn got the second spot in time and attacked on the spot.
He plays with a good rhythm and can fight fiercely, but he can always calm down instantly after getting the ball, Pau Torres, who made the last pass to find the ribs, was very skilled.
It was the same this time, as McGinn stepped forward to capture the second spot after seeing his team-mate's long-range shot saved by the Tottenham goalkeeper.
He then took advantage of his big butt to complete the ball protection and turn, and then delivered a high-quality cross. Unfortunately, Watkins, who was close to the back point, deflected the ball wide.
Against Manchester City, McGinn tried 25 one-on-one duels (22 against Arsenal), winning 14 of them, contributing five dribbles and four key passes, as well as six tackles.
At least this season, the Premier League really can't find a midfielder like McGinn who has a good offensive and defensive temperament.
b.Magical Martinez: There's always a miracle to pounce
In the battle with Arsenal, it is not only Emery who will face the old master, but also the goalkeeper Martinez. He was the man of the match with his outstanding performances and was the number one contributor to Villa's victory.
In the match against Manchester City, although Guardiola's team only had 2 shots on goal in the whole game, these 2 shots were extremely close to scoring, and the XG was as high as 081, even higher than the penalty (xg less than 0.).7）。
Haaland was understandably saved on his first shot, but his second reaction was too quick to return to goal to complete a header, which was almost inexplicable, only to be saved by Martinez.
In this game against Arsenal, if you don't count the goals that were cancelled by the referee, the closest Arsenal had to score came from Odegaard's shot (which was a bit off-target in the second half).
Kai Havertz crossed and Gabriel Jesus did it back, giving Odegaard a great chance, only to be saved by Martinez.
This Aston Villa team does not have any star players, but the midfield is stable on the ball, the midfield is excellent in passing, control and confrontation, and the forward line does not lack speed points, so it is not difficult to understand the good record.
Even though the season is still a long one, we haven't even finished half of it. However, Opta's supercomputer thinks that Villa's chances of winning a ticket to next season's Champions League are close to seven per cent, which is really not a joke.
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