Aston Villa
Premier League Player of the Month nominees for December announced
The shortlist for the Premier League Player of the Month award for December has been revealed. Manchester United and Aston Villa are the two most heavily represented clubs, boasting two nominees each. This is unsurprising, as both sides went unbeaten in the league during December. Manchester City, Liverpool, West Ham United, and Burnley are also represented in the shortlist. The winner will be revealed on Friday 15th January. Bruno Fernandes Fernandes is nominated for his fourth POTM award The Portuguese playmaker is almost beginning to form a monopoly on the Player of the Month award, having already won it three times in 2020. In December, Bruno Fernandes scored three goals and registered a further four assists. He was influential in Man Utd’s dismantling of Leeds United, and dragged the ...
‘Premier League isn’t ready’ – Some Villa fans react to Smith’s update on 24-yr-old’s fitness
Aston Villa manager Dean Smith has now provided a positive injury update regarding Wesley Moraes. The 24-year-old Brazilian striker sustained cruciate ligament damage last January and he has been on the sidelines ever since. Dean Smith has now confirmed that the player is ready to return to training with the first team and he should be back in action soon. Smith confirmed: “He will join in with the group next week on a non-contact basis just to get him in amongst the players. “We’ll have more of an idea when he starts contact training in probably two weeks. He’s getting a lot closer now which is pleasing.” Aston Villa have made an impressive start to the Premier League season this year and the return of Wesley could be like a new signing for them. They are currently 8th in the table, just ...
‘Difficult’: Tim Sherwood claims 27 y/o star ‘not guaranteed’ to be in the Villa side now
Popular football pundit Tim Sherwood has suggested that Ross Barkley might find it difficult to get into the starting line-up at Aston Villa at the moment. Villa have been in excellent form this season, and have remained unbeaten in the entire month of December. Dean Smith’s side are playing with loads of confidence and they have moved up to fifth in the Premier League table, having played two games less. Barkley, who joined Villa during the summer transfer window on loan, picked up a muscle injury in November, but the club has not felt his absence. Villa give the impression of a happy unit this season, and they seem to be enjoying their game. It’s been a remarkable turnaround considering that they narrowly avoided relegation on the final day of last season. The former Villa boss has been ...
‘Just embarrassing’: Steve Nicol tears Aston Villa man to shreds for what he did v Chelsea
Former Liverpool defender turned popular pundit Steve Nicol has slammed Aston Villa star Jack Grealish for being a diver. The 25-year-old is a fantastic player to watch and he has been in terrific form this season. However, there is constant criticism against him that he dives a lot, although he draws more fouls from opposition defenders as well. Grealish was superb against Chelsea last night as Villa managed a 1-1 draw against the Blues. They remained unbeaten throughout the month of December and have jumped to fifth in the Premier League table. Nicol has suggested that Grealish is a ‘brilliant’ player but he is constantly looking for free-kicks by diving on the ground, and at times it looks embarrassing. “Jack Grealish throws himself on the ground 50 times a game. I was actually looking ...
‘Well said’: Gary Lineker reacts to what Aston Villa man said after the match
Former great England striker turned popular football pundit Gary Lineker has suggested that he loved playing games, and that majority of the players don’t want to be rested. Aston Villa drew 1-1 against Chelsea in the Premier League on Monday night, where Dean Smith once again picked a strong side. Contrary to Chelsea’s approach, where Frank Lampard rotated the squad, Villa boss named a strong starting line-up. It was a fair result in the end, although both the sides failed to create enough clear-cut chances. With this result, Villa have finished the month without being defeated, and find themselves fifth in the Premier League table, with two games in hand. Smith has suggested after the game that he doesn’t feel the need to rotate as none of his players have complained about exhaustion. Li...
Leicester edge up to second despite draw vs Crystal Palace
A much-changed Leicester moved up to second in the Premier League thanks to Harvey Barnes’ late equaliser in a 1-1 draw at Crystal Palace on Monday. Wilfried Zaha’s stunning near post volley put the Eagles in front against the run of play after Kelechi Iheanacho had a first-half penalty saved for Leicester. With little over 48 hours rest between the Foxes’ 2-2 draw with Manchester United on Saturday and the trip to Selhurst Park, Leicester boss Brendan Rodgers made seven changes with Jamie Vardy and Youri Tielemans among those left on the bench. Both were introduced midway through the second-half and Leicester’s pressure was rewarded with an equaliser when Barnes fired in a low shot from the edge of the box for his eighth goal of the season. Despite the upheaval of missing many of their st...
Boxing Day preview: Chelsea and Manchester United expected to keep up the pressure on Klopp’s men
Liverpool extended their advantage at the top of the table to four points on Matchday 14 after a stunning 7-0 triumph over Crystal Palace on the road. It was the first time that the Merseyside giants had won a top-flight game by a seven-goal margin in their long and illustrious history. Matchday 15 will begin with an early kick-off between Leicester City and Manchester United at the King Power Stadium on Boxing Day. It is definitely one of the English Premier League fixtures to watch out for alongside the London derby between Arsenal and Chelsea at the Emirates Stadium Premier League predictions for Matchday 15: Leicester City vs Manchester United – November 26: The Foxes are coming off an impressive away win at Tottenham Hotspur, but their record against United has been poor with just thr...
‘Agent Grealish making moves’ – Some Villa fans react to transfer report regarding 27-yr-old
Aston Villa could look to sign Ross Barkley on a permanent transfer. According to Birmingham Mail, Chelsea are prepared to cash in on the midfielder in order to fund moves for Declan Rice and Erling Haaland at the end of this season. Aston Villa are set to explore the opportunity to sign the midfielder on a permanent deal next month and the negotiations will continue until a decision is made. The 27-year-old has two and a half years left on his contract at Chelsea and the Blues will look to recoup the £15 million they have paid for him in 2018. Chelsea might even look for a profit given the fact that Barkley has been in outstanding form for Aston Villa since his move in the summer. The midfielder has made quite the impression during his loan spell so far and it will be interesting to see i...
Can Anyone Actually Challenge Liverpool This Season?
Last season wasn’t much of a pulse-raiser for the neutrals. Throughout the campaign, Liverpool dominated the Premier League, with the biggest threat to their title ambitions being the COVID-19 pandemic. It was, all things considered, a bit boring. The beginning of the 2020/21 season gave the watching fans hope of an enthralling title race this time around. Jurgen Klopp’s men showed some signs of weakness after a humbling 7-2 defeat at the hands of Aston Villa, before star defender Virgil van Dijk picked up a season-ending injury. But alas, the Reds recovered in fine fashion. The last week has seen them secure a vital late win over Tottenham Hotspur, as well as a dominant 7-0 victory against Crystal Palace, leaving them four points clear at the top of the table on Christmas day. So, are we ...
The Athletic: Aston Villa considering January move for versatile Championship ace
Aston Villa could reignite their interest in the Bournemouth forward Joshua King when the transfer window reopens next month. According to the Athletic, Aston Villa are not desperate to sign players this January but they are aware that they need to strengthen certain areas of their squad. Dean Smith wants to bring in a versatile forward who can play centrally as well as in the wide areas and Joshua King seems like an ideal fit. The Bournemouth star is too good for the Championship and the chance to return to the Premier League is likely to tempt him. It will be interesting to see if Aston Villa return with a concrete offer for the 28-year-old forward in the coming weeks. Joshua King had has made just three starts in the Championship with Bournemouth so far due to recurring thing problems a...
Big Sam develops goose pimples over West Brom poor show
West Bromwich Albion manager, Sam Allardyce, believes the team cannot concede easy goals if they want to stay up. The Baggies endured a poor 3-0 home defeat to rivals Aston Villa during the first match of Allardyce’s time at the club. Matters were not helped by Jake Livermore getting a red card early in the game. “Yes I am upset – I couldn’t be anything else other than upset,” Allardcye told reporters when asked about Livermore’s red. “When I arrived one of the first things I said to the players was ‘lads one thing we can’t have is any more sendings off.’ “So it really is very disappointing. “They had a couple before I arrived. I’ve done my homework. That can’t happen again if we want to get out of trouble. “And we have got to stop letting in easy goals – which Villa’s first one was. It wa...
‘I’m not sure’: PL star suggests Leeds fans have left him baffled
Aston Villa midfielder Jack Grealish has suggested that he receives a lot of criticism and slack from Leeds United fans, even though the Whites are not direct rivals of Villa. The 25-year-old Villa skipper is a fantastic player who has not only impressed heavily in the Premier League but has shown his class while playing for his country as well. Known for his brilliant dribbling skills, deft touches and creativity, Grealish often draws fouls from opposition players. In fact, he was the most fouled player in the league last season, and the same trend has continued in the current campaign as well. Grealish has admitted that opposition fans beat him with the stick that he goes down easily, and he admits that probably to a certain extent that’s true as well. However, that’s the nature of his g...
