I don’t think any Aston Villa supporter would have predicted the poor start we have encountered when our pre-season tour of Australia came to an end.
Four defeats from five Premier League games leave Aston Villa sitting second from bottom in the Premier League, just above Leicester who have a game in hand.
Steven Gerrard spoke about changing our approach and you could argue there was more grit and fight in the team but we couldn’t get the basics right and if we are being honest with ourselves, the scoreline flattered Villa.
Those who had Gabriel Jesus as their Fantasy Premier League captain will have wondered how he didn’t add to his tally on the night given the chances he had. In truth, Villa could have been losing by 3 to 4 goals by half-time.
Early on there was an onslaught from the home side. It was all one-way traffic but having fought so hard to stay level, the manner in which we conceded summed our start to the season up. Granit Xhaka’s low cross took a deflection off Ezi Konsa’s boot, Gabriel Martinez couldn’t hold onto the ball but Jesus was never going to miss from six yards out.
Villa were much better in the second half and may have felt they were going to rob something when Douglas Luiz scored directly from a corner for the third time since July. The visitors were level with 16 minutes to go!
It wasn’t to be and normal service was soon resumed. Martinelli stabbed home from a Bukayo Saka cross as the home sign regained the lead.
Next up for Villa is Manchester City at home and the pressure is well and truly on Steven Gerrard.