Aston Villa Player Ratings In Loss To Crystal Palace
Goalkeeper – Tom Heaton (9.0)
If it wasn’t for Tom Heaton, Aston Villa should have lost by five or six. He made a collection of saves keeping out Van Aanholt, Ayew and Zaha. The experienced number one was a standout in a poor Villa side.
Right Back – Frederic Guilbert (6.5)
He was energetic all day, getting up and down the pitch with intent. However, for him, the final product lacked. Got carded early which many saw as a soft tackle. His performance didn’t harm his reputation as a capable fullback at this level.
Centre Back – Bjorn Engels (7.0)
Probably the best defender across the backline against Palace. He has been strong and consistent in the first four games this year. The Belgian is an accurate passer of the ball and cleared the ball from the onslaught on corners frequently. Well played.
Centre Back – Tyrone Mings (6.5)
The revelation at centre back who earned an England call up this week looked shakier than normal. He spent too much time on the ball & made some poor choices when clearing the ball from the backline. Ultimately, he was turned inside out by Jordan Ayew for the goal.
Left Back – Neil Taylor (6.5)
Wasn’t terrible but wasn’t a standout. He did his job fairly well and it was a hard job too – marshalling Wilfried Zaha all game. Showed passion and intent as he went about his duties. Wasn’t completely outplayed by the Ivorian, did show great second and third efforts for the full ninety.
Midfielder – Douglas Luiz (6.0)
A very quiet game from the Brazilian in the middle of the park. Didn’t effectively use the ball well enough. Kouyate and Milivojević tracked him well and with McArthur, nullified his impact. Didn’t see the best game from the holding midfielder. Substituted for Hourihane in the second half.
Midfielder – John McGinn (7.0)
The workhorse in the side constantly running and getting himself between the ball and his opponent. McGinn consistently tried to get the ball moving forward for the away side but with the front three out of sync, nothing came to fruition. I’m certain now that John McGinn looks at home in the Premier League.
Midfielder – Jack Grealish (6.5)
One thing you can’t knock Jack Grealish for is his effort all game. He will be left fuming for being booked late on for simulation which was obvious wrong call from the referee. Why have VAR if we don’t use it for a 96th-minute penalty call? Grealish was gallant in efforts but his influence was less prominent due to Villa have to defend all game long.
Left Winger – Jota (5.0)
We, unfortunately, didn’t see the same performance from the Spaniard as we did against Everton. He was marked well by Van Aanholt which meant he couldn’t influence the game. Substituted for Keinan Davis.
Striker – Wesley (4.0)
At times it felt like Aston Villa weren’t playing with a forward. For one, they struggled to get the ball upfront. When they did, Wesley either lost the ball or held the ball up nicely but had no one to offload it too. Came off for Lansbury with ten minutes to play.
Right Winger – Trezeguet (4.0)
Terrible performance by the Egyptian out wide. Was made foolish by Zaha on a number of occasions which caused him to jump into challenges. Once in the first half and once in the second half which gave him his marching orders when given the red card. Poor afternoon.
Substitutes:
Keinan Davis (4.5)
Didn’t get into the game as he played the whole of the second half. Came on for Jota. Held up the ball nicely a few times in his defensive half. Still very raw.
Conor Hourihane – N/A
Did his job, passing the ball around in the middle of the park. Nothing stood out though – not his fault though.
Henri Lansbury – N/A
Scored late on in controversial fashion, only for it to be ruled out by a poor simulation call on Jack Grealish. Will feel hard done by.