Monday Night Football experts look at Villa's woes in front of goal
Tuesday 28 October 2014 09:29, UK
The Monday Night Football experts reckon Aston Villa will beat the drop, despite their shocking form in front of goal.
Paul Lambert’s side won three of their first four games of the season to go second in the Premier League, but have slumped to 15th after losing five straight matches against Arsenal, Chelsea, Man City, Everton and QPR, conceding 13 and scoring none in the process.
This is the first time in the club’s long history that they have lost five straight games without scoring a goal and they have had fewer shots than any other side in the division this season.
Sky Sports expert Jamie Carragher watched their 2-0 defeat to QPR on Monday Night Football and says those statistics need to be addressed if they are to avoid a season of struggle.
He said: “They are a club over the last couple of years, even before Paul Lambert’s time – maybe in Gerard Houllier’s time and even Alex McLeish’s time – that were teetering on the edge in terms of relegation.
“You never quite believe they will go down and I think the same this season, but if they continue with those stats in the league for goals and chances then you are going to end up down or really having a fight on your hands.
“More often than not in the last couple of years they’ve done enough to get out of it. Gerard Houllier made a huge signing a couple of years ago, bringing Darren Bent in, and Christian Benteke has made an influence in the last couple of years late on in seasons.
“But if those stats continue to stay like that they are going to get dragged down there.”
Benteke made his first start of the season at Loftus Road and the striker mustered three attempts on goal as he continued his recovery from six months out with a ruptured Achilles tendon.
Sky Sports expert Gary Neville says he needs more support from his midfield players and says Aston Villa will move away from the relegation zone when his form and fitness improves.
“You can see he is searching,” Neville said.
“He’s been out for six months, which is a long time. He is nowhere near the level, in terms of his fitness, yet.
“He’s a huge handful, though. When he was at his best he was doing what Bobby Zamora was doing and bullying centre-backs, causing problems every time the ball went forward.
“I still don’t think he’s got his mobility back in his game. His movement off the ball is not as frequent as when he’s at full fitness, which is understandable after being out for six months.
“I think Villa will be ok. At the moment it’s just getting Benteke back to his best and maybe some support from midfield running past those strikers.”
Aston Villa's next Premier League game - against Tottenham - is live on Sky Sports 1 from 3.30pm next Sunday.
