The Holy Trinity: Aston Villa conclusions from friendly defeat at Porto
Villa lost 2-1 in Portugal as Unai Emery prepares to welcome back World Cup players
Luka Lynch scored again in a 2-1 loss for Aston Villa in their second pre-season friendly of the summer.
Villa were beaten by Portuguese champions Porto but there was plenty for manager Unai Emery to take on board, both positive and negative, from the warm-up match on Saturday evening.
After the traditional opener at Walsall, Villa met Porto in a prestige friendly and will return to action against Real Sociedad, again at Walsall, on Tuesday.
For now, here’s your Holy Trinity of match conclusions.
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1. Unai Emery isn’t messing about in pre-season
It’s very obvious that Villa have been using makeshift teams so far in their two pre-season friendlies. We haven’t yet seen the likes of John McGinn, Ezri Konsa and Ollie Watkins, who played at the World Cup along with new signing Johan Manzambi and Sweden captain Victor Lindelöf.
Emiliano Martínez isn’t available yet and fellow Argentinian Alejandro Garnacho is also yet to feature.
There are players who played well against Walsall, Porto or both who won’t kick a ball for the first team this season, though George Hemmings and Modou Kéba Cissé could be thereabouts if they’re not careful.
Nevertheless, Emery looks to have started the pre-season fixture list as he means to go on.
I went to the Walsall match last summer and it felt like the first day back – a completely relaxed atmosphere before the game, tons of players not yet reported for pre-season, wholesale changes during the game and young players heavily involved who were light years away from first team football.
There’s no complaint there. It didn’t stop Villa hitting their objectives for the season. But it is noteworthy that the first couple or three friendlies last year were low-impact kickabouts where this year’s second friendly saw only three changes at half time (and one before it).
Emery switched Marco Bizot, Matty Cash and Ross Barkley out for James Wright, Kosta Nedeljković and João Gomes in Portugal. There were substitutions later in the game but plenty of players registered more than half a match in only the second friendly.
It’s already different than last summer and I’ll be watching closely to see how the approach evolves this week.
2. Villa matched high-intensity opposition
Porto changed their kit at half time. That was fun, wasn’t it?
Anyway, Villa encountered a team playing at home in front of a big crowd, and who started the game like they meant it. Porto were at it from kick-off and it paid off, insofar as anything can pay off in a friendly match.
Villa conceded very early in the match and found themselves with no time on the ball. Coupled with the patchwork nature of the team, that made for a tough first quarter of an hour.
The good news from a Villa point of view was that a side constructed out of disparate parts showed an immediate willingness to match the intensity of the hosts and scored an equaliser very quickly.
Being a secret optimist, I took that as a positive sign.
I make no effort to hide how little I care about the results of friendly matches but I do know that managers of Emery’s calibre don’t like to lose and certainly don’t accept their teams getting a kicking.
If Villa hadn’t taken the temperature of the occasion and responded accordingly, that’s what could have happened. It bodes well that the attitude was right even in that largely insignificant situation.
3. Luka Lynch continues to catch the eye
Hemmings looks more and more confident when carrying the ball up the pitch and young Brian Madjo came on briefly and showed well, but it was Brad Burrowes who started as Villa’s centre-forward with Lynch playing behind him.
There was lots to like about that arrangement against fellow Champions League opposition, none of it more thrilling than Villa’s goal.
Lamare Bogarde was playing in midfield but had stepped up to win the ball on the press, followed by some terrific and tenacious wing play from Leon Bailey on the right. Lynch was lurking.
His goal at Walsall came with a big dollop of luck but the young forward’s strike at the Estádio do Dragão was all his own work. Lynch whipped a left-footed shot across the goalkeeper and into the far corner, a technically superb piece of finishing that demonstrated the quality he has at his disposal.
I’ve seen Lynch play in person and at close quarters, and now in these two friendlies, and I’ve enjoyed watching him even if the extent of his involvement says something about Villa’s current attacking depth. He’s a livewire. He’s got a lovely sharp shift of feet and he can win a foul.
There’s no doubt Lynch’s decisions on the ball at the highest levels will benefit from some experience, and knowing when to pass on the responsibility in attacking areas will get better with that too, but I think it’s safe to say he’s made a fine start in senior football.
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