Nelson Oliveira’s 62nd-minute strike saw Steve Bruce’s side fall to a 1-0 defeat at Carrow Road on Tuesday night.
Pierluigi Gollini 6/10 – Spilled a shot from Martin Olsson in the first half but recovered well to prevent Oliveira from tapping home the rebound. Despite some criticism, it didn’t look like he could do much to prevent the goal.
Alan Hutton 6/10 – Defended reasonably well against Robbie Brady but struggled to offer anything going forward.
Tommy Elphick 4.5/10 – Back wearing the captain’s armband, the former Bournemouth defender was at fault for Norwich’s winner after failing to close down Oliveira and looked like the weak link in the Villa defence throughout the match. At this point, there’s little doubt that Nathan Baker is the better centre-back partner for Chester.
James Chester 7/10 – Arguably Villa’s best player on the night, producing a couple of key blocks and six clearances to keep the scoreline looking more respectable.
Jordan Amavi 6.5/10 – Had a few shaky moments at the back but managed to limit Jacob Murphy’s effectiveness and looked like Villa’s best attacking outlet for spells of the game.
Mile Jedinak 6/10 – Very careless in possession but battled away while getting no help in midfield, recording four tackles and a game-high seven interceptions over the course of the 90 minutes.
Ashley Westwood 5/10 – May have been full of running but rarely got on the ball. With Bruce promising to ring the changes for the weekend’s trip to Queens Park Rangers, it would be a surprise to see him keep his place.
Jack Grealish 5/10 – After Saturday’s late heroics against Wigan Athletic, the 21-year-old playmaker proved largely ineffective while operating in a deeper midfield role.
Jordan Ayew 5/10 – Didn’t look anywhere near as dynamic as earlier in the season as he continually ran down blind alleys and failed to register a single shot.
Gabby Agbonlahor 3/10 – Completely anonymous up top before making way for Adomah with 18 minutes left. It might be time for Bruce to accept that the Agbonlahor of old isn’t coming back.
Jonathan Kodjia 5/10 – Frustratingly lacklustre out wide and will be very lucky to escape retroactive punishment after the cameras caught him kicking out at Yusuf Mulumba while the pair tangled on the ground.
SUBSTITUTES
Albert Adomah (Agbonlahor 72) 5/10 – Managed just five touches during his time on the pitch.
Ross McCormack (Grealish 72) 5/10 – Had a late penalty appeal turned down but that was about his only significant contribution.
Rudy Gestede (Ayew 80) 5/10 – Did nothing up of note during his 10-minute cameo.
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