Rushian Hepburn-Murphy’s first-half strike failed to prevent Kevin MacDonald’s side from falling to a 2-1 defeat at Villa Park on Monday night.
Matija Sarkic 5.5/10 – A very shaky first-half performance saw the 19-year-old Montenegrin gift Norwich a 15th-minute opener when he palmed Glenn Middleton’s shot into the back of the net at the near post. He did look more assured after the break, however, and couldn’t do much to prevent Carlton Morris from scoring the second from close range.
Rory Hale 6/10 – Impressed going forward from right-back in the first half but was also caught out of position on a couple of occasions when Norwich hit Villa on the counter-attack. Seemed more comfortable after being moved into central midfield for the second period.
James Finnerty 6.5/10 – Making only his second start for Villa’s development side, the 17-year-old Irishman made some important clearances and looked composed when bringing the ball out from the back.
Johan Abdoul 6.5/10 – Like his centre-back partner, the promising Frenchman can feel satisfied with his performance despite the result.
Tom Leggett 7.5/10 – Arguably Villa’s best player on the night. Set up Hepburn-Murphy’s strike just before the interval and prevented Middleton from grabbing a second goal earlier in the first half with an excellent piece of last-ditch defending.
Corey Blackett-Taylor 7/10 – The 19-year-old wide man created plenty of problems for the opposition defence with his quick feet and crossing from the right. He’s one of a number of attacking prospects who could be knocking on the first-team door before long.
Callum O’Hare 6.5/10 – Broke up play well in the middle, and while he probably would have liked to have contributed more in the final third, the Solihull-born teenager never stopped running all game.
Aaron Tshibola 6/10 – Only played 45 minutes and didn’t particularly stand out, despite starting the move that led to Villa’s goal. On the basis of this performance, it could be difficult for the former Reading midfielder to get back into the senior side over the coming weeks.
Andre Green 7/10 – Looked very lively on the left, even if his end product was lacking, and nearly equalised 10 minutes after Norwich’s opener with a curling effort that forced Canaries keeper Ben Killip into a fine save.
Rushian Hepburn-Murphy 6.5/10 – In the right place at the right time to tap home a 41st-minute equaliser after Kozak failed to covert Leggett’s cross and kept Norwich’s defenders on their toes with his pace and movement. Villa fans hoping to see him in first-team action soon will be keeping their fingers cross that the knocked which forced him off 16 minutes from time isn’t too serious.
Libor Kozak 5/10 – Replaced by Davis shortly after Norwich retook the lead, having done very little to suggest he deserves a first-team recall. Worked hard but just didn’t threaten enough.
SUBSTITUTES
Joe Linley (Tshibola 46) 5.5/10 – Got off to a difficult start when he let Middleton burn passed him to set up Morris’ winner just five minutes after his half-time introduction.
Keinan Davis (Kozak 52) 6.5/10 – Came very close to grabbing an injury-time equaliser only to see Oluwarotimi Odusina produce a vital block on the line.
Kelsey Mooney (Hepburn-Murphy 74) 6.5/10 – Showed some good touches during the closing stages and helped created the last-gasp chance for Davis.
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