The Aston Villa defender continues to impress in the absence of John Terry.
When John Terry suffered a broken metatarsal and it became obvious that Chris Samba would act as his replacement, Aston Villa fans quickly feared the worst.
However, so far the experienced centre-back has done a fine job alongside James Chester in the heart of Villa’s defence and his latest showing against Leeds proved he will not let a single setback impact an entire match.
Defenders are sometimes beaten to the ball for no reason other than an attacking player gets there first, and so it proved when Villa conceded an early goal against Leeds on Friday evening.
The Whites’ own powerful centre-back Pontus Jansson found the back of the net, leaving some fans to hammer Samba for his role in the goal.
However, the Villa defender did not deserve the pelters coming his way and he quickly put the disappointment of conceding an early goal behind him to ensure Leeds did not score again.
That impressive rear-guard action ensured Villa were still in the game when substitute Henri Lansbury scored what proved to be a vital equaliser, and it is testament to Samba’s ability and professionalism that he kept going and ultimately played a significant role in an impressive away draw.
Some Villa fans will never take to Samba, but the truth is they would be a lot worse off without him right now.
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