Aston Villa CEO praised his side after they battered Burton Albion – but why has it taken this long for Bruce to get his tactics right?
Aston Villa fans know better than to get carried away following a promising run of form. They may have extended their winning league run to three with a 4-0 thrashing of Burton Albion on Tuesday night but supporters will remember that Steve Bruce’s side enjoyed a similarly impressive unbeaten streak in the spring only to fall away and stutter to a mid-table finish.
Yet, there appears to be something different about Villa’s current run of seven games without defeat.
Young striker Keinan Davis added to his growing reputation with another influential goalscoring display, Albert Adomah maintained his recent resurgence while Robert Snodgrass, a real coup of a signing on loan from West Ham, capped his best display in Villa colours with a maiden strike.
No wonder CEO Keith Wyness is happy. Though you wonder whether there is something of a subtle dig at his manager in his post-match Tweet.
No coincidence that same xl for 3 games and stability breeds wins,building something #utv
— keith wyness (@retsub12) September 26, 2017
There certainly seems to be an opinion among some Villa supporters that this excellent run of form has been far too late in coming. As some have pointed out, why has it taken Bruce this long to play two strikers or commit to a more attacking style that suits Villa’s gifted forward players?
And there’s also the fact that Adomah would likely not have played in recent weeks if Andre Green had not suffered a long-term injury. The Ghanaian, Villa’s most prolific assist maker last season with 10, had barely been seen until Green was ruled out.
It’s fair to say Bruce has a long way to go to fully convince the supporters. And maybe even the CEO.
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