Stephen Warnock lauds Aston Villa player; explains what will disappoint Dean Smith

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Aston Villa won for the first time under Dean Smith, beating Swansea City 1-0 in the Championship thanks to Tammy Abraham’s goal.

It is far too early to get carried away. But there were a lot of positives to take from Aston Villa’s first game under the management of Dean Smith.

Villa might have missed a whole host of chances while being bailed out by some heroics at the other end from Orjan Nyland and Neil Taylor. But the Villans still deserved their 1-0 victory against Swansea City, secured by a first-half header from former Swans loanee Tammy Abraham.

Speaking on EFL on Quest (20 October, 9:00pm), Stephen Warnock has already noticed improvements from the turgid end to Steve Bruce’s reign in charge, and has paid tribute to one player in particular for his performance against Graham Potter’s side.

“It’s improved. It’s better than it was when we look at the pressing that the Aston Villa players did. Especially John McGinn, who was excellent today,” said the former England left-back, who played for Villa from 2009 to 2013.

“They knew how Swansea wanted to play, they knew that they could set traps and (McGinn) was instrumental all the way through it.”

Warnock also believes that McGinn’s snarling presence in midfield could help get the best out of Jack Grealish, who has struggled to find his best form since being heavily linked with a move to Tottenham Hotspur over the summer.

“Whenever Swansea tried to play out from the back he knew when to jump on top of it,” Warnock added. “He played in a three with Jack Grealish and he gave him that freedom.”

Villa looked quicker and far more forceful under the famously attack-minded Smith; their forward-thinking approach a clear contrast from the pragmatism of Bruce.

But, according to Warnock, there is one aspect of Villa’s performance that the former Brentford manager will be keen to improve.

“The disappointing thing for Dean Smith will be that when they have won the ball back and got it into good areas, it was just the decision making,” he said. “But that will come.”