Alan Hutton showed his worth in Saturday’s 2-1 defeat to Chelsea, but it was another lacklsture outing for Manchester United loanee Tom Cleverley.
It’s little surprise that Carles Gil and Fabian Delph were two of Aston Villa’s top creators in the weekend’s 2-1 defeat to Chelsea, but special credit is also due to right-back Alan Hutton.
Gil might have been the man who helped end the club’s 11-hour goal drought with the assist for Jores Okore’s 48th-minute equaliser, but Hutton also proved a real threat bombing down the right flank, rivalling his midfield teammates with two chances created.
| Position | Total Key Passes | Total Passes | Fwd Passes | % Passes Are Forward | Passing Accuracy | Final Third Entries | Pen Area Entries | Mins Played | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carles Gil | MF | 2 | 60 | 22 | 37% | 90% | 6 | 3 | 90 |
| Fabian Delph | MF | 2 | 70 | 19 | 27% | 86% | 9 | 2 | 90 |
| Alan Hutton | DF | 2 | 47 | 19 | 40% | 83% | 6 | 3 | 90 |
| Gabriel Agbonlahor | FW | 1 | 13 | 5 | 38% | 62% | 1 | 1 | 68 |
| Ciaran Clark | DF | 1 | 42 | 16 | 38% | 95% | 4 | 1 | 90 |
| Christian Benteke | FW | 0 | 9 | 2 | 22% | 67% | 0 | 1 | 22 |
| Aly Cissokho | DF | 0 | 37 | 11 | 30% | 95% | 5 | 2 | 90 |
| Tom Cleverley | MF | 0 | 42 | 5 | 12% | 86% | 3 | 0 | 74 |
| Joe Cole | MF | 0 | 9 | 1 | 11% | 100% | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| Brad Guzan | GK | 0 | 19 | 13 | 68% | 68% | 3 | 1 | 90 |
| Jores Okore | DF | 0 | 43 | 13 | 30% | 88% | 3 | 0 | 90 |
| Scott Sinclair | MF | 0 | 8 | 3 | 38% | 75% | 0 | 0 | 16 |
| Andreas Weimann | FW | 0 | 30 | 5 | 17% | 83% | 5 | 1 | 80 |
| Ashley Westwood | MF | 0 | 71 | 18 | 25% | 89% | 9 | 3 | 90 |
Also managing to keep Eden Hazard quieter than usual on the afternoon, the Scotland international has been one of Villa’s top performers since being brought back in from the cold over the summer, with his form even moving manager Paul Lambert to label him the best at his position in the Premier League.
One member of the side who flattered to deceive once again, however, was the under-fire Tom Cleverley, who managed just five forward passes during his 74 minutes on the pitch.
Arriving on loan from Manchester United in September with the aim of reviving his faltering career, the England midfielder’s performances have come in for considerable criticism from the Villa Park crowd since, and he was taken off at the weekend to widespread boos.
If fans want to pinpoint a reason for the club’s goal drought in recent months, it’s fair to suggest that a lack of chances being created from the midfield has been a huge factor, and fans will hope the recent introduction of Gil, as well as a fit Scott Sinclair, can help provide more service to Christian Benteke when the Belgian is brought back into the side.
As for Cleverley, it seems long overdue that Lambert hands him a spot on the bench for the foreseeable future.
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