Aston Villa head coach Unai Emery decided to make a host of changes to his starting line-up after the 4-0 win over Bologna in the Europa League on Thursday night.
The Spaniard has won four Europa League titles in his career and knows how to manage the workload of playing domestic and European football at the same time.
For the clash with Sunderland in the Premier League on Sunday, Emery made three changes to the XI to keep players fresh and to rotate the squad.
It worked out in the end for the Villans, despite being dragged back to 3-3 late on, as Tammy Abraham came off the bench to score the winner after Ollie Watkins (two) and Morgan Rogers had put the team 3-1 up.
One of the changes to the line-up that was questioned by some supporters, though, was Tyrone Mings starting at centre-back ahead of Pau Torres alongside Ezri Konsa.
Why Aston Villa needed Tyrone Mings against Sunderland
As good as Pau is for Villa, the Spain international has only won 55% of his aerial duels in the Premier League this season and may have struggled against a powerful, physically dominant, striker like Brian Brobbey.
Mings was needed, therefore, to deal with the Netherlands international to ensure that the Villa backline were not bullied by Sunderland’s number nine on Sunday.
The England international did his job in that respect, despite the three goals that were conceded, as he won the physical battle with Brobbey, who was substituted off when the score was still 3-1.
|
Stat |
Mings |
Brobbey |
|---|---|---|
|
Minutes |
90 |
84 |
|
xG |
0.07 |
0.08 |
|
Pass accuracy |
87% |
50% |
|
Passes completed |
58 |
3 |
|
Ground duels won |
1/1 |
0/1 |
|
Aerial duels won |
4/5 |
0/1 |
None of the three goals that were conceded could be blamed on Mings, either, as Konsa lost his man for Wilson Isidor’s goal and the other two strikes did not come from the defender’s errors.
Whilst the left-footed defender showed that he still has value to offer the side with his work against Brobbey, one of his Villa teammates showed why he should not start again this season.
Worse than Tyrone Mings: Aston Villa player must not start again
With five games left before the end of the Premier League campaign, Emery must not start one of his players again before allowing them to leave in the summer.
Ross Barkley was given the chance to start in the number ten position against Sunderland, taking Emi Buendia’s place in the line-up after the win over Bologna, and failed to make the most of his opportunity.
The former England international was involved in the build-up to Rogers’ goal, finding Watkins before the assist, but his general play throughout the game left plenty to be desired.
|
Vs Sunderland |
Ross Barkley |
|---|---|
|
Minutes |
70 |
|
Crosses |
0 |
|
Key passes |
0 |
|
Big chances created |
0 |
|
Big chances missed |
1 |
|
Ground duels won |
2/6 |
|
Aerial duels won |
0/2 |
Barkley came off the pitch after 70 minutes without any meaningful contributions in or out of possession, as he failed to register a single key pass or cross in over an hour of action.
He also lost 75% of his duels off the ball, not showing enough strength in competing defensively, and was too slow to get out to Chris Rigg for Sunderland’s first goal, which is why he was even worse than Mings, as he struggled on and off the ball.
Newly-promoted Coventry City, who are due to join the Premier League next season, have been linked with an interest in signing Barkley this summer, as his contract is due to expire in 2027.
Frank Lampard’s interest in a deal for the experienced midfielder could allow the Villans to part ways with the ex-Chelsea man this summer, which they should look to do after his disappointing showing against Sunderland.
On the evidence of his performance on Sunday, Barkley should be benched for the rest of this season, not starting another game in the league, before being sold to Coventry, or any other interested party, in the summer transfer window.
The 32-year-old veteran has only started four games in the Premier League for the Villans this season, which is understandable off the back of his struggles against the Black Cats.
It will now be interesting to see whether or not Emery sanctions a summer exit for the midfield operator, who will be free to leave as a free agent in 2027.
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