While you want to acknowledge Blackburn's role in their 2-0 win over Aston Villa, we didn't see anything new from Sam Allardyce's men. A direct kick and a goal from chaos give Blackburn a good three points, but this match was more about Aston Villa than Blackburn.
Blackburn Vs. Aston Villa: Pederson Leads Blackburn Past Turgid Villa
Villa had a few chances in the match, shaking Paul Robinson's cage once, but it was a disappointing performance. A side with the likes of Gabriel Agbonlahor, Ashley Young and Stewart Downing failed to inspire teammates or onlookers. Downing's steady performance aside, only Barry Bannan's effort and a flash or two from Young hinted Villa had a threat in them. While Blackburn was their typical steady and stalwart selves, their quality was still very similar to the side that got routed at White Hart Lane. Good teams get good results against Blackburn.
Aston Villa is a good team, but Sunday was an off day. They needed Emile Heskey or John Carew to provide a focal point. Stiliyan Petrov would have provided some drive in midfield. From the players who actually played, they needed a moment of brilliance from Ashley Young like the one he provided last week against Manchester United. Where Stewart Downing was the only person who had an above-average day, Aston Villa looked a lot like Downing's Middlesbrough teams Gareth Southgate struggled to keep up
It was a disappointing day for Villa, but they certainly aren’t Middlesbrough. Villa will be fine, and they aren’t the first team to stumble at Ewood Park. While they drop to 13th after today’s result, it’s difficult to see this performance replicated too often.
The next time they stumble, however, Villa supporters may like to see more imagination from their squad. To use this week’s secret word, Villa looked turgid.
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