Pelle piles on anguish for Villa
TIM SHERWOOD has gone and so has the distraction of the Capital One Cup. Perhaps, in time, Aston Villa’s run to the fourth round of the competition will serve as the highlight of their abject season.
These truly are dire times for the club, who proved here that even when they are playing reasonably well they cannot quite do what they intend.
And that, to an extent, is the problem. Sherwood had his ideas, as did his transfer helpers and their multitude of summer arrivals, but combined it never quite added up.
In this case, Villa controlled the first half, showed a greater appetite for adventure and created all manner of chances — combined it was worth nothing.
Of their 14 shots, not one forced a serious save from Maarten Stekelenburg.
The risk was that Southampton would wake up and when they did, Maya Yoshida and Graziano Pelle (below) scored in the second half, setting up a quarter-final against Liverpool. A Scott Sinclair penalty in stoppage time was no great consolation to Kevin MacDonald, Villa’s caretaker in this mess.
There are suggestions that he will be around for a while longer before a permanent appointment is made, with Remi Garde still the favourite. But MacDonald reiterated the need for a quick decision, given that this club has no time to waste.
He said: ‘It has been quite hectic. I got a call at 10.30pm, maybe 11ish on Sunday to be interim manager. I was disappointed because Tim brought me in. Tim was very good to me.
‘Since I got the call on Sunday I haven’t spoken to anyone since. But it is probably better for the club [to bring in a manager] sooner rather than later so we can get back to doing what we are doing. They have gone down the road of speaking to one or two, but if they ask me to stay on for Monday’s game at Tottenham, then fine by me.’
This result, whether good or bad, was never going to hold much value in Villa’s wider accounts for the season. Replacing Sherwood is the short-term aim and staying in the Premier League is the objective.
With six straight league defeats, the situation is plainly woeful. MacDonald responded by making five changes to the side who lost against Swansea in Sherwood’s final game. Ronald Koeman, perhaps bizarrely for a manager who wants to win the cup, kept only four players from the Premier League draw with Liverpool.
Koeman’s selection certainly looked a dangerous gamble. They were outplayed in the first half, with Rudy Gestede winning four headers but not properly testing Stekelenburg with any. Leandro Bacuna did better with a winding run but still no goal.
Southampton offered next to nothing and then, after 51 minutes, Yoshida exchanged passes with Ramirez before shooting past Brad Guzan from 25 yards. Pelle finished Villa with a lovely volley, before Virgil van Dijk fouled Jordan Ayew and conceded a penalty. Sinclair converted. Koeman said: ‘It would be an honour to play at Wembley and to play for a title. OK, Man City has more possibilities to win. But we have shown already we can beat the big ones. One of our ambitions is to reach a final, to give our amazing fans an opportunity to go to Wembley and to play for something.’