VILLA UP FOR IT!
Lescott turns boos to cheers as Garde breaks duck at last
It HAS been 157 days of waiting but at last Aston Villa are victorious. the Premier League’s bottom club can reflect on taking all three points for the first time since opening day.
For these supporters long starved of cheer, the moment was greeted as if silverware had been secured, a raucous noise rarely heard in this stadium of late. Players celebrated in front of the Holte End. those scenes from Wycombe last Saturday — the furious fans, the police guard — seemed a distant memory.
Come season’s end, this may look like the flailing punch of a team already going down. But at least Villa are showing some fight.
the goal seemed to roll in in slow motion. Wayne Hennessey will not want to watch it again. In the 58th minute Jordan Veretout delivered a corner that Joleon Lescott met with a leap of intensity. His header had purpose but little direction, aiming straight for the gloves of Palace’s goalkeeper.
But somehow, Hennessey palmed the ball down and allowed it to wriggle under his body and over the line. It was inexplicable, but for all Villa’s industry and effort, they looked as if they would need some good fortune to score.
Lescott’s celebrations (below) were oddly composed. Perhaps he did not wish to tempt fate, such has been his side’s form. It could also have been because his name was jeered before kick- off for his alleged antics on the bench in the FA Cup draw at Wycombe.
Whatever, Remi Garde will not care. He finally has his first victory as Villa manager, at the 11th attempt. this was also the club’s first Premier League home win since May 9.
His team are still some way from safety, eight points in fact, but he has a platform to convince potential recruits of the value of joining the club. Chief executive tom Fox was back from his New York summit with owner Randy Lerner to witness Garde’s case for funding strengthened.
the Frenchman was not about to salute the win as the first in a miraculous escape, just yet. ‘Hopefully yes, but I don’t know,’ he said. ‘We have to stay humble. It is only three points, we are far away from what we all want. But this victory could give us a little more confidence. the way we played I didn’t see a bottom-of-the-table team.’ For Crystal Palace, this was a fourth consecutive Premier League game without scoring and designs on Champions League football are wilting. ‘Going forward tonight that really wasn’t us,’ said Alan Pardew. ‘For the goal Wayne’s first touch puts him in trouble. His mistake has cost us the goal but we made mistakes in other areas.’ Pardew gave words of solace to the victors. ‘they will have to work hard and may need fortune. It is possible. the Premier League wouldn’t want to lose a club of this magnitude.’
Garde shuffled his pack yet again in an attempt to discover a winning hand, making a couple of bold calls. Libor Kozak was recalled for his first league start since Boxing Day 2013.
the Villa fans gave pantomime boos to Brad Guzan and Lescott as the stadium announcer read their names. they had angered a group of supporters in the Wycombe draw by joking on the substitutes’ bench and engaging in a bizarre chewinggum spitting competition.
While Lescott wore the captain’s armband, Guzan stayed on the bench, meaning a first league start for deputy goalkeeper Mark Bunn since May 2013. that came for his former club Norwich against Villa.
Pardew was also in a giving mood. Bakary Sako made his first league start since November and operated in a centre forward role.
AfterAfte just 44 seconds,d it was another of Palace’s speedy attackers who nearly opened the scoring. Jason Puncheon produced a delightful ball to slip in Wilfried Zaha, who cut back on to his right and curled a shot on to the post.
Villa regrouped and began to play with energy and speed, with Jordan Ayew again showing his worth. His pace and movement troubled Palace’s back line all evening.
At half-time Pardew sensed all three points could be won. Villa held the worst home record in the division — three draws, six defeats, zero victories before this match — while Palace’s away record is bettered only by Leicester and Arsenal.
So Pardew replaced Joe Ledley with Connor Wickham at the break, a distinct shift of impetus.
But it was Villa who nearly took the lead. In the 52nd minute Ayew squared to Kozak, who just about kept his feet to fire a low shot that deflected off Pape Souare and was unconvincingly scrambled behind by Hennessey. It was a sign of things to come.