The Talk Villa Newsletter: #3

Wasteful Villa fall to Arsenal defeat, Emi Martinez pens new deal as transfer deadline draws closer...

Football, eh? After the high of securing all three points in our Premier League season opener, it was defeat for Aston Villa this past weekend against Arsenal.

Billed as a ‘London derby’ in a glaring, yet hilarious, gaffe from USA Network/NBC, despite having golden opportunities to register a third consecutive league victory over the Gunners, Villa’s profligacy in front of goal was ultimately punished as we fell to a 2-0 loss to our ‘cross-town rivals’.

Given the cute little rivalry that some in their fanbase are looking to create with their Unai Emery jibes and Emiliano Martinez obsession though, perhaps it is a brewing feud of sort, just not geographically.

Despite the disappointment though, there were many positives to take from the performance, and it’s hoped that we can bounce back at Leicester City this weekend to sign off on a positive note ahead of the international break.

“We have to accept the result,” Emery said. “We competed very well against a team that is more mature than us, more experienced than us and their process is more advanced than ours – two or three years building the team with a strong structure tactically.

“We competed very well and we had three unbelievable chances to score and we didn’t do it. I have to be proud of our work. I think this is the way we can progress and develop the tactical structure with the players.

“We are trying to get the performance close to teams like Arsenal here, and this is the process we have to try to keep.”

Five key talking points as wasteful Villa punished in loss to Arsenal

Lesson learned as Villa must be consistently ruthless

Prior to this game, Mikel Arteta was asked what the difference was between the two sides in our two wins over Arsenal last season. He said that it was simple, we scored, and his side didn't, as they failed to take their chances.

If that were indeed true, roles were reversed on Saturday evening, as Villa's wastefulness in front of goal was ultimately punished in a game where we had the big chances.

It reinforced the point that we must be consistently ruthless in the final third, particularly when we're on top and dominating games, as we were for large periods in this encounter. If we don’t, invariably in this league, we’ll end up rueing it.

Watkins still playing catch up after pre-season absence

After missing our pre-season schedule, it's clear that Ollie Watkins is still playing catch up.

Aside from his glaring misses, his touch looked heavy and the timing of his movement isn’t quite right yet as he still looked out of sync with his teammates.

There's no doubt that he will regain his sharpness, be more clinical in front of goal and rediscover that understanding and cohesion, but it wasn't his day, and it's important that he picks himself up and bounces back positively this weekend.

Morgan Rogers continuing to develop at pace

While we saw in the second half of last season what a talent we've signed in Morgan Rogers, he is continuing to build on that by developing and improving his game to become increasingly influential.

The speed and power with which he broke the lines, led our attacks in transition, shrugged Arsenal midfielders off him as he rampaged forward and opened things up to create threatening opportunities was a joy to watch, and it's hoped that he can continue to go from strength to strength.

He did lack an end product to go with all that positive play, and that is still an area in which he'll be striving to improve in. Nevertheless, he was a stand-out performer again in this one, and he has established himself as a pivotal figure for us in the final third.

MORE: Villa ace continues to shine in key role as he grows in confidence and influence

Nedeljkovic puts in solid performance after difficult introduction

Being thrown on against Arsenal in his first appearance at home would have been a daunting task for Kosta Nedeljkovic, and it showed early on in his performance.

With Matty Cash being forced to withdraw after just 16 minutes, the 18-year-old stepped in and showed some nerves in the first few minutes with a misplaced pass and being caught out of position.

Importantly though, he settled quickly after that and started to impose himself more effectively, showing more composure both in his defensive work and touches on the ball.

With Cash now facing a spell on the sidelines with that injury, Nedeljkovic may well have a big role to play in the coming weeks as Emery has hinted that he has tweaked our structure and way of playing, as he prefers to have Ezri Konsa at centre-half rather than shifting across.

MORE: Promising signs from Villa youngster as injury setback could now lead to important role

Important Villa bounce back with strong response

This season will be full of ups and downs, and our response to the latter will be fundamental in our ongoing process of trying to compete at the top level.

Naturally, this is a disappointing setback in itself considering the result, but coupled with the manner of the defeat, it will come as a blow after so much positivity and optimism to start the campaign.

However, there were still many positives to take from our performance, and it's vital we show a winning mentality and resilience against Leicester City next weekend to produce an immediate response and get back on track.

Other notable news

Emi Martinez signs new contract

There was great news earlier in the week, as Martinez confirmed that he had signed a new contract with the club, keeping him with us until 2029.

While it’s a huge boost in itself to secure his services for the foreseeable future, it was also an important statement of intent from him and Villa.

The World Cup winner evidently believes in what we’re building with this team under Emery, while other pillars of the squad will see that and hopefully share that belief, and prospective transfer targets will want to be part of it too.

Both Martinez and Emery have reiterated that they’re not here to waste time, and so for both to sign new deals within months of each other speaks to the ambition and project that Villa have presented and continue to put into action.

"Since I joined the club, my dream was to be in the Champions League. We achieved that, so I decided to sign a new deal here. I feel like the club is moving forward every year, I've achieved everything at international level with Argentina, so I still think we can win a trophy here, that's something missing for this club, and so I will have a go in the next four years to see if we can achieve that. "

When I started playing here, I fell in love with the club, I fell in love with the fans. My kids were born here, and you need to be where you feel happy. Certainly, I'm happy here."

Read more reaction to Martinez signing a new Villa contract here.

Injury news - good and bad

As per reports, Matty Cash is now expected to be sidelined for a month after suffering a hamstring injury at the weekend.

Given he was replaced in the latter stages at West Ham with an apparent hamstring issue, it’s unclear if he was a concern going into Saturday’s game.

Nevertheless, he will now miss our upcoming outings, thus potentially opening the door for Nedeljkovic to get a run in the side.

Meanwhile, Emery reiterated that both Tyrone Mings and Boubacar Kamara are closing in on a return to group training, and that they should be back working with the rest of the group next month.

That will be a fundamental boost given their quality, influence and leadership, and so it’s hoped that they can step things up after the international break.

Transfer news - more to come from Villa before the deadline?

Lamare Bogarde has now signed a new long-term contract, with the talented youngster continuing to make a positive impression on Emery.

After putting in a string of strong performances in pre-season, he not only has secured his long-term future with us, but the suggestion is that he’ll stay with the squad this season and provide depth.

Meanwhile, Alex Moreno has departed to join Nottingham Forest on loan, with an option to buy said to be included in the agreement.

It’s such a shame that his injury issues ultimately derailed his time with us after making such a promising start to life in a Villa shirt. Time will tell if he’s made his final appearance for us or not, but for now, Emery has put his trust in Lucas Digne to provide competition for Ian Maatsen.

Samuel Iling-Junior is expected to depart on loan, while our touted interest in Raheem Sterling has now been dismissed.

Will Villa make any more signings, where do we still need to strengthen? The great Ron Saunders was once asked what type of players he wanted to target in the transfer market, to which he responded: “Good ones, obviously”. Let’s hope the current hierarchy continue to heed that sound advice.

Got a question or opinion on the topics above? Leave a comment below and we’ll share in the following week’s mailbag feature.

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