Aston Villa boss delighted with substitutes Emile Heskey and Stewart Downing
Aston Villa manager Gerard Houllier says that he is delighted with Emile Heskey and Stewart Downing after the pair came off the bench to give the English Premier League side a 2-1 victory over Burnley in the FA League Cup on Wednesday, 27 October.
Villa had struggled to make the breakthrough against the spirited Football League Championship side before former England international Heskey was brought on after 59 minutes. The striker gave the home side the lead in the 86th minute.
However, Villa’s lead lasted just two minutes as Clarke Carlisle headed home a cross from Ross Wallace. After the match reached extra-time, Downing created the winner for himself when he cut in form the right before lashing the ball past Lee Grant and into
the net.
Houllier was delighted with the impact his substitutes made, but refused to take credit for their match-winning exploits.
He told Press Association Sport that: "I don't take credit for the subs. The manager makes the decision to bring them on — but it's down to them. They scored the goals, I didn't. I wanted to rest some players but I knew at some stage, with other players
tiring, they would make a difference.
"Emile [Heskey] made a difference and Stewart [Downing] made a difference. The problem with the subs is they have got to be in the right frame of mind.
"If they have the right attitude, if the hunger is there, then they bring something. Their freshness can bring initiative which was the case. Emile came on and changed the game because he held the ball up."
Though Villa emerged victorious, they were forced to hang on to their lead with ten men after winger Marc Albrighton was sent off in the second half of extra-time when he fouled Wade Elliott as the last man. Houllier said that the sending-off was fair.
"To me, Albrighton's sending off was a fair decision. He didn't touch him [Elliott] a lot but he touched him and the player used it as if he had been shot dead — but he touched him. From Marc's point of view, he should have reacted quicker. This is one of
the main progresses we have to do.”
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