Premier League Player ratings: Liverpool v Aston Villa – Part 2
A forgettable night for Villa fans, as their players failed to show any fight, which would have been the biggest disappointment of all. Liverpool played well, but Villa’s lack of passion allowed Liverpool to play their game and run away with all three points.
In part one we saw most Liverpool players get a rating of seven and above due to their terrific team performance last night. In part two we see how well Gerard Houllier’s men performed.
ASTON VILLA
Brad Friedel: 6.0
The big American has come under criticism from some quarters this season, but he couldn’t have done much with all three of Liverpool’s goal. One could feel sorry for him as he made a couple of great saves, in particular one from Johnson to make the score
line somewhat less embarrassing.
Luke Young: 5.5
He looked unsure, as Maxi and Ngog swapped positions, and was found wanting on more than one occasion. Young settled down in the second half after Liverpool took their foot off the gas slightly.
James Collins: 5.0
Collins failed to deal with either Ngog or Babel, and allowed Ngog to score the first goal with poor some marking, and simply failed to match the energy levels of Liverpool attackers.
Richard Dunne: 5.0
The central defender looks a shadow of the player he was last season under Martin O’Neal. He was outpaced by Babel on a number of occasions, one of which was when Babel made it 2-0 in the 16th minute. He was more comfortable
in the air but Liverpool’s fluidity was too good for his ageing legs.
Stephen Warnock: 6.0
Villa’s best defender, Warnock stuck to his task and didn’t allow Kuyt to run past him. He looked assured but offered very little in the attacking third. However, he could be excused as his team-mates were far more convincing.
Stewart Downing: 6.0
He was the only player who looked like causing Liverpool any sort of problem. Even though that threat failed to materialise, Downing never stopped trying and tried his best to keep his team going. He was kept in check by the impressive Johnson, and even
the switch to the right side towards the end didn’t change anything.
Ciaran Clark: 4.5
He was sloppy in possession and anonymous otherwise. The game simply bypassed him and he was at fault for Liverpool’s second goal, when he gave the ball away cheaply. He was taken out of his misery when he was substituted at half time.
Jonathon Hogg: 5.5
The youngster tried to stamp his authority and did his best, but it was simply a matter of Liverpool’s midfield being the stronger of the two. He can’t be accused of a poor display as he tried his best to get his team going.
Marc Albrighton: 5.5
He has been a revelation for Aston Villa this season and his early running came to nothing as Liverpool soon started to dominate the game. He failed to deliver any crosses with real purpose and faded away as game went on. He was replaced by Pires midway
through the second half.
Stephen Ireland: 5.0
Ireland was anonymous for large parts of the game, and is far from the Player he was at Manchester City two seasons ago. He allowed Lucas to run past him and his work rate was poor to say the least. He needs to show more fight to retain a regular spot in
the starting line-up.
Gabriel Agbonlahor: 5.5
The Villa striker lacked any kind of service, and had to come deep to get involved in the game. He was taken off for Carew as a tactical change.
SUBSTITUTES:
Nathan Delfouneso: 5.5
He replaced the ineffective Clark, and did a pretty ineffective job as well. He failed to cause Liverpool’s defence any sort of problem with his pace, and chased shadows for most part of the second half.
Robert Pires: 6.0
He controlled the game after coming on but the match was over by then.
John Carew: 5.5
He came on as a target man, but his team-mates failed to pick him out on most occasions.
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