Aston Villa 1 Southampton 0 - Report
This wasn’t pretty, yet it sure was precious for Steven Gerrard.
Style points count for nothing when you have made a start to the season as underwhelming as Villa’s.
All that mattered against Southampton was getting a result and that they did, just about, courtesy of Jacob Ramsey’s first goal of the season. Gerrard's roar at the final whistle said it all.
Ramsey hammered home from close range just before the break and it was enough to see-off a Saints team who failed to force Villa goalkeeper Emi Martinez into a serious save during the 90 minutes.
A first clean sheet of the season was undoubtedly the biggest positive for the Villa boss. In attack, his team struggled only slightly less than their visitors, the recalled Philippe Coutinho again failing to properly fire.
But Gerrard now has two weeks in which to work on things before two more key matches after the international break, away at Leeds and Nottingham Forest. After just their second win of the season, Villa are in a significantly better place than they were before the draw against Manchester City a fortnight prior to this.
While Gerrard was forced into one change, with Ashley Young replacing the injured Matty Cash at right-back, the Villa boss also made a tactical switch with Coutinho coming in for Douglas Luiz. After his performance against City, the latter could perhaps consider himself unlucky.
The minutes before the game were powerful, with most of the floodlights switched off to leave the pitch bathed in a light glow for the tributes to the late Queen Elizabeth II.
When the action began, Coutinho looked to get Villa moving early with a flighted ball over the top into the path of Leon Bailey but the winger’s first touch was poor and his eventual cross into the box, after the visiting defence had recovered their positions, equally disappointing.
It was a low-key start all-round, though the Saints looked slightly more threatening, Moussa Djenepo delivering a cross from the right which Ezri Konsa hacked behind with Che Adams waiting to pounce. Kyle Walker-Peters then turned Coutinho with a piece of skill the Brazilian himself would have been proud of and raced forward. Only a perfectly-timed challenge from Lucas Digne stopped his advance.
The home crowd were starting to get restless and Villa sloppy, goalkeeper Martinez almost caught out by Adam Armstrong as he dallied on the ball, his clearance hitting the Southampton forward and flying out for a throw-in.
Coutinho nearly sparked the game and his team into life with a sharp turn inside James Ward-Prowse and shot which flew a yard or so over the bar.
Considering what had come before, the manner in which Villa broke the deadlock was fittingly scrappy. Bazunu, who had saved moments before from Coutinho, got too strong a hand to Watkins’ header from the playmaker’s cross and the ball bounced back out off the bar, Ramsey hammering a volley in off the woodwork after Mohammed Salisu was unable to get any power on his headed clearance. Ramsey had been in an offside position when the cross had been delivered but after a VAR check, the goal stood.
Villa suffered a blow straight after when Boubacar Kamara was forced off through injury yet Luiz, his replacement, almost doubled the lead when he came close to scoring direct from a corner for the third time this season, Bazunu denying him by tipping the effort over the bar.
Coutinho was booked with the last action of the half for tripping Adams as the Saints looked to spring a counter, with Ramsey also going into the book early in the second period for a poor challenge on Salisu.
After the late burst of excitement before the break, chances and goalmouth action were again at a premium. Ramsey saw a brief sight of goal when Tyrong Mings headed a free-kick into his path but the shot cannoned off a defender and away to safety.
Gerrard made changes midway through the half, Leander Dendoncker handed a debut as he replaced Ramsey and Buendia coming on for the ineffective Bailey.
It failed to make Villa any more fluent and with 10 minutes remaining the biggest excitement had been a half-hearted melee which ensued after McGinn was upended by Ward-Prowse.
Stoppage time brought a little more drama with substitute Danny Ings failing to find an empty net after Bazunu had gone forward for a corner, before Stuart Armstong headed wide for the Saints with virtually the last action of a largely forgettable match.
Teams
Villa (4-3-2-1): Martinez, Young, Konsa, Mings, Digne, McGinn, Kamara (Luiz 45), Ramsey (Dendoncker 67), Bailey (Buendia 67), Coutinho (Ings 83) Watkins Subs not used: Chambers, Augustinsson, Nakamba, Sanson, Olsen (gk).
Southampton (4-2-3-1): Bazunu, Walker-Peters, Djenepo, Bella-Kotchap, Perraud (Lareus HT), Diallo (Aribo HT), Ward-Prowse Salisu, Elyounoussi (Edozie 79), Armstrong A (Armstrong S 71), Adams (Mara 71) Subs not used: Lyanco, Caleta-Car, Walcott, McCarthy (gk).
