How long will Gerrard’s spell last? So far, Aston Villa have been lucky

Steven Gerrard has really lifted Aston Villa since his arrival, winning 3 out of 4 games to move his new team away from the relegation zone. But how long will his spell last and is it not just because of the well-known effect of a change of coach?

Aston Villa under Gerrard won 2: 0 against Brighton, but it has to be said that it was a very lucky three points, as the team from the south of England dominated the game and wasted several great chances, which is something that has been with them for a long time.

Villans managed to win the second game against Crystal Palace 2-1. This time, however, it was an evenly matched game in which the London team dominated, but they couldn’t convert their chances either and the goal at the end of the game didn’t solve anything.

In the third game under Gerrard, Aston Villa faced Manchester City. The match ended 2-1 to the Citizens and the former England midfielder suffered his first defeat in his new job.

But then the Villans got back on the winning streak, beating Leicester again at home 2: 1. It was a rather wild game, in which both teams had chances, the Foxes had the slight upper hand, but football is played for goals and the home team scored more of them.

Counter-attacks and standard situations

Most of Aston Villa’s goals in the last 4 games have come either after direct kicks or counter attacks. Gerrard practises relatively “simple” football, taking the shortest route to the opponent’s goal as soon as he gets the ball, which often makes these games very attractive.

This is also why the Villans usually, under Gerrard actually so far always, have a lower percentage of possession of the ball as they wait to see what the opponent does and then go on the run. So far, they’ve done well, thanks in part to converted standard situations. However, they won’t work out indefinitely and that’s when Aston Villa can be counted on to stagnate.

The Villans have only scored 10 goals from play this season and 7 from standard situations. In total, Villans have scored 21 goals and if you take away the aforementioned standard situations, there aren’t many clubs with worse goalscoring stats.

Of course, that means nothing, but if we add to that the leaky defence (24 league goals conceded this season), when Aston Villa allow opponents a lot, we get the conclusion that this traditional English side is enjoying mostly euphoria after the arrival of a new coach and also luck.

Of course, it is still very early to judge Gerrard’s work, but now he has to return to Anfield, then two very important games against Norwich and Burnley. It is these two games that will show how Aston Villa will fare with their new hero against teams that profess similar tactics.

Source: Aston Villa, Whoscored