Aston Villa have their own secret of success in the Europa League from their set-piece practice and the rise of a surplus man.
Aston Villa finally ended their title drought following their convincing 3-0 win over Freiburg in the Europa League final at Tupras Stadium, Istanbul, last night. Judging from their experience, manager and squad, Villa’s success is probably expected. The game itself showed how Unai Emery’s men outclassed their German opposition.
However, once you look closer at their overall campaign this season, this triumphant glory in Europe is beyond their own expectation initially. It has been a rollercoaster one for The Lions this season, from their winless run at the beginning, rising high in the top three in the league before landing on their suitable target, a UCL spot and a continental second-tier trophy.
Villa eventually turn things around. Thanks to the resilience, which Unai Emery himself has demanded. Such impact on two things might have been their key to success on the continent this season, including in the final game.
Aston Villa appears to have prepared their secret weapon when it comes to breaking the deadlock or simply just opening the scoring sooner and less challengingly. It is by their set piece.
It is a routine which the players practise regularly. In Bodymoor Heath, it is Austin MacPhee who is in charge of such work. He has been a set-piece specialist coach with wide experience in his CV with the Scotland and Northern Ireland national teams.
MacPhee has contributed to crafting the set piece into a deadly effective way to score. In the final last night, Youri Tielemans’s opener was initiated by a short corner kick. The dead-ball scenario has been helping them to score over and over again, as it happened in the previous stages.
In the second leg semifinal, there was Buendia’s penalty, which gave them the lead on aggregate. In the second leg quarter-final, Ezri Konsa’s goal sealing their spot in the final four was also from another corner kick. And so were their two goals in the reverse fixture.
No wonder that the skipper John McGinn complimented MacPhee’s role in transforming their set piece into an impactful weapon in their tactics, as reported by France 24.
“I’m biased, but we have a great set-piece coach. We tried to deceive a bit with the set piece. We did it against Liverpool at the weekend. Youri has great quality to find the goal. It’d have been over the bar if it were me!”
Another unexpected key of success is the rise of the player who was deemed surplus to the requirements, Emiliano Buendia. The 29-year-old attacking midfielder has been the key figure in Villa’s success this season, particularly in the Europa League.
Last night, in the final, he netted another stunning goal before the interval plus provided one assist for Morgan Rogers’ goal, which cemented their victory in less than an hour. The Argentine’s contribution in the game was in the spotlight too, with three shots, two shots on target, four key passes, two aerial duel wins and 49 touches, including two unstoppable touches.
He also made three crosses and one long ball pass. The former Norwich man also contributed in the defensive phase with one tackle, one interception and one foul.
Overall, Buendia has made four goals and six assists in the Europa League, which adds to his seven goals and three assists in domestic competitions. The ex-Getafe man has featured in 53 games this season alone. This season is undoubtedly his stellar season.
Such is quite unbelievable considering last season’s woeful loan spell at Bayer Leverkusen, in which he only played 14 times and registered two goals. In fact, he was not seen as the player who could live up to expectations prior to this season since moving to Villa Park. The Mar del Plata-born midfielder even rejected a move to Leeds last summer in order to prove his worth for the Lions.
Now, he finally did it, and Emery and his teammates could not have been more pleased to the player who was on the verge of a failure phase in his career. Villa’s limited option in the squad due to the PSR issue somehow also contributed to his chance for it, and Buendia managed to prove himself.
Congrats for Aston Villa and Buendia!!
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