Emery was let down by 4/10 Aston Villa man vs Leicester

Aston Villa returned to winning ways in the Premier League with a narrow 2-1 victory over Leicester City at Villa Park on Saturday afternoon.

Unai Emery’s side have been fairly inconsistent over the previous few weeks. A win over Manchester City was followed by a defeat against Newcastle United before ending 2024 by drawing with Brighton and Hove Albion.

They start 2025 off right, however, and the win means they now occupy eighth position in the league table.

Aston Villa’s best performers against Leicester

Ross Barkley was a notable standout for Emery during the clash against the Foxes. Not only did he finish the game with a pass success rate of 98%, but the Englishman also scored the opener with a lovely, driven effort, lost possession just twice and won six of his eight ground duels contested.

Elsewhere, Ezri Konsa won 100% of his duels, succeeded with 96% of his passes and made two tackles, ensuring the Foxes were kept at bay.

It was Leon Bailey who returned to some form, finally scoring his first goal of the campaign following fine work from substitute Ian Maatsen down the left flank, and it turned out to be the winner.

The Jamaican certainly saved a few blushes as it appeared Villa were heading for a 1-1 draw before the winger scored. One player who will be thankful to his teammate is Ollie Watkins, as the striker was poor throughout his time on the pitch.

Ollie Watkins’ game in numbers vs Leicester

It’s fair to say that the centre-forward hasn’t quite been at his fluid best this season. Across the whole of 2023/24, he scored 27 goals while chipping in with 13 assists, which saw him secure a place in England’s European Championship squad.

At the time of writing, Watkins has found the net just eight times

, with no goals coming in the Champions League and he delivered a stale performance on Saturday.

During the clash, he completed just nine passes, which was 16 fewer than Emiliano Martínez in the Villa goal, while also managing 22 touches and registering just two shots, with none of them on target.

The striker also lost possession eight times – including in the build-up to Stephy Mavididi’s equaliser – lost five of his eight total duels and missed a big chance as he failed to get on the scoresheet.

To top it off, he was given a match rating of just 4/10 by Birmingham World’s Charlie Haffenden, who stated that Watkins was ‘toothless’ on the day in front of goal.

Is he feeling the pressure of having some competition for his place in the side? Jhon Duran is finally emerging as a key player for Emery, already scoring 12 times from 26 appearances this term.

With a match against West Ham United coming up in the FA Cup next week, the continued absence of Duran due to suspension may see Watkins keep his place, although, in the long term, the battle for that starting berth is an intriguing one.

The Englishman will have to improve on his next outing, that’s for sure.