Aston Villa found a silent solution in their crisis for the remainder of the season

Aston Villa finally managed to find a silent solution for their defensive midfielder crisis in one surprising name.

 Aston Villa at last secured their spot in the Europa League final and ended their negative trend in the last three games. They were able to pull it off and come out as the winner under pressure in the second leg semifinal last night in an emphatic 4-0 win over Nottingham Forest.

 The fans might see Emi Buendia, who was practically everywhere to penetrate the Forest’s backline and heavily involved in their attack. The skipper John McGinn was also stealing the spotlight with his brace to kill the game.

 Yet, above all, it was Unai Emery who eventually found a perfect emergency solution silently as their defensive midfielder crisis remained. The Spaniard opted to play Victor Lindelöf in that position, although at the start of the game, Villa could be employing the back three as well, with the Sweden international accompanying Ezri Konsa and Pau Torres at the back.

 The public or fans might have expected Tyrone Mings instead of the former Benfica man to operate that position. Emery’s unpredictable position has eventually paid off.

Emery and McGinn on Lindelof’s form

The Spanish boss appeared to have considered it and decided to deploy him in that decisive game for that position. He shared his view in the press conference as reported in the Birmingham Mail.

“It is one thing we did in the season: Lindelof played as a midfielder. I spoke to him about the possibility. Without Kamara and Onana, we also played McGinn in midfield, but understanding what we needed overall, with set-pieces and with a player with experience, Lindelof is a fantastic guy and professional.

“He has played lots of matches like this. I didn’t need to explain a lot to him to get the game plan like we did overall. Lamare Bogarde helps us a lot of times in different positions, but today I decided, after analysing everything, to play him [Lindelof].”

Meanwhile, Captain McGinn also reserves his praise for the Swede who joined the Lions late in the last summer transfer window. He shared his view after the game in the interview with TNT Sports, as reported by BBC.

“Victor has been outstanding. He’s been a little bit hard done by since he signed – I don’t think he’s done a foot wrong. The way he fitted in there tonight was outstanding. The manager worked on it a lot. We’ve got versatile players. It suited us well, and it’s the best we’ve played in a while.”

Lindelof’s form in the game

So, how was Lindelof’s performance exactly in that game? The former Manchester United man appeared to have done quite well as a midfielder. He helped Tielemans with more balance defensively.

 Lindelof managed to make three interceptions and two recoveries, which contributed to Tielemans’ focus to dictate the game. The 31-year-old defender also won one duel, had one successful dribbling attempt and made a long ball pass twice as well. He was eventually substituted after 73 minutes by Bogarde.

 Overall, the defender with 75 international caps has just made 24 appearances for Villa and contributed only one assist in all competitions. He could feature again in the remainder of the season, especially in the important games, including the Europa League final on May 20, following his positive display last night.

 

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