FA Cup Final preview Aston Villa v Arsenal

Two days before Aston Villa's trip to Wembley to face FA Cup holders Arsenal, I checked out the mood in the Bodymoor Heath training camp with manager Tim Sherwood.

Aston Villa 0 - 1 Burnley. Match report May 24th 2015

A goal by wantaway striker Danny Ings provided relegated Burnley with the perfect parting gift and left Aston Villa manager Tim Sherwood with a pre-Cup Final headache.

The 22-year-old, who is out of contract in the summer and looks set to leave the club, headed home from 12 yards out to ensure that the Clarets’ would go back down to the Championship full of pride.

Villa’s second successive defeat was not what boss Sherwood nor the 40,000 home fans wanted a week before the Villans take on Arsenal in the FA Cup final.

“We didn’t show enough imagination today. The boys tried hard enough. We were just lacking a bit of quality,” said a disappointed Sherwood.

Villa started the game positively with the huge crowd singing loudly about their forthcoming trip to Wembley but the buoyant atmosphere changed in the fifth minute when Ashley Barnes headed the ball into the Villa box and Ings was on hand to plant a pinpoint header into the top left corner of the net.

The goal shocked the home team and silenced the fans and as a result the Villa players struggled to find any momentum. The best chance of the first half fell to Ron Vlaar but the big centre back smashed the ball past the left hand post.

Ashley Westwood had two good chances, the first after some good work on the left hand side by Charles N’Zogbia who fed the ball back to the edge of the area but Westwood fired over from 18 yards. Minutes later, the midfielder had a scissor kick attempt tipped over the crossbar by Burnley ‘keeper Tom Heaton.

The second half was poor fayre with Villa dominating the ball but they couldn’t convert possession into chances due to a very well organised and stubborn Burnley defence. The visitors should have doubled their lead following a determined run from Ings which saw him slip the ball in behind the Villa defence for the advancing George Boyd but his close range shot was smothered by stand in ‘keeper Jed Steer.

Christian Benteke and Charles N’Zogbia went close late in the game but Burnley held on to grab a final three points before they drop to the Championship for next season.

After the match, Burnley boss Sean Dyche reflected on a ‘frustrating’ season in which his team had kept 10 clean sheets but failed to convert important goal-scoring opportunities.

“It’s about margins and although we have done well over the season we have not taken the key moments,” he said. “It is frustrating but overall I am very proud of the players and everyone at the club.”

The final table saw Villa finish 17^th, three points clear of relegation and boss Tim Sherwood said he was eager to change what he described as a ‘losing mentality' at the club.

“It [the table] tells no lies. Wherever you finish in the league is where you deserve to finish,” he said. “Our mentality needs to change. This club is used to losing which is not good.”

 

When asked if he would have to lift the players for next weekend’s FA Cup Final after suffering two defeats, Sherwood added: “If we need to lift anyone for an FA Cup final we have serious problems. I don’t anticipate any problems...”

West Bromwich Albion 3-0 Chelsea match report Monday 18th May 2015

Cesc Fabregas saw red in a bizarre sending off as his Chelsea team collapsed to a humiliating defeat by a resurgent West Bromwich Albion.

In perhaps one of the most comedic dismissals of the season, Fabregas booted the ball onto the head of Albion player Chris Brunt from 20 yards away leaving referee Mike Jones with no choice but to send the Spanish World Cup winner off. The bizarre incident happened after a tussle between Gareth McCauley and Diego Costa became heated but just as things looked to have calmed down, Fabregas struck the ball into the crowd of players and Brunt was the unfortunate one to be hit on the back of the head.

After the match, Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho voiced his confusion as to why the red card was awarded. “I would like to see it again as what is this for a sending off. Where is the danger of the situation? Where is the aggresivity?” he said.

The 3- 0 result was Chelsea’s heaviest defeat since March 2012 and Mourinho was honest about his teams’s performance, saying: “the ideal scenario is to be champions and don’t play again. I don’t blame the players. To blame the players is to blame myself as I’m no different from them.”

The match was played at an incredibly high tempo, considering that Chelsea were already champions and the Baggies safe from relegation.

West Brom took the lead  on nine minutes. A rare burst out of defence for Joleon Lescott saw him play the ball to the left where Chris Brunt laid it inside to Saido Berahino who hit a looping, curling effort over a helpless Thibaut Courtious from 20 yards to net his 20^th goal of the season in all competitions.

Fabregas was sent off with half an hour on the clock and the momentum shifted rapidly into the favour of West Brom. Despite seeing most of the ball, the Blues’ couldn’t break down their opponents' 10-man defence.

Barely two minutes into the second half, the home team doubled their advantage from the spot. John Terry wiping out Berahino in the penalty area and the 21 year old coolly stepped up to convert from 12 yards.

The misery of Chelsea was completed on the stroke of an hour with Chris Brunt going from provider for Berahino in the first half to scorer in the second. He played a one-two from the right hand corner flag with substitute Craig Gardner. The northern Irishman then took the ball into the right hand corner of the penalty area before smashing it inside the near post with his left foot, an effort that the Belgian Courtious could do nothing to stop.

In one of the shortest pre-match press conferences of the season, Baggies’ boss Tony Pulis said: “I'm really pleased, it was a great performance and a great result.” The Welshman was also quick to congratulate Chelsea saying: “I don’t think anything should be taken away from the team that we played. They have been by far the best team in the Premier League this year.”

Aston Villa 1 - 0 West Ham United match report Saturday 9th May 2015

Tom Cleverly all but ensured that Aston Villa will be playing Premier League football next season after his finish was enough to see off a blunt West Ham United.

The man on loan from Manchester United poked in from three yards to give his team the three points that theoretically means they will avoid relegation.

His manager Tim Sherwood was full of praise for the 25 year old, saying, “He still shows a lot of energy and determination and leaves nothing on the field. I'd loved to have played with him because I know when he gets the ball he creates chances.”

Cleverly failed to hit the net in 37 matches before scoring three goals in his previous three games. Sherwood added: “I said to him you don’t score goals unless you get in the box. He just needed to add goals to his game.”

With Cleverly becoming a free agent in the summer, Sherwood was asked about his interest in signing him. “We’d like to keep him. I said to him if you don’t sign he’s not playing in the final,” he joked.

It was a must win game for the Villans. With fellow strugglers Sunderland winning earlier in the day it was vital Sherwood's men didn’t get sucked further into the relegation rat race and they set out with a point to prove. With 12 minutes on the clock, Cleverly had the game’s first meaningful effort when his shot from the edge of the area was easily saved by Hammers' goalkeeper Adrian.

The FA Cup finalists got the lead they deserved on half an hour. Man of the match Jack Grealish jinked his way to the byline on the left hand side before squeezing the ball into the box where Cleverly poked home.

The Hammers' felt aggrieved not to have been awarded a penalty in the 38^th minute. A corner from the left was whipped in and Leandro Bacuna heaved down Enner Valenica but referee Lee Mason adjudged that West Ham captain Kevin Nolan had fouled Villa ‘keeper Shay Given.

At half time West Ham boss Sam Allardyce threw on Alex Song and Nene to try and earn something from the game. They enjoyed more possession in the second half but could only muster an offside goal as their best effort. Villa valiantly held out and gave themselves breathing space above the relegation zone with two matches to go.

After the game Allardyce lamented his team's lack of goals. "Our cutting edge has been missing for weeks now. It doesn't matter how many chances we create, we are not scoring them," he said.

Aston Villa 3-2 Everton match report Saturday 2nd May 2015

Christian Benteke netted a brace to earn Aston Villa three vital points in the race for Premier League survival.

The Belgian scored his 11^th goal in nine matches to ensure that his team were one step closer to safety with other teams around them also picking up points. Tom Cleverly netted his second goal in as many matches to make sure the points were safe despite a late Toffees’ comeback.

With Leicester City continuing their survival surge with a win against Newcastle, the Villa players knew they had to produce a top level performance and Tim Sherwood sent his troops out ready to battle from the off.

After a flying start Villa grabbed the opener with 10 minutes gone when Fabien Delph curled in a pinpoint cross from the left which Benteke headed powerfully into the corner leaving Tim Howard rooted to the spot. Everton offered very little in reply with Shay Given back in the Villa goal having an easy afternoon.

On the stroke of half time Villa doubled their lead when a Jack Grealish corner from the left was flicked on at the near post by Ron Vlaar and Benteke was there unmarked at the far post to stab home.

The Toffees’ who despite having nothing to play for in the league at this stage of the season, came out in the second half with a much more positive attitude and in the second minute, Benteke’s fellow countryman Romelu Lukaku went on a surging run which needed the fingertips of Given to tip his 20 yard effort round the post. With 59 minutes on the clock Everton finally got back in the game when a scramble in the Villa box ended with Vlaar bundling over Steven Naismith and Lukaku coolly stroked from the penalty spot.

The goal spurred Roberto Martinez’ men on but any hopes of an equaliser were quickly stubbed out in the 64^th minute when a defence splitting pass by Leandro Bacuna was latched upon by Tom Cleverly who slotted into the near post from the right hand side of the area.

With the game moving into injury time, Phil Jagielka headed home a sloppy consolation goal despite a blatant foul on Given by Seamus Coleman but Villa held out for the win.

After the game, a happy Villa boss Tim Sherwood was full of praise for his players particularly Man of the Match Fabien Delph. ‘To me he is the best midfield player in the country at the moment. I wouldn’t swap him for anyone,’ he said.

With Leicester and Sunderland picking up important wins, Sherwood was keen to point out that the work to stay in the Premier League was far from over.

'It’s a freak season. Who saw Leicester winning five out of six? If we win the games available to us we will be fine but I think we need to win all three. If we don’t do our job we deserve to go down.’

Everton manager Roberto Martinez said he was disappointed after a ‘fantastic’ result last weekend against Manchester United. ‘I did feel in the first half we were second best in everything we did. Aston Villa were the best side in the first half. We were the better side in the second half but we couldn’t get through the problem of giving away a two goal lead. On the basis of our second half performance we deserved something better.’