Analysis: Fringe men to the fore to earn Aston Villa vital win

Ross Barkley and Ian Maatsen, both of whom were also celebrating becoming fathers in the days leading up to the match, have been handed just five Premier League starts between them since joining Villa last summer.

Yet on Saturday, on a largely laborious afternoon against struggling Leicester, their respective interventions were crucial, delivering a timely reminder to boss Unai Emery of their abilities.

Barkley got the ball rolling when he thumped home from 20 yards out to break the deadlock and then, after Stephy Mavididi had levelled for the Foxes, it was Maatsen who ensured this would not be another tale of frustration as he pounced on a loose pass and set up Leon Bailey to bag the winner, just seconds after being introduced off the bench.

It is perfectly possible that without Maatsen’s actions Villa would have been left to rue more dropped points at home just five days after blowing a lead late to draw 2-2 with Brighton. For much of the 90 minutes they struggled to penetrate a Leicester team who arrived with the Premier League’s joint-worst defensive record. The absence of both Jhon Duran and Morgan Rogers, missing through suspension, loomed large. Neither was the outlook helped by an injury to John McGinn to another hamstring injury.

Yet by the finish they were left to celebrate a victory which kept them within three points of the fifth-place position which, comes the season’s end, will in all probability carry the prize of Champions League football. Admittedly, this might not have been a performance sufficient to beat most teams in the division but for all their flaws, Villa remain very much in the hunt and both Duran and Rogers should be available for the next Premier League match, away at Everton.

Barkley and Maatsen, in the meantime, served a reminder of the quality which exists elsewhere in Emery’s squad.

Of the pair, Barkley has so far made the greater impact on Villa’s season with Saturday’s goal his third in the Premier League. The midfielder also bagged the winner in last month’s Champions League tie at RB Leipzig.

Yet across all competitions, Saturday was just Barkley’s fourth start as he has been forced to play largely second fiddle to Youri Tielemans, Amadou Onana and the excellent Boubacar Kamara, who has rapidly reaffirmed his position as one of Villa’s most important players since returning from long-term injury. 

Barkley’s goal was the first moment of real quality in a match which to that point had been sorely lacking it and demonstrated superb technique. Pouncing on a loose clearance by Jannick Vestergaard, the 31-year-old brought the ball under control with his chest before in the next movement drilling a low, powerful drive inside the post.

Maatsen’s cameo, some 18 minutes later after Villa had served up the latest infuriating gift to help their visitors draw level, felt even more important from an individual perspective. 

At £37.5million, the Netherlands international ranks as Villa’s fourth most expensive signing ever and he might reasonably have expected to start more than twice in the Premier League by now. His opportunities have been limited, largely, by the excellent form of Lucas Digne at left-back but with the latter having failed to make much headway against the Foxes he was introduced to immediate effect.

Maatsen is among the few players in Villa’s squad to possess genuine pace and he almost seemed to catch the visitors napping, jumping ahead of Jordan Ayew to intercept James Justin’s pass and then holding off the challenge of the latter before driving in a low cross for Leon Bailey to sweep home and restore the home side’s advantage.

It was a moment Bailey had been seeking for some time. The follow-up to the best season of the Jamaica international’s career has not gone quite as planned. Scorer of 10 Premier League goals last year, he was yet to find the net in 23 appearances this term before converting Maatsen’s cross. 

The change in his demeanour was almost instant and minutes later he came close to grabbing a second with a powerful drive to which goalkeeper Jakub Stolarczyk just might have got the faintest touch to send it crashing into the bar. 

Much as introducing Maatsen might have been hailed an Emery masterstroke, the decision to keep Bailey on was also worthy of praise on an afternoon when, prior to the goal, little seemed to be going the winger’s way.

That continued to be the case for Ollie Watkins, who capped off one his quietest performances in a Villa shirt by blazing over from just five yards out with the goal at his mercy moments after Bailey had hit the bar. 

Watkins also played an unwanted hand in Leicester’s equaliser, selling Tyrone Mings woefully short with a pass which allowed Jordan Ayew to scamper down the wing. Emi Martinez did superbly to deny Jamie Vardy at close range but the ball fell to Mavididi, who was able to squeeze a shot under the despairing dive of Matty Cash.

Maatsen’s alertness and a smart finish from Bailey ensured it did not become the afternoon’s lasting image. If Villa are to sustain a push for the top-five they will have to get better but for all their inconsistencies, they remain a long way from being counted out.