Eck settling Villa's turbulent twelve months

Eck's shining light of stability 

Aston Villa's 3-2 home over Norwich City's ended a two successive defeat downturn and put the team into a respectable eighth place.

Only the usual suspects with bigger resources are outperforming Villa, Newcastle aside.

Alex McLeish isn't yet winning over the fans with his workmanlike style of football, nevertheless the club are much more stable than twelve months ago. In the wake of Martin O'Neill's shock departure on the eve of last season, the board scratched around to appoint the wholly inappropriate Gerard Houllier after a disastrous dalliance with Kevin MacDonald.

McLeish was always going to find resistance from the naysayers in arriving from the rabble at Small Heath, but I can't help but admire his Carling Cup win, particularly with the team he had and its startling lack of firepower and history of achievement. Yes, Blues were relegated at the end of the season but I think that had everything to do with the physical excesses of the Cup run.

What McLeish does do well is encourage players to grow in stature and confidence. Warnock and Petrov are beneficiaries of the new regime even if Ireland continues to annoy the faithful with his lacklustre shows.

But the fast-maturing Gabriel Agbonlahor's stepped upto the plate to become a senior player of real influence and quality at Villa Park. Working on his game rather than weight-training's helped plug the void left by the departed Ashley Young and Stewart Downing.

Agbonlahor and Bent developing a partnership

And increasing that work rate and goals is invigorating the strike partnership with Darren Bent. The £24m hit man, bought in the January transfer window has now scored 46 times since the start of the 09/10 season: no one, not Rooney or Drogba can match that.

It's important to remember what a proven striker we have and but for his checkered Tottenham career, Bent may have been playing for another top four team now, instead of arriving at Villa via Sunderland.

In defence, Villa have capability, talent and experience but lack confidence. But as results improve, so will form and as the season develops, so will fitness. There's nothing wrong with the reputation and commitment of players like Dunne, Collins, Warnock and great new keeper, Shay Given. Fans are calling for Collins to be dropped, but his early season progress has been hampered by injury.

The only legacy of the Houllier period was his commitment to youth. So many players staked their claim to the first team - and for one reason or another, they've slipped out of the reckoning. But Chris Herd is one player who's not only showing what a fine prospect he is, he's also creating competition at the back: so key to a developing squad.

I take Villa to continue improving and for Alex McLeish to look back at his first season in charge at Villa Park to finish higher than last season's stunted ninth place.

Time for Villa to play Ashley Young as a striker

Ashley Young's realising his potential as a senior player. His first international goal in Denmark and a burgeoning partnership with Darren Bent (for both Villa and England), point to a man rejuvenated and focused on his game.

After two wilderness years at Villa Park, frustrated by Martin O'Neill's complicated tactics and often played out of position, Young's being allowed to express himself, behind the front man as a striker.

Anyone who watched Villa in the last months of O'Neill's tenure would've seen a patient, but frustrated Ash forced to swap wings mid-game. The Irishman gesticulated and jumped around on the touchline kicking every ball, disrupting Ash's flow.

Now Young, who only played as a striker at Watford before winging it at Villa says, “I’m really enjoying playing in the middle. Playing just behind that main striker you can get yourself in the box more and have more shots.

“I did that and I got the rewards, scoring my first goal for England. I would be delighted to play there. As a kid I was a striker. Ian Wright was my idol. He was a proper striker.
 

WONDERFUL COPENHAGEN! Ash's quickfire finish for a 1st international goal in Denmark

‘‘I’ve loved every minute of playing in the hole. It gives me more freedom to go and get the ball and to join in more. Hopefully, I will continue to keep playing there.” Ash's migration from striker to wing is the pole opposite to the progression that took Thierry Henry from unrealised talent to world beater at Arsenal.



And Gerard Houllier should take a leaf out of his mate Arsene Wenger's book and unlock the potential in Young. The boy's a born striker.

And if Villa's latest boss did that, he'd unlock more than just Young's ability on the field.

I was fortunate enough to spend time with the Villa squad in Spain during the club's victorious Peace Cup campaign in 2009. I was struck by Young's infectious personality. When he loves his football, he's a really positive force around the squad.

A new manager at Villa, the arrival of Darren Bent at both club and international level, and a renewed opportunity to play high-profile games in the forward position he knows and loves.

Everything has come together to produce the perfect storm for Ash. Let's hope Houllier completes the circle by playing him "in the hole".

Bent buy backs Houllier, belittles O'Neill

Five months after Martin O'Neill quit Aston Villa on the eve of the season, jilted ex-boss Randy Lerner's issued him with an almighty £18m swipe by signing Darren Bent.

Inspector Clueless: but Houll have the last laugh?

Villa's owner has shown just what he thinks of O'Neill sensationally walking out five days to the start of the campaign. Whether witting or unwitting, Randy's demonstrated how he takes no prisoners in business.

While backing Gerard Houllier to the hilt this transfer window, O'Neill, known to be a fan of Bent, quit alleging a lack of funds.

Some in the media suggest the Villa board have made a huge financial plunge against their instincts. Staring an unexpected relegation battle in the face, they see Bent's arrival as an act of desperation.

I don't see it like that. Randy and Chief Executive Paul Faulkner get top marks for the additions they've made to the squad this transfer window.

Villa's frantic but crafty dealings show how fractious and dysfunctional the relationship between boardroom and manager's office had become - and sheds light on the near malicious departure date O'Neill elected to make. He left scant chance for Villa to sign anyone after his departure. The team dropped like a stone.

Though Houllier's first four months have been hair-raising for Villa's faithful, The Frenchman's been brave enough to blood youngsters by the half-dozen - adding to the squad very successfully in the window.



Bent: Darren's a model

Marc Albrighton, Ciaran Clark, Barry Bannan and Chris Herd are forging first-team berths as Houllier assembles a squad of depth and experience. That's a first at Villa for over a decade.

Kyle Walker's been very impressive since his loan arrival from Tottenham, while Lyon's Jean Il Makoun is a player of Chelsea or Manchester United calibre.

Now Darren Bent's arrived from Sunderland in a sensational record breaking £18m transfer, rising to £24m.

Thoughts of going down are eradicated in an instant. The season's not over until May and Villa have one of English football's proven goal poachers to call on. The prospect of partnerships with Ashley Young, Gabriel Agbonlahor - even Emile Heskey, set Holte Enders drooling.

Avram Grant: West Ham history sooner or later

So as Avram Grant's issued a stay of execution at West Ham, just how can mute O'Neill feel? Silenced by the terms of his severance at Villa, he can't even comment on the fact that Mr. Lerner had huge reserves all along.

Tainted O'Neill is outed as a man that football's ruling class can't work with, while life carries on as normal at Villa Park.

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Wikipedia: panic buying defined as Villa signing Darren Bent!

Oh no! Someone's been at the whisky, I mean wiki cabinet again.

Panic buying is defined on Wikipedia is an imprecise term for acquiring an unusually large amount or paying multiples of value for goods or services in response to a crisis.

It appears Aston Villa's purchase of Darren Bent is the latest example of panic buying, according to the world's leading Internet encyclopedia!

Let's hope it's removed from their pages as mere poppycock and folly before midnight.

Darren Bent: a panic buy? shurely shome mishtake!