Carlo Ancelotti’s reputation at Milan was built on two Champions League successes, but he took the Serie A title just once during his eight years in charge. A multitude of managers will envy him that record and it may well have been expertise on the European scene that made him the ideal candidate for Chelsea. All the same, he has to thrive in the Premier League as well if he wishes for a long stay in England.
Nothing terrible has befallen him yet. A second consecutive away defeat on the domestic front is a feeble sort of crisis since the new leaders Manchester United are merely a point clear of Chelsea. In contrast to the 3-1 loss at Wigan, Ancelotti’s side produced some excellent football. “They don’t get the credit they deserve,” said the admiring Villa manager Martin O’Neill afterwards.
He was in a position to applaud the losers because his own line-up had made such a good impression. It is Villa, for instance, who have the best defensive record in the Premier League at present. When they fell behind on Saturday it was to an individual mistake by Brad Friedel, who misread the bounce on a long-range attempt by Didier Drogba and let the ball go over his shoulder.
Thereafter, the rhythm and purpose of Chelsea’s play approach work still did not wreak sufficient havoc. The clearest opportunity to tie the score at 2-2 was Nicolas Anelka’s, but he fired straight at Friedel after breaking through in the 74th minute. Villa ought to have had a third goal before that, when John Carew misconnected after build-up from Ashley Young and the impressive James Milner. Early in the match, too, the referee Kevin Friend, deputising after Steve Bennett had taken ill, might have given a penalty for a challenge on Gabriel Agbonlahor.
There is a habit of talking as if the customary top four are permanent residents of the upper storeys, but it is not only Manchester City who question that. O’Neill had a saddening setback in the effort to smash that cartel last season. Villa stood fourth when the then captain Martin Laursen picked up another of his many knee injuries in January and had to retire.
When O’Neill speaks of losing the centre-back, you can sense him having a flashback to the dismay. “I didn’t expect that when Laursen played against West Bromwich Albion it would be his last game,” he said. Villa went on to finish sixth. There is no certainty of improving on that, bearing in mind Manchester City’s signing spree, but O’Neill has regrouped.
Although Stephen Warnock did not lay on either of Aston Villa’s goal, he was a constant thorn in Chelsea’s side, while Ashley Cole struggled to get forward
Carlos Cuéllar is the one survivor from the old back four and is now settled on the right. Richard Dunne, James Collins and Stephen Warnock are the new additions. All of them were confident and unwavering against Chelsea. Considering that Dunne and Collins scored Villa’s goals, the impact of the defenders had been decisive.
O’Neill praised them all, but seemed to feel Collins was in particular need of recognition, hailing him as “a really good player, comfortable with the ball”. Chelsea found many avenues blocked, with the Villa captain Stiliyan Petrov a daunting barrier in the centre. The visitors’ 4-3-1-2 system meant that the full-backs had to provide most of the width and Villa kept them at bay, particularly by having five men across the midfield in the second half.
While Deco showed a lot of talent behind the two Chelsea strikers, Drogba and Anelka, it often seemed that there was no space left for Frank Lampard to come through and shoot from the fringes of the area. Chelsea have got into the habit of depending on him and it is a blow that he has just one goal to his name for the club in this campaign.
There are other worries for Ancelotti. Ricardo Carvalho, for instance, had been one of the best centre-backs in the world, but looks diminished and is yet to show that he has got over last season, when he ceased to be an automatic choice. He lost his place to Alex then and may risk suffering that fate again. Ancelotti, though, is too shrewd to speak of crises and preferred to stress the impressive factors of the display while calling for better concentration at set-pieces.
Every member of the Chelsea side had played for their national teams at some point in the week before the match at Villa, but they had looked sharp at the outset. The equaliser for Villa’s team was odd, with Ashley Young’s corner coming off the head of Lampard so that Dunne could nod home from close range in the 32nd minute.
Any discussion of set-pieces at the interval must have been ineffective. The goalkeeer Petr Cech was so unsure of himself as another Young corner flew in after 52 minutes that he must have been a distraction to his team-mates. Carvalho’s concentration lapsed and Collins headed into the net.
This result, all the same, is not simply evidence of Chelsea flaws. Villa, having won this fixture and defeated Liverpool at Anfield, can make an impact in the League if they achieve consistency.
Premier LeagueAston VillaChelseaCarlo AncelottiMartin O’NeillKevin McCarraguardian.co.uk
