‘Loyalty Has To Be Put Aside’ – Aston Villa Boss Unai Emery Criticised By Ex-Striker
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Former Premier League star Dean Ashton believes that Aston Villa boss Unai Emery has to take his share of criticism for the side’s poor run of form due to his loyalty to a certain set of players.
Emery’s team succumbed to their second defeat in a row on Wednesday night in the Premier League, being thrashed at Villa Park 4-1 by Chelsea.
The loss pushed the Villans further behind in the Premier League title race, something that club great Andy Gray felt they were firmly in back in December.
One of the facts that has gone against Emery and his side is their issues with injuries.
They are currently operating on thin ice, particularly in midfield given injuries to key players such as John McGinn, Youri Tielemans and Boubacar Kamara.
Emery has kept faith in many of the same players as he looks to get Villa back to winning ways and Ashton feels for that he can be criticised.
He thinks that when it is clear those on the pitch are struggling, Emery needs to give opportunities to other Aston Villa stars.
“I think there can be criticism [of Emery] just in terms of I think, I was here for the game against Leeds and at some point that loyalty has to be put aside”, Ashton said on talkSPORT (4th March, 21:21).
“And you have to give I think, some of the players that opportunity when you can see that your team is struggling, struggling to create, struggling to give that energy certainly in the middle of the park.
“He didn’t do that.
“He put the same players out again and didn’t work.
“The confidence wasn’t there to take the chances when they came early on.
“And then they were shambolic defensively to allow Chelsea just all the space in the world to operate and score the goals that they did.
“So, yes, of course, the manager has to take a little bit of responsibility for that.”
The players themselves also cannot avoid the criticism, Ashton feels, as they are the ones who have to deliver the goods on the pitch.
“But also, these are top players and you have to be able to not rely just on your manager.
“You have to still go out and deliver a lead, which they have struggled to do.”
Back in September, following a poor start to the season, Emery managed to get a response from his team after dubbing them ‘lazy.
It now remains to be seen whether something similar happens in the coming days.
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