Ghana striker Jordan Ayew was hugely instrumental for bottom club Aston Villa as they held leaders Manchester City to a goalless draw in Remi Garde’s first game as manager on Sunday.
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The hosts were being penned in by City as the match passed the hour mark, Villa having lost that early spark which had enabled them to break out of trouble in the first half.
The atmosphere inside Villa Park descended into sheer, vociferous hostility when Fabian Delph came on to replace Toure and certainly set up the chance for a massive headline if the midfielder were to score the victor.
City boss Manuel Pellegrini was left frustrated as a number of opportunities passed his side by in the second half.
“It was a good point for us”, he said in reflecting on his first game in charge.
As expected from a team under new management, Villa began the contest with great vigour and objective, but the first real threat came when City’s Aleksandar Kolarov was released by Sterling on the overlap and his cross flashed across the face of goal.
“You have to be lucky but you have to work hard, luck is not coming knocking on your door and saying “look, I’m here”. Garde is a respected figure in the game from his tenure at Lyon as Manager, Assistant Manager and Academy Director.
His departure upset many Villa fans but Pellegrini hopes – probably in vain – that he avoids a hostile reception on his return. His -decision to quit Villa, barely a week after insisting he would stay, has seen him branded a “snake” and there was also loud hissing whenever the game drifted. The Belgian star will be the focal point of Manchester’s attack in this match, and Villa’s midfield is going to need to be at its very best in order to keep him at bay.
“We think, by the way, the players already get the Living Wage”, joked firebrand left-winger Corbyn, wearing an Arsenal scarf. I know that he wants to play because he was a long time injured.
After a slow start to the game, Kolarov’s effort was shovelled onto the post by an unconvincing Brad Guzan save after the left-back had been played in by Sterling.
Garde said: “It will be a tough mission but this is one point and let’s see what happens”. “I am disappointed about the result, but I have nothing to complain (about) to our team”.
“We will also have the time to win games”.
“We ended up signing 12 players, although there was a lot more players given to the committee than 12, and we ended up with what we ended up with”.
‘I hope that this week he (Sergio Aguero), David Silva, Samir Nasri and Pablo Zabaleta, will work with the physiotherapist and next Monday they will start working with the squad.
“It was a good point for us”, said Garde.
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“I have been in football for more than 30 years in every position”. Via his official Twitter account Grealish expressed his sadness of Sherwood’s dismissal tweeting “Gutted, thank you for everything” with an image of himself and Sherwood embracing a past memory together via a hug.
