Arsenal v Aston Villa Preview: Villa ‘desperate’ to make things right after boos
Steven Gerrard insists that his Villa players are ‘desperate’ to turn around their fortunes ahead of tonight’s crunch clash away at Arsenal.
Villa travel to the Emirates tonight following a 1-0 loss to West Ham, which leaves the side with one win and three losses from the opening four Premier League games.
Gerrard is under pressure following the poor run of results but the head coach says his charges are determined to make it right.
He said: “I’ve got no doubt that the players will be feeling very similar to myself and desperate to turn our recent results around, they’re a good group of boys. They feel it and we’ll do everything we can to support them to put them in the best place ahead of kick-off.
“We’ve got some phenomenal players in terms of creativity and talent. If you think of Buendia, Coutinho, Bailey, Ings and Watkins, they’re all capable. There’s also people behind that in terms of Ramsay and McGinn who have been capable of showing that before.
“We’ve got full-backs who are attacking and adventurous, so the talent is there but what we need to do is get them in the best place and in their best form.
“I think that will certainly help us to change our recent results, I’m very confident and got full belief in the players that the creativity is there, OK, it wasn’t there at the weekend, which can happen. But at the same time if that’s not there and it can’t happen we still need to draw that game because for me it was a minimum draw in terms of our performance and I don’t the reaction has just come from that 90 minutes it’s come from a poor performance at Bournemouth and Crystal Palace which we have to take full responsibility.”
Boos rang around Villa Park after the loss to the Hammers.
Although Gerrard understands where the fans are coming from, he is staying fully focused on the task at hand as he faces the challenge head on.
He added: “I respect it, but I’m certainly not thinking about it right now, my focus is trying to prepare the players in the best possible way we can for this Arsenal game.
“The reaction, if it was at me, I accept it, I will take it full on my shoulders. Listen, this is not the first time I’ve faced a challenge like this, this is not the first time I’ve felt any heat or pressure as a player or in my short managerial reign.
“I fully accept where we are and it’s down to me and I’m responsible to turn these results around. I won’t shy away from anything, I’ll face it and I’ll put my shoulders forward and fight as hard as I can.”
When asked about the challenge of facing Arsenal, who have won all four of their games, Gerrard said: “They’re a team that have grown immensely in the last 12 months, a team that have been through similar periods and tough times. The players and the coaching staff have stuck together and pulled themselves out of those situations, they’ve improved and they’re one of the most dangerous sides in the league. But they’re not unbeatable.
“They’re human beings and records are there to be shook and broken. We’ve got to go and try and prove the outside wrong because I think everyone thinks it’s a forgone conclusion that we’re going to be beat. There’s 90 minutes to play and we’ll prepare the team in the best way we can.”
