Aston Villa Season Review
Final Table Position: 17th
Points: 38
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2014-2015 Summary
After a very rough start to the 2014-15 season, Aston Villa found themselves in the bottom three once again after just two wins in their first 21 matches. They were in a relegation battle for the fifth straight season and it was becoming more and more painful to watch them struggle. Christian Benteke was obviously hurt for a big part of the start of the season but there weren’t really many other excuses for Paul Lambert and Aston Villa decided to part ways in February. Here came in Tim Sherwood. Sherwood sparked some life into Aston Villa and was able to get Benteke up to top form as the striker finished the season with 13 goals in 29 matches, most of which came under Sherwood.
The offseason is already here and Villa are not afraid to make bold moves. They’ve already trimmed the fat around the club, getting rid of unhappy Ron Vlaar and out of favor Darren Bent on top of a number of other players. There hasn’t been an influx of players yet, but Sherwood is reportedly working on it. Villa are interested in Andros Townsend, who could provide them with the spark they need, but they’ll ask also need to find replacement for some of the players leaving. We’ll take a more in depth look further down.
Fantasy Results
There is little to be said here about Aston Villa fantasy values. Christian Benteke was spectacular in the second half of the season and will be a popular, albeit risky, pick next season, but outside of him there is a lot of mediocrity.
Jack Grealish – Grealish made a name for himself late in the season as well and had some fine games. He is a creative player who can stack up phantom points in a variety of ways and can be useful next season in formats that reward fouls won, crosses, and so on.
Jores Okore – Okore is another youngster who impressed at Villa this season but he isn’t really a fantasy force at this point in time. Villa don’t earn enough clean sheets for their defenders to be elite and Okore is bound to rely on phantom points, where he is fairly mediocre. There isn’t that much value here.
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Summer Priorities
This is an extremely long list. I’ll be brief.
Goalkeeper – Sherwood wasn’t impressed with Brad Guzan and benched him in favor of Shay Given, yes, Shay Given. Guzan made a horrible mistake against Manchester City and hasn’t looked like himself as of late. Villa will be looking to upgrade.
Striker – Christian Benteke is very likely not going to be in Birmingham next year. There is no one else there capable of leading the line outside of injury prone Libor Kozak, who hasn’t played in over a year. Should be priority number one.
Creative Attacking Midfielder – Grealish is developing well but Villa really need some creativity. Gabby Agbonlahor is a good supporting forward, but a playmaker who can create with the ball at his feet is needed next to Fabian Delph.
Wing-backs – both sides could use help. There is really no one nailed down as a certain starter going into next season and Tim Sherwood will be looking to upgrade the position. Leandro Bacuna is an interesting prospect that has really impressed but seems to be a better fit in a more attacking role, so it will be interesting to see what Tim Sherwood does with that.
Things to Look for Next Season
Can Aston Villa’s defense improve again without Ron Vlaar? The defense improved this season even though Vlaar was absent for a big part of it and a big reason for that is the development of Ciaran Clark and Jores Okore. Clark was the team’s best defender before missing the last seven matches due to injury and Okore has improved well for a 22 year old who missed a season due to injury. Aston Villa can really build around these two players on defense and they have the ability to cover ground for attack-minded wing-backs. An attack-minded wing back would be a great addition for Villa but it will be interesting to see how much they can afford to spend with all the holes in their squad.
The next thing to keep an eye on will be Tim Sherwood. The manager provides entertaining at all times and should have a camera dedicated to following him on the sidelines. Whether it’s post-match interviews, a 5th minute goal celebration, or a 62nd minute reaction to a referee decision, Sherwood is bound to entertain. More importantly though, there will be many people watching and scrutinizing his every decision. He isn’t exactly a favorite of the media and if Villa struggle early on, Sherwood’s name will be the first to be blamed. Can he keep Villa from relegation again and can he improve the team to a top 10 finish?
