World Cup scouting report

QoS was at Craven Cottage last Saturday to see Aston Villa beat Fulham 2-0. Villa have a number of players who harbour hopes of making the trip to South Africa this summer. On the home side, there have been recent calls for striker Bobby Zamora to get a cap. What are their chances?

James Milner

At the time, the youngest ever Premier League player, he made his début at 16 for Leeds Utd. Unlike his contemporary, Wayne Rooney, who seemed to hit the scene fully formed, it has been a gradual ‘learning curve’ for Milner: a couple of years at Leeds, an in-and-out four years at Newcastle (including a good loan period at Villa) and a big money transfer to Villa in 2008, which looked like bad business for a time. Now, at 24, he has arguably become Martin O’Neill’s MVP. Nominally a wide man, he was played in centre midfield in this match, a testament to his versatility. Operating in tandem with the Bulgarian Petrov, he was probably the best player on the pitch in the first half – lung bursting runs and some neat touches making up for a slight lack of positional savvy and the occasional slip in possession. Somewhat like Steve McManaman (less talented, more committed), he is blessed with running power across the board – the acceleration and sprinting speed to beat and get clear of players, and a formidable cross-country runner’s engine to be an offensive threat and a defensive aid throughout the ninety minutes. And, a rarity in the English game, he can use both feet. Faded in the second half, he still lacks a bit of muscle to play centre-mid for the national team and his goals-to-game ratio is also poor.

Ashley Young

Has been an instant success since moving from Watford in 2007, averaging a goal every five games and, just as importantly, plenty of assists. Probably second choice to Aaron Lennon on the right or possibly Steven Gerrard on the left for England. Usually deployed on the left wing at Villa, where he can cut in to good effect onto his stronger right foot, he has been moved to the right recently with Downing recovered from injury. He was fairly quiet throughout the game, mainly due to a lack of service – such is the way of things sometimes for wingers. Swapped wings with Downing a few times during the game, and looked more dangerous on the left side.   

Stewart Downing

Similarly to (and in partial competition with) Young, probably the number two for the national left wing position after Steven Gerrard (this looks like a misfit that’s here to stay), with Joe Cole having been sidelined for so long and currently scratching around for form. Downing is an old-fashioned sort of player, his game is wonderfully simple – keeps his position on the wing to give the team width and runs the defender on the outside when receiving the ball to whip in a cross. On the limited occasions he was able to do this in this game, he was a threat. Whilst not blisteringly fast, he is quick, quicker than Joe Cole, and being naturally left-footed, only needs to make half a yard to deliver the ball. His weaknesses are that he doesn’t demand the ball enough and he can be somewhat rigid and lacking in intuition – he doesn’t take enough risks in putting himself into likely dangerous areas in the box, as his appalling scoring record would testify.

Gabriel Agbonlahor

The man with one of the most unwieldy surnames in the game (there must be a decent anagram in there somewhere...) is certainly not one for the purists but he’s undoubtedly fast and strong and boasts a decent scoring record. After an ineffectual forty minutes he scored both of Villa’s goals in the space of five minutes, each displaying classic centre forward’s opportunism, the first a headed effort, which the Fulham ‘keeper Schwarzer should have kept out and the second a well-placed left-footed strike from inside the area, after having rolled the lanky Hangeland far too easily. Lack of service in the second period gave him no chance to impress further.

Emile Heskey

Under the aegis of the religiously intense Martin O’Neill seems to be where the rather passive Heskey feels most comfortable. On the last stretch of a good career, he has been overtaken by Carlton Cole for one in the England reckoning and on this evidence he hasn’t got much chance of making the trip; a few flick-on headers aside, he contributed next to nothing to the Villa attack.

Bobby Zamora

A curate’s egg of a player; at times the unreconstructed Sunday league hacker, misplacing simple 10-yard passes, at others a sharp and menacing presence, making shallow runs off the last defender – he kept the muscular Villa centre-back pairing of Dunne and Collins on their guard all game. Realistically, he’ll be unlikely to displace Crouch / Cole as the first-change option (if Rooney and Defoe are taken as the starters), but he might be worth taking for a maverick ‘Z’ factor – he’ll have to go some in the last dozen league games to be in with a shout though.

Summary:

On the plane:  Milner, Downing, Young

Departure Lounge:  Agbonlahor

Terminal: Zamora

Blackpool: Heskey