Eight games without a win in the Premier League, two of their best players likely to leave at the end of their contracts in the summer (Ron Vlaar & Fabian Delph), and assistant manager Roy Keane recently resigning from his post gives little for Aston Villa to shout about currently.
But the Villans supporters should be confident of an upturn in form as the Christmas period has been kind to them when looking at their winter opponents – Crystal Palace (away), Leicester City (home), West Bromwich Albion (away), Swansea City (away), Sunderland (home), Crystal Palace (home) and Leicester City (away) as seven of their next eight league games between December and the middle of January.
Coupled with the return of striker Christian Benteke, who has served his suspension after getting sent off in the 2-1 defeat against Tottenham Hotspur last month, Ron Vlaar (calf), Philippe Senderos (calf) and Fabian Delph (shoulder), who are also expected to return in the coming weeks from respective injuries, Aston Villa have a lot to shout about.
After ending their run of straight league defeats, the Midlands outfit have drawn three games on the bounce to West Ham United, Southampton and Burnley. Performances have been a considerable improvement, but poor finishing has been to blame for them not turning the draws into wins.
As a result, Christian Benteke’s return could well be crucial for their run of somewhat favourable fixtures in the winter period to finally climb up the table. His influence should never be understated. Let alone scoring 19 league goals in his debut season and 10 goals in an injury-hit second campaign, Villa have a win percentage of 30%, compared to the 12% win ratio in Benteke’s absence over the previous two seasons.
“In my own opinion, when he’s on his game I think he’s one of the best in Europe, let alone in Britain. I’ve seen some brilliant strikers in my time and, when that guy’s on his game, he’s certainly up there. So that’s a massive boost to us. He’s a top player and if he keeps progressing the way he’s going then we’ll see where his career goes,” said Aston Villa manager Paul Lambert.
Aston Villa will be getting back their best squad back during their run of fixtures which will see confidence rise game after game. The Claret and Blues have also been performing well of late too, so they will be confident of ending their eight-game wait for a win. But could they now push on and climb up the table?
