Aston Villa picked up their first Premier League point of the season, but were left to rue missed chances in their 0-0 draw against Hull City.
After an improved performance against Arsenal, Unai Emery was hoping for better fortunes in what was his 200th game in charge of the Villans.
A positive start saw Nicolas Jackson head wide in the opening couple of minutes, before youngster George Hemmings managed the club’s first shot on target of the season in the first quarter of an hour.
However, the reigning Europa League champions often lacked the imagination to concern the newly promoted Tigers, who looked the most threatening during the first 45 with their collection of long-range efforts.
That was until the start of the second half, which saw Villa spurn two glorious opportunities.
First, some neat interplay between Emi Buendia and Jackson left John McGinn one-on-one with Konstantinos Tzolakis, only for the Scot to blaze his shot too high. Three minutes later, an even better chance fell for Buendia, who couldn’t keep his effort down after being left unmarked inside the penalty area.
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From that point on, it was the hosts looked most likely and who should’ve stolen the points.
Mohamed Belloumi saw a stunning curling effort crash off the crossbar just after the hour mark. Then at the death, Ryan Giles picked out Oli McBurnie inside the penalty area, but the hero from the Championship fluffed his lines when a first Premier League goal for the Tigers looked inevitable.
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While not three wins from three, the stalemate does mean that Hull remain unbeaten, something unfathomable at the start of the campaign. Meanwhile, Villa’s first point is enough for them to climb out of the bottom three.
Emery taking positives from another goalless outing
Despite failing to score for the third successive match, Unai Emery was pleased with what he saw from his Aston Villa side as they continue to regroup after losing several key players.
“I’m positive. The result is not enough but how we planned and how we played and how we created some chances to score, I think we deserved more,” Emery told Sky Sports.
“We avoided mistakes we made before. We avoided transitions. Through our positioning and keeping possession we tried to dominate and then in the end we had the chances to win.
“Of course they are very excited in front of their home supporters. They had some chances, but overall in 90 minutes, I can feel comfortable with how we are progressing.”
Despite the positivity, the Spaniard admitted there was no avoiding that his side needed to be more clinical in the final third moving forward.
“We weren’t clinical. We had four very good chances to score and of course if we do the match can change. When you don’t you have to be careful defensively of the transition.”
Hull’s incredible start continues to blow Jakirovic away
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While many tipped them to be the favourites for relegation, Hull’s incredible start to the season continued to be the story of the third weekend of the new Premier League campaign. Even boss Sergej Jakirovic couldn’t hide the fact that he would’ve jumped at the chance to take seven points away from his first nine.
“Amazing. If somebody offered this to me at the start of the season I would sign it immediately,” Jakirovic said post-match.
“Especially with who we were against. This is a great example for us that we have to continue like this as it shows us that we can compete at this level.”
He also has high hopes for his Deadline Day arrivals, who feature in different capacities at the MKM Stadium.
Sorba Thomas and Brooke Norton-Cuffy made their debuts off the bench following their deadline day arrivals, while Robinio Vaz and Christos Mouzakitis remained on the bench. Tim Iroegbunam and Ilyas Ansah were not part of the squad, but were also signed on the final day of the window.
“They are very high potential players,” Jakirovic added.
“They need time. Okay, Sorba came from Stoke with pre-season, but some players they didn’t have a pre-season. This is right now a problem.”
200 up for Emery, but a brand new challenge dawns – or is it?
Unai Emery reached 200 games in charge of Aston Villa
Analysis from Sky Sports’ Callum Bishop:
“One point from three games. Zero goals and just one shot on target. Key names like Morgan Rogers, Youri Tielemans and Ollie Watkins gone. Some might say this is a new mountain for Unai Emery to climb as Aston Villa boss. And what a mountain.
“Let’s not forget last season though. It took Villa five games to get off the mark in terms of goals in the league. They didn’t win a game until the end of September. By Christmas, there were suggestions they were even in a title fight.
“That’s how quickly fortunes and perceptions can change in the Premier League, and Emery has shown he knows just how to overcome this very obstacle. If he couldn’t he wouldn’t have been celebrating his 200th game in charge of Aston Villa tonight.
“Is that to say that a similar turnaround is coming. No. He did still have Premier League proven talent to help him turn things around in attack. The signing of Ibrahim Mbaye is exciting. George Hemmings has potential. Nicolas Jackson brings energy. But you’d probably back none of them to be more clinical than Watkins inside the 18-yard-box.
“But Emery has time and again found a way. He even said post-match that this is the position he found himself in last season. He’s reminded his players of that. So, while the table looks bleak and the lack of goals is a talking point, refrain from jumping to conclusions. Villa’s boss is playing the cards he’s been dealt and as Jamie Carragher and Thierry Henry have already argued, there’s few better at doing so.”
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