Liverpool missed out on the opportunity to move ten points clear at the top of the Premier League table on Wednesday night as they failed to claim all three points against Aston Villa.
Arne Slot’s side were held to a 2-2 draw by the Villans on their trip to Birmingham, and now sit eight points ahead of Arsenal in second place – having played a game more.
The Merseyside giants did, however, have an almost perfect chance to wrap up the win late on when Dominik Szoboszlai put a cross on a plate for Darwin Nunez…
As you can see in the clip above, the former Benfica star blazed his effort well over the bar under a bit of pressure from Axel Disasi, and it went down as a 0.76 xG chance.
It was, therefore, harder to miss than score for Nunez and his failure in front of goal meant that the Reds walked away with just one point instead of three on the night.
The Uruguay international, who came off the bench in the second half, was not the only player to let Arne Slot down, though, as Liverpool’s starting XI allowed Villa’s midfield to run riot at times.
Aston Villa's midfield maestros
Firstly, Youri Tielemans ran the show in the middle of the park for Unai Emery with his technically brilliant and defensively tenacious performance.
The Belgian international, who joined Villa on a free transfer from Leicester City in the summer of 2023, won eight of his 11 duels in the game, making five tackles and one interception in total. This shows that he was dominant in his physical battles to prevent Liverpool from building more attacks.
Tielemans, who completed 84% of his attempted passes, also got his name on the scoresheet with a well-controlled hit to take advantage of Szoboszlai’s weak header out, making it 1-1.
He, therefore, offered security and quality in possession whilst also being a physical force off the ball to consistently win his personal duels to keep Villa on top at points in the match.
Tielemans was not the only Aston Villa midfielder who starred on the night, though, as Morgan Rogers also caught the eye with an impressive showing.
Minutes
90
Dribbles completed
4/7
Duels won
6/11
Blocks
1
Dribbled past
0x
As you can see in the table above, the England international offered a combative and progressive presence on the right side of the midfield, although he often drifted into central areas to beat Liverpool defenders with the ball at his feet.
Both Tielemans and Rogers won the majority of their duels with Reds players, without being taken out of the game very often, and that helped the home side to pin them back at times.
The two Villa stars in midfield simply outclassed Liverpool and one player in particular, Ryan Gravenberch, let Slot down with his sub-par performance on the night.
Ryan Gravenberch's performance against Aston Villa
The Dutch metronome looked a yard short of the pace in this game and he allowed Tielemans and Rogers, among others, to get the better of him far too easily.
Performance in Numbers
Gravenberch was awarded a player rating of 4/10 by the Express, the lowest in the starting line-up, and that is a fair assessment when you consider his struggles in and out of possession.
Instead of providing his usual elegance on the ball, the Netherlands international failed with both of his attempted dribbles as the Villa midfield stopped him from charging forward to set up Liverpool attacks.
Gravenberch lost six of his seven ground duels in total and was dribbled past three times in total without making a single tackle to win the ball back for his side, which shows that Emery’s midfielders – and Disasi on one occasion – found it far too easy to get past him.
Minutes played
90
90
90
Dribbles completed
2/3
0/2
4/7
Duels won
8/11
2/8
6/11
Dribbled past
1x
3x
0x
The former Bayern Munich man, who made one interception in total, therefore, let Slot down with his lack of quality on the ball and his sloppy work from a defensive perspective.
Why Gravenberch's performance was disappointing
The Liverpool star’s performance against Aston Villa on Wednesday night was particularly disappointing because it was such a departure from what the supporters have become used to seeing from him in the middle of the park.
After having a bit-part role under Jurgen Klopp last season, starting just 12 Premier League games, he has been a regular starter under Slot with 26 starts in the top-flight this term.
The chart above illustrates how well rounded his performances have been for the Reds in the league, as he ranks incredibly highly among his positional peers in a host of key midfield metrics.
He is a holding midfield player who can mix with the best of them defensively whilst also being incredibly progressive with his use of the ball, but that was not on display against Villa this week.
Duel success rate
57%
25%
Dribble success rate
59%
0%
Tackles won
1.8
0
Interceptions
1.7
1
Dribbled past
0.7x
3x
As you can see in the table above, Gravenberch was miles off it compared to the standard he has set of himself in the Premier League this season.
It was a performance below his usual self and one that Slot will be hoping does not become a regular occurrence in the second half of the season as Liverpool look to win the Premier League title.
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Gravenberch will know that he was not at his best against the Villans, as he was outclassed by Tielemans and Rogers, but he has a chance to put it right with an improved showing against Manchester City on Sunday.