Aston Villa had a frustrating afternoon against Brentford on Saturday afternoon, with one key moment singled out as the most irritating part of the fixture at Villa Park.
After fielding a heavily rotated squad against Manchester City on Wednesday evening, it was expected that Aston Villa would approach Brentford full-force in the bid to gain three points.
Unfortunately for Unai Emery’s side, the idea was not executed as the hosts threw away a 2-0 lead over the Bees to take just one point from the fixture that ended 3-3.
Goals from Ollie Watkins and Morgan Rogers made the game seem as though it was out of Brentford’s reach however, a nine-minute rampage from the visitors saw the hosts panic, as the Bees took the lead.
Luckily, Watkins was there to secure a late equaliser to see the game end in a draw, a result that was far from acceptable from a Villa point of view, given their stance in the top-four race and the fact they were ahead at home.
That being said, the failure to contain their lead wasn’t the most frustrating part of the contest, with podcast host Dan Rolinson highlighting what should be the Villans’ primary concern.
Douglas Luiz slammed for his actions in Aston Villa draw with Brentford
Speaking on the Claret and Blue Podcast in reaction to the 3-3 draw, Rolinson dubbed Douglas Luiz’s 97th-minute booking as the “most frustrating” part of the game.
“That is the most frustrating part of today, for Douglas Luiz to almost successfully navigate his yellow suspension tightrope for 96 minutes and get all the way through.”
“It was definitely a yellow card and a foul, no complaints at all from that point and it’s absolutely stupid. But why do it? What’s he doing?”
“He knows he’s messed up big-time, Luiz could have come off when Tielemans did, and that game still would have finished 3-3.”
Not only was Luiz’s challenge both cynical and needless, but the decision to go in for the foul that led to his 10th yellow card of the season will see him miss the next two Premier League games.
Douglas Luiz showed a moment of madness against Brentford
If there’s one player that Emery should be able to rely on in his current midfield, it’s Luiz, who has adapted to the change around him admirably as the Villans continue to navigate injury woes.
That being said, in the past few weeks, the Brazil international has shown a careless approach to tackles, seeing him get booked against Manchester City earlier in the week, and then again on Saturday against Brentford with just seconds remaining.
The card means that Villa will now go to the Emirates to face Arsenal without their famed midfielder, as well as having the £15m Brazilian absent for the challenge the week after against Bournemouth.
It’s a critical time for the 25-year-old to suffer a suspension, as he is aware based on his post-match reaction, with two games coming up that could play a crucial part in Villa’s hopes of securing a top-four finish.
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