Aston Villa addressed a five-game streak without a win to beat fellow strugglers Norwich City 1-0. It means the Villans are now just one point off escaping the relegation zone and it leaves Boxing Day’s visitors starting to be cut adrift at the foot of the table. Securing the win was vital, and one of the unsung heroes of their performance against the Canaries was Kortney Hause.
The 24-year-old was making just his third start in the Premier League this season but played a crucial role in ensuring the visitors did not penetrate Dean Smith’s defence. No other player made anything like the same number of defensive contributions as Hause, who prevented the opposition from scoring by blocking Norwich City shots on three separate occasions. Furthermore, the Englishman made a colossal nine clearances to get rid of any looming opposition danger, highlighting the defender’s ability to sniff out and deal with trouble. The rest of his teammates combined only made one more clearance than Hause throughout the fixture.
His defensive contribution did not stop there though. The Villa centre back made a team-high five tackles to turn over possession and prevent the Canaries from creating dangerous scenario’s. To round off an excellent defensive display the 24-year-old also displayed great positional awareness to make an interception, of which only Trezuget made more for Aston Villa.
Once in possession Hause was assured and reliable, making 39 passes, the third-highest of any player in claret and blue. Though his accuracy may come into question as he has the third-lowest pass success rate of just 61.5 per cent. His low pass completion may be due to the fact that he attempted so many long passes, 11, of which only goalkeeper Tom Heaton tried more. Those long passes were high risk and mostly inaccurate with only three making their intended target, though that was the second-highest of any Villa player.
Overall it was a highly influential performance from the young centre back, and his dominant display in the backline ensured Aston Villa got the result they needed to end their slide and go within a point of safety.
