da betobet: Frederic Guilbert will play an important part for Aston Villa against Norwich City, as he will likely come directly up against Todd Cantwell.
On the chalkboard
da pinup bet: The Villans have struggled defensively this campaign, conceding 33 goals so far – a number that has only been exceeded by Southampton and Norwich.
This fragility was on full display against the Saints, as the men in claret and blue pretty much handed them their three goals, with two glaring mistakes either side of their shocking organisation when facing a corner.
It is absolutely imperative that they don’t repeat this against the Canaries, and Guilbert could be one man who plays an important role in this, as he comes directly up against Cantwell.
Dealing with the threat
The 21-year-old Norwich man has been a revelation in the Premier League this campaign, amassing five goals and two assists from 15 starts and three substitute appearances so far.
In addition to that, he averages 1.2 key passes and 1.2 dribbles per game, while also being fouled 1.6 times.
This indicates that Guilbert could be in for a tough game, but it is important that he is up to the test, due to the fact that a loss would see their opposition draw level on points with Villa.
The Frenchman has mixed statistics this campaign regarding his defensive work: averaging 3 tackles, 2.2 interceptions and 2.5 clearances, but being dribbled past 1.5 times and giving away 1.4 fouls on average.
He simply must deal with the threat that he is facing in any way he can, and he may not be too concerned about giving fouls away, as there are only four teams that have scored fewer goals from set-pieces than Norwich this campaign.
It is imperative that Villa get a result in this game as they look to get out of the relegation zone, and Guilbert could play an integral part in ensuring that happens.
Red Herring or Real Hero: Only hardcore Villa fans will get all of them right….
In other news, Dean Smith has made an honest admission about Villa’s defensive woes.