Express & Star

Monday analysis: Aston Villa unbeaten but yet to convince after blowing their chance to make a statement

Villa returned from Suffolk on Saturday evening having dropped their first points of the season and squandered a big chance to deliver a statement.

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The 1-1 draw at Ipswich, taken in the larger scheme of things, was far from a major setback.

Steve Bruce’s team might have failed to record the club’s best start to a league campaign since 1962, yet a haul of seven points from the first three matches is still one which would have been more than welcomed if offered prior to the opening encounter Hull a fortnight ago.

By the same token, Villa’s first draw of the season had the unmistakable feel of a first defeat, such were the circumstances in which they failed to collect a third victory.

Failing to win after scoring first is a rare experience for Villa. This was only the third occasion since April last year.

But having wasted the advantage provided by Jonathan Kodjia’s opener, after a mistake by goalkeeper Orjan Nyland allowed Ipswich to equalise, Villa were then presented with a golden opportunity to regain the initiative and kick on to an emphatic victory when the hosts had Tayo Edun sent off in just the 39th minute.

That they failed to grasp it was frustrating enough. Far more concerning is the fact they rarely looked like doing so during a second-half display desperately short on inspiration.

It wasn’t until stoppage time home keeper Bartosz Bialkowski was called into serious action, pushing a shot from Conor Hourihane round the post.

A goal so late would have been harsh on Ipswich and provided Villa - not for the first time in recent weeks - with a result to mask another distinctly average performance.

Though the early-season table might show Bruce’s men in among the pacesetters, they will need to improve considerably and quickly to convince anyone they can remain there.

Loan additions will help to cover the deficiencies in the squad again exposed at Portman Road. But Bruce must also find a formula which gets the best out of the players already at his disposal.

For too long in the second half on Saturday, Villa’s performance was reminiscent of their worst outings from last season, when they lacked a Plan B and appeared over-reliant on individuals to produce a moment of magic in order to win the match.

The biggest headache facing Bruce, in an attacking sense, is how to get greater production from his players in wide areas. Villa’s inability to stretch the play against 10 men was one of the chief reasons they failed to claim another three points and the manager may now have concluded the problem can only be solved in the loan market.

Last season, when Robert Snodgrass and Albert Adomah were in top form, wing play was arguably the team’s greatest strength.

Yet Snodgrass is gone, while Adomah continues to look a shadow of the player who scored 14 times in a six-month period between last September and March. Teenager Andre Green, meanwhile, is yet to find the form to convince his manager he can be a regular starter.

Bruce’s current lack of faith in both men is highlighted by his continued use of Ahmed Elmohamady in right midfield. The Egyptian international is among the most dependable players in Villa’s squad but does not have the dynamism or instinct to be truly effective in the final third. In time, Bruce will surely hope to move Elmohamady back into a defence currently lacking assuredness.

The presence of a new goalkeeper is undoubtedly a factor in that and this was another difficult afternoon for Nyland.

His mistake, when he came for but failed to collect Jonas Knudsen’s long-throw, is the kind even the best players in his position make from time to time. Nyland has the experience to quickly recover and will keep his place for Wednesday’s visit of Brentford.

This was also, however, the second straight Saturday where the Norwegian has looked far from convincing and though his Villa career might only be two games old, he is already facing a serious test of character.

Villa’s performance was not without positives. Indeed, the opening 35 minutes was probably their most encouraging of the campaign to date.

They scored a fine goal, crafted by the again-impressive John McGinn, and might well have been on course to a comfortable victory had Kodjia’s header from a Jack Grealish free-kick dropped a few inches lower.

That the Ivory Coast international did end a near 11-month goal drought when he flicked home McGinn’s vicious cross, was by far the biggest plus of the afternoon for Bruce.

Kodjia had increasingly become a player with something to prove. On Saturday’s evidence, he appears ready to take on the challenge.

The usual caveat of it being dangerous to read too much into early season performances still applies. In terms of results, this has still been a very decent start.

Yet Brentford, who have in the past two seasons become something of a bogey team, now loom large. The biggest test of the season to date, Villa approach it with plenty of room for improvement.