Gary Lineker ruled in favor of Aston Villa amid Gary Neville ‘excellent’ verdict

Aston Villa are currently ranked 10th in the Premier League after three wins and one draw in their opening seven matches.
Villa may have had a mix of fortunes in the opener, including the 3-2 loss to Watford.
But did not fail to impress on certain occasions, especially against Everton (3-0) and Manchester United (1-0).
Dean Smith’s men came as a surprise at Old Trafford when they emerged victorious 1-0, thanks to a late goal from Kortney Hause.
Most recently, Villa were beaten 2-1 at Tottenham Hotspur ahead of the second international break of the 2020-21 campaign.
Naturally, the experts have been forthright on the subject and we’ve rounded up what some of the leaders in their fields have to say …
Gary Lineker (BBC)
Speaking after the 3-2 loss to Watford: “It’s not the start they would have liked, especially after losing Grealish.
“They will have better days.”
Lineker would be right in this assessment.
Alan Shearer (BBC)
Shearer added: “It was a disappointing day for them with Ollie Watkins injured.
“Bailey didn’t start but came on and got 30 minutes and his first assist, Buendia didn’t have his best day and Ings scored his goal.
“But I don’t have any concerns for them, they will have more than enough.”
Alan Shearer (BBC)
Speaking on Villa’s 3-0 win over Everton: “(Leon Bailey) scored a brilliant first goal for the club and played a key role in keeping a clean sheet to end Everton’s unbeaten start.”
Gary Lineker (BBC)
“Good performance from @AVFCOfficial. Well done.”
Darren Bent (Sky Sports)
“The last 25 minutes Aston Villa has been absolutely devastating from back to front, they attacked it with real intention, rhythm. They scored the goal and never looked back, to the end it could have been four.
“We saw the same corner corner in the first half when Mings took the lead and the keeper saved him.
“It was a great ball in a very good area, you can very clearly see that Aston Villa has been working on that in terms of getting numbers at the near post.
“What a finish [for the third], Danny Ings knows he’s out there and once he’s in his stride it’s pretty much head down, can he hit the target and he absolutely crushes it. It is a very nice finish.
Leon Bailey impresses on the bench: “Every time he got off the bench he really impressed, we knew he was healing a hamstring injury and it takes a little while to come back.
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“But he showed glimpses. When he puts the ball at his feet and gets past people, once he gets the hang of it and finds his feet a bit and learns Dean’s system, the Premier League is tough to play, he’ll be a huge addition because he has quality, he can score goals, he can help, he can create opportunities. “
Gary Neville (Sky Sports)
Neville joined Lineker in congratulating Villa on his performance against Everton.
“Villa was fine,” Neville said.
“I watched Villa against Everton and thought they were great against a good Everton side and they had a good start to the season.”
Ian Wright (BBC)
Speaking on Villa’s 3-0 loss to Chelsea: “We have to mention Villa, in the first half with Ramsey and McGinn they were fantastic.
“When you get that kind of midfielder with that kind of ability, that was the difference between last season and this one.
“You have an opportunity like this and by grabbing it, it all works out.
“It’s a half-chance, probably the first two touches of the game for Lukaku and I think Axel Tuanzebe probably thinks he’s going to take it on his left foot but he cut in and took it. with brio.
“He (Lukaku) orchestrates, Tyrone Mings will be very disappointed with that (getting muscular).
“It’s a bad defense and I think he (Lukaku) spends a lot of time here, but the mood he’s in, is out of reach and it’s a good strike.”
Micah Richards (BBC)
Speaking on Villa’s 1-0 win over Manchester United: “They caused United all kinds of trouble. Villa was exceptional throughout the game.
“They started with Cash on that confident right side. Targett should have scored.
“Another day, Watkins scores. Villa was there from start to finish.
“John McGinn, he wasn’t that fast when I trained with him! He puts a cross and just as Ramsey is about to go home, he loses his footing.
“The goal is why they bought Austin McPhee as their set-pieces coach, he goes in that pocket and he’s a great header.”
Danny Murphy (SPORT talk)
“Good balance, no complaints with Villa but when you’re Manchester United and you’ve sent hundreds of millions of pounds over some of the best players in Europe, Villa should arrive there terrified of playing for United and they weren’t, they were confident, they created chances, they had a lot of good play in the game and they have credit to them.
“Talk about recruiting and they’ve done very, very well. I really like the look. They don’t have enough credit for it but they will as the season progresses because they are a good team. . “
Alan Shearer (BBC)
Speaking of Villa struggling to stop Spurs’ Son Heung-min in their 2-1 loss: “I know Spurs players have received a lot of criticism, but when he plays like that there aren’t many defenders who can live with him.
“He has the pace, the energy and the motivation to come in there and score the goals and assists.
“I’m a huge fan of him and they just couldn’t face him today.
“The manager was right, he was making the difference and the way he stopped the defenders there. You can’t stop that. When he has you lined up one-on-one, it’s impossible.
“He’s a fantastic player.”
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