Aston Villa 3 Blackpool 2:IAN HOLLOWAY'S decision to rest 10 of the team that drew against Everton last Saturday will not necessarily have financial repercussions for Blackpool.
Widespread changes are judged on a case-by-case basis these days, and Holloway is likely to receive a sympathetic hearing given the monetary constraints within which he is working.
The visitors did not deserve to lose and, in Matt Phillips, the visitors boasted the most impressive player on the pitch.
Blackpool should have taken the lead in the seventh minute. Ludovic Sylvestre’s beautifully timed pass found Phillips, who had switched wings, sprinting down the left touchline.
The young midfielder saw Marlon Harewood haring up the middle in support, and the pass played with the outside of his foot curled perfectly into the former Villa forward’s path, only to be side-footed clumsily wide of Brad Friedel’s goal.
Having taken some time to come to terms with Blackpool’s fluid formation, Villa began to string together some attacks. Marc Albrighton forced a diving save from Richard Kingson, and Luke Young, overlapping down the right and nicely found by Nathan Delfouneso, shot over from an angle, but the visitors could justifiably claim to have been on top when Villa took a fortuitous lead.
Stewart Downing did well to turn and create space for a right-footed shot from the edge of the penalty area, but Kingson had it covered until Dekel Keinan’s attempt to block deflected the ball beyond the goalkeeper.
The crowd waited for the deluge, but Blackpool went in level. Phillips’ brilliant back-heel put Harewood clear, and this time the big centre forward did not miss, rolling his shot beyond Friedel.
Villa almost regained the lead within two minutes of the restart, Kingson just getting enough on Young’s shot to push it around the post before David Carney kicked James Collins’ header off the line. Even so, Blackpool deserved the big break they received when Delfouneso’s header was ruled out for what appeared the lightest of pushes on Keinan.
Five minutes later Young’s pass sent the young forward clear and his finish was decisive, before Holloway sent on the cavalry in the form of Charlie Adam, Ian Evatt and DJ Campbell.
Campbell, with a shot that took a big deflection off the heel of Collins, looked to have secured a draw, but Collins’ header from a corner spared Villa’s blushes.
Guardian Service
ASTON VILLA:Friedel, Luke Young, Dunne, Collins, Warnock, Albrighton (Ireland 81), Clark, Bannan (Lichaj 90), Downing, Ashley Young, Delfouneso (Agbonlahor 64). Subs not used: Guzan, Hogg, Lowry, Johnson. Booked: Clark, Warnock.
BLACKPOOL: Kingson, Basham, Edwards, Keinan (Evatt 75), Carney, Southern, Sylvestre, Euell (Adam 71), Phillips, Harewood (Campbell 77), Ormerod. Subs not used: Gilks, Eardley, Grandin, Varney. Booked: Keinan, Basham, Euell.
Referee: A Taylor (Cheshire).
Attendance: 34,330
