For Emiliano Martínez, this chilly evening in Aston must have felt strangely reminiscent of the World Cup on the Persian Gulf last month. There was the magnificent point-blank save to deny Jack Harrison and Leeds a certain equaliser on the brink of half-time; a replica of the free-kick routine from which Wout Weghorst, the Netherlands striker who has just joined Manchester United, scored to force extra-time in the quarter-final; there were the dark arts, perfected by Villa, that infuriated Jesse Marsch on the touchline. And, ultimately, there was a sweet victory at the end of it all.
By contrast, the last few months have represented a pretty miserable existence for Marsch, not that you would know it given the buoyant tone of his 13-minute post-match press conference, in which he insisted this was his side’s most complete performance since he took charge last February. Marsch’s demeanour was a world away from a manager worried about whether he would survive until Wednesday’s FA Cup third-round replay at home to Cardiff but the reality is, dating back to August, Leeds have won two of their past 17 matches in all competitions. They have kept one clean sheet in their past 13 matches and remain 14th, two points above the relegation zone. In a week in which Marsch joined LinkedIn, the networking website, it is hard not to think the American could soon find himself out of work.
Unai Emery is feeling the love at Villa Park after winning 13 points from his first six Premier League games in charge. Marsch, meanwhile, was booed by some Leeds supporters as he went to to thank the away end after the final whistle and some fans made clear their disdain, calling for him to be sacked towards the end of the second half. “I understand the pressures that come with the expectations for a club like Leeds United,” Marsch said afterwards. “I’m more positive than I’ve ever been since I’ve been here. We’re not even halfway through the season. There’s no panic. When the team doesn’t win the coach is always going to take the heat but I handle that.” Equally, Marsch is not naive. “It’s always about results,” he added. “I know if we play like this we will get results much more often than we have.”
Leeds got off to a dreadful start when Leon Bailey curled a shot into the far corner with less than three minutes gone. The galling thing for them was that it was a counterattack goal that stemmed from a Leeds corner. An unmarked Marc Roca swiped at thin air when attempting to convert Harrison’s cross and the again impressive Ashley Young located Boubacar Kamara, who excelled at the base of the Villa midfield. Kamara ploughed upfield into the Leeds half before turning Brendan Aaronson and picking out Bailey, whose crisp left-foot finish sent the home support wild. “I’m so, so happy with Leon because against Wolves he had two really good chances to win the match and he was a bit upset,” Emery, the Villa manager, said. “But today he scored the goal and did a really good action.”
Emery had to make two first-half changes with Lucas Digne and Ollie Watkins forced off inside half an hour and Leeds should have gone in at least level at the interval. Aaronson played the role of Teun Koopmeiners as Leeds attempted to recreate Weghorst’s strike in Qatar and passed the ball to Rodrigo but, under pressure from Douglas Luiz, the forward could not get a clean shot away. Villa squandered a chance to double their lead when Bailey, played in superbly by Young, overcooked a simple pass that would have presented Watkins with an easy finish.
Álex Moreno had a chance to cap a fine debut with a goal after a give-and-go with the returning Jacob Ramsey and Villa did increase their advantage when Emi Buendía pounced on the rebound of Bailey’s powerful strike. Illan Meslier got his left hand to Bailey’s drive but, despite getting his right hand to the ball, the Leeds goalkeeper could not prevent Buendía’s header from looping over him. The goal was initially ruled offside before a VAR check overturned the decision.
In the first half Martínez saved superbly from Harrison and, moments earlier, Moreno made a brilliant sliding block to deny Rodrigo a certain goal. In the end the substitute Patrick Bamford’s first goal for 404 days, on his first appearance since October following groin surgery, proved nothing more than a consolation. Leeds’s £30m move for the Hoffenheim striker Georginio Rutter suggests they are happy to support Marsch this month but whether the manager’s version of events will wash remains to be seen. “If we can use this as a moment to really make it click, I believe we have a bright future,” Marsch insisted. He will hope he is afforded the chance to realise it.
