Aston Villa, alongside Unai Emery, were determined to bounce back from their loss to Manchester United in the Premier League. They successfully achieved this goal with a victory over Fulham.
Villa didn’t display the same level of excitement they did during their 5-0 victory against Sheffield United when they faced Fulham on Saturday (February 17). However, they demonstrated strong defensive effort, allowing them to secure a vital 2-1 win, courtesy of Ollie Watkins’ two goals.
At Craven Cottage, Ollie Watkins’ impressive performance earned praise from both fans and pundits, including Alan Shearer, who selected him for his Premier League team of the week. However, Watkins wasn’t the only standout Villa player.
Pau Torres also caught the eye, particularly for his defensive contributions alongside Clement Lenglet. BBC Sport’s pundit included Torres in a back-three alongside Chelsea’s Axel Diasi and Arsenal’s Jakub Kiwior, highlighting his solid display. Torres showcased his passing ability, completing the most passes in the game with a 79% success rate, including seven into Fulham’s final third, according to Fotmob stats. He also displayed confidence on the ball, completing all of his attempted dribbles, though his long passing accuracy was slightly off at 25%.
Defensively, Torres was equally impressive, winning all three ground duels he entered and losing only one attempted tackle. His return to the Villa lineup after injury coincided with an upturn in form for the team, as evidenced by their strong record when he starts—a win rate of over 76%.
Looking ahead, maintaining Torres’ fitness could be crucial for Villa’s Champions League aspirations, with the potential for significant points to be gained if he remains in the starting XI for the remainder of the season. While this is no easy task, it underscores Torres’ importance to Villa’s campaign.