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Aston Villa told they have a ‘weapon’ of a player who’s just as important as Mo Salah at Liverpool
Aston Villa drew with Liverpool on Wednesday evening in a hard-fought 2-2.
The Villans genuinely could’ve won this game if it wasn’t for a late miss from Donyell Malen and a disallowed goal from Jacob Ramsey.
Aston Villa really took it to Liverpool, and, speaking before the game, Alan McInally was discussing the composition of the two sides.
The pundit, inevitably, picked out Mohamed Salah as Liverpool’s most important player.
Salah is in Ballon d’Or winning form this season, as he’s the top scorer and the top assister in the Premier League.
Salah is incredibly important to Liverpool, but according to McInally, Aston Villa have a player of equal importance – John McGinn.
John McGinn is so important to Aston Villa
McInally spoke about how important McGinn is to this Villa team, comparing him to Salah at Liverpol.
The pundit says that McGinn is a real weapon for Villa and he’s also an inspiration for the other players in the squad.
“The big thing is that we’re better with him in the team. John (McGinn) has made himself a better player at Aston Villa, he’s an inspiration for some of the players as well,” McInally said.
“You asked me about Liverpool, and Salah, and I didn’t want to mention Salah, because I wanted to pretend he wasn’t going to start.
“But we have John McGinn, he’s that important to the team, as well as Salah. Salah, naturally is an unbelievable football player, but John is a weapon for us.”
Aston Villa record without John McGinn
McGinn is a very important player for Villa, and there’s a reason he’s constantly one of the first names on Unai Emery’s teamsheet.
Indeed, McGinn has a material effect on how this Villa team plays and operates, and Villa’s stats without McGinn over the past two years show that.
McGinn is, usually, and ever-present, but he has missed seven league games in the last two seasons due to injury and suspension.
Unsurprisingly, Villa’s form has dipped in that time.
| Games | Wins | Draws | Losses | Win percentage | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aston Villa’s Premier League record without John McGinn | 7 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 29% |
McGinn’s affect on this Villa team is there to see in the stats, and while his contribution in terms of goals and assists may not be huge, he does play a huge part in Villa’s success.
McGinn is one of the smartest footballers around, and there’s a reason he’s Villa’s captain during their best period in a generation.