Blogger pb1uk takes in a spot of Monday night Premier League action with a trip to Villa Park for the visit of Premier League high flyers Southampton.

Ground: Villa Park (ticked off previously) 46/92
Game: Aston Villa 1-1 Southampton
Date: 24/11/2014

Over the years i’ve managed to get to Villa Park a number of times, this being my eighth and my third following my team Southampton. Despite our league position I travelled in pessimistic mood as my previous trips with Saints had been far from fruitful. Both 1-0 defeats, with first half goals from centre backs; Gareth Southgate on my first visit and on my second an overhead kick from Dion Dublin, who yes was playing at the back (highlights below)! To compound matters it was a defensive error from my idol James Beattie that set it up.

In my eyes Villa Park is one of best grounds in the Premier League, a real iconic ground with bags of character. With a capacity of over 40000 it has a mix of the old and the new and I especially like the way the Trinity Road stand, which was redeveloped in 2000, still shows similarities to it’s former self. It is far from a characterless bowl like a number of top flight grounds and will always have a special place for generations of fans who saw FA Cup semi finals at the ground – it was indeed the scene of the famous Ryan Giggs’ strike against Arsenal, one of all time classic cup goals.

Unfortunately an underwhelming crowd of just over twenty five thousand, the lowest league gate at Villa since December 1999 weren’t treated to a classic. Putting bias aside as much as possible the away side did have the majority of the play, but failed to do much with it. Mane tested Guzan with a shot from outside the area that forced a good save from the keeper before the home side took a lead. Southampton’s high line was caught out by a clearance. Ciaran Clark’s agricultural hoof looped behind the Saints defence and Agbonlahor was onto it. The spin on the ball didn’t help England deputy Fraser Forster whose slight hesitation proved costly as the Villa striker got to ball first and slotted home past the sliding covering defender Toby Alderweireld.

The second half continued in the same vein as the first. Southampton had plenty of possession but struggled to break down a well organised Villa defence and packed midfield. Despite some neat build up play too often the final ball was lacking and crossing was poor, with the recent good form of the likes of Pelle, Tadic and Mane seeming to desert them. The home side had the opportunity to wrap up the points as Saints left gaps at the back. A well worked move ended up with Weimann who spectacularly blazed over from a brilliant position. The visitors did get the point they deserved with 8 minutes to go. A neat flick from Tadic got Bertrand in down the left who crossed low into the box – in all honesty the cross was poor and went behind 3 Saints players in the middle – que Nathaniel Clyne. The newly capped England right got a march on Villa scorer Agbonlahor and came steaming in the box leathering the ball past Guzan.

Bias aside a point was probably a fair result (just!). Although Southampton had the majority of the possession and chances they didn’t do enough to warrant the three points. On the other side Aston Villa didn’t create too much but they were well organised in defence and restricted the visitors to mainly half chances.

Atmosphere 1.5/5: Really poor. Some noise from the away end but even that was somewhat subdued. Sticking us up in the back of the top tier down in the corner didn’t help.

Location 2.5/5: Not the greatest area, found it okish in the end. Traffic before the game was a nightmare. There were local parking restrictions but plenty of places available for a fiver. Took some advice and parked a 10 minute walk the M6 side of the ground and managed a decent getaway, which on a Monday night was a bonus.

Value for money 1/5: £41, yes £41 for a ticket in the away end! For a game on TV on a weekday night I thought it was a complete joke to charge that amount. Even if the game was a thriller i’d still have thought it was a bit steep.

Pie Rating, Programme and Pint Rating n/a

Overall 1.5/5: One of my least favourite visits to Villa park. A flat atmosphere, not a great game – but my team rescued a point so it wasn’t a complete disaster!

You can keep up with Peter’s 92 on his the92.net profile here. Have you been to Villa Park before? Add the ground to your 92 here www.the92.net/ground/villa-park or plan your visit using our away day planner here www.the92.net/plan-your-away-day/villa-park.

Do you fancy blogging about your experiences doing the 92? If you’re interested drop us a tweet to @the92dotnet.