Villa’s patience runs out late

Aston Villa had the ball, and for a while that was nearly the whole story. They began the day 18th in the English Premier Division, with seven points from nine matches; Chelsea arrived top, with 27. Villa had lost at Everton the previous weekend, while Chelsea came in after five straight wins in league and European matches. The head-to-head was hardly a comfort blanket for the home crowd: Villa had won five, drawn nine and lost 87. I have followed football long enough to know that a bad comparison can feel like a bad omen, even when it is only arithmetic.

Villa enjoyed 56 per cent possession and put four of their ten shots on target, but their control didn’t bring a clear-cut chance. Chelsea, with less of the ball, looked the more dangerous side: twelve shots, one clear-cut chance and a strike against the woodwork. Joaquín was everywhere, while Norberto Pico, introduced at half-time, added purpose. Ricky Cabeke and Federico Corvalán worked hard for Villa, but hard work is one of football’s less reliable currencies. The 49,631 in the ground, including 3,000 Chelsea supporters, had a long wait for a goal.

It came in the 71st minute. Pablo Ferrer, a 24-year-old Spanish striker, had only come on three minutes earlier; his first shot on target made the difference, and Chelsea led 1-0. Villa’s Jesse Francois had been replaced in the same minute, and the home side kept trying, but the goal changed the mood from expectation to that familiar, private negotiation: perhaps a draw would still be all right. It was not all right for long. Antonio López came on in the 87th minute, and in the 88th Ferrer scored again. A substitute’s brief appearance had become the match’s defining fact.

Chelsea won 2-0, as the pre-match expectation suggested they would, though Villa had seen more of the ball. Ferrer was Player of the Match, with three shots on target and two goals; the numbers are neat, which is more than I can say for my feelings about watching a side dominate possession and still lose by two. Chelsea keep their place at the top; Villa remain 18th. The result was not a surprise. That doesn’t make it hurt less.