The Doc's (Late) Diagnosis: Villa vs Liverpool

Just imagine: war breaks out and nobody turns up.

This game could have been played in San Francisco in the late sixties. Once the players had lined up at half past one and given each other flowers, they proceeded to entertain the crowd with a display of mutually benevolent pacifism which somewhat bewildered supporters of both sides.

It was as if some sort of entente cordiale had been signed in the referee's room before the game. Quite how five players managed to get themselves booked in such a generally benevolent environment escapes me. Even Craig Bellamy looked like a decent bloke for most of the time he was on the field.

Let's face it, Liverpool are not the greatest side away from Anfield. And, even lining up with what amounted to as full-strength a side as Rafa ever puts out, they were quite clearly there for the taking from the first whistle.

Whatever malice Gerrard may have implied by forcing Villa to play toward the Holte End in the first half, it was soon replaced by a casual, even pedestrian reds rhythm.

Agbonlahor, Bouma and Barry were all able to get behind the Merseysiders defence early in the first half, which said as much about Liverpool's grit coming into the game as it did about Villa's incisiveness. Both were to prove sorely lacking.

I am beginning to become concerned about the footballing instinct and intelligence of some of the current Villa side. Early in this game, I think the sell-out Villa Park crowd smelled Liverpudlian blood: but what that crowd watched, with growing frustration, was a Villa content to play within a defensive comfort zone.

This side is comfortable behind the ball, yet terrified of committing itself forward. Offered attacking opportunity, there were moments on Sunday afternoon when Villa were quite clearly happier turning round and going backwards.

It wasn't merely over-cautious, it wasn't just conservative: it was football which reeked of fear and cowardice.

There were exceptions: Barry and Bouma linked up again with purpose, skill and wit on Villa's left - though this seemed to leave Ashley Young in a perplexed positional nowhere land. I still have no idea whether Young was supposed to be "in the hole" behind John Carew or wide left with Barry inside.

A bigger concern is that I'm not sure he knew either. Carew himself looks an increasingly class act - we knew he was powerful, quick and well able to hold the ball up, but he plays with real commitment and dominates the channels to the extent that he can make poor balls forward look like good balls forward.

And that, I'm afraid, I have to diagnose as a serious and growing problem for Villa's health.

Olof Mellberg has often been affected by a strain of the "whackitlongus" virus. This strain is clearly contagious, and - on Sunday in particular - both Phil Bardsley and Gary Cahill were laid low by it.

The problem with a player like Carew is that he allows coaches to be tactically lazy and players to ignore the fact that there is something called a "midfield" on the pitch. Petrov, McCann, Agbonlahor and Young are not playing with confidence - McCann is an anchor man anyway, but the other more naturally attack-minded midfielders are happier at the moment to hide behind the ball and concentrate on scurrying, harrying and covering.

What they aren't doing is demanding the ball and trying to create danger with it.

We're left, I'm afraid, with the situation where Villa are doggedly difficult to break down - but don't actually want the ball. On a few occasions on Sunday afternoon I had the feeling that Agbonlahor in particular would have quite happily given the ball to Mascherano and retreated thirty yards backwards to help Phil Bardsley cope with Bellamy. Anything but the responsibility for making something happen.

With the exception of the Bouma-Barry link-up, Villa's routine attacking approach was to whack the ball down the channels for Carew to pick up. Even that would be a more intelligent approach if Young, Petrov or Agbonlahor were more willing to play off the big man.

Given Villa's lack of ambition, opportunism or creativity faced by a Liverpool side playing so aimlessly, I expected to see both Berger and Maloney on the field after an hour. I understand that Martin O'Neill wants to use Berger late in matches when the game becomes stretched, and I respect his willingness to allow a side to settle. But with a performance so lacking in attacking intent or guile, Young and Petrov should have been replaced with the Czech and the Scot much, much sooner.

I have only three things to tell you about the game itself - it really was that absorbing:

1) Thomas Sorensen made a point-saving save from a point blank Robbie Fowler header in the dying minutes - all the more amazing as he must have been as cold as me;

2) Stilyan Petrov got into the Liverpool box once and was fouled twice. Referee Mike Halsey declined to award a penalty, presumably because it would have breached the terms of the pre-match entente cordiale;

3) Patrik Berger had three shots in ten minutes once Halsey finally realised that the previous ten minutes he had spent standing next to the fourth official in the technical area indicated that Villa wanted to bring him on. More entertainment was provided by the sight of Berger repeatedly putting on and taking off his sweatshirt than in the rest of the game put together.

I'm pretty happy with the signings O'Neill has made, but I want to see attackers attack. And when I travel to Villa Park to see a home game, whoever it's against, I don't expect to see us show our opponents such respect, let alone fear.

I want to see Villa attack the opposition at Villa Park and, if they take the pitch as lackadaisically as Liverpool did, I want to see them punished. That isn't too much to ask.

Villa are playing like an away side both home and away. No thanks.

Man-of-the-Match: John Carew (a cut above, but is he making other players lazy?)

Sorensen 7; Bardsley 6; Cahill 6; Mellberg 6; Bouma 7; Agbonlahor 5; Petrov 6; McCann 6; Barry 7; Young 5; CAREW 8 Sub: Berger (for Young) 7

(Doc Bowles apologises for the late diagnosis - he has been away)