Aston Villa suffered a 2-0 defeat to Manchester City on Wednesday evening, but there were some positives to take from the game.
Matt Targett was one of many who impressed for Villa at the Etihad Stadium, making more tackles and interceptions than any other player on the pitch, and the Claret and Blues’ official Twitter account took note of his performance.
𝟳𝟱 minutes played
𝟰𝟵 touches
𝟮𝟬 passes completed
𝟱 tackles won
𝟰 interceptions
𝟰 clearancesTop class last night, @MattyTargett. 👏 pic.twitter.com/1gB3tzRCs4
— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) January 21, 2021
Against Man City, the 25-year-old played for 74 minutes, had 49 touches, won five tackles, completed 69% of his passes, and made four clearances and four interceptions (WhoScored).
Targett was outstanding on Wednesday and has impressed all season, which is why Neil Taylor can barely get a look-in under Dean Smith. The Welshman made only one league appearance in 2020/21, which came on Wednesday after Targett went off injured, whereas the latter has played in every Premier League game for Villa so far this season.
Game-time has been hard to come by for Taylor because Targett has shown no sign of letting up, so the 31-year-old might be spending his last season at Villa Park on the periphery of the first team.
READ ASTON VILLA VERDICT
Southampton sold Targett for just under £14m in 2019 as he wasn’t commanding a regular starting place in their team.
That has been to Aston Villa’s tremendous gain and he has earned his spot on merit. Performances like last night illustrate why it was money well spent by the Claret and Blues.
