Aston Villa enjoyed a comfortable 2-0 win over Newcastle United on Saturday night and Marvelous Nakamba stood out with his performance at Villa Park.
The 27-year-old was given the nod in midfield as John McGinn was suspended after picking up five yellow cards, but his absence was barely felt as Villa put the Magpies to the sword without ever looking in danger of losing their early lead.
Read Aston Villa recently suggested that Nakamba might need upgrading upon in the January transfer market due to a lack of playing time, and numerous supporters have been critical of his performances in the past, but he silenced his detractors over the weekend.
Against Newcastle, Nakamba had 77 touches, won one header, completed 98.5% of his 67 passes, had one shot, won two tackles, recorded two interceptions, made one clearance and won one free kick. [WhoScored]
Alongside Douglas Luiz in midfield, the Zimbabwe international helped to limit Newcastle to only 41% possession and just one shot on target. The Magpies had Jeff Hendrick, Miguel Almiron and Jonjo Shelvey in the engine room, but Hendrick and Shelvey failed to win a tackle while Hendrick and Almiron did not record an interception [WhoScored].
READ ASTON VILLA VERDICT
Prior to Saturday, Nakamba hadn’t made a Premier League appearance since mid-December, but he showed little signs of rustiness against Newcastle.
Indeed, he made the most of a rare opportunity to prove his worth to Dean Smith and answer those of us who had questioned whether he would have much of a role to play for Aston Villa going forward.
