Aston Villa head coach Carla Ward said that she couldn’t fault the effort of her players in their 2-1 defeat at Manchester City this afternoon.
The Villans took a surprise early lead at The Joie Stadium through a Danielle Turner volley. They then managed to hold out until the hour mark when Lauren Hemp’s quick-fire double turned the game in the hosts’ favour.
Prior to Manchester City’s two goals, Aston Villa had defended bravely and head coach Ward praised her side for their efforts when speaking in the post-match press conference.
“It’s a tough one because we were excellent for 90 minutes,” Ward said. “After the international break, we had to change a few things around with players being in different situations.
“The girls were excellent but we’ve come up against world-class players with a top manager and we’ve been undone by two moments, so that’s tough.”
Aston Villa have now lost 12 points from winning positions this season. Ward is not too concerned by that statistic given the fact that three of those four games have been against top opposition.
She said “It’s tough but if you look at three of the games we’ve lost from winning positions, it’s Manchester City, Manchester United and Arsenal. It’s against top teams.
“It’s a tough one because it’s moments that we have to manage better, especially when the first one goes in because we probably have to be smarter.
“Overall, there’s only pride for the players tonight. We had some honest conversations after Everton, we wanted a reaction and I think we got that today.”
Aston Villa’s final Barclays Women’s Super League fixture of 2023 comes next Sunday when they play host to Brighton & Hove Albion at The Poundland Bescot Stadium.
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