A game too far for weary Rovers

PERHAPS Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho had a point when he complained about the hectic nature of the fixture list over the festive period.

Maybe in England we do demand too much of our footballers over Christmas and the New Year.

Four games in nine days is a punishing schedule in anyone's book but particularly in the most physically demanding league in the world.

If further evidence were needed then perhaps the FA should study a video of this sterile encounter between two sides that looked dead on their feet - assuming they can sit through the full 90 minutes without nodding off.

Blackburn Rovers have performed magnificently over the last two months to claw themselves out of the bottom three, losing just once in the 10 matches prior to this sojourn to Villa Park.

But this was a game too far for Mark Hughes' battle-weary players, who looked drained both physically and mentally following two titanic tussles against Newcastle and Bolton in the previous six days.

For 88 minutes, Rovers had struggled to get out of first gear against an Aston Villa side who were toiling themselves in testing conditions.

Then as the fatigue kicked in, Rovers switched off for a split second at a corner and Nobby Solano - probably the smallest man on the pitch - lost marker Brett Emerton to plant a firm header past a stranded Brad Friedel.

It was a thoroughly unsatisfactory way to concede the three points but entirely in keeping with a game that never threatened to catch fire.

"We were disappointed to concede so late in the day, especially given the situation with the goal and the goalscorer," said a frustrated Hughes.

"It's a bit galling when someone of the stature of Nobby Solano has a free header in the six yard box with two minutes to go.

"But it was a poor game all round. Neither side showed enough quality on the day to get the three points and unfortunately we've lost a point, which, at that stage, we thought we had gained.

"In all honesty, though, I thought both sides looked leggy and the exertions of the Bolton and Newcastle games certainly showed in my lads.

"That affected the quality of the game. It was all misplaced passes from both sides and it wasn't a pretty spectacle."

For the large part, this game was about as appetising as a turkey sandwich on the 12th day of Christmas.

Both sides lacked energy and invention going forward on an afternoon when there was precious little for the 34,265 hardy souls who had braved the elements to get excited about.

Ten of Hughes' starting 11 had also started the games against Newcastle and Bolton, and it showed as Rovers looked increasingly leg-weary the longer this match went on.

There was no creative spark in the final third, so much so that Thomas Sorensen wasn't called on to make a serious save in the entire 90 minutes.

In saying that, Villa were not much better themselves.

Apart from Solano, the game's outstanding player and the one man who looked capable of rising above the general mediocrity, there was little to suggest that David O'Leary's side are a team with serious aspirations of Europe.

In fact, Villa looked every inch a side that hadn't won in their previous six outings as they struggled to get any momentum going and when they did create any openings, Juan Pablo Angel usually spurned them.

A torrential downpour in the minutes before kick-off made for a lively playing surface but it was Villa who were quicker in adjusting to the tricky conditions.

Solano, the man at the hub of most of the action, showed great technique when executing an early volley that brushed the side netting.

Then the Peruvian midfielder turned provider moments later with a raking cross from the right that just evaded the sliding Angel at the far post.

Villa had a strong shout for a penalty in the 19th minute when the ball appeared to strike the hand of Dominic Matteo as he jostled for possession with Angel in the area but referee Howard Webb waved away their appeals.

As the half wore on, Rovers began to grow in confidence as an attacking force.

Jonathan Stead and Barry Ferguson both blasted over from the edge of the area and a Nissa Johansson header cannoned back off the upright.

If that was a let-off then Rovers enjoyed some good fortune shortly before the break.

Solano picked out Angel, who had darted into space on the right hand side of the area, with a perfectly weighted pass.

The Colombian striker showed great poise to round Friedel but promptly fired his shot straight into the side-netting from an acute angle.

If the first half was a sedate affair then the second half was positively comatose.

Friedel had to react sharply to repel a shot from Angel at his near post and Solano tried his luck again from distance with a drive that fizzed fractionally wide of the post.

Hughes attempted to inject more creativity by introducing David Thompson and Paul Gallagher from the substitutes' bench but it made little difference.

Nevertheless, a point would have been a decent return in the circumstances and one appeared to be in the bag as the game fizzled out in the closing stages.

However, Villa suddenly won a corner in the 89th minute and when the ball was delivered into the box, Solano somehow escaped the attentions of his marker, Emerton, to head the winner past Friedel from six yards out.

It wasn't exactly the way Mark Hughes had hoped to see in the New Year but with the transfer window now open, at least the Rovers boss has the means to freshen up his squad and build on the great strides made over the last couple of months.