The media heard from Aston Villa head coach Robert de Pauw this afternoon as the Villans gear up to face Brighton and Hove Albion in the Barclays Women’s Super League tomorrow afternoon at Broadfield Stadium.
During the week, Aston Villa secured a 2-0 victory over Crystal Palace in the Women’s League Cup. So far this season in the Barclays WSL, under the new managerial gaze of de Pauw, the Villans have lost 1-0 to Chelsea, and drawn 1-1 with Tottenham Hotspur.
Facing Brighton is ‘the real deal’
Both Aston Villa and Brighton have started the 2024/25 season with a new figurehead in charge. Providing his assessment of Dario Vidošić’s Seagulls before Aston Villa’s trip to the south-coast, de Pauw said “They look very bright. They made quite a good impression in the first game played.” The Villans boss went on, “I think you can see the autograph of the coach on the team already. So that’s a good sign for them.”
“They have brought in some quality players,” asserted de Pauw. “It’s a good mix, and I think it will be a good battle tomorrow” the manager affirmed.
Aston Villa will face last season’s runners-up, Manchester City, in a couple of weeks times after meeting with Brighton and Leicester City. Regarding the buildup to what is generally considered to be one of the most challenging fixtures, de Pauw firmly stated “Brighton only lost one-nil against [Manchester] City. Leicester only lost one-nil against Arsenal. That says everything about those squads and that they’re really strong squads, so I don’t see them as preparation. It’s the real deal.”
‘You can’t be careful enough’ when it comes to injuries says de Pauw
Ahead of this weekend’s match, de Pauw provided an update on the fitness of his side set to face the Seagulls. The Villans manager confirmed that both Anna Leat and Georgia Mullet will be back in training over the coming weeks. The head coach also provided an update on Jill Baijings, expressing that she “will also start in the next two weeks with more individual training.”
Speaking on summer signing Gabi Nunes, who played 45 minutes in Aston Villa’s midweek clash with Crystal Palace, de Pauw expressed that the club “want to build up her conditioning in a in a structured and sensible way.”
Then going on to explain his approach to injury management, de Pauw outlined “I saw the dangers that, for example, Everton has. You cannot be careful enough with players. So we bring her in gradually. But she made a good impression in the first game. I think she will be available against Leicester City.”
Daly and Nobbs have ‘earned their stripes’
Asked by The Halfway Line about what it is like working with an experienced player in Rachel Daly, whose attention turned entirely to club football after retiring from international duty earlier this year, the manager expressed his gratitude for the forward’s positive mindset.
He described Daly as being “very important for atmosphere in the team.” The manager elaborated, “We assigned roles to every player, every leadership player in the group, and she’s like, the minister of atmosphere. So she creates a good vibe in the team, but she’s also very driven.”
The head coach later touched on the quality of another experienced member of his squad,Jordan Nobbs. It’s really big, big enjoyment to work with her” proclaimed de Pauw. He continued, “She’s [Nobbs] a wonderful person, very kind, very open, still very driven.”
The manager packed on the praise for Nobbs’ unwavering work ethic, saying “She’s like the first one on the pitch, and the last one to go off in training. So I have to sometimes hold her back a little bit. So we gave her some rest against Crystal Palace to keep her fresh.”
Additionally, de Pauw spoke on the role of Katie Robinson, who signed with Aston Villa over from Brighton & Hove Albion this summer. The head coach drew attention to Robinson’s place as one of Aston Villa’s several wide players, expressing “I really love the way she played against Crystal Palace. She was a threat in that game. If you look at the first two games, how Chastity Grant performed in those games, it’s also a revelation.”
Clearly embracing his tenure at Aston Villa, de Pauw told the press “Sometimes I have to squeeze myself being so lucky with these attacking players. So yeah, I think she will for sure make the impact in the minutes that she gets, and it’s up to them [the players] to push each other and to give me a headache every week.”
Aston Villa will travel to Broadfield Stadium this Saturday to face Brighton & Hove Albion in the Barclays Women’s Super League. The clash will be available to watch live on YouTube, with proceedings set to head underway at 12:30 BST.
