Chris Sutton slams Aston Villa players for repeating same old problem under Unai Emery

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Aston Villa’s slow start to the season has many questioning exactly how the team have struggled compared to their form last campaign.

The Villans made a late run in the previous Champions League campaign, while they only just missed out on qualifying for the tournament through their Premier League finish.

A difficult summer of transfer business saw little business done, leaving Unai Emery with fewer options to pick from.

Some of that may have been reflected in Aston Villa’s slow start, which has seen them struggle to pick up goals and points.

It seems as though there is one running theme for the team, which will be something of a concern to Emery.

• READ MORE: Darren Bent says Unai Emery has a player who is just ‘not interested’ anymore at Aston Villa

Chris Sutton questions Aston Villa’s physicality during Fulham duel

Aston Villa’s difficulties haven’t just been in scoring, but their overall performances have come under fire, too.

It’s no surprise that, in the wake of their struggles, Monchi has left Aston Villa, with Roberto Olabe taking over as the president of football operations.

While changes have come off the pitch, they need to change on it too, with Chris Sutton claiming that the team have struggled to cope with their opposition physically.

Speaking during Aston Villa’s clash with Fulham, the former striker said on Sky Sports: “You know what, this happened at Sunderland last week, where you just feel that Fulham have shown greater aggression than Aston Villa, and that should never be the case.

“Sunderland outmuscled them, now Fulham have roughed them up.”

It certainly points towards a potential problem for Aston Villa to deal with, but questions remain over what the true extent of that issue is.

The question is whether it is a mentality thing or whether the physical profiles of the players don’t match what is needed in the Premier League.

• READ MORE: John McGinn suggests £21m player is now Aston Villa’s new penalty taker after Ollie Watkins’ miss vs Bologna

John McGinn can lead by example in Aston Villa’s ranks

If it is a mentality issue for Aston Villa, then they will need their senior players to lead by example and show the team the path through this difficult spell.

Perhaps John McGinn is the best person to do this for Villa.

The Scottish international is the club captain, which is part of his role anyway, but his skill set better suits the type of mentality the team needs.

His energy and ability to snap into tackles are the type of aggression the team could do with, but that will require others to join him in it.

If McGinn can show more of that side of his game, then it could help bring the rest up to his level and improve performances as a result.