Aston Villa manager Dean Smith reserved praise for Jack Grealish and James Chester following the 2-0 Sky Bet Championship home win over struggling Bolton.
Villa’s two goalscorers took the honours in a display which Smith feels augurs well for the future.
Smith’s men were generally well in control after Grealish opened the scoring in the fourth minute against a Bolton side who have lost the ability to win – or to score.
Chester, who endured a few disappointing games earlier in the season, came good on this occasion.
The Wales international kept Villa in the game with a first-half goal-line clearance and had a goal disallowed for offside before he settled the game with a 58th-minute header from a Grealish free-kick.
Smith was delighted with both players, saying: “It was nice to see Grealish score from something we have worked on in training.
“He is a player who can play in a more advanced role and this is something we are working on with him.
“I saw James Chester’s pre-match interview when he said that he has not been at his best this season but I thought his display against Bolton was an accomplished performance. He can be really pleased with his display.”
Smith added: “I thought we deserved the win but I did not think we were anywhere near our best. I thought we were OK until we scored the second goal.
“We then had a 20-minute spell when we were excellent and could have scored more goals. There is still a lot to work on.
“That 20-minute spell showed me the level the group can achieve. We need to have more dominant spells than we had against Bolton.”
Poor Bolton huffed and puffed but never really got anywhere on a night which belonged to a Villa side hoping this success will spark a major revival.
But Phil Parkinson was defiant and full of praise for his team, despite the club’s current harrowing run of taking only one point from their last six games.
Parkinson said: “We had more than enough chances to have got something from the game.
“We had one scrambled off the line and I couldn’t understand why we didn’t score.
“We conceded early in the game which was disappointing. Was it our concentration level or exceptionally good play from (Tammy) Abraham and Grealish?
“I think it was a bit of both but afterwards I thought the lads applied themselves extremely well. We needed something to go our way to give us a lift.
“We are on an indifferent run but some of our play against a team with a great deal of resources was excellent and we deserved something from the game.”
Parkinson was highly critical of referee Oliver Langford, saying: “How the referee gave a free-kick for Villa’s second goal I do not know. I am gobsmacked with his performance and by the decision.
“Joe Williams won the ball cleanly and it was a great tackle.
“I cannot fault the lads’ application or effort. I thought they were tremendous. We just need something to drop for us.”
