'It's not easy' - Belittled Aston Villa star deserves more credit & Unai Emery agrees

Aston Villa goalkeeper Robin Olsen deserves all the plaudits after a solid display under the greatest pressure away at Brentford on Saturday evening.

There were groans far and wide from Villa supporters when it was announced Olsen was in the starting XI due to an injury for star shot-stopper Emiliano Martinez but the backup lived up to the task, keeping a pivotal clean sheet to hold onto all three points. Ollie Watkins’ deflected 49th-minute strike turned out to be the winner at the Gtech Community Stadium but it wouldn’t have been if it wasn’t for a host of important saves and claims from Olsen.

Sure, the Swede has made many mistakes leading to goals in the past and his distribution has often let a lot to be desired but it’s always going to be incredibly difficult to step out of Martinez’s shadow. Olsen is never going to be capable of matching the levels of the two-time Yashin Trophy winner and he’s so often hounded before he’s even had a chance to make amends for previous mistakes.

Martinez has been prone to making errors too, so it’s not just Olsen. And that’s not to say Olsen is anywhere near the same quality, but maybe he should be cut some slack for his blunders when supposedly the world’s best goalkeeper has made them regularly as well – for example against Nottingham Forest, RB Leipzig and Chelsea this season.

From our view in the press box, one of the first things that was obvious after full time was the pure elation among the Villa squad, firstly for the victory but secondly for Olsen’s involvement. The goalkeeper is mightily popular in the dressing room, it appears, as evident by Youri Tielemans and Axel Disasi pushing him towards the travelling Villa support in the far corner to earn deserved applause.

That hasn’t always been the case, though, even ticking back to an hour before kick-off. Not every Villa fan will have doubted Olsen but many will have punched the air or let out a sigh when they read the team sheet. That’s understandable given Martinez’s importance but Olsen deserves so much more credit than he receives.

Head coach Unai Emery agrees and he was delighted to see his backup goalkeeper with a smile on his face. "Yes, he did a fantastic job and he is always ready to play, to help,” Emery said in the post-match press conference.

“He's so, so appreciated as a person in the dressing room, and the players as well, they are happy for him as well, because to be substitute for Emi Martinez, the best goalkeeper in the world, is not easy and he is always doing fantastic as a person, as a professional.

"But for example, the last match we played away, he (Martinez) was not available in the second half in Palace. He (Olsen) played, we conceded three goals and today was very important, for his confidence, for the players to try get this victory through a clean sheet, to try help and support Robin Olsen. It was really fantastic how he played today and how he helped us today.”

In other news, Emery has provided injury updates for Martinez and Marco Asensio after the pair missed the win over Brentford.