Steven Gerrard makes Thierry Henry claim over ‘absolutely class’ Calum Chambers

Aston Villa manager Steven Gerrard joked that Calum Chambers must have been taking lessons from Thierry Henry after the centre-back’s exquisite finish made it 3-0 in the victory over Leeds United.

Chambers was brought into the eleven at the last minute against Southampton on Saturday due to Ezri Konsa falling ill and though Konsa was back fit and available for Thursday evening, Gerrard chose to stick with the former Arsenal man following his impressive performance versus Saints.

It’s a decision that paid off too as Chambers not only helped his side to yet another clean sheet but got himself on the score sheet with a finish far from what you expect from a centre-back.

Gerrard was full of praise for the 27-year-old post-match, adding that he has been ‘absolutely class’ in all aspects since his arrival at Villa Park.

Speaking on the goal itself manager said: “I think he’s been around Thierry Henry at some point at Arsenal with finishes like that, we certainly take no credit for that.”

“I think that was the knockout blow, it was the icing on the cake if you like. I think from that moment it was about us really respecting our goalkeeper and our defensive lads that they wanted a clean sheet but as soon as the third went in it was the knockout blow and I think it took a lot of air out of Leeds.

“That was the moment we were looking for. At 2-0 you always know if they score with [Patrick] Bamford on the pitch it could be a sticky end to the game but to get the third in the way we done it was the knockout blow and it was a fantastic finish.

“He’s been absolutely class since he walked through the door on and off the pitch.”

It’s two weeks in a row now we’ve seen Chambers pull off two real bits of quality.

The outside of the boot pass prior to the second goal versus Southampton and the world class finish to put Villa out of sight against Leeds.

If he carries on in this vein of form the Ballon d’Or is all but a certainty!

On a serious note though, his ability to do these things and play in a variety of different positions was a key reason behind his signing in the first place and maybe even more importantly Gerrard says is his attitude.

“That’s the reason we brought him in the door because we know he’s versatile,” Gerrard added.

“He’s comfortable in two or three different positions.

“We’ve seen him play as a six for Fulham in his younger days, we’ve seen him play on the right of a diamond for Fulham.

“He’s played centre-back for us, he’s capable of playing left side centre-back, right-back. He can cover in different positions.

“When he was available for the price he was available, we couldn’t get that one done quick enough.

“He’s great for the culture. We’ve done a lot of homework around the character and it was an absolute no-brainer to get him in.

“The age he’s at he’s still got prime years ahead of him and he’s in a top place.”

A message from the editor:

Thank you for reading. BirminghamWorld is Birmingham’s latest news website, championing everything that is great about our city - reporting on news, lifestyle and sport. We want to start a community among our readers, so please follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and keep the conversation going.