Carson rebounding from tough stretch to revive Villa's European hope
Last November, Aston Villa keeper Scott Carson faced the biggest night of his short international career. Not only did he have a chance to stake his claim for the #1 shirt for his country, but England's Euro 2008 hopes were on the line as they faced Croatia at Wembley.
It ended up being a nightmare for Carson and England fans alike, as he gifted Croatia an opener in the eighth minute, and six minutes later, he was beaten again. While England did come back to level the match, the night would end in disappointment, as Croatia scored a late winner to crush England's hopes of being at this summer's competition in Austria and Switzerland.
Since that forgettable unforgettable night at Wembley, Carson's form has been up and down. After recovering from his horror night to post consecutive clean sheets in away matches against Middlesbrough and Blackburn to end November, December, January, February, and March passed without another clean sheet from the 22-year old.
During that time, Villa had trouble maintaining consistency after a strong start to the season, and suffered an especially poor March, where their European prospects took a huge hit as they took only two points from five league fixtures.
The struggles certainly weren't all Carson's though, because when you're not scoring, that gives the defense and the keeper an even smaller margin for error. Villa scored only two goals in that five-match winless run in March, and were blanked against Portsmouth, Sunderland, and Man United to end the month.
However, he's back on track right on time, as he started a pivotal April for the European hopefuls with his first clean sheets since November in routs over Bolton and Derby, which has allowed Martin O'Neill's side to close the gap on fifth-placed Everton to a mere three points with three matches to go, with a big encounter at Goodison Park ahead on Sunday. Besides the defensive improvement, the Villains are on fire in net, with 14 goals in their last three fixtures.
Besides what's at stake for his team, there's plenty at stake for Carson on a personal level. The #1 spot for England is anything but solidified at this point, so strong performances for Carson down the stretch can put him in a position to make the jersey his own sometime in the near future.
His talent and potential is undoubted. His first Champions League appearance came at 19 in goal against Juventus in a quarterfinal at Anfield, which the Reds won 2-1, on the way to their epic European title. And that match against Croatia, it must be remembered that it was only his second senior cap. His first? Five days before in a friendly against Austria.
There's a great deal of pressure on him, from trying to do his part to help Villa claim a European place, to being in contention in the national team, to lofty expectations that are not only placed on him by others, but by himself.
This season is only his second as a full-time starter, and naturally there are going to be some struggles, especially when you get thrown into the fire like he has over his short career. Sometimes those struggles are hard to shake, but getting past them is all about keeping your head up, and eventually you'll be back in top form sooner or later.
It seems that he's done just that, as he's regaining his form just when the team needs him to, and while Bolton, Derby, and Birmingham aren't top-class competition, if he can keep things tidy in net over the final three matches, it will not only bode well for Carson's prospect, but also Villa's.
Eddie Griffin is a passionate soccer fan, freelance writer and regularly contributes at Soccerlens.com.
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