Aston Villa boss Steven Gerrard criticised for 'wasteful' Philippe Coutinho decision

Former Premier League forward Noel Whelan has questioned why Steven Gerrard didn't have Brazil international Philippe Coutinho on set-piece duty against Newcastle United at the weekend.

Midfielder Douglas Luiz took free-kicks and corners, but Villa didn't threaten Newcastle's defence from dead ball situations and eventually left St. James' Park empty-handed following a 1-0 defeat.

Kieran Trippier's free kick was all that separated the two sides on Sunday, as Villa disappointed in all aspects of the game.

And Whelan thinks Villa head coach Gerrard is still 'learning a lot about his side', but was surprised not to see one of Coutinho or Lucas Digne on set-pieces against Newcastle.

“Everything comes down to the delivery, and it was wasteful at the weekend,” he told Football Insider.

“They’ve got players like Lucas Digne and Phillippe Coutinho able to provide quality from those sorts of situations – that’s what their game is all about.

“Set-pieces can win and lose you football matches, and that was the case again for Aston Villa against Newcastle. They created chances but the final ball was just lacking, it never really happened for them.

“They weren’t the same side going forward that we saw against Leeds United. They’ve got to make these dead-ball opportunities count, especially when chasing a game.

“Gerrard will still be learning a lot about his side and about the Premier League. It’s not easy, and he’s finding that out.”