Aston Villa's Brentford draw offered more encouragement than the result suggests

I came away from Villa Park on Saturday feeling considerably more positive than you might expect after watching Aston Villa draw 2-2 at home, particularly when we'd managed to get ourselves into a winning position during the second half and then surrendered that advantage almost immediately. There was obviously frustration at the manner in which we conceded both goals, but I thought we played some really good football against Brentford, and I'm becoming increasingly encouraged by what I'm seeing from this group of players.

I thought it was probably our best home performance of the season so far, and although we beat Tottenham in our previous Premier League game, there were periods against Brentford where I thought we played better football than we did in that victory. We moved the ball well, created opportunities and had some really encouraging combinations in attacking areas, against a side who I think are going to cause plenty of problems for teams this season.

I said before the game that Brentford could potentially challenge for a top-five finish, and nothing I saw on Saturday has changed my opinion. They're an excellent side who are really well organised, physically strong and capable of hurting you in several different ways. They made life difficult for us at times, particularly with their long throws and set pieces, but I thought Villa generally dealt with those threats pretty well and matched them in what was a really competitive game.

A draw was probably a fair result when you consider the chances both teams had, although I do think Villa produced enough to have won it. There were opportunities in both halves, and I remember thinking towards the end of the first that we looked the more likely team to score. We were playing with a good tempo, getting players into dangerous positions and putting Brentford under pressure, even if we didn't always make the most of the situations we created.

The opening goal was obviously a really disappointing one to concede, with Tyrone Mings giving the ball away in a dangerous area, but what I particularly liked was the response. Villa Park can sometimes become frustrated when we fall behind, especially if we then start making more mistakes or allow the opposition to take control of the game, but there was none of that on Saturday. We got ourselves back into the match almost immediately, and the way the players reacted to that setback was one of the most encouraging aspects of the afternoon.

Emi Buendía was involved in the equaliser with a strike that created the opportunity for Nicolas Jackson, who reacted brilliantly to what was happening around him. Everyone else almost seemed stationary, but Jackson anticipated where the ball was going, timed his movement perfectly and produced a really intelligent finish. He's been such a refreshing player to watch since arriving at Villa, and I thought he was excellent again against Brentford.

There's something quite unusual about the way Jackson plays because he often looks as though he's about to lose possession, only to find another touch or somehow manoeuvre his body into a position where he can escape the defender. He's awkward to play against, technically better than he sometimes gets credit for and always looking to make something happen. I think he's going to score plenty of goals for us, and I'd be looking for at least 15 in all competitions this season, with the potential for considerably more.

Buendía deserves some credit as well because I've been critical of him at times, but I thought he worked really hard and contributed positively, particularly during the first half. There are still things he does that frustrate me, but he was involved in plenty of our better attacking moments and helped establish the intensity that we played with.

Johan Manzambi was another player who I really enjoyed watching, particularly during the opening 45 minutes. His ability to manipulate his body and deceive defenders is exceptional, and there were moments where Brentford players simply didn't seem to know which direction he was going to move. He's a really unique footballer, and although I thought he began to tire during the second half, he still had the quality to deliver the ball into John McGinn for our second goal.

McGinn's contribution shouldn't be overlooked either. He's added goals to his game since returning from injury earlier this year, and I think he should be targeting double figures this season. He's capable of playing in different positions, understands exactly what Emery wants from him and continues to be such an important player for this team. When you consider the attacking players we've lost during the summer, having somebody like McGinn contributing more regularly in front of goal becomes particularly valuable.

Ibrahim Mbaye also made a really encouraging contribution when he came into the game. He looked dangerous on both sides, was constantly making runs and gave Brentford something different to think about. He's another player who I think will become increasingly important as he gets more familiar with Emery's demands, and it's worth remembering that some of these new arrivals are still very young and have plenty of development ahead of them.

That's probably one of the biggest reasons I'm so optimistic about this squad. We're already seeing some really good performances from players who haven't been at the club particularly long, and I think there's an awful lot more to come from them. They're contributing now, but they're also players who could be considerably better in six months or a year's time, once they've developed a greater understanding of their teammates and the way Emery wants them to play.

I actually think this group might have more natural footballing ability than the team we've watched over the previous couple of seasons. That's not a criticism of what came before because we had an excellent side that achieved some incredible things, but I think there are different qualities in this squad that could eventually allow us to play even better football.

The previous team was a really good unit, capable of producing outstanding moments and playing some excellent football, but there are players in this group who offer a different level of individual creativity and technical ability. Manzambi can carry the ball and manipulate defenders in ways that very few footballers can, Jackson gives us a completely different presence at centre-forward and we have options in attacking areas that can change the way we approach games.

Even the players coming off the bench are capable of making an impact, which I think is going to be particularly important during this busy period of the season. There are different combinations available to Emery, and I don't think we've come close to seeing everything this squad is capable of producing yet.

Of course, there are still problems that need addressing, and the most obvious concern at the moment is defensively. We shouldn't be conceding the goals we conceded against Brentford, particularly the second one when we'd just taken the lead and should have been looking to manage the game. Allowing Kristoffer Ajer to advance through the team and get himself into a goalscoring position so quickly after McGinn had put us ahead was incredibly frustrating, and it's something Emery will undoubtedly want to address.

I don't think we're quite right at centre-back, and although Boubacar Kamara showed some encouraging signs of getting back towards his best, we're still not functioning as well defensively as we can. The positive is that I don't think we're miles away from improving that side of our game, particularly as Kamara continues to recover his sharpness and the defensive partnerships become more established.

There was also the disruption of losing Matteo Ruggeri at half-time, which meant having to use a right-footed player at left-back. That's never ideal, particularly when you're trying to create width and attacking opportunities against a well-organised team, and I do wonder whether we'd have been able to cause Brentford even more problems had we maintained that natural balance on the left-hand side.

One thing that did frustrate me throughout the afternoon was the refereeing, particularly the way Brentford were allowed to take so long over throw-ins. There were occasions when the referee seemed to wait an age before even beginning his countdown, and then the countdown itself was painfully slow. I don't think there were necessarily any enormous decisions that changed the game, but there were so many smaller things that weren't managed particularly well, and it made it difficult for Villa to establish any sustained momentum.

Despite all of that, I thought it was a really entertaining afternoon at Villa Park. There was a good atmosphere, the crowd seemed to appreciate what the players were trying to do and I didn't sense any real negativity, even when things weren't going our way. It was one of those games where you almost felt exhausted watching it because the players were putting so much into the performance, and you found yourself going through every moment with them.

I think the improvements we're seeing are quite clear when you look at the performances over the opening weeks of the season. We showed a different sort of resilience against Arsenal, the Nottingham Forest game was disappointing, and then we went to Tottenham and got a really good victory. Against Brentford, I thought there was another improvement in the quality of our football, even though we didn't get the result we wanted.

That's why I don't think we should judge this team purely on the points dropped on Saturday. We're watching a group of players who are still learning about one another, with several new signings being asked to make important contributions straight away, and I think the progress is there to see. We're beginning to create chances through different combinations, the movement in attacking areas is improving and there's a greater variety to what we can do with the ball.

I've got a feeling that at some point everything is going to come together in one game and we're going to give somebody a real hiding. There have already been spells where we've looked capable of doing that, but we haven't quite managed to sustain it for long enough or take all the opportunities we've created. With the quality we've got in attacking areas, I don't think it's going to be too long before we produce a really dominant performance and get the result to go with it.

We have a lot of football coming up in October, across different competitions, and I think that will suit Emery and give him the opportunity to use more of the squad. I expect Villa to win games during this period, and although the draw with Brentford was frustrating because of how close we came to taking all three points, I wouldn't be surprised if we look back at it as a decent result against a very good side.

There will be more difficult afternoons, and I don't expect every performance to be perfect while we're still working out the best combinations and trying to establish greater consistency. But I left Villa Park feeling that we're heading in the right direction, and that the work done during the summer has given Emery a squad with an enormous amount of potential.

The defensive mistakes need sorting out, and there are still some things to improve in how we manage games, but I'm not particularly worried about what we're producing going forward. I think we've got a really exciting group of footballers, several of whom are already making an impact despite still having plenty of room to develop, and the more I watch them together, the more convinced I become that we're going to see some excellent football from Aston Villa this season.