Misplaced outrage following Aston Villa players seen at Eubank Jr. vs. Benn fight | OneFootball

A lot is being made of Ollie Watkins and Marcus Rashford being at the Eubank Jr. vs. Benn boxing match at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Following the 3-0 defeat to Crystal Palace, a lot of Villa supporters are understandably frustrated and feeling a sense of hope being lost. Not advancing was always a possibility, but how it happened left a sting for fans of AVFC.

Regardless, to now express outrage over the players attending the fight is misplaced outrage. By the time the main card started, the final whistle at Wembley had long since blown. The purchased or acquired tickets were likely made far in advance, and they would have been there no matter what.

Had Villa won, it would have been a 'cool moment,' but since they lost, many feel that attending shows a certain level of tone deafness. At the end of the day, playing is the player's profession. Going to another event in the same city afterward doesn't have any bearing one way or another. If anything, after how things unfolded during the FA Cup semi-final, everyone should have gone for a sense of inspiration.

Either way, winding down and taking the mind off their own sport can benefit them. Someone having their attention and focus 100% on the craft can actually have detrimental effects. Particularly with the amount of matches that Villa have been a part of, taking the evening to watch professionals in a different athletic event can prove useful.

Different players will react differently to any given situation. After a bad loss, some need to just step away and regroup their focus. Others do maintain that 24/7, spew-after-a-loss mindset. In most cases, as mentioned earlier, sticking to something for too long without a break in between can start to have diminishing returns.

What needs to instead be considered

The 'bad look' aspect is valid to an extent. Even then, going to the bout or not going doesn't affect the outcome from Saturday. It's also possible that either Rashford or Watkins sees something that they can then use in the remaining fixtures.

Attending another sanctioned sport needs to be at the bottom of things worth being outraged about, if it would make it at all. It wasn't a good performance, but to criticize the players for spending their time following the fight like this is too far. Instead, players should be judged primarily on how they are on the training grounds and then on how they perform during matches. Coming down on what they do hours after the fact shouldn't enter into the equation.