The most difficult thing would have been to not win today. Hull have a terrible away record having only picked up two points on their travels all season and while they've had a better run of late, they are not exactly the most exciting team to watch.

So the job today was very much about just doing what we do and taking the chances. We did and we picked up the three points with goals from Richard Dunne, one you will have to see to believe (not a typical defenders goal), you won't believe me, James Milner with another one you have to see to believe (Steve Sidwell not even on the pitch helped set it up) and John Carew, with a penalty very late on after Webcam was brought down in the box.

But Hull were poor also, it wasn't all us. We played as we normally play but with a little extra spice as Downing started and played on the left and right - switching a lot with Webcam, while Milner, playing in the middle mostly, also seemed to get everywhere today and while the crossing from all could do with a little work, Downing looks to have a decent one on him from both left and right.

The best part of today though isn't our three points, which if we are honest, we always expected, but the fact that, Liverpool have dropped two points at Ewood park, meaning we move up to fifth, four points above Manchester City too, who are going to lose to Chelsea at home this evening.

Talking about Manchester City for a moment, where can I get odds on Mark Hughes not seeing in 2010 as Manchester City manager; anyone know?

Before I leave you to have a glass of wine (forgot to buy beer), they'll be a post mortem tomorrow and a look at the papers, but in the meantime, please vote for your man of the match. I'm going for James Milner, he did okay today.

Comments (141)

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HeyNowHank said:

... Woop woop!

Comment 1, made on December 05, 2009 at 3.57 pm

Nigel said:

... Good result and nice to keep a clean sheet!

Comment 2, made on December 05, 2009 at 3.57 pm

James said:

... Good work Villa. Bad work Villastreams.

Comment 3, made on December 05, 2009 at 3.59 pm

Alex Glynn said:

... The way we dominated in the first alf I wouldn't have been pleased with just 2-0. The 3-0 and our first clean sheet for a while, on the other hand, much pleases me.

Comment 4, made on December 05, 2009 at 4.00 pm

cockneyvillan said:

... good result, man-ure next im going for a smash and grab villa win 1-2

Comment 5, made on December 05, 2009 at 4.03 pm

Paul Theiss said:

... People have called this an overly offensive lineup. But I don't agree. Were we really better off defensively with Sidwell in the middle of the park than we are with Milner, who works his socks off?

Comment 6, made on December 05, 2009 at 4.04 pm

Mike Carter said:

... Good win, good performance. Not great, never hit top gear, but good enough. Hull are a poor Premiership side, there's no denying that, and we're a little lucky in the sense that Matt Duke was directly responsible for two of our goals. Still, 3 points is pleasing and a clean sheet is very pleasing. It was a solid team effort and nobody really shone above anyone else, I think on the balance of things I'm inclined to agree with Damian and gibe my vote to Milner. As usual, he worked his arse off and is steadily becoming a real quality player, the World Cup beckons for him at this rate without a doubt. Other shoutouts: Luke Young and Stephen Warnock - are they the best fullback combination in the league at the moment? I love these guys, they both play with their hearts on their sleeves and give everything for the course. Both tackled like their lives depended on it today and they pretty much snubbed out any real threat from Hull. They'll have far tougher opposition in future, but they passed with flying colours today. Downing played well, it's great to see him string together back to back 90 minutes worth of football now, think we can pretty much say he's back to 100% now. He, Milner and Young combined to make one of the most confusing midfield setups of recent times, with all three interchanging on the wings. He put in some really decent crosses and just looks an alltogether different breed of player to Sidwell or Reo-Coker. I think Villa will look a much more excting and threatening team with Downing in it. Also, Carew to take Penalties full time now? The beauty of a Carew penalty is it's simplicity - take a massive run up and just thump the fecker. No messing. 5th in the league, above Pool and City, level with Spurs, and we're starting to get a really good goal difference now. Bring on United!

Comment 7, made on December 05, 2009 at 4.04 pm

Mike Carter said:

... Oh and one other thing - it was a real shame to see Bullard limp off today, hope he recovers from his injury quickly.

Comment 8, made on December 05, 2009 at 4.05 pm

chrisb said:

... Damian i thought you didnt go-so where did you see the goals?

Comment 9, made on December 05, 2009 at 4.11 pm

Daniel Wilson said:

... Mon has to go 4-5-1 against Man U with Reo coming in for Heskey, although I can just see Sidwell starting... This is the best chance we have had at beating United for years, I'd even go as far as saying I think we have a stronger starting XI right now. Nice to see a penalty finally converted and that the Pool dropped points (again!)

Comment 10, made on December 05, 2009 at 4.12 pm

Bullards Knee said:

... good perfomance by Villa,but shockingly poor perfomance by the tigers. Milner a must for WC squad. Hope Bullards injury not to serious would be a nightmare for us if so,great reception by both sets of fans wen he went off though. Hope u beat Man Yoo nxt week and break the top four. Sad Hull Fan

Comment 11, made on December 05, 2009 at 4.18 pm

WinsforVilla said:

... No criticism intended, but it was an opportunity in the second half to give Delph or Clarke 20 mins. But I suppose the realignment of midfield with Downing coming in makes that difficult. The yellow cards are piling up again though!

Comment 12, made on December 05, 2009 at 4.20 pm

Steve Badger said:

... Agree with everything, 3 points and a clean sheet can't be bad For those who managed to watch, Pat Heard said it was a game of two halves, good in the first and not so good in the second. Do you agree? To put a slight dampener on things the scum are up to 8th Oh and the Aston Expressway is shut in both directions. I bet it's a nightmare getting away.

Comment 13, made on December 05, 2009 at 4.29 pm

Mike Carter said:

... WinsforVilla I don't think that would have been neccessary. With 20 minutes to go, we were only 2-0 up. You can't bring on subsitutes just for the sake of it - that's only a slender lead and you never know when Villa might switch off and see a repeat of the Stoke game last season.

Comment 14, made on December 05, 2009 at 4.30 pm

Alex Glynn said:

... Badger, I don't think I would quite agree. The first half we were good and Hull were terrible, the second half we were quite good [but definitely worse than the first] and hull starting playing poorly [that's a massive improvement over the first!!]

Comment 15, made on December 05, 2009 at 4.52 pm

Steve Badger said:

... Cheers, Glynnder

Comment 16, made on December 05, 2009 at 4.55 pm

Car Frost said:

... I'm going for James Milner, he did okay today. As enthusiastic as ever Damian

Comment 17, made on December 05, 2009 at 5.10 pm

Damian said:

... frosty but he did .. but we also played against a team that were dire. okay, maybe not dire, but poor. but, he was the best of the bunch although everyone looked up for it

Comment 18, made on December 05, 2009 at 5.15 pm

Andy Young said:

... To quote O'Neill, 'Absolutely delighted'.

Comment 19, made on December 05, 2009 at 5.29 pm

Car Frost said:

... Fair enough, must admit I only listened to the game, can't wait for motd. I give up on dream team games, whenever Lampard / Gerrard put in ok performances but score it's a 9 / 10 rating I bet Milner gets a 7 / 8. Man City equalised

Comment 20, made on December 05, 2009 at 5.31 pm

Graeme Smith said:

... Just back from the match - traffic a nightmare. Surprised folk not more positive here. First half was great - attacking front 5 linked up superbly. We made Hull look bad. I am a 4-5-1 fan but had hoped for 4-4-2 for this match and for the first 20 mins it looked like we would score a hat full. The injuries broke up the game and after Bullard went off we never got going at full tilt again - but we were always on top. The danger with 4-4-2 is the space we leave in midfield when 2 of the midfield are out on the wings. This was prevented today by Milner who covers enormous space so we don't have gaps. There is a question as to why we fade in the second half. I know some will blame MON - but then we should start first half badly as well. Today I thought Stan faded. He was good in the first half but by end of second was a spectator for a lot of the game - Milner never stopped running. Milner MOM - set up Dunne with lovely pass, great goal himself and never stopped running. Saying the later makes it sound like he is all heart but no skill - and this is definitely not the case. Overall a weak team made to look bad and three points at home never in doubt.

Comment 21, made on December 05, 2009 at 5.33 pm

Steve Badger said:

... The first half we were good and Hull were terrible, the second half we were quite good [but definitely worse than the first] and hull starting playing poorly [that's a massive improvement over the first!!] I've just been thinking about this a bit more. This strikes me as a manager telling the team it's in the bag, hence they take their foot off the gas. From what I heard we were all over them in the first half. So why didn't we end up slaughtering them? Or is this another case of us having run out of steam? I'm not moaning, just thinking aloud. I don't madly care when I haven't watched it. We got the win, enough said.

Comment 22, made on December 05, 2009 at 5.35 pm

scott harwood said:

... city 2-1 gutted i couldnt watch it today but by all accounts it was comfortable.another 90 mins for downing and a mom performance by milner who i gonna be a proper central midfielder with some more games there.hes got all the attributes for the job.

Comment 23, made on December 05, 2009 at 5.55 pm

Gavin Merriman said:

... Great result, should take some confidence into the utd game. How did milner play in the central role?

Comment 24, made on December 05, 2009 at 5.55 pm

Mike Carter said:

... MerryMan He spent as much time out wide as he did in the middle, he and Downing were constantly swapping roles. It worked very well, Downing is instantly one of our best crossers of the ball. Young had a bit of a shocker in my opinion.

Comment 25, made on December 05, 2009 at 6.10 pm

david mc gorrian said:

... great result today.UTV chelsea just missed penalty

Comment 26, made on December 05, 2009 at 6.17 pm

Steve Badger said:

... I've just thought. How did Heskey play? I got the impression from the 1152 commentators that he was about par for his course and the fans were glad to see Carew come on.

Comment 27, made on December 05, 2009 at 6.22 pm

Darren said:

... recorded the goal highlights from the stream i was watching, for anyone who cant wait for motd http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FixfDBEJgAg

Comment 28, made on December 05, 2009 at 6.32 pm

Alex Glynn said:

... Heskey was muscular and he did well with getting to the ball in the first half. Not quite as good in the 2nd and as Carew can be a really great substitute [sounds harsh but shouldn't] I think I'd agree that it was right to bring him on. Heskey didn't play badly by any means, but it was just nice to have the change. And on your earlier point. We really did dominate them in the first half [and sure we were probably a better than good, but not incredible] if it wasn't for a great save at the start we'd have been 1-0 up after one minute and there were a couple of other times that we could have scored in the first half, that's why a 2-0 final score wouldn't have done for me. Second half was usual Villa really, we were quite good and that's it, perhaps we took our foot off the gas but it didn't look like we were really putting in less effort. I think maybe we just needed someone to mix it up a bit? The Hull post-shot actually improved the game too. But I dunno, I'm not that qualified to talk about it, just giving some opinions. Would have liked to see Delph play even if vivavilla didn't think subbing him on was right ;] PS. CITY SCUM.

Comment 29, made on December 05, 2009 at 6.36 pm

Alex Glynn said:

... By the way by usual villa I mean usual 2nd half Villa. We're beautiful normally - wonder what MON says to the players to put them off !

Comment 30, made on December 05, 2009 at 6.41 pm

Graeme Smith said:

... I would agree Young (webcam) had a bad game - as he did against Spurs. Definite loss of form and his booking was stupid - squaring up for no obvious reason. At the moment he can't go past players and his crossing is inconsistent. Heskey was good when Villa played well. When the ball was played to feet he held it up and linked up superbly -nearly setting up Luke Young in the first minute. After we went more long ball he won his headers - and then it is just a case of whether Gabby could pick up the scraps. But Heskey did his bit by winning everything in the air. He missed a shot on goal, putting it past the far post when he should have scored. No doubt his detractors will focus on this but his all round contribution was a lot more than this. Carew did liven things up when he came on but didn't have a good shot on goal that I remember. Gabby caused them problems but didn't get much help from the ref - couple of times Gabby away on goal but then didn't shoot which is a bit of a worry.

Comment 31, made on December 05, 2009 at 6.45 pm

Steve Badger said:

... Cheers again Glynnder Darren, Cheers mate, I shall have a look at those in a min. I'm not going to watch the highlights on MOTD, as I just don't trust them enough to judge a game. It feels quite odd not having seen the game proper. Never mind, anyone who got caught out with Villastreams today will be able to watch the Khan fight (hopefully) Which is exactly what I'm going to do.

Comment 32, made on December 05, 2009 at 6.48 pm

Steve Badger said:

... Rorty, I think we are positive, but most of us never got to see it, which makes it hard to comment mate. Appreciate your comments

Comment 33, made on December 05, 2009 at 6.52 pm

henrydouble said:

... darren you're a saint

Comment 34, made on December 05, 2009 at 6.54 pm

scott harwood said:

... gonna watch the fight now badger.hope khan gets knocked out!

Comment 35, made on December 05, 2009 at 7.02 pm

Martin Clabon said:

... Good performance and result - suprise suprise Damian can't find anything positive to say. Still I guess it must be hard running a Villa site when you are a Blackburn fan. Good to see the 3 Amigoes swapping positions - looked very difficult for average opposition. Will soon find out if they can do the same against good opposition in our very tough Christmas fixtures. Only mildly suprised man city beat Chelsea, they are a very good team despite how much we try to wish otherwise

Comment 36, made on December 05, 2009 at 7.05 pm

Fatkevs said:

... Another poor second half display. i hope JimmyB is OK in saying that i glad he was not out there for the 90mins he would have given them something. The Ref stood out most today he lost it completely Mon needs to shake the premadonna out of Ashley

Comment 37, made on December 05, 2009 at 7.05 pm

Martin Clabon said:

... Scott, what you got against Khan?

Comment 38, made on December 05, 2009 at 7.05 pm

Car Frost said:

... Quick trivia.. what have the following players never done? Cantona, Rush, Anelka, Best, Giggs, Arshavin & Berbatov?

Comment 39, made on December 05, 2009 at 7.09 pm

scott harwood said:

... khans a fraud.hes been spouting that hes gonna be a great blah blah blah then he move up in weight to avoid big punching thaxton and murray.he beats the weakest world champion kotelnik and is now taking on someone with a padded record.hes stuffed after this fight because he cant step up in weight because all the wws are fearsome.it wouldnt surprise me if he fights mitchell(if he beats prescott).

Comment 40, made on December 05, 2009 at 7.15 pm

scott harwood said:

... mitchell next.

Comment 41, made on December 05, 2009 at 7.18 pm

Martin Clabon said:

... Thanks Scott, I like him but don't know much about boxing FatKevs, not like you to focus on the negative!

Comment 42, made on December 05, 2009 at 7.29 pm

adam said:

... mitchell would knock him out me thinks. cant stand khan something about him cant put me finger on it but like mitchell hes just been a bit inconsistent

Comment 43, made on December 05, 2009 at 7.33 pm

scott harwood said:

... b30 villain i like mitchell aswell.hes a spiteful puncher and an underrated boxer.he tends to get involved too much and hes gonna have to be careful because prescotts a massive puncher.ask khan hahaha.i think the thing that pisses people off about khan is the exposure he gets when there are good boxers domestically who get far less exposure.khans come out today and said if he was white he would be more loved but imo he gets the recognition he does because of his skin colour.i dont think hed get as much press if he was white his ethnicity is what makes him stand out.

Comment 44, made on December 05, 2009 at 7.38 pm

Alex Glynn said:

... they haven't played in the world cup, i don't think?

Comment 45, made on December 05, 2009 at 7.39 pm

Dave said:

... Frosty Never played in world cup finals?

Comment 46, made on December 05, 2009 at 7.39 pm

Alex Glynn said:

... I don't think they've got past the play-offs?

Comment 47, made on December 05, 2009 at 7.40 pm

Dave said:

... Final stages that should say DOH!!!

Comment 48, made on December 05, 2009 at 7.40 pm

Car Frost said:

... Yeah, they have never played in the world cup finals, shocked me ( apart from the Welsh players )

Comment 49, made on December 05, 2009 at 7.45 pm

Dave said:

... Frosty I think Cantona fell out with the French manager!!,not surprisng

Comment 50, made on December 05, 2009 at 7.48 pm

Sean said:

... Frosty Never played for portsmouth.

Comment 51, made on December 05, 2009 at 7.48 pm

GL said:

... I love 3 points, LOVE it! Next weekend will be exciting for sure. Warnock is a brilliant peace of business, wouldn't change him for anyone at all.

Comment 52, made on December 05, 2009 at 7.57 pm

villarobin said:

... Ha Ha , this blog gets more and more comica. From Damians opening paragraph onwards its all "Ok we won , but the opposition were bad and villa didnt play that well blah blah blah" WE WON 3-0 FOR f**kS SAKE !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! CELEBRATE IT DOESNT GET ANY BETTER THAN THIS STOP MOANING / LOOKING FOR SOMETHING TO MOAN ABOUT !!!! YOU ARE ALL A DISGRACE

Comment 53, made on December 05, 2009 at 8.16 pm

Alex Glynn said:

... [villarobin clearly wasn't with me when the first goal was scored, when the second goal was scored, and when the third goal was scored, and when the full time whistle was.. scored? THAT was crazy celebration, esp. cos i was on my own!]

Comment 54, made on December 05, 2009 at 8.18 pm

villarobin said:

... Some of you are even saying "A Poor Display" I think im going mad i really do. What on earth do villa have to do for "THE FANS" to actually for once just say :"That was great , we won and didnt let any goals in"

Comment 55, made on December 05, 2009 at 8.18 pm

Alex Glynn said:

... one person said a poor second half display... Apart from that every comment is "good" or even "great". From me I very rarely describe something as great. Manchester Utd 3 - Villa 2 was a great match. Let's hope next weekend we can really show them who's boss!

Comment 56, made on December 05, 2009 at 8.21 pm

Steve Badger said:

... SCOTT1, I used to like him mate, but you're right he's a skank.

Comment 57, made on December 05, 2009 at 8.25 pm

rocky marciano said:

... i don`t see anyone moaning certainly don`t think any comments are a disgrace,why don`t you f**k off villarobin

Comment 58, made on December 05, 2009 at 8.26 pm

villarobin said:

... Nah sorry Glynnder the tone of Damians article is very muted , and then afew people are off with their comments. I just think alot of villa fans are moaning gits simple as ..

Comment 59, made on December 05, 2009 at 8.26 pm

Car Frost said:

... Fitzy - they are the only 10 players in the past decade never to of graced in a Harry Redknapp team. Just a thought, does anybody know if Downing can take penalties?

Comment 60, made on December 05, 2009 at 8.28 pm

Damian said:

... villarobin it is great. three points is excellent and liverpool only getting one made it even better. pity man city won, would have loved them to lose but i´m not getting carried away with it. there is still a long way to go and i had my money on a home win as i couldn´t see any other result. great result, great to have three points but i wasn´t surprised we won, were you? i´ll tell you what will make me very happy and jumping for joy; a point or three next saturday and three points the following tuesday. then i´ll be very happy i´ll be even happier if, after the two legs of the league cup semi final, we book a place in the final at wembley in february but, i´m not going to get carried away over a result that we probably all expected to win and especially when actually, there was little in the game to get excited about in terms of the football. although i will say, just in case you want to know, when we scored the second, i did jump up, because it came from a throw in and i was shouting to take it quickly and they did ... but it is a result and i´m happy we have three points, but there are real tests coming up against united, sunderland, arsenal and liverpool - not to mention stoke at villa park (but i fancy that has 3 points written all over it, much like i thought today had 3 points written all over it)

Comment 61, made on December 05, 2009 at 8.30 pm

Mike Carter said:

... It was great to see Milner knock that goal in, it was kind of similar to that chance Young had against Burnley when he had to stick it in the top of the goal but missed. I know Milner had an open goal to aim at, but that was not as easy as it looked.

Comment 62, made on December 05, 2009 at 8.38 pm

scott harwood said:

... damo mon has said in his post match interview that we played some cracking football in the 1st half.i think ill trust him over you

Comment 63, made on December 05, 2009 at 8.40 pm

Steve Badger said:

... Villarobin and Sidcowans, Still I guess it must be hard running a Villa site when you are a Blackburn fan. This is harsh, imo. I actually think I'm caught in the same trap as Damian and a lot of it stems from expectation and frustration. The shit winning at Wigan is a classic example, after what happened at home against the latter. They also beat Wolves away, to make it worse. I've just had to scrub what I was going to say. It was too negative, but totally realistic. As Damian alluded, beating a dire Hull is no great shakes for a side aspiring for the top 4. I'm hoping we've had our bad patch, put it that way.

Comment 64, made on December 05, 2009 at 8.44 pm

Nick said:

... The first half was very good, we didn't really give Hull a chance, always closed them down, and made the most of our oppurtunities. I thought we were unlucky not to be 4-0 up by halftime, both Downing and L. Young had good chances. Funniest moment for me was whichever substitute passed Gabby the ball so quickly for the throw to Milner for goal 2. Give that man the assist. Was it Sidwell? Feeling sorry for Bullard, but I think it was great how all of the Villa fans applauded him off the pitch. I think we all realise what a character he is. Second half was a bit disappointing though. Like the Spurs game we stopped closing the opposition down, didn't really try to put any passes together. Fortunately Hull aren't as good as Spurs so they couldn't get themselves back into the game. MOTM is Milner by a country mile. No one played badly (though I think Heskey must only play teams in blue or purple to score), but Milner just had that imagination and stamina that works well in central midfield. One thing I would criticise was the decision to switch Downing and Young around ever so often. I don't think Downing was effective on the right, and his crossing with his right foot is obviously not what he's good at. I guess thats something they can work on.

Comment 65, made on December 05, 2009 at 8.47 pm

HT Sweden said:

... Is it true that this was Iron man Friedels 100 clean sheet in PL? Looking forward to semi-finals with Rovers - question is will we play with our "best" team or give our cup team continuous confidence? Kind of delicate matter for MON.

Comment 66, made on December 05, 2009 at 8.48 pm

Damian said:

... SCOTT1 by all means but i fancy martin o´neills definition of cracking football is counter attacking, long ball football. mine isn´t. don´t get me wrong. he could be working towards something else and i hope he is because playing this type of football isn´t, in my opinion, going to get us where we all want to be, it will merely keep us where we are but we did well today - we took our chances. my maths tell me we scored 75% of the shots we had on target which meant we took our chances and that is another aspect of the game that we need to get on top of, and we did today, so its all good

Comment 67, made on December 05, 2009 at 8.52 pm

Steve Badger said:

... Van Dutch, Yes it was Sidwell. Chalk him down for an assist Second half was a bit disappointing though I'll keep my trap shut (read the thread mate). SCOTT1, Haye's a fraud too, imo.

Comment 68, made on December 05, 2009 at 8.53 pm

Damian said:

... Oh, I´m a blackburn fan am I? that is interesting. sorry, i didn´t read that far up. atleast i´m not a gay biker http://www.thevillablog.co.uk/images/sid.png

Comment 69, made on December 05, 2009 at 9.02 pm

marty said:

... 3 goals.... clean sheet..... stewart downing getting another start..... milner scoring...... sidwell not starting..... How could any villa fan be upset with todays game? Today was the perfect game before a man united game, our midfield is getting chemistry and we have three strikers that can do something. (Yes, I am including Heskey) Unlike Derby, any team can win nowadays.....

Comment 70, made on December 05, 2009 at 9.05 pm

Damian said:

... martygra808 i dont think anyone is upset from today

Comment 71, made on December 05, 2009 at 9.07 pm

Martin Clabon said:

... Damian, just going on reports from shoolfriends of yours who claim you were a Blackburn fan at school. Let us know if that isn't true?

Comment 72, made on December 05, 2009 at 9.13 pm

Damian said:

... SidCowanslovechild school friends of mine you say? who do you know that i went to school with?

Comment 73, made on December 05, 2009 at 9.16 pm

Steve Badger said:

... OMG, this is better than that TMZ shite

Comment 74, made on December 05, 2009 at 9.20 pm

VDV said:

... great result, first 20 mins we were superb after that not to superb. milner a legend. brings more than barry in center mid. petrov was good to. they both bossed the midfield. gabi, was ok. we still need a top striker in january. keane, vagnar love or jovetic. another center mid aswell. michael johnson my pick

Comment 75, made on December 05, 2009 at 9.23 pm

rocky marciano said:

... Damian,theres nothing wrong with gay bikers. fit female ones that is

Comment 76, made on December 05, 2009 at 9.29 pm

Steve Badger said:

... Haha, what a joke re Khan. First punch haha

Comment 77, made on December 05, 2009 at 9.38 pm

Steve Badger said:

... And they're bigging Khan up I could have took one on the chin like that and gone down. Embarrassing.

Comment 78, made on December 05, 2009 at 9.40 pm

scott harwood said:

... what a mismatch.ok salita was unbeaten but hes only fought cans.khans a joke,i know my boxing and im not fooled.lets see him against a devon alexander,a timothy bradley,a kendall holt,a ricardo torrres before we go crazy.

Comment 79, made on December 05, 2009 at 9.41 pm

Damian said:

... i cant believe i missed the fight. got lost in time .. i just heard he won, but what happened?

Comment 80, made on December 05, 2009 at 9.42 pm

Steve Badger said:

... I knew it was iffy when they never showed the WDL stats. What an utter joke. And some poor mugs paid £15(?) for that? I'd be doing my nut.

Comment 81, made on December 05, 2009 at 9.43 pm

Steve Badger said:

... what a mismatch.ok salita was unbeaten but hes only fought cans.khans a joke,i know my boxing and im not fooled.lets see him against a devon alexander,a timothy bradley,a kendall holt,a ricardo torrres before we go crazy. I don't know present boxing, but I know when I'm being conned. Anyone with a decent punch will beat Khan, same as either of the Klitskos will beat Haye, imo.

Comment 82, made on December 05, 2009 at 9.47 pm

Damian said:

... ok. just saw it .. pretty impressive that

Comment 83, made on December 05, 2009 at 9.47 pm

Steve Badger said:

... i cant believe i missed the fight. got lost in time .. i just heard he won, but what happened? They tapped gloves, had a couple of jabs and then the mug caught one on the jaw. Start again, he's on his arse. Start again, it's all over. Joke, imo and not worth watching.

Comment 84, made on December 05, 2009 at 9.49 pm

Steve Badger said:

... pretty impressive that Maybe. If you think Khan is any good.

Comment 85, made on December 05, 2009 at 9.50 pm

david said:

... Hull were unbeaten in their last 4 games and over that time had the 3rd best series of results in the premiership, so today was not a foregone conclusion. In the first half we played with real fluidity and constructed some really entertaining passages of play. We're not there yet....we need to show more consistency, but today showed that this squad has it in them to play entertaining football that alsobrings results. It feels as if we've not been at our best recently but despite that, our results over the last 6 games have been the 6th best in the premiership. We're 5th in the premiership and in a cup semi final. Not looking bad is it?

Comment 86, made on December 05, 2009 at 9.50 pm

Mike Carter said:

... Stunning finish from Dunne wasn't it? Any striker in the Prem would be proud of that.

Comment 87, made on December 05, 2009 at 9.53 pm

Damian said:

... r0bb0 on paper, it is looking good. lets hope that it continues. if come the end of january we are still 5th or hell even 6th, have added to the first team (but by default, the squad) then i´ll be more optimistic that we can finish higher than 6th this season and i´ll be ecstatic if by then we are also in a wembley final

Comment 88, made on December 05, 2009 at 9.57 pm

Chris Harper said:

... Jesus I think West Ham need Collins back....even injured looking at that defence!

Comment 89, made on December 05, 2009 at 9.58 pm

Steve Badger said:

... It feels as if we've not been at our best recently but despite that, our results over the last 6 games have been the 6th best in the premiership. To say the least. But that's very encouraging. Nice one r0bb0.

Comment 90, made on December 05, 2009 at 10.01 pm

Mike Carter said:

... Speaking of Collins, when will he be back for us?

Comment 91, made on December 05, 2009 at 10.01 pm

Chris Harper said:

... Milner as CM= 2 Games 2 assists 2 Goals Damian, he did more than ok today. Warnock and Luke Young were absolutely class today. So strong in the tackle and play at 110%. Couldn't be happier with our defence. Dunne is like a brick wall. Why on earth did Man City sell him?? Quality finish too. Milner/Young/Downing switching, great link up play with the full backs too. Its looking good for us now. I can only see us getting better now. If we were to get a top class forward, we would be seriously strong. Im happy at the moment with our current forwards but I mean someone who you would expect to score every game. (like Drogba )

Comment 92, made on December 05, 2009 at 10.05 pm

Chris Harper said:

... Oh and one last thing.... The referee was a complete tosser! Never known so many stoppages, poor decisions. They need a good clearout with referees, they really get my goat!

Comment 93, made on December 05, 2009 at 10.09 pm

david said:

... Damian, I'll admit to being an optimist, but I'm not counting any chickens yet either. In the last couple of seasons it's felt as if we've squeezed out results and our final position in the table has been at the top end of what we were really capable of. This season it feels as if we have a group of players who are capable of pushing a bit further than that. That's not to say that they will, as the team still feels like work in progress, but don't you feel that the potential is there in a way it may not have been in the past?

Comment 94, made on December 05, 2009 at 10.09 pm

Mike Carter said:

... Gabby wasn't at his best today either. It's been rare that Villa play so well with Gabby off song, he's been so important for us this season. Not the best game today though, but he'll bounce back.

Comment 95, made on December 05, 2009 at 10.10 pm

Chris Harper said:

... viva I agree dude

Comment 96, made on December 05, 2009 at 10.11 pm

villarobin said:

... Robbo - theres no point telling this lot on this blog that Hull have been on a good run and not lost in 4 games, its all doom and gloom on this blog. Villa are either - Lucky, play bad but still get a result, or play against poor opposition. There is no pleasing some people. Then at the end of season if we do actually win a cup or finish in the top 4 they will all be like "Oh yes what an excellent team we have" HA

Comment 97, made on December 05, 2009 at 10.14 pm

david said:

... Villa_Chris Couldn't be happier with our defence. Dunne is like a brick wall. Why on earth did Man City sell him?? Quality finish too. I said the same to my son at half time. Hughes sold Dunne for £5m and bought Lescott for £22m. ....bizarre.....great managerial vision!!!

Comment 98, made on December 05, 2009 at 10.15 pm

Damian said:

... r0bb0 there is more potential - but only a few weeks ago some were complaining that we hadn´t replaced barry or laursen. i didn´t agree with that (because i think we did replace laursen and i didn´t think barry needed replacing) but i say it because it just goes to show that individual results are important to how people think and over the next 7 weeks we have a lot of games against quite a few of the bigger/stronger teams but to the potential and yes i agree but i still cant help but think that when we come up against a team that has something about them we might not get the results that we want, because we are still fairly predictable and one dimensional i´d love to be wrong and seeing downing playing on the left and right today was nice because i actually think webcam is better on the right than he is on the left and i think that milner is better on the left than the right, although he did okay today in the middle but the flexibility of all three moving across the middle looked good today and if we could get a really attacking central midfielder to join them and have him playing instead of say heskey today, then things could get exciting for those who will argue with me now about the heskey statement above - a lot of the time today he was dropping back to get involved and while i rate him as a very good lone striker in a 451, i dont rate thim that much as an attacker who drops back ... so, maybe, it could get interesting, maybe. but lets just see what happens at the end of the season

Comment 99, made on December 05, 2009 at 10.20 pm

Steve Badger said:

... Never known so many stoppages Gabby wasn't at his best today either. The commentary I listened to totally agreed with these sentiments.

Comment 100, made on December 05, 2009 at 10.20 pm

Chris Harper said:

... Nice of the MOTD team to talk about Villa

Comment 101, made on December 05, 2009 at 10.22 pm

tubbydunne said:

... Just saw the highlights very heartening, well taken three points, Downing is going to make a big difference, feel we are progressing all the time, keep it going MON.

Comment 102, made on December 05, 2009 at 10.22 pm

Chris Harper said:

... The scum scored from a freekick that wasn't a freekick! I hate them, I really do.

Comment 103, made on December 05, 2009 at 10.26 pm

Damian said:

... villarobin hull have picked up 2 points away all season. we were the out and out favourites with the bookmakers before kick off did you think we were going to get anything other than what we got today? i even said in my preview we´d win with 10 men it was that predictable but its great that we won but hardly surprising. if we beat united, sunderland, arsenal and whoever else above we have coming over our next 5 games - thats it, if we have 15 points from our next five, i´ll say i got it wrong about o´neill and i´ll throw my hands up and say his style of play is the way forward and i´ll give him 100% support for ever and never question anything that he does again but lets just see how many points we have after the next five games. what do you think we will get, seeing as we are such a great team?

Comment 104, made on December 05, 2009 at 10.26 pm

Chris Harper said:

... i even said in my preview we´d win with 10 men Take it you thought Sidwell would start?? Damian, cheer up man! We won, clean sheet, decent position in the league and in a semi-final.

Comment 105, made on December 05, 2009 at 10.29 pm

Mike Carter said:

... Damian's right, we are potentially only 2 new players away from being a really competitive side. O'Neill stated he wanted a team more comfortable on the ball, well, January's approaching Martin. Here's your chance.

Comment 106, made on December 05, 2009 at 10.30 pm

Chris Harper said:

... Oh and 2 great goals!

Comment 107, made on December 05, 2009 at 10.30 pm

Mike Carter said:

... ... Nice of the MOTD team to talk about Villa Pisses me off that does, happens every time. They'll analyse the crap out of Spurs or Man City games, but they normally skip straight past Villa.

Comment 108, made on December 05, 2009 at 10.31 pm

Chris Harper said:

... Exactly Viva, they could have talked about the link up play between the attacking 5, or the wing swapping...anything

Comment 109, made on December 05, 2009 at 10.33 pm

Chris Harper said:

... Anyone else like to slap that geeza with the bell? Drives me mad!

Comment 110, made on December 05, 2009 at 10.34 pm

Chris Harper said:

... My gf said Milijas' goal was really good...we will see

Comment 111, made on December 05, 2009 at 10.36 pm

Damian said:

... Villa_Chris i´m happy. i´m just not getting carried away anymore. i did in his first season, but i also accepted that was his first season and didn´t expect much, but in the two after that i´ve had too many of these moments where i thought maybe the corner was turned only to find out it wasn´t. so, instead of thinking the corner has turned, i dont, because i´ve thought that too many times only to be let down

Comment 112, made on December 05, 2009 at 10.42 pm

david said:

... Damian, there are always different ways of looking at things hull have picked up 2 points away all season. Another way of putting it is that after a desperately poor start they are improving away from home and are unbeaten in their last two games. if we beat united, sunderland, arsenal and whoever else above we have coming over our next 5 games - thats it, if we have 15 points from our next five, i´ll say i got it wrong about o´neill and i´ll throw my hands up and say his style of play is the way forward and i´ll give him 100% support for ever and never question anything that he does again Nothing like setting the bar high eh, but it'd be fun seeing you trying to hold to that promise! but lets just see how many points we have after the next five games. what do you think we will get, seeing as we are such a great team? I know this comment wasn't aimed at me but I'll respond anyway. I wouldn't say we're a 'great' team yet by any means. Certainly not in the mould of a Man Utd or Chelsea. I still think there's an evens possibility of us ending up below 6th this year, but I do see signs of a really promising first 11, some genuine strength on the bench and an excellent crop of youngsters on the up. It's not all about the here and now, it's also about solid foundations creating optimism for a sustained improvement in the results and status of Aston Villa.

Comment 113, made on December 05, 2009 at 10.49 pm

Chris Harper said:

... Ok, fair enough, I'll let you off Its a bit like not having a pet because you don't want the time to come when it dies.

Comment 114, made on December 05, 2009 at 10.49 pm

Mike Carter said:

... Dear oh dear how did Kalinic not score that chance? All it needed was one touch to take it past Reina and he'd have had a wide open goal to aim at.

Comment 115, made on December 05, 2009 at 10.49 pm

Damian said:

... r0bb0 i also see some really good players in the team and i also see the potential, i just fear our style of play, or more specifically, the way o´neill sets out the team to play isn´t going to get us any higher than 6th i can see some really good players and i can see that defensively we are very good but i´m not seeing the football develop, i really am not. it still can and we might get 5th (we need to in my book) but i just cant see it .. sorry but i can see the potential, i can see it clear as day - we have some very good players ... but i cant see it happening, but i´d love to be wrong

Comment 116, made on December 05, 2009 at 10.53 pm

Tjeiken said:

... I gotta agree abit with robbo damian, we have allready beaten chelsea and pool.. we have the quality to go for a run now.. i also think we can get a point at manchester atm

Comment 117, made on December 05, 2009 at 11.02 pm

david said:

... Damian, I do see where you're coming from, but there are increasing passages of play that I would have thought you'd be happy with. In the first half today there was some really exciting play and incisive passing. Never mind the formation on paper, on the pitch, the play was fluid and far from 'long ball' for most of the time.

Comment 118, made on December 05, 2009 at 11.02 pm

Rattus NorVillicus said:

... Da Boyz dun good

Comment 119, made on December 05, 2009 at 11.09 pm

Damian said:

... r0bb0 i´ve seen it in most games. i always see it .. hell, it could come and i´d love it too but its like i´ve said above - last season and the season before there were patches in the season when it started to come good and then it crashed around us - i´m just not going to get too excited about it as it might very well crash next game out. now, if we do the exact same against sunderland i´ll be impressed but it was hull and i know you´ll say they´ve not lost in four or whatever, but they´ve only picked up 2 points away all season and early on lost their best player we are still not even half way through the season. overall, today is a good result but we need to see at the end of the season where we are. as in, can o´neill take us further. it is important that we develop Tjeiken if it was a bout just winning individual games i´d be happy too

Comment 120, made on December 05, 2009 at 11.17 pm

Rattus NorVillicus said:

... There may be trouble ahead but while we're winning, opponents we are skinning and goals are made from every chance let's face the music - and dance & though the football is dire while motor Milner is on fire & Richard Dunne can hit a flier even though Heskey is still pants let's face the music - and dance And while MON hasn't got a clue and still is playing 4.4.2 infuriating me and you lost in his Irish Pixie trance let's face the music - and dance woop woop

Comment 121, made on December 05, 2009 at 11.59 pm

jerry said:

... let's face the music - and dance Pancho, you da man.

Comment 122, made on December 06, 2009 at 1.07 am

Steve Oldaker said:

... superb first half performance surely no one can moan after that ??? picking up to many bookings for my liking martin will have to monitor that as the big games start coming up, gonna be interesting if he sticks with same side/formation next week because i think we may require a bit more steel in the middle of the park

Comment 123, made on December 06, 2009 at 8.20 am

tonky said:

... anyone who watched the game live yesterday would agree with me that milner was superb yesterday. This is a young lad who's been thrown in to the middle of the park in probably the best league in the world. We've all been crying out for a creative midfielder and he seems to be fitting the bill, he'll only get better too. The last 2 games he's played he's brought a new dimension to our play. No longer is it just hoofed out to the wings and hopefull crosses swung in, were actually threading balls through to our strikers (and defenders good old dunney) and I love it. This isn't a dig damien but maybe you should allow bloggers who were at the game to provide the posts after a game? UTV

Comment 124, made on December 06, 2009 at 8.24 am

Damian said:

... tonky 'No longer is it just hoofed out to the wings and hopefull crosses swung in' - two bloody games and it's all changed has it? milner not playing on the wings is probably why we haven't had any hopeful crosses put in but as you were at the game 'live' you'll know that in the first half, he still put crosses in and they still mostly all failed. above, i've even given man of the match to milner, so why do you think watching the game 'live' is better to give an opinion? it used to be, 30 years ago when people could only watch the highlights on match of the day - but not any more. it really isn't and i've done my fair share of games at the stadium. sure, the atmosphere is better but for actually watching the game - i'm sorry, i disagree. watching on tv is better than being at the game. sure that is just my opinion but so many football pundits and just for you because no doubt you'll use this, these are ex-Professionals and former managers - watch the games on TV to give an opinion. actually - you probably don't watch match of the day or anything on sky because none of the people on those programmes were actually at the games - so their opinions probably mean nothing to you. i'm sorry. but 30 years ago it was different yes. not anymore. in fact, could argue that it is actually better on tv

Comment 125, made on December 06, 2009 at 8.42 am

Darragh McGeown said:

... Its funny how Steve Sidwells first real positive contribution this season came when he wasn't even on the pitch No seriously - Milner was quite simple awesome and its was a good performance all round. We needed that given the run of fixtures we have coming up....

Comment 126, made on December 06, 2009 at 8.44 am

fatkevs said:

... Pancho loose the music swap with Scum & replace line our football dire (small heath)we have a song Our football is dire when we run out of steam, but how can the midfield keep that tempo for 96mins

Comment 127, made on December 06, 2009 at 8.57 am

fatkevs said:

... If Randy pulls this off i will have to take back what i have said about him "Villa’s commercial staff have been entertaining potential blue-chip clients at recent home games" "the club have told all potential backers that an ongoing support for the charity will be a condition of any deal. £5m a year will not change our world but here he is doing the best for the charity & the club.

Comment 128, made on December 06, 2009 at 9.07 am

fatkevs said:

... I felt James was caught out a few times, still not convinced it is the right position for him early day but he would always be in my team for his work ethic. I may prefer to give Ashley a run in the middle. I think our biggest crime is that we get no one in the box too many players are on the wings leaving EH JC with 3-4 men around them. If we could learn to support the attack we would be so much better. Yesterday Ash played the ball out of defense & watched as we attacked now this is not his game it must be orders

Comment 129, made on December 06, 2009 at 9.15 am

Marcus said:

... As great as Milner's pass and as awsome Dunne's finish, i think Heskey deserves a lot of credit for that first goal. Check out the run he makes to take two defenders out the game.....personally i prefer JC to start, but credit where credit is due to him. Maybe these are the things he does why players love him that other folk don't notice.

Comment 130, made on December 06, 2009 at 9.31 am

tonky said:

... Damien I just can't see how you can say milner did ok????especially when all the football pundits, ex pro's and former managers that you speak of above and the daily tabloids are all singing his praises? I'm not saying that the last 2 games are how we'll continue to play all season but its certainely encouraging. I suppose I just wish you'd be a little more encouraging towards our team and our players rather than always looking for a negative.

Comment 131, made on December 06, 2009 at 9.52 am

Damian said:

... tonky i'm not looking for negatives. in my original post i've even said we had added spice and even commented that downing looks to have a decent cross on him i am merely not getting carried away but james milner had a good game becasue hull and pompey were poor. lets see how he copes against man utd nothing wrong with yesterday, but a little perspective is needed

Comment 132, made on December 06, 2009 at 9.55 am

Tjeiken said:

... but you gotta have faith damian without that, what do u got? and what does the lads have without it?

Comment 133, made on December 06, 2009 at 10.29 am

mjasgahr said:

... I was in the North Stand upper tier - and I think the weather had a major effect. Esp. the 2nd half it really made it difficult for us to get our fluid style going = anyone lese notice the Hul player who slipped ar*e over tit in the center circle without even being on the ball? 2nd half Hull played 6 players on their left midfield - so 3 on each of our 2, and every tackle/foul they went down for 5 mins so they broke up our play. But when we managed to get away down the exposed left (thier L) Downing had some joy. Still I always felt the 3rd goal was coming. THe only problem was the way the ref. acted - you'd think he had a bet on Villa wining 2- 0 so didn't want to give us a 3rd one. And BTW Heskey was superb, winning the ball of Hull players and laying it off for others. Saint Martin the miracle worker - turning a donkey into a .. carthorse lol

Comment 134, made on December 06, 2009 at 11.23 am

villarobin said:

... Damian " if we beat united, sunderland, arsenal and whoever else above we have coming over our next 5 games - thats it, if we have 15 points from our next five, i´ll say i got it wrong about o´neill and i´ll throw my hands up and say his style of play is the way forward and i´ll give him 100% support for ever and never question anything that he does again" HOW CAN YOU SAY STUFF LIKE THAT !! EVEN SIR ALEX PROBABLY WOULDNT EXPECT TO GET MAXIMUM POINTS OUT OF OUR NEXT 5 GAMES. I think you are just being negative for the sake of it, you must be, because you are just setting virtually impossible goals for Martin O'neil to "Come up to your standards"

Comment 135, made on December 06, 2009 at 1.08 pm

McParland said:

... Another great performance and result yesterday lads.realy like downings contributions. Next up Man U hard game in every sense of the word, but if ash, gabby, milly,and downing go at their defence like gigs goes at others we could realy upset their apple cart. UP THE VILA

Comment 136, made on December 06, 2009 at 2.44 pm

McParland said:

... I agree with the comments about MOTD they never give villa full time or credit be it mystic mug lawro are sneaky clean gary, neither would fit into a monestry for honest men you only have to look at their mug shots to see that. UP THE VILLA

Comment 137, made on December 06, 2009 at 2.54 pm

John Clark said:

... I'm well pleased because this is what we're supposed to do. Beat teams we're supposed to beat, score goals, keep a clean sheet. I DVR'ed the game, need to watch it again, but we were quick, energetic, always threatening, and starting to play much better football. Yes, against poor teams. But 7-2 against two weak teams in two games is not a bad return at all. Ash/Milner/Downing has a lot of appeal with Petrov and an outstanding back four. Of course it will be more difficult against some of the best teams in the world. But as worried as many of us, me included, were about the quality of the football the last few weeks, I'm seeing signs that an exciting team is coming together with Downing's introduction. We'd all wondered whether that would be the case, and there seems a real possibility he's the missing link we'd hoped he'd be in terms of improving the quality of our play. Milner, two lovely goals in two games, Downing, Ash, all of a sudden we're getting that midfield scoring we knew we needed. Don't care that it's against poor teams. We're supposed to beat them, and we have handily. Well done the lads.

Comment 138, made on December 06, 2009 at 3.21 pm

McParland said:

... Hope some of you villa first team read this,i have just been on the vital spurs forum and its unbeleavable how they are reacting to drawing 2 apiece with gutsy everton.They are totaly gutted with the players and poor old harry calling them useless wa****s LOL .and saying they are no longer top 4 challengers i clearly remember only a week ago when drawing with us how they said they were top 4 material and us deffinately not my my how things quickly change LOL.. UP THE VILA

Comment 139, made on December 06, 2009 at 5.32 pm

Stuart Kinane said:

... As Roy Keane would say, reading some of the negative comments here is getting a bit "boring". Damian: "i am merely not getting carried away but james milner had a good game becasue hull and pompey were poor. lets see how he copes against man utd" Damian, I think you have had it in for Milly since he joined us. If I remember rightly, a lot of people were blaming MON for not stumping up the cash to buy a "better" right winger than Milner, someone like David Bentley. About two years on and Bentley is warming the Spurs bench whereas Milner is fast fulfilling Stuart Pearce's description of him as "The Crown Jewels" of English football. He is also making our other star winger Ashley Young look a bit ordinary at the moment. How about giving a bit of credit where it is due and start appluding Milner and the team for how they are playing rather than just waiting for them to trip up? And as for not shining against the big teams, he seemed to play extremely well against Holland and Brazil in recent months. I also remeber him scoring this cracker of a goal for Newcastle up at Man United a couple of seasns ago: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEPH-MIrHHc He is by far our best player this season, Capello sees an extremely bright future from him as do most neutral football pundits in the press yet he gets lukewarm reviews from a minority (thankfully) of Villa "supporters" like yourself. Perhaps you should carry out some more thorough research next time before you go shooting the guy down.

Comment 140, made on December 06, 2009 at 7.10 pm

kistik said:

... players' efforts in the game versus Hull City http://www.voteplayers.com/Mat...-3975.aspx

Comment 141, made on December 07, 2009 at 6.12 pm

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