Written by Damian Saturday, 21 November 2009 16:47
You can say what you want about the result today; the smart money was on it and yes that does include me. It was always going to be tough against them and I think if you were to offer Sir Alex Ferguson it now, he'd happily take a point.
But the football was poor. We really are, once you take away the fight and determination away, just an average football team. We haven't developed under O'Neill and the first half today from Burnley showed us exactly how to play.
The second half was different; we fought and we were determined, but when you play against a team that is also determined and are also fighting and also know how to play or are really trying to play football, then it is going to be tough.
There really is very little to write about after watching this match. Friedel kept us in the game at one down, Stewart Downing made his debut coming on with just under twenty minutes left for Sidwell and Emile Heskey got the equaliser. That really is about it.
Oh, for the few that like stats, we had six shots on target and four off. Burnley had six also but five off target. But and this is just in case you didn't know, we are currently sitting fourth in the table, which when you consider we have got from playing long ball counter attacking, one dimensional football, isn't that bad.
At The End of the DaySome are going to tell you that you have to be happy with a point at Burnley and maybe they are right. I'll accept that for now. We are fourth in the Premier League and while we might not be when the business of football is finished tomorrow, we are now and that is sort of what counts. Football needs to start getting better soon, it really does.
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Villain-from-Texas
said:
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... I wanted all three points, as we all did, but I expected a draw. It's just the fourth point that Burnley has dropped at home all season. So the only true dissapointment is that we were so dire in the first half. Downing put in a couple good balls. I thought he was about to bury that one late in the game when he got free in the box and had a bit of time. |
villarobin
said:
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... all good as far as im concerned. We are not some kind of 'Super team' that never draws and never looses games damian. coming back from 1 nil down in windy / rainy Burnley and moving to 4th in the table is not a bad result at all. We are up there , challenging for honours and thats all that matters. |
fastbackace
said:
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... downing will be great for us. hopefully now our team will learn to play futball. |
ak_27
said:
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... Man utd played them off the park the night they lost and it took a miracle performance by their keeper that night for their win. How many saves did he have to make today? But is everyone really shocked? Im not. That is about our level under MON's philoshpy on the game and team selection. How the hell can NRC be dropped again? All is forgiven? Why even bother to lie Martin? We all know that NRC is off in Jan and chances are another crap English replacement will be brought in. Another waste of space like Sidwell. Long ball after long ball. WE don't deserve to ever be successful playing that utter crap style of football. |
Damian
said:
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... villarobin we are hardly challenging for anything .. and that is a problem. fourth is nothing |
tubbydunne
said:
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... Didn't see the game but delighted to hear Emile salvaged a point with time running out. Good on you Emile some of us appreciate you as a valuable squad player, don't mind those that treat you as a running joke. |
henrydouble
said:
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... I'll take a point and 4th place from that load of !$^@ any day. Bear in mind we'll have fight and determination from the start against spuds, so onwards and upwards - as long as theres plenty of fight and determination that is  |
Bobby Park
said:
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... Once again Robbie Blake plays Villa off the park, I seem to remember the same player pissing all over us in a Carling Cup game when O'Leary was in charge. For a supposed journeyman he really is a great little footballer, why the Blues let him go I'll never know. Much sooner see him get a chance for England rather than mediocre dross like Milner or Jenas. Of course not MON's type of player, neither a cross country runner or a body bulder. 2 points dropped, we will finish 6th or 7th, should really be doing better against a side put together for less than 10 million, that's 2 million less than Milner cost. Get yer finger out MON !. |
Badger
said:
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... I pretty much agree with your assessment Damian. We look so poor and have done for a while, imo. I suspected the Bolton game was a bit abnormal and this proves it. I know people will say Burnley are a good side at home and I'd agree. But we're relying on other teams to lose all the time, even at this early stage in the season. Imo, we don't deserve to be 4th and we have no hope of CL the way things are going. I'm really despondent because our football is just so absolutely dire. We create nothing and have very little threat if it's not a set piece. It was pointed out on some site that before this game we were one point better off at this stage compared to last season. We then went on a 13 game unbeaten run. Does anyone think we're going to do similar this season? A draw at Turf moor is not to be scoffed at, but I see nothing to be upbeat about. What annoyed me more than anything was a seeming lack of urgency. There was more effort in the last 10 mins than the rest of the game. We were second to every ball and just didn't seem to want it enough. And to me, that's just not good enough. Time for a mix up I think. And Ash is the second to be dropped (after Sidwell), as he's a shadow of what he was. I should be chuffed with the point, but I can't raise myself to be. We're just soooo average |
Badger
said:
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... Oh, I forgot, what the hell was that ref about? 3 tough tackles, 3 bookings? No warning or anything. Unbelievable. |
billy bollox
said:
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... gutless spineless and soulless is something i heard said on wm at half time regarding the performance.Badger well said |
bradz
said:
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... Fourth maybe...but most teams around us have a game in hand now...again and not to be pessimistic but another two points dropped! |
Damian
said:
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... badger the football is tough to take and it can only take us so far and i think we have seen that as in i dont think we will get higher than 6th with o'neill. i want to be wrong but i just cant see it happening long ball football in his 4th season. there are no excuses for that |
Geoff
said:
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... They need to strengthen up the defensive midfield. Other than Petrov, Sidwell and NRC are terrible at their assignments. They need a better option there. They have three good attacking midfielders with Downing, Young, and Milner all able to play the wings or the middle. Still, they ARE in 4th place playing the way they have been. But to sustain it against the best teams coming up they will have to do much better. |
Pete Hutton
said:
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... damian i am a big fan of your blogs but you are rather pessimistic at times, re, you comment above, if we finish 4th this year it would a tremendous effort, even just to get into the champs league and moving on to challenging.....chin up old boy |
Damian
said:
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... Pete Hutton 4th would be fantastic and i'd love it .. but if we finish 4th this season i'll eat my own shit |
villasouth1
said:
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... Sidwell is rubbish, he has had his chance and hasn't taken it, He gets carried by the team, doesn't score and loses possession all the time. I think he should be on the bench now and see if delph or reo coker can cement a place. I'm just fed up seeing him in the starting line up as there is nothing notable that he contributes. |
vivavilla
said:
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... One of those games. We're far more talented than Burnley but they put up more of a fight at home than anyone in the league. That's why they've got such a fantastic record. Decent enough result. |
Badger
said:
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... Damian, I'm loathe to agree with you (it adds nothing to the debate, imo) and while I'm still a massive fan of MON, I have to admit I'm beginning to waver somewhat. I really don't remember being so down after an away draw. |
VillaNick
said:
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... Damian, i don't get it, your comments are a bit too harsh IMO We really are, once you take away the fight and determination away, just an average football team. Just because we are not hitting teams 5-1 week in week out doesn't make us poor. We are 4th in the best Football league in the world as of tonight. It just seems like schoolboy comments and you are better than that. |
Badger
said:
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... Viva, Decent enough result. You're right of course. But they embarrassed us in the first half. Indeed, they reminded me of us last season. Full of guts, spirit and pace in the game. This is what I find so depressing after watching that rubbish today. We lack all of those things, imo. Owen Coyle was disappointed that they didn't win, I see. I agree with him. |
villarobin
said:
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... Im afraid you might just be eating your poo then Damian ! Yes we look poor in footballing terms sometimes , but its results that matter. We have been in general playing badly and we are still in 4th, also the teams around us are poor this year, so if we do go on a run, we could easily finish 4th. As bad as we look, do you really think Spurs , Man City , or even Liverpool look any better. In general they dont im afraid.. |
Bobby Park
said:
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... To VILLAN FROM BRAZIL Is that STAR or HERO. Guess things look pretty rosy from Sao Paulo or Rio, you don't have to sit through this long ball shit week in week out. |
villarobin
said:
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... i do agree that Oneil needs to think about other tactics , and playing more proper 'on the ground' football. I also think Sidwell is a waste of space , and Delph / Reo Coker should be used more, but apart from that its results that count. |
villarobin
said:
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... Great result today, we could have easily lost that, and like i said before, we are not some kind of 'Suoer Team' with a devine right to win all the time. Get Real !! |
mon 4-5-1
said:
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... Rightly so Sidwell should be dropped. Can any one tell me what Petrov contributed today ? Surely Coker would be better suited to that role and Delph cannot be any worse the Sidwell... |
Monkeywrench
said:
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... Nobody expects to see Barcelona or AC Milan, villarobin. But some football played on the ground and a more cultured approach of play would be nice, from time to time. Alas, you need better than Sidwell in the middle of the park in order to achieve it. |
tubbydunne
said:
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... Damien it will be awful if we finish fourth, you will be chowing down on your on waste and you won't have any room left for the sausages, bacon, scrambled egg and french toast you are constantly on about. Oh and the barbecue will be redundant. |
VillaNick
said:
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... Damian, i don't get it, your comments are a bit too harsh IMO We really are, once you take away the fight and determination away, just an average football team. Just because we are not hitting teams 5-1 week in week out doesn't make us poor. It just seems like schoolboy comments and you are better than that. We are all miffed we didn't win but it doesn't really help much. |
mon 4-5-1
said:
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...Great result today, we could have easily lost that, and like i said before, we are not some kind of 'Suoer Team' with a devine right to win all the time. Get Real !! villarobin apart from the dire football look at our results win ratio for the last 6 or 7 games. As you will see we are not asking for perfection far from it. |
PONGO
said:
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... told you we would miss cocker battling qualitys should be in instead of petov he is no holdig mifielder not strong enough |
munichwalker
said:
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... Have read this blog for the last two years and this is the first time i have decided to post. What's with all the negativity? Ok, not a great result....but if somebody had offered me in August fourth place on the 21st November, i would have taken it with without a second thought. I only caught the last 20 Minutes of the game and we did not look bad. As for MON, throwing on Heskey was risky but good tactical move. And it worked. He wanted to get something from the game and he did. The next game will be a big one, but win that and we will be sitting pretty. |
mon 4-5-1
said:
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...I only caught the last 20 Minutes of the game and we did not look bad. As for MON, throwing on Heskey was risky but good tactical move Count yourself lucky. You did not need to go through the toture of the first half.... |
Damian
said:
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... munichwalker i cant talk for everyone, but my negativity comes from actually knowing that we wont finish fourth and actually that finishing fourth doesn't actually excite me that much when lerner took over we were told of this five year plan, okay we have since been told it was rubbish but i had a ten year vision; win the league i am negative because i am fairly confident now that will never happen under o'neill. the football is poor, one dimensional and long |
afvcbob
said:
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... This was a good result considering the way we played it. Still not sure what MON was doing in giving DJ a start. He is obviously not match fit and there were fitter players that could have come off the bench imo I think that this will be the beginning on the end for Sidwell as he has had enough chances to impress but is just not good enough for a team that wants to play in the CL has he offers absolutely nothing I still think he got it wrong with the formation as we appeared to be chasing the game instead of controlling the play but as it has already been said we do not have the right to win these games and a point and 4th place is as good as we can get with this type of performance and players UTV UTV |
Fatkevs
said:
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... Are we the worst footballing side in the Prem? Forget the points just based on our approach to the Game We lost everything in Moscow, we have not recovered from that decision |
Fatkevs
said:
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... It Pisses me off when the manager says things like a" his side were far from their best this weekend" as if it was a 1 off |
VillaNick
said:
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...VillaNick I know you have, so from that I take it you want MON Out? If so, that is laughable. |
matt26may1982
said:
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... Bobbypark, For a supposed journeyman he really is a great little footballer, why the Blues let him go I'll never know. Much sooner see him get a chance for England rather than mediocre dross like Milner or Jenas. Of course not MON's type of player, neither a cross country runner or a body bulder. 2 points dropped, we will finish 6th or 7th, should really be doing better against a side put together for less than 10 million, that's 2 million less than Milner cost. Get yer finger out MON !. Every word spot on, but low and behold the i want to suck MON's balls club slag you off. Reality bites and the PS3 footy playin kids who cant get out the chair and play real football cos im too fat just dont get it. Never mind eh. |
Badger
said:
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...Are we the worst footballing side in the Prem? No. 4th in the prem means we can't be. The one positive is we got a point even though we were depressingly bad imo. I only caught the last 20 Minutes of the game and we did not look bad You saw the best bit then. Trust me, the rest was awful from a supposed top 4 side. I'm normally very positive as you might have noticed. But there was little to take from that performance today. Strangely though, I think we'll have a good performance against spuds. If we do, that's extremely disconcerting, imo, as it would suggest we think we're entitled to win against the small fry. |
Nanwasafan
said:
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... Somebody explain Carew. I knew immediately that he would be poor today. He gave his first pass away. He was then penalised by the ref going for a header and I knew he would do little for the rest of the game. His performance is always dictated by the opning 10 minutes. I am tempted to call for Heskey to start if we MUST play 442. Sidwell was Sidwell. Finally the reason Milner struggled today was that they had narrowed their pitch. This seems to be the agreed method to deal with our team. Quite sensible really when you consider the mediocrity of our CM's. Oh and finally, Dunne looked wobbly today. I think he needs Collins. |
matt26may1982
said:
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... MON again blamed the conditions! Think i said he would earlier. Not only cant he change his team to suit, he cant even change the excuses. |
VillaNick
said:
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... With Downing, Delph and even NRC knocking on the door, Sidwell's days are numbered. |
Nanwasafan
said:
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... Look at the Guardian Chalkboards for Carew in terms of passes in the last 3 games. |
matt26may1982
said:
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... Look at the Guardian Chalkboards for Carew in terms of passes in the last 3 games. Whats that gonna prove, hes not on form cos he aint scoring goals. Who cares if he doesnt complete passes, hes a striker who should score goals. Another example of someone who plays with pie charts all day and cant read the game with their own eyes. |
munichwalker
said:
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... Damian you "actually know" that we won't finish fourth?? Cool In that case can you "actually tell me" who will....will pop straight down the bookies. A Champions League place doesn't excite you? What does? It is clear to everyone that we can't win the league...so why even bother? Give me fourth place and I'll be a happy villa fan. |
r0bb0
said:
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... I wasn't able to watch the game today but didn't expect the level of vitriol on the blog bearing in mind this result against a team that had previously beaten 2 'top 4' teams and won 5 out of 6 at home. It sounds as if we didn't play well today, but some fans really do WANT to have a go. Let's hear the retractions from those armchair experts: Pancho, Fat kev and mon451 Second Burnley sub!!!!were are ours!!!!This one from mon 451 just before MON brought on the goal scoring sub we need a goal & put on Hesky ?Yes Fat kev..that's why he brought him on Pancho...fickle...nooooooo. |
Damian
said:
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... VillaNick i'll tell you what is laughable; people that can only see black and white why does that mean o'neill has to go? however if the best o'neill is going to get us is 6th then yes - he'd have to go, because i for one want better than 6th. laughable is accepting mediocrity |
Badger
said:
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... Nan, 3. I like Villasteams, it was worth the £1. That was a bad one today, down to the weather, I suspect. 5. I hate you all. You mocked my Heskey theory. You made me feel silly. You laughed and joked. So, I stopped putting the tenner on. Bastards. He's still shit, don't worry. Your money, on the whole, is safe. |
Villain-from-Texas
said:
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... avfcbob: Still not sure what MON was doing in giving DJ a start. He is obviously not match fit and there were fitter players that could have come off the bench imo This seems like critcism for the sake of it. Who else off the bench would've given us an offensive spark? Downing put in some pretty good balls---including one fantastic ball. He certainly wasn't the reason that we failed to take three points. |
Damian
said:
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... munichwalker 4th isn't a champions league place, it's a qualfying match but champions league does excite me but i'm also a realist - we cant even complete in the uefa cup - why do people think we are ready for champions league our football is so far off champions league or top four. we've had a good run so far but the other teams are going to start waking up about now and i know we wont finish fourth much like i knew chelsea and man utd were going to win today but it hink you know what i meant |
Badger
said:
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... r0bb0, I expected you to include me in that list of negs. And I'd probably deserve it as of late  I'm totally depressed mate. Tell me something to cheer me up mate  |
holteend paul
said:
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... what a woman my gran is, for christmas she knitted me a green jumper and on the font it says 'i hate muslims' i have had to tell her there is no way i will ever wear a green jumper.  |
holteend paul
said:
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... get a reality check boys as a lot of results went our way today and we didnt lose................. |
r0bb0
said:
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... I'm not sure where I'm going wrong as I'm clearly out of step with the feeling of Villa fans. I have had some really enjoyable days down at Villa park this year. I am enjoying following my club more than I have for years. The football is NOT all long ball. People who say this have not been watching us objectively. Today may have been long ball...I don't know, I haven't seen the game yet, but in other games we have started paying more ball on the ground. Yes, I'd like to see more still but I believe we have more players this season who are capable of playing this way and I believe that the football will continue to improve. If I was a Liverpool fan (5 points from 1  I would be concerned. If I was a Man City fan after all the money that's been spent (6 points from the last 1then I'd be concerned. It's natural to want more. Any passionate fan hurts when their team doesn't play well or get the result we want but excuse me if I still prefer to support and get pleasure from watching my team rather than relentlessly whingeing about them. |
Fatkevs
said:
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... Robbo its easy to comment after the event would you honestly bet on the Mule scoring |
r0bb0
said:
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... mmm..didn't intend the smiley faces...is that what happens when you follow an 8 with a closing bracket?...let's see |
holteend paul
said:
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... and by the way my mate was right about downing being ready i was told it was next week when he played but hay ho |
Villain-from-Texas
said:
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... Damian: the other teams are going to start waking up about now And why does that not include us? |
matt26may1982
said:
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... Badger, I agree you little tell tale, i bet you told on everyone when you were little. Sniff sniff i smell a brown nose. What do you get a promotion to blog supervisor lol. |
VillaFanMike!
said:
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... Poor performance first half, better secound, and we looked good in the final 10/15 minuits of the game. A draw at Burnley concidering there home form is a good result. Realy glad to see Downing come on. I think the main reason he come on was to get him a few minuits before the Tottenham game next week which he will deffinetly play a part in. Fair play to Heskey today. Ive always been behind him. imo i think we can get top 4 I'm not sure where I'm going wrong as I'm clearly out of step with the feeling of Villa fans. Completely agree with you there mate! UTV! |
Nanwasafan
said:
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... matt It's only a rumour, but I've heard talk that some sports teams actually use these statistics in order to improve their game. You'll need to try a little harder to get me excited and I worry that you're running out of time. |
holteend paul
said:
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... we are 4th and many of you are still not happy!! wake up perlease, what do you want? as far as i see it you have shown more passion about the ireland game...as roy keane said GET OVER IT...4th is brill and next week against the spuds is a 6 pointer which we will win.. |
Monkeywrench
said:
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... I agree, Badger should get the blog supervisor job. matt26may1982 should get the blog bitch title instead, what with his silver, sharp tongue dishing and the in-your-face "am I bothered tho?" attitude. |
r0bb0
said:
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... Badger....yes, I guess today I would include you in the roll call of overly negative posters but at least you do try and to be objective and on other occasions you have made positive postings. It's the relentlessly negative posters that refuse to see anything positive in their team that I just don't understand. It sounds as if I've been fortunate in missing today's performance and this may be why I'm in a more positive frame of mind than others. I do actually suspect that I am able to have a more balanced view today because I'm not commenting through the emotion of seeing a poor performance. |
Badger
said:
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...Badger, Matt, you're either pissed or smoking too much shit. Either way, you're going to be banned if you carry on. Give it a rest as you're embarrassing yourself mate, trust me. |
r0bb0
said:
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... Fat kev Robbo its easy to comment after the eventNo...I wouldn't have bet on him scoring....but then I am not astonished that he has because he is a very good player who unfortunately has not performed for the Villa yet. I also refuse to call him 'the Mule' or other such insults, because although I think that whilst it's fair enough to criticise the way a Villa player is performing, I think it's totally out of order to be gratuitously insulting about any Villa player. In my view that is not what being a 'supporter' or 'fan' is all about. |
Badger
said:
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...I agree, Badger should get the blog supervisor job Ahhhrrrrgggg, no. I'm far too emotional for that sort of job. I do think it's a good shout about spreading the modding around a bit though. Maybe something for Damian to think about??? r0bb0, I'll be interested on your take of the game once you've seen it. |
afvcbob
said:
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... Badger I with you - can't we get Matt26May banned for all the shit and abuse he's giving out I smell a blue nose t**t UTV |
McParland
said:
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... A point at turf moore is not that bad when yousee how Man u and Everton faired.I imagine the Arse would have welcomed a point today but failed to get any due to a resilient Sunderland.Just realy need to be up for the spuds next wek this is a potential 6 pointer ,So lads go into that one from the off with only one intention to turn them over good! |
matt26may1982
said:
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... Nan, It's only a rumour, but I've heard talk that some sports teams actually use these statistics in order to improve their game. LOL yeah just like when MON went to that meeting to find out how many players teams used, and then commented that was the way to go i.e change things a bit and give other players a chance. Has he done that NO. |
Fatkevs
said:
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... I have never liked him as a player, back to his Leicester days, built like a brick shit house but falling over all the time. Signing him ended any chance of us steeling a CL spot. It also confirmed we had no intention of achieving such heights. We cannot even challenge in the inter totto even the manager says he does not get his quota for a striker yet he still signed him he should be at a knitting club with DV nice man i believe but there are plently of them about Football at VP has been shite unless you watch the opposing team, thats not for me |
matt26may1982
said:
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... Monkey, matt26may1982 should get the blog bitch title instead, what with his silver, sharp tongue dishing and the in-your-face "am I bothered tho?" attitude. Very good lol. Badger seems to think im embarrassing myself, on the contrary this is so amusing, your the one who keeps replying and wandering off and been distracted from your pointless dialog. And Nan saying i havent much time lol, oh i beg you please dont do it! Your blog gives so much meaning to AVFC lol! |
r0bb0
said:
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... Badge.....will do. Mind you...I know the result and I'm not expecting much from the performance now so probably won't be as down about it as I would have been otherwise. |
afvcbob
said:
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... Villian from Texas This wasn't been critical of Downing as I believe he will be a quality player for us - but he wasn't due to return until end of December and I don't think he has had any reserve games to up his fitness |
matt26may1982
said:
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... Its not UNhealthy i suppose to spend most of your time prattling on about Villa issues. I suspect you havent much else to do when youve ticked off all the numbers you can on the local platform. I see the most poignant and to the point posts made by people who post maybe once or twice, but these are the most criticized or overlooked by the usual suspects. So the real thing that is embarrassing is the likes of you Badger and your little clic. Im just on here for a bit of fun and dont need anyone to tell me how my football club is doing thank you lol. So what ban me im crushed! |
matt26may1982
said:
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... BOB said "I smell a blue nose t**t" Now Bob thats no way to describe your missus. Mind you i would be amazed if your not homosexual. You old c@@t. |
matt26may1982
said:
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... I suspect your all mardy cos ur still smarting ove rthe Ireland game. Thats probably why your so touchy, i see alot of Irish fans on here. |
ak_27
said:
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... Matt you must be one sad human being if you your kicks from insulting people online. Why do i get the impression you wouldn't have the bottle to be like this in the real world? You need help. |
Monkeywrench
said:
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... matt26may1982 You're right it's a waste of time...better off doing something else. |
ak_27
said:
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... Nan i think he was born without a penis and this is his way of getting back at the world. |
matt26may1982
said:
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... Ah ak27 a perfect example of the staple blogger. Now your being abusive to me and i havent said a dickie bird to you so does that put you on my level. Be my guest son email me and come and see if your right. Id relish it please. |
VDV
said:
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... mon says salifo is part of his plans. WHAT! in january get vandarvaart and a top striker and we r fine. jo, pavulechenko or vagnar love. |
afvcbob
said:
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... MATT26 - What an abusive little t**t you are 'As regards your comment - I can take you abuse but have you grown some balls to say it face to face to me |
r0bb0
said:
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... Fat Kev: Football at VP has been shite unless you watch the opposing team, thats not for meListen Kev, I know that losing your seat and shares at Villa have jaded your opinion of Villa, but a comment like that really is going too far. I know we were poor against Wigan, but we just have not been 'shite' in all the other games. Honestly, if you haven't been able to get any pleasure from any of the games this year I reckon you'd be happier taking a break because you are coming across like a guy who has been jilted by a girl you once loved and now hate. |
Supersean
said:
 |
... I honestly thought we were ok for the last half hour, definitely no reason to be as down as some of you lot are. I could see that maybe if we played the full 90 like the first half, where we were second to every ball and Burnley wanted it more. But to be fair by the end I thought we did enough to earn a point. Which it doesn't look like many teams are going to do at Turf Moor this season. Also, we definitely try and play it on the deck more often now. we hoofed it once or twice, but whereas once our problem was resorting to the long ball, now instead we've mostly fazed that out. If anything, our problem now is that we pass it along the back four too often. Stilyan rarely looks forward for a pass these days, and I know that's not his job but with Sidwell being such a passenger... This should change with Downing being back though. There was instantly obvious potential for Downing, Milner and Young all switching between the wings/attacking midfield roles. |
mon 4-5-1
said:
|
...Let's hear the retractions from those armchair experts: Pancho, Fat kev and mon451 r0bb0, Yes and for once Heskey paid off. Only minus point is I can see him starting next week. How many times has he come on and it has not worked and What his goal ratio ? . Simply not good enough for the premiership. We were shocking in the first half. We did not have one passing move of any note not one. How can any supporter be happy with this ?. Its not like it’s the first time this has happended this season. Second half we did improve as we could not get any worse. Ninety minutes of football and we could only be bothered to turn for about thirty minutes and that’s being generous. Again our centre midfield was non existent now how can you play football if the core part of the team does not exist. I know many people on here like Petrov but he was just as bad if not worse then Sidwell today which says a lot and he’s captain. Thank God the excuse of the players were looking tired was not used in the post match interview. Could Mr O’Neil explain as to why NRC was not in the starting line up today ? Why was NRC dropped when he made such a difference in the last game ? What has Sidwell done to deserve constantly getting picked ? Why did Downing come on when it obvious his not match fit and we have a fit Delph on the bench ? When there is something to be positive about I will come out and say it.the way I see it. At the moment being fourth a couple of points 1 WIN means nothing at this part of the season especially when we don’t have a spine to the team. Oh and the Man United result they had Burnley on the rack for most of the game and you have to say they were unlucky to lose and should have won that game easily. Can you say we were unlucky not to win today ? For the record I play twice a week and see the Villa when there down south. |
r0bb0
said:
|
... Hoping to get to see the match once everyone else has stopped watching what they want but in the meantime I've been reading reports from a few different sites. There's consensus that Burnley were on top for the first half and Villa on top for the second with a draw a fair result. I haven't found one yet that suggests we were 'taught a lesson'....why is that? |
mon 4-5-1
said:
|
... r0bb0, quote from review on skysports... "The men from the Midlands were second best for much of the contest at Turf Moor, with the Clarets proving to be formidable opponents on home soil." |
r0bb0
said:
|
... mon 451. I agree that Heskey needs to score more often, and to be fair, as I said earlier, I wouldn't have placed a bet on him scoring today. He has been one of the games most prolific scorers in the past (in addition to his set up play) and although it may be wishful thinking, I'd love to see some of that form returning to him. Thee does seem to be a consensus among commentators that Mon made a substitution to chase the game at the end...and it paid off. I've been critical of him for making too few substitutions and while one swallow doesn't make a summer it's nice to see a tactical substitution working today. |
Nanwasafan
said:
|
... MON 442 I know what you're saying about NRC but there MUST be a good reason. Unless he's injured then it must be an attitude issue. If he is being an arse then MON is right. In the long term, selecting players who are willing to attack the manager can only lead to further problems. I am certain that if Sidwell and NRC had identical personalities, then NRC would be nailed on. However, I get the impression NRC is a cock. |
Greg Davillain1887
said:
 |
... ya the football does have to get better, when we are harried we revert to the long ball to the big men, id like to see more controlled play, and different combinations. Its easy for the opposition to push up their fullbacks, cut the wingers from making the supply and then we are straight back the long ball punt. If we had some one in the middle who could put agbonlahor through on goal, with his pace as the back four push up to negate our wingers, im sure it would expose a lot of teams. We are completely 1 dimensional and i agree its worrying if we dont mix it up it wont be long before we slip down the league. Im relatively happy with the point today in the end but b4 the game i thought forewarned is forearmed, but we failed to capitalise on the teams around us. Im glad we snatched the draw in the end. I think we'll up our game for spuds next week. |
Aussie Steve
said:
 |
... It's getting quite sad in that I know exactly what to expect from these summaries now. I go to ESPN to read about how the game actually went, then I come here to read about how bad we 'really are'. Damian, I used to read your articles because they provided an insight and turn of phrase any fan could relate to. I find it quite sad that this abject pessimism seems to pervade almost every article these days... |
r0bb0
said:
|
... Damian, Having read quite a few reviews now I have to agree with Aussie Steve that yours does stand out as the most pessimistic. I can't imagine that is what you want? |
Villain-from-Texas
said:
|
... Carew was rather quite today, largely because the midfield couldn't get him the ball. Carew can be an absolute beast for us. But, with just four midfielders, we generally struggle to provide the service that he needs. It therefore begs the question: no matter how good he can be, are we in fact any better with him out there? I've come to think that, even if we are better in the odd game, on the whole we aren't. |
Bobby Park
said:
|
... POOR FIRST HALF AWAY !!!!!! - every bloody game since God knows when. MON get yourself a decent coach instead of the Forest yes man sitting next to you doing Phil Neal impersonations. STEP UP SID COWANS. |
cockneyvillan
said:
 |
... nan, what a load of rubbish, the only reason mon picks sidwell ahead of cocker is because he feels he is more likely to score a goal! but now downing is getting fit i think youll find sidwell will be out of the side in the next few weeks, but as i said for now he is the more likely to come up with a goal between the two. |
confused villain
said:
|
... the football we play is shit at present and we`re going nowhere with a central midfield two of sidwell and petrov.FACT |
VDV
said:
|
... if nrc has an attitude get him out with sidwell. bring parker and michael johnson in to replace them. get vandarvaart and jo or vagnar love. |
Andyb
said:
 |
... I watched the game yesterday and have a few comments. -Noone has mentioned thier goal was clearly offside, not the player that scored but the other player that challenged for the ball with Friedel and Dunne was 2 yards offside around the penalty spot when ball was played. -Dunne,Petrov and Cueller were all quite poor. -Sidwell seems to be doing his job well, as long as his job is to give away either possesion or a foul whenever he goes near the ball. - When Downing came on it was almost the first time this season we have had good possesion in the middle of the park in the final third, we saw Milner/Young 30 yards from goal looking for little through balls,or to forwards feet around the box, I can't remember us ever playing like this before, some hope that we may play more "football" when DJ is fully fit. -I don't blame NRC for being pissed off, first he captains us pre season to a tournament win against Juve/Real etc, seems to be the lynchpin in the side pre season then gets dropped ahead of a 19 y/o with no prem experience (signed only a week B4 with no time to settle in, then has to sit there all season and see sidwell played ahead of him even after we win 5-1 when he starts, and Sidwell is clearly not worthy of his place in the side, who wouldn't be pissed off.  |
Damian
said:
|
... holteend paul maybe we should. although the one thing that could save o'neill getting a lot of stick this summer will be silverware that would be a good thing and something to get everyone excited about |
VillaNick
said:
|
...however if the best o'neill is going to get us is 6th then yes - he'd have to go, because i for one want better than 6th. laughable is accepting mediocrity Mediocrity is Bolton, Blackburn, West Ham etc... Football has moved on Damian, you can no longer challenge for the title from nowhere like the old days A Manager needs time, and I mean time. 6 -8 years to be judged, unless you can spend 100m a season when the rewards should be seen far quicker. Based on that I suggest it's Lerner that should go not MON. |
jonnycarew
said:
 |
... Prior to the game, the home record of Coyle's side was bettered only by Chelsea and Manchester United Good Result |
shemmanz
said:
 |
... We need better tatics thats why we almost lost at Burnley we dont have any chance if we haven't got better tatics im villa fan im sayin we need to improve bad ways or other why we want be finishing in the top 5 this year. |
Damian
said:
|
... VillaNick you are right. mediocrity is bolton, blackburn, west ham .. do you think we are any different right now? martin o'neill has had 3 full seasons. the football hasn't got any better despite him as good as putting out a new side - his side i dont think we wait another 3 to 5 seasons. if the football doesn't develop fairly soon after a new manager comes and it hasn't when he has a team that is very much his, when is it going to? my position remains. if the best o'neill is going to get us is 6th in the league, then he has to go. the question is, when do you know when we've seen the best of o'neill if you would be happy with o'neill only ever getting us 6th then i'd say it was the fan that has moved on and not the football |
the pensioner
said:
 |
... Damion. MOTM for me would be Heskey...He came on an did what it says on the packet!..."STRIKER".,..He Struck and won us the game!~ |
the pensioner
said:
|
... Damian. Change your photo again..You look as if you have already consumed a piece of Faeces! |
VillaNick
said:
|
... OK say O'Neill was to go. Then what? Jose Mourinho? George Graham? Alan Curbishley? Whoever it was would probably take us backwards, dismantle what was in place and start again. Another 3 years to get to this debate? Another 3 years older and still nothing to show. The problem for me is not The Manager its the Club. I, as the fan have accepted that modern day footbal requires stability. It's the players that play not the manager. We are yet to be able to attract the cream of what could be on offer. So until we sneek a top 4 or 5 place, manage to acquire a top player or two to complent what we already have, nothing will change, with or without O'Neill. |
Damian
said:
|
... VillaNick You seem to put O'Neill on a pedestal. What has he ever done to warrant such adulation? But, how do you know whoever comes in will mean we go backwards? You don't and we might not. We might go forward. The club might actually do a little homework, bring in someone with real pedigree and real vision and a real footballing philosophy - you never know. They might bring someone in who by the end of the first season has completely changed how we play football and we might all see it because it is clear as day. You say that we are unable to attract the cream until we sneak a top four or five place. Two seasons ago people were saying that we needed European football - we got that, then it was changed to Champions League football - all this happening while Manchester City go sign the cream. Maybe you are right, maybe it is that we need a new owner who can put up some serious money and maybe if O'Neill gets that serious money we will be able to kick on. But I really do believe that we could sign xavi and iniesta and all we are going to do is bypass them with long balls and lots of running - the football has to change at the core, not just on what is said before the match. the football has to develop and we are now in his 4th season and it isn't changing. a new manager has to come in, be able to see that there is an issue, know how to change it and implement his plans and you never know - the next manager might just do that and actually, it might still happen with o'neill, we just don't know |
VillaNick
said:
|
... Damian, you have a point. The style is a bit long ball and O'Neill has to be made accountable, I agree. I believe it is the current players mentality, however. There is little confidence in the ability of a few, so it seems easier to hoof it rather than risk misplacing a pass becasuse Sidwell could mis-control it. The attack breaks down before it's even started. The players are playing to their strengths. Speed and height, seems to equal "hoof it". If we had the sort of players who could orchestrate a better passing game thought the middle then the players would pass to them insteard of kicking long. Its all about the funds in my eyes, MON has not done much wrong, other than make us stronger and for the 1st time in many many years, I feel that Villa could win any game they play, even against a top 4 side. Surley that's worth a bit of credit? |
VDV
said:
|
... we r 4th for cristesake! who thought we would be above liverpool and man city ? knowon. now shutup all u f**king phical fans. who else is going yo do the job. WE ARE 4TH !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! |
Damian
said:
|
... VillaNick funds are important. but where do we draw the line and say 'o'neill has now had enough' he has brought in a lot of players and spent a fair chunk of cash. how much more should he get? i actually think we have some very decent players at the club and if we were to try and change how we play football, we might get better ... but, in his 4th season and it hasn't changed. you can see sometimes they try to keep the ball when they pass it across the back four for 15 passes but then you don't see anyone dropping to help, and on the rare occasion that someone does, you don't see anyone up front dropping and you don't see space getting created/filled up and movement .. yes, money is a factor and a big one and maybe we need better quality. but where do we draw the line? |
neil57
said:
 |
... not developed under MON? We have gone from a yoyo team to one that finishes consistently in and around the european places. Would you rather be like Man City and have bought instant success, but become hate figures? MON and Randy are building for the future, and hopefully not too distant future at that. This is the most competitive premiership there has been in years and that is credit to teams like us, spurs, and now city. Negativity acheives nothing. UTV |
VillaNick
said:
|
... Damian We can only draw the line based on other teams around us. 5 years ago Newcastle, West Ham & Blackburn would have been considered our rivals. Now it looks like Liverpool, Spurs and Man City would be. Newcastle have imploded, WHU and Blackburn have also gone backwards. Our current immediate rivals are in a worst situation than us. Spurs started well, but seem to be stuttering a bit. Liverpool are in the cack and Man City are under big pressure and seem to have cracks appearing even at this early stage. What we have is one of the best defences in the league. Good depth, promising youngsters & a glut of England international talent. For me the line needs to be drawn by the end of next season, judge the Mangaer and Club owners against the teams in and around us then. |
VDV
said:
|
... we need a top centermid who is box to box, gives creativity on the ball, finds short passes quickly and pings a 30, 40, 50 yard ball, who gets the ball moving quickly , who is always alive and wants the ball and has bags of energy. give some names? |
VillaNick
said:
|
... Sorry I also meant to say O'Neill needs the sort of funds that would land a top draw player or two. One more full season of funds to try and attact a Sniejer, Van Der Vaart or Vagner Love type player. |
Damian
said:
|
... VillaNick so - you draw the line at the end of next season and i draw it at the end of this one. not really very different is it? neil57 so, what you are saying is that martin o'neill has stabilised the club. fantastic and i agree and i think he has done a great job. question is, are you happy with 6th or do you want to see aston villa challenge? if you want to see us challenge you then have to ask yourself is martin o'neill going to be that man. if you believe he is, you have to draw that line and say; how long do we give him ... |
holteend paul
said:
|
... i am finding your discusion hard to understand because mon is doing a GOOD job as far as i am concerned, we are sitting fourth and can cement it next week if we beat spurs. if lerner was to sack mon in the summer because we finished 6th again, who do you think would come and replace him?? as for the special one i think his type of football is the most boring since george grahams arsenal, and lets not forget the money he has had at every club he has been at. |
Damian
said:
|
... holteend paul i am more than happy with 4th right now. but much like i was more than happy with 4th (even 3rd last season when we were in that position) - i dont think we will be 4th by the end of the season - i actually don't think we will be 4th by the end of the day and if man city were to win their game in hand we'd be 6th .. but those are just my numbers. spurs could lose today and man city could lose their game in hand and we would be 4th final position is what matter but i cant see us finishing higher than 6th, again and i put that down to the manager. lets say we finish 6th, again, would you be happy with that? |
Greg1981
said:
 |
... VillaNick 5 years ago Newcastle, West Ham & Blackburn would have been considered our rivals. 5 years ago we finished.... 6th |
VillaNick
said:
|
... I think one season is a really long time. Thats 2 transfer windows and 40+ games Damian! You are calling for his head now, it' s just a bit premature. 6th place is solid, a starting point. Anything higher than 6th is nose bleed time. You can't displace the so called big 4 in 3 years. Its not realistic. By the end of next season, I feel we can judge, 5 years on, wasn't that the plan? |
Damian
said:
|
... Greg1981 what are you saying? that in five years, we haven't really developed? that is a shocking suggestion and i hope you are willing to back it up. where is my book? |
Damian
said:
|
... VillaNick thats the thing. i'm not calling for his head now. i've even said above, i'm giving him until the end of the season i want o'neill to figure it out. i want him to be the man and i'm not saying he isn't. i will say i'll be surprised if we do better than 6th but i'd love to be surprised 6th place is consistent. not moving on. standing still. we've been a top 6 side for years and years the only difference is you giving one more season. we're not to far apart |
VillaNick
said:
|
... Greg1981 & Damian: 5 years ago football was different. As each year passes it's getting more difficult, so it is still progression. We are closing a gap that's forever widening! |
Villa_til_ I_Die
said:
 |
... Must be time for another confidence vote then Damian. If the majority still back O'Neill can we a bit less negative please. Poor display yesterday but we're fourth if perhaps only temporarily. Prozac all round I think. |
VillaNick
said:
|
... Damian You say you are giving him until the end of the season, but setting him up for a fall with your comments in November. Is it just beacuse you want to say " I told you so"? |
Damian
said:
|
... Villa_til_ I_Die if you want me to follow a line - i.e. what the majority think then you are on the wrong site VillaNick it started before november, but surely, if martin o'neill is so good, there is more chance of thousands of people coming on here to say i was wrong? where do you think we will finish this season. |
PMR
said:
 |
... Forget yesterday. Its a horrible place to go and difficult place to get pts as other teams have already shown. THE BUSINESS PART OF THE SEASON STARTS NOW. The next 5 games will be crucial in our season. Spurs at Home Portsmouth Away Carling Cup Qtr Final Hull at Home Man Utd Away Sunderland Away Mon should be looking at this realise results against Spurs, Portsmouth in the cup and Sunderland are crucial. |
Damian
said:
|
... VillaNick if that happens then o'neill will get my support. i hope we finish 5th too i think we will finish 6th because i cant see anything different from last season or the season before. |
ak_27
said:
|
... First off Gus Hiddink will more then likely be available in the summer. He is one of the best and gettable IMO if wages are offered to him. MON isnt a patch on the likes of him or any of the big club managers. Thats the fact people need to realise. MON is a decent manager(with some good aspects but some very poor flaws as well) and no more. He has had 140m to spend and that more then anything had us where we are today in the league and most decent managers would have us in this position as well. Regarding the football changing under MON? Don't kid yourselfs. What you see on the pitch is what MON wants from football. That is his mantle. His vision to success. He is so out of date with the PL right now it is actually embarressing. Add that to a stubborness that causes rubbishplayers to be constantly picked no matter how bad they perform and an increasing number of fallings out with players then i personally would love to see the back of Mr O'Neill this summer. |
VillaNick
said:
|
...... You cant see a much better defence, with more depth and quality? (our downfall last year) Downing will be better than Barry & The Fonz will make an impact sometime soon and will come of age. To me the future looks more rosey this than last season to me. |
eoin1981
said:
 |
... First off - Damian questioning our quality and MoN's football vision should not be a suprise to anyone. I think a few of us have been saying the same thing for 18months now. People can question if Lerner has backed MoN but personally I think he has - any manager who spends 130m in 3 years should be challenging the top 6. We play like Leicester did, we play like Celtic did and we play like any MoN team will. We have passion and a good team spirit - so did Wimbeldon. We are 100% a counter attacking side and haven't a clue how to break down a more defensive side - and this has been the case for 3 years. I dont think that MoN is useless, if fact I think he would be the perfect manager for any team in the bottom half of the premiership, the ones whose ambition it is to stay in the league. He would probably overachieve with them. However, his style of football will never break the top 4 and if we want villa to be a truely top club - then we need a new manager. This isn't a kneejerk reaction to a game against Burnley - its my belief based on his whole career in management. However, to those who see betwen 6th-9th every season as progress or good enough or our level - then I can understand why he should be given a 50 year contract. I supose it all boils down to ambition. |
VDV
said:
|
... your saying learner might sack mon. you have got it wrong. learner will never sack mon, it will be mon that walks out. it seems in his attitude that he is fed up with villa. |
Damian
said:
|
... i can see better defenders yes but i can also see the way we play is not much different and as such, i dont think things will change much as of today we have conceded a goal a game all season which is only beaten by united and chelsea which is excellent and you have to build from the back we will see come the end of the season. i just don't know how else to say it .. long and often hopeful balls. not enough passing or making space |
VillaNick
said:
|
...However, to those who see betwen 6th-9th every season as progress or good enough or our level - then I can understand why he should be given a 50 year contract. I supose it all boils down to ambition. We have ambition, just some of us have a more realistic view, outside the world of Football Manager & FIFA PS games. |
VDV
said:
|
... vandervaart never plays for madrid. so surly if mon has any ambiton he will buy better players than we already have. vandarvaart is available so surly he will try, or has it got to the point with oneill that trying is not good enough anymore and its time he deliver top class players at villa. he has to. |
VillaNick
said:
|
... I think we are well equiped to catch a team on an off season and perhaps take 4th. We nearly did it with Arsenal last season, but they came good, we fell away. If it were to happen this season (Liverpool maybe), we could get into the Champions League and maybe attract the sort of players that will allow our football to become something other than "hoof it to the front men". MON will get that sort of funding and backing if and when this happens and then the football style will change, I'm sure of it. Until then we are 4th, MON is the Manager and we are doin' alright. |
holteend paul
said:
|
... i wish people would read more scources before posting about players who they think are available, van der vaart has STATED he wants to stay at madrid because he has started to play games so wants to stay and fight for his place, this i imagine makes him very unavailable. |
VillaNick
said:
|
...i wish people would read more scources before posting about players who they think are available, van der vaart has STATED he wants to stay at madrid because he has started to play games so wants to stay and fight for his place, this i imagine makes him very unavailable. Console boys Paul |
afvcbob
said:
|
... Well said Eoin - I am a MON fan, but I also feel that we are at a crossroads as a club and can you trust him to bring in the level of players required to change the way we play and win games. I'm not on about buying the best of british, but looking at other players that we all mention on this blog |
ak_27
said:
|
... VillaNick liverpool are currently going through one of their worst spells in years and how far are we ahead of them? 2 points. When they kick on (and they will have no doubt) and when the other big clubs kick into gear from here on in as they normally do (esp from Jan on) we will be left behind. Now is when we should have been making the best of others failings but we just don't have it in us to do that. Come next Jan and when we get tired due to not rotation the players we will strugle to get top 6 IMO. I wonder what many will say when MON starts blaming tirness again next Feb? Im sure many will make more excuses for him as per usual. |
holteend paul
said:
|
... why would the teams suddenly leave us behind? this time last season we went on our best run for years and won the seven on a trot so why cant it happen again? |
VillaNick
said:
|
... ak_27 I think we are going though a ropey spell ourselves. Liverpool's misery set to continue IMO No excuses for tiredness, we have the depth now! |
cockneyvillan
said:
|
... I admit im not to happy about the football we are playing right now but i think & hope it will improve with better quality players starting when downing is match fit & sidwell is droped which im sure will go hand in hand. I agree with nick alot of the lumping it forward is because we lack the composer in centre mid, petrov apart. But anyone who can not see we have improved every season is blind imo, and to sack oneil now or at the end of this season when we are at a point to go to the next level with a couple of top top players would be crazy.. he has to be given at least one more season. Also i think we will see a big difference in our play when downing is fit because that will mean everyone in midfield wants the ball & can use the ball & i could see glimpses of that yesterday |
ak_27
said:
|
... Paul because the ammount of luck we got in that run was unnatural. We didn't deserve half of those wins. That won't happen again. |
ak_27
said:
|
... VillaNick but on what basis are you saying we are going through a ropey spell? Have we not been playing like this for at least nearly a year now. I honestly don't think there is that much more in this team unless Downing is a far better player then i think he is and really makes this team click. |
VillaNick
said:
|
... ak_27, Downing is the key, and/or maybe The Fonz? The reason we go on ropey spells is lack of depth. We are currently fielding 10 either current or past full internationals. When was the last time we could say that? The quality is there I'm convinced! |
Greg1981
said:
|
... Damain I was just responding to Nick’s point who was commenting on our position 5 years ago. It’s a simple reply – we were 6th! - the same as the last two years. We’ve improved but so have many other clubs. In the prem our average since it’s inauguration in 1992/3 is 8th. But more than half of our final positions have been 6th or better. So am I excited? Not really. But my overriding point is that in this calendar year I have witnessed some of the poorest passing and possession in my time of watching the mighty lions. We’re the end of November and we have dominated possession on about 5 occasions. We are shored up by some good players (that any of us could have bought with the MON cheque book) but there is no balance to the team and a big whole still exists in the middle. No matter what the Churchill’s, Nan’s and Badger’s et al say, without keeping the ball, you simply can’t go above a certain level. If we keep playing as we are we will finish 7th. My call at the start of the season was 8th which can be amended because of Arteta and Jagielka’s absence at Everton. We can hope that with Downing someone can play in the middle. But that’s a conversion job. I haven’t posted much recently because it’s all much the same: no Sid or Merse type player sitting in the middle then no progress will be made. People agree we need this type of players but why, in the 4th year, does the central position, that is the most crucial to any team, still remain to be filled? Our jewels Milner and Ash feed on scraps rather than receive good ball. When you get the book Damian (you live so far away – get a flat in Aston!) check on the amount of Villa entries. Just a few since 1920. Appalling. |
Greg1981
said:
|
... Nick 5 years ago football was different. As each year passes it's getting more difficult, so it is still progression. You will have to explain this one to me. |
VDV
said:
|
... holtend paul i have watched the last four real madrid games and vandarvaart has probably played 20 minutes. yesterday he came on in the 86th minute. do u really think he will be happy with that.. |
VDV
said:
|
... i really hope this january transfer window is busy. players like shorey, sidwell, gardner and marlon have to go. micah richards, vandarvaart, michael johnson scott parker and vagner love are types of players we need coming in. |
VillaNick
said:
|
... Football constantly changes Greg. EG: Leeds won the league in 1991. Villa won 2 League cups in 1994 & 1996. Events like this simply don't happen anymore. Since then Liverpool and Chelsea have spent heavily over the years and created a divide between clubs like us and them. The gap gets bigger each as each year passes. Even Man U and Chelsea take the League cup seriously these days. So therefore us finishing 6th is us stating we are the best of the also-rans (Everton aside). 5 years ago, 6th was not as hard to achieve. The money in the game has increased 10 fold, so finishing 6th this year is acutally quite an achievment taking into account Spurs and Man City's Multi-millions. |
ronrabbit
said:
 |
... Burnley are crap, we were crap also. the difference is we can do better, they cant. i think we are going to see milner alongside petrov in the middle from now, ash on the right, dj on the left, that should give us a bit more going forward, milner hopefully doing the lampard role. that looks like the system o'neill wants to play, carew and gabby up top, although i have a sinking feeling we may have to endure more hesky miniutes in an effort to create space for milner, it wont work and after 2 games we will see carew back up top. January is a big window for us, bring in the right quality and we will have a good run at 4th, if not 6th or 7th it is again. I say this because man city, pool, spurs and us all look like they might finish 4th, but all look distinctly average at the moment, january will sort the 4th place pretenders from the teams with actual ambition and quality management. last year we feel down on both counts, and arsenal stepped up, will we learn from last years january cock up. |
tubbydunne
said:
|
... Is there anyone out there who was actually at the game yesterday? If so would you be so kind as to answer the following questions. What were the conditions like and did they have an impact on the football? Was the pitch tight? How did Sidwell actually play? How did Luke Young play? Heskey got the goal how did he play apart from this on his introduction? Would appreciate to hear from someone that was there, am sick to the teeth of agendas on this site,so could you call it as you saw it please. |
holteend paul
said:
|
... vdv... i am passing on information vdv put in a press conference were he said he has been given playing time and is willing to stay at madrid and fight for his place FACT. i too would love that kind of player at villa but i think we have more chance with defour tho. |
holteend paul
said:
|
... nan.. nice to see its not only me that people want banned for winding them up |
VDV
said:
|
... i would like defour to but vandarvaart and defour are diffrent players. defour is a type of player we need but also a type of player like vandarvaart is needed as well. |
Greg1981
said:
|
... Nick Over those last 5 years Man Utd have a net spend of 27 million on players. Aresnal 27 million. If you don’t buy the right players at the right time you buy twice. (As we have done in defence and other areas). This could have been spent on our void in the middle of the pitch. And Leicester, Blackburn, Middlesbrough and Spurs have all won the league cup since we won it. Why should a team like Spurs be in a position to leapfrog us? We were playing them off the park a couple of years ago. If Liverpool can be so unhappy at being on a similar points tally then why should we be? ‘The money in the game has increased 10 fold’ -But we’ve been spending this. But not always wisely. Apart from Chelsea and Man utd and now Man City we’ve been right up there as big spenders. And Liverpool had the same points as Bolton 4 years ago. VP is sitting amongst 5 million people. It’s the biggest football-starved catchment area in Europe. Raise the bar Villa fans. It’s all about expectations. And currently it's about the lack of quality in the middle of the pitch. |
churchill
said:
 |
...4th would be fantastic and i'd love it .. but if we finish 4th this season i'll eat my own shit Hmmm. An interesting notion. Is this as an alternative to wrecked scrambled eggs? Boss, Shakespeare knew a thing about ‘hostages to fortune’. Read The Merchant of Venice and try to comprehend the peril you’re in. |
churchill
said:
|
...I think that this will be the beginning on the end for Sidwell bob, have to agree. From a yard out he missed an easy chance with his head. Reacted like a startled rabbit. O'Neill immediately told Downing to get ready and Sidwell was pulled off. I think O'Neill has had enough. |
Maindog
said:
 |
... Churchill....I hope your right mate because Sidwell makes me angry!......Hopefully downing of the left and Milner in the middle will get us playing nice passing football, like I know we can because lets be honest lads, our football nowadays is ugly as James Collins. |
Greg1981
said:
|
... When Sidwell plays in another team with more bodies in midfield (ie someone he can pass to (it takes two to make a pass)) he will play better. In the same way that our England centre forward is only worth playing when he’s alongside another who needs him (not a Gabs). MON can get the least out of any player. |
ak_27
said:
|
... By the way that goal was also Sidwells fault. He needlessly dived in and gave a stupid free kick away which they scored from. Not the first time he has done that now is it? But is this the end of Sidwell? No. He is one of the untouchables. |
Jeddy
said:
 |
... January - Sidwell out, Scott Parker in. Gabby Downing Milner Young Petrov Parker Warnock Dunne Collins Young Big Brad Alternatively get Delph playing in that role now. We've carried Sidwell for this long, we can carry Delph who will eventually come good. |
Nanwasafan
said:
|
... Make way, make way. Spurs Worship. Incoming. If I do it all, maybe I can save some the effort. 1. Spurs have a proper manager. 2. Spurs spent their money wisely on BIG players. 3. Spurs play attacking, exciting football. 4. Spurs will break the Top 4 and will probably challenge for the title. 5. Spurs fans have REAL ambition. |
fatkevs
said:
|
... Greg1981 great posts, I do not agree on sidwell i think he is a waste of a position why carry him when he offers nothing = I wish i was not so bitter & could post like yourself |
ronrabbit
said:
|
... Well its pretty clear now if we get beat by spurs next week our challenge for forth is over. im afraid to say it but the way we are and the way they are, 6 points is just to much to claw back playing hoof ball with no real direction. |
ronrabbit
said:
|
... whats this about scott parker, he is crap, he is a mid table premiership player, and buying more players like that will not push us on, we need real quality not average players. |
odysseynumberfive
said:
 |
... nan 6. Spurs can score 8 goals in 45 minutes against a team we lost 2-0 at home to. |
mon 4-5-1
said:
|
...... Nan, there starting to set standards by sitting in 4th and playing attractive football. We can either sitck our head in the clouds and ignore it or take a leaf out of there books. Fatknapp has not even put his full stamp on the team yet. His only had season and a half and look what there producing. We've had 3 and half seasons and look what were producing. |
Maindog
said:
|
... Spurs play good football...We dont. Spurs have a tactically savi manager who knows the modern game....We dont. Spurs have a squad full of internationals and decent players....We nearly have. You can say Spurs drew with Bolton and we then went on to thump them 5-1 and all that bollocks but the truth is Spurs are much more likely to get forth than us. They are just a better footballing side. Fact. |
Greg1981
said:
|
... Fatkev I’m just getting more resigned as every season passes. Let your bitterness out and relax a little. We’ve not had an ongoing top team for more than 80 years. It’s unfair. It’s sickening. So it’s reasonable to be bitter. For me a lot of Villa supporters accept mediocrity. When I went to White Hart Lane (the 4-4 game) their fans were howling disapproval at 1-4. All the top teams do it. They get angry. Spurs are a smaller club than us but there is a perception of a higher bar. We are all a loving bunch and get the team we deserve. |
DanWilson82
said:
 |
... Spurs lost to Stoke, Wigan Beat Chelsea, Spurs stuffed Wigan, We stuffed Bolton, We beat Chelsea, Chelsea beat Spurs. Anything can happen in 90 minutes for fooks sake. Wow spurs played a great game today, just like we did last week at Bolton. |
Villain-from-Texas
said:
|
... ronrabbit Well its pretty clear now if we get beat by spurs next week our challenge for forth is over. Given that more than half of the season will still remain, I can't say that I agree. |
confused villain
said:
|
... spurs are moving forwards in 1 season under redtwitch and we`re going backwards. |
vivavilla
said:
|
... Spurs have a better team that we do, I don't think you'll find many football fans who challenge that. But I bet you they don't beat us. |
villarobin
said:
|
... WHAT A BUNCH OF FICKLE TOSSERS THE MAJORITY OF PEOPLE ARE ON THIS SITE "OOO SPURS WIN A GAME AND WE DRAW" "OOOO SPURS AREBRILLIANT WE ARE CRAP" IM SORRY BUT ITS JUST PATHETIC. WE HAVE WON 3.1 AT ANFIELD, WE HAVE BEATEN CHELSEA , FOR GODS SAKE WE ARE UP THERE NEAR THE TOP OF THE TABLE CHALLENGING THE TEAMS AROUND US. NOW JUST ENJOY IT !! 3 SEASONS AGO WE NEARLY WENT DOWN, AND HAD HAD 10 YEARS OF UTTER GARBAGE BEFORE THAT. PATHETIC, MAKES ME ASHAMED TO BE A VILLA FAN, AND MAKES ME FEEL LIKE A t**t FOR EVEN BOTHERING TO COME ON HERE. |
villarobin
said:
|
... "Well its pretty clear now if we get beat by spurs next week our challenge for forth is over." TOSSER !! WHAT KIND OF PATHETIC STATEMENT IS THAT. WE ARE NOT EVEN PAST CHRISTMAS YET. WE WERE 10 POINTS CLEAR OF ARSENAL AT CHRISTMAS LAST YEAR AND ENDED UP 6TH, SO ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN, AND OUR CHALLENGE IS NOT OVER IF WE LOOSE !! |
Damian
said:
|
... villarobin capitals isn't really allowed but i'm allowing it, mostly because you don't seem to be able to grasp something simple. we beat liverpool and chelsea because we sat back and defended for 90 minutes and played counter attacking football 3 seasons ago we nearly went down. woopy fu&*ing doo. david o'leary also got us 6th place you are happy with 6th place. but. don't come on here then if makes you feel and look like a t^%t |
bigjimvilla
said:
 |
... The reason we are a good team is because 1-We have fantastic determination 2-We have fantasic spirit 3-We have fantasic pace and young flair But the main reason we cannot progress is due to the fact that we arent just an average footballing team...were an awful footballing team.We need that influx of 1 or 2 foreign creative minds to get the 4/4 instead of the 3. |
villarobin
said:
|
... O Neil needs this season, and at least another probably 2 before you should even think of getting anyone else in. Damian you should be ashamed to say we should be getting rid because we will never finish above 6th !! Ridiculous. Thanks to Oneil we are now one of the 6 biggest clubs in English football again. We do not have the funds to just get there in a short cut like Chelsea did. |
vivavilla
said:
|
...we beat liverpool and chelsea because we sat back and defended for 90 minutes and played counter attacking football Tottenham attacked Chelsea and United and lost both games. I don't think you have a valid point. |
villarobin
said:
|
... The poor quality of your come back shows the lack of depth to your original argument. We beat Chelsea and Liverpool, its that simple. You cant moan about how you win against teams like that. We were the better side, and we out played them. Sometimes our 'Counter attacking' style is the best thing since sliced bread, how come now its such a bad thing to play like that. How can it possibly be a bad thing to beat Liverpool 3 . 1 at Anfield ??? The reason Im so angry is the shortness of peoples memories. In case you had'nt noticed Villa have played some breathtaking football at times since Oneil took over. Its just this lurching from "We Are Fantastic" to "We are useless" that winds me up |
VDV
said:
|
... by the end of january transfer window : guzan freidal young RICHARDS dunne collins davis cualler bouma warnock- sorted for at least two seasons milner petrov delph sidwell DEFOUR downing young carew gabi defonz VAGNER LOVE outs - shorey, reo, hearwood gardner and osbourne |
Damian
said:
|
... villarobin for the love of god, we were one of the 6 biggest clubs under o'leary. we were one of the six biggest clubs under john gregory. we were one of the six biggest clubs under brian little. we were one of the six biggest clubs under ron atkinson my point is. there are not many managers that haven't got us top 6. but quite a few of those mentioned above have got better as for me being ashamed. where have i writtrn we need to get rid of o'neaill now? where??? what i am saying is, if the best we are likely to get from o'neill is 6th, then yes he has to go - but if everyone is happy with 6th and that is all o'neill is going to get us .. then by all means keep him but if that is what you want, then it isn't i that should be ashamed i watches spurs today and sure they were at home but they somethign like 30 shots today. we had i think 10 yesterday. that is the difference and the way they played football and made space ... just great to watch |
Badger
said:
|
... Greg1981, No matter what the Churchill’s, Nan’s and Badger’s et al say, without keeping the ball, you simply can’t go above a certain level. I know what you're saying and indeed I partly agree with it. But it's not just about keeping the ball. It's what you do with it. Skysports says we had 51.2% of the possession yesterday. http://www.skysports.com/footb...00,00.html But imo, Burnley were way the better side in the first half. Anyway, upon reflection, I'm mostly over my downbeat mood and prefer to concentrate on the point, which could have been none at all. I know other clubs are stumbling too, but I keep seeing that one win in 5 games.Hmmm. As for the weather, well yes it was very blustery, but it was the same for both sides. And seeing as we're all agreed that we don't play a slick passing game, I don't see how that gave Burnley any advantage? Indeed if all we've got is grit and determination, I would have thought that crap weather should be better for us. And even then surely our better personel should be able to cope?. More relevant I feel is Phil Thompson's comment about Villa players turning out with extra long thick shirts under the jersey and gloves, on what was a wet, but by no means cold day. As for Spurs, can anyone see us tonking a side 9-1? I wish. |
Damian
said:
|
... vivavilla i dont understand your response. villarobin there is nothing wrong with counter attacking football. nothing wrong with it. but after 3 full seasons, it is all we have. defender defend defend work hard fight work hard, dont stop running. after 3 full seasons. when are we going to see something other than passing long? when are we going to see our team pass the ball about, keep the ball, when are we going to see our team make space, have a match where we have 20 attempts at goal. when are we going to see our football develop in such a way that we dont get taught a lesson from the likes of wigan, blackburn and burnley there is nothing wrong with sitting back and defending for 90 minutes against liverpool and chelsea. nothing when you know that is the only way you will get something but is there anything wrong in wanting to know when we are going to start to develop? watching villa at the moment is like watching leicester in the mid to late nineties and wimbledon before them and hands up, who wants to play like them? |
vivavilla
said:
|
... Well Damian, your comment about the manor in which we beat Chelsea and Liverpool seemed to be negative. As though it's a bad thing we won those games by playing defensively. As if, because O'Neill has been long enough now, we should be good enough to attack them the way Tottenham attack teams. If that's what you were saying, I don't think you could be further from the truth. If not, nevermind. |
Fatkevs
said:
|
... Viva i can nearly understand peoples willingness to accept any style of football as means to an end against the Top Teams. But our hit & hope approach is the format against all teams. In the dark past when we met defending Icelandic teams we could not break them down but we were on a misers budget. We are well into Randys tenure now & we have still not signed any top players not even Big Fish bloody hell even Ellis did that. How often have we been given a footballing lesson by lower division teams in cups that is inexcusable when we have players earning £1000s |
mon 4-5-1
said:
|
...Skysports says we had 51.2% of the possession yesterday. But Badger we all know that most of that possesion was across the back 4. How much of it accounted for basic passing in the middle of the pitch |
VillaFanMike!
said:
|
... On our day we play some good stuff. Downings in, Id like to see a real quality central midfielder in and Delph to get more games as i think hes a far better passer then both Sidwell and Reo. When we get that quality central midfilder in i think our football will improve. I personally dont have any issues with the football. I'd rather finish 4th/5th with rubbish football then 6th with brilliant football. I also think this season at home that most games we have been realy exciting to watch. And this talk of is MON the right man for the job is madness! Even if we finish 6th we have a far better squad then last season so in my eyes thats an improvment. That means every season since MON took over an improvment. Of course hes the man for the job. When he gets us 4th place whether it be this season, the next or the next after that everyone will be calling him a genius! UTV! |
Maindog
said:
|
... Villarobin.....You say 'just enjoy it'....I cant remember the last time I watched us play a game and actually enjoyed it for 90 minutes!!!....We play boring as hell, direct football and hope to score from set pieces. If you are refering to enjoying our league position then to be honest, it doesnt excite me...looking at us forth (now fifth) in the league at this point in the season just doesnt do anything for me anymore. Last season it was a bit exciting I suppose but now its just hoping others around us are going to fail. Im not fickle, I just want us to play, positive, good football and get excited about subs such as Delph and Fonze coming off the bench and changing our style of play. It just doesnt happen. We are predictable and boring! Its a shame because this quad is almost there, its almost good enough to be up there challenging! |
Villa til I Die
said:
|
... I can't read this blog any more it depresses me. Despite the new smiling picture Damian the content seems to be more and more negative. If Villa losing isn't bad enough - reading this blog afterwards just makes it 10 times worse. Wait a minute.....we didn't even lose. Bye all |
Devon Villan
said:
 |
... Damian, you're obviously feeling passionate about the Club today. Never seen so many responses from you. Whilst we were 4th this morning, it is a false dawny main and long-term we will slide down the league due to the stubornness of the manager 1) Plays more or less the same team week after week, when we boast of having a "squad". If MON doesnt think these guys (on the bench) are good enough to change a game either by starting them or bringing them on far earlier than 10 mins to go why buy them? This will turn into deja vu of last year. Same 11/12 playing game after game and will get tired after Feb/March resulting in a poor final third of season in terms of points. I'll wager 7th (Liverpool, Spuds, Citeh, Everton above us) 2)I assume he thinks Sidwell is the only midfielder who can get fwd and score as he contibutes little else. Here we are at virtually halfway through the season and Sidwell hasnt got one yet. You know it, I know it. Surely MON MUST know it. Way past time to try someone else in the role but hey, its stubornness. Just like playing LY at left back last year Ray of light may be that I assume the door will be open for Downing to fill the role. He may be the answer, we'll see 3) Cant for the life of me understand the treatment of NRC. I think the bloke makes us a better team. I would bet statistically we win more with him in than when he doesnt play. To balance the above moans: 1) Defence is great these days 2) Hurray, looks like LY is back for good at RB 3) Maybe the "smaller" teams like Burnley, Sunderland are getting closer to the 2nd tier teams like us, which is why all of us are dropping points Finally, cystal ball -Would love us to sign Ruud Van Nostrilboy, I could see him being a catalyst like Deano Saunders was -Alas, I think the cheque book will stay locked away in Jan. Crickey, is that the time..gotta go |
Badger
said:
|
...But Badger we all know that most of that possesion was across the back 4. How much of it accounted for basic passing in the middle of the pitch But that's my whole point mate. You can have 90% possession, but if all you do is faff around and pass it back (which pisses me off big time, btw) you achieve nothing. Hence me saying possession stats are meaningless. I wouldn't mind us having 30% possession as long as it means we attack with electrifying pace which results in cracking balls into the box, like we saw last season. All of that has been missing this season on the whole, I think. I don't think it's any coincidence that as we've tried to pass it around a bit more, we've lost a lot in our attacking threat. What the solution to that is, I don't profess to know. But all that said, we do still play some decent stuff occasionally. And MON is definitely the right man for now, imo. |
VDV
said:
|
... something that still bugs me is when oneill came out and said he would like sneijder but he never did anything, not even get someone as good. Why did he do that??????????????????????? |
tubbydunne
said:
|
... Spurs lost to Stoke, Wigan Beat Chelsea, Spurs stuffed Wigan, We stuffed Bolton, We beat Chelsea, Chelsea beat Spurs. Anything can happen in 90 minutes for fooks sake. Wow spurs played a great game today, just like we did last week at Bolton. Well said Dan Wilson, finally someone with half a brain speaking sense |
Maindog
said:
|
... Villa till I die.....I know what you mean, it does depress you coming on here and hearing negative comments. Especially after a dissapointing result, but most of them, mainly the display related comments are true. I hate to hear the truth too. When all my non villa mates say how crap and one dimensional our football is, it winds me up but it is just the truth!!! Wise up to it and just except it! What keeps me happy is the fact that our squad is looking fairly decent now, we have a good crop of youth coming through (if only they got played once in a while!), our general set up behind the scenes is on the up and despite not being able to string 3 passes together, we are still up there! I hate to sound miserable, I hate negativity but its just the truth! |
Badger
said:
|
... VDV, something that still bugs me is when oneill came out and said he would like sneijder but he never did anything, not even get someone as good. Why did he do that??????????????????????? I think it was pretty much accepted that he was hinting that he did try but he wasn't interested in coming IIRC. |
vivavilla
said:
|
... Some of you lot seem to live by the phrase "you're only as good as your last game". Personally I've always thought that phrase is complete bollocks. Look, Burnley outplayed us. Big whoop. They outplayed Everton too. I'd even say they outplayed United on the balance of things in that game as well. So bloody what? We were outplayed by the team who put in the most passion and effort in front of their own crowd than out of any other team in the whole league. Some people need to stop looking at everything as though it's all written on paper. Football is a living, breathing and dynamic sport and nothing is ever as simple as it looks. Tottenham scored 9 goals today, total fluke. I don't care if you disagree, it was a fluke. Nothing like that will happen to them again this season. A few weeks ago they were beaten by Stoke. So stop your bloody moaning and moping around "oh woe is me, it sucks to be a Villa fan" attitude. It's tiresome and annoying. |
afvcbob
said:
|
... Main dog Its not that Spurs have got a better team than us (except Shitwell) but they have a manager who plays the game the way it should be play and we have MON |
villarobin
said:
|
... I agree Oneil should mix it up abit / use his subs / play more 'Football' at times, but at the same time the style of play that he has cultivayed at villa gets us results and keeps us mixing it with the big boys simple as that. No matter what style you play you will win some and loose some, but as the squad develops, and better players come, the football will no doubt improve as well, although sometimes we look fantastic as it is.. |
philip Dunn
said:
 |
... I feel that Martin O'Neil just can't go that extra step with his choice of teams. If we are to start competing with the top four then games against Burnley, Wolves, Blackburn, West HAm etc are games we should be winning. The reason we won't is that MON seems infatuated with selecting Petrov every game why!! We won 5-1 without him then Reo is dropped and back comes Petrov. He is perhaps our poorest midfielder and simply slows down play every week. Sometimes I think he is playing on ice because he can't stand up! He should now be playing Delph and Albrighton, or even Gardener. Soon no players will want to come to Villa as they can't get a game. Please Martin try and rotate your team selection a bit and keep Petrov, Carew, and Sidwell hungry and give them a rest. Otherwise mark my words Delph will be off in Jan. |
Steveo
said:
 |
... very happy with our position very happy o'neill as manager end of. not saying any more sick of going over old ground what certain people want from villa is just plain ridiculous keep it up o'neill good subs aswell squad looking very good |
Badger
said:
|
...Some of you lot seem to live by the phrase "you're only as good as your last game". Personally I've always thought that phrase is complete bollocks. That's an interesting line you've taken there Viva, seeing as you've done a fair bit of slating in the match threads. How about "you're only as good as your last 5 games" then? Fact is we've been poor and there's no getting away from it, imo. And Bolton was not a good performance in case you're thinking of bringing that one up, they were awful. Of course the plus point would seem to be that the teams around us are equally crap. I can't quite work that on out, tbh. |
mon 4-5-1
said:
|
...I wouldn't mind us having 30% possession as long as it means we attack with electrifying pace which results in cracking balls into the box, like we saw last season. All of that has been missing this season on the whole, I think. mate i agree with the first part that just passing it around the back won't win us any games but thats exactly what we do. Basically we've been found out Double mark A.Young and Milner and allow for Gabby's pace and basically we've been nullified. Having possesion in the middle allows you to dictate and spread the play pass it to the wingers A.Young or Milner or use Gabbys pace and on the odd occasion join the attack and score. 2 examples of this yesterdays game just before half time long ball pumped up from defence to Gabby who latches onto it and almost scores. Now can you imagine what Gabby could do if given quality ball with his pace. Quality ball comes from midfield not from the defence. Hull could not score and did not look like scoring if they played 120 minutes let alone 90 . Bullard fit and if you've seen them in the last 2 games he has been the main reason where they have started to score he dicatates the play from the middle and has lifted the whole team. We need to start doing this if our play is going to improve. At the end of the day i guess it's about choice of football. Some on here are happy with the defend defend defend and then counter attack but i would prefer if we dictate the game on some occasions create and score and this can only be done from the middle of the park. |
neil57
said:
|
... Just home and read blog pretty quickly. Agree with a lot. Damo is ill. take prozac, it may help. Never seen so much replying. Wife must've left him Watched MOTD. Perfect intro, "You never know with Wigan, which team will turn up". Today they were worse than Bolton v us. Defoe took his chances, defence was nowhere, vis a vis Edmond, or Noel as Robbie called him. Robbie must have wet himself, he laughed at their antics that much. Gab's finishing was poor yesterday.Defoe is much superior, but more experienced.Spurs were only 1 up at half time, missed at least 5. Harry is good, he has spent loads, but wisely. Krankjaer is class. They have good attacking midfielders. Our defence, 2nd best in league will be a different story next week. If they attack like today v us, we will score plenty. Gomes is a poor goalie, Ash and JM and DJ will give him a torrid time. AV is 5th, not at its best. I do not see us fading like last season. Could sneak 4th. Ever the optimist Have faith UTV |
mikey18
said:
 |
... JIMMY BULLARD, don't care how old he is, don't care that hes got 1 knee, don't care how much we would have to pay. He is a quality box to box midfielder great craic and would probably fit right into our dressing room. He should be going to the world cup. before we got sidwell we were heavily linked with bullard and i prayed we got jimmy but we ended up with waste of space sidwell. I'd rather Jenas, at least he moves the ball around with abit of class. Sidwell is as hopeless off the ball as he is on it! I feel sorry for reo-coker, since he joined the club he has been a fine servant. He has played in a host of positions and He has contributed A LOT from centre midfield over the season and still gets overlooked for sidwell. in the 372 minutes reo cokers played he has bossed the midfield when ever hes came in. in the 994 minutes sidwell has played can anybody remember him doing anything of note? ANYTHING? |
toastnvegemite2
said:
 |
... i think MON has done a pretty good job in bringing in a core of talented young players who should be a solid foundation of a good team for the next 5 years or so. i find it annoying that he gives so little time to some of the youngsters though and although MON certainly deserves more time given what he has achieved to date i suspect Damien will be proved right in that our lack of creative football will has made us hit a glass ceiling. AK27 would love to see Hiddink too but i think Mark Hughes must be a lot more nervous about Hiddink then MON is. |
Pancho Villan
said:
 |
...Maindog said: It's hard to get away from that actually Still, we have an interesting game coming up. |
davidc
said:
 |
... Spurs? Forget 'em. We WILL finish above them this season (just like we did last season. And the season before. Ad infinitum). Harry's a decent cup manager. Nothing more, nothing less. Good in the press too. Mr Rent-a-quote. No substance there tho when you look too deeply. |
vivavilla
said:
|
...And Bolton was not a good performance in case you're thinking of bringing that one up, they were awful. Sorry Badger, that's tosh in my book. Your opposition play as poorly as you make them play. The reason they looked so terrible was because they were unable to deal with our front 4. That was our hard work, not their inability. We played well that day, you have to play well to score 5 past any Premiership team. The fact some Villa fans would try and take that away from us just goes to show how depressing it's getting round here at the moment. Oh and I know I slate the team on some match threads, but in the heat of a game is a little different to when you've had time to let it all sink in and look at the bigger picture. |
villarobin
said:
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... Ive just been reading through the press for the burnley game and watching the espn highlights, and all im seeing is "Villa dominated for large periods" , Villa basically battered Burnley for most of the game", "A well deserved point" etc etc. So Damian how Burnley "gave us a lesson" I will never know ?? Anyway, onwards and upwards to next week. |
neil57
said:
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... Villarobin, nice to see another as positive as me Our glass is always half full Hansen thinks Pool will be 4th What utter tosh. My Pool mates want MON as their next manager. Watch us improve with DJ on board and Collins back. Drop Sidders for Reo. Pull out all the stops to get the next Rooney, Wickham of Ipswich, he is huge for 16. Imagine him and Fonz. BTW, good to see Heskey score, might be the springboard like Gabby. UTV |
PMR
said:
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... THERE ARE SOME ABSOLUTE T W A TS ON HERE. "I'd like to see the back if MON" Sod off and support another team then. DO THE MATH IDIOTS We have 22pts after 13 games, I/3 way through the season, so on target for about 64-66pts. That would be a very good season. |
afvcbob
said:
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... PMR So your happy with the first half performance against Burnley when a better team with their possession would have caused us to lose the game. Also the games away against West Ham and Blackburn where we played the same way with no passing movement to our game and throwing the long ball up field and loosing possession every 5 minutes Do you really believe he will go and buy a Defour or Van De Vart for this club Youv'e got more chance of Shite FC winning the premiership |
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