So after a poor weekend where, if you want to take a view of fate playing a role, Villa were unlucky to suffer defeat at the hands of Phil Dowd, the fact remains that zero points were picked up.
In a contrary position to that of Manchester City away where few expected anything, West Bromwich Albion at home was seen as infinitely winnable. So to come out of it with nothing, not even a point, is obviously going to stick in the craw of even the most staunch Aston Villa supporter.
It does for numerous reasons. The first is that Villa are a bigger team than Albion and thus should be winning these matches, whether that logic is right or wrong in today’s competitive league.
The second is that home matches should always at focused on winning, especially for a club like ours. Villa playing at home against Albion should provide a good result as 32 years since the last loss to them proves.
The third, and perhaps most important, is that Villa are continuing to fall into mistakes that are, by their repetition, becoming increasingly frustrating and calamitous in nature.
For some reason, whether player related, tactical, or due to coaching, Villa are entrenched in repetition of failing tactics. Defenders not having the ability or pace to close down, some players not working hard enough, and repeatedly coming off second best in races to close down space or players.
Why can’t this be fixed? I understand certain aspects of these flaws are, by the very nature, somewhat unchangeable. Nobody can transform players in the twilight of their career back into wide-eyed youngsters in terms of eagerness. Players who have had their pace diminished as a result of the years of playing are often unable to regain that extra yard, and fitness proves harder to maintain every year, especially at this level. But I’m not expecting miracles, just improvement.
That said though, we are talking about a Premier League team here. We’re not talking about a bunch of lads that assemble at the local gym or park to play football after work on a Friday like me or you. We are talking about professional athletes.
Whilst you or I would be engaging in a usual 37.5 hour week where spreadsheets might be burned into our eyes through repetitive viewing, or the sound of machinery clanking might provide the soundtrack to those of us who work in factories, these guys are paid to play football as their full time job.
I’m not going to get into the ins and outs of how much players are paid, because it means nothing. What I question is commitment, and why it is or isn’t there.
Whether you are paid £300 a week or £30,000 a week, commitment is the basic level of expectation in any job. When apathy becomes a problem, any manager with experience, whether in football or business, would be questioning the change.
Where’s Plan B?
Why, after all, can professional footballers, in one of the highest paid leagues of the world, still be getting these things wrong, time and time again? Are the players just not physically capable? Are they not listening in training? What the hell are they lacking?
If the players aren’t capable, then the question begs as to what Villa are going to do about it. In an era where austerity seems to be in every other sentence that contains the words “Aston Villa” then, to be frank, the board need to dig into their pockets.
If we are honestly saying that men who are professionals for one of the biggest clubs in the country are not good enough, then they need to be replaced. Whether they cost £40k a week, or whatever they cost, you can’t keep banging your head against the wall with the same ideas over and over. Something has to change.
To quote Albert Einstein, often known for being a bit of a smart bloke, the definition of insanity is “doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.” If that is insanity, then Villa Park is currently a mental asylum.
It is because, for whatever reason, nothing seems to be changing. The tactics are staid and stifling. The players seem incapable or uninterested. The supply, both in terms of creativity and finances seems drier than the Sahara. Emile Heskey is playing as a midfielder for God’s sake. Players are out of position, out of form, or out of ability. It’s not what I’d call great football viewing.
However, if it isn’t the players who are lacking, and we can’t ever provide definitive evidence unless we all, as a group, sit watching training, then surely the manager has to take at least some of the blame.
Sure, McLeish can’t play the game on behalf of the first team, but he does set the tactics. If a player is told to play out of position, that is what they do. To do anything other than that seems to only provoke media stories of unrest and complaining, as memories of Dunne & Collins railing against Houllier would be sure to remind us all.
McLeish’s statement post-Manchester City saying that the defending needed to be fixed seemed sensible. In the light of Manchester United’s hammering at the hands of City, it actually seemed like McLeish had a fair excuse for losing.
The problem isn’t losing Manchester City away though, it is losing to Albion at home and mistakes being made again. The same mistakes. With no improvement. Every bloody week.
Tactics? Oh I Thought It Was Just A Tactic.
The million dollar question is, how does it change? (FYI Paul, I’m not offering a million dollars for answering before I get a letter asking for the money)
Fans are not going to put up with throwing their money away for much longer. I say “throwing away” because I can’t say any recent home game has provided me with a sense of excitement, even the wins. If Villa were to be ranked on value for money, whilst they may have some of the cheapest ticket prices in the league, they rank as terrible value at the same time.
I’m actually starting to lose pleasure in going to Villa Park, and that’s probably the saddest indicator I can ever state. Going to watch Villa play used to be exciting simply because we had a good chance against most teams at home, no matter who it was. After losing to Albion and wondering what is going to change, it feels a tad bleak.
Sure, Herd may have been dismissed wrongly, but we were not good enough thereafter. Points mean prizes, and we haven’t accrued as many as we should have done.
It isn’t totally bleak, like a lost cause, but the question is just how long this can go on for?
Can McLeish change things if the players are, in fact, not good enough given the board’s obsession with money?
Can the players, minus a select few who already work hard, motivate themselves for the badge to do better?
Can Randy realise, for once, that he may have made a mistake, financially at the very least, and admit to it?
The very fact that I’m struggling to find a yes in three answers is an indictment of it all. This isn’t the end of Aston Villa, but it is the beginning of the end of tethers across our fan base.
I’ve fallen out of love with something I’ve loved all my life and I’m heartbroken.
So please, Mr Lerner, give us something to smile about, whether financial or otherwise. We’re not bad people, but we sure feel like we’ve been treated badly in recent years.
The Author
