I should start off by apologising for my absence. The honest reason is a combination of too much work and too little sleep. Well that and one other thing:
It’s a hard time to be a Villan.
Over the past few years, we’ve faced a lot of challenges. We’ve had financial cuts, challenging times and some bad results. Yet, despite all this, we’ve survived.
Depending on your opinion, survival may seem like a good or a bad thing. On one hand, survival keeps us from disappearing under the water. On another, there are many fans who think that going down would be just desserts given the reality of recent times.
In all honesty, it is somewhat hard to appreciate merely getting by. Yes, we’re in the Premier League and we should be proud of that. However, bobbing around at the wrong end of the table on a comparative pittance is enough to make even the most passionate Aston Villa fan numb.
Recent games have been hard to watch. After the somewhat likely wins against Stoke City and Hull, the likely losses to Arsenal, Manchester City and Chelsea have balanced it all out.
Well, I say balanced it all out – what I really mean is cement a reality that has unfolded to prove Villa are just as listless as they were under Doug Ellis.
To stop and think about such a reality only serves to show just how unlikely it appeared when Randy Lerner arrived. Back then, in a fanfare of money, Villa looked like they were going somewhere. Unfortunately, where that was ended up being in the toilet financially, with Financial Fair Play being a primary reason why we’ve skulked around shopping in the bargain bin for a few years.
Fast forward to today and it is almost as if the whole high spending Lerner era was little more than a blip – just a different man running the same long term plan, albeit someone who is considerably more patient when it comes to managers.
Where Villa find themselves in trouble now is that times have moved on. Manchester City, a team who were the only ones to outspend Lerner in his peak years, have spent far more money going forwards. The likes of Everton and Tottenham Hotspur are, for the most part, seen as streets ahead of Villa nowadays. Villa’s realistic home at present is amongst the Hull Citys, the Sunderlands, and the – dare I say it – West Bromwich Albions of the world.
Lacking the considerable money to spend on progress, and lacking any kind of risk taking behaviour at board level, the Villans seem likely to stick in a rut – currently struggling to hold on to players they need to move forwards.
The reality? Villa’s cautious attitude – both on and of the pitch – may well prove likely to be their undoing. Against Everton, Villa went behind and sunk without a trace. The defence was unable to keep the goals going in, and Brad Guzan looks like he needs some realistic competition around to force him to up his game.
Laying all the blame at Villa’s American keeper would be unfair, but Villa’s reliance on one man with no real backup is a repeating story all across the pitch.
Without Ron Vlaar, the defence has often been porous. Without Christian Benteke, the attacking options have been toothless. Adding in Guzan’s lack of competition serves only to show just how challenging things are.
Football teams are often built around a solid spine but, as Villa have found out through injury, losing your spine means disspirited collapses. The games against Arsenal, City and Chelsea are explained away as teams who are way ahead, but against Everton this was a team who had secured just one point at home all season.
Yes, there’s an argument for saying that the Toffees are ahead of us and, yes, it’d be right, but how many times do we have to accept defeat at the hands of better teams when, in many cases, we’ve lost to the lesser teams too?
This weekend puts Villa up against Queens Park Rangers. The Rs – a bloated and overpriced bunch who are at the foot of the table – surely serve to be a team that Villa can step up against, and steamroller over.
Because, if they don’t, increasingly fans will be asking just who – in the name of all that is claret and blue – we should really be expecting to beat.
The Author
Matt Turvey
Matt is the owner of, and chief writer for, Aston Villa Life. He is also a columnist for the Wolverhampton Express & Star, appearing in the Kick Off pullout on Saturdays and the Final Whistle pullout the Monday after Aston Villa play, as well as every Thursday as a blogger on their website. He has previously been featured as a writer on Football365 and Life's A Pitch, and was a regular pundit for Sports Tonight TV on Sky.Comments 99
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As usual Dolly , sorry Matt, you pose a contentious question.
Are we following the same path as last season? I don’t particularly think so, The comparisons are obvious but the circumstances leading up to them bear discussion.
Last season we languished (sorry Patricia) near the bottom of the table pretty quickly after meeting top teams and beating one of them. This season we experienced a similar start but the run of quality opposition was interspersed with some ‘winnable’ games, hence our current position.
The loss of Vlaar and now Senderos means we haven;t had a cohesive defence so far and the further blow of losing Delph for a bizarre training injury doesn’t hep matters.
What we need before Spurs come ‘cock a hoop’ to VP is some momentum form a win v QPR who gave the ‘Pool a fright last weekend.
Some serious tactical traiing at Bodymoor this week I think and let’s hope we get 3 points next match or we definitely will be falling down to our familiar position in the table.
Welcome back Matt
Excellent Matt =— you are right things are no better if not worse than under doug
It’s a real shame as randy has invested more than enough for the club to be right up there — the failure comes from his desision making on who to hire and a lack of vision in place to take the club forward —
hi matt
I agree, old ideas of who we are supposed to be are clashing with the reality of where we are. the games we are expected to win are no longer bankers and this is fairly true for the level of team we find ourselves in and around anyone can take points off anyone.
you mentioned the return of Vlaar who may be leaving, although on a personal level he did his best he is not an organiser like senderos. the loss of senderos points out a glaring chink in our armour organisation. against Everton we ended up like last season looking like a bunch of headless chickens, can lack off one man do this? to me its plain as the nose on my face.
the next thing is lack of awareness of team mates especially in the final third and ball retention, we just don’t seem to have a clue. how is this possible at such an elite level? these are men brought up around professional football after all not some sunday side players drafted in. the effect coupled with Lambert’s version of counter is we are easy to suss out. On top of that we burn ourselves out chasing shadows then sprinting 50-60 yards to counter, only then to look clueless because the opposition has stayed home and we are too thick to carve a chance out, its painful. time and time again we have a reasonable half hour in the match matching the opposition then fall back to a hillock like custers last stand.
Frem mentioned how we seem to have one good match then 4 -5 bad ones. the wins usually against the odds affairs against the top teams are all out efforts and I believe it pretty much wipes the players reserves out for weeks to come. Anyone who trains in the gym seriously or runs either sprints or runs long distance races knows what being overtrained is and how it affects you, elite athletes are at risk even more. It makes me wonder what we do at villa park in training? or is it just a consequence of Lamberts style? I know people will find this ridiculous as they are professional athletes etc but todays prem is so much quicker than the 70-80 even 90’s teams . It wasn’t so long ago that we started hearing how the continentals play, train and ate, compared to them we were dinosaurs, compared to most sports we are. Delph has been saying how much the extra training he’s doing has helped him and its showed. the guy he go’s in brum has a good reputation and what he does is certainly different to what villa do but who was the first to get the lurgy Delph! overtraining lowers immunity.
I’m not saying this is the reason but coupled with Lamberts other traits it makes sense
Matt,
Good article. On this bit, though: “Fast forward to today and it is almost as if the whole high spending Lerner era was little more than a blip – just a different man running the same long term plan, albeit someone who is considerably more patient when it comes to managers.” I don’t think he’s patient, I think he just got fed up of paying out compensation awards and didn’t want to appear to be seen as forever dismissing managers – and for reasons of discontinuity by doing so.
a very excellent piece Matt, and good comments coming back.
my own feelings are now very similar, except that Doug was Villa through and through, and still is. He may have made mistakes, but he was always wanting to achieve the impossible. The strange thing being that the best achievement came when he was absent.
I still feel that with different direction we have players who can hold there own, but a point that has come out, and is possibly closer to the truth, in recent times Villa have not had a leader on the pitch.
We have needed a Stephen Gerrard, or a John Terry, but we have had nothing like it.
Paul P- I feel the same Vlaar is a good player but not a good leader unlike Senderos
From my view senders in not in the same class are ron vlaar — senders has done well but he is nothing spesh
PP, “…except that Doug was Villa through and through”. The same Doug who washed up at Wolves and at the Dirties. For Doug Ellis it was always all about him and Villa simply provided him with a platform for his rampant self-aggrandisement.
For me it’s relatively easy being a Villan at the moment, but only because I’ve got to the point where I don’t really care any more. I’ll carry on going until they bulldoze the Barton’s Arms and it would be nice to see us win a game or two, but I’ve stopped really caring if I’m honest. Low expectations mean you’re rarely disappointed.
Mark- you mention injuries. That’s another real problem at this club, especially since Lamberk arrived. We’ve had many long term injuries and a lot of niggles. Something is wrong there but that’s no surprise.
What Doug of at least sacked Lamberk by now? I’m pretty sure any chairmen in world football would have sacked him by now if he did to there club what he’s done to ours.
Matt- you would think we would be able to beat QPR wouldn’t you? But then again, we are helping hand Villa. Nothing will change from the last four games where we have battered. It will be the same anti football set up and no creativity, no attacking or passing in site. We will play for a 0-0 but I think they might snatch the win after there Pool display against pool. If we are to lose, I hope the batter us to a score line where the media will start asking questions and where Lamberk can’t hide. Spurs after. Could be 6 battering’s in a row
No, and Senders has an irritating fouling habit when he thinks the ref isn’t watching. Frequently he nudges his opponent when he is nowhere near the ball to put him off balance.
But I agree that he does have more of a ‘presence’ than Vlaar.
Doug?
Well, he still divides the fans, doesn’t he?!!
I believe that Villa was a bit of an ego trip for him … BUT he also had a better feel for the game than Lerner.
And on Guzan, he’s been poor for over a year now. Probably is lack of competition but I’d start play Given. Last season every shot on tArget seemed to go in, seems a similar case this season apart from a fee saves
Some great posts this week lads..
With regards to the West Brom game.. without hijacking the point to suit which side of the fence you sit on.. what i saw was an entertaining 2-2 draw.. West Brom gave it a go.. scored two.. fans cheered etc etc.. the issue with PL and Villa is that we do not get that.. we defended well against Man City for 80 minutes but consequently lost the game 2-0.. we did not score so the fans go no joy really.. the last four games have been exactly the same.. a pattern that seems very familiar to the last two seasons.. so you can’t blame people for being worried..
I don’t think any fan is wanting too much.. all we want is a few goals going in.. win 3-2.. lose 4-2.. be around 10th – 13th.. and we are happy..
The BIG ISSUE for me is that PL is CLUELESS… we say lets attack.. but after three summer transfer windows what players has PL kept and brought that can create.. score..??
We have NO wingers.. goal scoring midfielders.. play maker etc..
Kozak.. Cleverely.. Sanchez is roughly 20M worth of players brt in.. ok Clevrely is on loan but clearly we wanted him for 8M.. so in affect PL has gone out and got players he wants that suit his style of play..
PL has had ample chance to get in creative talent and has either failed or chose not too..
Even a change of system won’t help IMO.. we simply do not have the attacking threat to create and score goals.. and that boils down simply to one man.. PL..
All that will happen is we will pick up the odd win and draw to keep ticking along thus enabling PL to keep his job.. and if he was to get sacked then Plan B would be RK.. its still a very long road folks.. the light at the end hasn’t even begun to appear……………
theres no doubt we have had our share of pain the last 5 years,,
but,,,,,,,,
i still think there is a competent team in there somewhere, its just finding the right balance between
lets just sit back,, and lets just sit back and maby have a shot,,,
the 4 3 3 works away from home,,, well to a point,, if you dont attack then you may as well just not bother turning up ,,, like on saturday,,,
we were ok a few years ago,, attacking wise,, maby not that many attacks but at least we did score a few, and looked exciting going forward,,,, whats happened eh,,,,
but with the bongs topsy turvy form and weinman stuck on the wing or bench and the big man just returning all our attackers are at this moment in time,,, lets face it,,, crap
couple to this sissokos crosses and the poor last 3rd approach play by everyone and lack of chances made or converted from set pieces no wonder we look pathetic
i just hope that this last display give them all a kick up the arse and we come out fighting on monday
QPR are vulnerable to pace but can our forwards exploit this or will it be endless crosses over bentekes head again
and to be honest i am not confident,,,,, but 3 points and a good display will do us no harm
Dave- we’ve played 433 for a while now and it’s be crap most the time. It wasn’t just Saturday we didn’t try to attack, it’s been most the season. 4 goals scored and not many more shots on target
Lionheart- we better not spend 8 mill on Cleverley. He’s done nothing to be worth an 8 mill player
As you say, Lamberk did nothing in the summer to improve us attacking wise. Even with the beast back and Kodak when he does, we won’t score many because we just don’t get players who can create things
http://7500toholte.sbnation.com/2014/10/22/7036907/villas-ineffective-tactics
As this article says very well, it’s time to move on from 433/451. It’s dire for us
For QPR and the future, it needs to be 442 or 4232 with Cole/ Grealish in the number 10
Apathy seems to be the ruling emotion amongst Villa fans at present. The dross being served up on a weekly/monthly/yearly basis has ground everyone down. Lambert has ground everyone down with his dire anti-football. All hope has been extinguished now Lerner seems to be staying, they are literally raping the club, minimal input for max financial gain.
QPR will beat us, I can’t actually see where our next points will come, until burnley away, yet to those pair of thieves it makes no difference, Lambert is under no pressure and won’t be sacked, he’s just been rewarded for being the worst manager in living memory, he’s broke more records than Roy Castle.
We are also rans in the also ran section of the premier league, it’s a sad state of affairs at what we have become as a football club.
other teams play the same formation and can attack ,,,,,,, and sometimes score goals!
trouble is the normal 70 30 % possession against us makes for horrible viewing,
and when we do get forward there is either a lack of quality or movement or both
i like the idea of 4232, and 442 or 4411,, but there is also 352 or 532
433 works if benteke weinmann and the bong have brought there boots with them and against the better teams,,,,
its crap against poor teams that sit back,,
but its not just the formation,, remember the days when laursen and melberg would score from corners or free kicks,, and when gabby would get scythed down for penalties
just does not happen any more,, and that needs to change
as to cleverly,, he is still finding his feet,, he is a good player but needs the players around him to do better,,
he will come good,,, but like most of the team the confidence has taken a battering past four games
and the loss of delph could not be at a worse time
so to QPR what do we do,, drop gabby, zoggy ,, it looks like sanchez will play deep,,
so benteke
grealish cole (weinman)
westward cleverly
sanchez
sissoko clarke (dustbin) vlarr hutton
thats my prediction with grealishes first hatrick in the premier league
if only eh,,,
and what about danny ings,,, any thoughts
B62,
Nail firmly on the head, most Villa fans I talk to just cannot be bothered anymore they know that our fate was sealed the moment Lambert was awarded ( now that sounds has if you have won something ) a new four year contract, we know that if he loses 10 games in a row Lerner will not pull the trigger and Lamberts tactics will never change, everyone said that Keane would make a big difference but if he was any manager of note he would pull Lambert to one side and tell him that things need to change, but now we know all he wants to do is take the money and try and sell more books than Jamie Oliver.
We play a club in turmoil on Monday and I cannot see anything but a win for QPR, if people cannot see that four losses in a row, eleven goals against and none scored is relegation form then they need medication, I for one will not be watching for lots of reasons, one for my dogs health and two I find the new series of The Walking Dead far more entertaining than Lamberts zombies parking a double decker in a sleazy part of London.
AVFC RIP.
Aston Villa’s alarming goal shortage can be wrapped up with one worrying statistic.
“Every team in the top 4 divisions has scored at least twice as many goals as #avfc – except for Burnley and QPR.”
That was today’s latest reminder on Twitter that Villa have been incredibly quiet in front of goal this season.
Relegation-threatened Burnley have managed just four goals this term – the same tally as the claret and blues – while basement boys QPR have bagged six.
Fuck me, we are shit
Yes we are B62. QPR’s goal tally will increase on Monday though
Dave- indeed it works for other teams, but it simply doesn’t for us so there is no point in keeping on playing it. We’ve lost 12 of our last 18 games playing in mainly so it’s time to move on
I’d like to see
————-given———
Hutton–Vlaar—dross—sissy ( maybe drop him)
———-sanchez—–clev———–
Wiemann—-Cole———Grealish
—————-Benteke—————
I’d actually start Wiemann and drop Zoggy cus of his Everton display or lack of it. If not cole, then 442 with gabby and Benteke up top. At least the beast will have someone to flick it into
QPR played a simple 442 against pool and it worked well at times. We can afford to go 442 against bottom of the league and get biddies forward. If we won’t do it against bottom of the league then there is no hope for us
I have to say , if we don’t try and go all out for a win against the bottom clubs like QPR and Burnley, who will we try against.
Hello Matt and a good article which touches on the current apathy of the supporters .
The 4 year contract worth in excess of £8 million , based on four arguably lucky results demonstrates RL is a fool and the hope we had in Fox was misguided.
As for our last game , you could be forgiven for thinking our players had been on a two week all inclusive boozing holiday given the energy and commitment they showed . Not a virus in sight , playing a team who haven’t won at home and lower down the table and playing our preferred away : so there was no excuse . Yes we were missing Delph but three goals conceded was not down to his absence . When the commentator says Hutton has been our most deadly goal threat going forward you know we have problems .
On the West Brom game , the huge difference with the baggies to us was that they showed spirit, courage and determination . We show fear . The first twenty minutes the baggies pressed , challenged and made Man U look decidedly inferior . They reminded me of how we played against Liverpool last season first half . We can play like that – but we don’t.
Having skimmed the comments from yesterday the prize for funniest comment of the day goes to Mark
“f you noticed half our squad picked up a bug after the pool game, a sure sign their immune systems were weak from to much exertion ”
Hahahaha – too much exertion maybe – but not on the training ground or the pitch . Did you see our players watch Everton go forward for the third goal – yes watch but no attempt to engage brains and defend . Whilst we are at it , whose idea was it to leave Baines , their most lethal player completely unmarked for most of the game ? Embarrassing – no wonder I’m getting texts from AV offering half way line seats for Spuds . No thanks .
But progress is being made so credit where it is due. “We deserved nothing and we got nothing “. Paul Lambert .
As for RK – that performance shows
1. The nice have been playing whilst the cat is away on international break
Or They’ve stopped listening
But would love to have heard his reaction 🙂
I think the RK factor has worn off a touch, he has already indicated he has an escape route as his heart belongs to his role with the national side , notice he didn’t say anything of a vice versa, if the Ireland job was affecting our results he would leave the ROI set up. He has promoted his book, and has said he would like to be number 1 again, I don’t know how long he will be staying around getting tarnished with this shambles of a club getting tainted with the stain of failure.
B62V – I agree . I can’t see him lasting longer than Xmas if we carry on like this .
As for why the Villa fans are apathetic or cynical maybe the speech that PL made on his appointment which I’ve copied from VV . Bold promises and I remember thinking at the time , it was to elevate himself at the expense of AM – which he didn’t need to do given the fans hatred of him
‘We’ll definitely try [to play a more entertaining brand of football],’ the former Norwich manager said. ‘We’ll go and try and win every game we can. I’m not going to try and sit back, I’ve not been used to that. We’ll go and try and win. If we can do that with style, then great. If you nick the odd one by doing it the other way, then great, we’ll take it.
And amazingly adds….. ‘Norwich were like that [playing entertaining football] for three years. It wasn’t just the Premier League that they did that, they’d done that in League One and the Championship. There’s too many people who come and watch you — especially here where you get 40,000 at your ground. I’m pretty sure they’re not going to sit there and wait for you to take 40 minutes to get into the game and have your first shot at goal. They won’t accept it, so you have to get the crowd going.That’s what we’ll try to do.’
Read more: http://www.astonvilla.vitalfootball.co.uk/article.asp?a=7517517#ixzz3GsebrZLG
How many shots on target have we had this season ?
There is NOTHING wrong with 4-3-3 if it is played the right way..
You put two quality attacking players either side of Benteke and it can function really well.. a decent AM behind them in a middle three of Sanchez and Delph and it would work a treat..
It’s not the system its the PERSONNEL we have.. they are just not good enough going forward..
We all have to be honest and admit the three clubs in prime position for the drop this season are as follows:
Villa
Sunderland
Palace
Liecester
Burnley
QPR
Two of those Palace and Liecester have scored nearly three times the amount of goals that we have which at this stage of the season does not mean a great deal, but one goal every two games is will generally see you take the drop.
AVFC RIP.
There is nothing wrong with 433 if you have a good manager and good players. We certainly don’t have the first one and I’m questioning the second one to
How Lamberk sets us up, we always have players behind the ball or side on to it. There is never any forward runs because the wingers are playing as full backs when we don’t hAve the ball so they can’t make up the ground. Poor old Benteke, if he gets the ball played into him, he’s going to have 3 defenders by him and zero players anywhere near him because there all 50 yards away in our own box parking the bus. When the centre mids gets the ball, the wingers are normally level with them instead of staying forwards so again, it’s just a side ways pass
How Lamberk can think you can win games with out playing creative players, with out letting players stay forward and make runs in behind I don’t know. He is on big disaster
And on Keane, said from day one I can’t see him sticking around. To be honest, he hasn’t changed anything. At first maybe but he’s still letting us set up like we do which is all wrong. I will be surprised of he sticks around all this season
dave/frem 4232 looks good is Guzan in defence or up top as we can only have 11 🙂
hello jenny- why is the fact we spend very little time with the ball and lots running around trying to win it back and then sprinting from our box to theirs not a factor? agreed it sounds funny but it is a very tiring way to play. most teams recycle the ball and keep the ball, taking rests during games while wearing the opposition out we don’t afford ourselves that, we are either sprinting forward or back or between players. stress the body too much and the chemicals produced affect your gut biome that produces most of your immune system, do it enough and its hard to recover as cortisol and adrenaline shut off testosterone and other hormones and weaken the thyroid.
the Everton game was a strange one as the effort was so low but then we always seem to fare poorly after 2 week breaks. don’t know why that would be but if you look at the last two seasons the patterns are there. big win/ exertion then dip in form, international break shit game.
Vlaar is a much better player physically but not in the talking/organising department than senderos who speaks 6 languages including scottish. senderos is also better in the air he’s 6’4″ i think. yes he’s dirty but clever enough so far not to get caught whereas clarke is just, well clarke.
give vlaar good players and he will look good as he is capable, give him crap ones and he has to work twice as hard instead of telling them what to do where to be etc .IMO of course 🙂
Mark: yes [Senderos is] dirty but clever enough so far not to get caught …
Eh?! Where were you when he got his yellow then?!! 😉
JL- should’ve been red 🙂
frem- that link was pretty spot on, in the early matches we played we looked disciplined and worked much higher up the pitch get the ball back, leaving us not blowing out our arses by the time we got to their box. unfortunately better players and teams/managers will see this and exploit it as they have. our attacks have started deeper and deeper leaving us strung out as we were last season and knackered by 1/2 time thats why I think Sanchez has to be brought in and allowed to play that defencive role properly not half assed like we do
just so you know i’m not talking poo on the immunity front
http://bmb.oxfordjournals.org/content/48/3/518.short
Hello Mark – I am well aware of the affect of exertion on the immune system – the humour comes from the words exertion and villa players being used in the same sentence following that performance at Goodison. They weren’t running round challenging or chasing the ball . At least their immune system will be fully intact for QPR – and Nzog must be absolutely blooming with health. How long did it take him to sashay off the pitch when we are 2-0 down ! They surrendered without a fight and that is what was so annoying about Saturday .
The way they are hyping up the Liverpool Game tonight you’d think England were playing in the cup final ! Let’s hope they play better than Saturday otherwise it’s going to be a Kop calamity in mega proportions 🙂
jen- it was weird but more a case of complete brain drain as they tried to follow the master plan but were out thought at every turn, we don’t do plan B do we 🙂
when you look at the same pattern occurring with a whole raft of different players over 3 seasons you’ve got to suspect somethings not working. its like the second half season collapse under MON as the same eleven got played into the ground, the only difference is they were better footballers so lasted a bit longer. would love to be a fly on the wall at BMH and see what they do.
do liverpool lose then? oh yeah they do
Mark – I watched the game and had Pat Heard’s radio commentary on at the same time . Was there a plan ? If so , did they forget that there are 11 players in a team because Baines was free most of the game. They didn’t press they just set up camp and when they got out of their own half the shock panic was there for all to see. What was so disappointing was that unlike Benteke’s return from injury last season , they didn’t seen more confident or uplifted. I know he’s not fully fit but I was expecting more from them. I agree SRoss is a much better leader than Vlaar and we missed that massively on Sat. When QPR and West Brom can put in good spirited performances against the likes of United and Pool , our glaring deficiencies look even worse.
Oh dear “Liverpool well and truly on the ropes” – Gary Neville can’t keep the delight from his voice 🙂 2-0 with an hour to go
We really are thinking about letting Grealish go on kaon
We can’t attack, pass, create or score, so we let a player who can do all those things go on loan or leave him out of match days squad
Oh god why did Lamberk ever end up at this club
Start Cole and Grealish against QPR. Shows how bad we are that Tarrat might even make his first start against us
Great piece Matt ,
Hope you guys are keeping well!? Villa is a rudderless ship devoid of expectancy and leadership. There is no pressure on anyone , the passion has been diluted by false promises over many years.
On the pitch midfield is an utter joke, a forward pass is a rare as an accurate kickout from Guzan. The club is viewed as a stepping stone by players and coaches (Keane) until Lerner is gone nothing will change as a domino effect I think is the only scenario I feel will shake things up.
Have we a plan and if so what is it?
Good article.
Apathy is hanging over Villa like smog over Beijing on a windless day. Yes, there is the odd bright day to keep us interested, but that’s about it. If Wigan FC can win the FA Cup why can’t Villa?
There is no plan Liam. How can we have a long term plan, when Lamberk doesn’t even have a game plan week by week?
This season isn’t very old but already we have put in many dire displays. That’s no surprise though. How many times since he took over have we just let 90 mins pass by with is getting battered, looking lost and showing no quality what so ever? It seems like most weeks for over 2 years now that’s been the case. He needs to leave this club
“Against the big teams, you can’t go gung-ho,” he said.
“Look at Man City, they scored four against Tottenham yet we conceded two against them and that was right at the tail end.
“If you go really gung-ho it can eat you up.
“I want us to create more.
“Look at our attacking players on the pitch on Saturday – there was Tom (Cleverley), Kieran (Richardson), Charlie (N’Zogbia), Gabby (Agbonlahor) and Christian (Benteke).
“That’s half of your team, and then we bring Joe Cole and Andi Weimann on as subs.
“I’d like us to be more productive in the end. I know the players have got it in their lockers to go and do it.
“I want them to play with freedom, they need that.
“I don’t want them to be robotic. I want them to have freedom and their own ideas at times. I don’t have a problem with that.
“You just have to get that balance.
The man makes me so angry. He has the nerve to say we try to win every game. BS.
He says you can’t attack against the big boys!!! We hardly attacked against Hull, Stoke or orient. Newcastle we did nothing
Then he thinks gabby and Wiemann are creative players ?
WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU ON ABOUT LAMBERK!!!!!!!!!! We all know your idea or attacking is two shots on target
441 mins since we last scored a gaol. You know last season we broke a record with our longest scoring drought since before 2010, we are now 10 mins away from breaking that record ( again) last season we went 451 mins with out scoring.
133 goals have been scored since we last scored
6 individual players have scored more goals this season than this whole team
25 of aston villas goal total that Richard Dunne has scored this year
Out manager is unreal
hello Liam long time no hear from, hope OZ is treating you well. unfortunately your right Lerner has to go, he’s not got a scooby about football and what fans want. He also can’t make his mind up, shall I stay or shall I go? what a pile of crock. Yes he might lose some of his many millions but we are losing something the fans can’t replace, its like losing the family heirlooms. He needs to go or Villa need to fold. A football team that doesn’t try to win no matter the odds is like a bucket with a hole in, useless, except for pulling £’s out of fans pockets. I suppose we could always put the bucket on are heads come match day.
Afternoon all – cheery as ever on here reflecting the state of our club on and off the pitch really.
Did i ever mention i thought Guzan was carp ??
Anyway how about some tips for the upcoming cheltenham festival – Droyd!?!? – i know you’re out there somewhere and i need your tips…..
UTV!!!!
Mark- Randy isn’t the only one who doesn’t have a scooby about football. Our so called manager thinks Gabby and Wiemann are threats.he thinks you can play strikers as left backs and then say it’s an attacking line up.
We all know He will be over the moon with a 0-0 on Monday and then say how excellent we were and how much we have improved this season. His idea of letting players express them selfs is completely different to any. Other manager
bibulus- I thought I’d start today’s posts at desperate and work my way up to depressed so I have something to aim for 😉
the way we are talking about the QPR game on here I’d be happy with 0-0 now. Lambert does drone some shite out though, why does he feel the need?
Looking forward to the game on Monday — dispite not being a fan of our manager i think we have the players to lift the club to a more than respectable position.
We have lost 4 out of 5 games that we were not expecting to win – albeit very poor showing in 4games
If the players can perforn near there best we should start to get better results against the so called lesser teams
We can’t draw to bottom of the league. I’d rather us get hammered to prove the point on Lamberk even more than take a 0-0. Even Randy will have to scratch his head if they beat us.
Runtings- We have some all right players, but a manager who doesn’t let them go and play
If he’s being truthful about letting players express them selfs then Grealish and Cole will start and no Gabby or Richardson in sight
frem- he might be talking about Keane letting them talk in the changing room when he says express himself 🙂
runtingz- don’t be coming on here all positive 🙂
Runtings: dispite not being a fan of our manager i think we have the players to lift the club to a more than respectable position.
That’s what I was saying, mate … until after the Everton match!
But I suppose they should get a win at QPR. If they don’t, what will there be to say?
Mark – to be fair the supporting the mighty villa leaves me more twisted than spending the last week working in amsterdam – we are a footballing paradox.
Reading todays comments, would agree that it does seem we have players that should produce a better team than we see every time we turn up at VP. Yet, Four losses and no goals scored, (and its the no goals scored that to my mind really eats at people) and we are all back to looking for anything to distract us from the villa.
So its a win win on Monday for me – we take three points and old ball bag face gets more grief as his meedja mates turn on him – we lose and they begin to realize how our leaders have taken the fight out of a team that was showing signs of recovery.
Anyway with the help of all the tips you lot have given me for chelters i will soon cheer up…….
UTV
If we don’t AT LEAST get a draw from the QPR match then it will most certainly look bleak. This isn’t really a must win but it is a must not lose or a ‘let’s try to win’ indeed!
If it doesn’t look like we’re trying to get all 3 points then even the most positive supporter will be out for blood come Tues morning.
COYVB
Matt,
When you end up getting your regular weekly article in the BM then how’s this for a marketing touch: ‘Topsy Turvey: The Week in the Life of a (long suffering, diehard) Villa Supporter’
@RB
Hi guys and Jenny.
Did manage to read some last night and more today, and it is great to see a few more familiar faces back here. It has been very dire for a few weeks….A bit like Lamberk’s team…no drive and very little inspiration, perhaps now there are more, it will lift the mood, and thenit will find it’s way into the team…and het presto Villa will become great again…!!!
The defence will close up, the mid field will find inspiration, and Weimann, Benteke and Gabby will score bagfuls of goals….and we will start to climb the table once more….until the 3rd round of the FA Cup…..
Completely agree Frem and Mark, oz is going well but haven’t time to pi$s lol, back for Christmas the 10th of dec for a month so if there’s a meetup I’ll try get to it.
We just have a defeatist attitude going into 99% of games so it’s coming to the stage I’m asking what’s the point in the club even existing, no team is unbeatable stoke beat city for example. Ireland drew with the world champions in their backyard and could have won. I thought keane would instill some lets have a go attitude but he’s more worried about selling books and securing the ireland job in the future.
Liam – Keane is looking as devoid of inspiration as lambert, no anger, no shouting , just sits there numb, not even a fucking beard
No idea on the meet up front, steamer and st75 nowhere to be seen these days, think they have disowned us and villa 😉
Morning everyone .
The question is when does RK get the time to coach our team : international break , and my twitter feed is littered with reports of his speaking engagements to promote his book at this dinner and that . He’s now entered another spat with Maureen (got to love him for that though ) because Maureen accused him of using the handshake to promote his book – can’t post link but copied it here as it brought a smile to my face this morning
Roy Keane in fresh attack on Jose Mourinho after Stamford Bridge handshake saga
http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/roy-keane-fresh-attack-jose-4476675
I am cleverer than I thought : it worked .
Meet up would be great in Dec Liam I’m sure the steamers would be up for it .
RKs absence could explain the antics on the pitch last Saturday – have they been given the last two weeks off ?!
The off pitch drama probably be more interesting than the football on Monday, Arry on verge of the sack , Zog and Tarabat competing for the biggest tantrum (least Zog doesn’t catch the bus home at half time though ) and Roy Keane and Tony Fernandez in the same room . Comedy gold .
Mark- good point on Keane. Haven’t seen him get up from his arse since Stoke away. I think Lamberk sucks the life out of everything he touches. The club, the players, our assistant, Randy and the fans. It’s no coincidence Randy wants out whilst Lamberk has been manager.
Anyone going to QPR ?
http://avillafan.com/site/16098/are-we-becoming-the-leagues-pressure-relieving-team/?
Be saying for ages we are helping hand Villa and I’m sure it will Carry on against QPR
We’ve been mistaken for a conference side then. We’ve been listed by accident to play FA cup tie that level
To be fair, it’s an easy mistake to make. The way we are playing would fit right in at that level
Reading on twitter and other sites, it’s fair to say it looks like the tide is finally turning and a lot of fans are realising that Lamberk isn’t good enough. Even on here, it seems to be that way
He can’t survive losing to bottom of the league and making it 5 defeats in a row
Lord help us if Roy Keane ever becomes villa boss – his record as a manager is pityful and the mayhem he left behind at clubs was deverstating , he is actually a worse manager than PL if that’s possible
Frem i am not a twitter regular but when i went on there to read reactions from fellow villans for lambo signning a new contract i was shocked at the amount of support he still has from the fan base
When I first joined in to this topic 3 days ago I thought we would be lucky to get anything from Loftus Road. The fact that the topic only generated a further 68 responses in that time is an indication of the lack of enthusiasm and apathy that is sweeping through our ranks.
I certainly saw nothing to make me change my mind about what I will be watching on Tuesday morning’ I am certainly NOT staying up until 0300 to watch it live.
Clive.
Me neither, especially on a work day. I think it’ll be a draw.
Did you watch the league just now? not often the Aussies get a sound beating, must be all the new players. England might be in with a chance next week, but how often do the Aussies lose twice in a row? That was a great atmosphere at Suncorp and both teams were positive.
Hope Thailand’s treating you well.
This is what Lamberk has done to this club Clive and Trinity. We will be lucky to get a point against bottom of the league, I think QPR will run riot against us. If it finally gets him the sack, then so be it. Chances are we will lose our next two, making it 6 defeats in a row. The atmosphere at Spurs could be vial and I hope it is
BT just showing the quality West Ham have now. Different class to us, and Hull. It’s sad when those two are in a different class
we need a foriegn philosophy at Villa know, just look at what Koeman has achieved in a short space of time changing squad with shrewd acquisitions still maintaining profit. Every other prem team improved while we go backwards to the standard set by Lambert, counter attacking predictability, he has been found out and cant change or coach to pose any threat to opposition. I actually even envy Middlesboro, because they have a coach to all accounts that has excellent coaching skills and a fantastic network of contacts here and abroad for potential talent.
Just look at what Lambert has acquired for his entertaining football that was promised apparently he said that we will demand it. however I still hear the L/H side of the Holte still sing his name I cringe when I hear it. It has assisted to the numpty getting another 4 years with the board assuming that we are happy with his army. Well I for one cannot wait till Lambert has gone because I believe that he will take us down if he stays beyond Xmas.
West Ham showing Lamberk up. All over City and dominating the ball. All this BS after we played them that you can’t compete etc. well, if your team has fight and attacks, you can
Feck you Lamberk
Frem
To be honest, I reckon Villa have to beat QPR otherwise a losing mentality will have set in. It’s all very well losing to the big teams, but there’s no excuse to lose against QPR.
Trinity- the losing mentality is has well and truly settled in yet again. We crumble with ease.
Thing is, we didn’t even give any of the big boys a game unlike West Ham are right now. We didn’t even turn up.
I think QPR will have us and that has to be the end of Lamberks painful and disastereos tenure if/ when they do. If a draw ain’t no good
A draw would be the worst result. It’s shit for us bailing in mind we have lost our last four and Lamberk can come out and spout his shite like” it stops the rot”, ” we were excellent” etc
If we lose, he can’t BS his way out of it. Even Randy and Fox will have think something is wrong
Well done the Hammers, at least one team wearing claret and blue gives it a go. Shows what can be done with a touch of ambition and bravery.
Not looking forward to going to Upton park, yet another team who will murder us. I have a horrible feeling our losing streak will hit 8 in a row.
West Ham result against Citeh just goes to show that the mass purchases of Dildo’s have improved performance. We have one as a manager.
B62
I hope you’re wrong but wouldn’t be surprised if you’re right, especially if we lose against QPR on Monday.
Well if QPR beat us it we will lose 6 in a row with spurs after.’wba soon as well are playing well
B62- exactly. If you give it ago, you can win games.
Lamberk doesn’t give it a go
You just have to look at Palace to see how bad Ee have failed
Oh Dear Birmingham. Looks like you won’t be surviving this one. 5-0
Madrid v Barca will be epic. Suarez starting
Lamberk will watch proper football
West Ham show you nothing but splashing ££££ and paying big wages work.
West Brom was the next barca on here mon night…..can’t beat palace at home!! Good result for villa though.
Important not to loose at qpr. Draw not the end of the world in battle to stay up
The last five games have been a bit unreal. Monday might give us a better indication of where we really stand. Its been tough to endure recent results but if we managed to win then we’d be in the top half of the table and would have done better than nearly any of us would have predicted. Its fair to say that most expected us to be in the bottom 3 after the Spurs game and a top half position would be far far better than anticipated. On the other hand, if we lose our next two then there’s every chance that the pre-season predictions may yet come true!
There is no drama, nothing unexpected. You spend money in the prem and pay wages you should do ok. The prem is going to be tight from 10th downwards. We are in a relegation battle with them all. Don’t expect entertaining flowing footy, just fight and cheer for every point.
Andrew: West Ham show you nothing but splashing ££££ and paying big wages work.
Until it fails. Can West Ham sustain this policy, that’s the question.
Sustainability is a key issue … and not just in football – it’s a matter that affects the future of mankind.
See http://localisewestmidlands.org.uk/
impressive attendance of over 44,000 at Sunderland today considering their league position and 8.0 lost last time out.
Superb support robbo, I’d love to see vp like that.
John
I reckon it prob can in the prem, cash is king sadly. Don’t we know it being villa fans!!
Trinity,
Yes I watched the 4 nations yesterday; Samoa will give the Kangaroos and Kiwis a good examination. England need to stop droping the ball in commanding positions. Even though they improved in the second half, had it not been for Tomkins’ great try we would have been losers.
Hoping to see the games live next week but we have to take Sumalee’s eldest son to the Army NCO Training School, so I might have to watch a delayed transmision if we are not back in time.
I have never regretted moving out here and getting married again – 6 years ago now.
Hope Villa do a West Ham and get stuck in.
Still early in the season but it really is a big game tomorrow.
This will set the tone for the season.
We need to find some quality from somewhere.
Would certainly help if Benteke showed signs of improvement.
Cole, Zoggy, Grealish, Gabby, Cleverley… someone has to produce that bit of magic we’ve been missing…
UTV!
Andrew,
Cash *can and does* often make a big difference – the likes of Chelsea and Man City prove that.
But those clubs achieve what they do as they have on-going sources of much cash.
West Ham are not in that league in cash terms nor support terms. They are the kind of club that comes up, shows everyone 2 fingers for a couple of seasons and then goes back down again. I don’t expect to see them at their current status in 2 years’ time.
However, West Ham are showing Villa how the game should be attempted – and their players are not really much better than ours i.m.o. – if at all.
QPR Bug!
Have just read that QPR could have 6 main players missing tomorrow as a result of a bug.
What to believe!
It seems that the bug is now more-or-less in the past … but that QPR have other problems…
“Rob Green is available following illness which kept him out of the Liverpool match and could displace Alex McCarthy in goal, but defender Nedum Onuoha (hamstring) and midfielder Sandro (groin) are doubts. Midfielders Joey Barton and Jordon Mutch (both hamstring) remain out alongside long-term absentee Alejandro Faurlin (knee).”
And “Adel Taarabt is not included in the QPR squad for Monday’s Barclays Premier League clash”.
Football is truly showing what a shite manager we have. West Ham yesterday beating city and attacking, burnley just scored against a team who can’t defend. You know that team who kept a clean sheet against us last week?
We have the most defensive, clueless anti football manager around.
Tomorrow is already is a relegation dog fight
Is saw Martinez before the game( and many times before) talking about the size of Everton, there history, there fan base etc. a manager who cares about it and respects it. A manager with standards and ambition
We are also a huge club, great history, great fan base….
We just don’t have a manager with standards or respect. We have a manager who actually said he doesn’t mind losing
Frem: We are also a huge club, great history, great fan base….
Spot on! Trouble is, the powers that be don’t seem to understand that!
The Birmingham mail ran a comparison between Lee Clark and Paul lambert’s managerial records, PL is worse than LC, averaging 1.06 points per game, only winning 23(league) games, losing 41 with a goal difference of -52( scoring 90 conceding 142).
It goes really in depth and shows just how terrible Lambert’s record is and that us before we even get onto his style of play.
He has to go, the sooner the better followed by Randy who is the worst thing to happen to Villa.
Newcastle beating Spurs who we have after QPR. No excuses, no hiding place for Lamberk if we don’t beat them either
If you actually turn up to games with the mentality to play football, you can win
We had no desire to play football or win against Arsenal, Chelsea, City or Everton.