Well, obligations have prevented me from getting a preview up for this one. These midweek games do me in, sometimes.

Anyway, as the previous, and excellent, thread has thrashed everything out nicely, I think we all know what’s at stake tonight, what we’re looking at, and what we’re expecting. Which might not be what we’re hoping for. We’ll see.

Me, I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see some version of a 4-5-1. And if Gabby is playing, I’d rather see him come on late if things need changing up, rather than start at the exclusion of Hogan. But perhaps Bruce will persist with the 4-3-3/4-4-2 of the last two matches.

So, fresh sheet of paper. Let’s hope the boys start climbing out of the still smallish hole we’ve dug for ourselves in the first two games.

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John Clark
John is co-owner of AVL, and has followed the Villa since the '70s. A journalist by trade, he is, by most accounts, a very nice person. You can follow me on Twitter @JClarkKohoutek. It's an astonishing experience. Or a complete waste of time.

Comments 93

  4. proxopera

    James ,
    Agree , except for the omission of Adomah . I would start with Adomah over Whelan , we need to create first , whelan is only a comfort blanket.

  7. John Clark

    Prox,

    Am assuming Whelan will be deep behind Onomah or Hourihane (not sure who’ll actually end up more central). May not serve as much more than a comfort blanket, might be the only one capable of providing any cover for the back four.

  9. John Clark

    Mark,

    He’s got to have a better game. I was worried he was past it, he’d obviously slipped down the pecking order at Stoke. Dunno why that makes him adequate for the Championship.

  11. proxopera

    John ,
    That’s our problem . Fear. the back 4 should’nt need any more protection , we need to make the opposition worry about our attack not the other way round. Will never happen under Bruce , he’s broken .

    mark ,
    Just a little bag of sunshine , aintchya!

  15. proxopera

    I dunno Mark , we’ve just moved up one place to twentieth with 12 % possession in the first 10 minutes without doing a f**k**g thing . ..maybe the lads could work from home and skype into matches on a Saturday afternoon.

  22. Mark King

    Bet DR Xia is hiding behind his pillows watching this, players are feigning injury to avoid the shame now 🙂

    Reading v Aston Villa Half time.
    Possession
    Home 77% Away 23%
    Shots
    Home 8 Away 1
    Shots on Target
    Home3 Away 1
    Corners
    Home 3 Away 0

  27. James Gill

    prox
    seen whelan for ireland too many times,awful playersits so deep un real its different for ireland we usually are underdog defend hit with long pace

  29. John Lerwill

    I would have thought that the tactic tonight was pretty obvious! Simply don’t get beat and try to snatch a win if poss.

    On Saturday, though, Villa will have to turn up to play … unless they want mud thrown at ’em.

  30. RichardS

    Please sack Steve Bruce now. This is an utter disgrace. He is running scared already . Playing for a draw Reading.

    How humiliating

    We need a progressive manager with a vision

  35. proxopera

    I like Whelan , James , in that he’s an honest player and gives it his all , he just does’nt have much to give .He reminds me of me when I played only obviously at a much higher level.
    The signing of Whelan just reeks of fear .

  40. Mark King

    weird how things work, Bruce comes to reading and gets our first away win in yonks and with RDM’s team. Buys 12 players and drills them over endless games to come back and get stuffed, definitely needs more time.

  49. Archie

    Thats it….no way back now, he set up to get a draw and its gone pear shaped.
    I was on his side and supported him but I’m afraid its all over now for Steve Bruce. I hate to see anyone lose their job but even I have to admit its all done…….NEXT!!

  51. John Lerwill

    Archie! … You’re not supposed to say that … I thought you were an opti! 😉

    I have to admit that I do not see how Bruce can now get out of this mess. Particularly if they lose against fellow stragglers Norwich.

  54. Trinity

    Sponge Bob & Skippy the bush kangaroo would do no worse coaching this motley crew. To be honest, many of us wouldn’t be surprised at this folly.

  59. Johnie M

    Evening all

    Utter crap – Xia should get rid of Bruce & get a young dynamic manager. I actually think the Board should go as well, otherwise their old mate Moyes will be installed & the dross will continue

  63. Mark King

    Prox this has to be the worst time to get a manager, good ones are taken and have just spent their clubs money. Big Sam is the best we can hope for, a progressive manager would have to work with dads army anyway until December. Oh and we are skint.

  69. Ian

    Who the fuck would want to take over?
    I would take Sherwood back. He’s full of himself but seems to get the most in the short run

  78. John Lerwill

    Ian,

    It doesn’t … but at least the last 15 minutes showed that (belatedly) Villa had some fight in ’em.

    Whether that last 15 minutes will be a springboard to a good win on Saturday is a wild hope, though.

  79. proxopera

    Dont be surprised if a large container of cool-aid appears at the next villa training session !

    Joking aside , it was obvious from his interview on saturday that Bruce is a dead man walking . I dont know who would take the job , but i fear for us if we dont cut him loose soon.

  80. Ian

    It took 7 years to fall into the championship so I’m expecting at least 7 years to climb out. It’s fun to vent and toss poo but I really would like a good game and if a win happens well great.
    They will get better but unfortunately teams are going to come in smelling blood and confidence now. All the games are going to be tough because teams are going to see an improvement in their statistics. You can dig a hole in just one game. The hole that’s been dug now is enormous.

  81. Mark King

    I have had this feeling in my Bones all pre-season that he had sorted nothing going forward out and now the curse of the Jedi is dragging what looked like a decent defence down (against lower league players) we are 3 points off 7th as it stands but would need to win 8-0 to get there if results were favourable.

    Hand on heart can anyone see it changing? I must admit I can’t.

  86. John Clark

    Dear oh dear. I kept getting interrupted, but we were never in their half for more than a few seconds until after they went 2 up. We can’t even park the bus properly.

  87. Paul Whiting

    Read Gregg Evans report in the Bham Mail…copy/paste of most of last season.

    Bruce said Reading retain a lot of possession. He forgot to mention why Villa cannot

  88. John Clark

    Paul,

    Bruce comes out saying, “Reading a very different team than Cardiff.” Fair enough. But we couldn’t cope with either. We can’t handle a fast, physical, counter-attacking team, can’t handle a possession-based team. What’s left?

    We looked like training cones after the first 15 minutes.

  90. Paul Pears

    This comment on another blog sums it up well: Paul Young For me, its nothing to do with how many games this season nor even results if I’m honest. What I wanted and needed to see this season FROM THE START was a clear sign that we were starting to build something. Evidence that the summer recess, the warm weather training, the team bonding, the re-assessment of tactics by the coaching team, the pre-season games had combined to move us forward on last season.

    Last season we lacked any obvious shape, we lacked any obvious style to our play, we lacked any evident unity between players and we lacked any evident buy-in from the players towards the manager.

    I have not seen one shred of evidence this season and pre-season that suggests anything has changed …… absolutely nothing at all.

    I see players clearly not getting on with one another on the pitch and, apart from officially sanctioned and demanded statements on the OS, I see nothing to suggest they get on off the pitch either. I see nothing by way of fist clenching motivation on the pitch and I see no players applauding one another for attempting good passes ….. I see stares, I see head-shaking. I see players on the bench not even watching the game.

    On top of that, I have heard rumblings from Bodymoor Heath that suggest there is significant unrest between players and between players and the manager/coaches.

    We have pretty much stolen the best players from our rivals and yet, Kodia excepted, they have all strangely lost all semblance of form. The leaders have lost any leadership qualities, the runners are standing still, the goalscorers aren’t scoring. Is that just unlucky coincidence ? Of course it isn’t !

    Bruce is a nice guy but he, aided by his coaching staff, has completely lost the support of the players and it is so blatantly obvious now that even Dr Xia must have sussed it out.

  91. Trinity

    Can’t wait to see how Dr X responds to this, though I think he’ll wait for Saturday before making a definitive statement.
    Might be best just to sack SB and Calderwood and take up Ian’s idea and let the team take care of itself for a while.

  92. Paul Pears

    Another comment on “Fight like Lions” from a Reading based fan:
    Just back home from the Mad stad, I’m a Reading based villa fan so I’ve always had an interest in Reading’s progress as well as villa. Watched the game today and must say we were outclassed by Reading! I don’t understand why we continue to play hoof ball to hogan or gabby when neither are ever gonna win a header! Can’t put 3 passes together!
    Here’s a stat from today’s game that sums up the villa style of play……. Reading’s goalkeeper Vito Mannone had a better pass completion than any villa player! Let that sink in.
    Bruce has had his time, the game has moved on and he isn’t able to change anything- we continually hoof the ball, now Reading always play the ball out from the back, never any long balls- we made Moore and mcshane look like beckenbeaur and baresi! Sometimes there style can be “boring” but I’d rather have a team passing and keeping the ball than doing what we do and pass to no one.
    If jaap Stam can get a tune out of the Reading players then he could work wonders with us- Bruce out – Stam in!

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