Villa’s best side were on display Tuesday night, and they got Villa back to winning ways. In style, even. The 3-0 scoreline could’ve been more heavily weighted toward Villa, who were all over Reading from the off, but it might be even more indicative of Villa’s performance given that it came against 10 men.

What I mean: Once a team is playing with 10 at 0-0, they obviously pack it in and are often more difficult to break down. In that context, three goals is a very decent return.

Anyway.

The Good
Pretty much everything. Villa were quick, combative, energetic, and as free-flowing as we get. On the front foot all night. Birkir Bjarnason, who I think was probably everyone’s man of the match, had an outstanding display, leading one to wonder how he could ever be excluded. He defended, he scored, he tackled, he carried the ball, he was tireless. You can’t even compare his influence to Jedinak’s. Nor Hourihane’s to Lansbury’s.

While the breakthrough didn’t occur until the second half, it had seemed inevitable up to that point. The only nagging doubt was whether Villa would rue not having capitalized on their first-half dominance, given our habits. But we came out for the second just as dominant, and quickly put to rest any worries about another 0-0 stalemate.

It might very well be the case that Reading were poor on the night (I certainly wouldn’t have been happy as a Royals supporter at any point), but Villa looked like they had something to prove. It was the kind of game that showed what we could’ve been for much larger chunks of the season, and what we were like at our best when on the eight-game run.

Apart from a couple breakaways on the counter, Reading had absolutely nothing to offer, and Villa were in possession virtually the entire game, including the period before Paul Evans was sent off. Why was he sent off? We were running rings around them. Which was pretty much a 180 from the fixture at the Madejski earlier in the year.

The Bad
The only thing I’ve got is that the performance makes one wonder what Steve Bruce was thinking starting any other combination.

Oh, and something more substantive. Early on, we kept playing wide and lumping crosses in. They weren’t bad, by and large, but Reading were more than equal to it. And if your striker is diminutive to boot, then why? Give him balls on the deck. Play through the middle. We finally figured things out, though.

The Ugly
Zero, zilch, nada. Unless Bjarnason can’t go again Saturday.

Final Verdict
If Villa needed to find some momentum, last night was the performance they had to have. It was good all round. While certain players may not have shone as brightly as others, the real takeaway is that the unit produced, and that’s what counts.

We’ve had unending debate about certain players. What I’ve said many times is that it’s how they come together that matters. Before the game I called on this lineup because the midfield of Bjarnason, Grealish, and Hourihane is our quickest and most fluid. Adomah and Snodgrass are givens. Hogan? Not so much of late.

But the point with Hogan, as we’ve argued tirelessly, is that he’s the right type of striker to fit in with the others. He harries and defends from the front. He pulls defenders with runs that open up space. I think we went around at some other point about his conversion rate and determined his is not really any different than Harry Kane’s. The issue with Hogan, as I see it at least, is simply that we often just don’t find him. Doesn’t mean he can’t be found. Just means we don’t get it to him enough. Is he Gabby 2.0? No. Just no.

Did he miss a couple? Yes. Did he force at least one outstanding save? Yes. Point is, when you suck everyone in deep, there are opportunities for someone like Bjarnason outside.

Hourihane once again chipped in with another nice goal, edging his man to angle a header home. And Hogan finally got on the scoresheet by capitalizing on the industry that characterizes his game.

Bruce has to box clever, obviously, given the glut of fixtures. I was glad to see him bringing players off for that reason. But to my mind, he has one imperative: get the best team out there and firing. It’s the only way we have a hope of making it through the playoffs.

If nothing else, one would hope last night instilled a bit of confidence and belief. Bruce’s task now is not to outsmart himself. Doesn’t really matter where we finish…It’s how we finish.

Over to you.

Comments 92

  1. JC,

    I think the least we say about last night the better, really. Reading should have been taken apart before the break. I suspect that Villa team will find Norwich a more difficult proposition and then we might be scratching our heads again.

    On Hogan’s two first half chances, having now seen them on the highlights they were not too straight-forward, so the account I read was clearly in error. However, I’d still expect a stri9ker with his scoring reputation to convert a lot more than he has.

    And I’m not convinced by what you say about Hogan fitting in with the rest of the team. He may look good against lesser teams (as last night) but not in general i.m.o.

    Ian,

    Well, dead parrots or not (!), the fact is that Hogan is mostly awful when the ball is at his feet i.m.o. Hence why I say he runs into dead-ends – he does – not dead parrots! 😀

  2. its all about getting the best from players,,, you could say hourihane bjarnason lansbury hogan
    mccormack onoma and elphick have all suffered under bruce
    when you look at this season we have been all over the place with team selections
    and we play players in positions that just does not bring the best from them
    i understand with injuries and resting and rotation but we seem poor at putting the above right
    and i feel kodjia will be the next one,,,,
    its so annoying to see a talent like lansbury just become an average player offering little to the team

  3. Spot on JC. We could’ve had a shed load of goals last night. I agree with all of your comments.

    Also agree with DB. Given these players, I can only imagine where we might be with a really slick manager at the helm. But we have Spud and injuries apart, I would pick the same team for Norwich.

    Yes JL, it will be a much tougher game because we are away. Understand your comments about Hogan but I’m a fan of his so have to disagree. He provides so many options for us up front.

    Another 2 wins should do it. It wouldn’t have last season but will be this season I feel. Then Spud will need to start protecting his key men from injury ahead of the play offs.

  4. Plug,

    Options? What options? 😀

    He was bought to score goals and has done very little in that department.

    Sorry, he’s not a good enough footballer for me and would not make a Prem player i.m.o. Mind you, not too many of the squad would hack it in the Prem methinks.

  5. JL,

    If Bruce puts the same team out again at Norwich and they don’t look good, they don’t look good. But they’re our best footballing side, give us the best chance to create opportunities. So for me, that’s a simple place to start. Last night they looked good.

    If we don’t score, you put someone else in for Hogan.

    I’m sure we’ve both seen plenty of games where one side dominates and a breakthrough takes a while.

  6. JL

    Hogan has pace. In a team short of it, he provides some.

    He pulls defenders out of position and creates space for others.

    Midfielders have the option of playing balls in behind the back 4 for him to run onto.

    He’s mobile and therefore more difficult to contain.

    The viking is more effective with Hogan in the team.

    So is Hourihane.

    As a lone striker he permits Spud to put an extra man in midfield. Not his fault if that option is wasted by selecting Jedi or Hogan.

    He scores goals.

    The list is not exhaustive and you’ve made it quite clear you don’t like him. Sure he’s not an Andy Gray. If he was the big clubs would have taken him for 80 million.

  7. Hi JC,

    An excellent summary of the game, except it was Dave Edwards, the former Wolves player who was sent off for a nasty tackle from behind on Thor, who was making him look poor by comparison. So Thor was at the centre of everything, and a mountain of a man out there, just what we have been missing. I really do hope his injury is not serious, because his name should be first on the team sheet until the end of the season.

    Hogan worked tirelessly, and in the end got his reward, and was unlucky not to get a second, but for some fine goalkeeping. On the whole the team played well, but Snodgrass and Adomah could be far more dangerous by interchanging more often, and Adomah’s crosses were poor again, not really dropping into the target area to reach the forwards in the box. More balls on the ground would have been more effective, and Snodgrass stood out on an empty wing was a waste paying against ten men, he could have been closer in and more effective, instead of giving time to close players out.

    Taylor and Adomah’s interchanges were ok, but a little rusty at times, which if Taylor is in the team against Norwich, should improve.

    I do have the feeling that Kodjia will feature more against Norwich, as he grew in his 20 minutes on the pitch, but will probably replace Hogan rather than Adomah, which may not be the best move.

    I also would have preferred to see Lansbury given the run out over Whelan, as he is quicker, and a better player further up the pitch. His recovery in the Bolton game is what we need from a mid fielder.

    Onomah was ok, but did not really show much of his talent, and woud have preferred to see one of our own youngsters, if we had had one on the bench….!!!

    Have to agree with the comments at the match last night, and on here, that Reading were the worst team we have seen at Villa Park this season, and Norwich is going to be a completely different kettle of fish on Saturday.

    As they were missing from the squad last night, will we see Davis and Hutton in the squad on Saturday?

    I am sure Davis would have loved being up front last night, and pinging balls to Hogan, as well as putting away a few nice headers himself.

    Same team for Saturday would be good, and Kodjia, Lansbury, Bree, O’Hare, Bunn, Jedinak, Grabban for subs.

    O’Hare really should get some time now as a sub for JG towards the end of games to freshen us up.

  8. Dave,

    Yes, the selections have been all over the place—leading to much argument (as you’ve seen) over whether Bruce can figure out his best side without having his hand forced.

    Lansbury’s a head-scratcher for sure. Bruce obviously had him in mind to start the season, then he had various injuries, and never found the groove. Saturday, he just couldn’t find his way into the game, but he had a couple quality passes. I don’t think pairing him with Jedinak did him any favors.

    And I like Jedinak. But when you look at Bjarnason’s play last night, you simply can’t pick Jedinak for reasons other than injury or because you’re playing a big, plodding team and need the height and strength. He’s just not quick enough these days (don’t know how quick he was three or four years ago).

    I was vexed by Bruce’s fixation with Whelan for the same reason. I’m sure they’re both great guys to have around the team, but a manager has to see their best days on the pitch are behind them.

  9. JC,

    I do agree with you that last night’s team was a good blend of footballing ability. But perhaps Villa looked good (as I said) because it was Reading we were playing – and that we played against them as a 10-man team for 2 thirds of the match.

    Norwich – and then Cardiff – will show us the reality of how good last night’s footballing side is.

  10. Cheers, Plug.

    With Hogan, obviously I agree. Like you say, he wouldn’t be at Villa if were a better player. But minus Kodjia, and with RMC not working out for whatever reason, he was the best of what we had left and turns out that he works well with Albert, Jack, and Snoddy. And when they’re going, it makes life easier on everyone else.

    I like Davis, but he demands we play a different way. Which is fine, good to have that option. Some days will call for it, and he carried the load pretty well for a kid when we needed to turn to him.

  11. Plug,

    I don’t know exactly what you mean by “pace” – I see Grabban as being at least as quick as Hogan, and also Codger.

    I’m not going to argue this anymore except to say that Hogan was signed essentially as a free-scoring striker and in all honesty he has missed a lot of chances – as well as those dead-ends he finds! 😉

    We have the situation that Albert, Conor and Snoddy are our leading league scorers. All midfielders or wide players. While that’s good, I do miss a scoring striker!

  12. Paul,

    Thanks for the breakdown. Good points on the players…

    Agree, you give Lansbury more minutes, not Whelan. Also agree that Kodjia shouldn’t necessarily be displacing anyone at this point. He’s got to play himself back for one, and that probably should still come in doses. It was taking him a while to find his game when he was coming back last time.

    Two, he’s not going to give us the same energy and work up front. Which is obviously fine if he produces goals (was really hoping he’d get one last night…came close), but not seeing the need to mess with the team at this stage just to get him in when he’s got lots of rust to work off. The group last night wins more often than not. Keep bringing him on the next game or two, see how things look with him and the rest of the side.

  13. JL,

    The big thing is where we’re at in the season. We’d lost our way again at a very inopportune time, and obviously don’t have the luxury of tinkering around down the stretch. We still need points, but just as important, we have to get settled again.

    So, if we looked good against a poor team, we take it. At least we looked good when we should’ve and bossed a poor team. That’s a start. You try to build from there.

    Will other games be tougher? Absolutely. I don’t think for a minute we’re going to look that way against other sides. But the Hogan/Grabban/Kodjia stuff aside, I can’t see that we have a better combination of players. Especially at this moment.

    The only place I see any option for fiddling around is at fullback. Taylor and Elmo might not be ideal week-in week-out. You want your FBs to get forward? They’re good choices. You have your hands full trying to defend dangerous wide players? Likely not your best options.

  14. JC,

    We “take it”? Of course we do – we’re Villa fans. 🙂

    The fact we won and won convincingly last night is all very well – but it was an absolutely necessary win. To have even drawn that one would really have caused heads to fall in view of the forthcoming play-offs and even the remaining fixtures.

    Whether the combination is the best we have is perhaps a moot point when it comes down to getting points. We like the football from this bunch I’m sure, and last night we got 3 points, but we also need the dogged approach of people like Jedi and Whelan in my view, when the occasion suits.

    I’m simply saying we shouldn’t be making too much out of last night – except some hope that the car is back on the road.

  15. JL
    Grabben is no way as fast as Hogan, & if you see his goal it is a good example of that.
    Also Grabben doesn’t pull defenders out of position for the benefit of midfielders to help them play further forward as much as Hogan, but is possibly a better poacher & second striker, & if he could make a partnership with Davis it would be interesting, but he seems to go invisible more thoroughly than Hogan.
    Also the player combinations have been better with Hogan a lot of the time, as he is more attacking in his runs.
    Neither are top of the range as has been said, & neither is our team at this point, so lets hope some balanced confidence comes back for the run in after yesterday .

  16. Having reviewed the recent games, the worst decision of Bruce’s must be the QPR game, where we were losing 2-0 at half time, and in the 56th minute, instead of replacing Jedinak with Thor, he replaces Taylor with Davis.
    Davis would have been a better replacement for Adomah or Grabban in around the 60+ minute stage, along with Hogan, to freshen up and change the attack.
    Apart from that, the strange decisions to throw on more forwards, rather than change the mid field in the last couple of games have not helped the cause, and just look like desperate measures when you have not got a clue.

    Let us hope after last night that we stick to our best eleven. which is the team that played. We are going to need plenty of back up with three big matches in the next ten days . Win those, and hopefully, there will be no stopping us.

  17. Highlights up – https://youtu.be/3mmmPGSmVSA

    Hogan and Thor were definitely the liveliest players yesterday, Manonne’s did save a lot ( still remember him playing for the gunners). I didn’t see much of Hogan running into dead ends at least in this game. The amount of tracking that Hogan does is rare for a striker. Has he scored a lot, no. Do we score more because of him, probably.

  18. IanG,

    Pace – It’s all in the eye of the beholder, isn’t it, Ian? The two players are physically quite different so one may look faster because his little legs work more! 🙂 I have seen Grabban turn on an acceleration that left a defender dead, so I stick by what I say. In terms of what they contribute apart from goals, Grabban is the better i.m.o. in getting behind the defence. But the pros and cons of both may well end up by weighing the same or similar.

    But it’s the fact that we signed him for his goals and yet doesn’t really deliver that annoys me the most about him. I’ve said that he may well be better off with another club.

  19. JC,

    When I say that pace can be in the eye of the beholder it doesn’t mean to say that there are no scientific methods that can back up (or otherwise) any such observations.

    But presumable we haven’t got any such scientific data on these two to quote from?

  20. Performance statistics per Squawka:

    Grabban Hogan

    Performance
    score 70 -38

    Shot accuracy 67% 53%

    Passing accuracy 76% 67%

    Duels won 31% 25%

    best score 49+ (against Sheff Wed) 53+ (against Barnsley)

    worst score -38 ((against Hull City -47 (against Sunderland)

    av pass distance 11m 11m

    based on 9 games based on 33 games

    Grabban chart shows him poor at defence and possession and generally more fluctuating, whereas Hogan’s stats are more steady and improving.

    Does not really seem to prove much, but there are not huge margins between the players, but Grabban is probably much better at being an impact player.

  21. JL,

    I don’t think player’s results in a 40-yard dash or whatever are generally made public in football. We kept hearing Gabby was the fastest in the PL at one point, but I don’t think there was ever a number/list that went with that. Could be wrong.

  22. Paul,

    Thanks for digging up those stats Grabban vs Hogan.

    As you say it doesn’t prove a lot, but Grabbans’ shooting accuracy and passing look better.

  23. JC,

    On the matter of speed measurements, I seem to recall that stats of that kind were frequently talked about years ago.

    For example, the Villa News made a noise about a full-back named John Neal (later manager of Chelsea) who could run 100 yards in 10 secs, For a feller that smoked that was quite some doing back in 1959.

  24. James,

    Butch at least helped to get Villa to the FA Cup Final in 2015.

    Not too many liked him I think but I thought he was a fair player.

    Sorry for his family. It’s a bit like the passing of Regis in the speed of it occurring.

  25. Grabban and Hogan two very different players, One thing I would say is Grabban has not taken many shots that I recall, two tap ins and a pen and one very well taken with the bottom of his boot against wolves make his shot accuracy look much better. Anyone know how many shots he’s had saved?

    In reality he has not had a lot of chances but his goals have been easier opportunities overall. Hogan doesn’t seem to get easy chances on the whole as we tend to cross high to him and not put him through as he was at Brentford , he’s usually first on the scene and others profit from this including Grabban who’s dried up since hogans non starts.

    During our improved period since the Middlesbrough game were we have played more to his liking we have scored 27 in 12 games with him up top and he has 6 in 12 or 1 in 2. Grabban has 4 in 9 and we have scored 5 in 4 with him as the only striker 4 of which were against wolves.

    Personally I think we would be mad to drop Hogan looking at that lot and I would keep Kodjia as a sub for Adomah or if fitter start him left (as he did for Bristol) and maybe Adomah Right, give Snodgrass a rest maybe, Grabban could be sub for Grealish as he and Hogan did ok eventually when jack was injured. Can’t see Grabban and Kodjia as a pair mainly as Kodjia doesn’t do pairs.

    You would have to conclude Villa are not a team that fashion chances for there centre forwards very well, that includes Kodjia who made his own quite lot.

  26. A very good summary of the facts MK, which goes with my feelings on how Hogan performs within the group. It is about a team game, and not individuals, which is why Hogan, Hourihane, Grealish and Bjarnason have knitted as a nice unit, in the same way that El Mohamady and Snodgrass have grown on the right, and the defence has done exactly the same. Adomah has had more problems with changing partners on the left.

  27. PP,

    Not at all. Hogan had 3 other chances yesterday (for example) that were quite scorable.

    The fact is that we tend to like one player more than the other so therefore we tend to exaggerate the strengths of the one we like!

    I’ve seen Grabban be the team player – creating or trying to create opportunities for others – so the idea of him not being a team player is rather exaggerated i.m.o.

  28. JL,

    I don’t think anyone’s saying Grabban isn’t a “team player.” The argument being put forth is that the team works better with Hogan.

  29. Mark
    Yes, as PP said, a fair summary there.
    I have noticed that Hogan seems to shoot, or be in a position to have a chance to shoot more than Grabben, as he seems more forward more of the time.
    Grabben also is adept at 2nd striker & poaching a few.
    But as you said, Hogan has played a lot more games for us, so it’s difficult to get exact comparisons.

  30. The thing that comes to mind about strikers is that whoever you have, you have to set up around them. That’s the whole point, everyone working to get the ball to a player who’s going to stick it away.

    So, you either have the striker and buy to complement him, or you have a team in place and bring in a striker who can thrive off what you’ve got.

  31. IanG- if you take a look at Grabban at Sunderland his shot accuracy comes down to the same level as Hogans but he does score those opportunistic tap ins more often.

    Whether we like a player or not it doesn’t negate his effect on the teams performance, seems to me that when Hogans up top the team press better and have more bodies in their half. The whole season has been about hitting the front man whether thats Grabban, Davis or Hogan and its mostly a poor tactic. Grabban or Davis are better at holding the ball up but we seem to have more ground to make up to support him as we are retrieving the ball further back and launching it at the CF.

  32. JC: “The argument being put forth is that the team works better with Hogan.”

    That’s not what was inferred John and what prompted my reply. Someone (I think PP) inferred that Grabbanis an individual player – or tends to be.

  33. JC,

    … but as for the team working better with Hogan, that’s a ‘maybe’ i.m.o. If a player can’t play football when he’s on the ball (those blind alleys he gets into and missed chances) then he’s not so good in my eyes despite his ‘runs’.

    Anyway, I said earlier that I didn’t want to argue further on this but I fell to a sucker punch when someone perpetuated it! I’m dropping out of this topic as from now. We just see Hogan differently.

  34. alan shearer would struggle in a team managed by bruce,anyone watch match last night klopp playey a 19 year old from start and used a 21 year old as sub ,bruce doesnt use them in championship

  35. Agreed JL,

    Think we have exhausted all avenues on Hogan/ Grabban now. Each has their place in the grand scheme of things, and I am sure we will be raving over any goals they score this nail biting end to the season.

    Time to start concentrating on who can cope with an early morning start at Norwich….. some players may not come to life before the afternoon….!!!!

  36. PP,

    It’s Cardiff vs Wolves the previous night I believe. The result of that might wake up the Villa players!

    If Cardiff lose and we win on Tuesday against’em that could make it a very interesting run-in.

  37. IanG
    we will never know if ours arent good enough,bruce never gives them a chance and in all honesty if they wherent tried this season ,if we go up we wont be in any position to try them so more for scrap heap only to come good somewhere else

  38. JG

    I was watching young Robinson the other night playing for Preston. This lad was part of our Next Gen team that won the Champions League a couple of years back.

    He looked the most liveliest and likeliest player to score on the pitch. But we decided to give him away and instead buy RMC and Hogan for 20+ million. Then there’s Bannon at Sheff Weds controlling their midfield.

  39. plug
    we will never have had a better chance to blood young lads,bree and amavi could have ripped this league as fb but instead bruce spends millions on fees and wages for elmo taylor hutton[new contract] and utd lad with no resale value on any of them,never mind that ohare should have been used as sub most matches

  40. SB’s presser was a non event. A complete waste of time. He was only asked general questions like any comments about Butch Wilkins, the viking played well, we had 2 players in the Sky team of the season and the like. Not one technical question.

    Compare that to the questions Luhukay faced ahead of Sheff Weds game against Villa. Why did you pick this player and not that one, why this system, how do you plan to stop Villa and the like. He was grilled mercilessly in his presser.

    Farke today said he is looking for a response after getting mullered at QPR. Says he’s had the whip on them. So beware Villa. If he’s not flogging a dead horse, we had better be ready for them. What’s the betting Spud picks Whelan to start?

  41. Plug,

    Perhaps in fairness, Bruce did indicate why he had not played certain players a lot, including Birkir and Tuanzabe. And Bruce also admitted that by his performance on Tuesday Birkir was effectively saying “you can’t leave me out”. Which must mean he’ll play tomorrow.

    For me I see us trying to find fault. If we had more technical information, would we understand the situation at VP any better? I doot it.

  42. well hello and evening all.

    no single malt Friday today, just bloody becks. watching Cardiff vs wolves with the sound off listening some of the most awesome rock tunes of all time.

    Just for tonight come on the wolves!

  43. Watching Cardiff Wolves and excitement is in short supply so far.
    Cardiff organised and hardworking and Wolves lacking imagination up front.
    Hoping the second half will be better

  44. re the bruce debate , ive always liked him, but that doesn’t always mean he knows wotsup! i think he;s started learning again as reallt he should have got a big club years ago, i still remember how good crystal palce were under him. he just needs to be a bit more nuanced/sneaky somtimes.
    if we get up, give him a chance if we don’t get in dean smith.

    re the villa engine, it should be based on the 75-82 team, best villa have been as a club or team since the first 20 years of the footy league, back over 100 years ago. if anyone watched the itv4 prog the other day about when england ruled europe, and then went to youtube like i did, well its obvious. and steve round and wyness need to know that, ahead of the villa bayern villa , they were worried about us , because in there words we didn’t play like a english team , we played like a european team!

  45. so as no ones about!
    with the wolves game on silent., i’m nicking da wifes malibu and sticking it my becks, listening to van halen/eagles/slayer/airbourne/led zep/ and of course the ozzy / sabbath/proper aston music.

    tbh! i think us winning the play oofs is a good thing, because the last 3 times out of the last 4 we.ve lost at wembley, ( 1-0 to chelsa, 2-1, mancs, 2-1 liverpool, 4-0 arse). when we were winning all our fa cups it was not at wembley, wembley is cursed for us, ( just like villa park lol)

    come on wolves u fookers

  46. What a great game..!! Thanks to Nuno and his boys for doing the business and giving Villa an incentive for tomorrow.

    Love seeing the passions of Nuno and Neil….maybe Bruce could someday show a little passion, then we may believe his desire to win promotion and even the Championship…!!!

  47. Thought Morrison, Bennett, Bamba and Hoilett were outstanding for Cardiff tonight, while Costa, Neves, Coady and Ruddy were outstanding for Wolves.

  48. PP
    Couldn’t agree less. There’s a reason that thoroughly unpleasant excuse for a human being has managed 6 different clubs in the last 6 years.

  49. Pp We were linked with Hoillet a few years ago . . . wish we’d got him. . . . . always performs (maybe not a penalty taker though eh?)

  50. I like Joe Bennett too although he did over-hit a few crosses tonight.
    I remember making the mistake of praising him on the Villa Blog when he played for us and attracting a torrent of abuse.

  51. With you there PP
    If we somehow managed to win the next two games I reckon Mr Warnock might self combust.

    It could hand second place to Fulham of course!

  52. Warnock is a spiteful schitt. He has no class. Having moulded a team of freebies and loan journeymen into a fighting unit, he was unable to shake hands with Nuno at the end, instead telling him to go forth and multiply twice.

    Thought Cardiff were lucky to get 2 penalties in stoppage time. The first one was soft, the second one never was. The good news is Madine and Hoilett couldn’t handle the pressure.

    But I must say all Cardiff players put in a shift every game. Misery guts has definitely got Bennett playing well. But his character flaws in defeat shows why he doesn’t cut it in the top division.

  53. Well, well, what a result last night!

    And the drama in injury time to boot (er, too much boot!)

    Good comments, everyone!

    But the Cardiff manager did give some credit to Wolves in aftermatch chat.

  54. Disappointed with Bjarnason so far, playing too much back rather than forward. Murphy too much time on the ball, and not a very good clearance from Terry. Otherwise, we have been doing ok, except Adomah and one or two others too easily nocked off the ball.

  55. Don’t deserved to be down, but we are.

    Anyway, I’ve belatedly put a fresh sheet of paper up, so you can meander over there anytime you like.

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