So what happened?

[pauliewalnuts]

You think we would be treated with any respect on a nose forum. I would say that is mild to what would be said to us. This is a Villa website for Villa fans if I'm not mistaken.

Give it a rest, why don't you?

[Fasth56]

You think we would be treated with any respect on a nose forum. I would say that is mild to what would be said to us. This is a Villa website for Villa fans if I'm not mistaken.

Give it a rest, why don't you?

What?

You think we would be treated with any respect on a nose forum. I would say that is mild to what would be said to us. This is a Villa website for Villa fans if I'm not mistaken.

Give it a rest, why don't you?

[dave.woodhall]

You think we would be treated with any respect on a nose forum. I would say that is mild to what would be said to us. This is a Villa website for Villa fans if I'm not mistaken.

This is a forum for anyone willing to obey the rules, which on this thread you are the only one not doing.

[Tony Erdington]

its the thin end of the wedge, you'll have all the under dogs and bitters on this oh so liberal site soon.

Were Doomed.

[Monty]

Honestly, I think we started badly because we were disorganised, Sherwood had no idea how to prepare a team for the season.  We got rid and replaced with Garde who wanted the team to be much fitter and was trying to focus on that but was struggling with the lack of professionalism of some of our players.  In January he seemed to get something out of them but when he didn't get players in the window he seemed to lose a bit of focus and that translated to the players who, for me, saw him as a deadman walking and eased back on training, etc.  That led to us taking a couple of beatings and him getting sacked.  Finally Black acted up as caretaker and decided to try to defend his way to some points but with our ropey defence that was just a terrible decision.

I was talking to a client on Friday (Spurs fan) who met Kyle Walker, Aaron Lennon and Danny Rose in a casino not long after Pochettino arrived at WHL. He said Walker ignored him, Lennon was an actual knob but Rose was pretty sound and chatty. He asked him (Rose) what life was like under Poch. Rose said it was different, intense and there was a bit of ambivalence as there was no evidence at the time that the hard work would pay off. He apparently added 'it's very different to Tim Sherwood. He just let us do what we wanted."

I think that's what went wrong for us.

I think that's exactly what it was. We gave over our pre-season preparation to a complete chancer.

[Sexual Ealing]

its the thin end of the wedge, you'll have all the under dogs and bitters on this oh so liberal site soon.

Were Doomed.

They were. Now we are too.

[PeterWithe]

its the thin end of the wedge, you'll have all the under dogs and bitters on this oh so liberal site soon.

Were Doomed.

We had Stoke fans once, or was it Sunderland, anyroad, they were so nice it soon got boring.

[paul_e]

its the thin end of the wedge, you'll have all the under dogs and bitters on this oh so liberal site soon.

Were Doomed.

We had Stoke fans once, or was it Sunderland, anyroad, they were so nice it soon got boring.

Both, DaveyB was the mackem and I seem to recall the stoke fan was bunny or something.  There wasa west ham fan who was ok for a while as well and Liam from the baggies has always come across as a decent enough guy.

[PeterWithe]

Well behaved away fans add something to the board, the Stoke and Sunderland ones were just dull, just sharing niceities with that fella who flounced off. Can't mind his name.

[Mister E]

Well behaved away fans add something to the board, the Stoke and Sunderland ones were just dull, just sharing niceities with that fella who flounced off. Can't mind his name.

Eastie

[steamer]

"give peace a chance, all we are saying is, give peace a chance"
on the other hand, fuck the, windey windey you know the answer, sod off back to SHA and take your crappy moniker with you. 

[IQLowe 33]

"give peace a chance, all we are saying is, give peace a chance"
on the other hand, fuck the, windey windey you know the answer, sod off back to SHA and take your crappy moniker with you. 

If the majority of your comrades can reply civilly and informatively then why can't you?

As far as my moniker goes I think it's quite funny. You don't have to, of course.

[Steve R]

Honestly, I think we started badly because we were disorganised, Sherwood had no idea how to prepare a team for the season.  We got rid and replaced with Garde who wanted the team to be much fitter and was trying to focus on that but was struggling with the lack of professionalism of some of our players.  In January he seemed to get something out of them but when he didn't get players in the window he seemed to lose a bit of focus and that translated to the players who, for me, saw him as a deadman walking and eased back on training, etc.  That led to us taking a couple of beatings and him getting sacked.  Finally Black acted up as caretaker and decided to try to defend his way to some points but with our ropey defence that was just a terrible decision.

That's pretty much as I remember it. The only thing I would add is that we went into the season with 5 new recruits from abroad, 4 of whom were first choice starters. Whilst they were good purchases, the best for quite a few transfer windows, but it was unduly optimistic to rely on them to be up and running from the off - especially as it is generally considered that imports take a good 6 months to get up to speed.

I don't subscribe to the notion that we went down because we missed Benteke's goals. We scored only 4 few goals compared to last season. What did for us was defence - we conceded 19 more.

[mattjpa]

I prefer not too look back, lets look forward. And despite half of Birmingham having pant explosions at our demise, im really looking forward to a season of second city derbies again. Seeing a nose on here reminded me how much I enjoyed the cup game last year. I just hope that after the pleasure we gave your lot last year by being so shit every week, you all take it in good grace when we do the double over you and smash the championship a new one!

Birmingham City give me lots of hope for the coming season, a par for the course Championship club who made us look alot better than we are. Makes me think the gulf in quality between the two leagues is a bit bigger than we think....

[Dante Lavelli]

The failure to get anywhere near replacing the player whose goals kept us up the last few years, that was for me the biggest contributing issue.

Not even trying to stay up in the January window was another. That was humiliating, the limp, pathetic surrender.

I think the above was the final nail in the coffin, however I'd add that a culture had developed at the club where there was limited accountability due to the absent owner. 

I think that existed from top to bottom so for anyone to raise themselves above that 'meh' culture needed to have huge personal and professional pride.  Sherwood's ego did that for a while (then backfired spectacularly) and Delph and Benteke maintained it for a few seasons but - that pride - probably made them more determined to leave once they'd got exhausted repeatedly watching others not matching their efforts.