Wigan v Villa post-match thread

[XXVilla]

They were fit enough for a few games after he arrived

[Risso]

I wonder if the players are fit enough to play the way Smith wants them to. It's the only explanation I have because for the life of me, I cannot believe how shit we've become.

The problem is mainly the injury to Grealish.  He can dictate the tempo of a game, and has that special ability to make himself loads of time and space to pick a pass or feed the wingers.  When he has the ball, he draws the opposition to him, freeing up loads of space for the wingers and Tammy.

It looks to me that Smith has been trying to deal with his absence by asking McGinn to play that role instead.  McGinn is full of energy and running but doesn't have the ability of Jack.  He kept running at Wigan today, but nearly always got crowded out before he could make a pass.  We then just resorted to lumping the ball from the back and down the wings.  I would actually argue that Smith's style when played well doesn't require super human energy levels, as it's about retaining the ball and pressing the opposition to make mistakes.  It's when it does badly that the players look knackered, as they're running around like Bruceball headless chickens.

[Stu]

WE HAVE JUST BEEN BATTERED 3-0 BY WIGAN WITHOUT A SINGLE SHOT ON TARGET IN 90+ MINUTES!

Yeah, it was a bad one. But that's the Championship for you. We go again.

[Clampy]

No-one came out of that with any credit other than Mcginn and how many times have we said that lately.

As for the Elphick sub, he must have taken a knock surely. It would have been pointless otherwise.

[Risso]

No-one came out of that with any credit other than Mcginn and how many times have we said that lately.

As for the Elphick sub, he must have taken a knock surely. It would have been pointless otherwise.

Smith said it was an attempt to balance up the defence by playing Chester on his right side.  Elphick looked absolutely furious, no way was he injured.

[PeterWithe]

Elphick has come back in and we’ve continued shipping goals, if he doesn’t want to be dragged off he should get better, fuck him.

[adrenachrome]

I wonder if the players are fit enough to play the way Smith wants them to. It's the only explanation I have because for the life of me, I cannot believe how shit we've become.

A decent theory, and one which is difficult to refute. The close season limbo period before the ownership takeover hit us on several levels. We have more than our fair share of showboat players who look brilliant when things are going our way, but no real spine when things get tough. The lack of a proper pre-season most likely accounts for the lack of fitness after the initial surge following the new manager's appointment.

[XXVilla]

They are fit enough. For some reason they aren’t motivated enough.

[hilts_coolerking]

I considered today a bellwether for Smith's reign after the Swansea defeat, perhaps, looking positively, we can postpone it 'till these upcoming home games and make a judgement at the end of the month?

You can judge Smith when he’s signed his own players and got rid of Bruce’s

That's going to take ages.

[Chinchilla Bathhouse]

It's the lack of pride and professionalism that gets me. However baffling the tactics or substitutions I'd still hope the players would take some personal responsibility and at least try to justify their place. All players have days when things just don't come off for them, but too often ours fail to execute the most basic skills. Surely if you keep fucking up you get a grip, knuckle down, focus and keep it simple. Not our lot, they just keep titting around. Control and passing goes out of the window. They could at least have the decency to look embarrassed.

The second half was just astonishingly inept. If we strung three passes together I don't remember it. The penalty incident was a perfect snapshot of the half, an object lesson in careless, sloppy passing, and gifting the ball back to Wigan on a plate with a pickle and a crescent of crisps. Bjarni's booking came about in exactly the same way, a couple of half-arsed passes to a man under pressure and he has to foul. That was after about an hour, and we still didn't wake up, just carried on blithely making the same mistakes with barely a shrug. It was one big cack-handed surrender.

[adrenachrome]

They are fit enough. For some reason they aren’t motivated enough.

They are quite clearly not fit enough to play the way the manager wants them to play. They could do it for a few games then the bubble burst. Look at the extensive and well documented pre-season training conducted by Wagner last season and Bielsa this season with less talented squads and things become clearer. 

[tomd2103]

They are fit enough. For some reason they aren’t motivated enough.

Let's be honest, these kind of results and performances have always only just been round the corner for years now.  Was at another game today so was following the score updates and you didn't need to be there to imagine exactly what the performance was like.  Dean Smith is beginning to have the same head scratching look after games that Bruce an De Matteo had, as if they couldn't really quite get their head around what they had just witnessed.

There is a deep malaise at the club, that just cannot seem to be lifted.

[XXVilla]

They are fit enough. For some reason they aren’t motivated enough.

They are quite clearly not fit enough to play the way the manager wants them to play. They could do it for a few games then the bubble burst. Look at the extensive and well documented pre-season training conducted by Wagner last season and Bielsa this season with less talented squads and things become clearer.

Well if they’ve become less fit over the Xmas period then that’s a big black mark against Smith

[themossman]

It’s a plausible and probably the least bad explanation for that shit show. If he’s come in and beasted a load of pampered, flabby players you’d expect them to get burned out, plus the injuries in training.

[ChicagoLion]

I don’t buy the fitness argument, did Brentford look unfitunder Smith?
I think it’s a combination too many older players, a  of lack of ability and desire.