Heroes & Villains, the Aston Villa fanzine
Heroes & Villains => Match Threads & Player Ratings => Topic started by: Legion on December 28, 2012, 06:34:05 PM
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Available Saturday evening.
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It's a bad thing that's happened
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We are in so much shit.
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oh dear..............
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Lots of brown smelly stuff
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The worst Villa team I've ever seen. Everyone at the club should be thoroughly ashamed of themselves.
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Lambert doesnt do a lot on the training field...so...if the coaches he brought in can't teach defenders how to defend and improve then the coaches are not good enough neither are the players...so something has to give
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Very very depressing.
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Here's to a better year in 2013. I've heard the Championship is lots of fun.
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That's the easiest game Wigan will play all season.
It's a shame how many opponents could say that about us this season.
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There are very few words that can express what all of us feel right now.
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I'm not going to be critical as the results speak for themselves. The kids heads have gone. It's simple now, back Lambert big time in January or we are down.
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im truly ashamed at how pathetic we are. Lerner has ruined this once great club. Time to sell
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Shambles somehow not in the bottom three.Need players but to be honest despite the young players the fact Lambert and his team can not get a team to defend worries me
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Very poor , totally bereft of ideas and I am having serious doubts about lamberts selections , tactics and formation- nowhere near good enough!
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Fucking awful again. Enough of this, 'we go again' bollocks because it's clear to see that probably three quarters of our squad aren't good enough. There's not point naming names, it's clear to see who they are. Unless something drastic is done in January we're buried. These last three results are as bad as I remember as a sequence.
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Just hope 2013 will turn things around, otherwise we're doomed.
Clueless football with no idea about creating chances and a defence with too much pressure placed on it.
PL needs to re-think his plan or his reputation is shot.
The long term is good but not at the risk of a short term disaster
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At least Cameron Jerome has kept us out of the relegation zone...but we cant rely on Cameron every week!
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Two Liverpool supporting mates have texted me bewildered at how the fuck they lost handily to us just a couple of weeks ago. I have no answer.
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im truly ashamed at how pathetic we are. Lerner has ruined this once great club. Time to sell
A potential buyer would need to be mentally deficient to buy this club at the moment, and let's face it, Lerner can't sell it to himself.
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At least we bravely held on for a 3-0 defeat.
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Fack off Villa you're a disgrace.
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Gutted at the score and what we have become...
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No idea where we go from here. The team is well and truly lost.
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I can't think of a Villa team more inept than the one I've watched over the last week or so.
If McLiesh would've served anything like as bad as the last 3 games, people would've been rabid. Lambert probably is a better manager, but I'm not sure he can turn this around. So, I'm not sure he should continue as our manager - right now, we are dead certainties to be relegated and that just isn't good enough for Villa.
Yes, Lerner's ownership is largely to blame for teh current plight but Randy aint going to sell the club in January. We *might* be better off with another manager so I think it at least has to be considered.
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Very poor , totally bereft of ideas and I am having serious doubts about lamberts selections , tactics and formation- nowhere near good enough!
Totally agree, he's not the messiah we hoped for.
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We are such a laughing stock right now. It is heartbreaking.
It doesn't feel like Aston Villa anymore does it?
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Lets give Wigan some credit they came with a plan and it worked perfect. Us on the other hand offered nothing, played extremely poor and once again got what we deserved fuck all.
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Lerner needs to realise that the only way his fantasy about us being self supporting coming true is if we stay in this league for the extra large TV deal next season.
Right now, it isn't looking too promising.
I appreciate we have an injury crisis, but really, it was never going to take much in terms of injuries for this squad to be down to the absolute bare bones, and that's what we've seen today and in recent games.
Experience needed in January, and lots of it.
Throwing more lower league, low wages players at this is not going to solve anything.
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Fack off Villa you're a disgrace.
Cut that out.... We may be shit but 'Fuck off Villa'? really?
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No fucking excuse for that We are fucked
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im truly ashamed at how pathetic we are. Lerner has ruined this once great club. Time to sell
A potential buyer would need to be mentally deficient to buy this club at the moment, and let's face it, Lerner can't sell it to himself.
We are still getting 33k whilst playing journeymen and kids after a recent goal difference of -12. the potential is still there
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Can we recall the Fonz from blackpool?
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I never like clubs or managers apologising but this is an exception.
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That was an absolute disgrace. I know confidence is low and an early goal makes it worse, but the tactics there were awful. Some of the players like Ireland dont give a toss and others, such as Lichaj and an out of position Herd are not good enough. Lambert now has to show he is a talented manager as the midfield he chose today was awful, not one of them can defend at all.
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This team would struggle in the Championship.
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Lambert needs to realise 5-3-2 / 3-5-2 on worked because it surprised teams now they know we use that formation they flood the middle and overpower the 3 which disconnect the strikers. Need to revert back to 4-4-2 like we did late in the second half which I think for the last 30 or so minutes we were excellent (admittedly Wigan backed off). Benteke very very poor needs dropping Bowery in (excellent I thought when he came on). Really need Vlaar back for Herd but I think we were unlucky not to score at least once today (in the last 30).
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im truly ashamed at how pathetic we are. Lerner has ruined this once great club. Time to sell
A potential buyer would need to be mentally deficient to buy this club at the moment, and let's face it, Lerner can't sell it to himself.
We are still getting 33k whilst playing journeymen and kids after a recent goal difference of -12. the potential is still there
You don't buy a Premier League club about to be relegated. You wait for it to happen and get a better price.
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Lerner needs to realise that the only way his fantasy about us being self supporting coming true is if we stay in this league for the extra large TV deal next season.
Right now, it isn't looking too promising.
I appreciate we have an injury crisis, but really, it was never going to take much in terms of injuries for this squad to be down to the absolute bare bones, and that's what we've seen today and in recent games.
Experience needed in January, and lots of it.
Throwing more lower league, low wages players at this is not going to solve anything.
Or sell up to someone who gives a fuck. To do that we need to be in the Prem so either way he needs to spend to protect his investment, thats all it must be to him now. An investment that he really dont care about.
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2012: the most memorable year for sport in my lifetime. Ruined from start to finish by the team I support.
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I'll add that I had toyed with the idea of going to this game. I knew exactly what I'd see, though. I'd have been very angry indeed if I'd parted with £40+ and witnessed that utter capitulation to one of the shittest teams and clubs in the Premier League. Whether you went to the game, or saw it by other means, the fact remains that this is a total and utter disgrace, and both the chairman and manager are to blame for it.
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Can we recall the Fonz from blackpool?
That wouldn't help. He was substituted after 30 minutes today (don't think it was because of injury!)!
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0-15 in 3 games are the facts, with hardly a shot on target, someboby somewhere should be looking at themselves in the mirror and asking serious questions of themselves!
It is blantantly obvious that we cannot continue like this, so no more 'glossing' over our blantant ineptitude!
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Can we recall the Fonz from blackpool?
He's proven nothing quite spectacularly for 5 managers at PL level that he's not up to it. He'd be nothing but more of the same.
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We thought we had won the lottery when Lerner arrived.
Turned out it was the booby prize at the local church fete.
Enough is enough.
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I wonder what Wigan's wage bill is compared to ours....
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Anyone think Lambert will get thesack ? No. Because were a club with no fucking ambition
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were gonna end up like Blackburn.
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We thought we had won the lottery when Lerner arrived.
Turned out it was the booby prize at the local church fete.
Enough is enough.
Yep, at least we could see how bad the owners of Blues and Liverpool were. Lerner decided to give us hope for 3 seasons and then got bored. Shame Abramovich couldn't get as bored at Chelsea.
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Some people still see Lerner as the bees knees- I think the guy has made so many fuck ups in the last 3 years its incredible, as for lambert , I wanted him as manager but I am shocked at how poor he has been with selections , tactics, etc- I don't buy into the injury excuse either as most of the injured players haven't looked good enough either .
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Anyone think Lambert will get thesack ? No. Because were a club with no fucking ambition
Who are we going to get in that could honestly change this around?
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Very sad this evening, but trying not to over-react.
Just shows how important confidence is. That 8-0 totally stuffed ours. Same players we were all raving about being the future of the club are now "shit"? They've had a big set back, it will be difficult for them to dig themselves out of it though. Just a shame that our senior players are all injured (Gabby, Vlaar, Dunne), or disinterested (Ireland, Warnock).
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Shambolic. The picture of Lambert with his head in hands on the BBC website sums him up. Bereft of ideas and ability to organise and lift the team. I expect it'll be another rendition of "we'll pick ourselves up and go again" but he doesn't actually pick them up. He's worse than McLeish, much much worse.
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Anyone think Lambert will get thesack ? No. Because were a club with no fucking ambition
I do however think and can see PL going to see RL and giving a 'back me in January as we are shite' it I'm off.
RL being RL will probably say see ya then.
These are dark dark times. The leadership from RL is a shambles. Bradford will be rubbing their hands at this rate
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Ignoring the goal difference we are no better off than where I thought we would be after the last 4 games except we beat Liverpool but lost to Wigan.
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Some people still see Lerner as the bees knees- I think the guy has made so many fuck ups in the last 3 years its incredible, as for lambert , I wanted him as manager but I am shocked at how poor he has been with selections , tactics, etc- I don't buy into the injury excuse either as most of the injured players haven't looked good enough either .
when he plays them
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Anyone think Lambert will get thesack ? No. Because were a club with no fucking ambition
Who are we going to get in that could honestly change this around?
I'm not sure the owner is that bothered anymore so whoever came in would be fighting a lost cause.
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Very sad this evening, but trying not to over-react.
Just shows how important confidence is. That 8-0 totally stuffed ours. Same players we were all raving about being the future of the club are now "shit"? They've had a big set back, it will be difficult for them to dig themselves out of it though. Just a shame that our senior players are all injured (Gabby, Vlaar, Dunne), or disinterested (Ireland, Warnock).
The senior players are shit as well.
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Can we recall the Fonz from blackpool?
Not sure he's the answer, we need a centre half (Lescott)and two midfield monsters (Parker/Barton types)
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Shambolic. The picture of Lambert with his head in hands on the BBC website sums him up. Bereft of ideas and ability to organise and lift the team. I expect it'll be another rendition of "we'll pick ourselves up and go again" but he doesn't actually pick them up. He's worse than McLeish, much much worse.
I'm furious now Risso, but he's not much much worse. He should have the opportunity to address it in January, but time's running out.
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whens Bent fit? we need him
mind I doubt Van persie would score with our creativity
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We look physically weak throughout the team with the exception of Benteke. How many times today did we lose 50/50 challenges and get outmuscled by their players. Holman, Bannan and Ireland in midfield is so powder puff it is untrue. Ireland looks to be going through the motions and we need rid of him pronto. Holman is like a poor man's Reo Coker in that he huffs and he puffs, but have you ever seen a players with such a poor first touch? All of their goals were avoidable. The first was shocking marking from a corner, for the second our defence just parted like the red sea and for the third Lowton had to be firm in the tackle and deal with it. The only positive was Bowery who I thought had a decent 30mins when he came on. I am stunned. Massive changes needed or we are going down.
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We have won 8 games under Lambert so far and only won 9 under McCleish all season! In Lambert I still trust!
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12 of those 15 goals have been conceded with Westwood on the bench.
3-5-2 isn't working.
Dropping or subbing Westwood isn't working.
Playing various midfields without a dominant figure isn't working.
A midfield who consistently blast the ball backwards at defenders isn't working.
Resorting to hoofing it in the vague direction of Benteke isn't working.
Constantly giving the ball away at our own throw-ins isn't helping.
This is the point where I no longer think that Lambert is going to put it right. But most depressingly, I can't think of anyone I'd rather bring in.
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Our team also looks massively weak and unfit, we can never last the physical pace.
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With the experienced players unavailable there was no hiding place for the new signings. They had to step up but didn't.
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Can we recall the Fonz from blackpool?
Not sure he's the answer, we need a centre half (Lescott)and two midfield monsters (Parker/Barton types)
We need wingers. We can't play through the middle of the park with Holman, Ireland, Bannan, Weimann and Benteke. There's no width and any decent side will just close us down and pack the middle of the park. Then counter down the sides where we get absolutely destroyed.
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Why the fuck wasn't Westwood playing today? That midfield three was awfully unbalanced.
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While some claim they're seeing a bigger picture, some claim they're seeing improvements, and some claim we're going in the right direction. I'm just seeing a truly awful team.
Not just of late, ALL season. People keep banging on 'What about Norwich away, what about Liverpool away ?'. WHAT ABOUT THEM ?. In either game we could've conceeded numerous goals, but we won both. Were they the norm or the exceptions ?. Before those we had truly wretched performances against QPR, Reading and Stoke. Those three performances would've been booed out the city under McLeish last season. This season I was assured they were great as we didn't lose.
Apparently a couple of sideways passes on the floor every now and again means we're now 'playing football'. Not to me it doesn't. Any team in the world will allow you to pass the ball aimlessly around the middle third where you have no chance of hurting them.
At Forest pre season, I was concerned. At West Ham on the opening day I was dejected. Ever since i've been watching aimless football, with no passion or style. Yet i've almost been convinced my own eyes need testing as i keep reading others posting things about my club that i'm clearly not seeing myself. I know we all see things differently, but i'm surprised how differently.
To sum up, it's abysmal. I've got less confidence than I had last season and that's saying something.
If Lambert offered his resignation tonight i'd be delighted. If Lerner announced he's put the club up for sale i'd be even happier. Neither are ever going to take this club forward. I've seen NOTHING from Lambert's 'revolution' to suggest anything other than more of the same is to come.
Someone text me today 'we've got 10 players out'. I thought yes, but of those he'd probably only have picked Gabby and Vlaar. Hardly world beaters.
I was told 'we need experience'. I thought, funny that. When he could pick the likes of Bent, N'Zogbia, Given he chose not to. He also farmed out (the admittedly pretty useless, but experienced) Hutton & Warnock without having any cover for them.
It was an appointment most of us were ok with, but it's clearly not working at all. I'm not seeing any tactical nous, and i'm not seeing any man management either. What are Lambert's actual qualities ?
That's me. You don't have to agree.
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We have won 8 games under Lambert so far and only won 9 under McCleish all season! In Lambert I trust still!
We are talking league games , not tranmere, Swindon, man city reserves and a Norwich team with 6 changes.
Four wins in 20 league games-appalling.
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whens Bent fit? we need him
mind I doubt Van persie would score with our creativity
You're right. Bent adds nothing to a team that's so shit the pitch may as well only have one penalty area.
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This is easily the worst Villa team I've seen in 35+ years of supporting Villa. We've got relegation written all over us, but with serious money spent in January we could still turn it around.
Lerner has to bite the bullet and sign players worthy of AVFC. Anymore lower league fodder and we're gone.
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While some claim they're seeing a bigger picture, some claim they're seeing improvements, and some claim we're going in the right direction. I'm just seeing a truly awful team.
Not just of late, ALL season. People keep banging on 'What about Norwich away, what about Liverpool away ?'. WHAT ABOUT THEM ?. In either game we could've conceeded numerous goals, but we won both. Were they the norm or the exceptions ?. Before those we had truly wretched performances against QPR, Reading and Stoke. Those three performances would've been booed out the city under McLeish last season. This season I was assured they were great as we didn't lose.
Apparently a couple of sideways passes on the floor every now and again means we're now 'playing football'. Not to me it doesn't. Any team in the world will allow you to pass the ball aimlessly around the middle third where you have no chance of hurting them.
At Forest pre season, I was concerned. At West Ham on the opening day I was dejected. Ever since i've been watching aimless football, with no passion or style. Yet i've almost been convinced my own eyes need testing as i keep reading others posting things about my club that i'm clearly not seeing myself. I know we all see things differently, but i'm surprised how differently.
To sum up, it's abysmal. I've got less confidence than I had last season and that's saying something.
If Lambert offered his resignation tonight i'd be delighted. If Lerner announced he's put the club up for sale i'd be even happier. Neither are ever going to take this club forward. I've seen NOTHING from Lambert's 'revolution' to suggest anything other than more of the same is to come.
Someone text me today 'we've got 10 players out'. I thought yes, but of those he'd probably only have picked Gabby and Vlaar. Hardly world beaters.
I was told 'we need experience'. I thought, funny that. When he could pick the likes of Bent, N'Zogbia, Given he chose not to. He also farmed out (the admittedly pretty useless, but experienced) Hutton & Warnock without having any cover for them.
It was an appointment most of us were ok with, but it's clearly not working at all. I'm not seeing any tactical nous, and i'm not seeing any man management either. What are Lambert's actual qualities ?
That's me. You don't have to agree.
I must say, I think sadly that's how I'm feeling this evening.
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Very sad this evening, but trying not to over-react.
Just shows how important confidence is. That 8-0 totally stuffed ours. Same players we were all raving about being the future of the club are now "shit"? They've had a big set back, it will be difficult for them to dig themselves out of it though. Just a shame that our senior players are all injured (Gabby, Vlaar, Dunne), or disinterested (Ireland, Warnock).
40 fags a day Dunne that hasn't played all season. When he was fit he was shocking poor and we were calling for his head. That Dunne.
Gabby won't be missed if he never played for Villa again. A striker that doesn't score goals and can't cross. I'm not having a go but these players when we need to dig deep offer nothing!
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6 wins all year in the league ..6 fucking wins in 12 months !!!
Sack Lambert ..who the fuck else could we get in now ...
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Shambolic. The picture of Lambert with his head in hands on the BBC website sums him up. Bereft of ideas and ability to organise and lift the team. I expect it'll be another rendition of "we'll pick ourselves up and go again" but he doesn't actually pick them up. He's worse than McLeish, much much worse.
I'm furious now Risso, but he's not much much worse. He should have the opportunity to address it in January, but time's running out.
I kept fucking saying this towards the start of the season - it's unrealistic to assume that an entirely new team, playing a system that is entirely new to them, will learn 'on the job' when games come along in such quick succession. I didn't think the plan boded well in August, and it looks fucking insane now.
What a load of fucking shit, Villa. Everyone at the club, owner, board, manager, players ought to be thoroughly ashamed of themselves. I was just sad about things earlier as I said, but I'm fucking livid now. SPEND SOME FUCKING MONEY ON THE TEAM.
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6 wins all year in the league ..6 fucking wins in 12 months !!!
Sack Lambert ..who the fuck else could we get in now ...
I wonder what Di Matteo's up to..
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I don't want to hear, 'we'll pick ourselves up and go again' because it's not fucking happening. Chelsea and Spurs I expected to lose, albeit not in such an embarrassing manner. However Wigan at home and getting hammered is another story, that was disgusting. Less of 'we'll give it our best shot', I want to hear exactly how we turn these sorts of results around.
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Shambles somehow not in the bottom three.Need players but to be honest despite the young players the fact Lambert and his team can not get a team to defend worries me
Good old Stoke! I thought we were in the bottom three.
I thought we were getting there defensively until the Chelsea game. I think the confidence has gone from some of the lads and they need resting. It's a big transfer window coming up and we desperately need our injured players back. It's been a wretched Christmas football-wise (I can't think of such a poor sequence of results since I started following Villa) BUT I don't think we are down and out. We have to regroup and get stronger from all of this. Just as quickly as disappearing, the form can return and we have to keep positive and lift the manager and players.
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It's not all bad. We are showing signs of improving. Lost by only 3. Not 4 or 8.
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Good to meet PeterWithesShin before the game.
We are going down.
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Ignoring the goal difference we are no better off than where I thought we would be after the last 4 games except we beat Liverpool but lost to Wigan.
It is pretty hard to look past 15 conceded without reply however, whoever your playing, even worse when you throw a Wigan in on an atrocious run.
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While some claim they're seeing a bigger picture, some claim they're seeing improvements, and some claim we're going in the right direction. I'm just seeing a truly awful team.
Not just of late, ALL season. People keep banging on 'What about Norwich away, what about Liverpool away ?'. WHAT ABOUT THEM ?. In either game we could've conceeded numerous goals, but we won both. Were they the norm or the exceptions ?. Before those we had truly wretched performances against QPR, Reading and Stoke. Those three performances would've been booed out the city under McLeish last season. This season I was assured they were great as we didn't lose.
Apparently a couple of sideways passes on the floor every now and again means we're now 'playing football'. Not to me it doesn't. Any team in the world will allow you to pass the ball aimlessly around the middle third where you have no chance of hurting them.
At Forest pre season, I was concerned. At West Ham on the opening day I was dejected. Ever since i've been watching aimless football, with no passion or style. Yet i've almost been convinced my own eyes need testing as i keep reading others posting things about my club that i'm clearly not seeing myself. I know we all see things differently, but i'm surprised how differently.
To sum up, it's abysmal. I've got less confidence than I had last season and that's saying something.
If Lambert offered his resignation tonight i'd be delighted. If Lerner announced he's put the club up for sale i'd be even happier. Neither are ever going to take this club forward. I've seen NOTHING from Lambert's 'revolution' to suggest anything other than more of the same is to come.
Someone text me today 'we've got 10 players out'. I thought yes, but of those he'd probably only have picked Gabby and Vlaar. Hardly world beaters.
I was told 'we need experience'. I thought, funny that. When he could pick the likes of Bent, N'Zogbia, Given he chose not to. He also farmed out (the admittedly pretty useless, but experienced) Hutton & Warnock without having any cover for them.
It was an appointment most of us were ok with, but it's clearly not working at all. I'm not seeing any tactical nous, and i'm not seeing any man management either. What are Lambert's actual qualities ?
That's me. You don't have to agree.
best post up to now
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Echoes of the nadirs of the 60s and mid 80s about this slump.
At least Albrighton looked better when he came on and Bowery showed some nice touches.
I thought we only needed a midfield in the window, but it now looks as if we need a defence as well. And possibly a forward line.
The strategy of inexperience and youth was always high risk and it was just about holding together until recently. A few injuries have seen the wheels fall right off, not helped by Lambert's stubborn persistence with the 3-5-2 shape when it was clear we are shit at it. PL is possibly fortunate Deadly Doug isn't still in charge tonight.
Get yer wallet out Randy.
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It's not all bad. We are showing signs of improving. Lost by only 3. Not 4 or 8.
That was my thought as well. When we play Southampton we might be able to keep a clean sheet again.
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As SLB said, the Liverpool game could easily have seen Villa down by a few goals, so we could now be looking at four straight thrashings.
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it was dire no idea headless chickens
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We are running out of games and we need points we cannot continue with Lambert 4 wins (none convincing) out of 20 is only going to lead to disaster for us.
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I don't want to hear, 'we'll pick ourselves up and go again' because it's not fucking happening. Chelsea and Spurs I expected to lose, albeit not in such an embarrassing manner. However Wigan at home and getting hammered is another story, that was disgusting. Less of 'we'll give it our best shot', I want to hear exactly how we turn these sorts of results around.
the scary thing is Chelses should have had 13 , spurzz 8 and Wigan 6
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Ignoring the goal difference we are no better off than where I thought we would be after the last 4 games except we beat Liverpool but lost to Wigan.
Whoop de fucking woo !!!
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It's not all bad. We are showing signs of improving. Lost by only 3. Not 4 or 8.
That was my thought as well. When we play Southampton we might be able to keep a clean sheet again.
I was kidding.
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A ex-Chesterfield player was our MOM
we have fallen on our claret and blue sword today
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12 of those 15 goals have been conceded with Westwood on the bench.
3-5-2 isn't working.
Dropping or subbing Westwood isn't working.
Playing various midfields without a dominant figure isn't working.
A midfield who consistently blast the ball backwards at defenders isn't working.
Resorting to hoofing it in the vague direction of Benteke isn't working.
Constantly giving the ball away at our own throw-ins isn't helping.
This is the point where I no longer think that Lambert is going to put it right. But most depressingly, I can't think of anyone I'd rather bring in.
That's pretty much it.
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617]
Ignoring the goal difference we are no better off than where I thought we would be after the last 4 games except we beat Liverpool but lost to Wigan.
I think it's fair to say that our confidence might be slightly affected though.
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While some claim they're seeing a bigger picture, some claim they're seeing improvements, and some claim we're going in the right direction. I'm just seeing a truly awful team.
Not just of late, ALL season. People keep banging on 'What about Norwich away, what about Liverpool away ?'. WHAT ABOUT THEM ?. In either game we could've conceeded numerous goals, but we won both. Were they the norm or the exceptions ?. Before those we had truly wretched performances against QPR, Reading and Stoke. Those three performances would've been booed out the city under McLeish last season. This season I was assured they were great as we didn't lose.
Apparently a couple of sideways passes on the floor every now and again means we're now 'playing football'. Not to me it doesn't. Any team in the world will allow you to pass the ball aimlessly around the middle third where you have no chance of hurting them.
At Forest pre season, I was concerned. At West Ham on the opening day I was dejected. Ever since i've been watching aimless football, with no passion or style. Yet i've almost been convinced my own eyes need testing as i keep reading others posting things about my club that i'm clearly not seeing myself. I know we all see things differently, but i'm surprised how differently.
To sum up, it's abysmal. I've got less confidence than I had last season and that's saying something.
If Lambert offered his resignation tonight i'd be delighted. If Lerner announced he's put the club up for sale i'd be even happier. Neither are ever going to take this club forward. I've seen NOTHING from Lambert's 'revolution' to suggest anything other than more of the same is to come.
Someone text me today 'we've got 10 players out'. I thought yes, but of those he'd probably only have picked Gabby and Vlaar. Hardly world beaters.
I was told 'we need experience'. I thought, funny that. When he could pick the likes of Bent, N'Zogbia, Given he chose not to. He also farmed out (the admittedly pretty useless, but experienced) Hutton & Warnock without having any cover for them.
It was an appointment most of us were ok with, but it's clearly not working at all. I'm not seeing any tactical nous, and i'm not seeing any man management either. What are Lambert's actual qualities ?
That's me. You don't have to agree.
I agree mate very well put.
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As SLB said, the Liverpool game could easily have seen Villa down by a few goals, so we could now be looking at four straight thrashings.
We will be after new year's day.
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It's not all bad. We are showing signs of improving. Lost by only 3. Not 4 or 8.
That was my thought as well. When we play Southampton we might be able to keep a clean sheet again.
I was kidding.
So was I, kind of.
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Lambert on final score now
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6 wins all year in the league ..6 fucking wins in 12 months !!!
Sack Lambert ..who the fuck else could we get in now ...
I wonder what Di Matteo's up to..
That's not a bad shout till the end of the season. Sometimes you have to make drastic decisions this is the time to do it.
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Lambert on final score now
What did he say?
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Lambert on final score now
No point listening he'll only say 'I thought we played quite well' his usual load of ****
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Lambert on final score now
Saying nothing of particular interest. No "we go again" mind.
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Lambert on final score now
What did he say?
There wasn't an interpretor.
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6 wins all year in the league ..6 fucking wins in 12 months !!!
Sack Lambert ..who the fuck else could we get in now ...
I wonder what Di Matteo's up to..
That is not a bad shout till the end of the season. Sometimes you have to make drastic decisions this is the time to do it.
As I mentioned before, what could he (or any manager) do now? Unless RDM could persuade Cech, Fat Frank, John Terry and Droghba to come here as they are the reasons he had such a successful finish last season. Plus he will want to play passing football and you can see that our players do not know what that is.
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What we need is a 6 foot 5, built like a brick shitehouse midfielder who gets stuck in. Our midfield is too lightweight. A leader at the back wouldn't do any harm either.
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We've conceded 16 since we last scored a league goal. A truly appalling stat.
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Today, I have missed my first home game for nearly 20 years. My son, home from uni and out with his pals, was beaten up last night and I spent the afternoon at the hospital with him.
It seems like I picked a good game to miss.
I' d still like to get my hands on the fckers who did it though.
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What we need is a 6 foot 5, built like a brick shitehouse midfielder who gets stuck in. Our midfield is too lightweight. A leader at the back wouldn't do any harm either.
Three players, right up the middle of the pitch.
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Lambert making excuses now: "the club's been in relegation scraps for the past three years, so..."
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I have calmed down.
We can't sack Lambert. It may not be delivering anything, but his plan is the only concrete thing we have had to go on since 2010. We have to stick with it. We have to hope we get six wins from somewhere.
If we go back to the drawing board yet again it will take time for the new plan/players to gel. Sticking with Lambert is the only show in town.
I am beginning to detest the owner though. Has he said anything this year?
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Today, I have missed my first home game for nearly 20 years. My son, home from uni and out with his pals, was beaten up last night and I spent the afternoon at the hospital with him.
It seems like I picked a good game to miss.
I' d still like to get my hands on the fckers who did it though.
That's not good to hear. Why didn't his mates back his case?
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Today, I have missed my first home game for nearly 20 years. My son, home from uni and out with his pals, was beaten up last night and I spent the afternoon at the hospital with him.
It seems like I picked a good game to miss.
I' d still like to get my hands on the fckers who did it though.
Sorry to hear that, where was it?
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I've seen three Villa sides that have been an absolute disgrace to the shirt:
The side relegated to the Third Division, Billy McBingo's blundering relegated side, now Lambert's hapless class of 2013.
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Lambert on final score now
What did he say?
Och och nee nee och och ne blootered och nee nah nee. I can never understand a word he's saying. Nor can his team , evidently
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Oh, and: "We keep going..."
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Lambert making excuses now: "the club's been in relegation scraps for the past three years, so..."
He's right, it has been. Where's Lerner? What has he said? He's been there during those three scaps.
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Today, I have missed my first home game for nearly 20 years. My son, home from uni and out with his pals, was beaten up last night and I spent the afternoon at the hospital with him.
It seems like I picked a good game to miss.
I' d still like to get my hands on the fckers who did it though.
That's not good to hear. Why didn't his mates back his case?
Bastards.
Get well to your son.
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What we need is a 6 foot 5, built like a brick shitehouse midfielder who gets stuck in. Our midfield is too lightweight. A leader at the back wouldn't do any harm either.
Three players, right up the middle of the pitch.
Yes, and we also need to bring the likes of Bent, N'Zogbia and Wanrnock back. We may not be their biggest fans but we need their experience in the team. We look like someone lifted a League 2 outfit and placed them into Villa shirts
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This team would struggle in the Championship.
I agree 100% - What I see in front of me will probably be lower half rather than upper half of the Championship and that's before any worthwhile layers leave after relegation.
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Today, I have missed my first home game for nearly 20 years. My son, home from uni and out with his pals, was beaten up last night and I spent the afternoon at the hospital with him.
It seems like I picked a good game to miss.
I' d still like to get my hands on the fckers who did it though.
I hope you do mate!!
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Going back out to Cleveland next week - my first task will be to picket the Learner Foundation office & tell Randy some home truths, something like "put your hand in your pocket and spend some money in the team or fuck off" should get the message home!
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Very sad this evening, but trying not to over-react.
Just shows how important confidence is. That 8-0 totally stuffed ours. Same players we were all raving about being the future of the club are now "shit"? They've had a big set back, it will be difficult for them to dig themselves out of it though. Just a shame that our senior players are all injured (Gabby, Vlaar, Dunne), or disinterested (Ireland, Warnock).
40 fags a day Dunne that hasn't played all season. When he was fit he was shocking poor and we were calling for his head. That Dunne.
Gabby won't be missed if he never played for Villa again. A striker that doesn't score goals and can't cross. I'm not having a go but these players when we need to dig deep offer nothing!
That was what I was trying to say, the senior players are hiding/injured/crap or all three. I don't think I'd welcome Dunne or Warnock back, we're just saddled with what we've got.
Lambert had to bring in a job lot of players in the Summer, just to dilute the poisonous atmosphere in the changing room. You've got to be pretty lucky for that to come off...and we nearly were. Hard to see a way back from this.
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Roll on the Transfer window. We need defenders and Mid-field passers. I'd like to see a trad left winger.
Get Robbie Keane back and instill a few ideas and backbone!
I can't handle the piss-taking!
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I don't think they're strictly excuses but the plain truth, we have been and will be in our fourth. Money needs to be spent.
RDM is not a good manager, I think even I could have got the players at Chelsea to win games. Keep PL and let him invest in players that will make a difference, not cheap players who we hope will make a difference.
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6 wins all year in the league ..6 fucking wins in 12 months !!!
Sack Lambert ..who the fuck else could we get in now ...
I wonder what Di Matteo's up to..
Funny you should say that! I heard someone say that he was lined up.
Also same person said that there was a done deal for bent to Liverpool and Downing, Cole, &
Henderson to come our way? Don't know weather any are on loan.
Has anyone herd the same.
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OK, I know I'm not thinking straight after that nightmare but listening to Dion on final score, I can't help thinking he talks a lot of sense. Dion in!?
Lambert spoke the usual bollocks - my responsibility, fans have been great. Could part of the problem be that players can't understand what he says? I know I can't a lot of the time.
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Today, I have missed my first home game for nearly 20 years. My son, home from uni and out with his pals, was beaten up last night and I spent the afternoon at the hospital with him.
It seems like I picked a good game to miss.
I' d still like to get my hands on the fckers who did it though.
I hope you get them. Hope your son is OK
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Lambert on final score now
What did he say?
"Injuries". "I pick the team". "For 20 minutes we looked ourselves". Think he's trying to protect the young players by taking the responsibility. No optimistic noises. Nothing about how he's going to sort it out.
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Please PL no more wing backs and no more shoe-horning Ireland the messiah into the team, we can't afford work shy wasters, constructes the square root of eff all....
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While some claim they're seeing a bigger picture, some claim they're seeing improvements, and some claim we're going in the right direction. I'm just seeing a truly awful team.
Not just of late, ALL season. People keep banging on 'What about Norwich away, what about Liverpool away ?'. WHAT ABOUT THEM ?. In either game we could've conceeded numerous goals, but we won both. Were they the norm or the exceptions ?. Before those we had truly wretched performances against QPR, Reading and Stoke. Those three performances would've been booed out the city under McLeish last season. This season I was assured they were great as we didn't lose.
Apparently a couple of sideways passes on the floor every now and again means we're now 'playing football'. Not to me it doesn't. Any team in the world will allow you to pass the ball aimlessly around the middle third where you have no chance of hurting them.
At Forest pre season, I was concerned. At West Ham on the opening day I was dejected. Ever since i've been watching aimless football, with no passion or style. Yet i've almost been convinced my own eyes need testing as i keep reading others posting things about my club that i'm clearly not seeing myself. I know we all see things differently, but i'm surprised how differently.
To sum up, it's abysmal. I've got less confidence than I had last season and that's saying something.
If Lambert offered his resignation tonight i'd be delighted. If Lerner announced he's put the club up for sale i'd be even happier. Neither are ever going to take this club forward. I've seen NOTHING from Lambert's 'revolution' to suggest anything other than more of the same is to come.
Someone text me today 'we've got 10 players out'. I thought yes, but of those he'd probably only have picked Gabby and Vlaar. Hardly world beaters.
I was told 'we need experience'. I thought, funny that. When he could pick the likes of Bent, N'Zogbia, Given he chose not to. He also farmed out (the admittedly pretty useless, but experienced) Hutton & Warnock without having any cover for them.
It was an appointment most of us were ok with, but it's clearly not working at all. I'm not seeing any tactical nous, and i'm not seeing any man management either. What are Lambert's actual qualities ?
That's me. You don't have to agree.
best post up to now
Whilst I don't agree with him, I think it's an excellently argued post that makes you think again.
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Lambert on final score now
What did he say?
"Injuries". "I pick the team". "For 20 minutes we looked ourselves". Think he's trying to protect the young players by taking the responsibility.
Well it's his team and they're shit, no two ways about it.
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Probably the worst villa game I've ever attended.
Not in terms of lack of incident or even maybe in terms of performance (although being battered by fcuking Wigan now it does feel like it) but just because if the worst happens in May, you can pinpoint this game where in our present state we became a relegation team in waiting after years of creeping closer to it.
The Chelsea game has fcuked the minds of the team and we're reduced to nothing, no defence, no midfield either showing industry or creativity to create chances for the front two.
Things can change but if we've not going to rip up the plan, we need some decent loans in until the end of the season, a Robbie Keane or three.
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Comparing this season to last season after 20 games (when we stood 11th):
5 less points; 7 less goals scored ; 10 more goals conceeded
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While some claim they're seeing a bigger picture, some claim they're seeing improvements, and some claim we're going in the right direction. I'm just seeing a truly awful team.
Not just of late, ALL season. People keep banging on 'What about Norwich away, what about Liverpool away ?'. WHAT ABOUT THEM ?. In either game we could've conceeded numerous goals, but we won both. Were they the norm or the exceptions ?. Before those we had truly wretched performances against QPR, Reading and Stoke. Those three performances would've been booed out the city under McLeish last season. This season I was assured they were great as we didn't lose.
Apparently a couple of sideways passes on the floor every now and again means we're now 'playing football'. Not to me it doesn't. Any team in the world will allow you to pass the ball aimlessly around the middle third where you have no chance of hurting them.
At Forest pre season, I was concerned. At West Ham on the opening day I was dejected. Ever since i've been watching aimless football, with no passion or style. Yet i've almost been convinced my own eyes need testing as i keep reading others posting things about my club that i'm clearly not seeing myself. I know we all see things differently, but i'm surprised how differently.
To sum up, it's abysmal. I've got less confidence than I had last season and that's saying something.
If Lambert offered his resignation tonight i'd be delighted. If Lerner announced he's put the club up for sale i'd be even happier. Neither are ever going to take this club forward. I've seen NOTHING from Lambert's 'revolution' to suggest anything other than more of the same is to come.
Someone text me today 'we've got 10 players out'. I thought yes, but of those he'd probably only have picked Gabby and Vlaar. Hardly world beaters.
I was told 'we need experience'. I thought, funny that. When he could pick the likes of Bent, N'Zogbia, Given he chose not to. He also farmed out (the admittedly pretty useless, but experienced) Hutton & Warnock without having any cover for them.
It was an appointment most of us were ok with, but it's clearly not working at all. I'm not seeing any tactical nous, and i'm not seeing any man management either. What are Lambert's actual qualities ?
That's me. You don't have to agree.
Well put, I would say though that if Lambert offered his resignation it would just reinforce my personal belief that at present this football club is unmanageable.
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I'd say Lambert should really offer his resignation after those results.
Lerner, however, should reject it.
At that point, the onus is on Lerner to back his manager. If he doesn't, we are doomed.
I also suspect changing manager is going to improve nothing at all. Who do we then get in? Mark Hughes? Someone who engaged in some of the worst squad building seen in years to create a team worse than ours?
The major problem at Villa is one that has been consistent for three years - Lerner and his upper leadership. They've burned huge sums of money and turned us into a side which has spent three years edging more and more determinedly towards relegation.
He quite clearly does not have the first fucking idea how to run a football club.
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12 of those 15 goals have been conceded with Westwood on the bench.
3-5-2 isn't working.
Dropping or subbing Westwood isn't working.
Playing various midfields without a dominant figure isn't working.
A midfield who consistently blast the ball backwards at defenders isn't working.
Resorting to hoofing it in the vague direction of Benteke isn't working.
Constantly giving the ball away at our own throw-ins isn't helping.
This is the point where I no longer think that Lambert is going to put it right. But most depressingly, I can't think of anyone I'd rather bring in.
Spot on. Our football is proving too easy for the opposition to nullify.
Lambert's strategy of a young team isn't working. If it was based on a safe league position with a team containing some experienced players it would make more sense, but it's turning out to be an experiment that is looking like a disaster.
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The fundamental flaw was the lack of premier league experience. That was his decision, his policy and it is not working and shows no signs of working. I've seen a few 'with hindsight' comments, but there was plenty of us worried about it back in the summer. I don't really want to change manager now, sometimes you just have to stick it out.
If we had a vaguely competent board, I would want them to call an urgent meeting to get some answers from PL, and a list of targets. If its more of the same, then maybe get rid. Unfortunately the board have shown any signs of competence since the halcyon days of the takeover.
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Nothing you wouldnt expect him to say. While Lambert giving the players a public slating might make us feel a little better its hardly going to do much for some clearly damaged confidence.
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The unsettling thing is that none of the opposition have to work or do anything magical to score againts us...we are gifting goal and chances and are easily the most unorganised, spineless team in this league
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Thanks for the good wishes for my lad, gents.
He was in brum last night, go separated from his mates is a club, went outside to ring them to find out where they were and then got bundled into a car by 3 blokes. The drove off, eventually beating him up, pinching his phone and ID, and then dumping him.
I have never heard anything like it, its like a bloody mafia story.
His face is bruised and swollen, but no lasting damage, although its shook his confidence, he is generally a quiet lad who doesnt like clubbing.
Still it got me out of watching that shite !
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Comparing this season to last season after 20 games (when we stood 11th):
5 less points; 7 less goals scored ; 10 more goals conceeded
Jesus. That's worrying
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More worryingly though. Lambert has just been on the radio and said 'IF' he brings anyone else into the club in Jan it will only be lower league players as that's all the funding he's been given
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It was interesting though watching the players reactions after each goal. First one and Weimann and Bannan are trying to gee the lads on again. 2nd (and killer goal), most of the defenders are heads down. 3rd one, all the team are heads down with Ireland squatting as if he is taking a shit (or praying). As mentioned, without the experience you can see them just sag. Clark is doing fuck all as captain but being as he is barely out of nappies himself in terms of age and playing experience, there isn't much else he can do.
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Today, I have missed my first home game for nearly 20 years. My son, home from uni and out with his pals, was beaten up last night and I spent the afternoon at the hospital with him.
It seems like I picked a good game to miss.
I' d still like to get my hands on the fckers who did it though.
Hope your son's ok mate.
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Come back Robbie!!
http://www.examiner.com/article/robbie-keane-to-return-to-aston-villa-on-loan-for-a-second-time
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Take care guys. Shit, shave and a shower. Then out for a few scoups. Might I suggest you do the same.
UTV
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Comparing this season to last season after 20 games (when we stood 11th):
5 less points; 7 less goals scored ; 10 more goals conceeded
Jesus. That's worrying
what has that got to do with our present situation? do you pine for those days? do you want tsm back, no it aint good but your comments aint gonig to help anyone?
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More worryingly though. Lambert has just been on the radio and said 'IF' he brings anyone else into the club in Jan it will only be lower league players as that's all the funding he's been given
Did he really say that? If so, we're goners.
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Why have we got the only billionaire that's got bored with his little toy...
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Lets hope he's playing mind games with Lerner and telling him he needs cash or we're doomed.
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If what Lambert is implying is true, that he won't be backed in the summer, then now is the time for the fans to give Lerner both barrels. However, by Lambert's tone, it doesn't look like he's at all arsed about bringing in experienced players. In which case, both men will be culpable for our eventual fate.
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More worryingly though. Lambert has just been on the radio and said 'IF' he brings anyone else into the club in Jan it will only be lower league players as that's all the funding he's been given
Did he really say that? If so, we're goners.
He made it very clear on WM that he was sticking with the kids.
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More worryingly though. Lambert has just been on the radio and said 'IF' he brings anyone else into the club in Jan it will only be lower league players as that's all the funding he's been given
Did he really say that? If so, we're goners.
Please no. That's a complete change of tune as he has previously said that he chose to bring those sort of players in. And as others have pointed out, we tried to sign Dempsey.
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Not that I think it's Lambert's fault that we've ended up in this mess but at the rate we've dismantled an experienced Premier league squad and replaced them with youth and a few cheap buys on half the wages I very much doubt the chairman would even waste more money sacking the manager and getting another in.
We've all seen what they've tried to do, get a manager who did well on a limited budget at Norwich and stay in the league spending little cash. Unfortunately, one horrendous injury crisis and games coming thick and fast with no time to drastically change the team has meant we've been on the end of some horrendous thumpings. After last season and plenty of change still to take place in the squad, I think this season was always doomed for another relegation scrap as the squad is no better than that.
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Thanks for the good wishes for my lad, gents.
He was in brum last night, go separated from his mates is a club, went outside to ring them to find out where they were and then got bundled into a car by 3 blokes. The drove off, eventually beating him up, pinching his phone and ID, and then dumping him.
I have never heard anything like it, its like a bloody mafia story.
His face is bruised and swollen, but no lasting damage, although its shook his confidence, he is generally a quiet lad who doesnt like clubbing.
Still it got me out of watching that shite !
Can't imagine how angry/worried you've been. Good luck to the lad, hope he keeps his confidence after that. Nothing Villa come up ith (hard as they're trying) can compete with having your kids put through that sort of thing.
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Today, I have missed my first home game for nearly 20 years. My son, home from uni and out with his pals, was beaten up last night and I spent the afternoon at the hospital with him.
It seems like I picked a good game to miss.
I' d still like to get my hands on the fckers who did it though.
Hope your son's ok mate.
Indeed I echo that sentiment.
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That side if relegated would not come back up
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Randy was there today. If he doesn't back Lambert in Jan after watching that there's no hope for us. As it is there's precious little. We are in massive bother now.
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What if we get battered by Swans?
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What we need is a 6 foot 5, built like a brick shitehouse midfielder who gets stuck in. Our midfield is too lightweight. A leader at the back wouldn't do any harm either.
Three players, right up the middle of the pitch.
Yes, and we also need to bring the likes of Bent, N'Zogbia and Wanrnock back. We may not be their biggest fans but we need their experience in the team. We look like someone lifted a League 2 outfit and placed them into Villa shirts
Every successful team needs a strong spine. Boy are we in need of a good orthopaedic surgeon!
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Guzan - 5 - Sympathise
Lowton - 4 - Out of position, sympathise
Clark - 3 - Not good enough, how many tonkings have we had with him at centre back?
Herd - 3 - Out of position, sympathise
Bennett - 1 - Absolutely woeful, would be happy to never see him in a Villa shirt again, terrible signing
Lichaj - 2 - Not good enough, see Bennett
Bannan - 3 - Sloppy passing but some credit for occasionally going for a forward pass, unlike everyone else
Ireland - 1 - Lazy c*nt, doesn't care. I'd rather we do a lottery and pick a midfielder out of the crowd each game
Holman - 2 - Woeful, not good enough
Weimann - 3 - Poor today
Benteke - 2 - Horror show but bonus point for being the only player we have who isn't easily shoved off the ball
El Ahmadi - 1 - Abysmal, awful signing
Albrighton - 4 - showed some pride at least
Bowery - 4 - tried
Lambert - 0. Shocking selection today. If we've got one fit centre back, why use a formation that requires 3? Starting 5-3-2 just surrendered the inititive right from the kick off and we were chasing shadows for 30 mins. FYI Paul, this is the Premier League, where there are famously 'no easy games' so this experiment with kids plus lower league average triers is frankly ridiculous.
If anyone wants my season ticket they can have it for a bottle of Scotch, or maybe even just a Toblerone (white).
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Getting rid of Lambert will cost a lot of money, I don't understand in a game where results are a key, why contracts aren't a rolling year based on results and a significant bonus when successful. The way it is at present, managers have 4 years at ?million a year and if the fail they move on with a big payout when they are sacked.
Must be one of the few jobs where you can be sacked for being unsuccessful and get another job a bit later on when people have forgotten about your failure, e.g. McLeish.
Forest getting rid of O'Driscoll when close to the play off positions and bringing in a dead leg like AM shows how much owners are clueless.
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My concern is that Lambert doesn't appear to have a clue how to address this. He just says 'we fight again' or words to that effect. There's no fight, no plan, no fucking clue.
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Why have we got the only billionaire that's got bored with his little toy...
It could only happen to us.
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What if we get battered by Swans?
What if? Good lad, you keep looking on the bright side.
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Randy was there today. If he doesn't back Lambert in Jan after watching that there's no hope for us. As it is there's precious little. We are in massive bother now.
How do you know he was there? I hope he was. He like us, will then know just how appalling wewere today.
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We can't sack Lambert. It may not be delivering anything, but his plan is the only concrete thing we have had to go on since 2010
What exactly is this plan ?
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Comparing this season to last season after 20 games (when we stood 11th):
5 less points; 7 less goals scored ; 10 more goals conceeded
Jesus. That's worrying
what has that got to do with our present situation? do you pine for those days? do you want tsm back, no it aint good but your comments aint gonig to help anyone?
Well clearly the relevance is that it provides a bit of context for where we are now - worse off than we were under one of the worst managers we've ever had. And a bit of food for thought for those still supporting/making excuses for (delete as appropriate) Lambert. Of whom I am one, but he really is starting to test my support. I think he needs to be given a chance to do something in the window though.
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The fundamental flaw was the lack of premier league experience. That was his decision, his policy and it is not working and shows no signs of working. I've seen a few 'with hindsight' comments, but there was plenty of us worried about it back in the summer. I don't really want to change manager now, sometimes you just have to stick it out.
If we had a vaguely competent board, I would want them to call an urgent meeting to get some answers from PL, and a list of targets. If its more of the same, then maybe get rid. Unfortunately the board have shown any signs of competence since the halcyon days of the takeover.
Listened to him being interviewed by Pat Murphy on the way back from the game and when asked about the policy of buying inexperienced players, he replied something along the lines of "that's the way they at the club want to go". As has been the case since Lerner took over, the fans are totally in the dark when it comes to what the heirarchy at the club are thinking.
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Getting rid of Lambert will cost a lot of money, I don't understand in a game where results are a key, manager why contracts aren't a rolling year based on results and a significant bonus when successful. The way it is at present, managers have 4 years at ?million a year and if the fail they move on with a big payout when they are sacked.
Must be one of the few jobs where you can be sacked for being unsuccessful and get another job a bit later on when people have forgotten about your failure, e.g. McLeish.
Forest getting rid of O'Driscoll when close to the play off positions and bringing in a dead leg like AM shows how much owners are clueless.
Not so sure about that Boz. Ref. George Entwhistle. I'm sure there are more.
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Surely you set up a team to get the best out of the players you have?
352 with one orthodox centre half is crackers, especially when it's cost 12 goals in the previous two games.
451 - even if it meant drawing at home.
Albrighton, Westwood, Holman, Ireland or Bannan and Weimann would have been a lot more solid.
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i think Lambert has been shown up big time today in tactical terms. its one thing being beaten by chelsea and spurs but something else to be beaten so convincingly by wigan at home. martinez got it spot on with their midfield and wing backs nullifying our fragile midfield
i don't fancy our chances at all now. pretty much a whole team needs to bought in Jan
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Lerner sort this club out.
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What if we get battered by Swans?
What if? Good lad, you keep looking on the bright side.
Bright side?! What bright side?
We're giving up soft goals to no name Wigan players, Swansea can actually play the ball about and earn a goal. They play good football and we look like an elementary defense.
Bright side.. lol, ya loon.
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WM radio interview with PL gives me zero confidence
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Getting tired of all this 'In Lambert we trust' bollocks, this is the worst side I have seen in a very long time, on a par with the 1969 and 1987 sides, both relegated, and both, coincidentally, teams going the young players route, always Villa's default setting when things are going wrong.
We need a major shift in policy to keep us up, I've been saying all season Lambert's tactics are clueless, he is no coach.
He is purely a motivator who wants to work with the sort of player who will follow his instructions wthout question, and cannot clearly work with senior players.
They are just the sort of player that we need to get us out of this mess, but I don't think he will buy them, just more 'young, hungry' players who will 'go again and give their all'.
Relegation is now staring us all in the face, I'm afraid, and Mr. Lerner needs to do something clear and decisive, for once.
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Lerner sort this club out.
Really? You'd trust him to do that?
He's proven over the last 3 years he can't be trusted, he hasn't got a clue about running a football club.
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The fundamental flaw was the lack of premier league experience. That was his decision, his policy and it is not working and shows no signs of working. I've seen a few 'with hindsight' comments, but there was plenty of us worried about it back in the summer. I don't really want to change manager now, sometimes you just have to stick it out.
If we had a vaguely competent board, I would want them to call an urgent meeting to get some answers from PL, and a list of targets. If its more of the same, then maybe get rid. Unfortunately the board have shown any signs of competence since the halcyon days of the takeover.
Listened to him being interviewed by Pat Murphy on the way back from the game and when asked about the policy of buying inexperienced players, he replied something along the lines of "that's the way they at the club want to go". As has been the case since Lerner took over, the fans are totally in the dark when it comes to what the heirarchy at the club are thinking.
I think this has been the directive that's engineered our downfall. Lerner has and will back Lambert to buy players, but not players who demand high or Premier league standard wages. As such, Lambert's hands are tied. The £20 million we spent in the summer is a smokescreen. It's not the transfer fees that matter, it's the wages. Hence, zero experienced PL players, and zero stability.
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Randy was there today. If he doesn't back Lambert in Jan after watching that there's no hope for us. As it is there's precious little. We are in massive bother now.
How do you know he was there? I hope he was. He like us, will then know just how appalling wewere today.
I saw him. Unless we've had a waxwork of him placed in the directors box that is.
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We can't sack Lambert. It may not be delivering anything, but his plan is the only concrete thing we have had to go on since 2010
What exactly is this plan ?
Its a cunning plan ala baldrick.
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Lerner sort this club out.
Really? You'd trust him to do that?
He's proven over the last 3 years he can't be trusted, he hasn't got a clue about running a football club.
Not really, but he's the owner we've got absolutely no choice.
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See, I really don't get this new approach, long term plan thing.
Anyone of us could have taken the villa job in the summer, sold some players, and with help, bought lower league or cheap foreign players.
Surely, the trick then is to get those players to play together, be organised and disciplined and then play the game as you instruct.
It seems PL has done the first bit, but has very little or no ability is the second part. There comes a time when we have to say that he is fully culpable for the way things are going and that he cannot hide behind injuries.
One this is for sure, he cannot hide behind inexperienced players, that's 100% his fault.
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Lerner sort this club out.
Really? You'd trust him to do that?
He's proven over the last 3 years he can't be trusted, he hasn't got a clue about running a football club.
It's this that really worries me. I'm convinced that the school of thought is still along the lines of "we carry on trying to emulate Ajax." It's flawed, it was always flawed and unless this policy is altered then we are on a very quick downward trajectory.
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We can't sack Lambert. It may not be delivering anything, but his plan is the only concrete thing we have had to go on since 2010
What exactly is this plan ?
To me it looks as though whoever is the Aston Villa manager in the current climate has to operate within a budget and keep wages low. This means you are relying on the manager to buy in the type of players we have, be able to impose his will on them, and mould them into something that can stay in the league.
We have had an awful lot of chopping and changing at Villa over the past few years. Lambert seems keen to build a hard-working, pressing game with neat passing (bear with me, not much in evidence lately). We have seen it work a few times this season but it won't work every week because fundamentally the players aren't that good. If they were, they'd be on higher wages somewhere else, wouldn't they?
Lerner's plan is the problem, not Lambert's.
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I've watched every game this season and gradually they are being told to close down all over the pitch quickly but they do it with so much unintelligence its unreal. There is absolutely no shape to this team because they chase all over the place being dragged out of position. The back 5 have been doing this since they changed formation and its absolutely cringe worthy watching £30,000 a week plus players do this.
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Earliest I have ever left a football match... 52 minutes and 16 seconds. I'm not proud of it, but I honestly couldn't take anymore.
A free limousine full of hot chicks, free booze and a free ticket to the Ipswich game wouldn't get me there such is my state of my mind with the shambles at the moment.
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I really hope he ends the experiment with this formation which has been disasterous last 3 games.
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Time for the tin hats to be got out and a meting of the VP war cabinet.
Learner, Faulknerand Lambert have to decide on what direction this club is going and to make some drastic decisions.
It cant be coincidence that the last 3 managers have shed all the talent at the club and we have resorted to playing what is in reality a reserve team every Saturday.
If Randy wants to stay as a PL chairman hes got to go get some serious backbone for this place.
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More worryingly though. Lambert has just been on the radio and said 'IF' he brings anyone else into the club in Jan it will only be lower league players as that's all the funding he's been given
If that's true then it's evident that Randy has given up. In which case, he should sell. We'll go down without proper investment, he must be able to see that.
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We can't sack Lambert. It may not be delivering anything, but his plan is the only concrete thing we have had to go on since 2010
Irony? The bit between Tinny and Brassy eh?
What exactly is this plan ?
Its a cunning plan ala baldrick.
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More worryingly though. Lambert has just been on the radio and said 'IF' he brings anyone else into the club in Jan it will only be lower league players as that's all the funding he's been given
If that's true then it's evident that Randy has given up. In which case, he should sell. We'll go down without proper investment, he must be able to see that.
Nobody would buy the club at the moment though. Too risky.
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Time for the tin hats to be got out and a meting of the VP war cabinet.
Learner, Faulknerand Lambert have to decide on what direction this club is going and to make some drastic decisions.
It cant be coincidence that the last 3 managers have shed all the talent at the club and we have resorted to playing what is in reality a reserve team every Saturday.
If Randy wants to stay as a PL chairman hes got to go get some serious backbone for this place.
Every good player we've had at the club is either gone or is out of the team waiting to be shipped out. Lerner only wants players who earn a pittance. That's why we shop in the lower leagues these days. The result of this madness - relegation.
Lerner is an incompetent fool. A disgrace to Aston Villa.
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Best price for Villa to get relegated is 15/8, good grief how we have fallen!
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Time for the tin hats to be got out and a meting of the VP war cabinet.
Learner, Faulknerand Lambert have to decide on what direction this club is going and to make some drastic decisions.
It cant be coincidence that the last 3 managers have shed all the talent at the club and we have resorted to playing what is in reality a reserve team every Saturday.
If Randy wants to stay as a PL chairman hes got to go get some serious backbone for this place.
Every good player we've had at the club is either gone or is out of the team waiting to be shipped out. Lerner only wants players who earn a pittance. That's why we shop in the lower leagues these days. The result of this madness - relegation.
Lerner is an incompetent fool. A disgrace to Aston Villa.
Im starting to feel sorry for Mcliesh
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What if we get battered by Swans?
Nasty vicious buggers. I always try and keep a good distance from them and give them plenty of space. I would guess our players will be doing that on New Years Day.
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More worryingly though. Lambert has just been on the radio and said 'IF' he brings anyone else into the club in Jan it will only be lower league players as that's all the funding he's been given
What was that on? I heard on 5Live say he wouldn't be bringing in "experience"...
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Just driving home with radio on I heard them say lambert has said tonight he believes that going with youth is the right policy and he will stick with that policy - if that's the case I really worry for our future.
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Worried.
More worried about the direction of the club than the actual results, strangely enough.
Lowering expectations, lowering wage bill, fans now happy just to survive in the league. Lerner must be trying to sell, otherwise he'd surely see the madness in his plan.
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While some claim they're seeing a bigger picture, some claim they're seeing improvements, and some claim we're going in the right direction. I'm just seeing a truly awful team.
Not just of late, ALL season. People keep banging on 'What about Norwich away, what about Liverpool away ?'. WHAT ABOUT THEM ?. In either game we could've conceeded numerous goals, but we won both. Were they the norm or the exceptions ?. Before those we had truly wretched performances against QPR, Reading and Stoke. Those three performances would've been booed out the city under McLeish last season. This season I was assured they were great as we didn't lose.
Apparently a couple of sideways passes on the floor every now and again means we're now 'playing football'. Not to me it doesn't. Any team in the world will allow you to pass the ball aimlessly around the middle third where you have no chance of hurting them.
At Forest pre season, I was concerned. At West Ham on the opening day I was dejected. Ever since i've been watching aimless football, with no passion or style. Yet i've almost been convinced my own eyes need testing as i keep reading others posting things about my club that i'm clearly not seeing myself. I know we all see things differently, but i'm surprised how differently.
To sum up, it's abysmal. I've got less confidence than I had last season and that's saying something.
If Lambert offered his resignation tonight i'd be delighted. If Lerner announced he's put the club up for sale i'd be even happier. Neither are ever going to take this club forward. I've seen NOTHING from Lambert's 'revolution' to suggest anything other than more of the same is to come.
Someone text me today 'we've got 10 players out'. I thought yes, but of those he'd probably only have picked Gabby and Vlaar. Hardly world beaters.
I was told 'we need experience'. I thought, funny that. When he could pick the likes of Bent, N'Zogbia, Given he chose not to. He also farmed out (the admittedly pretty useless, but experienced) Hutton & Warnock without having any cover for them.
It was an appointment most of us were ok with, but it's clearly not working at all. I'm not seeing any tactical nous, and i'm not seeing any man management either. What are Lambert's actual qualities ?
That's me. You don't have to agree.
I would pick Vlaar but not gabby- apart from that you've summed things up very well.
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The defeats against Chelsea and Spurs were embarrassing and hurtful. Today was just total humiliation. The squad simply is not good enough, and the real worry is I got the distinct impression from his interview with WM on the way home he doesn't plan on bringing any experienced heads in during January. Still...we pick ourselves up and go again....
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2012; 6 wins in 39 games, Happy New Year!!
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This was painful. This was Wigan. I made excuses to myself about the world class players at Chelsea and Spurs but today the team that thrashed is Wigan. A team with only 15 points before today. I am numb with shock. The kids are wasted now after these threr defeats. We need to remove them from the firing line. Time to get in some mercenaries in now to save ourselves.
It's not too late lot of time and games to go but Lambert needs to admit that his project can be put on hold whilst we fix the platform because without that there is no point.
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Just saw this on the BBC. Pretty succinct!
"Lost. One football club by the name of Aston Villa. A famous and proud old club, thought to have lost its way on route to the promised land. Last seen being dragged through the mud by some inconspicuous American. If found please return to its rightful place. Thanks."
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Well the last 3 matches have shown the direction club is taking it wrong.Lamberts Norwich team conceded 66 goals last season so the conceding goals issue is not new.
As stated above he has drilled into the players to chase down the ball but they just get pulled out of position and we get passed around..Southampton was a early example of this.
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6 wins all year in the league ..6 fucking wins in 12 months !!!
Sack Lambert ..who the fuck else could we get in now ...
I wonder what Di Matteo's up to..
Forgot about him- could he do any worse?
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More worryingly though. Lambert has just been on the radio and said 'IF' he brings anyone else into the club in Jan it will only be lower league players as that's all the funding he's been given
What was that on? I heard on 5Live say he wouldn't be bringing in "experience"...
Yeah that's what I heard.
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More worryingly though. Lambert has just been on the radio and said 'IF' he brings anyone else into the club in Jan it will only be lower league players as that's all the funding he's been given
If that's true then it's evident that Randy has given up. In which case, he should sell. We'll go down without proper investment, he must be able to see that.
PL made it clear that the kids are here to stay
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We're not very good,
We're not very good,
We're not very
We're not very
We're not very good...
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Worried.
More worried about the direction of the club than the actual results, strangely enough.
Lowering expectations, lowering wage bill, fans now happy just to survive in the league. Lerner must be trying to sell, otherwise he'd surely see the madness in his plan.
Yep, the gradual lowering of expectations has been achieved IMO.
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More worryingly though. Lambert has just been on the radio and said 'IF' he brings anyone else into the club in Jan it will only be lower league players as that's all the funding he's been given
If that's true then it's evident that Randy has given up. In which case, he should sell. We'll go down without proper investment, he must be able to see that.
PL made it clear that the kids are here to stay
Thank fuck I'm leaving the country in a couple of weeks then.
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We deserved exactly what we got today - a good gubbing as our Scottish friends say.
What was the booing for at the substitutions? If it was for showpony Ireland then I should have joined in - he trundles around like Steven Seagal...
No experienced players in the window? God help us.
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More worryingly though. Lambert has just been on the radio and said 'IF' he brings anyone else into the club in Jan it will only be lower league players as that's all the funding he's been given
If that's true then it's evident that Randy has given up. In which case, he should sell. We'll go down without proper investment, he must be able to see that.
PL made it clear that the kids are here to stay
On what grounds , they're awful.
Herd
Delph
Lichaj
Bannan
Albrighton
KEA - What do you even do?!
See ya.
Even Bennett and Clark, what the hell happened to you.
Play the kids all you'd like but experience and ability are two completely different things. If it doesn't come around its your head.
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To be fair to Lambert he is not going to reveal to the BBC what he is or isn't going to do in january.Maybe until he gets some commitment from RL he doesn't even know himself.
If i thought getting rid of Lambert would help us i would be all for it but i just can't see a better alternative out there at the moment who could make dramatic changes in a short space of time.
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2012; 6 wins in 39 games, Happy New Year!!
I'm surprised it's that high. We'd stay up if we continue form like that.
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It's been men against boys all season with this Villa team. 3 years of Lerner cutbacks has lead us to this, and it's just a matter of time before we're relegated unless he comes to his senses and opens his wallet.
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What if we get battered by Swans?
Nasty vicious buggers. I always try and keep a good distance from them and give them plenty of space. I would guess our players will be doing that on New Years Day.
I don't know about Swans but this Goose isn't playing around ;)
It will make you smile for a minute!!
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The only consolation I can take at this moment in time is that we are not in the bottom three and I don't believe it is actually possible for us to get any worse
Truly fucking awful and Christmas completely ruined from a footballing perspective; Lambert needs to realise his youth over experience policy is not working at this moment in time and get Lerner to back him appropriately
Another load of Jordan Bowery's and Joe Bennett's coming in will not save us
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I wanted Lambert as did many of you on this and other Villa Forums. I have to admit it looks as if I was wrong,badly wrong.
It appears to be down to our Chairman putting in substantial funds in a few days time and giving the club a chance of staying in the Premier League.
But who is to say even if he does, and thats unlikely,that Lambert will spend it correctly.
The first signing will be all important. It will give us an idea what he is made of.
I dont feel at all confident.
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More worryingly though. Lambert has just been on the radio and said 'IF' he brings anyone else into the club in Jan it will only be lower league players as that's all the funding he's been given
Did he really say that? If so, we're goners.
Radio wm reporting him as saying he will not change his policy of bringing in younger hungry players- experienced players guarantee nothing.
Very bad news.
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Aston Villa boss Paul Lambert
On losing 3-0 to Wigan: "You cannot start the game like we did - especially at home. It's not great by any standards. The only spell we had was 20 minutes in the first half and the second goal from a Wigan throw-in was really poor.
"We've got a lot of injuries at the minute which doesn't help, but we know we're in a fight. We've just got to keep going and keep trying to do the right things."
On Villa fans leaving after the third Wigan goal: "Absolutely I can understand it. I pick the team, it's my responsibility. The crowd have been brilliant with me and that's why I can't say anything against them."
On bouncing back from conceding 15 goals in three matches: "You have to pick yourselves back up and keep fighting. We certainly know we're in a fight but this club has been in a fight for a couple of years so it's nothing new. But we don't want to be in this position."
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More worryingly though. Lambert has just been on the radio and said 'IF' he brings anyone else into the club in Jan it will only be lower league players as that's all the funding he's been given
Did he really say that? If so, we're goners.
Radio wm reporting him as saying he will not change his policy of bringing in younger hungry players- experienced players guarantee nothing.
Very bad news.
and neither do younger hungry players.!
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What if we get battered by Swans?
What do you mean "if"?
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To be fair to Lambert he is not going to reveal to the BBC what he is or isn't going to do in january.Maybe until he gets some commitment from RL he doesn't even know himself.
If i thought getting rid of Lambert would help us i would be all for it but i just can't see a better alternative out there at the moment who could make dramatic changes in a short space of time.
That's the same kind of feeling I got from hearing it. I don't think mouthing off to the press about your transfer targets is ideal when you usually have to pay over-inflated prices in January.
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All this talk about the "youth" in our team is starting to piss me off. Most of the players being bracketed as youths are not youths, they are 22-23 years old, at which point in their careers they will have made it, or not. What these players are however is inexperienced, and the reason they are inexperienced is that they haven't played much football at top level or indeed even first team level; and the reason for this lack of experience is that they aren't actually very good.
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Yeah, we're now a team that has to scrap for Premier League survival every year. We've basically become Wigan, but with a bigger ground and more supporters. Their players are better than ours though.
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Aston Villa boss Paul Lambert
On losing 3-0 to Wigan: "You cannot start the game like we did - especially at home. It's not great by any standards. The only spell we had was 20 minutes in the first half and the second goal from a Wigan throw-in was really poor.
"We've got a lot of injuries at the minute which doesn't help, but we know we're in a fight. We've just got to keep going and keep trying to do the right things."
On Villa fans leaving after the third Wigan goal: "Absolutely I can understand it. I pick the team, it's my responsibility. The crowd have been brilliant with me and that's why I can't say anything against them."
On bouncing back from conceding 15 goals in three matches: "You have to pick yourselves back up and keep fighting. We certainly know we're in a fight but this club has been in a fight for a couple of years so it's nothing new. But we don't want to be in this position."
'Keep trying to do the right things', we haven't come close to that in the last 3 games.
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Getting tired of all this 'In Lambert we trust' bollocks, this is the worst side I have seen in a very long time, on a par with the 1969 and 1987 sides, both relegated, and both, coincidentally, teams going the young players route, always Villa's default setting when things are going wrong.
We need a major shift in policy to keep us up, I've been saying all season Lambert's tactics are clueless, he is no coach.
He is purely a motivator who wants to work with the sort of player who will follow his instructions wthout question, and cannot clearly work with senior players.
They are just the sort of player that we need to get us out of this mess, but I don't think he will buy them, just more 'young, hungry' players who will 'go again and give their all'.
Relegation is now staring us all in the face, I'm afraid, and Mr. Lerner needs to do something clear and decisive, for once.
Spot on in my opinion.
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Big pile of poo.
That's one of the worst villa showing I've seen down villa park in a while. And I'm including last years dire campaign too.
Void of ideas, lack of leadership and only two shots on target all game.
Out classed and out played but a much better organised Wigan side. If that's the quality of the sides around us in the league then it's a miracle we're not rooted at the bottom of the table.
It's so do poor. I'm really gutted because unless there's some serious money spent there's no way out of this
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Getting tired of all this 'In Lambert we trust' bollocks, this is the worst side I have seen in a very long time, on a par with the 1969 and 1987 sides, both relegated, and both, coincidentally, teams going the young players route, always Villa's default setting when things are going wrong.
We need a major shift in policy to keep us up, I've been saying all season Lambert's tactics are clueless, he is no coach.
He is purely a motivator who wants to work with the sort of player who will follow his instructions wthout question, and cannot clearly work with senior players.
They are just the sort of player that we need to get us out of this mess, but I don't think he will buy them, just more 'young, hungry' players who will 'go again and give their all'.
Relegation is now staring us all in the face, I'm afraid, and Mr. Lerner needs to do something clear and decisive, for once.
Spot on in my opinion.
If we just bring in more young and hungry players in January, I am going to stake a decent wad on us going down. The only thing i can think of which would be a more spectacularly stupid course by the club would be to buy nobody.
Lerner needs to wake up, quickly. This Ajax dream is not going to happen at Villa, they're totally incomparable clubs.
Incidentally, the solution to the wage bill is instant next season - the new television deal. It'd be supreme fuckwittery on Lerner's part to obsess about it so much that he got us relegated and missed out on the solution.
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Just got back from the game and I'm distraught.
We were ok in short spells but the amount of flick ons that didn't come off, blind alleys, sideways passing when a better ball could have been played as well as aimless lost passes had so many howls of derision it could have been an X factor audition day.
The Holte was in good voice throughout the game.
Ireland has played his last game for us. The boos that greeted his departure guaranteed that.
Mr Woodhall suggested to me that give Caruthers a go and tell him to enjoy himself. Not a bad idea!
Liverpool was a fluke.
I understand what Lambert is trying to do but we can't keep getting hammered week after week. We played the reigning European Champions and brushed aside. We played a team in the top 4 - battered. We now have played a team near the bottom and again battered.
Ditch the current formation.
Ditch the current recruitment strategy.
I really really don't give a shit about the cups. The league is our bread and butter and we are now the Premiership whipping boys.
Message to Pongo Waring - send us a goal from heaven Pongo and save us from hell.
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15 goals in 3 matches conceded
4 shots on target
Epic failure at management and board level
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What we need is a 6 foot 5, built like a brick shitehouse midfielder who gets stuck in. Our midfield is too lightweight. A leader at the back wouldn't do any harm either.
Three players, right up the middle of the pitch.
Yes, and we also need to bring the likes of Bent, N'Zogbia and Wanrnock back. We may not be their biggest fans but we need their experience in the team. We look like someone lifted a League 2 outfit and placed them into Villa shirts
Bent and Zog have been injured, and I'd play Neil Warnock before Stephen.
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What we need is a 6 foot 5, built like a brick shitehouse midfielder who gets stuck in. Our midfield is too lightweight. A leader at the back wouldn't do any harm either.
Three players, right up the middle of the pitch.
Yes, and we also need to bring the likes of Bent, N'Zogbia and Wanrnock back. We may not be their biggest fans but we need their experience in the team. We look like someone lifted a League 2 outfit and placed them into Villa shirts
Bent and Zog have been injured, and I'd play Neil Warnock before Stephen.
Our fullbacks are woeful. Warnock would be an improvement even if it's just for his experience alone.
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I wish there was an 'off' button for caring about Aston Villa. I feel so selfish, feeling this bad about something I can't control.
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What we need is a 6 foot 5, built like a brick shitehouse midfielder who gets stuck in. Our midfield is too lightweight. A leader at the back wouldn't do any harm either.
Three players, right up the middle of the pitch.
Yes, and we also need to bring the likes of Bent, N'Zogbia and Wanrnock back. We may not be their biggest fans but we need their experience in the team. We look like someone lifted a League 2 outfit and placed them into Villa shirts
Bent and Zog have been injured, and I'd play Neil Warnock before Stephen.
Our fullbacks are woeful. Warnock would be an improvement even if it's just for his experience alone.
I don't really think Lowton has been woeful.
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15 goals in 3 matches conceded
4 shots on target
Epic failure at management and board level
This
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Everybody is entitled to an opinion and it is good to read others but in my opinion some of the comments on here are pathetic when you actually consider reality. Like everybody else, I am bitterly disappointed but the generalisation of some of the comments on here is like the lack of effort of some of our players.
The majority of people on here bought in to the appoinment of Lambert and his policy regarding replacing experienced players on the way down with inexperienced players with potential. There have been a few that have been critical from day one but I will not go into that. This was never going to be a one season solution to the slide of the previous two and a half. There was a gamble taken with the squad strength in that the thought was that it was good enough to get through the season and build off for the future. The gamble has not come off, both due to injuries and some of the players brought in not being up to the task when things have started to go wrong. The one error that I thought the manager made was not bringing in an extra experienced midfield player.
To say that all of the managers buys are absolute shite is ridiculous.
I have seen some poor Villa teams over the last 35 years but to say this team is the worst misses the point that a few players of quality and experience can lift the younger players to play at a far higher level than at present.
To say that we need to replace the defence, midfield and forward line is an extreme comment which loses credibility of anything constructive that the poster may say. It would be great to have a magic wand but football doesn't work like that
Humour is one thing but ridicule to get a point across has never done it for me.
To say that the manager should be sacked after half a season of trying to juggle limited resources is one thing but to say he is worse than McLeish is amazing. One manager looking to the future and the other living in the past with no thought of the future.
Having said that, my view of the squad is as follows:
Guzan - ok
Lowton - struggling of late but will be ok as a fullback, not suited to right wingback in a 5/3 set up
Lichaj - not good enough as wingback, not PL quality at fullback either. Adequate as squad player if he does not have to play too many games
Herd - not good enough as a defender, battler and useful as a squad player
Clark - good alongside a strong partner but looks weak when he has play the dominant part, I believe he will improve with experience. Thank god he did not get booked today as I think that would have meant a suspension
Bennett - one for the future and would look far better if the rest of the players would play the ball infront of him rather than to his feet when he is tightly marked, give the kid a chance!
Ireland - I have lost my patience with him. A luxury we cannot afford and a midfield with him in it looks weaker than without
Bannan - I still believe he has a lot of potential if he only has play it simple most of the time amd save his defence splitting passes rather than trying to play the impossible ball all of the time. Needs complimenting players in midfield
Holman - not PL quality
Weimann - one for the future
Benteke - lost a bit of confidence but is somebody to build the team around
Albrighton - cannot see him making it at this level, seems to lack what it takes to learn his position and the game in general
KEA - jury is out but I do not think he will adjust to PL, looks lazy
Bowery - I know people are looking for positives but didn't stand out for me when he came on. Yound and inexperienced, so hopefully one for the future
Baker - looks to be a genuine prospect and has impressed me in the centre of the defence
Bent - money or the player, still think there is a place for him in the team
Gabby - on the wane and losing his main attribute, pace
Vlaar - his leadership has been sadly missed
Given - needed as back up
Delph - looks to be another Reo Coker, very bright youngster that never fullfills the potential
Westwood - been impressed with him but needs more experience, one for the future
N'Zogbia - big disappointment but is needed for the rest of the season and then sell him
Dunne - had his day and will be surprised to see him play for us again
Warnock - need to sell
Hutton - need to sell but will anybody buy!
From the above there is an obvious shortage in midfield where (in my opinion) we only have two players Bannan and Westwood but you cannot play them week in week out.
I believe the manager used 3 at the back as he thought this gave the greater strength with Vlaar, Baker and Clark but with first two out, it is now proving a weakness and so a flat back four would be better with what is available
The team is clearly short of experience and confidence. I believe that latter will come if we can bring in a couple of experienced midfield players on loan for the rest of the season. Also, with our injuries to central defenders and Clark continually picking up bookings, we need an experienced central defender.
I do not believe the picture is as black as some are making it out to be but that is provided players are brought in next month. Without 3 or 4 players or a rapid improvement on injury situation we will struggle
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What we need is a 6 foot 5, built like a brick shitehouse midfielder who gets stuck in. Our midfield is too lightweight. A leader at the back wouldn't do any harm either.
Three players, right up the middle of the pitch.
Yes, and we also need to bring the likes of Bent, N'Zogbia and Wanrnock back. We may not be their biggest fans but we need their experience in the team. We look like someone lifted a League 2 outfit and placed them into Villa shirts
Bent and Zog have been injured, and I'd play Neil Warnock before Stephen.
Our fullbacks are woeful. Warnock would be an improvement even if it's just for his experience alone.
I don't really think Lowton has been woeful.
Benteke aside there's not a single player in that team worthy of Aston Villa FC. I've been saying it for months - this team is worse than 86-87.
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Getting tired of all this 'In Lambert we trust' bollocks, this is the worst side I have seen in a very long time, on a par with the 1969 and 1987 sides, both relegated, and both, coincidentally, teams going the young players route, always Villa's default setting when things are going wrong.
We need a major shift in policy to keep us up, I've been saying all season Lambert's tactics are clueless, he is no coach.
He is purely a motivator who wants to work with the sort of player who will follow his instructions wthout question, and cannot clearly work with senior players.
They are just the sort of player that we need to get us out of this mess, but I don't think he will buy them, just more 'young, hungry' players who will 'go again and give their all'.
Relegation is now staring us all in the face, I'm afraid, and Mr. Lerner needs to do something clear and decisive, for once.
Spot on in my opinion.
If we just bring in more young and hungry players in January, I am going to stake a decent wad on us going down. The only thing i can think of which would be a more spectacularly stupid course by the club would be to buy nobody.
Lerner needs to wake up, quickly. This Ajax dream is not going to happen at Villa, they're totally incomparable clubs.
Incidentally, the solution to the wage bill is instant next season - the new television deal. It'd be supreme fuckwittery on Lerner's part to obsess about it so much that he got us relegated and missed out on the solution.
Does he really care anymore though - he seems to have lost interest .
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When Mr Lerner bought Aston Villa he did so because he knew it would prove to be a good investment.
1: There was the lure of the sunny uplands of European football with all of the associated banknotes and kudos. (When that gamble failed he obviously lost his nerve and began the business of a very serious retrenchment - his consolation being the money earned from the interest on loans to the club and the facilitation fees for those loans).
2: Leaving aside the possibility that Mr Lerner, in the long term, was looking towards the formation of a European League; and/or the abolition of relegation; and/or an imposition of a maximum wage; and/or increased revenue streams from television rights (especially if the club were to bypass Sky, ESPN et al) - he must have felt safe in a supposition that whatever happened his original investment was guaranteed to give a good return.
However if Mr Lerner had the least idea about running a football club in the Premier League why did he do the following:
1: Appoint as a Director, in General Krulak, a makeweight firewall whose PR fuckwittery in the end seemed to be looking to rival the surrealistic utterings of Tariq Aziz.
2: Appoint as manager, in Houllier (a man with a well-known heart condition), someone who was not free to assume the manager's job until he had given his previous employer several week's notice (and who then went on to describe his new employers - a club that had finished in the top six for three consecutive seasons - as a side who should not realistically expect to finish much higher than mid-table) .
3: Appoint as manager, in McLeish, someone who who nobody in their right mind would ever encourage to go near Villa Park unless he had been trained in the rustling of fried onions.
4: Appoint as Chief Executive Paul Faulkner.
I don't for one minute think that Mr Lerner will allow his investment to be devalued by relegation (cf the purchase of Darren Bent) but I do worry that pressure will be applied on Paul Lambert to either recall Hutton and Warnock (there must've been a reason they were shipped out so precipitately) or to buy journeyman players that will suck more money out of the club and prevent the progress of the youngsters (with no guarantee that relegation will be avoided).
To wit: apart from the uselessness of Lerner and Faulkner, stick with what we've got: Paul Lambert has a plan and we've got more than a few useful youngsters - if it all ends in tears in the second tier then so what - we'll soon be back.
Where's The Gnasher when you need him?
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What we need is a 6 foot 5, built like a brick shitehouse midfielder who gets stuck in. Our midfield is too lightweight. A leader at the back wouldn't do any harm either.
Three players, right up the middle of the pitch.
Yes, and we also need to bring the likes of Bent, N'Zogbia and Wanrnock back. We may not be their biggest fans but we need their experience in the team. We look like someone lifted a League 2 outfit and placed them into Villa shirts
Bent and Zog have been injured, and I'd play Neil Warnock before Stephen.
Our fullbacks are woeful. Warnock would be an improvement even if it's just for his experience alone.
Whatever our many problems, the answer doesn't lie with the likes of Warnock, Hutton etc.
Stephen Ireland provided a fine example of that today.
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For what it's worth, my theory is that Lambert's way of using young players has been to appeal to their emotions: he's got them all worked up, pressing, giving it everything, going mad - and we score first, they get fired up, it's great. However, this emotionalism means when we go behind, that really is it. Their heads drop, they get down on themselves, they run out of ideas, they stop playing the ball. They need to be more calm, have a bit more of the Jedi about them. We need a player like Danny Murphy was for Fulham the last few years, a been-there-done-that player who simultaneously has good technique and can calm down these young guys desperate to make up for going behind. There's no calm there, however, and 'seniors' like Gabby Agbonlahor and Darren Bent wouldn't help because they're hardly going to put their foot on the ball and help the younger guys settle down.
We do miss Vlaar, who'd have never made a mistake as tragic as some of the ones we've seen in these last two home games. We miss Petrov like a missing limb but there's no good waiting for that, he has somewhat bigger fish to fry. We also miss an attacking midfielder who actually poses a threat to the opposition, a nippy winger who can cut inside and score goals - like Zog is in theory, but obviously not Zog.
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What we need is a 6 foot 5, built like a brick shitehouse midfielder who gets stuck in. Our midfield is too lightweight. A leader at the back wouldn't do any harm either.
Three players, right up the middle of the pitch.
Yes, and we also need to bring the likes of Bent, N'Zogbia and Wanrnock back. We may not be their biggest fans but we need their experience in the team. We look like someone lifted a League 2 outfit and placed them into Villa shirts
Bent and Zog have been injured, and I'd play Neil Warnock before Stephen.
Our fullbacks are woeful. Warnock would be an improvement even if it's just for his experience alone.
Whatever our many problems, the answer doesn't lie with the likes of Warnock, Hutton etc.
Stephen Ireland provided a fine example of that today.
Experience is what we need. The problems with our team this season is due to the lack of it.
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Abysmal. I also really hope that someone is stupid enough to buy Ireland from us in January, what a waste of fucking space that man is. As a senior, highly paid player all he does is give the air of complete indifference.
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What we need is a 6 foot 5, built like a brick shitehouse midfielder who gets stuck in. Our midfield is too lightweight. A leader at the back wouldn't do any harm either.
Three players, right up the middle of the pitch.
Yes, and we also need to bring the likes of Bent, N'Zogbia and Wanrnock back. We may not be their biggest fans but we need their experience in the team. We look like someone lifted a League 2 outfit and placed them into Villa shirts
Bent and Zog have been injured, and I'd play Neil Warnock before Stephen.
Our fullbacks are woeful. Warnock would be an improvement even if it's just for his experience alone.
I don't really think Lowton has been woeful.
Benteke aside there's not a single player in that team worthy of Aston Villa FC. I've been saying it for months - this team is worse than 86-87.
I think Westwood , Vlaar, Lowton , benteke have all been decent signings, Bennett and Bowery may prove to be in time , Holman and kea lack quality in my opinion.
Lamberts insistence that going with young players rather than experience is a recipe for disaster and I fear the transfer window will be very dissappointing.
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The majority of people on here bought in to the appointment of Lambert and his policy regarding replacing experienced players on the way down with inexperienced players with potential.
I don't think that's true; as I remember it, most people thought it was far too much of a gamble, and so it has proved. Which leads me on to my next point:
There was a gamble taken with the squad strength in that the thought was that it was good enough to get through the season and build off for the future. The gamble has not come off, both due to injuries and some of the players brought in not being up to the task when things have started to go wrong. The one error that I thought the manager made was not bringing in an extra experienced midfield player.
Why are we having to gamble with the clubs Premier League status? Just to save a few quid? If so, then it's ridiculously short sited from the board, considering the new Sky tv deal money would (and still will, hopefully) earn us loads more cash.
I have seen some poor Villa teams over the last 35 years but to say this team is the worst misses the point that a few players of quality and experience can lift the younger players to play at a far higher level than at present.
Get ready for this worrying news then; Lambert's already said he won't be buying Prem quality players - we'll be looking towards youth and players from the lower leagues.
To say that we need to replace the defence, midfield and forward line is an extreme comment which loses credibility of anything constructive that the poster may say. It would be great to have a magic wand but football doesn't work like that.
I'm not having a go, but how should it work? The team is an absolute shambles from top to bottom, the defence is utterly and completely useless, they are cut through like butter and ball watch. Worst defence I've ever seen at Villa Park, this used to be one of the things we were good at.
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Chelsea v Aston Villa 27th December1986 L 1-4 (the last time we were relegated)
Team; Spink, Williams, Dorigo, Keown, Elliot, Stainrod, Birch, Thompson, Gray, Hunt, Walters.
We are doomed.
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What we need is a 6 foot 5, built like a brick shitehouse midfielder who gets stuck in. Our midfield is too lightweight. A leader at the back wouldn't do any harm either.
Three players, right up the middle of the pitch.
Yes, and we also need to bring the likes of Bent, N'Zogbia and Wanrnock back. We may not be their biggest fans but we need their experience in the team. We look like someone lifted a League 2 outfit and placed them into Villa shirts
Bent and Zog have been injured, and I'd play Neil Warnock before Stephen.
Our fullbacks are woeful. Warnock would be an improvement even if it's just for his experience alone.
I don't really think Lowton has been woeful.
Benteke aside there's not a single player in that team worthy of Aston Villa FC. I've been saying it for months - this team is worse than 86-87.
I think Westwood , Vlaar, Lowton , benteke have all been decent signings, Bennett and Bowery may prove to be in time , Holman and kea lack quality on my opinion.
I don't think Westwood is anything special, Vlaar's mistakes has cost us goals this season and Lowton looks average. We could debate this all night but it'll just be about opinions, but the fact remains that we have an absolutely appalling team. That isn't up for debate.
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Sorry if this has already been said but Lamberts interview on BBC WM does not fill me optimism. He inferred that he is sticking to his young and hungry approach including in the transfer market. So no experienced PL players for us in January. Things are bad now but they are going to get a whole lot worse IMO.
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What we need is a 6 foot 5, built like a brick shitehouse midfielder who gets stuck in. Our midfield is too lightweight. A leader at the back wouldn't do any harm either.
Three players, right up the middle of the pitch.
Yes, and we also need to bring the likes of Bent, N'Zogbia and Wanrnock back. We may not be their biggest fans but we need their experience in the team. We look like someone lifted a League 2 outfit and placed them into Villa shirts
Bent and Zog have been injured, and I'd play Neil Warnock before Stephen.
Our fullbacks are woeful. Warnock would be an improvement even if it's just for his experience alone.
I don't really think Lowton has been woeful.
Benteke aside there's not a single player in that team worthy of Aston Villa FC. I've been saying it for months - this team is worse than 86-87.
I think Westwood , Vlaar, Lowton , benteke have all been decent signings, Bennett and Bowery may prove to be in time , Holman and kea lack quality on my opinion.
I don't think Westwood is anything special, Vlaar's mistakes has cost us goals this season and Lowton looks average. We could debate this all night but it'll just be about opinions, but the fact remains that we have an absolutely appalling team. That isn't up for debate.
The tactics , team selection and formation along with his substitutions worry me very much about lambert, his signings haven't been that bad but you need a balance and a mixture of youth and experience- not just young lads learning their trade.
Lambert now worries me and Lerner has worried me for years.
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The battle that broke us.
We are on our way down.
The midfield is appalling, Lambert got the selection and system so badly wrong.
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Well that's great, that's just fuckin' great, man. Now what the fuck are we supposed to do? We're in some real pretty shit now man. At least thats what Private Hudson from Aliens would say.
I would say that is probably one of the least enjoyable afternoons at VP I've spent for a couple of decades. The thing for me is the ease in which Wigan went through us. They didnt really have to try too hard at all and to be honest didnt create an awful lot but brushed us aside easily.
We need some quality and experience in January.
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The battle that broke us.
We are on our way down.
The midfield is appalling, Lambert got the selection and system so badly wrong.
After today's match it's difficult to argue with any of this. Our midfield is piss poor but our best player so far this season was stuck on the bench. Much as I'd like to see Bannan and Albrighton succeed, neither are good enough. Ireland is a luxury player and the net result is that we are crap. Couple that with the fact that we seem to be so mentally fragile, it looks rather worrying.
We need a couple of tough midfield players to lead on the pitch to come in during January otherwise we'll really struggle.
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Benteke looked lazy today too. Like he couldn't be arsed. There was no movement from him at all to get in front of defenders for headers. Or get in the box for crossed. Really poor from him as well as everyone today.
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Must admit i'm worried now. I'm starting think we may not make the Champions League.
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Poor, very poor.
Our midfield is a joke, and our tactics if there are any are rubbish,
On the up side, I have got home two games in a row in record time (I did leave the ground 10 mins early both games, which is not something I usually do)
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This is my own verdict on the match: http://pickourteam.com/premierleague/aston-villa/fansverdict/29-12-2012/aston-villa-vs-wigan-athletic
My other half's just informed me that she wanted to leave the stadium after an hour, find a quiet spot and try and forget she was there. She said it was physically painful to watch.
For my own part, i know it's a lost cause when you could hear a pin drop as soon as we lost the ball. The fight's disappeared from the fans and that's awful to realise.
As ever, comments on the verdict would be welcome.
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A fitting end to 2012.
Worst ever home record, record defeat worst start to a season for decades. And the hits just keep on coming.
Lambert can't take all the blame, but squads with less talent than ours won't get dicked at Chelsea 8-0 and then follow that up with two more abject results and performances. We are not very good, but we should be better than that.
I think most of us -if we're honest- have felt uneasy since the Southampton game. That a team who were clearly destined to struggle could turn us over so easily set alarm bells ringing.
Since then, our form hasn't been too shit hot, though it did look like we had maybe turned a corner with the results (and performances) in the Norwich and Liverpool games. Prior to that, I thought relegation was a possibility -not nailed on by any means- but possible.
The Liverpool result gave me hope that this season we would be comfortable, maybe not threatening the top 6/ Europa League places, but a decent bet for 12th-16th.
Now we're back to relying on teams being more shite than us. It's quite possible that will be our salvation, but really, they'd have to go some way to be as brutally bad as we've been recently.
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On the plus side, met Dante who is a lovely fella and didn't deserve the misery I inflicted on him. Sorry mate!
And also adrenachrome, who I didn't inflict any misery on but was still a pleasure to meet.
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For anyone interested we are the third game on motd tonight, following the games at arsenal and Norwich.
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For anyone interested we are the third game on motd tonight, following the games at arsenal and Norwich.
Are you insane?
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I lost heart today. Terrible thing to say, but I did. After the third goal I was slumped back in my seat, looking around, down, anywhere but the pitch. I showed no passion, not even anger. I did stay to the bitter end, for whatever that was worth.
Our midfield is pitiful. That, today, was on a par from anything the 1987 relegated side produced.
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I watched the players having shots at the goal before the game during the warm up.
Lets just say that the fans in the lower Holte got more catching practice than the person we had in goal.
It didn't get any better in the game.
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Live text commentary as Arsenal beat Newcastle 7-3 while there are wins for Manchester United and City, but Aston Villa are thrashed at home.
Even the BBC sport website call it a thrashing, we are a joke at the moment
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Not easy to get things in perspective after today but the following points needs to be made:
Vlar, Gabby, Bent, Dunne, N'Zogbia would make a big difference to our current performances, if they were available. Take 5 or 6 players out of any team & they would struggle. Our problem is that when these are out, we only have the likes of Herd, Lichaj, Albrighton, Weimann or inexperienced Benteke, Westwood, Lowton, Bennett to rely on. The very average Holman or useless KEA & Ireland add very little to any team.
With the exception KEA, Lambert signings have been good value.
The myth that our youth setup is a production line of premiership players has been blown apart; athough this is nothing that we didn't already know. In truth it's a production line for mediocrity, none of whom would get in any other premiership side. The fact that our clubs future is currently being left in their hands is frightening. I would swap all of them for 1 quality player.
Today I have to question Lamberts tactics, any manager that puts Bannan, Ireland & Holman in a midfield three, especially in front of a back 5 that has conceded 12 goals, shows a complete lack of tactical sense. He should have reverted to 4-4-2 after 20 mins when it became obvious that we were being run ragged in midfield. Fullbacks don't know when to push forward & when to defend. Lichaj is not good enough for a championship team.
Ireland can only play just behind the striker, he should never be put in a 4 man midfield, let alone a 3 man midfield. He is a 'luxury' we can't afford.
Benteke needs to realise he's no Drogba.
We need a centre half, 2 midfielders, a forward & cover for left back / right back. The next 4-6 weeks we need to buy the players we need & get the others fit.
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I feel worse tonight than after Chelsea or spurs- they were both quality teams but to lose like this to Wigan is a bitter blow.
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For anyone interested we are the third game on motd tonight, following the games at arsenal and Norwich.
Are you insane?
Might watch shopping channels instead.
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I feel worse tonight than after Chelsea or spurs- they were both quality teams but to lose like this to Wigan is a bitter blow.
Agreed
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I feel worse tonight than after Chelsea or spurs- they were both quality teams but to lose like this to Wigan is a bitter blow.
Agreed
The worst thing is that the scoreline didn't flatter Wigan. Not even slightly.
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Not easy to get things in perspective after today but the following points needs to be made:
Vlar, Gabby, Bent, Dunne, N'Zogbia would make a big difference to our current performances, if they were available. Take 5 or 6 players out of any team & they would struggle. Our problem is that when these are out, we only have the likes of Herd, Lichaj, Albrighton, Weimann or inexperienced Benteke, Westwood, Lowton, Bennett to rely on. The very average Holman or useless KEA & Ireland add very little to any team.
Sorry John, but I'm not sure any of those four would make much of a difference, N'Zogbia in particular.
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The majority of people on here bought in to the appointment of Lambert and his policy regarding replacing experienced players on the way down with inexperienced players with potential.
I don't think that's true; as I remember it, most people thought it was far too much of a gamble, and so it has proved. Which leads me on to my next point:
There was a gamble taken with the squad strength in that the thought was that it was good enough to get through the season and build off for the future. The gamble has not come off, both due to injuries and some of the players brought in not being up to the task when things have started to go wrong. The one error that I thought the manager made was not bringing in an extra experienced midfield player.
Why are we having to gamble with the clubs Premier League status? Just to save a few quid? If so, then it's ridiculously short sited from the board, considering the new Sky tv deal money would (and still will, hopefully) earn us loads more cash.
I have seen some poor Villa teams over the last 35 years but to say this team is the worst misses the point that a few players of quality and experience can lift the younger players to play at a far higher level than at present.
Get ready for this worrying news then; Lambert's already said he won't be buying Prem quality players - we'll be looking towards youth and players from the lower leagues.
To say that we need to replace the defence, midfield and forward line is an extreme comment which loses credibility of anything constructive that the poster may say. It would be great to have a magic wand but football doesn't work like that.
I'm not having a go, but how should it work? The team is an absolute shambles from top to bottom, the defence is utterly and completely useless, they are cut through like butter and ball watch. Worst defence I've ever seen at Villa Park, this used to be one of the things we were good at.
Thanks for taking time to respond.
My take on it at the beginning of the season was that people did want to see the back of the old guard and even some of the players the previous manager brought in. Also that Lambert was a forward thinker and building a young team was seen as a brighter future. Obviously differing opinions, so could not have been clear cut.
We had dropped so far behind other teams both playing strength and financial strength that we almost had to clear the slate and start again to rebuild the strength of the club. Top 6, let alone, top 4 was beyond us continuing the way we were going. With only being able to bring players in twice a year, it is always a gamble to cover for injuries that may or may not happen. The manager has been unlucky in that most injuries have been to the experienced players, thus exposing the young players more.
It is worrying if the comments about bringing in new players are true. What we are in need of at the moment are a few sticking plasters and not replacement limbs (or replacement body) to get us through the season. This need not cost a fortune and, in my opinion, be a good investment. The club have to realise they took a gamble that did not come off but now they have the chance to rectify it.
The team, as you say, looks a shambles because of weaknesses in the defensive half of the field. We are down to the bare bones for defence and midfield and it is clearly not good enough. The weakness of the midfield today put pressure on the defence all game. Conceeding an early goal today through lack of concentration and poor marking put pressure on the whole team that took them 25 minutes to come to terms with. The manager had very few alternatives today but hopefully he will see that from what is available he does not have 3 players of the necessary quality to play 3 at the back.
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I feel worse tonight than after Chelsea or spurs- they were both quality teams but to lose like this to Wigan is a bitter blow.
Same here.
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I don't see that there is anything different the current 11 can do. They simply aren't good enough for this level, in fact they probably are a mid table Championship side right now. I don't fault Lambert's tactics, he can only work with what is available. I can't fault them for their collective commitment, which I think is why the crowd is still largely behind them. They do at least give 100% for the shirt.
Our hope is that the 5 or 6 who are injured make the difference when fit and that we add to the squad when the window opens. Then we'll get the other 18 or so points needed to survive.
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Dont know if this has been mentioned before but PL had everyone in for training Xmas Day, even the injured players, he decided to take the day off and visit his family.
Shortly after an 8-0 defeat.
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Dont know if this has been mentioned before but PL had everyone in for training Xmas Day, even the injured players, he decided to take the day off and visit his family.
Shortly after an 8-0 defeat.
Hearsay or can you back this up?
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Dont know if this has been mentioned before but PL had everyone in for training Xmas Day, even the injured players, he decided to take the day off and visit his family.
Shortly after an 8-0 defeat.
If that's true and he didnt attend himself then that is very very worrying
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The players would have trained whether we had won 8-0.
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Where is clampy tonight with his mini- crisis and pro Lerner comments- maybe the rose tinted specs have cracked?
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Dont know if this has been mentioned before but PL had everyone in for training Xmas Day, even the injured players, he decided to take the day off and visit his family.
Shortly after an 8-0 defeat.
Hearsay or can you back this up?
Check my previous postings ref Weimann injury and team v QPR and make your own mind up.
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I'll give you the Weimann injury info definitely as sceptical as I was at the time. Hats off for that and apologies. You'll have to point me in the direction of the info regarding the team v QPR though.
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What if we get battered by Swans?
We go again ?
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No, we get up and go again.
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I'll give you the Weimann injury info definitely as sceptical as I was at the time. Hats off for that and apologies. You'll have to point me in the direction of the info regarding the team v QPR though.
Qpr v Villa pre match thread. A team not one person would have predicted. 5 at the back etc
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Where is clampy tonight with his mini- crisis and pro Lerner comments- maybe the rose tinted specs have cracked?
Turn it in.
He is a Villa fan, same as you. Why take pleasure in our plight?
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Just got home from the game. I posted in the pre match thread that this game would show us if the Chelsea game broke our young side and the very painful truth is that clearly it did.
That is a very simplistic view because the manager and his staff should have taken every step open to them to get them through that humiliating beating at Stamford Bridge but if they did, it obviously did not work. You could tell as soon as they came on he pitch for the Spurs game by their body language and the first minute or two of play they believed the next goal would make it 9-0 and the same again today. They began like a team of schoolboys and once the first goal went in they played as though the score was 13-0. It looks clear to me that nobody has sat those players down and attempted to get the previous game out of their system.
Lambert went for 5 across the back for the third game in a row having shipped twelve goals against and none for in the previous two games.
All of that is mere detail. The dots which have to be joined up to make the picture.
The picture is now there for us all to see and it hurts.
Our young players are not as good as we believed them to be and Paul Lambert is not as good a manager as we (myself included) believed him to be.
In defence of our young players who have come through the academy the use McLeish made of them week after week last season has damaged them possibly beyond repair. Good young players must be bedded into a team and learn their trade. What we saw on the pitch against Chelsea, Spurs and today is that they have not learned the trade of being professional football players at the highest level. They are like a classroom full of kids trying to educate themselves.
The club and Paul Lambert's career both stand at a crossroads. If Lambert remains mulishly stubborn and as stupid as throwing everything into attack against Chelsea when we were three goals down the same will happen to him and the club as happened to the Light Brigade when they went for glory and charged the Russian guns. He and we will be wiped out.
He has thrown away so many points this season that he now has no choice but to buy some strong, experienced players and hope to scrape enough points to survive in the Premiership.
It would all have been so much easier if the manager and his staff had got away with 4-0 at Chelsea and 2-0 against Spurs. People like me could have clung to the ethos of youth and enthusiasm and team spirit over thud and blunder but that display today did not show that the confidence of the young team had been broken, it has been vapourized.
I have seen some falls from grace over my years of following Villa but I have never seen one like the last three games I have had the agony of being at. Their collapse is total.
I shall be giving H and V a rest for the foreseeable future. It is all too painful and tragic to read and write about.
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Playing a match every three bastard days is not helping things. Our poor form at the busiest period of the season and questionable fitness levels are exacerbated as well as losing more to injuries in the treatment room. No doubt in March we'll have everyone back but we'll be out of all cups (or have won/lost one of them) and in need of regular games to keep us ticking along. It really is a perfect storm at the mo. Well, more of a shit-storm really.
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Where is clampy tonight with his mini- crisis and pro Lerner comments- maybe the rose tinted specs have cracked?
Turn it in.
He is a Villa fan, same as you. Why take pleasure in our plight?
No pleasure at all, but last week I was lambasted for daring to criticise Lerner , the man Is to blame more than anyone for the mess.
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Just got home from the game. I posted in the pre match thread that this game would show us if the Chelsea game broke our young side and the very painful truth is that clearly it did.
That is a very simplistic view because the manager and his staff should have taken every step open to them to get them through that humiliating beating at Stamford Bridge but if they did, it obviously did not work. You could tell as soon as they came on he pitch for the Spurs game by their body language and the first minute or two of play they believed the next goal would make it 9-0 and the same again today. They began like a team of schoolboys and once the first goal went in they played as though the score was 13-0. It looks clear to me that nobody has sat those players down and attempted to get the previous game out of their system.
Lambert went for 5 across the back for the third game in a row having shipped twelve goals against and none for in the previous two games.
All of that is mere detail. The dots which have to be joined up to make the picture.
The picture is now there for us all to see and it hurts.
Our young players are not as good as we believed them to be and Paul Lambert is not as good a manager as we (myself included) believed him to be.
In defence of our young players who have come through the academy the use McLeish made of them week after week last season has damaged them possibly beyond repair. Good young players must be bedded into a team and learn their trade. What we saw on the pitch against Chelsea, Spurs and today is that they have not learned the trade of being professional football players at the highest level. They are like a classroom full of kids trying to educate themselves.
The club and Paul Lambert's career both stand at a crossroads. If Lambert remains mulishly stubborn and as stupid as throwing everything into attack against Chelsea when we were three goals down the same will happen to him and the club as happened to the Light Brigade when they went for glory and charged the Russian guns. He and we will be wiped out.
He has thrown away so many points this season that he now has no choice but to buy some strong, experienced players and hope to scrape enough points to survive in the Premiership.
It would all have been so much easier if the manager and his staff had got away with 4-0 at Chelsea and 2-0 against Spurs. People like me could have clung to the ethos of youth and enthusiasm and team spirit over thud and blunder but that display today did not show that the confidence of the young team had been broken, it has been vapourized.
I have seen some falls from grace over my years of following Villa but I have never seen one like the last three games I have had the agony of being at. Their collapse is total.
I shall be giving H and V a rest for the foreseeable future. It is all too painful and tragic to read and write about.
That's a real shame as I love reading your posts, insights and observations. You can articulate things far better that I can.
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Scoring goals has been our problem since lambert arrived so what did he do ? Freeze bent out ?? Madness
We have scored 1 in our last 5 PL games FFS !!
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Not easy to get things in perspective after today but the following points needs to be made:
Vlar, Gabby, Bent, Dunne, N'Zogbia would make a big difference to our current performances, if they were available. Take 5 or 6 players out of any team & they would struggle. Our problem is that when these are out, we only have the likes of Herd, Lichaj, Albrighton, Weimann or inexperienced Benteke, Westwood, Lowton, Bennett to rely on. The very average Holman or useless KEA & Ireland add very little to any team.
Sorry John, but I'm not sure any of those four would make much of a difference, N'Zogbia in particular.
I put money on them doing better than those currently in the team.
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Scoring goals has been our problem since lambert arrived so what did he do ? Freeze bent out ?? Madness
We have scored 1 in our last 5 PL games FFS !!
Was Liverpool all a dream then?
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Went to the game, my points for what they are worth.
Physically and mentally too weak.Badly miss Vlaar and Baker and probably Dunne as well.Clark , Herd and Lowton are too weak and inexperienced to play together.None of them anticipate or expect danger.The 1st goal was bad enough, the 2nd was worse.
Midfield......Bannan looks busy, and tries hard, but doesn't possess enough of anything to be a top player.Still probably our best midfielder today though.
Eric.......felt sorry for him today.Completely out of his depth as a wing back, he was our outlet in the 1st half, Maloney was marking him, and never once did he try to attack him.
Bennett........in and out, has some ability, but then gives the ball away stupidly.Put the only decent crosses in today.
Ireland.......does he contribute £65k per weeks amount of ability.Done nothing today, didn't create, didn't look like scoring, didn't chase back, didn't care . Hes done it for me now.
To win games you need someone to take a player on, and create chances either for himself, or for others.There is nobody atm who can do that, and probably only one at the club, in N'Zog.
We need Vlaar, Baker,Bent, N'Zog and probably Gabby as well , back asap.And if we have the money, at least 2/3 quality players on top of that.
I think we will spend money this Jan.We spent in the summer, we have reduced the excessive wage bill, we have reduced the average age of the team.We also voted against curbs on team spending at the recent PL meeting, so i think we will spend money......we bloody well need to.
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Surprised Carruthers didn't get a chance today.
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Ireland's lack of ability to pass to a man open on the left time after time in the second half started to look like a man punishing us for not loving him.
We did start to play into the box when the subs came on - the fact that the only direct shot was greeted with a gale of ironic cheering was indictive if the lack of real shots. Albrighton tried his best.
No Premiership experienced older heads in January? I shall practice looking dignified for the cameras when we are relegated...
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Scoring goals has been our problem since lambert arrived so what did he do ? Freeze bent out ?? Madness
We have scored 1 in our last 5 PL games FFS !!
Well he couldn't play Bent now anyway. (obviously skipping the Pool match.)
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I'm glad Lerner was there to see that!
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We need Vlaar, Baker,Bent, N'Zog and probably Gabby as well , back asap.And if we have the money, at least 2/3 quality players on top of that.
I agree with Vlaar and Baker but I just don't see what the other three are going to add. Zog has never done anything for us, let alone anything to suggest he's the man to help us out of a crisis. Gabby is a trier but these poses almost zero goal threat and Bent is not the man for a team that struggles to create chances.
Our squad - even if you include the currently injured players - is almost uniquely unsuitable for a relegation scrap: kids and has-beens.
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As I suspected.
Lambert has no plans to bring experienced players in.
Bye-bye Premiership.
I'll also be more than happy if I never see Holman in a Villa shirt again.
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I'm glad Lerner was there to see that!
Really?
What do you expect the stupid bastard to do about it?
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The only thing that keeps me hanging on by my finger tips is my son's attitude.
Singing 'Don't you wish your striker was Benteke' at the top of his voice coming out of the ground.
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Sorry Leeg. I have to bring some level of normality to myself. I am in a permanent rage with everybody and everything. I shouted at the poor sod who sits in front of me and shook him by the lapel because he has a funny voice. I am going to do something less stressful with my free time for a while like collecting Eddie Stobart lorry numbers.
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I'd like to point out that 'hungry and young' and 'experienced' don't have to be mutually exclusive. I really hope our manager realises that, because we need a combination of both.
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Simply hilts, because the alternative to them is what we saw today.
Bennett and Lowton , could both be good FBs, but not with such an inexperienced,frail, weak central defence.We need a N'Zog kind of player in the team.We offered no threat today because we had no one who could beat the Wigan defence.
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Simply hilts, because the alternative to them is what we saw today.
Bennett and Lowton , could both be good FBs, but not with such an inexperienced,frail, weak central defence.We need a N'Zog kind of player in the team.We offered no threat today because we had no one who could beat the Wigan defence.
I think Carruthers would have ran at and taken on Wigan defenders if given a chance.
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Sorry Leeg. I have to bring some level of normality to myself. I am in a permanent rage with everybody and everything. I shouted at the poor sod who sits in front of me and shook him by the lapel because he has a funny voice. I am going to do something less stressful with my free time for a while like collecting Eddie Stobart lorry numbers.
Completely understand Brian, I've been annoyed at my family and girlfriend tonight which is unfair. It's fucking horrible at the moment.
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Simply hilts, because the alternative to them is what we saw today.
Bennett and Lowton , could both be good FBs, but not with such an inexperienced,frail, weak central defence.We need a N'Zog kind of player in the team.We offered no threat today because we had no one who could beat the Wigan defence.
I think Carruthers would have ran at and taken on Wigan defenders if given a chance.
Or he could have come on, taken a poor touch or pass, heard the groans from the crowd and retreated into a safety first manner like the rest of the kids. But we won't know now
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For anyone interested we are the third game on motd tonight, following the games at arsenal and Norwich.
Are you insane?
Might watch shopping channels instead.
or the God Channel.....as we need help from above.
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Can anyone confirm Mr Lerner was actually at the game today? Doug was of course but I have been talking to someone who sits not far away from the Directors box and he didnt spot him.
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Sorry Leeg. I have to bring some level of normality to myself. I am in a permanent rage with everybody and everything. I shouted at the poor sod who sits in front of me and shook him by the lapel because he has a funny voice. I am going to do something less stressful with my free time for a while like collecting Eddie Stobart lorry numbers.
Eddie Stobart lorries are great, in fairness.
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I feel so lost and hurt i could not go out tonight. Any comment from a nose could of pushed me over the top. few Vodka`s and a film with no football thoughts. I have got to cut myself off for a night to get to grips about what we have become .....
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Can anyone confirm Mr Lerner was actually at the game today? Doug was of course but I have been talking to someone who sits not far away from the Directors box and he didnt spot him.
The beeb and a few other news outlets seem to think he was, for what its worth
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Can anyone confirm Mr Lerner was actually at the game today? Doug was of course but I have been talking to someone who sits not far away from the Directors box and he didnt spot him.
Mat kendrick said he believed Lerner was there.
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He was there and sitting next to Doug in the first half.
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Can anyone confirm Mr Lerner was actually at the game today? Doug was of course but I have been talking to someone who sits not far away from the Directors box and he didnt spot him.
Mat kendrick said he believed Lerner was there.
One or two leaving were hurling abuse in that direction.
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Sorry Leeg. I have to bring some level of normality to myself. I am in a permanent rage with everybody and everything. I shouted at the poor sod who sits in front of me and shook him by the lapel because he has a funny voice. I am going to do something less stressful with my free time for a while like collecting Eddie Stobart lorry numbers.
You're not the only one. There were some pretty ugly quarrels in the Upper Holte today - including one where a bloke in front of me nearly came to blows with a guy in the row behind me. People are getting very frayed at the edges.
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After the Liverpool game what gave me most hope was the belief that we'd find it easier to sign players in January. They would see us moving in the right direction and feel they were buying into a good thing.
Now it is going to be hard to persuade anyone to come. They will ask for silly money they know we can't afford, and then move to clubs like Fulham and West Brom and Swansea for lower wages.
Few players of real quality will sign up to a fight at the bottom of the table which could damage their reputations irreparably.
I haven't felt this low about the Villa since the Bolton game last season.
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Live text commentary as Arsenal beat Newcastle 7-3 while there are wins for Manchester United and City, but Aston Villa are thrashed at home.
Even the BBC sport website call it a thrashing, we are a joke at the moment
Oh we are definitely darling of all news bulletins. Whilst driving around post match for couple of hours I listened to most of it with opening comments like "Thrashed at home" "Once again lost' " have conceded 15 in 3 games" "are in free fall" etc etc
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Scoring goals has been our problem since lambert arrived so what did he do ? Freeze bent out ?? Madness
We have scored 1 in our last 5 PL games FFS !!
Was Liverpool all a dream then?
Sorry I meant our last 5 home PL games
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I live just outside Manchester, I've got a 4 month old son who I dreamt of taking down to Villa Park. He's got the kit and I've been singing Villa songs to him, he's even sat watching the matches with me on TV. Really though what chance have I got, he's not going to grow up in Birmingham so why would he choose us when he could pick any number of big successful clubs? Randy please open your cheque book and bring this great club back to life before my son asks for a Man Utd shirt.
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Can anyone confirm Mr Lerner was actually at the game today? Doug was of course but I have been talking to someone who sits not far away from the Directors box and he didnt spot him.
His Dassault Falcon landed at Birmingham Airport at 7.15 on Thursday morning and has not yet left so it's safe to assume that he was there; a very rare occurrence this season.
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Can anyone confirm Mr Lerner was actually at the game today? Doug was of course but I have been talking to someone who sits not far away from the Directors box and he didnt spot him.
His Dassault Falcon landed at Birmingham Airport at 7.15
I always assumed he travelled over in one of these, Mr Burns style.
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Lambert has done everything supporters were asking to be done last season, he has bought from abroad (Benteke, Vlar and Kea)
i would suggest two out of the three were good buys, he has bought promising players from lower divisions as most were calling for and getting rid of the high earning wankers (still two or three to go). The problem has not been caused by Lambert it has been caused by Lerner by selling all the quality players and not financing adequate replacements, he thought that we could get by using academy players, and this is where our problems started. I think we all understand better the battle MCcleish had, yes he is a crap manager but with an owner like Lerner even SAF would battle relegation.We expected our young players to improve with first team action when the opposite occurred and they were, and are ,being shown as not good enough. This is the real problem that Lambert faces now replacing the home grown players that are plainly not good enough, they need to be shipped out, i would keep Clark,Baker and Weiman all the rest won't make it so get rid. I'm positive we will see three or four new players in January i refuse to believe anyone would be dumb enough not to strengthen the squad.
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Can anyone confirm Mr Lerner was actually at the game today? Doug was of course but I have been talking to someone who sits not far away from the Directors box and he didnt spot him.
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His Dassault Falcon landed at Birmingham Airport at 7.15 on Thursday morning and has not yet left so it's safe to assume that he was there; a very rare occurrence this season.
Right thats that sorted out.and there's going to be a meeting tommorow it would seem.Assuming Mr Lerner appears to be interested in the club what action will he take? Most of us would like Paul Lambert to stay although he hasnt done anything to justify his reputation as some kind of tactical genius with modern ideas.
A big call for Randy.Lets hope he gets it right and we begin to move forward because he will lose a lot of his money if we continue to perform as we have done in the last few games.
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I almost miss Emile Heskey.
My other half is from a family of Wigan supporters, the pitying looks I've been getting are what really hurt.
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Well my missus has just said to me [I think in an attempt to cheer me up] ."Well it could have been worse today. You could have lost 3-0 to Birmingham City".
I couldn't speak mainly because i didn't know what to say !!
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Sorry Leeg. I have to bring some level of normality to myself. I am in a permanent rage with everybody and everything. I shouted at the poor sod who sits in front of me and shook him by the lapel because he has a funny voice. I am going to do something less stressful with my free time for a while like collecting Eddie Stobart lorry numbers.
You're not the only one. There were some pretty ugly quarrels in the Upper Holte today - including one where a bloke in front of me nearly came to blows with a guy in the row behind me. People are getting very frayed at the edges.
I may have been near you then because something similar happened near me in K5. The younger bloke was having a pop at the older bloke for moaning and not supporting the team.
I honestly don't know where to start after this week. The players seem to have no shape, no confidence and little desire ( I am sure they do have the desire but it just ain't that clear). I thought we were outnumbered in midfield from the beginning today and Wigan absolutely took the piss. 3-0 was a fair score.
For the first time I am doubting Lambert. Hammerings from Chelsea, Spurs, Man City, Southampton, Everton and Wigan mean we have an awful goal difference and take a real beating every third game. That is really worrying.
I haven't felt this bad since the 1986-87 season.
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I hate football.
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Lambert has done everything supporters were asking to be done last season, he has bought from abroad (Benteke, Vlar and Kea)
He also inherited the one actual goalscorer we've had in decades and decided he didn't need him. This despite this so called 'unsuitable new system' clearly not working and struggling to score goals or win games. For that alone he got off to a shakey start with me.
You play your best players, ones that can win you games. It's basic common sense. I sense Lambert was trying (and obviously failed) to prove he knew best.
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I live just outside Manchester, I've got a 4 month old son who I dreamt of taking down to Villa Park. He's got the kit and I've been singing Villa songs to him, he's even sat watching the matches with me on TV. Really though what chance have I got, he's not going to grow up in Birmingham so why would he choose us when he could pick any number of big successful clubs? Randy please open your cheque book and bring this great club back to life before my son asks for a Man Utd shirt.
You have every chance to bring him up an Aston Villa supporter regardless of how shit we may be.Why would he choose Villa? Probably the same reason as alot of us did, their Dad,Mom,Grandparents,Brother,Sister,Uncle,Aunty,Friend a Friend's Dad take your pick we are all indebted.
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Lambert has done everything supporters were asking to be done last season, he has bought from abroad (Benteke, Vlar and Kea)
He also inherited the one actual goalscorer we've had in decades and decided he didn't need him. This despite this so called 'unsuitable new system' clearly not working and struggling to score goals or win games. For that alone he got off to a shakey start with me.
and two weeks ago he was getting roundly lauded for the decision.
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This is all utterly, utterly depressing.
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This is all utterly, utterly depressing.
Look on the bright side, Des, back to work next week.
:-(
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Well, Bowery looked half decent and that's about it for the positives. Wigan wern't good enough to give us another utter tonking which we thoroughly deserved.
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3 at the back does not work ! FACT
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What a bad day to top off a fucking miserable year. Let's look to the new year and push on; new slate and all that.
Onwards and upwards!
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Can I just point out how far we've fallen. And how low our expectations have now become.
Thanks
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Villa Trending on twitter mixture of our fans upset and other fans laughing their ass's off at us.
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Balls to them, in that case. And us.
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3 at the back does not work ! FACT
It doesn't with a crap midfield,nor would any system
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3 at the back! Too much pressure on the full backs to support the midfield 4 4 2 or 4 3 3 with two wide men. SIMPLES
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I live just outside Manchester, I've got a 4 month old son who I dreamt of taking down to Villa Park. He's got the kit and I've been singing Villa songs to him, he's even sat watching the matches with me on TV. Really though what chance have I got, he's not going to grow up in Birmingham so why would he choose us when he could pick any number of big successful clubs? Randy please open your cheque book and bring this great club back to life before my son asks for a Man Utd shirt.
You have every chance to bring him up an Aston Villa supporter regardless of how shit we may be.Why would he choose Villa? Probably the same reason as alot of us did, their Dad,Mom,Grandparents,Brother,Sister,Uncle,Aunty,Friend a Friend's Dad take your pick we are all indebted.
I know the feeling well living in Leeds. Everyone tries to get my son to support the local thugs, hes even had a shirt for Christmas. I'm running out of arguments and also living on the border with Bradford am fearing a double helping of egg on face.
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My 9 year old son gets stick at school from various Man Utd, Liverpool, Man City and Chelsea fans and loves reminding them of all the other teams they've supported in the past.
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3 at the back! Too much pressure on the full backs to support the midfield 4 4 2 or 4 3 3 with two wide men. SIMPLES
Who would you have played as the 2 wide men today ? Albrighton and Holman,surely not ?
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I know he only came on when the game was gone, but Allbrighton really has gone backwards in the last 2 years. He's simply not good enough at this level...which can also be said for others in the team I guess.
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Sorry been out this evening after attending the'match'. Just like to say how sad it was to see this great club and its great fans reduced to this.
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It has just been pointed out to me that we have conceded as many goals in the last three games as we have scored all season. What a cheery thought.
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We were and are rubbish at the moment. No disguising.
Obviously we could chose to replace Lambert and have useless applicants like Phil Brown, Roy Keane, Paul Ince, Paul Faulkner replace him.
Or we can hope that in January we sign players who can keep us in the League.
A club like ours has been deteriorating for nearly 3 years and now we are in cardiac arrest.
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Sacking Lambert would only set us back even further. We need to back him and trust his vision.
I'd rather be on a rickety ship with the man who built it than a modern cruise-liner captained by a passenger.
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The last time we had three consecutive league results as bad as this last week was in the 1935-36 season. We lost 5-0 away at Man City, followed by the famous (Ted Drake) 7-1 defeat at home to Arsenal followed by a 5-1 defeat at Blackburn, all in December 1935, the aggregate being for 2, against 17, i.e. an equivalent goal difference of minus 15. We were relegated to Division Two at the end of that season!
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We are doomed accept it we will be playing Barnsley next season.
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This can still be turned around if Lerner pulls his finger out and opens his damn wallet.
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Lerner needs to realise that the only way his fantasy about us being self supporting coming true is if we stay in this league for the extra large TV deal next season.
Right now, it isn't looking too promising.
I appreciate we have an injury crisis, but really, it was never going to take much in terms of injuries for this squad to be down to the absolute bare bones, and that's what we've seen today and in recent games.
Experience needed in January, and lots of it.
Throwing more lower league, low wages players at this is not going to solve anything.
Paulie, judging by Lamberts interview with Pat Murphy after the game he hasn't any intention on setting his sights on experienced players. For that he must carry the can along with the young players he has bought but are clearly (at best) not ready for this league. How anyone can say that Hutton, Warnock, Nzogbia(when fit) Bent(when fit) are not worthy of a place in THIS starting line up is beyond me. I went down today and once the first goal went in, at no stage was I confident Villa would get back in the game. I look at the starting line up today versus the one that went down in 1987 and I am bound to say this is a worse team.
From the outside looking in, it seems to me that Lambert has alienated the so called senior players and the young players, whilst standing together, have hit the buffers and there is no on there to help them out. I cannot offer any other sane explanation, no doubt one of you wise owls will....
This has all the hallmarks of 86-87 about it. Started off shit, went on an okish run (after McNeil's appointment) then bombed totally from around December onwards. I am banking on Mr Lerner seeing sense.
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We are doomed accept it we will be playing Barnsley next season.
They are currently bottom of the Championship so we might be spared that particular indignation.
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When you're done with the razor blades it's my turn. Otherwise I'll have to go find the hose to attach to the exhaust of the car which is going to be a bit of a fag at this time of the year, everything just got piled into a corner at the end of the summer.
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A shambles, but a predicted loss given the players out (not that it makes it any easier and any less upsetting/soul destroying).
We need to strengthen the squad quickly otherwise we are on the way down.
We can turn this round, but it's up to Lerner and Lambert to get players in who can help get us out of this mess (and quickly).
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Lambert is saying things take time yet he went headfirst into ripping into the squad and signing 7 or so players to rebuild the squad.Right now it looks like a slower course of action would have been better.In his defence the injuries have not helped
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Lambert is saying things take time yet he went headfirst into ripping into the squad and signing 7 or so players to rebuild the squad.Right now it looks like a slower course of action would have been better.In his defence the injuries have not helped
Yes, ripping into the squad full of what most of us consider overpaid, underperforming tossers who dont deserve to wear the shirt. What slower course of action would you suggest, James Collins must have more assists for opposition goals than any Villa player has for actual goals this season. Warnock slagged the club off and his attitude had changed from when he signed, Hutton was shite, what do you reckon?
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Lambert is saying things take time yet he went headfirst into ripping into the squad and signing 7 or so players to rebuild the squad.Right now it looks like a slower course of action would have been better.In his defence the injuries have not helped
Yes, ripping into the squad full of what most of us consider overpaid, underperforming tossers who dont deserve to wear the shirt. What slower course of action would you suggest, James Collins must have more assists for opposition goals than any Villa player has for actual goals this season. Warnock slagged the club off and his attitude had changed from when he signed, Hutton was shite, what do you reckon?
Ok perhaps I worded it wrong he ripped the squad up and replaced it with potential no player with Prem league experience.Coming up with Norwich with a team on a high and who had played together for a while is one thing but he had decided to recruit players like he did there and assemble them together and expect it to work.A few older heads were and are needed , though perhaps he knew this as he did try and get Dempsey
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My first visit up to the Park this season and all I can say is thank the baby Jevus I don't have
to watch that every week. Sorry but Lambert is proving to be a very poor manager. The team is
set up so poorly it is embarrassing. If he cannot see how open and porous we are after the last
3 games he needs to go. As much of a fool as Lerner is he didn't set up the formation tonight
and do nothing to tactically alter it. We are dead men walking. On the plus side had a good day on the pop
and the only let down was the shit football.
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At moment the tactic seems to be stick an extra man in defence to stops goals ..and that has backfired..
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This can still be turned around if Lerner pulls his finger out and opens his damn wallet.
Problem is I don't trust lambert to do the turning round Anyway im already reallylooking forward to Brighton.My favourite place in Britain
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This is it now. A major tipping point for the club. We have 4 weeks to get some new players in, turn the team around, and try and stay up. If we don't manage this the we can look at the Wednesday and Dirty Leeds, and Fozza as our peers. Big clubs cast adrift. The manager has to stay, its shit or bust now. Randy has to put it all on red and hope that red comes up. If not we leave the PL and probably head for some years in the wilderness.
Years of mismanagement coming home to roost (and I include all of O'Pube in that). Our silverspoon chairman and owner needs to finally stop being the spoilt preppy and make some real choices.
Good luck Randy, we need it.
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I live just outside Manchester, I've got a 4 month old son who I dreamt of taking down to Villa Park. He's got the kit and I've been singing Villa songs to him, he's even sat watching the matches with me on TV. Really though what chance have I got, he's not going to grow up in Birmingham so why would he choose us when he could pick any number of big successful clubs? Randy please open your cheque book and bring this great club back to life before my son asks for a Man Utd shirt.
You have every chance to bring him up an Aston Villa supporter regardless of how shit we may be.Why would he choose Villa? Probably the same reason as alot of us did, their Dad,Mom,Grandparents,Brother,Sister,Uncle,Aunty,Friend a Friend's Dad take your pick we are all indebted.
I know the feeling well living in Leeds. Everyone tries to get my son to support the local thugs, hes even had a shirt for Christmas. I'm running out of arguments and also living on the border with Bradford am fearing a double helping of egg on face.
Well the argument is that while Villa may be shit at the mo, we ain't as shit as Leeds. Plus our supporters aren't hate-filled, violent scum.
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Just watched goals on SSN, Only Villa could make Emerson Boyce look like an Iniesta.
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My first visit up to the Park this season and all I can say is thank the baby Jevus I don't have
to watch that every week. Sorry but Lambert is proving to be a very poor manager. The team is
set up so poorly it is embarrassing. If he cannot see how open and porous we are after the last
3 games he needs to go. As much of a fool as Lerner is he didn't set up the formation tonight
and do nothing to tactically alter it. We are dead men walking. On the plus side had a good day on the pop
and the only let down was the shit football.
I agree, the tactics, selections and formation worry me as well as do his alleged motivational powers.
On the plus side the players he has bought haven't been that bad but I worry he has the same stubborn streak as mon.
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I posted last week on how I stayed til the end at Chelsea and at home to Spurs before leaving as we need to all get behind them. However, yesterday I am not ashamed to say that I left on 56 mins and am only able to even think about our future after consoling myself after the shed load if ale that I consumed last night. I saw Randy was there yesterday and I hope he saw me and the many others who filed out after their 3rd goal. It was an absolute f*ckin disgrace yesterday, Ireland will pick another £80k this week for yet another totally inept soulless 90 minutes. He's a wanker of the highest order and his lethargy is there for all to see? I don't blame the rest, bless them they are just not good enough. Fact.
For years we have been selling our best players and the shite that MON bought on high salaries have bollocksed us up. I'm sorry but we are in free fall. I cannot begin to tell you how deflated I am at this time.
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When you're done with the razor blades it's my turn. Otherwise I'll have to go find the hose to attach to the exhaust of the car which is going to be a bit of a fag at this time of the year, everything just got piled into a corner at the end of the summer.
I think this is the post of the year.
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http://www.football365.com/video/20407/8369194/Villa-were-awful-Thompson (http://www.football365.com/video/20407/8369194/Villa-were-awful-Thompson)
Accurate summation of proceedings here from Phil Thompson
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Well that was'nt pleasant was it?
Yes we have injuries at the moment but Lambert choosing to play a midfield with no holding midfielder in it was'nt the wisest thing he could have done. I spotted that 10 minutes in but it took him until we were 3 goals down to put KEA on.
As for the rest, Bannan was ok and Albrighton at least tried to make a difference when he came on even if not everything he did came off.
All in all, we were dreadful.
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Well that was'nt pleasant was it?
Yes we have injuries at the moment but Lambert choosing to play a midfield with no holding midfielder in it was'nt the wisest thing he could have done. I spotted that 10 minutes in but it took him until we were 3 goals down to put KEA on.
As for the rest, Bannan was ok and Albrighton at least tried to make a difference when he came on even if not everything he did came off.
All in all, we were dreadful.
Poor choice of midfielders, Westwood should have started ,Ireland looked dreadful and overall a deeply worrying performance , few positives if any.
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http://www.football365.com/video/20407/8369194/Villa-were-awful-Thompson (http://www.football365.com/video/20407/8369194/Villa-were-awful-Thompson)
Accurate summation of proceedings here from Phil Thompson
He looked embarrassed for us! Jesus we are awful.
I hung on till the 80th minute before leaving, earliest I have left VP since the 80's
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Just watched goals on SSN, Only Villa could make Emerson Boyce look like an Iniesta.
Six of our lot could have made a better attempt to stop him. SIX for Gods sake!
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Defensively, the manner of the goals are a total embarrassment.
I appreciate it's kids but theres' no excuse for losing a player for a free header on the centre of the six yard box or for standing of players like we did yesterday. That's not low on confidence, that's simply being inept.
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Too many players who are not good enough and have to be shipped out and replaced - Lichaj, KEA, Holman, Albrighton, Delph, Bannan, Herd, Ireland.
The only academy players id keep ate Weimann Clark and Baker.
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Roberto de-Matteo waiting in the wings?
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Too many players who are not good enough and have to be shipped out and replaced - Lichaj, KEA, Holman, Albrighton, Delph, Bannan, Herd, Ireland.
The only academy players id keep ate Weimann Clark and Baker.
I think Bannan is decent enough to have round the squad, also I'm not sure on Holman and KEA I'd give them a bit more time. However I agree on the others, simply not good enough.
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Roberto de-Matteo waiting in the wings?
No, no, no ,no ,no ,no, no.
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We went to this game with optimism thinking we might get a goal and be more positive. We left after 71 minutes. It was too painful. Against spurs on tv hurt but watching live and the continued ponderous weak defending was absolute disgrace. My bro reckons we ll only beat ipswich and bradford in our next few games as that's our level.
I found it hard not to disagree with his ridiculous comment. And that saddened me.
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I went yesterday and I agree the performance was shocking truely shocking!!
Getting rid of Paul lambert is not the answer there his players and he has to take responsibility
The team manager and chairman have showed there naiviety across the board and it's time for it to stop
Lambert must eliminate errors within the teams control no matter how young you are you can still stop conceding some of the goals we have been eg all three yesterday! He needs to pick better balanced teaMs not a right back and centre mid at centre half! If we are getting hammered move to damage limitation mode instead of chasing a goal eg Chelsea
The team have to show fight like never before too often yesterday arms were up complaining instead of grafting back
Lerner has given pl 20 million and that can't be forgotten but it's time for him to back the manager we need two big athletic players one at centre half and one centre mid! Failure to do so And we are I'm serious trouble simple as!!
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We went to this game with optimism thinking we might get a goal and be more positive. We left after 71 minutes. It was too painful. Against spurs on tv hurt but watching live and the continued ponderous weak defending was absolute disgrace. My bro reckons we ll only beat ipswich and bradford in our next few games as that's our level.
I found it hard not to disagree with his ridiculous comment. And that saddened me.
I'm not sure we will beat Ipswich
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Lambert needs to put Vlaar or even Dunne on the pitch ASAP. Centre of defence is leaking.
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Lambert needs to put Vlaar or even Dunne on the pitch ASAP. Centre of defence is leaking.
Yes, playing injured players is really going to help.
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We went to this game with optimism thinking we might get a goal and be more positive. We left after 71 minutes. It was too painful. Against spurs on tv hurt but watching live and the continued ponderous weak defending was absolute disgrace. My bro reckons we ll only beat ipswich and bradford in our next few games as that's our level.
I found it hard not to disagree with his ridiculous comment. And that saddened me.
I'm not sure we will beat Ipswich
With the confidence they have at the moment, if we play the same 14 as yesterday in the same formation, I just cannot see anything other than an Ipswich victory. We must hope some of the injuries have cleared up.
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This capital cup thing really is turning into a poisoned chalice. I'm dreading getting to a final (big if) and having to face Chelsea at Wembley. Would be embarrassment on a level not seen before.
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We went to this game with optimism thinking we might get a goal and be more positive. We left after 71 minutes. It was too painful. Against spurs on tv hurt but watching live and the continued ponderous weak defending was absolute disgrace. My bro reckons we ll only beat ipswich and bradford in our next few games as that's our level.
I found it hard not to disagree with his ridiculous comment. And that saddened me.
I'm not sure we will beat Ipswich
exactly !! :(
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This capital cup thing really is turning into a poisoned chalice. I'm dreading getting to a final (big if) and having to face Chelsea at Wembley. Would be embarrassment on a level not seen before.
Intresting comment by Tim Abraham on twitter about how PL keeps mentioning the semi even though it's not prompted.Looking back at the season if you take the cup out of it then really only Liverpool is a really good result.Over £20mil to spend and we are worse than last season in every stat you can look at.
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The Wigan result is real pisser as it puts doubt on our ability to beat anyone now and this was mostly Lamberts team playing, the new villa.
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Roberto de-Matteo waiting in the wings?
No, no, no ,no ,no ,no, no.
Double No.
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Roberto de-Matteo waiting in the wings?
No, no, no ,no ,no ,no, no.
Double No.
Robrtno Di Matteno?
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This capital cup thing really is turning into a poisoned chalice. I'm dreading getting to a final (big if) and having to face Chelsea at Wembley. Would be embarrassment on a level not seen before.
I may be shot down in flames for saying this, but I can't help having the feeling that a narrow defeat in the semi-final would be less ignominious than the fate that would befall us if we were to have to play Chelsea in the final.
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I left after 80 minutes as the atmosphere in the Holte was not good,got on the train back to Tipton went straight to the local and proceeded to get pissed to celebrate what would appear to be impending relegation.....and then this morning just to top everything off the fuckeyed washing machine packs up..............when you're down you're down
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If Lambert starts with 3 at the back next game he shot be walked out into the centre circle and pistol whipped, then his limp body should be dragged in front of the Holte where he shot be shot through the head.
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More worryingly though. Lambert has just been on the radio and said 'IF' he brings anyone else into the club in Jan it will only be lower league players as that's all the funding he's been given
The problem with his buying in the summer that none of them had ever played in the prem and that is showing.
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Just driving home with radio on I heard them say lambert has said tonight he believes that going with youth is the right policy and he will stick with that policy - if that's the case I really worry for our future.
thats the thing . If Bent and Nzogbia were fit , you know they wouldnt be starting in the team or Bent in the squad at all.
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Scoring goals has been our problem since lambert arrived so what did he do ? Freeze bent out ?? Madness
We have scored 1 in our last 5 PL games FFS !!
Was Liverpool all a dream then?
5 goals in the last 9 games ( 3 in one game )
awful and what he did to Bent was stupid FWIW
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As I suspected.
Lambert has no plans to bring experienced players in.
Bye-bye Premiership.
I'll also be more than happy if I never see Holman in a Villa shirt again.
and me . wouldn't get in coventry's team for me , a poor player for me. Hes not the only one but can we loan him to forest please.
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Sorry Leeg. I have to bring some level of normality to myself. I am in a permanent rage with everybody and everything. I shouted at the poor sod who sits in front of me and shook him by the lapel because he has a funny voice. I am going to do something less stressful with my free time for a while like collecting Eddie Stobart lorry numbers.
Eddie Stobart lorries are great, in fairness.
just seen a police car pull one over on the motorway , naughty boy on his phone ;)
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Lambert has done everything supporters were asking to be done last season, he has bought from abroad (Benteke, Vlar and Kea)
He also inherited the one actual goalscorer we've had in decades and decided he didn't need him. This despite this so called 'unsuitable new system' clearly not working and struggling to score goals or win games. For that alone he got off to a shakey start with me.
You play your best players, ones that can win you games. It's basic common sense. I sense Lambert was trying (and obviously failed) to prove he knew best.
too bloody stubborn for his own good.
I know he tells his players what cars to drive and what jewellry they can wear which is alright if we were actually winning games.
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Well, Bowery looked half decent and that's about it for the positives. Wigan wern't good enough to give us another utter tonking which we thoroughly deserved.
Tony Cascarino would have looked like Van Persie in that team
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Signing Lambert would only set us back even further. We need to back him and trust his vision.
Who ? the guy from Soton. Might be ok I reckon ;)
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I live just outside Manchester, I've got a 4 month old son who I dreamt of taking down to Villa Park. He's got the kit and I've been singing Villa songs to him, he's even sat watching the matches with me on TV. Really though what chance have I got, he's not going to grow up in Birmingham so why would he choose us when he could pick any number of big successful clubs? Randy please open your cheque book and bring this great club back to life before my son asks for a Man Utd shirt.
I feel for you up there. I turned my 10 year old nephew from Manu to Villa about two years ago and he is now committed villa. He came along to the game on Saturday and I could feel his frustration. He wanted to stay to the bitter end just to see us score. Journey in the car back was full of questions from him about are we going to get better. I tried as best as I could to keep his spirit up but I know he will have a tough few days with his mates. Luckily there is no school for a week or so.
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We went to this game with optimism thinking we might get a goal and be more positive. We left after 71 minutes. It was too painful. Against spurs on tv hurt but watching live and the continued ponderous weak defending was absolute disgrace. My bro reckons we ll only beat ipswich and bradford in our next few games as that's our level.
I found it hard not to disagree with his ridiculous comment. And that saddened me.
I'm not sure we will beat Ipswich
nor me . I am worried
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I left after 75 minutes after losing the plot and screaming abuse at the players as I walked out. Now I've had time to reflect I reckon those young lads need our backing more than ever so I say lets get behind them 100% for every remaining game and keep the faith!
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Lambert needs to put Vlaar or even Dunne on the pitch ASAP. Centre of defence is leaking.
Yes, playing injured players is really going to help.
Couldn't do any worse now, could they. I thought Dunne was just on a fat holiday and not playing because he's unfit. Now that I checked he has Gilmore's Groin. According to PhysioRoom.
An experienced CB has to be a priority this January.