Heroes & Villains, the Aston Villa fanzine
Heroes & Villains => Heroes Discussion => Topic started by: brontebilly on February 02, 2015, 12:08:41 PM
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Is our squad really as good as the likes of Southampton or Stoke even as some have been suggesting?
As a group of individual players how do you rate our squad? Our bench even yesterday seemed relatively strong but we have a decent number of players on a career downward spiral. Plus the initial young and hungry batch have hit a plateau and some like Lowton and Bennett have been found out.
Guzan (solid EPL keeper for sure but not having a great season imo)
Given (fine for backup anyway)
Right back
Hutton (rejuvenated this year but form is in a tailspin right now imo)
Lowton (really poor when given chances this year, finished at this level)
Centre back
Vlaar, Senderos, Baker, Okore, Clark - a decent quintet for sure but also include two of the most injury prone players in the division.
Left back
Cissokho (solid defender, hopeless footballer), Richardson (not a defender but has offered very little when given chances in midfield)
Midfield
Sanchez (inconsistent form but has added much need presence to our midfield in many games)
Westwood (tidy player but dont see much improvement in him)
Delph (not having a great season club wise but still one of the better midfielders in the league)
Cleverley (very disappointing for us, no goals or assists and doesnt look like changing these important stats)
Bacuna (not a great player by any means but could be very effective for us if given more of a chance instead of the twins)
Wide
Gil (new but looks very tidy if a little lightweight)
Weimann (very limited player technically and not a top division player imo)
Gabby (finished and on the Bent diet too seemingly)
Cole (.............)
Sinclair (too early to call)
Grealish (a lot of hype but little substance so far)
Strikers
Benteke (intermittent flashes of old self but very suspect temperament)
Kozak (career must be in serious doubt)
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Why must Kozak's career be in serious doubt?
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I think the players mentioned above are easily good enough for a top ten finish, so I'm at a loss as to why we're where we are.
Injuries to key players haven't helped.
So you have to look at how they line up. This is down to Lambert.
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It's good enough to compete with 75% of the league and is certainly capable of more than the 11 goals and awful results we have had so far.
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Put it this way, you could stick a 1st division club in the premier league and they'd score more than 11 goals in 23 games, I'm certain of that.
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Yes.
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Yes, indeed.
I don't think any individual player bought today would make us play any better.
We need new life in the management team.
Poor Paul needs to be put out of his misery.
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Bradford scored as many goals in 90 minutes against Chelsea as we have in 2 months of League football and 10 matches.
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Yes, indeed.
I don't think any individual player bought today would make us play any better.
We need new life in the management team.
Poor Paul needs to be put out of his misery.
Correct, it would be a kindness
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Looking on an individual player-by-player basis its a good enough squad for mid-table at least. It includes some players (eg Gil, Delph & Benteke) who, if they all hit form at the same time, could propel a team towards a challenge for a European place.
However, in some kind of reverse-synergy, the whole is currently less than the sum of the parts.
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Our squad is comfortably good enough to be competing for 9th-12th.
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Looking on an individual player-by-player basis its a good enough squad for mid-table at least. It includes some players (eg Gil, Delph & Benteke) who, if they all hit form at the same time, could propel a team towards a challenge for a European place.
However, in some kind of reverse-synergy, the whole is currently less than the sum of the parts.
Which is actually some kind of achievement, as you'd think that 11 random half decent players would get more out of themselves than Lambert gets out of our squad.
It's almost as though the players look at Lambert, hear what he's saying, shrug their shoulders and say" well you're the boss."
I guess a decent number of us have worked for managers where everyone has known that their latest great idea is doomed to failure for any one of a number of reasons, but won't listen to any input that isn't self affirmation. Sooner or later you get fed up with trying to talk sense, and say something along the lines of "if that's what you want, you're the boss." whilst muttering "this isn't going to end well" as you walk away shaking your head.
I get the distinct impression that that's where our squad are right now. They've tried following the often baffling 180o turns and have now just given up on him.
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Our squad is more than capable of competition in the 7 to 11 area of the table but it's just not going to happen with Lambert. He keeps complaining that he's tired of fighting relegation battles and such a big club shouldn't be in this position for so long, but on reality those words are more damning against him than anybody else.
Between the third and fourth goal yesterday there was a misplaced pass in the middle of the park and I saw three heads just drop, Gil's included.. I felt bad for him. To come from excess goods at Valencia to hands down the best player on a Premier club must have come as a shock to even him.
It has to get better somehow, but Paul seems to think with hard work our luck will turn around. I think otherwise. The same preparation, the same approach, the same training methods.. It doesn't matter how hard you work, because obviously Lambert's plan isn't.
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The squad is. The manager clearly isn't.
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Absolutely. In fact, I'd say there's a fair amount of talent in there if you look hard enough.
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It's good enough for 8th-12th, so better than Lambert is doing with it.
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Nothing the matter with the players ability. Maybe there is with their commitment and dedication. It all comes down to Lambert and nobody else. Not Lerner and Fox who clearly do not understand the realities of football. But Lambert who has failed the club time and time again.
Mr Lambert I wish you would resign and go home to Scotland where you would be a lot happier.
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Good enough for mid table yes I feel certain. Southampton are challenging top 4, they ain't that good.
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I don't think it's a great squad to be honest, however I think most managers would finish between 11th-15th with it. Most managers would find a system to get a lot more goals from Benteke and the team in general.
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How could I forget Charlie Nzogbia :)
Lambert's sea changes in philosophy every six months hardly helps matters with the players.
Im not sure Mourinho could get more out of quite a number though - Vlaar, Senderos, Baker, Cissokho, Richardson, Cole, Cleverley, Nzogbia, Gabby, Weimann, Lowton. They are either in the injury prone or terminal decline category or both in many cases.
Benteke is miles better than his current awfulness, cant help feeling though that we wont ever be seeing a return to the form of his first season. Even without Paul Lambert.
Delph should also be a lot better and a new manager would surely rectify the pub team naivety we showed yesterday.
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There are undoubtedly some good players i our squad, but as a group of players it's always felt very unbalanced to me, under Lambert.
For instance, he went into his first season with us with a first-choice back 4 of Lowton-Vlaar-Clark-Bennett, 3 players with no Premiership experience and one with very little.
Then there's the way that he went about stripping his squad of any wide-players, whilst paying £14m for two 6ft4 strikers.
I don't think he's ever really had a vision or a plan for the squad, just kind of muddled along and bought players that he rates as and when they become available. Just imagine how much faffing around with left-backs we would have saved if we'd just bought Arron Cresswell when we were first interested in him.
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Definitely, we have a pretty decent squad, which is a damning indictment of the current coaching setup.
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I tend to differ. I think the squad/team is where it is deservedly so,and about right for the ability they/we have. I don't disagree that a half-decent manager would have coaxed more out of them- in effect got them to over-achieve,but looking at the squad dispassionately it is poor.
No leadership.
No real pace.
Not technically gifted.
No good at set pieces when attacking.
Unbalanced throughout.
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Definitely, we have a pretty decent squad, which is a damning indictment of the current coaching setup.
Same here. I actually like most of our players, almost all have shown their true potential at some stage over the season. The problem is most certainly with the inept manager who appears to make it up as he goes along. Any new manager coming in would have a great group to start with. How many managers would struggle for goals with Benteke leading their attack? Lambert's failure isn't about the lack of funds, it's his lack of know-how. I honestly believe a decent manager with our current squad would see us today on 35/36 points, 8th or 9th in the league.
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Our squad is comfortably good enough to be competing for 9th-12th.
This
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Its odd
Lerner might be thinking , no more bloody money because that squad should be higher up the league.
But then you think so that's how crap lambert is , so why not sack him.
Lerner has made a right pigs ear of it all.