Heroes & Villains, the Aston Villa fanzine
Heroes & Villains => Heroes Discussion => Topic started by: Abbeyfealeavfc on May 19, 2024, 06:17:24 PM
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What a fantastic season from Unai and the boys!
We made cl from 36 games with a mauling bookending those games.
We had 4 season ending injuries and a multitude of other injuries that Unai never once complained about. He worked with what he had and motivated the guys into upsetting the scab 6 and their compliant media, with some fantastic football and sheer resilience and determination.
We took 10 points out of 18 from the teams that finished above us.
We made a European semi-final in a competition we could easily have won had our bad luck with injuries not caught up with us.
The transformation in us as a team has been astounding!
Well done to Unai, his back room team and all our hardworking and honest players. It’s a shame Ollie didn’t make the 20! Next season he can set this as an aim again and deservedly become our record pl goal scorer! UTV! !
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Yeah, absolutely wonderful season. Best in 28 years.
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Amazing season. Top four was the priority and we did it. Pity about all the injuries as we would have got third place I reckon. Next season is going to be brilliant with players coming back and a couple of quality additions. Have great summers everyone. UTV
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Fantastic, it’s a incredible achievement.
Loving what is possible for next season.
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Amazing season. Top four was the priority and we did it.
I don't think it was! Which makes it all the better.
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Just a brilliant season, battering the champions at home the double over Arsenal and the European run were truly fantastic.
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I thought last season from Emery arriving until the end was unbelievable. I didn’t expect more than 6th or 7th at best but this has been something else. Considering the injuries we’ve had to a small squad, what’s been achieved is very special. Easily manager of the season.
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Pre season said to my eldest daughter and her Liverpool supporting partner that I fancied us to finish above Liverpool and in 4th.Got laughed at.
We've continued the form that we've shown since the arrival of the Basque genius.If Citeh and Arsenal had suffered the injuries we've had..who knows how the league table would have looked.Without Rodri I don't think Citeh have won a game.
Emery doesn't blame VAR or refs or complain about injuries or fixture congestion,he just keeps deliverong.
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Alright, I suppose.
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I'm sure I said at the start of the season that an improvement on last season would make me happy. I thought Europa instead of Conference would be amazing. Obviously a better domestic cup run would have been nice.
What we got far outreaches that. There was a point mid season where we had the opportunity to go top of the table! I still can't believe it. I know in the end there was a pretty sizable gap between 4th and the two battling for the title, but we were in the mix for a large part of the season.
Next season I'm hoping for consistency. It'll be a tough ask to do better than this year, but establishing ourselves as a team that belong at the top and can compete in multiple competitions, repeatedly, should be the next goal. Anything on top of that will be a bonus.
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Brilliant season - Unai has done an incredible job, and the first half of the season we were sensational. That was when Pau was fully fit and we had Kamara protecting our defence.
The progress in 18 months has been remarkable, and now it is going to be so hard to sustain it. If we can have some much better luck with injuries we’ve got a really good squad - some quality additions will give us the basis to kick on. We can’t stand still and I’m confident Unai won’t let us.
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Incredible season.
Really excited for the future, but fear we'll have some difficult stuff (and a lot of it) to sort this summer, moving on players who just aren't good enough for where we want to stay.
That's what it is going to take to remain at the level we've reached this season - to pick an example, we can't be having Tim as our back up option to Dougie, we can't be relying on at best average players like Cash, and there are a few similar examples across the team. Also, goes without saying, we can't be having back up keepers with crisp packets instead of hands.
With PSR limits, here's hoping Monchi has been working his evil genius in the market and lining up some good moves. I'm sure he has, we've not brought him in to make obvious signings.
It's great to be doing things at such a higher level to how things have been for far too long now.
What a season.
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Yes brilliant. Loved some of the results where we scored a few and dominating opponents at home was a total pleasure. Champions League qualification is great but what I am looking for now is to make this recovery to competitiveness sustainable. Do not want to be one season wonders.
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Brilliant season, best since Sir Brian. Shame we couldn't win the European Conference, but qualifying for the Champions League more than makes up for it.
Highlights of the season off the top of my head - battering Brighton 6-1, beating Man City and Arsenal in the same week, the signing of Morgan Rogers, securing 4th despite the injury list, Unai's contract extension.
The disappointments - the absolutely ridiculous injury list, Ollie just missing out on 20 goals, losing the European semi finals.
As Paulie says, the hard work starts now. First job is to get another defensive midfielder who can play the Kamara role. Our defensive record without him fell off a cliff, and he or somebody else who can play his role is absolutely critical if we're going to continue to push on.
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Yeah and it’s not just Tim being back-up to Doug, it’s basically Doug being back-up to Kamara as well. That had the double impact of Doug not being able to do that role particularly effectively, and also taking away what Doug was doing so brilliantly. It almost robbed us of two quality players.
We need to aspire to having at least two quality options for each position, but that defensive midfield role is an absolute critical priority. Especially as Kamara will miss a good chunk of next season.
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Satisfactory.
As fans, we must be more demanding of ourselves.
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Loved pretty much every minute of it.
I remember watching us play in America last pre season v I think Brentford and thinking we were going to have a great season, the moves we were putting together and general team cohesion.
I wasn't thinking that 70 minutes into the opening day of the season mind.
I think that's important for context. No chance after losing 5-1 to a team who finished above us and also losing Mings and Buendia to season ending injuries was anyone really thinking a top 4 challenge was on the cards.
We played some great stuff from September-December. Beating Arsenal and Man. City got all the attention but you forget how good the football was beating Brighton and West Ham who were seen as serious competitors at the time. Also got cracking away wins at Chelsea and Spurs which were crucial for 4th place in the end.
The second half of the season has been more bumpy. Still beaten most of the bottom half but it's only been the odd performance like at Arsenal where we've played well v a top level team and defensively we've looked very vulnerable in most games so that needs to be addressed over the summer.
We have a World class manager and lots of top level players now so much more to look forward to.
Stat of the season must be at no point losing successive premier league games. Considering the general level of the league that is some achievement for me and shows our mentality is very good.
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JOY JOY JOY JOY
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First in the top 6 mini-league this season. Haven't seen it mentioned yet.
Villa - 17
Arsenal - 16
Liverpool - 14
Man City - 12
Chelsea - 11
Spurs - 8
Bosh.
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All I wanted this season was to beat Spurs goal difference so fair fucks Emery, much respect.
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Man City have lost 1 of their last 45 games in all competitions. And we didn't just beat them, we battered them the whole game. That's the standout performance in a fantastic season.
And now we need to use this season as a stepping stone to better things.
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Man City have lost 1 of their last 45 games in all competitions. And we didn't just beat them, we battered them the whole game. That's the standout performance in a fantastic season.
And now we need to use this season as a stepping stone to better things.
Didn't they lose in the CL, and League Cup?
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LC was before us, CL was 2 draws and then pens. They lost the tie but didn't lose either game.
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Incredible season.
At the outset I thought we’d get top six and have a decent run in Europe which given our relative resources would still have been a big step forwards.
The home wins against the cheats and Arsenal rank amongst the best performances of a generation. The Brighton 6-1 was a real “we’ve arrived” display and the win at Arsenal, for me, was the moment we clinched Champions League.
The biggest highlight though was our ability to triumph over adversity. I’ve spent most of my Villa-supporting life seeing a side crumble at the first sign of trouble, incapable of dealing with adversity. Not this one. Not this manager. The win at Spurs. The late winners at Luton and Brentford. The point at West Ham. Constantly finding a way to keep accruing points. Lose our key playmaker on the eve of the season? Our manager adapts. Lose our best defender in the first game? Our manager adapts. Lose players integral to the way we play seemingly every week (Moreno, Ramsey, Kamara et al)? No excuses, no sob story, he just finds a way.
Takes some getting used to as a Villa fan.
Next season will be different. Higher expectations, the very biggest stage. We have to collectively get used to every game having something riding on it (takes some adjustment, just for supporters). Teams will treat us differently. Clearly the squad needs work and evidently we’re going to need to evolve it while being hamstrung by regulation. We’ll likely have to change, or at least evolve, the fundamental way we play. It’s a lot of work.
And yet, none of it is daunting because we have just about the best team of people the game has to offer in place to get it done, led by one of the world’s very best managers.
Would you want to bet against us?
UTV
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LC was before us, CL was 2 draws and then pens. They lost the tie but didn't lose either game.
Ah, I see. 45 games sounds like it goes back further than it does.
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30 league games plus CL, FAC and CWC. The 45 games goes back 7 months.
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At the start of the season, I told my bluenose mate that Emery is so efficient, we’d beat the teams we should comfortably, and that’s how we started. The big shift in my expectations came when we beat the teams we shouldn’t.
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A magnificent season, beyond all expectations.
When you consider our injury list, it is amazing.
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It was unreal at times, people saying 'Crikey! Aston Villa are doing well'. I wasn't used to hearing that, and it is still somewhat a novelty. I'm looking forward to next season and hoping we do it again.
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Emery is all about doing just enough to beat teams - to protect the squad and conserve energy for the next game and the next game. It has come unstuck a couple of times, Everton and Chelsea in domestic cups, as well as a few of the European games. Yesterday was also an example of basically giving the squad a free pass.
It's been brilliant and sets a challenging expectation for next season, even higher than this season's.
Retain the Champions League spot
Compete in the Champions League
Win a trophy - a domestic one is the only chance - which puts even more pressure on the squad
Pretty daunting, but I trust Emry to put a plan together.
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An unbelievable season. Now to kick on - squad depth, midfield in general, and maybe cut out those bizarre absolute funerallings that we get every more and again?
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Best season since 96, cos of the trophy.
Best league season since the first Prem, where we were runners up & played some super football.
Got a bit tense at the end, but then it was a good tense, as opposed to a relegation tense, lol.
Proud of all of the players. Proud of the manager. Proud of the owners. Proud of the fans.
Just proud of the club overall.
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Our biggest season since 1982. I think what we've done this year is so many levels more difficult than either of the 2nd place finishes or even 1996, 4th and a cup.
To smash into the top 4 the way we have, while playing 14 games in Europe and 4 domestic cup games, with a squad this thin, with injuries so great, with opponents who have financial advantages so legion...just unbelievable.
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Our biggest season since 1982. I think what we've done this year is so many levels more difficult than either of the 2nd place finishes or even 1996, 4th and a cup.
To smash into the top 4 the way we have, while playing 14 games in Europe and 4 domestic cup games, with a squad this thin, with injuries so great, with opponents who have financial advantages so legion...just unbelievable.
That is a valid point.
I am talking from a personal perspective just based on pure emotion.
But, I accept your point that what we have done this season is much more difficult than what we did back then.
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To smash into the top 4 the way we have, while playing 14 games in Europe and 4 domestic cup games, with a squad this thin, with injuries so great, with opponents who have financial advantages so legion...just unbelievable.
As F365 had it, "it is an astounding accomplishment which feels somewhat overlooked purely because Villa spent so long in the top four this season that it became normalised; people simply got used to their overachievement. Yet their consistency in breaking the glass ceiling and replacing the floor beneath them has been more impressive than if a late surge had secured the spot".
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Our biggest season since 1982. I think what we've done this year is so many levels more difficult than either of the 2nd place finishes or even 1996, 4th and a cup.
To smash into the top 4 the way we have, while playing 14 games in Europe and 4 domestic cup games, with a squad this thin, with injuries so great, with opponents who have financial advantages so legion...just unbelievable.
That is a valid point.
I am talking from a personal perspective just based on pure emotion.
But, I accept your point that what we have done this season is much more difficult than what we did back then.
When we won the league cup in 96, I was only 9. But I'd seen us do it when I was 7. Beat Inter, finish 2nd etc. I guess I just assumed that's what we did. Oh how we've all laughed since then!
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Yep, we've been up there for a long time. Without injuries we'd have competed longer, there's no doubt. I guess other teams can argue similar but not the teams above us.
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To smash into the top 4 the way we have, while playing 14 games in Europe and 4 domestic cup games, with a squad this thin, with injuries so great, with opponents who have financial advantages so legion...just unbelievable.
As F365 had it, "it is an astounding accomplishment which feels somewhat overlooked purely because Villa spent so long in the top four this season that it became normalised; people simply got used to their overachievement. Yet their consistency in breaking the glass ceiling and replacing the floor beneath them has been more impressive than if a late surge had secured the spot".
We've not been out the top 5 since October or something crazy. It's utterly astonishing and it's no wonder the fumes we were running on evaporated Tuesday night.
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Man City have lost 1 of their last 45 games in all competitions. And we didn't just beat them, we battered them the whole game. That's the standout performance in a fantastic season.
And now we need to use this season as a stepping stone to better things.
Post that online to all the Gooners crying that we fixed the title race by playing lights out v Arsenal and then rolled over to Man. City.
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To finish 4th given the players missing is an incredible achievement. We played some superb football and scored some incredible team goals. The week we beat the top 2 back to back will live long in the memory. A season to be proud of .
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Of course it was a fantastic season and incredible achievement - but I still can’t shake off the disappointment of the semi-final performances. Maybe once next Wednesday is out the way.
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A fantastic season and achievement. Considering where he took over us from and the limited number of his own players that he’s brought in, Emery has performed a miracle getting us into the champions league. He’s starting to remove the ‘typical Villa’ feeling.
McGinn is the big story on the playing side. Taking us from the championship into the champions league in 5 seasons. His levels keep going up and he’s a modern warrior.
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You know you've had a great season when you love every single player that's put the shirt on during a season. A real exceptional bunch who deserved to finish comfortably fourth.
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Our biggest season since 1982. I think what we've done this year is so many levels more difficult than either of the 2nd place finishes or even 1996, 4th and a cup.
To smash into the top 4 the way we have, while playing 14 games in Europe and 4 domestic cup games, with a squad this thin, with injuries so great, with opponents who have financial advantages so legion...just unbelievable.
This. I couldn’t put it any better.
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The team have been superb to get this over the line given the serious injuries to key players.
The difference for me is the way we have competed with the so called top 6 particularly when we have had the resources at our disposal.
The only team to dominate us is Newcastle for various reasons, Manure was a mainly down to us.
So much to be proud of but for me the home game against Man City was as good as I have seen a Villa team play against world class opposition. We were superb to a man for 90+ minutes and 1-0 was a let off for them. UTV
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Highlights:both Arsenal games, City at home, Spurs and Chelsea away, Brighton at home, comeback against Lpool and first half against Chelsea at home also good. Penalty shoot out in France.
- most negatives: The injuries to key players, United and Newcastle games and Spurs at home
Most important players: McGinn, Luiz, Martinez, Torres, konsa, Watkins, Bailey, the two LB s
Best newcomers Ro(d)gers, Tielemans
Disapointments: injuries and running out of steam so didnt reach final in Europe. Still have just one reliable keeper. (dont like to think about FA cup so want mention it here ..).
Overall a superb season and looking great for next with Emery at the helm
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I was over in Crete during half term on a family holiday (part of a crafty plan to get to Athens if we got there). On the way home I was wearing my 1980-81 replica Villa top. Going through visa control, one of the steely faced immigration officers tapped his younger colleague and pointed at me and just said ‘very good team’. A few minutes later an Olympiakos fan tapped me up, partly to gloat in a friendly way but also to tell me we had a really good team. A taxi driver over there earlier in the week, couldn’t believe Olympiakos has beaten us, as in his words ‘we are so good’.
I always wear a villa top or two from time to time during holidays over the years and it rarely gets any comments. As an example we were over in Thailand last year and my Villa top on, on a boat trip full of German tourists, a young German kid, saw my top and said the name ‘Aston Villa’ to his dad in a quizzical way liked he’s no idea who we were, I’m convinced that wouldn’t happen now.
My point is I suppose, this season has been far reaching, more than maybe we even realise. What Unai and the team have achieved is just incredible.
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I really, really enjoyed the West Ham home game, been too long since we battered them and we absolutely handed them their arses back that afternoon. An underrated performance/result.
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https://x.com/AVFCStatto/status/1799521338983407923?t=E7ssywtSH6J7GpxG2lO2sA&s=19
Some nice info on some of the records that Emery has set.
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This is worth a coffee, feet up and 22 minutes of your life to truly realise some of the fantastic goals (all 108 of them) and action throughout the season.
A really enjoyable watch and some great moments.