Heroes & Villains, the Aston Villa fanzine
Heroes & Villains => Match Threads & Player Ratings => Topic started by: Toronto Villa on November 27, 2021, 04:56:21 PM
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Excellent first half but really poor second. And they deserved that goal at the end as massively disappointing as it was to not keep the clean sheet. Lots of work yet to do for Gerrard and staff. But 2 wins out of 2 is as much as we could have asked for with the change in manager.
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Get in Villa.
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I don’t enjoy the last 10 minutes of games
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Never had any doubt😬
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Get in
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Great result. Gerrard will work on the second half performances and learn from this. He is still finding out about his players and will strengthen in January, I hope.
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Game of two halves. But again the impact of the subs was vital. AEG and Emi B did great for the goal and had really strong cameos.
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Fantastic performance once we went 1 up. Only disappointment is we didn't get a clean sheet but that was excellent and looking forward to how we approach the next 3 games now.
Said it in match thread but we will be entertained if this is style of football planned for next 30 months.
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I don’t enjoy the last 10 minutes of games
I don’t enjoy the last 89 minutes.
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I'd dispute that we were 'really poor' in the second half. There were a few poor performances, Ollie being one, but we restricted them to 1 shot on target, defended well, and then picked them off for the second goal beautifully.
Bit of an error for the consolation goal and disappointing not to get the clean sheet, but overall excellent away performance.
Gerrard's subs were good too and he is making mid-game tactical tweaks that Smith was simply incapable of doing.
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Tougher 2nd half. Pity about clean sheet but are great win.
Whole back 4 superb but my MOTM was nakamba
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Good win overall, great first half but poor second half with far too many balls given away.
Still, 2 out of 2 for Gerrard, first manager to do that since Gregory.
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never in doubt. Palace were shite and Zaha can fuck off.
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Gerrard has the magic touch it seems. Thought we were good first half, got too defensive second half, but two chances, two goals pretty much. Other than not keeping a clean sheet, the archetype efficient away win.
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We are on the way back up the table, we look solid as a team and that was well deserved today. Ramsey stood out for me but the team as a unit are loking so much better.
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Marvellous.
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Pretty comfortable all game really, don’t think we looked over threatening going forward But very solid at the back
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Phew.
Good performance. Mings was great again, good midfield display as well. Ollie not back to his best yet, and Bailey was poor I thought.
A great 3 points though, much needed and table looks much better
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I'd dispute that we were 'really poor' in the second half. There were a few poor performances, Ollie being one, but we restricted them to 1 shot on target, defended well, and then picked them off for the second goal beautifully.
Bit of an error for the consolation goal and disappointing not to get the clean sheet, but overall excellent away performance.
Gerrard's subs were good too and he is making mid-game tactical tweaks that Smith was simply incapable of doing.
Good summary.
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After five losses on the trot then a first win, to win away to a team that hasn’t lost at home all season and were unbeaten in seven I’m not too bothered about a poor second half performance. We are on our way back.
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Gerrard is already doing better than I hoped. I thought 4 points from those two games would have been a cracking start for him but we have 6!
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I kept up on the game through the Match Thread.
Anyone want a kitten?
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Have faith in the manager. Eventually I think he will get us to where we want to be.
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McGinn, though. My lord was he an absolute animal today or what.
Thought we dominated the center of the park and we defended pretty well on the outside. We clearly frustrated them, and they were desperate enough to upset their balance and just throw strikers on.. everywhere.
Ollie must improve - he was probably unlucky to get a few of the calls in the box but his on the ball skills are regressing.
The ref wasn’t great. First PL game.. I get it, but put on a match between smaller clubs first, k thanks.
All in all, Gerrard got it right and has immediately arrested our slide. Subs were great and motivated. We defended resolutely and we absolutely shut down the middle of the park.
Up the Villa!! Enjoy your weekends
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Statman Dave on Twitter:
"John McGinn’s game by numbers vs. Crystal Palace:
90% pass accuracy
13 ground duels contested
12 ground duels won
7 attempted tackles
7 successful tackles
3 attempted dribbles
3 successful dribbles
3 shots
2 fouls won
1 goal
Ridiculous numbers."
Outstanding today.
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2 games were by I've felt pretty comfortable through out.
Shout out to a referee completely out of his depth.
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Of course the performance had areas where there is room for improvement, but two wins from two is the new manager bounce we very much needed. Four points from the next three would be fantastic.
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After five losses on the trot then a first win, to win away to a team that hasn’t lost at home all season and were unbeaten in seven I’m not too bothered about a poor second half performance. We are on our way back.
Brighton hadn't lost an away game.
Palace hadn't lost a home game.
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Should have had it won in the first half such was our dominance. Like last week we defended well and for all Palace’s possession just 2 shots on target. Even so and as usual we make it difficult for ourselves with poor choice of passing particularly Luiz when he came on. Thought Ollie wasn’t quite at it today either. Ramsey is a player and some.
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I thought we were fairly comfortably tbh when 1 up.
They barely created anything bar Benteke getting an overhead kick in that was straight at Emi. Subbing Zaha off on 70 minutes said it all. Conor Gallagher is a good player but he barely had a kick in midfield today.
We were very good.
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Statman Dave on Twitter:
"John McGinn’s game by numbers vs. Crystal Palace:
90% pass accuracy
13 ground duels contested
12 ground duels won
7 attempted tackles
7 successful tackles
3 attempted dribbles
3 successful dribbles
3 shots
2 fouls won
1 goal
Ridiculous numbers."
Outstanding today.
Yes, MOTM for me today even before the goal.
Nakamba and Cash not too far behind either.
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Thank you Villa. Thank you Gerrard. Thank you everybody.
Very happy.
Very good WE to all.
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We look like we have better forward options than any time since we returned to the top flight. But I wonder if -based on the evidence he's seen so far - SG will be tempted to boost that further.
We lack a forward who can make the ball stick up top. It relieves so much pressure when you have one who can do that. Davis sort of can. But his fitness and goalscoring record even when he is fit are obvious issues there.
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Ollie hasn’t been the same since he got into the England squad. Personally, I don’t think he’s up to international standard at this moment in time as his overall ball control and decision making is fairly poor.
On a much more positive note, I still feel we wouldn’t have got more than 1 point, from these last two games if DS had still been in charge.
Let’s hope Emi is not out for too long as there are a lot of matches coming up.
Obviously, looking forward to giving Shinsplints a welcome that he deserves!!!
He not only nearly stuffed us and, I’m still fairly certain he will become a regular bench warmer at Citeh… it was a lose, lose Joe as far as your career goes.
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Well done, Villa!
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After five losses on the trot then a first win, to win away to a team that hasn’t lost at home all season and were unbeaten in seven I’m not too bothered about a poor second half performance. We are on our way back.
Brighton hadn't lost an away game.
Palace hadn't lost a home game.
Anything g similar about Man City?
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Pretty sure Emi is fine 8)
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Great result, well done Villa, keep it going.
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This Gerrard fella is slowly winning me over. He will have my hand in marriage if we get 3 points at Villa Park on Wednesday!
Only two games in, but he's done exactly what any fan would have dreamed of in that time - 6 points to play for and 6 points won. Long may it continue!
UTV
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Pretty sure Emi is fine 8)
Aye. Kind of looked like he was trying to suppress a smile and was then speaking to the physio behind his hand.
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I thought Ollie was great first half personally, most of the good moves came through him dropping deeper and creating space (exactly what Firmino does for Liverpool which is the template) and he arguably should've had a penalty.
Second half more sloppy.
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Great stuff Villa, SJM scores a cracker and we win!
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Ollie hasn’t been the same since he got into the England squad. Personally, I don’t think he’s up to international standard at this moment in time as his overall ball control and decision making is fairly poor.
On a much more positive note, I still feel we wouldn’t have got more than 1 point, from these last two games if DS had still been in charge.
Let’s hope Emi is not out for too long as there are a lot of matches coming up.
Obviously, looking forward to giving Shinsplints a welcome that he deserves!!!
He not only nearly stuffed us and, I’m still fairly certain he will become a regular bench warmer at Citeh… it was a lose, lose Joe as far as your career goes.
On a much more positive note why say that? Dean has managed to get 4 points from 2 tough games with a team no where near as good as the Villa.
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For all the talk of the second half 'poor performance', Palace were always going to be better and come back into it after our first-half showing. That said, I think if we'd clicked a bit better going forward we could easily have had another couple on the break. Poor decisions/control in really good attacking positions cost us in that respect.
Like last week, we gave the opposition plenty of possession, but in areas where they couldn't really hurt us - fortunately, Palace had a general reluctance to put the ball in the box. Far fewer shots conceded for the last couple of weeks, and that's a really good foundation to work from.
Ollie clearly needs to work on his hold up play, the ball bounced off him way too much today, against better opposition that will cost us.
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The moment that changed the game in the 2nd was Mr Martinez taking the sting out with the Hamstring.
They were pressing and he’s had to make 2 good saves in almost as many minutes. By going down, it totally disrupted their pressure. A fantastic bit of gamesmanship if there ever was some.
Soon after, McGinn scoring a belter!
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Eh? That was at 0-2
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Another impressive result. A very difficult place to go let alone for us who have only won there once in 30 years.
1st half excellent. 2nd pretty average. Defended well most of the game but abit shaky at the end.
Superb goal by McGinn. Motm for me was mings excellent performance from him.
Negatives watkins. So poor today. I also think Luiz wasnt good but i will put that down to him being unfit.
Relives some of the pressure now for next three tough ones. Not expecting anything Wednesday night
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Great result.
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Ollie hasn’t been the same since he got into the England squad. Personally, I don’t think he’s up to international standard at this moment in time as his overall ball control and decision making is fairly poor.
On a much more positive note, I still feel we wouldn’t have got more than 1 point, from these last two games if DS had still been in charge.
Let’s hope Emi is not out for too long as there are a lot of matches coming up.
Obviously, looking forward to giving Shinsplints a welcome that he deserves!!!
He not only nearly stuffed us and, I’m still fairly certain he will become a regular bench warmer at Citeh… it was a lose, lose Joe as far as your career goes.
On a much more positive note why say that? Dean has managed to get 4 points from 2 tough games with a team no where near as good as the Villa.
The same dean smith who went 5 without a win and left us above the drop zone. Good for dean but I agree we would have been annihilated if Smith was still here. And norwich hopefully won’t be a concern if we continue with our winning ways.
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Great result! Was only expecting a draw tbh!
Pleased for Targett getting his goal. Glad also McGinn scored a goal and we managed to win!
UTV!
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Ollie hasn’t been the same since he got into the England squad. Personally, I don’t think he’s up to international standard at this moment in time as his overall ball control and decision making is fairly poor.
On a much more positive note, I still feel we wouldn’t have got more than 1 point, from these last two games if DS had still been in charge.
Let’s hope Emi is not out for too long as there are a lot of matches coming up.
Obviously, looking forward to giving Shinsplints a welcome that he deserves!!!
He not only nearly stuffed us and, I’m still fairly certain he will become a regular bench warmer at Citeh… it was a lose, lose Joe as far as your career goes.
On a much more positive note why say that? Dean has managed to get 4 points from 2 tough games with a team no where near as good as the Villa.
The same dean smith who went 5 without a win and left us above the drop zone. Good for dean but I agree we would have been annihilated if Smith was still here. And norwich hopefully won’t be a concern if we continue with our winning ways.
I really don't get why we are still talking about him. He's moved on, so must we. Palace were due a defeat and we administered it with aplomb.
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Ollie hasn’t been the same since he got into the England squad.
I’d say it’s since his injury more than getting into the England set-up. He just doesn’t seem to be as sharp in both his touch and mind.
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Crystal Palace 1-2 Aston Villa: Villa secure victory at Selhurst Park - https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/59356975
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Very impressive today especially the midfield. If you didn't know who the new young England international was you would presume Jacob Ramsey was that player rather than Gallagher. Nakamba won more or less every tackle he made and mostly moved the ball on well when he won it. Brilliant finish from McGinn for his goal.
The main negative was the absolutely appalling referee His performance was as poor if not worse than Kevin Friend at Palace two years ago.
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Yes wasn't it his first prem game and he won't be lasting long at this level with that performance. Letting Palace players get away with cyncial fouls in 1st half and then couldn't wait to show Doug a red for a fairly similar tackle.
Really like Vieria but laughable he was having a go at him end of the match, might aswell have had a Palace shirt on with his calls.
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Ollie hasn’t been the same since he got into the England squad. Personally, I don’t think he’s up to international standard at this moment in time as his overall ball control and decision making is fairly poor.
On a much more positive note, I still feel we wouldn’t have got more than 1 point, from these last two games if DS had still been in charge.
Let’s hope Emi is not out for too long as there are a lot of matches coming up.
Obviously, looking forward to giving Shinsplints a welcome that he deserves!!!
He not only nearly stuffed us and, I’m still fairly certain he will become a regular bench warmer at Citeh… it was a lose, lose Joe as far as your career goes.
On a much more positive note why say that? Dean has managed to get 4 points from 2 tough games with a team no where near as good as the Villa.
That’s the weird thing about it though
I actually agree with Skerra I think we’d be in trouble in the league right now if Smith had stayed
Whilst I can see Smith keeping Norwich up
Sometimes a change is the best thing for everyone
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Brighton hadn't lost an away game.
Palace hadn't lost a home game.
When you're on a really good run that has boosted your confidence who's the last team you want to face? Stévie G's Aston Villa. :)
Great result and takes the pressure off a bit for the next few tough games both in terms of the table and the 'headlines'. Not that I think the manager will lessen the intensity for them.
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Well played Aston Villa
Can not fault or mark down a single player
Looking forward to ore of the same
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Lots of positives to take from the game today especially the first half where we played some great football, playing it inside then forward rather than pointlessly hoofing it down the line for nobody in particular. One major positive today was up against a physically strong side we didn't buckle where previously we'd get bullied, today we stood our ground and fought back.
Still plenty more work to be done at BH but the signs are there that we are turning a corner and moving in the right direction. I wasn't expecting much from the game today so it's great to have another weekend where the Villa made me happy.
Onwards and upwards.
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Surprised people are saying we were poor 2nd half. Palace are a good side and they have a physical midfield. Usually that is a recipe for defeat but we dominated that area for the majority of the match, in the first half by keeping the ball and in the 2nd by repelling everything they threw at us. Yes, they had pressure and territory but Emi barely made a save and we always looked dangerous on the break, culminating in a brilliant 2nd goal.
You can see the tactical tweaks already. Same formation on paper but different starting positions. The wide forwards tuck in, the full backs play higher up the pitch and two of the midfielders cover. We regained possession so often in good areas and every player played a part including all 3 subs again.
Really positive start both defensively and in attack. We get a free hit against City now and we can take some confidence into the game. Gerrard will want to win.
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What do you reckon? first match on MOTD tonight?
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After five losses on the trot then a first win, to win away to a team that hasn’t lost at home all season and were unbeaten in seven I’m not too bothered about a poor second half performance. We are on our way back.
Brighton hadn't lost an away game.
Palace hadn't lost a home game.
Anything g similar about Man City?
Must be something about losing by X amount etc
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The main difference I've seen is that we are not reliant on a few players to win or see us through a game. Watched both games on the tele and what is noticeable is our shape off the ball, we are playing as a team that has clear instructions on what to do all the time, most importantly when not in possession.
The results so far are very positive, let's see how we fair in the next 3 games.
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https://www.skysports.com/football/c-palace-vs-a-villa/report/446413
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Ollie hasn’t been the same since he got into the England squad. Personally, I don’t think he’s up to international standard at this moment in time as his overall ball control and decision making is fairly poor.
On a much more positive note, I still feel we wouldn’t have got more than 1 point, from these last two games if DS had still been in charge.
Let’s hope Emi is not out for too long as there are a lot of matches coming up.
Obviously, looking forward to giving Shinsplints a welcome that he deserves!!!
He not only nearly stuffed us and, I’m still fairly certain he will become a regular bench warmer at Citeh… it was a lose, lose Joe as far as your career goes.
On a much more positive note why say that? Dean has managed to get 4 points from 2 tough games with a team no where near as good as the Villa.
That’s the weird thing about it though
I actually agree with Skerra I think we’d be in trouble in the league right now if Smith had stayed
Whilst I can see Smith keeping Norwich up
Sometimes a change is the best thing for everyone
Fully agree, we quite simply would not have won the last two with DS. Similarly, Norwich would have lost both with TF.
That's fact of course 😉
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You can tell the ref was bad when both sides reckon he had a shocker.
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Special mention to the real Matt Targett. Great to finally have him back today. He's been mainly poor this season for whatever reasons but when he's on form like today he's a massive player for us.
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Well played Aston Villa
Can not fault or mark down a single player
Looking forward to ore of the same
Yep, he's really ironed out the defensive issues
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Pretty sure Emi is fine 8)
Aye. Kind of looked like he was trying to suppress a smile and was then speaking to the physio behind his hand.
It was superb shithousery (game management)
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Special mention to the real Matt Targett. Great to finally have him back today. He's been mainly poor this season for whatever reasons but when he's on form like today he's a massive player for us.
Good shout - all played well at the back, but Targett was definitely buzzing.
Bailey and Ollie were the 'meh' players for me today.
Bring on Citeh ...
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Olaf, it’s all a matter of opinions. Just have to beg to differ on this one. DS did a great job for us but, my opinion is that he had taken us as far as he could. Regardless of opinions, the bottom line is we have 6/6 points which we should all be grateful for.
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Well played by nearly everyone. There's more to come from Bailey, his on/off injury problems have impacted his performances. Young was particularly impressive for me, played with awareness and provided some quality balls into the box. Special mention for Nakamba, he has his limitations but his positional play is very good and excellent breaking up of play. Good result, shame we let one in 2-1 feels very different from 2-0 especially in the aftermath of the Wolves debacle.
I should add that Young's reaction to the red card by clearing the other Villa players away from the ref and talking calmly to him may have been the difference between 2-1 and 2-2!
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Very comfortable first half & as you’d expect slightly less so in the second. But Palace didn’t create a single decent chance.
I thought the midfield three were excellent. But a special shout-out to Marvellous.
Gerrard has us well organised & for me the most notable thing is our forwards are narrower when we don’t have the ball. We’re no longer asking them to spend the half the game chasing after fullbacks. That role has been passed to McGinn & Ramsey. The wide players are tucked into midfield & in a more advanced position if we win the ball back.
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We will need to keep the ball a while lot better this week vs Man City. Keep giving it to them and we’ll be beaten badly.
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I have seen Villa win at Man U and Palace! What strange times we live in.
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Special shout out to Mings - re-born.
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Can’t believe comments re Ollie thought he did well today and if it had not been for that foul. He might have scored. Mings was outstanding
The premier league need to look at their referee appointments the ref today completely out of his depth
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I’m easy to please so I’d be willing to settle for a draw v Citeh!!
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Special shout out to Mings - re-born.
Yeah, that moment when Benteke turned into "our" Benteke and just went through our defence - until, that was, Mings dealt with him.
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Michael Salisbury. Worst ref since Kevin Friend. Shocking performance.
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We look like an organised committed team again. Targett showed he doesn't need Joe in front of him to play well, Cash continues to impress, Mings is back. I really think Nakamba is decent, he seems more composed on the ball these days and really puts himself about. Ramsey made Gallagher look bang average. I loved the second goal, it was a brilliant move and it showed the importance of a strong bench with Buendia and El Ghazi involved.
Early days but I have to give Gerrard credit, very much a case of 'so far so good.'
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Brighton hadn't lost an away game.
Palace hadn't lost a home game.
Stévie G's Aston Villa. :)
No. Stop it!
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Michael Salisbury. Worst ref since Kevin Friend. Shocking performance.
He lost control. I wouldn't expect him to get another PL game in the near future.
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As far as I could make out on the stream, the fans we're singing 'Steven Gerrard's Claret and Blue Army' , but '..he's St*vie G's man..'
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We look like an organised committed team again. Targett showed he doesn't need Joe in front of him to play well, Cash continues to impress, Mings is back. I really think Nakamba is decent, he seems more composed on the ball these days and really puts himself about. Ramsey made Gallagher look bang average. I loved the second goal, it was a brilliant move and it showed the importance of a strong bench with Buendia and El Ghazi involved.
Early days but I have to give Gerrard credit, very much a case of 'so far so good.'
Trying not to get carried away, but winning 2 in a row does something to you.
UTV.
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I thought Marvelous was marvellous today.
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Michael Salisbury. Worst ref since Kevin Friend. Shocking performance.
He lost control. I wouldn't expect him to get another PL game in the near future.
It wasn't a great Premier League debut from him, that's for sure.
He let fouls go, missed letting advantage go etc..Thanks goodness for VAR to correct the ridiculous 'red card'.
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I like how we killed the game after they scored. I dont think the ball came out of their half for 2 minutes.
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Surprised people are saying we were poor 2nd half. Palace are a good side and they have a physical midfield. Usually that is a recipe for defeat but we dominated that area for the majority of the match, in the first half by keeping the ball and in the 2nd by repelling everything they threw at us. Yes, they had pressure and territory but Emi barely made a save and we always looked dangerous on the break, culminating in a brilliant 2nd goal.
You can see the tactical tweaks already. Same formation on paper but different starting positions. The wide forwards tuck in, the full backs play higher up the pitch and two of the midfielders cover. We regained possession so often in good areas and every player played a part including all 3 subs again.
Really positive start both defensively and in attack. We get a free hit against City now and we can take some confidence into the game. Gerrard will want to win.
Good analysis there. Reminded me of when DS first came in and we were "setting traps." Palace just played into our hands first 60 minutes so we executed the gameplan very well before sitting back a little bit more.
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Pleased with both the result and the performance today.
Most pleasing of all is the fact that the new manager has dropped players and altered the line-up in response to the last game. The thus far unsuccessful Ings/Watkins partnership was shelved, and Buendia was benched. just nice to see things be proactive.
Midfield looks loads better, and Nakamba looks like the player we see one game in five for two games in a row. Substitutions have been effective, and he is changing things during the game too. Defence back to last seasons form also.
All in all very surprised how big a difference under Gerrard thus far.
Man City next and fingers crossed we get something from it. Football taking a back seat for a few weeks now for me as I will be occupied with more urgent matters. My better half will be having surgery on Wednesday following an alarming smear test result.
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Pleased with both the result and the performance today.
Most pleasing of all is the fact that the new manager has dropped players and altered the line-up in response to the last game. The thus far unsuccessful Ings/Watkins partnership was shelved, and Buendia was benched. just nice to see things be proactive.
Midfield looks loads better, and Nakamba looks like the player we see one game in five for two games in a row. Substitutions have been effective, and he is changing things during the game too. Defence back to last seasons form also.
All in all very surprised how big a difference under Gerrard thus far.
Man City next and fingers crossed we get something from it. Football taking a back seat for a few weeks now for me as I will be occupied with more urgent matters. My better half will be having surgery on Wednesday following an alarming smear test result.
Hoping for a speedy and successful recovery for your wife AV.
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Pleased with both the result and the performance today.
Most pleasing of all is the fact that the new manager has dropped players and altered the line-up in response to the last game. The thus far unsuccessful Ings/Watkins partnership was shelved, and Buendia was benched. just nice to see things be proactive.
Midfield looks loads better, and Nakamba looks like the player we see one game in five for two games in a row. Substitutions have been effective, and he is changing things during the game too. Defence back to last seasons form also.
All in all very surprised how big a difference under Gerrard thus far.
Man City next and fingers crossed we get something from it. Football taking a back seat for a few weeks now for me as I will be occupied with more urgent matters. My better half will be having surgery on Wednesday following an alarming smear test result.
All the very best mate for you and your Partner.
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Best wishes Ashtonvilla. Hope it all goes well.
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All the best Astonvillain. Hope it all goes as planned.
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Best wishes to your partner Ashtonvilla, hope it all goes well.
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Best wishes to you and your partner AV
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All the best Ashtonvilla.
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Hope all ends up well.
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Best wishes to the missus and the fam ASHTONVILLA.
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We look like an organised committed team again. Targett showed he doesn't need Joe in front of him to play well, Cash continues to impress, Mings is back. I really think Nakamba is decent, he seems more composed on the ball these days and really puts himself about. Ramsey made Gallagher look bang average. I loved the second goal, it was a brilliant move and it showed the importance of a strong bench with Buendia and El Ghazi involved.
Early days but I have to give Gerrard credit, very much a case of 'so far so good.'
Trying not to get carried away, but winning 2 in a row does something to you.
UTV.
If it becomes three in a row we’ll all spontaneously combust
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7 & 8s all over the pitch today. Great team performance. Hard to single out anybody for being excellent or poor.
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All the very best to your partner. Hope all goes well.
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Firstly and most importantly, very best wishes to your partner, AshtonVilla.
Excellent away win. By far and away the best side, in the first half and should have got ourselves further in front. We were smartly setup and well organized, congesting the midfield and stopping Palace get it wide to their main attacking threats. Second half you expect Palace to improve but we helped them along by getting too deep and sloppy in possession; an element of fatigue perhaps? Or just Wolves game flashbacks.
Good team performance. Nakamba has limitations on the ball but broke up play brilliantly and protected the back four really well. Mings & Konsa look more settled, we missed Ramsey when he went off and McGinn ran the show, sublime finish too.
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Didn't see the game but that was a cracking second goal we got. Great play by AEG and Buendia and a superb finish from McGinn. Not that it mattered thankfully but Mings went awol for their goal, poor effort from Watkins to block the cross.
Next up, the return of Joe/(Tiger) King....if he's fit. Been missing for a few games in any case was dropped before injury.
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Can't offer any insight as I followed the game from afar today but great to get a win somewhere we very rarely win, or anywhere in truth. Good start from Gerrard, long may the perfect record continue
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Top performance first half we dominated them across the pitch with the best passing i've seen all season, every player playing his part. Palace had to respond after the break and although they saw a lot more of the ball didn't create much of anything until the lack of concentration by Mings at the end. Nakamba, JM and Ramsey were exellent. I differ from most posters, thought Watkins had a very decent first half, although he just appears to have lost half a yard of pace.
Luiz was very poor and gave the ball away too easily but I put that down to lack of match play. Special mention to Ashley Young, I was dubious of what he could bring to the side but so far he's proving me wrong, total proffessional.
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Odd game second half in that they had all the ball without ever really looking a threat. Great win and good display overall, but....
Watkins was awful much of the game, his touch and continual over playing of the ball got us in trouble too often, but breaking at pace really isn't Ings' game, and the lack of a viable alternative to the job Watkins does, and still does better than Ings even when he's having a shit game, will be addressed by Gerrard at some point I'm sure.
We need more depth in quality in midfield. Ramsey and McGinn unsurprisingly tired and could not press at the same intensity second half. That next step in quality of player will be felt the most in midfield... Which brings me on to...
Our narrow wide forward options are not even close to the standard we like to think they are. Bailey might make a top 6 prem player but he gave it away as much as Watkins today and frustrated the life out of me. Young was industrious and influential but is nearly 37. The ability in these areas to actually keep the ball and have composure is half the battle to being able to dictate possession. Our creative players in these area are good, but we need a top player that can help us keep the ball better in the final third. A bit like that bloke we will hear a lot about this week.
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Top performance first half we dominated them across the pitch with the best passing i've seen all season, every player playing his part. Palace had to respond after the break and although they saw a lot more of the ball didn't create much of anything until the lack of concentration by Mings at the end. Nakamba, JM and Ramsey were exellent. I differ from most posters, thought Watkins had a very decent first half, although he just appears to have lost half a yard of pace.
Luiz was very poor and gave the ball away too easily but I put that down to lack of match play. Special mention to Ashley Young, I was dubious of what he could bring to the side but so far he's proving me wrong, total proffessional.
One thing i like about Young is that he is always in the ref’s ear. He was chipping away when the ref went to VAR. I felt we were streetwise today - several incidences of players being injured to break up play, usually fake in my opinion, but it stopped Palace building momentum.
First half in particular was excellent, and my motm was Nakamba for his constant breaking up of play. Generally I’m really happy with today. If pushed to cite areas to improve on I thought Watkins failed to protect the ball sufficiently resulting in us not relieving pressure at times and Bailey seems to feel that any involvement of less than 12 touches has no value.
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PS Great support today, though we had plenty to enthuse us
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Marvellous.
What about him ?
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Ollie hasn’t been the same since he got into the England squad.
I’d say it’s since his injury more than getting into the England set-up. He just doesn’t seem to be as sharp in both his touch and mind.
He's a new dad. Hasn't had a good night's sleep since the summer.
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I have seen Villa win at Man U and Palace! What strange times we live in.
Yeah! Just a pity we've lost every other fcuking away game this season.
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Our midfield trio were simply brilliant today. Overall, everyone did well though I think we started to tire somewhat after about 65mins.
The only complaint I have with Ollie (and Bailey) were that they both held onto the ball too long on occasions.
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Oddly few pages on this. Fantastic result today. 11th and looks like we are on the up. Gerrard reminds me of John Gregory and I didn’t like him at the time either
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Re- Watkins becoming a new dad and his perfomance level. I love my golf and have noticed among the proffessional ranks how getting married, having kids and having something else to think about leads to even top golfers performing below par. Adam Scott prime example, won the masters then got married had two kids and has never acheived the same level since. So i'm going to cut him a bit of slack for being human.
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Re- Watkins becoming a new dad and his perfomance level. I love my golf and have noticed among the proffessional ranks how getting married, having kids and having something else to think about leads to even top golfers performing below par. Adam Scott prime example, won the masters then got married had two kids and has never acheived the same level since. So i'm going to cut him a bit of slack for being human.
so the moral of the story is don’t get married and don’t have kids.
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Fantastic first half today on a ground we’ve struggled at. Resolute second half. Interesting use of Watkins and Young. It often looked -particularly in the first half- that Young was operating as an additional midfielder and Watkins was playing wide left. Looked to help us control the midfield. Confused Palace before they regrouped at half time. Two wins out win. Couldn’t ask for a better start under Gerrard.
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Re- Watkins becoming a new dad and his perfomance level. I love my golf and have noticed among the proffessional ranks how getting married, having kids and having something else to think about leads to even top golfers performing below par.
Isn’t the idea of golf to be below par?
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Ollie hasn’t been the same since he got into the England squad.
I’d say it’s since his injury more than getting into the England set-up. He just doesn’t seem to be as sharp in both his touch and mind.
He's a new dad. Hasn't had a good night's sleep since the summer.
I mentioned this a few weeks back, after our first I was a liability at work. It really messed me up. It took me quite a while to adjust to becoming a sleep deprived zombie.
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Excellent away performance;
Positives
First half in general was utterly dominant.
The shape we maintained out of possession totally nulified them, while the inside forwards and high pushing full backs created difficulties for them. They couldn't pick up our runners.
Mings again (bar the last kick) was switched on and doing the basics very well.
Limiting the opposition again to almost nothing on our goal
Nakamba first half especially was excellent, really pressing high into them and making good decisions with his interceptions and passing.
Edit: Ashley Young was excellent and Bailey will learn plenty from him.
Negatives
It was unfortunate we couldn't maintain the standards of the 1st half in the 2nd. We gave up the ball a bit easier and the midfield were deeper.
Felt this had an effect of isolating Watkins from the inside forwards and full backs, so he was crowded out. His decision making in turn was not the best, but he was always looking dangerous on the break.
Also worth saying that despite not being as effective, we were still the better side. Palace huffed and puffed without creating anything of note and that walking slapped arse Zaha having to be taken off was a testament to how good we were at smoothering them.
Bailey looked gassed early in the 2nd half and felt he was trying to do too much when in good positions in the 1st half.
Lovely 2nd goal, the ground remains difficult to get to and absolutely woeful, much like the weather and the referee.
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I have seen Villa win at Man U and Palace! What strange times we live in.
Yeah! Just a pity we've lost every other fcuking away game this season.
Well, that’s very true. I was just on a high last night.
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Well played Aston Villa
Can not fault or mark down a single player
Looking forward to ore of the same
Yep, he's really ironed out the defensive issues
made me chuckle
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After watching the replay of their goal and blaming Mings I now see the main culprit was Watkins with a half hearted effort to stop the cross.
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Great performance yesterday. Disciplined and resolute with some slick play at times particularly first half.
The fewest shots against us this season have been the last 2 games and it is evident the difference that Gerrard has made.
The midfield 3 are closer together so we are much harder to play through. We are far less open. The whole team are defending together.
A fine team effort. Special shout out to Nakamba though who continually broke up Palace's play and got us moving forward.
UTV
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Top performance first half we dominated them across the pitch with the best passing i've seen all season, every player playing his part. Palace had to respond after the break and although they saw a lot more of the ball didn't create much of anything until the lack of concentration by Mings at the end. Nakamba, JM and Ramsey were exellent. I differ from most posters, thought Watkins had a very decent first half, although he just appears to have lost half a yard of pace.
Luiz was very poor and gave the ball away too easily but I put that down to lack of match play. Special mention to Ashley Young, I was dubious of what he could bring to the side but so far he's proving me wrong, total proffessional.
One thing i like about Young is that he is always in the ref’s ear.
SAF taught him well.
Talking of managers, who was the last Villa one to start with back to back wins? Gregory maybe?
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Really enjoyed the whole day. It was absolute carnage when McGinn scored.
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Patrick Vieira has got the roundest head of any person I've ever seen.
That ref needs to go straight back to reffing local leagues. He was unbelievably poor, for both teams to be fair.
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Ollie hasn’t been the same since he got into the England squad.
I’d say it’s since his injury more than getting into the England set-up. He just doesn’t seem to be as sharp in both his touch and mind.
He's a new dad. Hasn't had a good night's sleep since the summer.
I've seen his house. I'd imagine that there's plenty of room to get a good kip if he wants one.
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Patrick Vieira has got the roundest head of any person I've ever seen.
That ref needs to go straight back to reffing local leagues. He was unbelievably poor, for both teams to be fair.
I would nominate Richard Keys for the roundest head award.
I was looking for the holes where you put your fingers to bowl with it.
The players especially Palace ones knew he was going to struggle and took advantage a much as they could.
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Patrick Vieira has got the roundest head of any person I've ever seen.
That ref needs to go straight back to reffing local leagues. He was unbelievably poor, for both teams to be fair.
Oliver Cromwell had a roundhead
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What a beautiful morning
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Patrick Vieira has got the roundest head of any person I've ever seen.
That ref needs to go straight back to reffing local leagues. He was unbelievably poor, for both teams to be fair.
I would nominate Richard Keys for the roundest head award.
I was looking for the holes where you put your fingers to bowl with it.
The players especially Palace ones knew he was going to struggle and took advantage a much as they could.
I'm never sure with Richard Keys whether he has a large head, or if it's just that his face is half the size it should be.
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Weird game as far as performances were concerned. The best and worse of us this season, but 2 points more than I was expecting, and takes the pressure off us for the City game.
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So far under Gerrard, we've gone from having one of the most fragile defences in the league to having one of the strongest. Very good team performance all round, special mention to Nakamba, Mings and SJM all superb, if Marvelous can continue his present form, that's gonna be a major plus for us this season.
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Patrick Vieira has got the roundest head of any person I've ever seen.
That ref needs to go straight back to reffing local leagues. He was unbelievably poor, for both teams to be fair.
Quickfire red card after the clumsy late challenge, views VAR, comes back and must've told Dougie "You're fine son, it's yellow" rescinds then shows him red again as Doug gives him a tap of acknowledgement. Bewildered commentators, ref then realises he needs to show the yellow.
Sheer comedy. Actually feel for the ref a bit, clearly nervous but that performance was utterly shitful.
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I was surprised the Zaha yellow wasn’t shown on MOTD.
All on post-match commentary said it should have been red.
You don’t turn around and push a player to the floor band only get a yellow.
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Yes the red card was abysmal. OK he made a mistake, which happens, but then after reviewing the footage and obviously changing his mind, he then brandished the red again!
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Absolutely fantastic first half performance and really is great to see just what influence our new Head Coach is having on the team. The players are giving him their all and that's all we can ask for.
Interesting that two of our star signings were on the bench , looks like it could be more money wasted yet again!
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Absolutely fantastic first half performance and really is great to see just what influence our new Head Coach is having on the team. The players are giving him their all and that's all we can ask for.
Interesting that two of our star signings were on the bench , looks like it could be more money wasted yet again!
Didn't see it like that tbh. Buendia and Ings were shit the game before. They probably have a good chance of playing against City given Watkins and Bailey's performance.
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Absolutely fantastic first half performance and really is great to see just what influence our new Head Coach is having on the team. The players are giving him their all and that's all we can ask for.
Interesting that two of our star signings were on the bench , looks like it could be more money wasted yet again!
Didn't see it like that tbh. Buendia and Ings were shit the game before. They probably have a good chance of playing against City given Watkins and Bailey's performance.
Absolutely SB. Don’t rise to it.
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Absolutely fantastic first half performance and really is great to see just what influence our new Head Coach is having on the team. The players are giving him their all and that's all we can ask for.
Interesting that two of our star signings were on the bench , looks like it could be more money wasted yet again!
Didn't see it like that tbh. Buendia and Ings were shit the game before. They probably have a good chance of playing against City given Watkins and Bailey's performance.
That is how I saw it as well. Squad rotation when necessary.
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Great win and great day out but it was freezing at Selhurst Park.
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Absolutely fantastic first half performance and really is great to see just what influence our new Head Coach is having on the team. The players are giving him their all and that's all we can ask for.
Are you feeling ill?
Interesting that two of our star signings were on the bench , looks like it could be more money wasted yet again!
That's better. Panic over.
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I look forward to the day when our entire bench consists of players worth £30m+.
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I look forward to the day when our entire bench consists of players worth £30m+.
And those being the cheapest of the squad. :)
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Absolutely fantastic first half performance and really is great to see just what influence our new Head Coach is having on the team. The players are giving him their all and that's all we can ask for.
Are you feeling ill?
Interesting that two of our star signings were on the bench , looks like it could be more money wasted yet again!
That's better. Panic over.
Just a bit of a Hangover after celebrating yesterday's victory. one too many John Smiths
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Watching the extended coverage on sky. We played a lovely little spell of football which led to the corner and then the first goal.
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Ollie hasn’t been the same since he got into the England squad.
I’d say it’s since his injury more than getting into the England set-up. He just doesn’t seem to be as sharp in both his touch and mind.
He's a new dad. Hasn't had a good night's sleep since the summer.
I've seen his house. I'd imagine that there's plenty of room to get a good kip if he wants one.
What about if he's one of those hands-on, new-age modern-dads that we've been hearing about since the 90s?
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Just a bit of a Hangover after celebrating yesterday's victory. one too many John Smiths
One John Smiths is one too many John Smiths.
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Zaha has got away with pushing people in the face to the for 3 times now this season. At Spurs he then conned the ref into sending Tanganga off. Apparently he was shameful in his antics atan City according to a mate of mine that was at the game.
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I was surprised the Zaha yellow wasn’t shown on MOTD.
All on post-match commentary said it should have been red.
You don’t turn around and push a player to the floor band only get a yellow.
How is it that Zaha seems to get away with such stuff.....he seems to do something similar every game - nothing! The opponent marking him farts, and gets booked!
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Watching the extended coverage on sky. We played a lovely little spell of football which led to the corner and then the first goal.
We played some fantastic football in the first half, a real joy to watch. What makes it even better is Palace normally start off strong but yesterday they didn't know what hit them. I'd imagine they were very happy to go in just 1 down at half time.
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I was surprised the Zaha yellow wasn’t shown on MOTD.
All on post-match commentary said it should have been red.
You don’t turn around and push a player to the floor band only get a yellow.
How is it that Zaha seems to get away with such stuff.....he seems to do something similar every game - nothing! The opponent marking him farts, and gets booked!
You can see why no CL/europa side wants to sign him though. Talented player but just plays the game on his terms hence him playing for mid table club approaching his late 20s now.
Him getting hooked after 70 minutes also shows Vieira trying to make the side less dependent on him which Palace finally are now with plenty more talent in final third.
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The FA have adopted a four corner approach to assessing players, they’re 1. technical,2. physical, 3. psychological and 4. social.
You’d guess that Zaha fails miserably on the psychological and social criteria. Similarly the All Blacks have a ‘no c@nts’ selection criteria. There’s a reason he is still at Palace despite publicly wanting to move for the past three or four seasons.
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Just a bit of a Hangover after celebrating yesterday's victory. one too many John Smiths
One John Smiths is one too many John Smiths.
Totally - if the quality of the beer a man drinks is a reflection of his character ....
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Ollie hasn’t been the same since he got into the England squad.
I’d say it’s since his injury more than getting into the England set-up. He just doesn’t seem to be as sharp in both his touch and mind.
He's a new dad. Hasn't had a good night's sleep since the summer.
I've seen his house. I'd imagine that there's plenty of room to get a good kip if he wants one.
What about if he's one of those hands-on, new-age modern-dads that we've been hearing about since the 90s?
You can still do that and say to the Mrs "I've had him/her all evening. You do the night shift." I imagine. Haven't got 'em, don't want 'em.
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You can still do that and say to the Mrs "I've had him/her all evening. You do the night shift." I imagine.
Hmmmmmm
Haven't got 'em, don't want 'em.
Your first sentence was proof enough!
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Palace have wanted something like £70m for Zaha in the past. Nobody else values him that highly.
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Ollie hasn’t been the same since he got into the England squad.
I’d say it’s since his injury more than getting into the England set-up. He just doesn’t seem to be as sharp in both his touch and mind.
He's a new dad. Hasn't had a good night's sleep since the summer.
I've seen his house. I'd imagine that there's plenty of room to get a good kip if he wants one.
What about if he's one of those hands-on, new-age modern-dads that we've been hearing about since the 90s?
You can still do that and say to the Mrs "I've had him/her all evening. You do the night shift." I imagine. Haven't got 'em, don't want 'em.
I don't want em either.
Which is pretty crushing for my two.
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Palace have wanted something like £70m for Zaha in the past. Nobody else values him that highly.
Apart from himself.
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You can still do that and say to the Mrs "I've had him/her all evening. You do the night shift." I imagine.
Hmmmmmm
Haven't got 'em, don't want 'em.
Your first sentence was proof enough!
I'm prepared to accept my ignorance on this one!
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From the beeb:
"Aston Villa and Crystal Palace have been charged with misconduct by the Football Association for incidents during Saturday's Premier League game.
The clubs have until Monday to respond to the allegation of failing to ensure their players conducted themselves in an orderly fashion.
Both sets of players were unhappy with decisions made by referee Michael Salisbury in the 54th and 55th minutes.
Steven Gerrard's side won the game 2-1 at Selhurst Park.
The Palace players surrounded the official when he blew for a foul by Villa midfielder Marvelous Nakamba on Wilfried Zaha because they felt he should have played the advantage with Christian Benteke in possession for the home team.
Nakamba was booked for the foul and from the resulting free-kick Villa won possession and broke clear only for Palace midfielder Luka Milivojevic to bring down Ollie Watkins on the edge of the penalty area.
Both sets of players surrounded the referee again, with Milivojevic shown a yellow card."
Right. So an inexperienced referee is appointed to a game that he quickly loses control of, making a host of bad decisions and when the test subjects (i.e. both teams) rightly complain, we're both charged. Makes total sense and I'm sure it will be applied consistently to all teams this season when it happens.
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Be interesting if they charge Manure as well after the first Arsenal goal tonight. Great picture on BBC of them all surrounding the ref.