Aston Villa v Bolton Wanderers Post-Match Thread

[Legion]

He is Mr. Invisible. See image below.

[KRS]

If GH utilises Ireland and our average players correctly, and gets them working as a team, then we should be potent enough to retain top 8 and push top 6 with a couple of quality signings in midfield and upfront.

Ireland has good vision and a great range of passing, and should be used as an attacking midfielder/playmaker to get the best out of him...if not then his talents are wasted. Play him behind Gabby/Carew in a 4231, and he will have options all around him to pick and choice passes orchestrating gameplay.

Downing/Albrighton shouldnt be on the pitch at the same time...make them bust a gut and switch them.
Whilst there are no other better options available until January, NRC has to start and do the same with Petrov/Sidwell.   

Our strongest team has been posted numerous times on here, but for whatever reason KM didnt play it...hopefully GH will know how to get the best from this squad.

[hawkeye]

Houllier will still have the same problem, a bunch of mainly average players to work with,
up front Gabby, Heskey, Carew, all average at best

Midfield Downing, Petrov, NRC,Ireland all average with the eception of Ireland who at the moment is producing average stuff.
read the same for the defence,

for you guys that think Houllier will make a big difference, i dont think he can untill he changes the players.

for you guys that think its all down to the formation, thats the biggest myth, you can play average players in whatever system you want you get the same result

its not all doom and gloom, most premier teams are the same,

 but the standard of play and the 'brighter future' of a more attractive, expansive more controlled possesion football is a million miles away,
 we just dont have the right  quality players for that

i trhink you are right, even our so called better players are second tier PL players, better coaching and tactics should improve us but to major surgery to the squad is needed and that is going to take time.

[PaulMcGrathsNo5Shirt]

I think some of the slatting of Gabby on here is unjust. Knight should have been sent off in the first half for a challenge on him after he'd already been booked. The times when Gabby did get the ball he either had to try and wrestle the fella on his back or take it on his chest. The passing for him to run onto was abysmal.

Ireland clearly needs games, Warnock needs dropping (do we have another LB though?), Petrov I really fail to see what he gives us. Kev Mac made the change today bringing on Carwho and left Petrov with no legs left to do play as the holding midfielder. NRC should play for the foreseeable future with Sidwell or Bannan. Two from Young/Downing/Albrighton should play the wide positions. Luke Young has done well has has Collins considering he's also doing Fatboy Dunne's running. 

Most importantly, the players need to get fit, and cut out the individual errors.

[SoccerHQ]

Have to say that was really poor, typical this was my first home game of the season and I get a groundhog day draw against a middle of a table team.

Really poor tactics from Mac in the second half, fuming when he took Ireland off having not played him in his proper position again. He should be playing ten yards higher up the pitch just off Gabby. We saw the potential with that lovely run and shot he had in the second half.#

I would've brought NRC on for Albrighton who faded, moved Young back to the wing as he dosen't slot enough throughballs imo in the free role and had Ireland playing just off Gabby.

What we had was an incredibly lightweight midfield of Albrighton-Petrov-Young-Downing which couldn't win the ball so Bolton ended stronger. No good having Carew and Gabby upfront if you don't even have the balll.

[Somniloquism]

Houllier will still have the same problem, a bunch of mainly average players to work with,
up front Gabby, Heskey, Carew, all average at best

Midfield Downing, Petrov, NRC,Ireland all average with the eception of Ireland who at the moment is producing average stuff.
read the same for the defence,

for you guys that think Houllier will make a big difference, i dont think he can untill he changes the players.

for you guys that think its all down to the formation, thats the biggest myth, you can play average players in whatever system you want you get the same result

its not all doom and gloom, most premier teams are the same,

 but the standard of play and the 'brighter future' of a more attractive, expansive more controlled possesion football is a million miles away,
 we just dont have the right  quality players for that

i trhink you are right, even our so called better players are second tier PL players, better coaching and tactics should improve us but to major surgery to the squad is needed and that is going to take time.

But then you would both seem to be making out that MON is a better manager then GH as he managed to get these average players to 6th and competing for fourth for most of the last two seasons.

I would expect GH to be able to keep us in the upper half if he gets the right combination of team playing and then can spend money in January.

[SoccerHQ]

I think there's a couple of changes that would make us harder to beat and see us win a few more games for a start.

Carlos should start at CB. Dunno what was up with Dunney but his form is a problem at the minute. Long term I'd still go with a Dunney-Carlos combo and I think we look more defensively secure with Carlos somewhere in there.

I'd have NRC and Petrov sitting infront of the back 4.

I'd move Young back to the left. In the free role he can go long periods of the game without touching the ball and to me he dosen't get enough throughballs to the striker. Play Ireland there instead and then pick one from Downing/Albrighton.

[olaftab]

In a couple of years Albrighton will be the Milner of today with added ability to go past people.  At the moment he is full of energy but a bit too frantic. 
Ireland was very composed for his run and shot but totally lost  playing deeper as he was totally ineffective  trying to smother Bolton attacks.

[john e]

Houllier will still have the same problem, a bunch of mainly average players to work with,
up front Gabby, Heskey, Carew, all average at best

Midfield Downing, Petrov, NRC,Ireland all average with the eception of Ireland who at the moment is producing average stuff.
read the same for the defence,

for you guys that think Houllier will make a big difference, i dont think he can untill he changes the players.

for you guys that think its all down to the formation, thats the biggest myth, you can play average players in whatever system you want you get the same result

its not all doom and gloom, most premier teams are the same,

 but the standard of play and the 'brighter future' of a more attractive, expansive more controlled possesion football is a million miles away,
 we just dont have the right  quality players for that

i trhink you are right, even our so called better players are second tier PL players, better coaching and tactics should improve us but to major surgery to the squad is needed and that is going to take time.

But then you would both seem to be making out that MON is a better manager then GH as he managed to get these average players to 6th and competing for fourth for most of the last two seasons.

I would expect GH to be able to keep us in the upper half if he gets the right combination of team playing and then can spend money in January.

i think MON would definitely get the most out of the players we have at the moment, because they are his players, bought to play the MON way
i dont know what to expect from Houllier yet, his footballing style seems to vary from long ball hoof football to defensive negative football to a controlled pass and move style, depending on who you speak to or read, so we'l just have to wait and see

i'm not calling for a return to MON by the way, i didnt like his style, but i do think it will take a bit of time to sort out the dross, and then we have still got to hope GH spends well, which he hasnt got a particular good track record of,

 but we are Villa fans, so we have got to hope he comes good

[DB]

First, I don't often get on the refs back but he was bloody awful, did nothing to stop Knight wrestling Gabby and when Carew got his shirt ripped off.

Sooner GH starts the better, I hate this limbo shit. It was clear today their tactics & positional play was weak.

 

[VillaAlways]

Ah well it could be worse we could be Everton.Here's to the start of our season onwards and upwards

Oh and was chuffed Blose got put back in there place today they were getting far too cocky

[ozzjim]

Ok, got lucky on the pen now I have seen it. Point still remains about that halfwit in charge today. Never seen him have a fair game whoever he refs, and he is a bloody wind up merchant.


Our midfield is clearly the issue both going forward and defensively. I would like to think Cowans and McAllister, 2 of the finest midfielders of their generation, will be able to sort it out!!
Clearly playing 3 wingers doesn't work at all. Young is the best left winger in the country when he is in form there, so should play there IMO, and then Albrighton should play right. Downing then becomes either an option, or converted to a central midfield player in 3 man midfield with Ireland and Reo Coker. Petrov IMO is simply not up to it anymore, as nice a bloke as he may be. I would actually play Sidwell, Reo Coker and Ireland with Gabby up alone and then chose 2 from the 3 wingers now. Ireland and Sidwell will score given license, and we would be a lot more competitive in there.

[Pete3206]

No organisation
No leadership
No desire

Without all 3 of those, you might as well wave the white flag at Molineux next week.

A shambles today.

[stevenjos]

Bye Bye Kmac. Been the teams friend may be the reason you crap....

[pauliewalnuts]

A lot of the players look like they're not really bothered.

Richard Dunne was great for us last season, but he looks a fucking disgrace at the moment. I keep banging on about this, but for a professional footballer to be that overweight is absolutely not on.

Turning up to pre season training overweight is bad enough, still being overweight, what, six weeks later is beyond a joke.

Warnock seems to have totally gone to shit, Petrov looks like he's just past it, Gabby looks like he arrogantly assumes he'll play if fit, Carew looks like his off days are going to start to become most days, there are plenty of issues.

I think KM has dropped some gigantic clangers with tactics and formation. I really think that was a bullet dodged, thanks to Newcastle and Rapid. I have a growing feeling that the main reason the players wanted him to get the job was because they thought he'd be a soft touch.

GH has really got a job on his hands here. He needs to get them fit, focused and playing with something approaching a "shape". We've seen tantalising glimples of it this season, they haven't become shit players overnight, but he has a big job on his hands getting them fit and focused.