Manchester City v Aston Villa Post-Match Thread

[Irreverent ad]

What if our 1st team had lost 4-0 again. Then lost the confidence they had gained and lost against Bolton.

How fucking defeatist is that? Do you really think the confidence of the players is that fragile? It's a cup-tie, a one-off. We were the underdogs anyway so we could have gone and had a bloody good go at it and if we lost, so be it. I fail to see how a defeat tonight would have shattered the players' confidence.

Thats not defeatist. It happened earlier in the season and tonight we played a makeshift defence. At the site of our worst performance of the season I think it could be very fragile and affected us for the rest of the season.

If confidence did not matter in football we would be comfortable top half by now.

But since that defeat we've beaten Man City, had a decent run and are (were) a completely different team to two months ago. I just don't see how a defeat in a cup match, whatever the result, could have such a catastrophic effect. They aren't Brazil '70, it wasn't beyond the realms of possibility that we could have won tonight.

It took us a while after the City defeat and we have played fantastically well recently. I can see logic that he did not want this confidence crushing.

With our defence, I honestly think we had no chance. If we had some of our defenders fit, I am certain he would have gone for it.

[bvb]

my lads just rang he's just been assulted by other villa fans there on the rampage going fucking mad out side there groun a cars been overturned the old bills everywhere, there fighting each other

[richardhubbard]

I struggling to see what Gerard done to improve us, he signed bent well done. 12 th in the league and out of cups. I see nothing but decline , Blackburn result resolved nothing

[Dave Cooper please]

Those moaning about team selection= in view of the injuries would you really of preferred to see Beye and Warnock tonight instead of Herd and Delph Don't think he had a lot of choice with regard to the defence and at least they tried.

Walker could have played, meaning we were only one short of a pretty usual defence.
It was the total destruction of the rest of the outfield and playing most of those who were subsequently picked in very strange positions that rankles.

[Irreverent ad]

my lads just rang he's just been assulted by other villa fans there on the rampage going fucking mad out side there groun a cars been overturned the old bills everywhere, there fighting each other

Is Shameless on?

[Blackcountry Villa]

On the way back now, we're shit.

We play strange, pointless football; knock it about in our own half going nowhere and then lose it as soon as we reach the halfway line, great stuff.

Petrov, Heskey and Agbonlahor are piss poor. Anyone who rates Agbonlahor please tell me why, he's shit and one of the most limited footballers i've ever seen. If he wasn't a Villa fan nobody would rate him.

Reading at home in the quarters and maybe Blues/Bolton or Stoke/West Ham and we played our reserves, granted we'd probably have lost anyway but why the fuck did he rest so many? It's not like we win things every year and we can pick and choose. And we better brace ourselves for Blues getting to another final, they'll beat Bolton and get Stoke/West Ham in the semi and play Man Utd in the final imo.

[Chris Smith]

We already have Collins, Cuellar, Baker, Makoun and Young unavailable for the weekend, a couple more injuries or suspensions tonight and we'd be in deep shit.

Like I said it isn't what I want to see but surely everyone can see why a manager worried about relegation, and we're still a long way from being safe, might take a more cautious approach. I'm not asking anyone to like it, I'm just saying that I can understand his thinking.

Perhaps a letter to Mr Clattenberg would have sufficed - "Dear Sir, my boys are feeling a little bit sensitive and don`t want to hurt them selves - perhaps they can be excused games today as they want to keep their gym kit nice and clean for sports day on Saturday" yours sincerely , Coco

Utter boll****- my love of the beautiful game took another knock tonight. 

Are you and Richard having a competition as to who can say that they're falling out of love with football the most times over the course of the season? It's a bogus argument, it was only ever the "beautiful game" in some marketing man's imagination.

[bvb]

my lads just rang he's just been assulted by other villa fans there on the rampage going fucking mad out side there groun a cars been overturned the old bills everywhere, there fighting each other

Is Shameless on?

shamefull more like,

[Dave Cooper please]

date=1299106054]


One more 'The City is ours' and I'll be deleting everything off the sky plus

Ouch! You know how to hurt a man.

[5ft811st2 Durham]

my lads just rang he's just been assulted by other villa fans there on the rampage going fucking mad out side there groun a cars been overturned the old bills everywhere, there fighting each other

Is Shameless on?

shamefull more like,

The new Mike and Bernie Winters.

[BBNCCW]

 And we better brace ourselves for Blues getting to another final, they'll beat Bolton and get Stoke/West Ham in the semi and play Man Utd in the final imo.
[/quote]

I think I might cry if this happens. I've got little doubts starting to creep in that this could be a turning point for them as well as us. And I really, really don't like it.

[richardhubbard]

Chris I like footy is houiller your new David o shitty? Your be defending Gaddafi next

[Chris Smith]

He's had a thankless job this season, but sometimes he really is his own worst enemy.

Agree with that, Paulie.

Even though I can see why he did it he must have had an idea how it would be perceived by a lot of fans who were only just coming round to offering him a modicum of support.

[Jimbo]

This is the first time in my life that we've taken a dive in the FA Cup. It's unforgivable.

[Dave Cooper please]

We play strange, pointless football; knock it about in our own half going nowhere and then lose it as soon as we reach the halfway line, great stuff.

Did you mean "tonight we played strange pointless football", or did you not watch the Blackburn match?