Bolton Wanderers v Aston Villa Post-Match Thread

[Shrek]

Houllier got it spot on today!

Ash Downing and Bent all missed sitters.
They let us down today not Houllier.

We had a very inexperienced defence that were under pressure because we kept missing easy chances.

Friedel NEVER comes for crosses or corners. Most goalkeepers will come for around 50% of crosses, this just adds more pressure to a defence.

People need to wake up and get over them selfs with all this anti houllier shit.
He turned Liverpool into a challenging team regulary in the CL, he has vastly improved us in a short time so let's give him a chance and we might have some success.

I'm certain our defence will be totally different next season.

But we might be in The Championship.

It remains to be seen the effect Wednesday's decisions will have on the rest of the season, but we ain't got long to find out.

Houllier can't be trusted. He's proven that much.

Ow right, so your not happy with Makoun, Walker and Bent?

Your angry Sidwell, Carew and Ireland aren't still here.

Yeah yeah he can't be trusted he is shit.

You just only see what you want to and drive the man out the club, we were so much better under Oneil... If we continue to progress at the rate we are the future is bright.

He isn't a magician, he can't make Friedel younger, he can't put the sitters away and he can only work with what he has.

[brontebilly]

Brontebilly gave Young 8................OMG

Thought Young was excellent today. He missed a penalty. Big deal he has scored the last four or five. Even Lampard and Rooney miss the odd one. His set pieces were a mixed bag - one an absolutely awful rugby kick but there was also an excellent one in the first half. But his general play was excellent, held the ball up really well and won a consistent amount of free kicks and the penalty. Thought he showed for the ball really well today and passed it well too. Remember more than a few cracking through balls he put in. Had a great shot after the bad Bent miss too swivelled quickly and got the shot on target with his left.

[Holtenderinthesky]

and we always struggle at Bolton

Do we?  I don't think so.

[pauliewalnuts]

Typical Villa conceding at the end of each half! I've lost count of how many times that's happened. Rubs salt in the wounds when Gary Cahill gets two goals.
I have a bad feeling about this season: MON leaving us in the mire from the word go, loads of injuries at vital stages of the season, conceding late goals all the time. The pattern continues and it could yet see us relegated. Collins and Cuellar have to play against Wolves - both should be ready. I would pair Gabby with Bent with Ash and Downing on the wings

I would go:

Friedel
Walker
Clark
Cuellar
Collins
NRC
Makoun
Downing
Bent
A Young
Agbonlahor

Do you agree?

Clark is suspended.

[sfx412]

People need to wake up and get over them selfs with all this anti houllier shit.
He turned Liverpool into a challenging team regulary in the CL, he has vastly improved us in a short time so let's give him a chance and we might have some success.

WIth all due respect, it's nonsensical to just put it down to "anti Houllier" shit.

It's not "love him or hate him" - a lot of us can see the good work he is doing in other areas of the pitch, and are happy to acknowledge it, but you can not just ignore the frailities which persist, especially as we get more results like today, and persist in lingering a tiny number of points off the relegation spots.

As for "vastly improved us" - obviously not that much, or we wouldn't be where we are right now.

So the injuries that led to that defensive line up are all his fault. The lack of cover in defence able to fill in his all his fault. The  need to play kids, because there's no one else is all his fault.
I despair.
The need to blame Houllier is so important for some they can't see the obvious. Just look at that defence.
Walker, Young, Clarke, Baker.
How many Villa fans would have put that as the best we could offer come 5 days before kickoff.
Would you have Pauli ?

[ktvillan]

There is just no point playing great for most of the match if you can't defend in the most vital moments of the match towards the end.

Yet again we un-do all the good work in the last 10-15 minutes. That's where games are either won, lost or drawn for us. It's like it every time.

I'm just annoyed. Not pointing fingers at anyone, not playing the blame game, just in general and wholly pissed off at everything. Missing a penalty, conceding from corners, conceding on the stroke of half-time and concedeing in the last few minutes yet again. When will we learn.

That' the most infuriating thing - our problems are mostly self-inflicted.  We're actually a decent footballing side, close to being very good at times, we  play some great stuff, we set up chances and we shoot ourselves in the foot by missing most of them.  We then shoot ourselves in the other foot by defending like giggling schoolgirls.  And we never seem to learn from our mistakes, so they just keep repeating ad fucking nauseum.

To those saying we can't blame GH, it's the players' fault, if that were the case no manager would ever get sacked, even for getting relegated.  He's the boss, the buck stops with him, it goes with the territory.

I just want this season over and done with now and for us to survive it.

[madirishvillain]

and we have to get rid of players because of the debt

the results today coudnt have gone any worse for us

just need Wigan to get a result v Man City tonight (although that shouldnt happen after our confidence booster)


we are going down, make no mistake - the only worse team i see apart from us is Wigan

[pauliewalnuts]

He isn't a magician, he can't make Friedel younger, he can't put the sitters away and he can only work with what he has.

Yep, so what's he been working on with the defence?

[Andy_Lochhead_in_the_air]

If Houllier was resting players against Man City - a game that we couldn't win, by his own admission - then why didn't he rest Dunne - our only fit senior central defender? Instead, he risked him in a game we were certain to lose - as Houllier himself confirmed - and he got injured. So we played kids at the back in the next match, because we had no choice, and we got beat. True, we had the chances to win this game and threw them all away, one by one. But the defence just couldn't hack it. I do blame the players, but the manager has to shoulder the blame too. It's his set-up, and we've been unable to defend for the duration of his time here. When's it going to change?

Well said Jimbo and why hasnt he got a defensive coach ?

Also why does he let Ashley Young do what he wants, play where he wants and take all the set pieces

Personally Im gettin more and more naffed off with Ashley Young. Yes let him do what he wants...........and go to spurz.

[luke95]

Houllier got it spot on today!

Ash Downing and Bent all missed sitters.
They let us down today not Houllier.

We had a very inexperienced defence that were under pressure because we kept missing easy chances.

Friedel NEVER comes for crosses or corners. Most goalkeepers will come for around 50% of crosses, this just adds more pressure to a defence.

People need to wake up and get over them selfs with all this anti houllier shit.
He turned Liverpool into a challenging team regulary in the CL, he has vastly improved us in a short time so let's give him a chance and we might have some success.

I'm certain our defence will be totally different next season.

Improved us  ??

Houllier got it spot on today!

Ash Downing and Bent all missed sitters.
They let us down today not Houllier.

We had a very inexperienced defence that were under pressure because we kept missing easy chances.

Friedel NEVER comes for crosses or corners. Most goalkeepers will come for around 50% of crosses, this just adds more pressure to a defence.

People need to wake up and get over them selfs with all this anti houllier shit.
He turned Liverpool into a challenging team regulary in the CL, he has vastly improved us in a short time so let's give him a chance and we might have some success.

I'm certain our defence will be totally different next season.

Mate we're 3 points of a relegation place after 29 games cant keep a clean sheet for toffee , how has he improved us ?.


take your head out the sand

[andyh]

Same old story , 21 points dropped from leading positions now, another 2 goals from corners and again a chance to kill a team off and a missed pen and bang we lose .

Five yrs ago randy came and we began to dream of great days, 5 yrs later we have won nothing, are in a relegation battle , have a manager who has split the fans, have lost our best players , and have record debts.

Bright future?

We also have a fantastic training ground, a wonderful youth academy and have finished in the top 6 3 times.  Add to that the fact that we have come a lot closer to silverware since Lerner arrived than the 5 years before, smashed our transfer record to buy an international striker and have some of the most promising youngsters in the country and you get a more balanced view. 

We would have a fantastic training ground anyway. It was being built.
We have always had a wonderful academy
What has finishing 6th won us
Close to silverware ? Well, close but no banana.
Samshed our transfer record, but also sold players for more money than ever before.
Promising youngsters ? yes we do. But so does most clubs.

I'm not saying that I don't welcome RL and his involvement.
But, it seems to me that where it matters, on the playing side, we are no further foward than on day 1 of his tenure.

[Jimbo]

I expected to lose, but just not in this manner. Throwing it away. Biting ourselves on the arse. Where's the bloke-shoving-a-sharpened-ship's-mast-up-his-own-ragged-anus emoticon?

[Sexual Ealing]

People need to wake up and get over them selfs with all this anti houllier shit.
He turned Liverpool into a challenging team regulary in the CL, he has vastly improved us in a short time so let's give him a chance and we might have some success.

He's vastly improved us!?

There's a pretty good, impartial measurment of how good, relative to one another, football teams are. It's called the league table, and I'm sorry to say that it kind of proves you wrong.

[TheMitaCopier]

our away record is shocking, and so is our defence, if this doesn't get resolved we'll be having a lot more days like today. 

[The Situation]

Young is a cock, and Friedel should retire at the end of the season, he has nothing left to offer.

Young has one good game in 6.  If he's not winning pens for throwing himself to the floor he's no use.  Billy Big Bollocks. Get rid.

Like we did Cahill you mean

Well if you think we should persist with a player who has one good game in 6, is living off a reputation built 3 seasons ago but is clearly much better than shows, then I'll bow to your superior knowledge Malcolm.  I'll just remember when I see another corner/free kick going nowhere near the  he's such a great player.

PS I wouldn't have sold Cahill and said so at the time

lol

Didn't see anyone complaining last week.

The vitriol towards Ash on here is amusing.

Yea, the penalty miss was the key point in why we lost I feel... but if we'd been able to show some spine in the last 10 minutes it'd gone the other way.

Poor defending and not taking chances is why we lost today.

Oh well. It's been a horrific week of football. We need to move on and look ahead to winnning our next important game. Atleast we'll have Makoun and a better defence next week.