Aston Villa v Newcastle United Post-Match Thread

[UK Redsox]

I thought Gabby did well today.

I thought he was good, worked very hard. Couple of times I think he was a bit greedy & could have played Bent in, but they've only played a couple of games together upfront.

We played with two lone strikers today. That's  the best way of describing the on-pitch connection between Gabby and Darren. However, by the time Gabby came off, it did appear that they did have a vague idea that the other was on the pitch.

[UK Redsox]

Twice early on if Ranger had looked up and passed, a team mate would have had a tap in. However, after that, Dunne gave him a battering and he wasn't a factor again.

[PaulTheVillan]

Twice early on if Ranger had looked up and passed, a team mate would have had a tap in. However, after that, Dunne gave him a battering and he wasn't a factor again.

Lovenkrands was moaning at Ranger for a while after both these chances he missed.

[Mac]

The are some weird fuckers out there who always have to seek pain in any pleasure.  even after a much needed win, in a match we were rarely pressed they have to come on here and moan.

It's like you're desperate for us to go down, just so you can say," I told you so"

It's fucking pathetic.

[Chipsticks]

Project Anthem? Crap.

Bring a scarf day? Good.

Operation Survival? Fantastic.

[The Man With A Stick]

I saw some tweet on the BBC site that a barcodes fan had tweeted, along the lines of 'well we won 6-1 on aggregate and Villa's strongest could only beat our reserves.' Twat.

There is a grain of truth in that.
Had we been playing a side featuring Kevin Nolan and Leon Best, it might have been different.

As mentioned above, Nile Ranger was laughably bad.

Do you think they're slightly bitter that we took such enjoyment from relegating them?  Any other set of fans would have done the same.

You were shite, we sent you down, we had a laugh at your expense.  Deal with it.

[ozzjim]

Still think Kyle Walker would make a great right sided midfielder/winger.

It worked for Bale moving positions, I think it would work for him.

Agree wholeheartedly with this. I think he is totally wasted at right back. Sure chasing a game move him back ala Bale or even Giggs last week, but I think he would make a hell of a winger, while covering back well too. Got the pace and lungs for it.

Got to say I am not sure what people expected today, but at half time had Bents 'goal' stood, we would have been 2-0 up in a must win game. Second half we created a string of 'opportunities' which essentially we fecked up. Then we held on very well in the last 10 minutes, albeit with the keeper saving a couple.

Young was shit scared of Barton though, which was quite funny. Also - the moment Makoun went off for all the flak he is getting was the moment we stopped controlling the game. We hardly kept the ball after that.

[PaulWinch again]

I saw some tweet on the BBC site that a barcodes fan had tweeted, along the lines of 'well we won 6-1 on aggregate and Villa's strongest could only beat our reserves.' Twat.

There is a grain of truth in that.
Had we been playing a side featuring Kevin Nolan and Leon Best, it might have been different.

As mentioned above, Nile Ranger was laughably bad.

Do you think they're slightly bitter that we took such enjoyment from relegating them?  Any other set of fans would have done the same.

You were shite, we sent you down, we had a laugh at your expense.  Deal with it.

Precisely and they're still shite and next season I think they'll struggle.

[Witton Warrior]

Just back in and I thought Barton was MoM! After a noisy start we were just settling down whe he started playing up and it riled everyone up again. I kept saying to my mate we needed more "Joey moments" to get everyone going. "Your a shit Gareth Barry" and "...Lampard on a diet" ,ade me laff.

We should have romped home second half but they do insist on playing quite a structured way at the moment and I feel some flair is being sacrificed for stability?

Saw Downing go in and win a 40:60 ball yet miss another easier tackle.

Did anyone sing "The bells"? - we started it up only to be drowned out by "Barton is a w****" What is it with the Black Sabbath intro bells to the second half?

Enjoyed today in a perverse way - apart from Pires. Oh - my - God.

 

[KevinGage]

On the contrary, I thought it was a very underwhelming performance today. Important win but not one that feels me with much confidence going into next season if he's still here.

That would be my take on it.

Still, credit where credit is due the consensus was this was a must win game and we got over the line. You could feel the tension from the outset and even right up until the end it was as if everyone in the ground thought we'd throw it away. That weird intro at the kick off and again at the start of the second half kind of set the tone in that regard,  sounded like the bells of doom.

Encouraging that even with the tension there was some smart play in compact areas, the mix up between Walker and Petrov apart.  Overall our pattern of play was poor though, a lack of conviction, not playing to Bent's strengths and we always looked vulnerable on the counter, particularly with the ball played down either flank. There is a naivety to our play at times that seems at odds with the experience of the squad we can put out. There were huge gaps in the backline at times, better sides than Newcastle might have taken full advantage. But after gobbing it so many times this year it was just great to hang on. We probably caught a break with the state of their forward line today, but we were due one.

Credit to to GH for the subs, too he had a 'mare against Wolves but got it pretty spot on today in that regard.

Hard to split either Gabby or Petrov for MOTM. Gabby caused them problems all afternoon, but Stan calmed us down when we most needed it. Not at his absolute best, but closer to it than we've seen for a while. Intelligent use of the ball and good anticipation - the things he does better than anyone else in our side when he's on song.

[Mister E]

I thought Petrov and Downing were excellent today.
I thought AY and Makoun gave the ball away horribly in the first half; got bette rin the second.
I thought Walker and Collins were pulled around something rotten in the first half; got better.
LY was so energetic onthe overlap, and he and AY worked well on the left in the first half.
Gabby might not be the sharpest blade in the block, but his workrate and commitment were commednable, and he probably could / should have scored in the second half (when Harper parried his shot).
I thought Bent worked v hard as well with the closing-down of the NU defenders.

This was a big win for us: I can't really understand why some people are moaning about the performance - it was always going to be about the result.

[Mister E]

Oh, and Barton should have been carded for his verbal volley at the ref.

[Salsa Party Animal]

I think Gaby worked hard but he doesn't supply the correct passes / crosses for Bent. If Gaby is top notch supplier I would think Bent get a hat trick.

Newcastle is bad especially Ranger. I hope Small Heath will break their transfer record to sign Ranger

Good result

[DB]

What do others make of Makoun?

I would still feel more comfortable having NRC playing than Makoun.
Still think he needs a little time to adjust to the league.

I'd rather he was given time to adjust after we have secured our Premier League status... I thought he was very lightweight today. He needs to bulk up a bit and improve his passing. NRC and Petrov should get the not for West Ham.

Shaky first 10mins but after that he settled down and did alright, I agree though with more time he will be  good player for us.

[Chipsticks]

Personally, I thought Makoun had an excellent game, along with Luke Young who was very energetic on the overlap and got forward plenty of times; got him mixed up with Kyle Walker a lot!

I was disappointed with Gabby though, didn't play very well and really just ran around for 90 minutes not doing much - that's probably a little harsh on the lad and I love him to bits but I'll have to watch the highlights on Match Of The Day before making a proper judgement.