Aston Villa v Stoke City Post-Match Thread

[darren woolley]

It wasn't the best game I just knew Stoke would spoil it for us.

[Ozzjim]

I would not go if I had to watch that Stoke team every week. Assembled to kick teams, bully teams, and play percentage to get throw ins for one of the worst players in arguably the top 2 divisions to launch a throw. Foy then let them take half an hour to arrange themselves at each throw, giving them the initiative every time. They are the anti christ of all football. Wimbledon were twice the side in their pomop. Hell Stoke make Fashanu, Ekoko, Holdsworth and Robbie Earle look like a quartet from the Brazil 1970 team. Still pissed off that I spent 97 minutes of my life watching that yesterday. Horrible.


As for Villa, Young was shite all game, this happens, but GMac should have taken him off and not Downing, or moved Downing inside for one of the 2 centre mids and bought Albrighton on. The wholew side lacked a creative edge, and the central 2 were never troubled by Stoke, who bypassed their midfield for 96 of the 97 minutes.

[olaftab]

We need to learn how to break down these anti-football, negative teams.

We have been saying this for 5 seasons  me you somehow knew that Everton will not be able to

This happens when you can keep that intense press going. That means keeping possession and moving forward. United did that  against Everton yesterday. Watching the last 10 mins of that game you knew that Everton will not be able to hold on. The pressure was  enormous  and it all came from United players  hurrying everything  no time to rest for Everton defence and finally they made a mistake. We  need better players to keep hold of the ball and we need to increase the intensity of our play by many folds. YES easy I know!!

[Chris Smith]

Stoke are cheats, far from the honest bunch that their fans would have you believe. Add in a referee too cowardly to try to do anything about it and any chance of a decent game of football goes out of the window. If everyone played like them football would die as a spectator sport. It will be a sad reflection on the game if that approach produces a trophy.

We've struggled against direct physical sides for as long as I can remember so it was no surprise yesterday.

Pulis is the world's oldest chav, as the Libertines sang "There are fewer more distressing sights than that
of an Englishman in a baseball cap". (I know he's Welsh but it still applies)

[olaftab]

I might go just for the  fun of watching other teams panic at throw ins.
However they are not very successful with their methods. Yesterday they had 38 points and with one or two bad results could be right in there.

[Monty]

The worst thing about Stoke's style is just how damn slow it is. At least Watford played the game at a million miles an hour, the whole thing this kind of mad free-for-all. Stoke just get the ball at the back, look up for a bit, then slowly loft it as far as they can. It is the worst thing you can imagine in football. And into that some of those tackles then, I'm sorry, every time a Sturkie says "we're just playing our football" I'll just remember how refs were lenient on Wimbledon because they were scared.

As for us we made the mistake of trying to play them on their terms - physical team so let's battle them, the argument goes. What actually happened was they were quite content to play that game, heading away the boofs to the pointless Heskey with ease. Why did Downing go off? If not for injury, it's inexplicable. I'd have rather had Makoun's passing in that game, and possibly Albrighton starting instead of Heskey, because his presence just played into Stoke's hands.

[Clampy]

No other player would be allowed to take as much time as that over a throw in, why should it be any different for Delap? It's ridiculous and yet another ref fell for it yesterday.

[villasjf]

What an awful team Stoke are, so who do I want to win the FA cup? NO ONE, not Man City who would have bought the cup or Stoke who would have stolen it.

[Monty]

What an awful team Stoke are, so who do I want to win the FA cup? NO ONE, not Man City who would have bought the cup or Stoke who would have stolen it.

I have to say, that game really represents everything that's wrong with English football, or rather both of the most fundamental things wrong with English football.

[fredm]

What a horrible, horrible game.

We could not beat a team who have lost their last 7, yes 7!!!, away matches.

GH has been trying to instill movement and passing into the team.  Well yesterday showed that not one iota has sunk in.  There was no movement, no moving off the ball, no quick moving of the ball, just predictable slow passing usually followed by a punt up field which was picked off by their centre backs, usually assisted by a shove in the back on our front two which went unpunished by Mr Foy.

I believe that teams should be allowed to play to their strengths and also be physical if they wish.  But how the hell can a team put two players blocking the goalkeeper from trying to come out and collect a cross without being penalised is beyond me.  Unfortunately I think Brad is too nice and didn't clean them out, just like Robinson did on Baker when we played Rovers.  If Brad had done that at the start and smacked one of them then Foy would have had to take action.

To me there were too many players yesterday who were thinking to themselves that GH won't be here next season, I probably won't be either, we are safe, so why bother.

[Rip Van We Go Again]

Stoke are cheats, far from the honest bunch that their fans would have you believe. Add in a referee too cowardly to try to do anything about it and any chance of a decent game of football goes out of the window. If everyone played like them football would die as a spectator sport. It will be a sad reflection on the game if that approach produces a trophy.

Couldn't agree more.
Dirty bastards and i'd love to see them relegated next season.

Foy was seemingly shit scared of them.

That Huth is a ****** as well.

[dave.woodhall]

No other player would be allowed to take as much time as that over a throw in, why should it be any different for Delap? It's ridiculous and yet another ref fell for it yesterday.

It's like you're playing Rory Delap's Throw-In FC and because that's what you've come to see, he has to be given every advantage.

[Mazrim]

Why was Bent giving the Potters the shush sign after he scored by the way? Seems unlike him.
Were they giving him grief?

I couldn't hear their small contingent from L8.

[Pete3206]

No other player would be allowed to take as much time as that over a throw in, why should it be any different for Delap? It's ridiculous and yet another ref fell for it yesterday.

It's like you're playing Rory Delap's Throw-In FC and because that's what you've come to see, he has to be given every advantage.

Wasn't there a campaign on The General's thread to put advertising hoardings around the pitch to nullify the advantage for this game?

[Dave Cooper please]

Pulis is the world's oldest chav, as the Libertines sang "There are fewer more distressing sights than that
of an Englishman in a baseball cap". (I know he's Welsh but it still applies)

Oh, that's what that line says, I just used to mumble the first bit.