Aston Villa v Newcastle United Post-Match Thread

[ktvillan]

People are saying N'Zogbia needs time and i agree but by the same token, Makoun put in much better performances in the short time he was here and he apparantley was'nt good enough.

I know, after about 7 appearances some experts decided Makoun hadn't adapted and wasn't PL standard. Despite giving one of the best passing performances I've ever seen from a Villa player at OT.   And now almost everyone is whinging about the dearth of talent in centre midfield.  Some fans get the team they deserve I guess.

[VillaZogmariner]

I said during the game yesterday that we needed Makoun in the middle. We'd have been much better holding on to possession.

[Nastylee]

Cannot see what Delph brings to the table. People were raving about him after the Blackburn game, a game where I thought he was average at best. I really want him to do well but I think it's a case of spending money on potential that perhaps won't be realised. CM is being cruelly exposed at the moment and we have a dilemma - Do we play three in CM as the expense of Gabby upfront or hope that Delph/Jenas come good?

I think the defence look sorted at the moment but I think creativity is a major issue since we look unable to control a game from the centre of the park. We looked like the away team yesterday; just trying to catch the opposition on the break. Must say I'm a little concerned about next week's visit to QPR.

[villan1975]

If it was that simple everybody would do it wouldn't they?  We are a slightly above average side at the moment in a league with 3 stella, mega wealthy clubs that will win everything and another 17 below / average / above average sides that can all beat each other on any given day.  Sometimes those teams draw. 

It is not the result that I dispute as any point is a reasonable result,the problem I have is the
manner in which we played.If you had not known where it was played you would assume
Newcastle were the home team.They are a very average premier team and who dominated
possession and chances and would have been very disappointed with a point.
For all Houlliers faults and there were many atleast he had a footballing ethos,I cannot see
one at the moment.It is early days yet and I do understand everything needs time to gel.
Not all doom and gloom though as Given is as we knew a top class keeper and Gabi is
looking a player again.

[TimTheVillain]

Taking Bannan off was bizarre.

He was our best player I thought, but it's clear we have an awful lot of work to do to finish 9th again.

N'Zog - c'mon fella, show us what you can do.

Given, the best GK in a Villa shirt in ages.

UTV

[Rudy Can't Fail]

Was Petrov substituted due to an injury?

Yup, both Petrov and Bent were forced substitutions. Warnock took a knock in the first half and had to have an injection at half time. Not sure what they gave him but it did the trick.

[Villanation]

Think the rest of the squad have to feed of Given and Gabby, some of the save's 1 in particular that Given made was almost as good as the legendary Gordon Banks save from the Pele header, don't know how he did it, it was past him going into the net and his whole body contorted and stretched beyond belief, and his friggin wrists must be that strong, best save I've seen in a very long time, he kept us from being on the wrong end of an absolute thrashing.

Gabby, Gabby is proving without question of doubt that a) He's back and b) he is without doubt one of the best front men in the Premiership, fact is, in spite of all the problems we have in getting service to our front men......it ain't stopping Gabby from scoring, reality, so Bent needs to wake himself up a little and he need's to get in there with Gabby and although I was very critical of Zog, the cross he made to Bent, if Bent had of tripped and knocked his head on the ball as he fell, it would have gone in.

Rest of the squad need to look to Given and Gabby, if they can do it then there is no excuse.

[JJ-AV]

Dunne was at fault for Best's goal.

[martyn ellis]

OK, let's put this into perspective. There were moments of very good football yesterday. Bent's first half missed chance was a beautifully fluent move involving two players who are being consistently slagged off by some posters, N'Zogbia and Petrov. If that had gone in, when we were playing pretty well, I think we would have gone on to win comfortably.
Contrary to what a lot of people are saying, Newcastle looked a lot more accomplished than an 'average' team. Really well organised at the back and with both tactics and ability spot on in the middle of the park and with Cabaye running the show in the second half. Our midfield, by contrast opens up acres of space for opponents to run into and something has to be done. Petrov obviously hurt his ankle on half time and Bent was poor, partly because of poor service but mainly because he needs his groin to heal properly.
We are now at a stage when a win would make our start very promising and a loss would do the opposite. Playing on tv at that cramped little dump that is Loftus Road does not, I feel, bode well.

[supertom]

Delph doesn't seem ready to me. He's still plagued by inconsistency, and hasn't really ever stamped himself on a game like a top midfielder to me. He's got the talent, but we need someone more experienced in there. Sadly, I do think we miss Coker a lot right now. Petrov's been good this season but still needs legs and energy next to him. Bannan needs someone solid in midfield who can take the physical pressure off him.
Jenas when fit will have a lot riding on him, because if he performs as he can, he'll make our midfield look a lot better. We'd still lack someone to get their foot in and disrupt the opposition, but at least he's got experience AND stamina.

I'd consider dropping Bent and putting Gabby through the middle. Then again, N'Zogbia should be dropped first. Again, where are the options? I'd maybe be tempted to play Ireland and Albrighton on the wide positions, with Ireland more free, and Gab through the centre. See how it works for the balance of the side.

Plus is it me, or do we actually miss Heskeys presence? We don't excactly look much better off creatively.

[Eigentor]

It's understandable that people are screaming for more creativity, especially as one of the big question marks surrounding McLeish is whether he has the nous to inspire the kind of football that will bring enthusiasm back to the club. But these things take time.

The worry for me is that the team does not look like a coherent unit at all. It's nice to see that we have regained the battling quality of the MON era, but this was an aspect of our game that was returning in the latter days of the Houllier/McAllister regime too, so I'm not sure if this is something entirely new or just a continuation of something that started last spring.

McLeish's first priority should be to work on the midfield: try to find some balance, even if it means ditching N'Zogbia and replacing him with Clark (or maybe even Gardner). We were so disjointed yesterday that we even made containing Newcastle at home look like hard work for most part of the match. That needs to be sorted when our easy start to the season is over.

[Greg N'Ash]

The fixture list has been kind to us so far and i'd have hoped for more points on the board to be honest. October looks trickier and then the shit really hits the fan in November and December. Think its probably best to reserve judgement till then. AM will then have the option* to strengthen things depending if we're doing all right or if we're stuck a few points above the relegation area or worse. The problem is obviously in midfield. Delph - i still don't get him and i think its a case that we spent so much on him people don't want to admit he's limited. Petrov is on the wane realistically, just getting past it. It needs sorting - fast.


* (you've got to hope Lerner would cough up some money in January if we're struggling)

[Villanation]

Delph doesn't seem ready to me. He's still plagued by inconsistency, and hasn't really ever stamped himself on a game like a top midfielder to me. He's got the talent, but we need someone more experienced in there. Sadly, I do think we miss Coker a lot right now. Petrov's been good this season but still needs legs and energy next to him. Bannan needs someone solid in midfield who can take the physical pressure off him.
Jenas when fit will have a lot riding on him, because if he performs as he can, he'll make our midfield look a lot better. We'd still lack someone to get their foot in and disrupt the opposition, but at least he's got experience AND stamina.

I'd consider dropping Bent and putting Gabby through the middle. Then again, N'Zogbia should be dropped first. Again, where are the options? I'd maybe be tempted to play Ireland and Albrighton on the wide positions, with Ireland more free, and Gab through the centre. See how it works for the balance of the side.

Plus is it me, or do we actually miss Heskeys presence? We don't excactly look much better off creatively.

I agree, I'm not overly convinced about Delph, its all very well people saying he got and it will come out, well, where is it, how long as he been at the club now, he really should be showing it, its not enough he does it in training, in training his fellow team mates will be sympathetic to his play, ask anybody that has played football, fact is the opposition want to hack him of the park, and he's proving to slow in the take up for me.

If for the reason that Bent is injured I would also rest him for Bolton and leave Gabby up front, Gabby will get in there whatever and do what's required even with minimal service.

However if Bent is fit, he must play, Darren Bent is still one of the best poachers in the Premiership, he carries enormous threat to his game, we can't afford to go out of this and we need him to come good.

 

[Eigentor]

Delph - i still don't get him and i think its a case that we spent so much on him people don't want to admit he's limited.

I think Delph shows glimpses of his potential, but his injuries have limited his progression: he is still raw talent. Relying on him to run the midfield together with the tiring legs of Petrov isn't the answer, allthough I realise that McLeish doesn't have many options. Plus, he doesn't have the qualities to work as a holding midfielder (which it, at times, looked as he was supposed to be yesterday).

Even though Young and Downing were far more talented, it's not inconceivable that NRC will be the midfielder we'll miss the most this season.

[Clampy]

The fixture list has been kind to us so far and i'd have hoped for more points on the board to be honest.

I've been happy with the points we've picked up away from home, and the Wolves game was always going to be tough, Derbies normally are, but i was expecting a win yesterday so 9 points would have been a decent start. 7 points is not too bad though. If we can pick up a point next week and beat Wigan before the international break, then hopefully we can push on from there. 

As for Delph, there's a really good player there, he was fantastic against Blackburn, he just needs to add consistency to his game and has he gets older, hopefully that will come.