Villa being discussed at length on Talksport right now

[SamTheMouse]

I think the thing about Houllier is this: it wasn't the results or even the performances that were encouraging. It was his assessment of the playing staff. It took him barely a couple of weeks at VP to spot that Dunne, Collins and Warnock were troublemakers content to stroll along doing what they wanted. The players he put in the team most frequently were the ones who are comfortable with the ball at their feet. It speaks volumes that Clark starred for us last year but is nowhere to be seen now. Sure, Ged needed to find a better balance and his man management skills have always been iffy, but for the first time in ages we were looking at the prospect of continental-style possession football down the Villa.

The revelation by Cabaye that he was due to sign for us is more evidence that Houllier would've shipped in some technical players and dispensed with the old school mob. I was getting quite excited about the summer, until he got ill. 

That's what I couldn't fathom about the decision to appoint McLeish. Randy had seemingly decided to go down a different path, and even after Houllier left it looked like he wanted to forge ahead with it - as evidenced by the approach to Martinez. But then did a massive u-turn and brought in an old-fashioned British manager to appease the likes of Dunne and Collins. I can only assume he panicked...

[brontebilly]

I do think there has been some revisionism over GH's time at the club on here lately.

understatement of the year.

Houllier's take on man management is to slate players publicly and abdicate himself of all responsibility.

He was horrendous. McLeish is more of a decent sort but he doesnt have Young, Downing and Walker who between the three of them must have created the vast majority of Bent's chances last season.

McLeish's football philosophy is too miserable for words. We are a shambles on and off the pitch

[Chris Smith]

It took him weeks to find out that  player who had been in the PL team of the year was a dud?  It really is the day for rewriting history.

Dunne is really good defender, results improved when GH saw sense and put him and Collins back in the side.

[Villanation]

With the brother of a Villa legend (goalkeeper) and one of the greats from the 80's squad yesterday to do with this time of year and stuff, one of which is a good friend haven't seen for a couple of months, shooting the breeze with regards to Villa, point made was Villa fans don't know half the truth as to the promises not kept where MON was concerned, and what forced him out, also said anybody that has any dealings in the game and frequents the Villa training ground and Club area's now, will know just how different the atmosphere and organisation is and how an almost apathetic attitude has taken over.

The phrase used was the club is becoming unglued from the top down and when MON was there, there was always the prospect of something being won.

All about opinion.

[SamTheMouse]

It took him weeks to find out that  player who had been in the PL team of the year was a dud?  It really is the day for rewriting history.

Dunne is really good defender, results improved when GH saw sense and put him and Collins back in the side.

Dunne is great providing he's on the edge of his own area, and everything is being played in front of him. Ditto Collins. They're heroic, chucking themselves in front of shots and heading away aerial bombardments. But ask them to push up just a bit, or control a back pass and move it on to a teammate along the deck when under a tiny bit of pressure, and they get shown up. Hence the dummy-spitting when Houllier told them to play a different way. To be fair, if they knew they weren't capable of playing that way, I suppose they had little choice but to rebel. The games when they looked better and results improved were, funnily enough, the games where we sat back and allowed the opposition to dictate play more.

It's not their fault, and I guess you could fault Houllier for trying to make a silk purse out of a sow's ear, but I'd have liked to see the replacements he'd have brought in...

[Merv]

That's my regret with Houllier, SamTheMouse. He played his hand too soon last season and probably should have kept Dunne, Collins and Warnock onside until the summer, but the final dozen games saw improved performances (not just because D & C were brought back into the team, they played most of the season between them and we really only left out of the side when they both had injuries and then as punishment for their breach of discipline) and I was quite excited to see who GH would have recruited in the close season.

I don't mind Collins and I can't help liking Dunne but I do think they're both a bit one-dimensional and certainly not worthy of undroppable status.

[pauliewalnuts]

Collins is alright in patches, but the sight of him swinging his leg and the ball taking a 40 yard trip into no-mans land is fast becoming my least favourite thing about football these days

[N'ZMAV]

The all new Mellberg hoof.

[Iago]

I would love a takeover to happen, so we could start to rebuild properly.

[SamTheMouse]

Collins is alright in patches, but the sight of him swinging his leg and the ball taking a 40 yard trip into no-mans land is fast becoming my least favourite thing about football these days

Tell me about it. The thing is, to some extent I sympathise with Chris' view that the defenders lack passing options when they get it. But Dunne and Collins are the elder statesmen of the side, and if they find they're having to go long all the time, they should be bawling and screaming at the young midfielders to provide more movement off the ball. But they don't, they just take the easy option and put their foot through it. To be fair, it's a British disease. By all accounts Capello did his nut with the England lads at first, and had to drill it into them to keep the ball on the deck. That's why I think Houllier's continental connections would have transformed us.

[Witton Warrior]

With the brother of a Villa legend (goalkeeper) and one of the greats from the 80's squad yesterday to do with this time of year and stuff, one of which is a good friend haven't seen for a couple of months, shooting the breeze with regards to Villa, point made was Villa fans don't know half the truth as to the promises not kept where MON was concerned, and what forced him out, also said anybody that has any dealings in the game and frequents the Villa training ground and Club area's now, will know just how different the atmosphere and organisation is and how an almost apathetic attitude has taken over.

The phrase used was the club is becoming unglued from the top down and when MON was there, there was always the prospect of something being won.

All about opinion.

I know we have to treat all "inside" knowledge with caution (and no offence meant VNation) but this doesn't surprise me one bit...

That we will never know what really happened with MON is very galling...

[Rigadon]

It took him weeks to find out that  player who had been in the PL team of the year was a dud?  It really is the day for rewriting history.

Dunne is really good defender, results improved when GH saw sense and put him and Collins back in the side.

Dunne is great providing he's on the edge of his own area, and everything is being played in front of him. Ditto Collins. They're heroic, chucking themselves in front of shots and heading away aerial bombardments. But ask them to push up just a bit, or control a back pass and move it on to a teammate along the deck when under a tiny bit of pressure, and they get shown up. Hence the dummy-spitting when Houllier told them to play a different way. To be fair, if they knew they weren't capable of playing that way, I suppose they had little choice but to rebel. The games when they looked better and results improved were, funnily enough, the games where we sat back and allowed the opposition to dictate play more.

It's not their fault, and I guess you could fault Houllier for trying to make a silk purse out of a sow's ear, but I'd have liked to see the replacements he'd have brought in...

Agree with that.  They have been great at playing deep and defending aerial balls under MON because of the style of football we played (counter attack).  That doesn't make them bad defenders, just limited when playing in a way tat requires them to play the ball out from defence and deal with teams passing their way through a bit of a dodgy midfield.  Those are our two biggest problems for me central midfield and the effect it has on the defence. 

[Chris Smith]

Trying to get a centre half to play in a style he's not suited to is as stupid as asking Barry Bannan to act as a target man. Just because Houllier had good ideas about how the game should be played, he must have I've seen it posted often enough, doesn't make him a good manager.

[Greg N'Ash]

Dunne and Collins were hugely over-rated in MON's time. The reason they did so well to start with is they had players in front of them like Milner and a pre-breathing through his arse Petrov winning and keeping the ball so the pressure was off them. As soon as that went their flaws were exposed for all to see.

[TheSandman]

And Cuellar as a third centre half covering for them.