Arsenal v Aston Villa F.A. Cup 4th Round Post-Match Thread

[saunders_heroes]

Get a feckin grip Saunders heroes. The whole defence is a shambles and you pick on a sub who was on for 10minutes?

Get a grip yourself. I've already blamed our defence for the defeat. I'm just confused that someone is singing the praises of Barry Bannan when he's done nothing to warrant it.

[villadelph]

The biggest problem for me is, and I think JUAN PABLO highlighted this earlier but, we don't learn. We create no intelligence or aptitude as we play. Their entire backline was make shift. They had teenage midfielders playing at the back and we couldn't figure out how to legitimately attack them.

We relied far too much on the counter attack. When we opened them up and had a good go back and forth, especially when Ireland would float into the middle, we looking somewhat promising. But other than that we just set our line at our 45 yard marker and packed it in. It was cowardly. It was an FA Cup game for crying out loud, we have nothing to lose.

Alan Hutton, I'm sorry buddy.. I really tried to give you a chance, I really did. But no, just no. Keep Cuellar, and give this guy the plank.

Stephen Warnock, you worked your socks off. But you need to smarten up. I applaud the effort.

We need to have more creativity in the middle of the park. Clark and Petrov just have no clue how to center a possession oriented offense. At times it we had six full backs, it was shameful.

Early in the game around the 6 minute mark I remember Ireland having a beaut of a flick on to a running Hutton and I thought to myself that Stevie was going to have a day. If he plays, I want him in the middle of the park. He's not a winger, he's a creative pivot player that can distribute. When I thought about his assist to Bent today I realized that no one in our squad, with the exception of Bannan, can or would even consider that pass. And it's such an easy through up to a striker! Petrov would have stomped on it and passed it backwards, at which Hutton would get ahold of it and then to Dunney, a pass back to Given and a boot back to Arsenal.

We need a more potent offensive threat in the heart of the park.

It must've been tough for Alex to watch an 8 minute mauling, only to give up the lead and play with our tails between our legs for a half hour. It was a tough one to watch. He had no solution for this one. Hope he gets it right for QPR.

[AV82EC]

Just got home to Manchester after dropping son off in Chester.  I haven't read the thread but I can probably guess the sentiment. 

I can take losing but as ever its the hope that kills you, 2-0 at half time and you dared to believe for a tiny moment.  A depressing and some would say avoidable second half collapse of calamitous proportions.

Oh well thats 55 years now and 22 since I became a supporter and its gnawing away at me, this is the one result of the season that puts me straight into an inconsolable slough of despond.  I can take the league defeats after normally a short period of reflection this will normally take a few weeks of hurt.  Me and the lad sat in silence the whole way home, couldn't face music or the radio, a suitable period of mourning seemed to be called for.

I'd dissect the match but what would be the point, for 15 minutes everyone of those players let us down today.

See you on Wednesday.....

[luke25]

Just got home, had an excellent day apart from those fucking 16 minutes.
Started off by finding a pair of tickets in the North stand car park, handed them to security and was pleased to hear they were returned to a couple who were at the ticket office asking if anybody had found them, then found a couple of coach tickets which were taken to coach number 14 and then in the aftermath of our second goal somebody dropped an IPhone, asked a few people around us but nobody claimed it so at half time went to the concourse and had a look through the pictures to try and match a face, belonged to a young lad a few rows behind so was once again returned, even after all that goodwill the lord still wouldn't smile down at us and let us win.
Onto the match we were just way to narrow, for 15/20 minutes at the beginning of the 2nd half we needed to keep possession and frustrate arsenal but we resorted to our kamikaze defending which has become a feature of our season.
When did Arsenal fans turn into a bunch of jester hat wearing Tarquins? Thought I was at Stamford bridge for a while.
One last thing before I shut up and go to sleep, has anybody came across a Mrs Robinson on there travels or at Villa Park? She's an elderly lady (maybe 70's) who's missed 2 away games in 5 years and sat opposite us on the coach, an absolute character and possibly the most knowledgable Villain I've had the pleasure to talk to.

[pauliewalnuts]

Just got home, had an excellent day apart from those fucking 16 minutes.
Started off by finding a pair of tickets in the North stand car park, handed them to security and was pleased to hear they were returned to a couple who were at the ticket office asking if anybody had found them, then found a couple of coach tickets which were taken to coach number 14 and then in the aftermath of our second goal somebody dropped an IPhone, asked a few people around us but nobody claimed it so at half time went to the concourse and had a look through the pictures to try and match a face, belonged to a young lad a few rows behind so was once again returned, even after all that goodwill the lord still wouldn't smile down at us and let us win.

Crikey, fair play to you, Luke.

One last thing before I shut up and go to sleep, has anybody came across a Mrs Robinson on there travels or at Villa Park? She's an elderly lady (maybe 70's) who's missed 2 away games in 5 years and sat opposite us on the coach, an absolute character and possibly the most knowledgable Villain I've had the pleasure to talk to.

I'd like to let her know a bit about herself for my files, I'd like to help her learn to help herself.

[luke25]

Just got home, had an excellent day apart from those fucking 16 minutes.
Started off by finding a pair of tickets in the North stand car park, handed them to security and was pleased to hear they were returned to a couple who were at the ticket office asking if anybody had found them, then found a couple of coach tickets which were taken to coach number 14 and then in the aftermath of our second goal somebody dropped an IPhone, asked a few people around us but nobody claimed it so at half time went to the concourse and had a look through the pictures to try and match a face, belonged to a young lad a few rows behind so was once again returned, even after all that goodwill the lord still wouldn't smile down at us and let us win.

Crikey, fair play to you, Luke.

Anybody on here would've done the same.......... I think haha

[dave.woodhall]

Just got home, had an excellent day apart from those fucking 16 minutes.
Started off by finding a pair of tickets in the North stand car park, handed them to security and was pleased to hear they were returned to a couple who were at the ticket office asking if anybody had found them, then found a couple of coach tickets which were taken to coach number 14 and then in the aftermath of our second goal somebody dropped an IPhone, asked a few people around us but nobody claimed it so at half time went to the concourse and had a look through the pictures to try and match a face, belonged to a young lad a few rows behind so was once again returned, even after all that goodwill the lord still wouldn't smile down at us and let us win.

Crikey, fair play to you, Luke.

One last thing before I shut up and go to sleep, has anybody came across a Mrs Robinson on there travels or at Villa Park? She's an elderly lady (maybe 70's) who's missed 2 away games in 5 years and sat opposite us on the coach, an absolute character and possibly the most knowledgable Villain I've had the pleasure to talk to.

I'd like to let her know a bit about herself for my files, I'd like to help her learn to help herself.

She's in her seventies. Have you no shame?

[Steve R]

McLeish's problem at half time was not how do we defend 2-0 but how do we stop gifting them possession back so quickly. We really did ask - for the whole 90 minutes - for what we eventually got. We had one and a half midfielders playing their five.

The really annoying thing is that although they ran at us with greater purpose at the start of the 2nd half - and were cordially invited to do so - Arsenal still couldn't create that much by way of opportunity. Unfortunately the collection of meatheads and lardarses that passes for our defence meant that they didn't have to.

Both pens were fairly awarded, both were for unnecessary challenges for a ball the opponent had already lost. As for the comedy own goal. FFS

There wan't much McLeish could have done about the quality of defenders at half time - that should have happened three weeks ago, or better still, last July/August.

However, there was plenty that could have been done about a static, undermanned midfield. He failed.

For all his heroics last week, what we really needed this window was a defensive equivalent of Keane. Shaun Teale perhaps.

Dunne not getting a red card was Arsenal's good fortune, not ours.

[Greg N'Ash]

I really despair we still have fans who think Dunne is good enough. He's utter crap and would have been found out years ago if we hadn't had hard-working midfielders who could keep the ball and take the pressure off the defence. AM  needs to persuade Lerner to get some of those type of midfielders in, or better still replace Dunne and the rest of the hoofers so we have defenders comfortable on the ball. So money in other words.  Something's got to give because AM can't carry on as Lerner's yes-man unless he never wants another job in football

[David_Nab]

The midfield 2 were ponderous .....Clark and Petrov are good on the ball but lack pace and were badly over run.Its games like this we Miss NRC and even Delph the pair have pace even if they lack in other areas and we missed that in the middle today for a period in the second half we just couldn't get near them in midfield.

The goals were very poor to give away ,some will say Arsenal fought thier way back into the game but it was more a case of us inploding.Dunn lunged in crazily when the ball was easily running to Shay ,Warnock was done for pace yet again like he was against Dyer and then a combination of poor covering ,a poor Hutton Clearance and its 2 -2.The third goal ..well Bent did chase back but the tackle was crazy although he got the ball as the away team it was always going to be an easy decision to give a Pen.

After that we played a little better but the damage was done then...I don't think you can blame the manager too much.He has to expect his players to do better than they did in that situation.Both the fullbacks look dodgy but Clark was no better at LB last week and I doubt Stevens is ready so AMC is really stuck with options at LB.If Herd was fit I would have him at RB if not Culler.

On a postive not Bent is scoring reguarly and linked well with Keane.Ireland was against our best player and tracked back alot.

[D.boy]

I didn't see the game and won't read the match thread yet. How many times have we surrendered the lead in the last couple of seasons. Our problem isn't scoring, it's conceding. We have spent a fortune on defenders in the last 5 years yet we are no further forwards. I would say, if anything our defence has got worse. It's so frustrating when we are going ahead in games and we supporters all just know it won't last.

[Mike Jeffries]

I really despair we still have fans who think Dunne is good enough. He's utter crap and would have been found out years ago if we hadn't had hard-working midfielders who could keep the ball and take the pressure off the defence. AM  needs to persuade Lerner to get some of those type of midfielders in, or better still replace Dunne and the rest of the hoofers so we have defenders comfortable on the ball. So money in other words.  Something's got to give because AM can't carry on as Lerner's yes-man unless he never wants another job in football

I despair of your posts Greg, much more than I despair about Richard Dunne (Poor as he certainly can be) it has to be said - well no actually that's a lie - I would, if I could ever take someone seriously who falls into a vast chasm where there is no internet connection, everytime the team they "Support" dares to nip off your script and win a game or put in a battling performance.  I'm gutted by today's defeat, but there's always solace in the fact that I don't inhabit the dimension you do.

[PeterWithesShin]

Fair play indeed to you Luke.

[olaftab]

Take away two stupid tackles by two experienced players who should know better, and we should be in the next round.

That's it.  As we were at the other end and fairly low down it was difficult to workout exactly what  transpired. However having watched it on  TV just now I can not believe how reckless both our goal scorerrs were. There was no immediate danger there to do what they did.

[Greg N'Ash]

I really despair we still have fans who think Dunne is good enough. He's utter crap and would have been found out years ago if we hadn't had hard-working midfielders who could keep the ball and take the pressure off the defence. AM  needs to persuade Lerner to get some of those type of midfielders in, or better still replace Dunne and the rest of the hoofers so we have defenders comfortable on the ball. So money in other words.  Something's got to give because AM can't carry on as Lerner's yes-man unless he never wants another job in football

I despair of your posts Greg, much more than I despair about Richard Dunne (Poor as he certainly can be) it has to be said - well no actually that's a lie - I would, if I could ever take someone seriously who falls into a vast chasm where there is no internet connection, everytime the team they "Support" dares to nip off your script and win a game or put in a battling performance.  I'm gutted by today's defeat, but there's always solace in the fact that I don't inhabit the dimension you do.

Unfortunately for your conspiracy theories i've been on here plenty of times (well not exactly plenty obv) the night of a win this season. I wasn't on here for the wolves game, or the night after, or the night after, or the night after or the night after that. In fact i wasn't on all week. My internet connection was fine thanks but obviously unlike you i have the problem of things cropping up in my life like relatives in hospital which means i can't stay permanently attached to the internet to satisfy your oddball habit of keeping track of my attendance. Sorry about that.