Aston Villa v Q.P.R. Post-Match Thread

[maidstonevillain]

Selling Bent to fund a new defence would be like selling your car to afford to build a garage to put your car in.  You'd still need to go buy another car afterwards.

But would it? If in the last two games we had had a defence that did not make silly errors, and no Bent on the pitch, we would have won 1-0 and 1-0. Simplistic analysis I know, but still food for thought.

[Rick_avfc]

Rubbish!  Selling Bent is not an option.  He keeps defenders constantly on their toes - im not saying other strikers dont but due to his scoring ability, they are more worried about him.  His goal yesterday was an example of what he is best at - being in and around that six yard box and scoring important goals.  I know for a fact, had Gabby been on the pitch instead of Bent, he would not have taken up that same position and scored.  His movement for that goal was really good and clever as well.

[PaulWinch again]

We shouldn't have to sell Bent and it'd be terrible if we did. We have done and will have done enough fucking cost cutting come the summer, it's time to start building.

[Mazrim]

We shouldn't have to sell Bent and it'd be terrible if we did. We have done and will have done enough fucking cost cutting come the summer, it's time to start building.

Quite.

[damon loves JT]

I think this is the best post-match thread I've read for ages.

[KevinGage]

I see the arguments for keeping Bent.  And I'm mostly in agreement. 

But barring a takeover or RL doing a complete 360, we're going to be following the self sustainable model for a while yet.  I don't subscribe to the idea that once Beye and Heskey are off the wage bill we'll have lift off at all. Seems like wishful thinking to me (though naturally I hope it does pan out that way).

If we are looking to rebuild (and most of us are in agreement that we need to)  Bent will be one of our most saleable assets.  I'd rather see him stay, but if it comes to the crunch and he gets offers from elsewhere, he'll most likely force the issue anyway. And -as good as he is-  I can well imagine a life without him.  Ash and even Downing were far harder to replace. To the extent that we haven't actually done so yet. Gabby is a different type of forward, but possesses more of an allround threat.

With whatever money we can cobble together from sales we need to rebuild the defence, sign a genuine CM and then cover up top, perhaps a lower division forward who has the potential to make the step up but won't kick off if he's not selected everyweek.  Of course we would then need a manager who can spot such players, but that's an argument for a different thread. 

[Pete3206]

Darren Bent - Sell or not sell? The point will be moot if Bent decides to bugger off anyway. I think he'll take some convincing, if he has a decent Euro 2012.

[Ian.]

Selling Bent to fund a new defence would be like selling your car to afford to build a garage to put your car in.  You'd still need to go buy another car afterwards.

But would it? If in the last two games we had had a defence that did not make silly errors, and no Bent on the pitch, we would have won 1-0 and 1-0. Simplistic analysis I know, but still food for thought.

I'd rather leave the food for thought at that. Now I think if we sold our only proper consistent goal scoring player to tighten up the defence it would be madness. He is one of the players we need to build around.

[oldtimernow]

Did anyone notice the Spurs goal Villa scored Keane Hutton Bent?

[Rudy Can't Fail]

It's better, and his post-match interview was the most promising by far that he's given. Instead of his usual talking about 'fight' and 'dynamism' (Sky pundit words which don't really mean anything) he spoke of needing a quicker tempo, more imagination and creativity, (crucially) movement off the ball.

Something has definately changed in the way we play. I complained a few weeks ago about how we always look for the safest of safe passes, always to a player with no opposition player near him in acres of space. Now we are trusting each other and the number of forward passes to players in tight positions is a joy to see. We have very technical players in Ireland, N'Zogbia, Keane and even Petrov, players that can receive a ball and keep it moving. Add to this, we've increased the tempo, passes are more crisp, movement on and off the ball so much better. Players are finally making themselves available to receive a pass. Twenty first century football. Long may it continue.

Defensively, much has already been said but I'd just like to highlight the role played by Carlos. The man reads the game exceptionally well and is forever making himself available to tidy up, especially when Hutton goes walk about. If you watch him, at times you'd think he was playing at right back, it allows Hutton to play to his strengths plus the lack of cover offered by the right sided midfielder, whether it be Ireland or Albrighton. He's also there tidying up when Dunne has to cover the left side.

Final point, our fans. I thought they were great, especially in the second half. Obviously it helped that we finished a game well rather than start it well and fade away. Maybe, just maybe Villa Park will become a place our players enjoy to play, rather than the opposition's. It's long, long overdue but now that the team have set the benchmark, there's no looking back and no excuse. McLeish's comments post match seemed to reflect his pride in the way we played second half and you could see his belief and determination in what he's trying to achieve. Early days but if he can get us playing like that on a more frequent basis, it won't be too long before he starts hearing his name ringing around Villa Park.