Lost Dressing Room? - Update! (Nzogbia Row?)

[hawkeye]

AM has walked into a club which was not a happy place when he arrived, there are lots of issues to sort out, it would take any maager a season to get to grips with this. Unless he decides gets backed both in terms of getting rid and bringing in new players he is on a hiding to nothing.
 He has to clear out Dunne Colins Warnock Nzogbia and bring in a better right back than Hutton.

[Legion]

He brought Hutton in.

[hawkeye]

He brought Hutton in.

Yep he did, I guess it was the classic panic buy. My guess is that he is walking a titght rope with Dunne and Collins, he dare not upset them, has no real back up and they dont give a shit.

[Legion]

Cuellar would do nicely for me.

[frankmosswasmyuncle]

AM has walked into a club which was not a happy place when he arrived, there are lots of issues to sort out, it would take any maager a season to get to grips with this. Unless he decides gets backed both in terms of getting rid and bringing in new players he is on a hiding to nothing.
 He has to clear out Dunne Colins Warnock Nzogbia and bring in a better right back than Hutton.

Zog will be fine in a side that plays positively. He was trying to be positive today. The subs were negative except for Gardner.
I'd be pissed off if I was him.
I am pissed off and I'm me!
As a few have said on the post-match thread we seem to resort to humphing it far too quickly instead of playing our way out of our own half. Keane's only been here a few weeks and he can see it which is why he was having a go today!
He has shown some of our players that they don't work hard enough or simply ain't good enough and they don't like it.
The defence has gotta go!

[brian green]

As I have commented before on this issue Alex McLeish made the mistake of announcing to the world that all the players slates were wiped clean when he took over.

Houllier had identified the shit stirrers and if he had stayed they would be long gone.

Anybody taking over any organization would be a fool to ignore what had gone on in the past.   You often find this in domestic situations when a woman is told that the new love of her life is in reality a shit and a bounder.   She always thinks she can change him.

[pauliewalnuts]

As I have commented before on this issue Alex McLeish made the mistake of announcing to the world that all the players slates were wiped clean when he took over.

Houllier had identified the shit stirrers and if he had stayed they would be long gone.

Anybody taking over any organization would be a fool to ignore what had gone on in the past.   You often find this in domestic situations when a woman is told that the new love of her life is in reality a shit and a bounder.   She always thinks she can change him.

To be honest, Brian, I thought he was right to do that. He was clearly in a position where he wasn't going to be able to buy himself out of trouble, so he had to get something out of what he had - had to.

If he'd had the choice, I reckon he would have followed Houllier's line, but he didn't have any other choice.

To be fair, he's got (some) good results out of Stephen Ireland when he had been written off.

I think he needs to get through to the summer, and assess the situation, and if there are players he knows are trouble, then he'll have the chance to move them on. Mid-season as we are now, he's lumbered a little bit.

[hawkeye]

Thats how I read it Paulie, He was appointed late and given no budget, he must have thought a squad full of Internationals and some promissing younsters would be enough. In terms of keeping us in the PL it probably is. We were saying last season that a massive clear out is needed it still is. I have no idea if he will get backed in the summer or if he realises the extent of the problem.

[gabbyisgod]

Got back around 30 minutes ago and really felt we deserved more out todays game. Some real decent football played at times as well. Certainly some positives but on the other hand veryvery frustrating result.

This may be interesting for those who havent already read.

Mcleish explaining half time sub.

http://www.birminghammail.net/birmingham-sport/aston-villa-fc/aston-villa-news/2012/02/05/aston-villa-alex-mcleish-explains-why-he-substituted-stephen-ireland-at-half-time-against-newcastle-united-97319-30271621/

Do you think the ankle knock is true?

I do mate.

about  10 mins in he went in for a challange in there half and looked like he'd picked up a knock and then about the 15=20th min he went down when there player was down but didnt have any treatment.

i hope it true tbh as Ireland's put in some cracking performance last 2 months.

[pauliewalnuts]

Thats how I read it Paulie, He was appointed late and given no budget, he must have thought a squad full of Internationals and some promissing younsters would be enough. In terms of keeping us in the PL it probably is. We were saying last season that a massive clear out is needed it still is. I have no idea if he will get backed in the summer or if he realises the extent of the problem.

Thats the thing, I don't think he should have been given the job, and I don't think he's doing a particularly good job, but if he's in the job, he has got to be supported.

To that extent, I feel sorry for him lumbered with the current squad, which at face value is not strong enough, but if you scratch beneath the surface is seemingly suffering from discontent.

[kippaxvilla2]

I thought McLeish's interview just on MOTD was very telling.  Basically saying the overpaid pampered wankers don't work hard enough.

[olaftab]

Our dressing room is shambloic. Our players are not paying proper respect to our Club. No fan of Eck but I think he is being let  down big time by this bunch of unprofessional multi-millionares. He knows who they are and instead of forgiving them as he did at the start of his sting he needs to boot them out NOW.

[brian green]

I agree with you Paulie.   He had no choice but to stick with the players he had inherited.   They were a fact of life.   What I think he did wrong was to trumpet the fact that their sins were now all absolved.   It was a public binning of what Houllier had been trying to do and a get out of jail card for the malingerers.  I think a more neutral announcement which in effect said I've got my beady eye on you lot would have done more to prevent the flare up of player power we may well be witnessing.

[kippaxvilla2]

People like Dunne think it's ok to pick up £40k a week looking about as fit as I am and heading the occasional ball away as their contribution towards winning the game.

[pauliewalnuts]

I agree with you Paulie.   He had no choice but to stick with the players he had inherited.   They were a fact of life.   What I think he did wrong was to trumpet the fact that their sins were now all absolved.   It was a public binning of what Houllier had been trying to do and a get out of jail card for the malingerers.  I think a more neutral announcement which in effect said I've got my beady eye on you lot would have done more to prevent the flare up of player power we may well be witnessing.

Dunno about that, Bri. I think a lot of them are horrible, feckless wasters who need to be put to the sword, but he at least had to give them the chance to flourish.

it's disturbing to hear stuff about Ireland and N'Zogbia getting involved in spats now, just when they have started to show some promise.