Aston Villa v Stoke City Pre-Match Thread

[Gareth]

Over the years there was always an opponent who you hoped for an excuse to get out of going to watch....Wimbledon, Middlesborough, Bolton & now Stoke...its vile football but the entertainment is that it really winds up their fans to criticise Pulis and his rugby tactics...

Wouldnt want them relegated though, I love transfer deadline day on SSN, the camera crew are always there to welcome their huge new signing with a couple of dozen mutants, more shellsuits than Mike Ashleys warehouse-proper 1987!

2-0 to us
Benteke and Bent (from the bench) :-)

[Ads]

No game in all my years of watching the Villa has ever left me as angry as that 2-2 at home to Stoke.

I have left B9 following a defeat and been less aggrieved.

That was the worst side I have ever, ever, seen at Villa Park. Without a hint of hyperbole, they were poorer football wise than Gravesend Northfleet.

How we conspired to throw that game away, I will never know.

Now the wankers are like a turd that wont flush.

They’ll never be relegated, as their McLiesh Plus style will always see them alright. But they’re an abomination. For the vast amounts of money they chuck about  and the eye bleedingly poor quality they produce is awful.

[*shellac*]

Us 9 - 1 Them

FA grant us the approval to have a temporary roof not higher than two Peter Crouch.

[TonyD]

It will be more Hattie Jacques than Anna Friel but I am going for 3 messy points.

[levico]

This is arguably the most physical side our team will have played this season and I think they will crush us. Probably by 2 clear goals.

[PaulWinch again]

This is where we bury the ghost of Stoke at home under O'Neill. We'll win and we can finally move forward from the cloud we've been under.

[Monty]

Just wondering, is there evidence that we perform particularly worse against physical teams? I mean, there aren't that many sides like that in the division, but I thought against West Ham we were alright, we just didn't create many openings and were undone by one crazy spell, Newcastle (who play good stuff but are quite 'hit-the-frontman') was perhaps our first decent display of the season, Sunderland we beat without being threatened (though that could have more to do with them being shite than physical) and Reading, whose one tactic was to be big in defence and hit us on the break, were eventually worn down (though we were under par, I think for our own reasons).

Admittedly, small sample, and we haven't faced a team quite like Stoke yet, but I think we've struggled more against good technical sides, like Fulham and Norwich. Of course, we're well capable of playing shite on our own behalf without the opposition pressuring us to do so, but I think we have as good or as bad a chance against a physical style as against any other.

[TimTheVillain]

As said above, 3 messy points.

2-1 Villa

[Brend'Watkins]

It's difficult finding anybody who has a good word for Stoke the team, the manager, the style of play, all those non-entity towns that make up the place, the people, the road in etc.

The whole ensemble needs a revamp but in truth it might be better to just obliterate the place.  Stoke, not middle enough to be the Midlands, not northerly enough to be the north.  Just there, like an annoying ugly festering pimple that wont go away.

[villa `cross the mersey]

It's difficult finding anybody who has a good word for Stoke the team, the manager, the style of play, all those non-entity towns that make up the place, the people, the road in etc.

The whole ensemble needs a revamp but in truth it might be better to just obliterate the place.  Stoke, not middle enough to be the Midlands, not northerly enough to be the north.  Just there, like an annoying ugly festering pimple that wont go away.

A sort of Coventry in the North?

[Risso]

Oatcakes.  There, something decent to come from Stoke.

[villa `cross the mersey]

Oatcakes.  There, something decent to come from Stoke.

You and yer belly !! Is that why you love Wigan so much ?

[Brend'Watkins]

It's difficult finding anybody who has a good word for Stoke the team, the manager, the style of play, all those non-entity towns that make up the place, the people, the road in etc.

The whole ensemble needs a revamp but in truth it might be better to just obliterate the place.  Stoke, not middle enough to be the Midlands, not northerly enough to be the north.  Just there, like an annoying ugly festering pimple that wont go away.

A sort of Coventry in the North?

But not quite in the north.

[villa `cross the mersey]

It's difficult finding anybody who has a good word for Stoke the team, the manager, the style of play, all those non-entity towns that make up the place, the people, the road in etc.

The whole ensemble needs a revamp but in truth it might be better to just obliterate the place.  Stoke, not middle enough to be the Midlands, not northerly enough to be the north.  Just there, like an annoying ugly festering pimple that wont go away.

A sort of Coventry in the North?

But not quite in the north.

North of Walsall - does that qualify?

[petegoldring]

This will be the worst game of football ever played at Villa Park. 0-0