Aston Villa v Tottenham Hotspur Post-Match Thread

[Clampy]

I wonder how Lerner is really feeling now about the state of things , in fact I wonder if he even knows what the result was tonight

Yes i'm sure he does know the result. Were you asking the same thing after the win at Anfield?

We are in the present not the past clampy,  two defeats with 12 goals conceded- you are only as good as your last game pal.

If you wish to dream about anfield go ahead , but one swallow doesn't make a summer- the table doesn't lie, lowest goals scored, worst goal difference , but hey we won at anfield so why worry.?

I was delighted with the win there but I have been asking the question is Lerners heart really in it anymore for well over 2 years now not just 2 games.

Wake up from your anfield dreams and smell the roses clampy- 8-0 and 0-4 is disgraceful.

It's not just Anfield though Eastie. We went to Norwich and put 4 past them the game before that. Before that we went on a decent run where we kept a few clean sheets and picked up a few points and things started to look a bit brighter.

The last two games have been abysmal but i like to look at the overall picture, not just trot out 'it's Lerner's fault' whenever we hit a blip.

Yes Norwich was an excellent result but lets not forget they made 6 changes , we have in spells looked decent but the lows far outweigh the highs, in 35 years watching villa never has it been as bad as conceding twelve goals in just 2games- January is a vital time and we have reason to be worried if this talk of Lerner being depressed and not interested is true.

And this talk of Lerner being depressed and not interested has come from where?

[silhillvilla]

Where's this info on Lerner coming from ?

[eastie]

I've read a lot of comments regarding Lerner in this thread and wondered whether it was worthwhile relaying a conversation I had with a guy who is well connected with the management team at the baggies and has a family member related to Faulkener.

The gist of his remarks were that Lerner is almost bipolar.  A combination of his divorce and financial losses from banking interests have left him depressed and completely uninterested in almost everything for the past couple of years.  The villa management team struggle to get him interested in club matters and are frustrated with his lack of involvement and it's impact on their plans to move the club forward.

On a brighter note, lerner's new girlfriend has a daughter who's very keen to get into either oxford or Cambridge, and if she gets in mum and lerner plan to spend more time in the .  Faulkne et al hope this may rekindle lerner's interest in the club.

[rutski]

someone just made it up to make a point!

[rutski]

I've read a lot of comments regarding Lerner in this thread and wondered whether it was worthwhile relaying a conversation I had with a guy who is well connected with the management team at the baggies and has a family member related to Faulkener.

The gist of his remarks were that Lerner is almost bipolar.  A combination of his divorce and financial losses from banking interests have left him depressed and completely uninterested in almost everything for the past couple of years.  The villa management team struggle to get him interested in club matters and are frustrated with his lack of involvement and it's impact on their plans to move the club forward.

On a brighter note, lerner's new girlfriend has a daughter who's very keen to get into either oxford or Cambridge, and if she gets in mum and lerner plan to spend more time in the .  Faulkne et al hope this may rekindle lerner's interest in the club.

someone at the baggies, lol!

[Clampy]

I've read a lot of comments regarding Lerner in this thread and wondered whether it was worthwhile relaying a conversation I had with a guy who is well connected with the management team at the baggies and has a family member related to Faulkener.

The gist of his remarks were that Lerner is almost bipolar.  A combination of his divorce and financial losses from banking interests have left him depressed and completely uninterested in almost everything for the past couple of years.  The villa management team struggle to get him interested in club matters and are frustrated with his lack of involvement and it's impact on their plans to move the club forward.

On a brighter note, lerner's new girlfriend has a daughter who's very keen to get into either oxford or Cambridge, and if she gets in mum and lerner plan to spend more time in the .  Faulkne et al hope this may rekindle lerner's interest in the club.

That's me convinced.

[rutski]

I've read a lot of comments regarding Lerner in this thread and wondered whether it was worthwhile relaying a conversation I had with a guy who is well connected with the management team at the baggies and has a family member related to Faulkener.

The gist of his remarks were that Lerner is almost bipolar.  A combination of his divorce and financial losses from banking interests have left him depressed and completely uninterested in almost everything for the past couple of years.  The villa management team struggle to get him interested in club matters and are frustrated with his lack of involvement and it's impact on their plans to move the club forward.

On a brighter note, lerner's new girlfriend has a daughter who's very keen to get into either oxford or Cambridge, and if she gets in mum and lerner plan to spend more time in the .  Faulkne et al hope this may rekindle lerner's interest in the club.

someone at the baggies, lol!

i can almost see lerner in one flew over the cuckoos nest with jack nicolson. close to the baggies management team, lmao!

[eastie]

I've read a lot of comments regarding Lerner in this thread and wondered whether it was worthwhile relaying a conversation I had with a guy who is well connected with the management team at the baggies and has a family member related to Faulkener.

The gist of his remarks were that Lerner is almost bipolar.  A combination of his divorce and financial losses from banking interests have left him depressed and completely uninterested in almost everything for the past couple of years.  The villa management team struggle to get him interested in club matters and are frustrated with his lack of involvement and it's impact on their plans to move the club forward.

On a brighter note, lerner's new girlfriend has a daughter who's very keen to get into either oxford or Cambridge, and if she gets in mum and lerner plan to spend more time in the .  Faulkne et al hope this may rekindle lerner's interest in the club.

That's me convinced.

Yes of course, he's really showing us all how committed he is by attending games and showing us his ambition and hopes for the club ain't he?

The last 3 years have been shit and nobody is more to blame for that than randy Lerner and his piss poor management and decision making, carry on dreaming of anfield clampy, it's a better world to be in that the current reality.

Lerner is doing the same poor job here as he did at the browns and hopefully he will sell up but who would buy us in the current situation.

It is common knowledge in the American press  his divorce settlement and the financial collapse have hit him hard and he gave it his best shot at villa under o Neill , since then it's been nothing but a steady decline.

After 6 years in control all the promise of ambition and high hopes have long gone down the pan and the club is not in a good place at all.

[olaftab]

On a brighter note, lerner's new girlfriend has a daughter who's very keen to get into either oxford or Cambridge, and if she gets in mum and lerner plan to spend more time in the .  Faulkne et al hope this may rekindle lerner's interest in the club.

That sounds like a business plan! The future of the great Aston Villa depends on a kid getting a university place!

[cheltenhamlion]

Our problems haven't changed all season. We lack experience and, in particular, a strong presence to run the midfield.

Yesterday was crap but I am not ready to chuck in the towel just yet.

[eastie]

Our problems haven't changed all season. We lack experience and, in particular, a strong presence to run the midfield.

Yesterday was crap but I am not ready to chuck in the towel just yet.

Neither am I but make no mistake this coming transfer window is crucial, we have to bring in quality and experience who have played in this league and can hit the ground running- no time for bedding in players and getting them used to the league- we need results fast and the players we need will not come cheap.

[Clampy]

I've read a lot of comments regarding Lerner in this thread and wondered whether it was worthwhile relaying a conversation I had with a guy who is well connected with the management team at the baggies and has a family member related to Faulkener.

The gist of his remarks were that Lerner is almost bipolar.  A combination of his divorce and financial losses from banking interests have left him depressed and completely uninterested in almost everything for the past couple of years.  The villa management team struggle to get him interested in club matters and are frustrated with his lack of involvement and it's impact on their plans to move the club forward.

On a brighter note, lerner's new girlfriend has a daughter who's very keen to get into either oxford or Cambridge, and if she gets in mum and lerner plan to spend more time in the .  Faulkne et al hope this may rekindle lerner's interest in the club.

someone at the baggies, lol!

i can almost see lerner in one flew over the cuckoos nest with jack nicolson. close to the baggies management team, lmao!

You can almost picture Nicky Keyes playing the part of Nurse Ratched showing Randy pictures of Villa players to get him interested again.

[Mister E]

I will defend my view that our potentially good players lack motivation.

Answer me this question if you think they are properly motivated ... My definition of that function is motivation.   To make the player do the right things at the right time DURING THE GAME.

A football manager has three primary functions.   To get the players.   To coach the players.   To direct the players how and where they will play in a game.   That third function I describe as motivation.   That is the way I see it.   I respect your views, please respect mine.

The really worrying bit for me is the manner of our defeats. A creditable 3-0 defeat at Chelsea - wherein Lambert changed the formation because he saw how the home side were exploiting the gaps created in the 3 at the back line-up - followed by a 2-0 home defeat against Spurs after injuries to two key players - during which we had some attempts on goal and pushed the visitors hard - would have been disappointnig but would not have had the deeply demotivating impact that we have all felt.
(I, for one, am shell-shocked by the last few days; and so must the players be).

Given our resilience against Liverplop, NCFC and others this season, the question is: what has changed?  I don't know the answer to this, but something has happened in the dresing room and / or with Lambert.  Whatever has happens needs to be dealt with, and fast.

As Brian suggests in his post, there are 3-4 things that PL has to do before Saturday: (i) find and deploy the key to each player's personal motivation triggers; (ii) get the experienced players lifting the team in a more responsible manner; (iii) get some experience in the dressing room - even non-players like Vlaar and Petrov should be in there pre-game to lift the players and instill some confidence; (iv) ensure that the starting set of 11 players understands the formation, tactics and winning plan and sticks to it unless / until PL decides to change it.

PL needs to be more decisive and clear about his plans and changes to tactics durnig the game.

I've no doubt in my mind that Saturday is now a defining moment for this season: not so much because of the points (although we certainly need them) but for the squad's psychological well-being. Being tonked by Chelsea and Spurs is one thing: losing at home to Wigan is cumulatively a much bigger deal.

[brian green]

Thank you Mister E.   You expressed my anxieties far more lucidly than I did, especially the expression "motivation triggers".   Before Saturday we must address exactly what makes Delph so reckless (though he is suspended of course), Ireland so narcissistic, Bannan so profligate with his energy, Holman so poor in his passing.   Not solve these deep rooted shortcomings but address them.   Let us see Ireland put his foot in now and again, Bannan hug the touchline and make a fast, deep, penetrating run, Ahmadi get in the face of an opponent and Holman play the simple out ball.

It is so baffling why a team which can graft the way they did at Newcastle cannot do the same at Southampton or bounce back the way they did in the cup at Norwich and not against Tottenham.   Whichever way you cut it you come back to the same conclusion that it is in their heads.

I am one hundred percent behind the idea that players like Vlaar and Gabby and God bless him if he could make it Stylian, get into the dressing room and put some steel in their backbones.

There have been a number of crossroads since the flouncing out of O'Neill but the Wigan game is the biggest by far.   In a nutshell it will show one way or the other whether the Chelsea game broke our young team beyond repair.

[Bad English]

I watched the last two games on Canal+ with my egg-chasing brother-in-law and my two glory-hunting, Perpignan Reds, don't know where Manchester is nephews.

The former said that as a supporter of Béziers Rugby Club he knows how I feel when your local team is not having a successful time of it. Funnily enough, the two nephews (both excellent youth footballers up to U-19 level, sat there and watched, refraining from any pisstaking or idiotic comments. They either knew what I was feeling or could see it was very bad.

At the end of the game, they asked me how I kept on following the Villa. I said I was born near the ground, it's my club and I had to, that was it. They seemed to comprehend this alien concept but must think I'm mad when you can watch teams with "stars" that win things. That said, they seemed to respect my steadfast commitment.

They were also chuffed when I left them 8 beers (only had 2 small cans as I was driving).

That is my post-match reaction: the shiteness of Villa enabled me to spend a couple of interesting hours with my hitherto uninterested nephews. I bet they will watch a few more games with me now.