Aston Villa v Tottenham Hotspur Post-Match Thread

[VillaAlways]

The lack of self belief is quite staggering We've had our good spell and for some reason didn't have it in us to push on but instead capitulated at the first opportunity. Quite frankly were fucked

[ROBBO]

How many expected a win today? surely a draw was the best we could have hoped for after Chelsea, once again we were outplayed by a top four side who have top quality players with a lot of experience and we were found out. I blame Lerner as much as anyone but give Lambert a break he has been at the club six months not six years. I am more interested in how long Dunne and Vlar are out for, we really miss solid defenders at the moment, Gabby for all his limitations was missed.I was suprised how slow our midfield looked, Kea especially, after early promise i don't think he has the pace for the prem the same could be said of Westwood who was caught in posession too many times and seemed to panic when pressed. If we are to avoid the drop then a lot of money needs to be spent in January.

[pauliewalnuts]

Looking on the bright side, if we can work our way to a win against Wigan - and despite all of the disappointments over the last week, it's still possible - then we'll be 6 points clear of the relegation zone and likely to be about 11 clear of 19th. We've actually done well in our must win games so far this season. But if we go with the squad who finished today's game I worry we'll lose it.

We'll probably go with a weaker squad than today on Saturday by virtue of the fact we've picked up injuries.

[barrysleftfoot]

Will any players be back for Saturday?

[ez]

I feel worse also. It proves the chelsea result was no freak performance/scoreline. However we are not in the bottom 3, and the poo has hit the fan before the transfer window rather than after it. Doing nothing isn't an option.

[PeterWithesShin]

Squad depth is beginning to be a worry for me. We can't rest/drop anyone as we're running out of fit players. I wonder if fatigue is an issue as we've now had 2 consecutive second half collapses?

[SoccerHQ]

The thing with the premier league nowadays is there is such a gulf now between the top 4/5 and the rest.

Look at how Spurs played tonight, the way they passed and moved. TBH it was lightyears away from what we were doing when we were finishing 6th three years in a row.

Brings me onto the 5 match unbeaten run we had recently, how many games did we really play well in that run.

Reading at 0-0 could've gone either way as they had chances. QPR we didn't play very well did we?

But we got points in these games because we're playing other poor teams and I'd say we will pick up points in the next 6 games as we'll be playing opponents much more on our "level" as much as it pains me to say it.

But we need wins, not just scrapeing draws.

[NeilH]

I just keep thinking, 'how the hell do you go about lifting the team after two spankings in as many days?'
As magnificent as the Holte End was, especially as the end, the players looked utterly shot. So it's a genuine question. How the hell do we lift ourselves up in a matter of days and ensure we get the three points against Wigan?

[eamonn]

Looking on the bright side, if we can work our way to a win against Wigan - and despite all of the disappointments over the last week, it's still possible - then we'll be 6 points clear of the relegation zone and likely to be about 11 clear of 19th. We've actually done well in our must win games so far this season. But if we go with the squad who finished today's game I worry we'll lose it.

We'll probably go with a weaker squad than today on Saturday by virtue of the fact we've picked up injuries.

Baker could be out. Delph is suspended. Could do with Vlaar, Dunne and N'Zogbia coming back asap.

For all the stick Albrighton gets I thought he was our best player when he came on. Had the beating of Naughton quite a bit and when he lost the ball he mostly won it back.

[avfc_1874]

That was like watching someone playing the computer on a game of FIFA with the settings changed to 'Amateur'

We need 4 or 5 experienced heads in Januay or we will be see us languishing in the championship next season.

[SoccerHQ]

I just keep thinking, 'how the hell do you go about lifting the team after two spankings in as many days?'
As magnificent as the Holte End was, especially as the end, the players looked utterly shot. So it's a genuine question. How the hell do we lift ourselves up in a matter of days and ensure we get the three points against Wigan?

Safe to say Wigan aren't very good themselves, 5 defeats in a row I think.

[Matt Collins]

In a way Wigan is possibly one of the better teams we could be facing. They're bottom of the form table, with one point from a possible 18 (edit: it's actually 1 from 27! though I think they've been a bit unlucky in some). The only problem is that they're used to it, and know they can recover from it! I think they've conceded at least 2 goals for 9 consecutive games (except Arsenal where it was 1).

If we have Vlaar, Westwood, Gabby, N'Zogbia and Weimann fit, I'd be very confident of winning, even in our current form. If we have one of them fit, I'll be much more pessimistic. Vlaar and Westwood, plus one of the three forward options should be enough. Please oh injury Gods!

I imagine we'll have to revert to 4 at the back if Baker is out, which judging by today could be a massive risk, even if it leaves us with more options going forwards.

[canuckvillan]

I can't quite make out why I'm so disappointed.  If you'd told two weeks ago that we'd get three points from the sequence of Liverpool (A), Chelsea (A) and Spurs (H), I'd have been really pleased with that return.  That's what we got and that three points will be vital.  In theory, I should be happy, and knowing that, I'm still able to see the bright side.

As others have said, I think the comprehensiveness of the defeats is what is so alarming, the complete reversal in fortunes of both the side and some players individually (Benteke).  I suppose these are the peaks and valleys we knew would be coming with Lambert.  I still think we'll have enough - just - to stay up in the end.

[Billy Walker]

I'm  staggered by the way the past two games have gone.  We were looking good prior to the Chelsea match and playing with confidence, shape and purpose.  It's astonishing how quickly things can change in a week.  Obviously some of the younger lad's heads have dropped since the Chelsea match and, on top of that, injuries are starting to bite.  In an ideal world the likes of Benteke, Baker and Herd would have been rested and rotated over the Christmas period with the likes of Gabby and Vlaar making the line-up.  Tonight we looked like the Aston Villa that faced Everton earlier in the season.

We have to keep the faith.  My view is that Lambert is the right man for the job, this is a challenging spell but we must not allow it to become a crisis.  The players need to regroup and we need our injured players back asap.  The cut and thrust of the Christmas fixtures is getting the better of our squad and we need to stay mentally strong.   The spirit of the team that swash-buckled its way to victories at Norwich and Liverpool is still there and we need to help that team regain its form and confidence.

[saunders_heroes]

I can't quite make out why I'm so disappointed.  If you'd told two weeks ago that we'd get three points from the sequence of Liverpool (A), Chelsea (A) and Spurs (H), I'd have been really pleased with that return.  That's what we got and that three points will be vital.  In theory, I should be happy, and knowing that, I'm still able to see the bright side.

As others have said, I think the comprehensiveness of the defeats is what is so alarming, the complete reversal in fortunes of both the side and some players individually (Benteke).  I suppose these are the peaks and valleys we knew would be coming with Lambert.  I still think we'll have enough - just - to stay up in the end.

It shouldn't be that difficult to work out why you're so upset. We've just conceded 12 goals in 2 games without reply. It is, quite frankly, a humiliation.