Jordan Bowery

[Dave]

Let's not forget that Bent was also Lambert's captain at the beginning of the season, so selling him wasn't on the agenda at that time.

Yes, but he should have gone in January and players bought in with the proceeds.

To whom?

You can't just magically create a buying club.

[peter w]

That's not the point.  We have a multi-million pound proven international goal scorer sat on the bench, while we play a £500,000 recruit out of position ahead of him. It makes no sense whatsoever.

So, you'd want to see Bent playing wide right? Really? Because that's the position that Lambert wanted filling. Plus, Bowery gave us height in the box at their set-pieces. Kind of worked too.

Seems to be some (deliberate?) confusion on this thread regarding Bowery and Bent.

I think most posters would agree that Bowery was asked to 'do a job' on the wide right.  Opinions on how he did vary.  Some say he worked hard and did as well as you could expect from a lower league player trying to make a massive step up.  Others (me included) thought he looked like he'd never seen a football before.  But eh, it's all about opinions and I try to respect what other say.

Then we come to Bent.  The fact that he's getting splinters up his arse while we're in real danger of getting relegated makes you think something is not quite right.   

We should either alter the formation to accommodate him or ask him to use his experience and adapt to the requirements of the team (eg like Gabby) or we should have moved him on and bought in adequate replacements.

Either way I think it is an indictment of Lambert's management that we have Bent on the bench and the likes of Bowery in the team.

when Bent has played he's rarely been threatening, we don't have to a team with wingers to give him the service he needs, he's not a work your knackers off forward, he doesn't fit the system.

Take your pick. Lambert did.

So that leaves 'option 3' - move him on use the cash to bring in replacements.  Lambert didn't do this and therefore it's an indictment on his management to have £18m of unused asset on the bench.

The original post was about the West Ham game, nothing else.

[PeterWithesShin]

You know tactics, where you set out to do one thing for say 45-60 minutes, then make a change or two at that point and win the match.

[Dave Cooper please]

Sometimes as a manager you have to think outside the box to get the most out of the resources you have. Bent played plenty of football in a wide position in his time at Charlton, so knows the role.  Yes, Lambert has made his choice, but in this case I for one think he's got it woefully wrong.

You are aware that we won yesterday? With Bowery on the right and Bent on the bench? Yes? No?

[Jockey Randall]

Lambert gets it spot on and he still gets a kick in by some on here. That's football fans I suppose.

[PeterWithesShin]

Imagine if we'd lost both games Bowery had started. He'd be hanging from the North Stand by now.

[Chrisupnorth]

Sometimes as a manager you have to think outside the box to get the most out of the resources you have. Bent played plenty of football in a wide position in his time at Charlton, so knows the role.  Yes, Lambert has made his choice, but in this case I for one think he's got it woefully wrong.

You are aware that we won yesterday? With Bowery on the right and Bent on the bench? Yes? No?

Oh dear.

[Dave Cooper please]

Sometimes as a manager you have to think outside the box to get the most out of the resources you have. Bent played plenty of football in a wide position in his time at Charlton, so knows the role.  Yes, Lambert has made his choice, but in this case I for one think he's got it woefully wrong.

You are aware that we won yesterday? With Bowery on the right and Bent on the bench? Yes? No?

Oh dear.

Oh dear what?

[dave.woodhall]

can the matter be?

[PeterWithesShin]

Two old ladies stuck in the lavatory.

[pestria]

You know tactics, where you set out to do one thing for say 45-60 minutes, then make a change or two at that point and win the match.

Yeah - but the common tactic was withdrawing the player you thought was somehow responsible for the wins. 

Anyway - changing the subject completely before we all fall out - maybe we should have a thread on tactical masterstrokes.  I've been watching Villa since I was 4 (45 years) and can only remember one game in isolation where tactics were a clear deciding factor in a match and that was BFR using Dalian out wide in the League Cup Final.

The award for tactics across a season goes to SGT for 3-4-2-1 (or whatever) when we finished runners up  finding a formula for melding 3 world class players into an otherwise average team.

[pestria]

Imagine if we'd lost both games Bowery had started. He'd be hanging from the North Stand by now.

we can but hope.

[pestria]

Let's not forget that Bent was also Lambert's captain at the beginning of the season, so selling him wasn't on the agenda at that time.

Yes, but he should have gone in January and players bought in with the proceeds.

To whom?

You can't just magically create a buying club.

Are you seriously saying there wasn't a club - anywhere in the world - who wasn't interested in buying a forward with a proven record of scoring 15+ goals a season?

[PeterWithesShin]

So you'd like one of our players hung to death? What a lovely person you are. No wonder you don't understand the concept of tactics.

[Dave]

Let's not forget that Bent was also Lambert's captain at the beginning of the season, so selling him wasn't on the agenda at that time.

Yes, but he should have gone in January and players bought in with the proceeds.

To whom?

You can't just magically create a buying club.

Are you seriously saying there wasn't a club - anywhere in the world - who wasn't interested in buying a forward with a proven record of scoring 15+ goals a season?

I'm saying that there wasn't any club that put a bid in for one.