Villa's style of play

[Monty]

Today showed the difference a bit of patience makes in the build up play. In the first half the ball went to from back to front to City defenders in no time at all - we had no goal threat and were just giving them the ball back to have another go. In the second, Clark got the ball in a tight spot at the back, played it calmly to Delph instead of whacking it and Delph was able to squirm away and set up the move which led to the first equaliser. We continued to pass it better and we looked so much better as a team. Kozak looked better with the ball into feet rather than straining for vain flick-ons.

We can pass the ball. And when we do, it all looks so much better. Now, if we had that playmaker...

[Matt Collins]

Kozak doesn't seem (yet) able to do the benteke hold up any long ball coming role

It might be good for us if we're forced to play more balls on the deck and look for others to score

Need gabby back in tho. Any sense of how close he might be?

[Ads]

Kozak isn't as mobile as Benteke, although he hasn't had much service so far, but I think he is clever with his movement. He wins a great deal and holds it up well too.

[tomd2103]

I honestly believe that Delph is a goal away from becoming a great midfielder.

He is already great.

He's good. Ten goals a season will make him great.

Agree Dave.  Might be an outside shout for the England World Cup squad should they make it to Brazil.

[paul_e]

I honestly believe that Delph is a goal away from becoming a great midfielder.

He is already great.

He's good. Ten goals a season will make him great.

Agree Dave.  Might be an outside shout for the England World Cup squad should they make it to Brazil.

I also agree completely, Delph now has everything to his game except goals, if he can add those he'll be a superb player.  Midfield is still the weak part of our team for me, but Bacuna, Sylla, Delph and Westwood all have the potential to be superb and are all still young enough to improve massively.  Add Grealish (who could be a fantastic 10 if he keeps working for it) and I think we've got the makings of a really good set in there, I'd like someone in who's a bit further along than Grealish in the attacking role though.  I still think we need to see Gardner and Johnson as well.

[Dave Clark Five]

Kozak isn't as mobile as Benteke, although he hasn't had much service so far, but I think he is clever with his movement. He wins a great deal and holds it up well too.

Ads - I hope this won't start people tagging Kozak with Bent's feeble excuse.

[danlanza]

Kozak isn't as mobile as Benteke, although he hasn't had much service so far, but I think he is clever with his movement. He wins a great deal and holds it up well too.

Ads - I hope this won't start people tagging Kozak with Bent's feeble excuse.

No chance. Kozak was felled like a tree yesterday, whenever he got the ball he was just taken out.

[Clampy]

Charlie Nicholas just said we're definitely not a long ball team, for once I agree with him.

Me too. A lazy journalist just picked up on a few opta stats and wrote a dodgy article about it. We do play it long now and again and it worked a bloody treat yesterday.

[Matt Collins]

We played some really good passing football for much of last season, even when we weren't getting results.

I don't think we've knocked it around we'll much this season though. Hopefully we can improve on this once we get past our run of really tricky fixtures

I think we need Westwood and Lowton back in form to do that. That'd make a huge difference.

[Brend'Watkins]

I think our problem is that it takes us 45 mins to rediscover our self belief.  That might be down to the inexperienced squad, inferiority complex against the likes of Man City or for what ever reason. When we can overcome it we could be a great outfit.  Delph is one of the few with an abundance of self belief and is improving game on game.

[eamonn]

Yep, more than the worrying about passing, I'd like us just to start a game on the front-foot for once. I guess we kinda did at Norwich but we need to do it more as we'll give ourselves a hell of a better chance of success.

[Monty]

Self-belief and passing are one and the same. They don't look confident in the first half and they whack it away downfield as fast as possible. When they get confidence, they stop whacking it and pass the ball shorter and better.

[PaulWinch again]

Self-belief and passing are one and the same. They don't look confident in the first half and they whack it away downfield as fast as possible. When they get confidence, they stop whacking it and pass the ball shorter and better.

Yep my only concern is we tend to start games very slowly I'm not sure why.

[villan from luton]

We should be outpassing a team like Man City, is a disgrace we let them have all that possission when we have players who have cost us 2 million. Lambert should be sacked

[PaulWinch again]

I still think we're going in the right direction and our points tally tells us that already. Incidently if we beat Hull next week that'll be three league wins on the bounce, when did we last do that?