Aston Villa v Everton Post-Match Thread

[ez]

The home attendances are very good considering.

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Four out of those five were the top six, with bizzarely Newcastle being the poorest one of the lot.

We aren't good enough at home, but today for example, what more can Lambert do? Come on and take a penalty, finish Benteke and Andi's one on ones? Slot in Gabby's five yard sitter?

[PaulWinch again]

I don't fear the winter. Bring on the likes of Fulham, West Ham and Sunderland, Cardiff and West Brom. We will take more than ten points out of that lot.

We'll need them as well, but our home form must be addressed. It's unacceptable to lose week after week and be told the lads put in a lot of 'effort'. No more excuses for our home form.

[avfc_1874]

The 4-2-4 formation Lambert resorts to needs to stop.

[VillaAlways]

The home attendances are very good considering.

Thankfully, I think that's because we are a bit unpredictable. Thank goodness for the win against Man City.

[pauliewalnuts]

Four out of those five were the top six, with bizzarely Newcastle being the poorest one of the lot.

We aren't good enough at home, but today for example, what more can Lambert do? Come on and take a penalty, finish Benteke and Andi's one on ones? Slot in Gabby's five yard sitter?

That's a fair point, but we were shit at home for almost the entirety of last season, too.

Forwards missing more chances than usual can explain the odd loss here and there but not our long run of poor home form.

I'd also point out that we didn't look too good at Hull either.

I look at the bench and I don't see better options than last year. I see more faces of the same sort if quality - uninspiring.

[Big Dick Edwards]

I thought we played very well today for 65 minutes. If we'd taken only half the clear cut chances we created we'd have won the game. The injury to Luna was also significant as Baker, who was dealing with Lukaku comfortably was inexplicably switched to left back to accommodate Clark. Why didn't Lambert just bring Lowton on to replace Luna? Tonev also offered something different in midfield. Shame about the last 20 minutes.

[VillaAlways]

Our bench is piss poor

[eastie]

Paul Lambert on Everton loss.



Boss Paul Lambert bemoaned the loss to Everton, pointing to three glorious missed chances in the first half.

Lambert was gutted to come in 0-0 at half-time after a dominant opening period but even more frustrated when the Toffees earned a 2-0 victory by the end of the game, following goals from Romelu Lukaku and Leon Osman.

But he refused to castigate his forwards, who he insists will be major players for him this term.

He said: "You have to take your chances. We should have been three-up.

"You don't take your chances, it puts pressure on you.

"But you can't be too harsh on the lads because they have done it since I have been here.

"The penalty save is terrific. I have just seen it back.

"With the second chance, Christian does the right thing trying to go across the goalkeeper but he's made another great save.

"Then the third one with Andi, the keeper has done really well again.

"The goalkeeper has had a really good game.

"But when you don't score when you're well on top? I thought we were well on top in the second half too but then we got caught. But I can't fault the lads for having a right good go.

"In the second half, we were on the ascendancy. I thought Gabby should have scored to make it 1-1. He had a good chance.

"The two goals were really poor.

"I thought we were on top in the second half. But these are big moments when you don't score. We had three fantastic chances.

"The goals will come. We are creating chances. That's the good thing. The lads will score.

"You can't be harsh on them because more times than not they will take their chances.

"I can't fault the lads for not giving it a go. We should have won that.

"I won't criticise them. They have given it everything they have got. On another day, they would have come in 3-0 up."

Lambert admits he's concerned about the home form but believes his team will turn the tables on the poor run in B6.

He added: "We seem to be doing it the wrong way around. We're winning away and finding it hard here. But you have to overcome it."

[PaulWinch again]

Four out of those five were the top six, with bizzarely Newcastle being the poorest one of the lot.

We aren't good enough at home, but today for example, what more can Lambert do? Come on and take a penalty, finish Benteke and Andi's one on ones? Slot in Gabby's five yard sitter?

That's a fair point, but we were shit at home for almost the entirety of last season, too.

Forwards missing more chances than usual can explain the odd loss here and there but not our long run of poor home form.

I'd also point out that we didn't look too good at Hull either.

I look at the bench and I don't see better options than last year. I see more faces of the same sort if quality - uninspiring.

I agree and it's not just a quality issue it's a positional issue as well. We don't have the players in the positions we require to come on and make the difference. Emptying the midfield and chucking forwards on doesn't work, and that's been proven repeatedly.

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Paulie, I am not trying to explain away the long term issue (although playing nigh on all very good teams makes it tough) but today we actually played quite well, better than Everton and created three gilt edge chances that we should have took.

If we are woeful against Cardiff and Sunderland, then fair enough.

[richard moore]

Someone please tell me where Lambert is going with this, I don't get it anymore.

No, nor do I. Season after season of hard, mostly boring, grind, relegation fodder or mid table mediocrity. I'm hacked off with it right now and I'm not sure if I can see the point of it all any more

[levico]

A lot of fans for genuine reasons can only get to home games. How can the dreadful home form it be acceptable both a a football club and as a business?

I think the reasons lie in squad weaknesses but also the tactical incompetence of our current manager. It's not sustainable, it must improve soon or we might as well look for another manager.

[CJ]

Can't be arsed to read the rest of the thread. I'm getting sick to the back teeth of coming away from VP with yet another defeat. Under Paul Lambert we've won just 6 home games and I'm starting to lose patience. Yes, Benteke could have put that penalty away (has anyone asked why Barry didn't take the penalty yet?), Weimann had a great chance, Gabby had an open goal in the second half, and if we'd gone in at half time 3-1 up no-one would have been surprised. But if your strikers don't take their chances you don't win games of football.

Some specifics - Weimann and Westwood are off form so why do they still get picked; why can't Sylla get a game; why play Gabby 'in the hole' when his only asset is his pace; why is every single one of our corners identical with identical outcomes - remind me how Everton's second was scored; how many times did we surrender possession through sloppy passes or throw ins.

I said last week that losing didn't hurt as much as it used to but I'm getting seriously pissed off with our home form. Fortress Villa Park - more like a Wendy House. We just have too many average players and a serious lack of quality

[richard moore]

I don't fear the winter. Bring on the likes of Fulham, West Ham and Sunderland, Cardiff and West Brom. We will take more than ten points out of that lot.

You are probably right but is that all there is to look forward to now? Is that what it has come to? I can't go on to the Villa Memories thread because I just get too depressed watching us playing exciting football, scoring goals, winning things or damned near so and just being somebody. Right now, I think we're a nobody to most fans around the country and I can't exactly blame them for thinking that