Is this what transition looks like?

[ChicagoLion]

Back to the Original Post.

There is no transition, we have just another chancer juggling his knowledge and skill with a limited budget and the legacy of previous decisions.

The Paul Lamberts of this world end up managing football teams because they have absolutely no chance of doing anything else as lucrative.

It does not look anything like transition, it looks like consolidation.

[Legion]

There's more than one Paul Lambert?

[Dante Lavelli]

The Paul Lamberts of this world end up managing football teams because they have absolutely no chance of doing anything else as lucrative.

That's a bit unfair.  He might not be getting it right (all the time) but he's not taken the easy options once deciding to become a coach.  He took his badges in Germany when it'd have been much easier to do them in scotland because he thought the quality was better in Germany.

A pilot I know regularly flies him back to Germany.  My mates said that he is continuing to study in some capacity over there, which is not something he needs to do.  Couple that with known trips to Barcelona to see the Masia and continued connections with Dortmund.

He's not exactly Paul Ince who thinks he is above doing the hard graft but yet picking up a healthy pay packet every few seasons.

[Ads]

His managerial record thus far has been pretty good. Not bad for somebody who is just a chancer.

[Rudy Can't Fail]

Agreed, Ads. People seem to forget, Lambert is still learning the managerial game and given time, he may turn out to be a decent manager. The manager's job at Villa has got to be one of the toughest around and I'm guessing Lerner and Faulkner have gambled that he'll grow into it. Credit to him for wanting to improve as Dante mentioned. He much like our young squad - plenty of potential and hopefully he can make the grade in the Premier League, if not the Championship will certainly see him employed.

Chancer, he ain't.

[Chris Smith]

Last season 10th place at this time saw you pretty safe from relegation, this season it doesn't.

Afraid it didn't.

You said Stoke were 10th at this stage last year?  Well I know quite a few Stoke fans and when we went up there and beat them last year with Lowts' wonder goal most of those Stoke fans were convinced they were going down.

If there was one thing they didn't feel it was 'pretty safe from relegation'.

Stoke dropped three places and finished 13th, pretty safe from relegation I'd say.

We finished 1 point behind them last season, so on that basis, we were also pretty safe from relegation.  Given we've got more points now than we had last year and you've told us Stoke were safe this time last year, I'd just kick back, relax and enjoy the rest of the season and its glorious mid-table mediocrity!!

Ignoring the additional points Stoke had last season, Lambert has certainly manages to get us playing like them.

That's total nonsense. Stoke built a system that relied almost exclusively on winning dead balls and piling loads of big men into the box to exploit the delivery, be it from long throws, corners or free kicks. There has absolutely no relation to the way we play.

We clearly haven't performed as well as we should for much of this season but to suggest we go out with a Pulis style game plan is a complete fabrication.

[Rudy Can't Fail]

Last season 10th place at this time saw you pretty safe from relegation, this season it doesn't.

Afraid it didn't.

You said Stoke were 10th at this stage last year?  Well I know quite a few Stoke fans and when we went up there and beat them last year with Lowts' wonder goal most of those Stoke fans were convinced they were going down.

If there was one thing they didn't feel it was 'pretty safe from relegation'.

Stoke dropped three places and finished 13th, pretty safe from relegation I'd say.

We finished 1 point behind them last season, so on that basis, we were also pretty safe from relegation.  Given we've got more points now than we had last year and you've told us Stoke were safe this time last year, I'd just kick back, relax and enjoy the rest of the season and its glorious mid-table mediocrity!!

Ignoring the additional points Stoke had last season, Lambert has certainly manages to get us playing like them.

That's total nonsense. Stoke built a system that relied almost exclusively on winning dead balls and piling loads of big men into the box to exploit the delivery, be it from long throws, corners or free kicks. There has absolutely no relation to the way we play.

We clearly haven't performed as well as we should for much of this season but to suggest we go out with a Pulis style game plan is a complete fabrication.

It's been just as ugly, as you well know Chris. Different tactics (assuming Lambert's been using tactics) but the end result is the same.

[dave.woodhall]

It's not been nice, but it's nowhere like Stoke under Pulis. How many opponents have moaned about the way we play for throw ins, intimidate the officials and mass-foul?

[Rudy Can't Fail]

That last point is open for debate. Aren't we the team with more bookings this season? Nothing really nasty but we must average 3 bookings a game.

[supertom]

That last point is open for debate. Aren't we the team with more bookings this season? Nothing really nasty but we must average 3 bookings a game.

This has happened a lot in games which aren't going our way. The lads lose their rag a little and we've been very fortunate not to have a few red cards. This however, can be helped by bringing in a few older heads to just compose things on the pitch. We miss the presence of someone like Stan in midfield and we sorely missed Vlaar when he was injured.
Lambert at least seems to be addressing our lack of experience. It appeared in the summer that he felt we could get by without it, but he's at least identified that we need a little more nous in our side.

[Monty]

It's not been nice, but it's nowhere like Stoke under Pulis. How many opponents have moaned about the way we play for throw ins, intimidate the officials and mass-foul?

This is the point. We may have approached Pulis' Stoke in ugliness terms, but 1) we've got there by accident not design, and 2) we're not thuggish to the point of evil.

[Brend'Watkins]

Our first half display against the in form at home team Liverpool suggests that we are a million miles from Stoke under Pullis. There have been times when our football has looked nothing better than industrial where a comparison could be made but this falls down when you see our inability to take a short throw let alone a long one.

[paul_e]

A lot of our fouls/bookings are down to naivety more than anything else, to put it simply, our players aren't canny enough to give someone a kick without getting caught, we're no more or less dirty than most sides in the league as far as I'm concerned.

[Dave Clark Five]

Guzan has again said 'we'll go again' relating to the Albion game.
It is definitely wearing off onto the players and is proof of our transition.

[eastie]

Guzan has again said 'we'll go again' relating to the Albion game.
It is definitely wearing off onto the players and is proof of our transition.

I won't be convinced until benteke is asked about his return to goalscoring form and replies " och aye the noo "