It was a great result, some very good goals (two beauties) and some resolute defending. And I'm definitely happy to be in the top halfBut if we'd put in exactly the same performance otherwise and not scored with all three of our shots on goal, people would be moaning about the performance.I think we played really well for 60 minutes against Everton and lost, and didn't play well last night. I think that's an entirely valid perspective. Villa are pretty unlikely to win anything of note for the foreseeable future. So I'd like to enjoy watching us play. For the first time in several years I actually enjoyed watching our games at the back end of last season, even though it was often so tense. I just can't say the same at the momentThe stats aren't the point. They just illustrate that it's often quite painful watching this side at the moment. And of all the things I was expecting this season I didn't think that would be the case.Hopefully we can start to improve on that.
As my old boy has just said to me: "Thought it said something about Soton that for all their possession and passing, where it doesn't hurt the opposition, their 2 goals were from headers from old fashioned crosses.", which I think is a fair point as well.
I'll stop banging the same drum after this. But apparently Ashley Westwood, our metronome, completed eleven passes last night. Eleven! Steven Davis completed one hundred and eleven
Quote from: fbriai on December 05, 2013, 10:00:23 AMAs my old boy has just said to me: "Thought it said something about Soton that for all their possession and passing, where it doesn't hurt the opposition, their 2 goals were from headers from old fashioned crosses.", which I think is a fair point as well.I was reading a Southampton forum after the match last night, and a number of them made the point that, although they are clearly good at keeping hold of the ball, they still massively rely on one way to score - the ball to the far post, headed back across - as per the first goal last night.
Does anyone not think that possibly the tactics last night involved having less possession than them? Without the guile in midfield that we lack, breaking down a team with their defensive record would have been very hard for us. So hitting them on the break was our best bet. And the recent defensive strength we've shown meant the manager could have some confidence in letting them come on to us and then breaking quickly.
As my dad says about golf, you have to have the bad shot to appreciate the good one and I've seen far too many games when we've been on the receiving end of a sucker punch to not enjoy it when we are dishing it out. I'll doubtless regret saying this but I'm actually looking forward to the Man Utd game next weekend...
I bet those pricks shouting "hoof" last night wished they had 3 points in the bag when they woke up thris morning. Ignorant oiks. Must have really pissed them off watching this unsophisticated team from Birimingham roll in, score 2 tremendous goals and a third that they should appreciate because it seemingly all they do.
Southampton defence must learn to deal with long-ball teams after criminal result against VillansI’m not quite sure what I witnessed in the game between Southampton and Aston Villa. It is extremely rare that you will see a team completely dominate and outclass their opponents and lose 2-3.It was a combination of strange defending against Villa’s punts up field and Saints not being clinical enough in front of goal. Villa didn’t have the same issue – they had three chances, and scored all three.For anyone who didn’t see it, here some statistics that might give you an idea of the balance of play.Southampton had 77 per cent of the possession, Steve Davis playing in the Saints midfield completed 112 passes, Aston Villa (yes, the entire team) completed 104. This was a one-sided affair in every sense of the word… except one – the one that counts.It was an embarrassing defeat for Saints and, unlike the previous two against Arsenal and Chelsea, this one was down to poor team selection and tactical mistakes.Bringing in Maya Yoshida to play at centre half when Jose Fonte was fit was bizarre and the Japanese international had a nightmare with Villa’s long ball game – his mistake for the visitors’ opener inexcusable.Saints haven’t learned the lessons from last year when facing sides who go direct. Perhaps Mauricio Pochettino was as surprised as I was to see just how direct Paul Lambert would go.There was no attempt to play football from Villa, Gabby Agbonlahor hung off the back of Saints’ back four waiting for the inevitable ball over the top. It was ugly but effective, and Saints weren’t prepared for it.Whenever I see a team play that way I always wonder how their fans feel about it. Of course if you asked them now they wouldn’t care because they won, but what if they had lost (as they should have) playing like that? I’m not sure I could stomach it.Saints need to learn how to deal with it though, as despite some clubs trying to play football the right way it seems impossible to shake off the old ways for some. Saints also need to learn to punish teams with their dominance. Villa should have been dead and buried before half-time, but yet again Saints insistence on walking the ball into the net was found wanting.
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Topic: Southampton v Aston Villa Post-Match Thread (Read 49408 times)
