Stoke City v Aston Villa Post-Match Thread

[supertom]

For all that are hoping Milner will come back on loan forget it, he plays a vital role for City albeit from the bech on most occassions.

I'm still asking Santa though. You'll all just have to hope I've been a good boy this year.

[Clampy]

I do wonder what Lambert is thinking though when he leaves a left back on the bench and plays a centre half there and thinks that Chris Herd is a central defender. It's possible that he wanted a bit of height in there bearing in mind we were playing Stoke but Herd was going to play last week as well so maybe not. As for Bowery, that sub was just so obvious yesterday and a little bit pointless.

[russon]

Chinchilla Bathouse : I see where you're coming from but don't agree. Football is just a soap opera to me these days and some of the comments people put on here an extension of that. I love reading the bile and frustration much more than the considered pieces, there I've said it. When it reaches personal abuse that's unacceptable but the knockabout letting off steam stuff I love. They brought out a positive news story only tabloid a few years back, it bombed because people lap up the bad stuff and while a thread of positivity would be nice, it'd bore the pants off me.

To this end I'd just like to tell everyone on here to bog off and have a rotten Christmas during which you get poisoned by the turkey. Villa are going down with bells on and it'll be Lambert's fault.

[olaftab]

You look at the league right now and 10th downward are bloody awful to be frank. This league is going to shite. Even are a team as inconsistent as Liverpool currently sit top of the league, largely off the back of two players (one of whom they've been without for a couple of weeks now).

I'm actually surprised all our sides made it to the CL knockouts, although I don't expect any of them to get close to winning it. Ze German league is better, as is Italian, Spanish (obviously) and even le French league is catching up.

I think there'll be 7-8 teams this season who'll struggle to make 40 points. No one is going to waltz away with the title either. Thankfully I think we've got enough quality that we won't be in danger of going down, but we'll be scrapping with everyone else to finish somewhere between 10th-16th. Which I guess in our current financial situation could equate to a few extra million in the coffers.

I don't agree that League is crap and that continental leagues are much better. PL is more competitive this season. English clubs are progressing in CL and EL for good reasons. German league is dominated by one great team and as is Spanish. Italian league is a joke where Napoli ran riots but got knocked out of CL.

[lukey27]

The overriding feeling watching the game was that it was two very poor sides. The amount of misplaced passes, hopeless lumps upfield and general negativity from both sides was frightening. Neither side deserved to win it, so the fact we lost it says much for how fragile we are defensively without Vlaar.

Herd is not a centre back, he's barely a footballer. He chases the ball like a schoolkid, Baker's positional sense and brain capacity isn't much better. Lambert has signed flakey fullbacks, limited sideways midfielders and Benteke. It's not a great record. We've gone backwards in the style of football and he's basically got himself in a real muddle, formation and selection wise.

He deserves two more transfer windows but now needs to spend 20 million on 2-3 players of better quality. I looked at Tonev yesterday and thought that's exactly what 3 million gets you from the Polish league.

But the upshot is, we only have 1 more point than at the same time last year and I wouldn't have any confidence in us breaking down a team set up by Pulis at home, however limited they clearly are.

[Tayls_7]

Hhhmmm. I think everyone is entitled to express an opinion on this forum within reasonable guidelines. Knowing he goes nowhere near this site, I find attacks on Lambert less offensive than personal attacks aimed a fellow posters (you're just about to find the irony in this). A lot of people avoid kicking their pets by pouring out their frustrations on here, sometimes constructively, sometimes not. Does it matter? I don't think countering those posts by supposedly, coolly and calmly throwing all your teddies out of the cot helps either. If you start trying to dictate how people conduct themselves on here then you end up with a dictatorship. I believe we have moderators to deal with posts that cross the line of public decency.
As for the biggest dividing issue, I can forgive Lambert his transfer dealings. He has had a terribly limiting budget for a club of our stature. Some of his purchases have worked, most haven't. Fair play, but many believe he has compounded the issue with some of his unfathomable and many varied tactics; substitutions, formations and team selections have often left me feeling we are partially rudderless. As a previous poster stated, I envy those fellow Villains who keep faith in the management and believe things will improve. I can't emphasis enough how I am willing many of you to be right and all the doubters wrong. However, as I try to instil some optimism into my flagging resolve I cast my mind back to.the League cup semi final. Getting schooled by a fourth tier side. Not in a one-off anything can happen fixture, but over two legs of football. I still see the hapless Lambert stood on the touch line of VP in the remaining minutes and the decisions he took to try and turn the tie around. Decisions I would not have expected from a ten year old MOTD devotee. If you think Lambert is the man to take this club forward then great but I defend the right of those that are less convinced. Simple.

[supertom]

You look at the league right now and 10th downward are bloody awful to be frank. This league is going to shite. Even are a team as inconsistent as Liverpool currently sit top of the league, largely off the back of two players (one of whom they've been without for a couple of weeks now).

I'm actually surprised all our sides made it to the CL knockouts, although I don't expect any of them to get close to winning it. Ze German league is better, as is Italian, Spanish (obviously) and even le French league is catching up.

I think there'll be 7-8 teams this season who'll struggle to make 40 points. No one is going to waltz away with the title either. Thankfully I think we've got enough quality that we won't be in danger of going down, but we'll be scrapping with everyone else to finish somewhere between 10th-16th. Which I guess in our current financial situation could equate to a few extra million in the coffers.

I don't agree that League is crap and that continental leagues are much better. PL is more competitive this season. English clubs are progressing in CL and EL for good reasons. German league is dominated by one great team and as is Spanish. Italian league is a joke where Napoli ran riots but got knocked out of CL.

Compared to 10 years ago there's been a definite decline in the quality of the Prem league. It's also why a lot of our best players consistently end up looking to move to Spain. The German league has got better in 10 years. The French league, largely because of money granted, is becoming more competitive now. 5 years ago it was bordering on Championship standard. 
I think the general standard of football isn't brilliant either. 5-6 clubs play decent football but the rest struggle when it comes to possession of a football (inc ourselves of course). It's almost a counter attacking league. Spain might be getting dominated by the best side in the world, but there's still a lot of good players in that league, playing good football. Italy isn't brilliant I grant you, they're on a decline too, but if you played 18 Italian clubs against all but the bottom 2 of the Prem right now, the Italians would probably win more. IMO.

[Mortimer's Bear]

Worst team in 20 years.

Not even close

Since 1993, really?

Yes

[Chris Smith]

I do wonder how people find enough time in their day to become experts on all the leagues around Europe.

[olaftab]

It's not just the day we spend a fair amount of night time on this as well. Of course being on the dole or off work with stress brought on by Villa's plight  also helps.

[Mortimer's Bear]

Who has claimed to be an expert on all the leagues around Europe?

[Chris Smith]

Who has claimed to be an expert on all the leagues around Europe?

It was just a flippant, throwaway remark - don't take it all so seriously. It was because I often read comments on teams and players from around the world that I have never heard of, because I barely seem to find the time to keep up with The Premier league and couldn't tell you, without looking it up, who is top of the Championship. It just amazes me how people do it.

[nick harper]

Worst team in 20 years.

Not even close

Since 1993, really?

Yes

That team yesterday, ability wise, is the worst I have seen since we were last relegated and I have been going since 71. Truly awful.

[richard moore]

I agree with you Nick and I started in exactly the same season as you

[mr underhill]

I've been inflicting massive amounts of addictive Villa pain on myself since the early 1960s and despite regular promises to wean myself off you can't. This probably is one of the worst squads we've had in a very long time but ultimately its my club's worse squad,  we all go on supporting them no matter what, and everybody less fortunate in their club of choice can just go and do one.  Having said that, it would be nice to be treated to a bit of positive free flowing football in the New Year.