Lambert's Vision for Villa

[Legion]

Aren't visions what happen when somebody has a psychotic episode - like a hallucination?

Jordan Bowery in the squad/on the teamsheet/on the pitch/in a Villa shirt/within 5 miles of the ground?

[Dante Lavelli]

It appears I am in the minority here as I think that is a pretty defiant and yet logical battle cry from Lambert.
I appreciate everyone is hurting at the moment but if it was coming from another club's manager, where there is less personal emotion involved, I think most people would be impressed by the club's policy and the manager's balls.

One thing, does he realise that 'laying a brick' is a euphemism for 'taking a shit'?  I kind of hope so.

[Concrete John]

Crystal Palace were one of the worst Premiership sides I've ever seen, and they beat us at home. Anyone who thinks we've improved since last season clearly didn't watch that game.

And the argument that "we wouldn't lose 8-0 to Chelsea this season" can be tempered by the assertion that we won't beat anyone 6-1 at home this season either.

The lack of improvement in the team is also mirrored by the players. Lowton, Westwood and Benteke area ll shadows of the players they were last season.

If you're comparing present form with the balance of last season, then we've gone backwards.  If you compare it with the end of last season, then we've gone backwards a lot.  But if you compare the whole of last season with the balance of what we've seen so far this, then it's not that great a difference, in my opinion.

What reamins to be seen is how we play and what results we get from now until May and how that compares to 12/13.  A run similar to Everton onwards from last season will see us probably look back on a 13/14 as an overall improvemennt, even if not as much of a one as we'd wanted.

And before you say we're not capable of that sort of run, did we look like we were this time last season? 

[VillaAlways]

I can remember there was a similar article on here when McLeish was in charge where he was talking about building for the future,we were all given the impession Lerner was right behind him.He was sacked a week or so later.

Certainly not supporting him, but, I've always thought that the fans got AMcL the sack.
If he'd had had the support of the fans, or at least a majority, he'd have been kept on.
The way he was treated from day one made his job untenable by the end of the season, Lerner had no choice.

Lambert is in a different boat altogether.
There are still many of us who are hanging on to the belief that the club are on the right road, albeit a very rocky one at the moment.
As optimistic as I am, though, I've slipped somewhat from the end of last season.

Just seems a bit like the old vote of confidence to me. I'm not sure Lamberts job is as safe as being made out. I'm probably wrong, just a feeling. You just don't know what's going on behind the scenes.

[taylorsworkrate]

Crystal Palace were one of the worst Premiership sides I've ever seen, and they beat us at home. Anyone who thinks we've improved since last season clearly didn't watch that game.

And the argument that "we wouldn't lose 8-0 to Chelsea this season" can be tempered by the assertion that we won't beat anyone 6-1 at home this season either.

The lack of improvement in the team is also mirrored by the players. Lowton, Westwood and Benteke area ll shadows of the players they were last season.

If you're comparing present form with the balance of last season, then we've gone backwards.  If you compare it with the end of last season, then we've gone backwards a lot.  But if you compare the whole of last season with the balance of what we've seen so far this, then it's not that great a difference, in my opinion.

What reamins to be seen is how we play and what results we get from now until May and how that compares to 12/13.  A run similar to Everton onwards from last season will see us probably look back on a 13/14 as an overall improvemennt, even if not as much of a one as we'd wanted.

And before you say we're not capable of that sort of run, did we look like we were this time last season? 

We at least looked an attacking threat at this stage last season. At the moment we don't look like we can score goals, especially at home.

Obviously a lot of that is due to Benteke being injured/massively off form, but I think it's expecting a lot for him to reproduce his form of the second half of last season.

[supertom]

And how long are we going to have to wait to be comfortable in this division again? The current plan won't be able to extent to making us genuinely competitive again either. We're essentially waiting to become an average side. It's a shit plan. Fucking awful. It's the worst plan since Olaf the Hairy, high chief of all vikings, accidentally ordered 80,000 battle helmets with the horns on the inside.

[Ron Manager]

I dont know an awful lot about his time at Cleveland Browns except Randy was the owner and they were not succesful. On one of the other forums they get a few Americans posting regularly and they might be able to give their 'in the know' views on his tenure.

Might be interesting or it might not.

[Concrete John]

And how long are we going to have to wait to be comfortable in this division again? The current plan won't be able to extent to making us genuinely competitive again either. We're essentially waiting to become an average side. It's a shit plan. Fucking awful. It's the worst plan since Olaf the Hairy, high chief of all vikings, accidentally ordered 80,000 battle helmets with the horns on the inside.

Blackadder?

[DrGonzo]

Our "attacking threat" this time last season saw us humiliated 8-0, 0-4, 3-0 before we scrapped for a 2-2 draw and then returned to fabulous ways losing 1-2 to the Barcodes.  so in 5 games our "attacking threat" yielded 3 goals and saw us ship 19.  Now I know that is not much justification for our form this season which is still frustrating in the extreme, but we never looked capable of winning a game at this stage of last season either.  Let's hope we can turn our results around as we did from February again.  If we can the handful  of points we have over ourselves at this stage last year could see us finish in the top 8...fingers crossed.

[supertom]

And how long are we going to have to wait to be comfortable in this division again? The current plan won't be able to extent to making us genuinely competitive again either. We're essentially waiting to become an average side. It's a shit plan. Fucking awful. It's the worst plan since Olaf the Hairy, high chief of all vikings, accidentally ordered 80,000 battle helmets with the horns on the inside.

Blackadder?

[supertom]

Our "attacking threat" this time last season saw us humiliated 8-0, 0-4, 3-0 before we scrapped for a 2-2 draw and then returned to fabulous ways losing 1-2 to the Barcodes.  so in 5 games our "attacking threat" yielded 3 goals and saw us ship 19.  Now I know that is not much justification for our form this season which is still frustrating in the extreme, but we never looked capable of winning a game at this stage of last season either.  Let's hope we can turn our results around as we did from February again.  If we can the handful  of points we have over ourselves at this stage last year could see us finish in the top 8...fingers crossed.

We had a few slices of luck in some of our wins last season it must be said. We won the games we really needed to like Reading, QPR, Stoke but with a degree of fortune. They could have gone either way. Certainly the Stoke game ultimately turned on one moment of complete brilliance from Lowton. A once in a career strike probably. At that point we were looking remotely like scoring.
So to some extent to get some kind of a run like Feb-May again we'll need an element of fortune with the way we're playing. I'm just hoping we didn't use it all up earlier in the season in games like City, Southampton, West Brom, Sunderland.

[Concrete John]

I remember Lowton having two of those once in a lifetime strikes last season.

[rob_bridge]

''Core strength'' fuck me.
That piece has Paul Faulkner all over it.
A load of corporate bollocks.

Seems it.

'Lay a brick'. I wish the opposition teams felts as if the Villa team  were pelting them with footballing bricks as opposed to marsh mellows

[Pat McMahon]

One of the reasons I am prepared to stick with Lambert is that he turned things around after an awful period 12 months ago. I would like to think he can do it again and that the team of February - May is a better sign of how we should be playing.

Pat Murphy said a few days ago that we are not an awful team but a team in an awful run of form. I just hope he is right.

[supertom]

I remember Lowton having two of those once in a lifetime strikes last season.

The first one was very good, but the Stoke one was different gravy. I'm not sure he'll get too many more like that. Certainly not on current form.