Everton v Aston Villa Post-Match Thread

[Matt Collins]

You'd have to hope that with bent, Ireland, hopefully Hutton and given off the wage bill, we could have a bit more scope for investment.

I think people criticise Westwood too much but he was anonymous today. But I do think the formation and tactics were the main culprits. It was very much 53 (then a big gap) then 2, in the second half

I thought Ireland was off the wage bill?
Thats only 3 players wages, we should be able to get better players in on our income...

That's the whole point, for the last five years we haven't had any net income. We've been running a massive deficit. It's been fairly well publicised so I continue to find it surprising when people criticise the club for not spending. It's bad spending that put us in this tedious position

[PaulWinch again]

You'd have to hope that with bent, Ireland, hopefully Hutton and given off the wage bill, we could have a bit more scope for investment.

I think people criticise Westwood too much but he was anonymous today. But I do think the formation and tactics were the main culprits. It was very much 53 (then a big gap) then 2, in the second half

I thought Ireland was off the wage bill?
Thats only 3 players wages, we should be able to get better players in on our income...

This is another issue, I'm sorry but I imagine most clubs have some players on big wages they don't want/need. It doesn't stop those clubs from showing any ambition at all. Bent, Given and Hutton being on the wage bill are not an excuse for buying hopeful punts and average players. We should be in for decent players.

[Rudy65]

If we are to play five at the back you cant play Holt up front. He is shockingly immobile and can only really play as the sole centre forward with two quick players running off him. Not him and Benteke together.

[Malandro]

Week after week barely any attempt to play football. No midfield, as we don't need one, aimless long balls at  Benteke, occasionally combined with extreme defensiveness.

A decent result against Albion and a creditable draw at Anfield were nice but this season has been far more about the sort of shit we saw today.

We don't even try to play football.

If I weren't a Villa fan, we are exactly the sort of team I'd like to see get relegated. It us embarrassing, it was like that under McLeish and performances like today are no better.

Anyone who thinks this midfield, having opted not to strengthen, is going to mean anything other than this long ball shit till the end of the season is going to be disappointed.

I've now reached the point at which I can only think of one reason not to sack Lambert, and that is because it'd mean starting all over again, which manages to be more depressing a thought than seeing out the season playing like this.

I don't give a toss if we are five points and several places above the drop zone, if we carry on with this 30% possession shit we won't be there much longer. It is just embarrassing to watch, like Stoke except we're too brainless to do the gamesmanship stuff.

Good post and agree with all except one point. We wouldn't have to "start again" if we bring in a new manager. We need a manager that can bring out the best from this squad and develop them, basically somebody that understands how to play football, has a plan and can build  on it. It's so bloody obvious Lambert is not that man, in fact he's the absolute opposite of what we need. He's way out of his depth.

agreed top post. This is exactly where we are.
Embarrassing. We are shit and scared with it.

I'm awful at predictions, but I think it will be a rare game when we concede less than 2 goals. We will be very close to the bottom three come May.

[Rudy Can't Fail]

Manager reaction from Goodison Park. 

Paul Lambert felt his side were very unlucky not to leave Goodison with a point after a late double earned Everton all three points.  'I thought the lads were really excellent in the first half against a really strong side especially at home.  We got the goal deservedly and I thought we could push on from there.  They came back strong in the 2nd half but I thought we still had good chances to settle it.  There isn't much you can do about the quality of the strike that wins it but I felt we deserved something today for our work rate.  But you move on and go again on Monday.'

Ha ha. I would laugh if I thought he was joking but her seriously believes what he is saying and for that reason we will never under improve under him.

Where exactly were the chances to settle it he mentions?

And a decent work rate is the minimum I would expect. He makes out that alone is enough to get something from the game

Indeed. I stopped taking seriously anything he says a few months ago.

[hartman_1982]

Over reaction. We were superb at the back for 60 mins. They'd had one shot on target and playing 3-5-2 had stopped them from being able to pass through us. Vlaar gets injured, can't turn for the first and goes off and we look shoddy at the back. If Vlaar stays fit we take 3 points and people talk about how resilient we are this season and how we are only 7 points behind the toon. Yes I would like us to play more expansive but we weren't poor today. The game plan almost worked a treat.

With the greatest respect this is so far off the mark (IMO). This type of performance (similar to west ham against Chelsea) will probably yield a result 1 in about 10 times. If you constantly submit possession and territory you will almost always cave eventually and if you don't it will almost certainly be down to luck. Our defence was excellent for 60mins but they were constantly being pressed. That was barely a game plan, don't let organised defending cloud a complete reluctance to try and play football. I could accept that performance (just about) if we were playing bayern Munich. But we weren't, we were playing a below strength team assembled for a similar amount of money, missing their main and only real striker coming off the back of a 4-0 defeat by a team playing a style and formation we usually utilise and get results away from home with. Their manager is using someone else's players and has been in his position a lot less time than ours.

The second half was bad, I grant you. That first half was a good performance. We sat in, broke and looked dangerous on the counter. We seemed to abandon that in the second half but I don't for one minute think Lambert told them to. I think they looked shot after Wednesday. One of the things I like about Lambert Is the way he alters our formation to the opposition we are playing, it shows a flexibility that you don't normally get from British coaches. We are the only side in the league cutting our wage bill, both our major signings have been ruled out for the season and we are sat in tenth. I just don't think he is doing that badly.

[mattjpa]

Anyone looking fwd to the west ham game? That's gonna be like watching a drunken cretin try to open a door with a banana for a key.

Providing Carroll gets his red card rescinded which I think he will, alardyce and lambert should just both agree to not play any midfielders and let the keepers take it in turns launching Hail Marys at their respective big men up front

[Phatboy]

I'm listening to Lambert now on WM and he is saying we did not deserve to lose as Guzan had nothing to do for 70 mins! I'm stunned

[VILLA MOLE]

Next week against West Ham is going to be a belter.

I reckon we'll have 30% possession, they'll have 30%, and the other 40% will be entirely unaccounted for, it will just slip away into some sort of footballing black hole.

40 % ball boys, mascot, us in the stands

[kippaxvilla2]

Manager reaction from Goodison Park. 

Paul Lambert felt his side were very unlucky not to leave Goodison with a point after a late double earned Everton all three points.  'I thought the lads were really excellent in the first half against a really strong side especially at home.  We got the goal deservedly and I thought we could push on from there.  They came back strong in the 2nd half but I thought we still had good chances to settle it.  There isn't much you can do about the quality of the strike that wins it but I felt we deserved something today for our work rate.  But you move on and go again on Monday.'

Ha ha. I would laugh if I thought he was joking but her seriously believes what he is saying and for that reason we will never under improve under him.

Where exactly were the chances to settle it he mentions?

He must think people are stupid. I wish one of these gutless fucking journalists would take him to task on this drivel

Isn't that what Pat Murphy tries to do only to get absolutely slated on here and spoken to like shit by the manager?

[Rudy65]

Anyone looking fwd to the west ham game? That's gonna be like watching a drunken cretin try to open a door with a banana for a key.

No im not but like a bloody fool I have just ordered mine.

Massive game now. Hopefully Carroll is suspended. He will give Clark a torrid time if he does play

[barrysleftfoot]

 I think hartman is partly right.With a better Gabby instead of Holt, and a better midfielder than Westwood, then we would'nt have lost today.

 Bacuna and Bertrand were very good, and the back 3 restricted them to almost nothing until they scored.The lack of quality on the ball was our undoing.

[hartman_1982]

I'm listening to Lambert now on WM and he is saying we did not deserve to lose as Guzan had nothing to do for 70 mins! I'm stunned

He didn't

[Irish villain]

I would love to see his reaction upon seeing those stats from earlier. I really would. Whos he kidding?

He would say exactly what he said before 'the amount of possession doesnt win you the game', which is a real crass response, but a typical one from him

Lots of posters on here were saying similar after we somehow beat Southampton and I got slated for posting that the whole culture of the club from boardroom, pitch to terrace had to change. There's a lot of sneering at sides who are good in possession for some reason. Give me ninety minutes of that over the backs-to-the-wall stuff we rely on.

We have to change as a club. I think Houllier tried to put us on a modernising journey but he went too far too fast and alienated players and fans. The future will not belong to the sides like West Ham, Stoke, Palace and what Villa are fast becoming. It will belong to those who can relax with the ball and keep it from their opponent. If you surrender possession & territory you are asking for trouble as % alone will ensure the other team will have more shots and that eventually your side will make a mistake in defence.

[caster troy]

'We go again on Monday'

I'd love to see one of our training sessions. I can only imagine it is currently a case of 10 laps of the pitch then 30 mins of Benteke standing on the half way line while the rest of the team aims long balls at him.