The Paul Lambert thread - poll reset after our capitulation to Hull

[aj2k77]

If any reporter thinks that Lambore still has the backing of the fans can they explain the missing thousands?

I just wish he'd fuck of with Lerner now, anything must be more exciting than this partnership.

[pauliewalnuts]

Finally, finally, someone in the media takes notice

Sparse crowd at Aston Villa's draw with Southampton suggests future may not be bright for Paul Lambert

Villa's lowest crowd since a meeting with Sheffield Wednesday in December 1999 suggests a growing exasperation over the club’s lack of direction

Aston Villa celebrated their 140th anniversary by unveiling a lamppost but their lowest crowd in 15 years suggests the future may not be so bright.

Legendary figures from Villa’s past were unveiled before kick-off, including many of the 1982 European Cup-winning team, yet it is the present which is of growing concern to supporters.
The last four years have been infected with underachievement, minimal spending and little progress and many fans appear to have raised the white flag.
And the spotlight is now firmly on Villa’s dwindling attendances, with apathy creeping all over B6 and a sense of growing exasperation over the club’s lack of direction.

This was their lowest crowd since a meeting with Sheffield Wednesday in December 1999 and the attendance will surely not have gone unnoticed by chairman Randy Lerner.

It is not even the lack of victories, an unpopular manager or owner that is the biggest fear nowadays, but the absence of any apparent direction on and off the field.
For some, the decision to extend Lambert’s contract at such an embryonic stage of the campaign was seen as the clincher in terms of recent mismanagement – and it has not gone unnoticed that the Scot has failed to win since extending his deal.

One of Lambert’s strengths during more than two years of struggle has undoubtedly been an ability to secure a result when he needs it.
At times when the tide has turned against him in the past, he has a habit of picking up results at the most unexpected moments.

A win or even a draw against Southampton, who arrived in second place and with every player in the starting line-up an international, was never predicted for Lambert’s 100th game in charge.
With a defensive crisis only adding to the problems, leaving Lambert without Ron Vlaar, Philippe Senderos and Nathan Baker, he was forced to field a centre-half pairing of Jores Okore and Ciaran Clark.
For Okore, it was his first game in more than 14 months since rupturing knee ligaments against Newcastle United last year.
Early on another chastening evening appeared ominous, with Villa relying on the counter-attack – hardly the approach for a team playing at home when the onus should be on the attack.

Yet Fraser Forster’s birthday gift, rushing out to intercept a long ball he was never going to reach, presented Gabriel Agbonlahor with the chance to register only Villa’s second goal in their eight games.
Villa were temporarily level with Liverpool, a club that spent far more than the £6 million given to Lambert on transfer fees. Southampton’s pressure finally paid off nine minutes from time to leave Lambert without a win in eight games.

This will be seen as a turning point by Lambert, with vital games coming up against Burnley, Crystal Palace and Leicester City.
But, more than anything, it was undoubtedly the attendance - 25,311 – that underlined the current malaise that has gripped the club.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/aston-villa/11251795/Sparse-crowd-at-Aston-Villas-draw-with-Southampton-suggests-future-may-not-be-bright-for-Paul-Lambert.html

[brontebilly]

lads look at our squad and tell me what a new manager does with it given even 15m stg of investment in Jan?

Lambert has been awful but there is a dreadful lack of quality in the squad

[supertom]

We need a change soon. Lambert can't get away with it too much longer. Next season would probably have an air of inevitability with Vlaar and Delph gone, and probably Benteke. That is of course, if we survive this.

Lack of goals and a defence that will probably leak goals most games, is going to be a problem.

[supertom]

lads look at our squad and tell me what a new manager does with it given even 15m stg of investment in Jan?

Lambert has been awful but there is a dreadful lack of quality in the squad

With everyone fit I think we have a 50 point squad here. Under Lambert the best we can hope for is 40 (which he won't manage this season).

I also think we're contributing to our injuries problems. Is it the training pitch, the training methods, the fitness coach? Or a mixture of all. The problems we've had the last 3 years aren't purely down to luck in my view. There's got to be something more to it. In part we've also signed too many injury prone players, like Vlaar and Swiss Phil has had his problems over the years.

A good manager could chalk on 10 (possibly invaluable) points this season over what Lambert will get. Even Pulis could.

[aj2k77]

lads look at our squad and tell me what a new manager does with it given even 15m stg of investment in Jan?

Lambert has been awful but there is a dreadful lack of quality in the squad

Emphasise passing, instead of pretending it's some kind of tactic to never have the ball and defend most of the game.
Fuck this stupid 4-5-1 system off where the fullbacks are made to look mugs with nothing infront of them and regularly being double teamed.
Not play Weimann wide again.
Have Gabby running at players again.
Sanchez, Westwood and Cleverley all do the job of one player.
N'Zogbia is shit, try Grealish, the worst he can do is keep giving the ball away like N'Zogbia.
Have some kind of game plan. An actual style to the team and how we are going to score a goal.

The list goes on and on.

He's just shit.

[Des Little]

It's Lambert's squad. He's had three years and it's no better at all. It's time he went.

[andyh]

lads look at our squad and tell me what a new manager does with it given even 15m stg of investment in Jan?

Lambert has been awful but there is a dreadful lack of quality in the squad

An horrible example, but here goes...
The rags were/are an absolute pile of shite, with players so poor no one would have surprised if they were down by Xmas.
Sack  the twat of a manager, get someone half decent in and voila!

[supertom]

It's Lambert's squad. He's had three years and it's no better at all. It's time he went.

Bringing back Bent and Zog isn't paying off. Westwood just seems to have stood still (at a kind of, almost but not quite good enough level). Most of his signings aren't cutting it or are already out on loan/sold on.
His summer signings are largely duff. Granted the budget didn't help. But honestly was there any need to sign Joe Cole? Really? I don't think we'll see more than 90 minutes from him for the rest of the season.
Richardson was a player ready for the championship or perhaps even MLS semi-retirement. Senderos has done brilliantly but he's injury prone, which only adds to our problems in that department.
What's up with Leandro now? Why can't he get a game anymore?
Cissokho is beginning to look increasingly more like another duff left back, and he wasn't all that cheap.
We seemed all set to pay 8 mill for Cleverley so there was some money there, and he's likely going to complete his move in Jan for slightly under that. But he's ultimately not cutting the mustard. That said, potentially, under a better manager he could shine.

He's well overdue the heave ho. Terrible manager.

[Gareth]

For Gods sake go, Lambert

[brontebilly]

lads look at our squad and tell me what a new manager does with it given even 15m stg of investment in Jan?

Lambert has been awful but there is a dreadful lack of quality in the squad

Emphasise passing, instead of pretending it's some kind of tactic to never have the ball and defend most of the game.
Fuck this stupid 4-5-1 system off where the fullbacks are made to look mugs with nothing infront of them and regularly being double teamed.
Not play Weimann wide again.
Have Gabby running at players again.
Sanchez, Westwood and Cleverley all do the job of one player.
N'Zogbia is shit, try Grealish, the worst he can do is keep giving the ball away like N'Zogbia.
Have some kind of game plan. An actual style to the team and how we are going to score a goal.

The list goes on and on.

He's just shit.

It's all well and good saying we should pass the ball more but we have some of the worst technical players in the division who are regulars in our first team - Cissokho, Baker, Gabby, Weimann to mention 4.

Get wingers in, great but we don't have a single wide man in the squad. We are left with shifting Gabby and Weimann to the sides as we have no-one else. Benteke doesn't like playing with anyone up top when he is fit and tries a leg that is. So playing a striker off him isn't an option either.

With no widemen our full backs are forced to come forward where their limitations are plainly evident. We don't have a captain as far as I'm concerned.

Midfield, Delph is fine though guilty of trying to do too much. But Cleverley and Westwood are basically the same player. Sanchez has mixed good, bad and downright ugly so far this term. No goal threat in midfield.

We look to the bench for inspiration and who do we have to come in. I'm not sure what Bacuna has done to be totally ostracised but Cole, Richardson, Bent, Lowton, Nzogbia, Herd and Gardner are not going to improve us. Of that I'm sure. Grealish I'd like to see given a chance but he doesn't look to have the pace to play wide so unless he could play off Benteke then it's not really a decent time to bring him in.

I know Lambert is ultimately responsible and I'm far from a fan. But I'm not sure how much improvement is in the group of players available. We are in a right old mess and January is not the time for gutting the squad and club from top to bottom. I dread the thought of handing over the keys for Tony Pulis to do likewise.
Getting in the ex-Southampton Chairman Cortese into run our club would be a good start.

[PeterWithesShin]

The next couple of months will make or break us. Apart from the annual home surrender to Manure, the other 8 of our next 9 are Leicester (H & A) Palace (H & A) Burnley (A) Albion (A) Sunderland (H) Swansea (A). If we don't pick up a decent points haul from those then we will be fucked.

[SoccerHQ]

lads look at our squad and tell me what a new manager does with it given even 15m stg of investment in Jan?

Lambert has been awful but there is a dreadful lack of quality in the squad

I agree but at least against 75% of the league the defence dosen't leak 2-3 goals a game anymore so there is a starting base. And when he's fully fit we still have one of the best strikers in the league goalscoring wise.

I just hope the next manager can finally sort out the midfield once and for all and at least get some creativity in there. At least make us better to watch.

[tomd2103]

We need a change soon. Lambert can't get away with it too much longer. Next season would probably have an air of inevitability with Vlaar and Delph gone, and probably Benteke. That is of course, if we survive this.

Lack of goals and a defence that will probably leak goals most games, is going to be a problem.

Benteke's the big one out of those three, as we won't get anywhere near to replacing him.  Vlaar has got serious injury problems and has missed large chunks of every season he has been at the club.  Delph has been good the last couple of seasons, but it's not like he adds a lot of goals or creativity.  I honestly think we could replace those two, but Benteke would be a huge loss. 

[ChicagoLion]

lads look at our squad and tell me what a new manager does with it given even 15m stg of investment in Jan?

Lambert has been awful but there is a dreadful lack of quality in the squad

He put that squad together + a bunch of misfits that he bought in and has shipped out.
Its his fault and the idea of giving him till January let alone money to spend then is ridiculous.
But I guess that is what will happen.