Newcastle United v Aston Villa Post-Match Thread

[Steve R]

I always felt confident somehow last season that it would get better. The team deserved the opportunity to develop as a premier league side. This season has slowly descended into a morass of truly shite football.

Lowton, Westwood - despite his performance today, Sylla, Weimann, Benteke were all key then and look a pale shadow now. They seem either totally unconcerned or scared of their own shadow.

Benteke in particular is reacting badly to being used as a second generation Grant Holt. He's a footabller, not the big get up front that provides the flick ons. Play the ball to his chest or his feet or into space around him. Stop bladdering it 60 yards through the stratosphere in his general direction. That doesn't excuse his half arsed attitude. It does mean that Lambert has to shoulder a lot of responsibility for his failure to terrorise defences this term.

Lambert really has to go. I cannot understand the thinking behind trying to get hm to sign up for another stint.

[richard moore]

People are being way too harsh on Benteke. This "system" we play is absolutely ridiculous but he's there winning a lot of headers and causing problems for defenders. Where are the players around him trying to, you know, help him? It's impossible for him to do it on his own!

Lambert is the main problem, he just doesn't know how to win a game. Look at today for example, Newcastle were shit but we seemed content holding on for a 0-0 draw.

Regarding Benteke, you must have been watching a very, very, very different match to me today. His performance was disgusting

[pbavfckuwait]

Please Mr. Lambert go and I do not care who comes in for you, as long as he tries to make Aston Villa creditable again, if not this club and I cannot believe I am going to type this and that is after seeing over 30 years of our sometimes good , sometimes bad, but never didn't matter, as we do now, go down and lets press the restart button.

[AVFCRob]

After watching the enthralling rugby yesterday, this shit just reaffirms how mediocre and boring football is these days, especially for a Villa fan.

I mean, if ever a team were there for the taking it was Newcastle, they were absolutely dire for the most part and our front three couldn't muster anything.

That has to be one of the worst performances from a striker by Benteke I've ever seen. His movement is terrible, touch likewise and then just throwing his hands in the air, well I've had enough of it.

I'll reserve praise for Baker and Guzan who I thought were excellent and Westwood who played well but the others, oh my word... And I'm sorry but Bertrand is almost as bad as Luna and Bennett and that IS saying something.

Still, let's keep rewarding mediocrity and be content that our beloved club may escape relegation, whoop-de-do!

Benteke? Is anyone old enough to remember Earl Barrett? Ball control involved the ball bouncing 10 yards off him. Benteke's been taking some lessons from Earl methinks.

[PeterWithesShin]

There are 11 games left.

Our record for the last 11 league games is:

LLDWLDWLLDL

That's 9 points from 33, which is pathetic.

If we repeat that for the remaining 11 games. We will end up on 37 points, which as well as probably meaning relegation, would be utterly pathetic.

That means that we are going to have to find some much improved form. I can't see that happening.

If we accept 40 as the survival mark, then an extra 3 points from 11 games doesn't really need much improvement on our current form. Which says much for how shit the bottom half of this division is.

[wolfman999]

What would be worse?

We stay up, Lambert stays with his new contract, scours europe in the summer for yet more cheap sub-standard garbage to go with the cheap, sub-standard garbage we've already got and a fifth season of dire football and fighting relegation or ....

We go down Lambert stays with his new contract, scours europe in the summer for yet more cheap sub-standard garbage to go with the cheap, sub-standard garbage we've already got and .... who knows?

[JUAN PABLO]

Lambert out

He didnt bring the legend Grant Holt on neither


oh dear .

[Mazrim]

What exactly is Benteke supposed to do with crosses hit 20 yards over his head? I'd probably lose interest too.
Oh yes, and the guy who can probably give him the best service, who is in form, is watching from the bench. Pathetic.

[Legion]

As said so eloquently on the pre-match thread:

"We're the white knight in shining armour that comes galloping in to the rescue when other clubs desperately need points."

[Legion]

Watch and weep

[kippaxvilla2]

There are 11 games left.

Our record for the last 11 league games is:

LLDWLDWLLDL

That's 9 points from 33, which is pathetic.

If we repeat that for the remaining 11 games. We will end up on 37 points, which as well as probably meaning relegation, would be utterly pathetic.

That means that we are going to have to find some much improved form. I can't see that happening.

and whats worrying we have had some easy teams we should beating in those games .

There's always a team who look safe at new year that get dragged into the scrap.

[not3bad]

As said so eloquently on the pre-match thread:

"We're the white knight in shining armour that comes galloping in to the rescue when other clubs desperately need points."

I'd like to say it isn't depressingly inevitable.  But it is. 

[JUAN PABLO]

well Villa always make the weekends miserable

I enjoyed last weekend

[Dribbler]

People are being way too harsh on Benteke. This "system" we play is absolutely ridiculous but he's there winning a lot of headers and causing problems for defenders. Where are the players around him trying to, you know, help him? It's impossible for him to do it on his own!

The thing is, he was doing far better last season. He'll come back to form though, I'm sure.

Yes but he was being utilsed in a different way last season. At the moment we have him playing in the 'Emile Heskey' role, and funnily enough, he's looks about as useful as Emile Heskey! That is primarily down to Lambert's 'tactics'.

[PeterWithesShin]

I really don't get why he started Weimann instead of Albrighton. One has been crap most of the season, the other has looked a real threat recently.