Aston Villa v Stoke City post match thread

[sirlordbaltimore]

I'm as livid after that garbage as I was delighted last week.

What is still abundantly clear to me though is i cannot stand this manager and his methods/tactics. Or complete lack of them.

Fucking rank.

[Deano's Mullet]

Directionless from top to bottom of this club.

[ChicagoLion]

Simply awful defending both Bacuna and Baker were pub players today.

I have played some pub games and that is an insult to those chaps who drink a gallon of cheap lager, down a madras on Saturday night and run around a football pitch on a Sunday morning

[Stu]

I didn't see such a heavy defeat coming. Stoke came to play and battered us. We showed nothing, absolutely nothing, in return.

Another heavy defeat under Lambert. I want him gone. He isn't showing that he knows how to address the problems with the team.

[timeoutbigbar]

I jokingly said at half time "that better not be our good half".  It was.

Bacuna, Baker, Sylla, Westwood.  What the fuck was that?

Think Delph summed it up from the pitch side microphones..."fucking rubbish".

[eamonn]

Bacuna and Bakers positioning and lack of marking was truly abject, unforgivable from professionals. Im not sure what the fuss over Bertrand is either. He is piss-weak and is constantly nudged off the ball. Only once did we sting the hands of Begovic and that was in the last minute.

At least Deaos Mullet got to see his hero give (pretty poor) punditry.

[ktvillan]

We looked utterly clueless today, especially in defence.  After recent improvement Baker reverted to diving in and running around as if he had a bag over his head.  Crouch mullered him.  And Vlaar wasnt much better, and both full backs woeful as well.  Oh well at least we should stay up, but that was relegation defending today.' Only realised yesterday that Gabby has only scored 3 goals all season - nowhere near enough especially when he's not really contributing in other ways.  Ditto Wiemann.  We need to sign much better players in the summer.

[eastie]

We just don't have any really foundations to how we play. When we play well it all seems precarious, based on instinct and timing and touch and the players having confidence, not all of which have nothing to do with Lambert. However, when things go wrong it all flails and falls apart, and the players get the ball with no idea what might be done with it. That is Lambert's fault.

This.
We do not have a gameplan.
It seems that the two last wins had come by chance.
I have wanted PL when he was at Norwich, and I would never expect that he would bring me to hate football.
We are lucky enough to have just gained as many points as we need  to gain the safety.
This is not my Villa, the mighty and proud Aston Villa.

Great post Archie - heartfelt and my feelings too - lambert is killing my love of football.

[Deano's Mullet]

Dean Saunders looked like he'd just had root canal treatment. He still speaks of us with passion. You can see this hurts him too and he's right, our defenders are not Prem League quality.

[Gareth]

This is the third year in a row for Lambert that he has presided over a team that is good one week then bad for three....as a football club AVFC have to decide if that is his limit or if he has it in him to push on...personally I have veered towards push off for months!

Today was horrendous, after the first 10 mins that was a rudderless ship, Delph aside the team were hopeless with no plan or structure coming from the touch line or leadership from on the pitch.

Bacuna is never a full back, at a push a wing back if a pacey centre half covers him, his attempts at tackles today were abysmal.

Bertrand, lucky to play over Bennett, at least he tried to get us on front foot.

Vlaar, ponderous & poor with the ball...surely that was a pen when he was obstructing 2nd half?

Baker - well and truly schooled by Crouch, not sure he won a ball in the air?

Westwood - Lambert sees something I don't, weak, average passer - any chance you track a runner

Sylla - really, there is no way on earth Gardner or Johnson couldn't have matched his non existence in a Villa shirt, French League 2, it shows.

Gabby - yet another pointless performance, sometimes I wonder if we won't improve until he is gone, maybe harsh but I think we set up to accommodate him too often.

Weimman - as pointless as Gabby too often.

Benteke, great finish, tried...but....that dive, have a word with yourself!

Seems the real Villa stood up - the wimps, the gutless ones.

Seems an apt time to name us the Stephen Ireland of clubs, do enough when need to, inept the rest of the time

[ez]

I jokingly said at half time "that better not be our good half".  It was.

Bacuna, Baker, Sylla, Westwood.  What the fuck was that?

Think Delph summed it up from the pitch side microphones..."fucking rubbish".

The lack of a second half response was baffling.

[john e]

Stoke were good

[Goldie.7]

Gabby is a waste of a squad number. I've said it for years he's garbage and needs to move on.

[levico]

No surprises today. This is what we really are not the team that beat Chelsea. What's more depressing is that nothing is going to change,we'll probably avoid relegation, Lambert will get a new contract, Summer signings will be more of the same and next season will be another flirtation with relegation. Just what's the point?

[ChicagoLion]

Stoke were good

I thought they were a well organised physical outfit who are prepared to revert to thuggery when needed.

They won every physical battle.

We made them look a lot better than they are.