Leicester City v Aston Villa Post-Match Thread

[Nelson Lodge]

TS blaming the players for mistakes and failing to keep possession does not impress me. He really needs to take a good look at himself. Fat Sam said as much on MOTD2. By all accounts TS thinks he made the right decisions yesterday! Worrying!
He shows no signs of learning from his many mistakes which he keeps repeating. There were enough options on the bench to shore up the midfield,and so protect the defence. For example he could have gone 4-5-1 and yes all formations should have been worked out and practised on the training pitch by now!
It was the dreadful substitutions that created pressure on defenders leading to inevitable errors and goals. 25 minutes to go, 2-0 up with an already going-ho starting eleven only a mentalist tactician brings on 2 out of form/not good enough strikers! Especially when it is clear for all to see the midfielders are tiring and being increasingly over run. Not rocket science, but it clearly is for TS!

[David_Nab]

Sanchez was pretty solid upto about 60 mins then morphed into Sanchez 2014 model, loose passing, no awareness, monumental errors. It was painful viewing.

He's struggling with fitness still. I just worry whether he'll ever get up to the level required to go 90 minutes every game. I have to give the benefit of doubt at the moment because he was late back to pre-season without much of a break, and he's just been on international duty. I would hope come Oct/Nov he won't be dying on his arse at 60 minutes.

Yes his lack of stamina is very worrying but in fairness Westwood and himself should never ever play in a 2 man midfield. Thought Grealish and Sinclair went missing for us too in the second half. Not good enough.

Wasn't all that impressed with the Richards, Lescott combo either. All in all we descended into an absolute rabble, made infinitely worse by the subs. Hutton was pretty shite too but not sure why he was dropped as was one of our better players v Sunderland.

Got no problems with any 2-man combination of Gueye/Westwood/Sanchez - but - you have to have to bring on fresh legs after about an hour. 

We saw it all last season, and I didn't even need to see yesterdays game to know that on hearing the headline 'Leicester overturn 2 goal defecit' that the 2 holding midfielders had been over run and left the defence exposed.

You have to put fresh legs on after an hour especially when the opposition have already done that and are caring you open at will.

The team basically lost all shape in that final 20 mins we somehow managed to
- Not be able to hold the ball upfront
- Leave space in the middle
- Leave the fullbacks exposed

What is confusing is that we have 3 defensive subs on the bench but at 2-0 he use's none of them and the first defensive sub doesn't come on untill its far too late.I guess his idea was refresh the attackers who can hold the ball up field unfortunately Ayew and Gestede had zero effect and just made things worse.
I would have sent Clark on and told him take yellow and clobber Mahrez just to break the momentum up.

[Villa Lew]

Piss poor substitutes, real lack of vision from Tim.
Everybody watching the game could see what needed to happen after our second goal.

I'm tired and about had enough of football, after following villa for 31 years, I honestly feel I cannot watch anymore.
I can see us pulling a draw on Saturday and we are getting beaten by the knuckledraggers.
Let's face facts, we have a manager who wears his heart on his sleeve, but has the tactics of a chimpanzee lumping turds.

I can't believe I'm saying it, I've given myself the following day to calm down, but I'm done.
I ain't spending anymore of my hard earned money and time on this team.
Absolutely disgraceful, think Tims going to frustrate many fans thus season.

I can't believe you're saying it. Yes the 2nd half capitulation yesterday was a disgrace, but to give up on the new team after 5 games I find amazing.

[Ads]

Amfy I think you make some very good points.

I think some people panic as its been season after season of dross. I was speaking at half time with a couple of Villa who go everywhere too and we all concluded that the football we had played and the way that we had bossed the game was the best we’d seen in a very long time. It really should have been 3.

What I don’t quite fathom is that how willingly people are to gerrymander statistics to suit a particular point of view, yet ignore the fact we were utter bilge last season and finished 17th. It will, as you say, take time.

Not in a Lambert lets be hopeful that this defensive nihilism will work or this pointless triangle passing in our own final third will some how lead to us scoring, but in a we’re playing good football, but still making daft errors sort of way.

Organisation is easier to come by than a means of breaking the opposition down.

[QuintonVilla]

Why can't I be one of those blokes who doesn't like football? My weekends would probably be so much more enjoyable. Thing is as soon as we went 2-0 up I actually said we still won't win, it just doesn't surprise me any more. Our record in the final ten minutes of games over the past couple of years must be shocking. We nearly always look out on our feet in the last twenty minutes which begs the question are they fit enough? We've always got a mistake in us aswell though and seem terrified as soon as a team puts us under any kind of pressure.

We've got some decent talent but we're carrying too many who aren't good enough I think. Guzan is massively overrated and when you think about it probably wouldn't even be in the top ten in the league. Bacuna is not a right back. Sanchez for me still goes missing and offers little protection. Gabby is Gabby and has been a lump for years now. Ayew although it's early stages looks horrendous. Throw in a manager who makes Kevin Keegan look like a tactical genius and it's easy to see why we struggle.

[Des Little]

I'm just as pissed off today as I was last night.  That was a proper kick up the bollocks and I just hope they all - Sherwood included - learn from it, and quickly.  Six defeats from 8 games is woeful form.  I think yesterday taught us that we'll be fighting the drop yet again this season, when many of us naively thought that we would push on.  It's going to be another long winter unless things change.

[Ads]

Why do we keep harping back to last season? Why not make it 6 from 10? or 7 from 11? What relevance does getting walloped in the Cup Final with the likes of Benteke, Delph, Vlaar, Cleverley, Richardson and N'Zogbia, have to do with this season?

[dutchvilla]

If Gil had to come off, Hutton should have come on, letting Bacuna play in front of him, covering Schlupp.

They played some good stuff, and there are some good players among them, but right-back and centre-forward are two glaring areas of weakness which then unbalance the whole side.

[Walmley_Villa]

If Gil had to come off, Hutton should have come on, letting Bacuna play in front of him, covering Schlupp.

They played some good stuff, and there are some good players among them, but right-back and centre-forward are two glaring areas of weakness which then unbalance the whole side.

Yes - that is the change I would have initially made. I would have put Sinclair up front too when Gabby was taken off (should have been Clark on for Gabby).

Ironically they scored each of their goals after each of our substitutions....

[UK Redsox]

A agree about that Hutton should have come on to play behind Bacuna when Gil went off but I'd have also brought Richardson on for Gabby to play left side of midfield

[Neil Hawkes]

As depressing as this was, I would be very surprised if both the manager and team has not learnt anything from it. At 2-0 up with 30mins to go, no matter what the substitutions were, the players on the pitch should have had the gumption to see out the game, professionals I believe they are called (and get handsomely rewarded for it too).
Cast your mind back to many moons ago, playing a team called Leicester at Villa Park, with one of the greatest players to grace our club in charge as one of our best managers in recent times and we managed to throw away a 4 goal lead; had extra time be used as much as it is these days we would also have lost that match. We didn't, it was a sharp kick in the nuts and we ended up pretty reasonable throughout the rest of the season - we learnt our lesson that day; let's hope the same is true from yesterday.

[Big Dick Edwards]

Having slept on it before posting, the positives are we were excellent for an hour yesterday. Lescott, Richards and Amavi looked composed, strong and organised in defence, protected by Westwood and Sanchez, and the three creative players gave us something I've not seen from a Villa midfield for a very long time.
As has been alluded to, Tim blew it tactically. Once we scored against the run of play to go two up he should have shut up shop. Instead he bought on two strikers who haven't showed me that they will actually make it in the Premier League. We failed miserably to hold the ball up front and invited constant pressure until we inevitably cracked.
Tim has to wake up and see what we can all see, that Bacuna and Gabby aren't good enough to be starting at this level. I'd take Hutton at right back every time, and surely Kozak is worth giving an opportunity to up front. He at least has the composure and instinct to benefit from the creativity we now possess and score goals. I have no confidence in Gabby in front of goal at all.

And we still wouldn't have lost that game if Guzan hadn't been such a pussy coming for that ball in the last minute. He was challenging Nathan Dyer for fuck's sake! It should have been no contest.

[LTA]

If you look at the close up photos in the papers, it shows Guzan with his eyes shut as he goes up for the ball.

Show a bit of commitment Brad.

[dave.woodhall]

As depressing as this was, I would be very surprised if both the manager and team has not learnt anything from it. At 2-0 up with 30mins to go, no matter what the substitutions were, the players on the pitch should have had the gumption to see out the game, professionals I believe they are called (and get handsomely rewarded for it too).
Cast your mind back to many moons ago, playing a team called Leicester at Villa Park, with one of the greatest players to grace our club in charge as one of our best managers in recent times and we managed to throw away a 4 goal lead; had extra time be used as much as it is these days we would also have lost that match. We didn't, it was a sharp kick in the nuts and we ended up pretty reasonable throughout the rest of the season - we learnt our lesson that day; let's hope the same is true from yesterday.

Actually, we collapsed after that game and were lucky to stay up.

[JUAN PABLO]

I can't see them holding onto Mahrez (sp?) for too long, he was magnificent.

yes hes good

the top four wont go for him but looks typical spurs signing