Southampton vs Aston Villa post-match thread

[aev]

but in the absence of results, so what. And I don't mean to be cruel - it's just that now more than ever, we can't carry passengers.

Unfortunately we have about 20 of them.

[saunders_heroes]

How many games have we lost by just the odd goal this season? its not like we're getting thrashed out of sight every week. Perhaps the new manager (whenever he turns up) can install a bit of confidence into the squad because the whole lot of them are bereft of it.

[ktvillan]

McDonald had a lot of credit in the bank with Villa fans as a good servant of the club.  As far as I'm concerned he let us and himself down last night and tarnished his reputation.  There really was no need at all to be so cautious and I can't for the life of me understand what he was thinking.

[kippaxvilla2]

No one is surprised of course at the defeat.  But the manner of it and of course now famed baffling team selection is annoying again.  Didn't we also play in yellow a lot the last time we were relegated?

When the draw was made Le Tissier pulled out Southampton at home and when we were drawn out next he punched the air.  I know he's a tit but it's another reminder of just how far we have fallen.  K Mac saying we frustrated one the form teams of the PL.  A club that was in Administration just as Randy started to switch the cash tap off.

[claret and blue blood]

Can't remember '87 away strip, but I'm sure we had a yellow and blue away strip in 69/70 when we went down to the third division?

[Desontheholte]

Yes I bought 1987 away kit full yellow made by Henson! Just like last night!! And we played just like 1987. No actually we played worse than at anytime in 1987 or any other year I can remember! Very sad times..

[Ads]

How many games have we lost by just the odd goal this season? its not like we're getting thrashed out of sight every week. Perhaps the new manager (whenever he turns up) can install a bit of confidence into the squad because the whole lot of them are bereft of it.

Yep.

We gift cheap goals continually. Hutton should stop the cross, Clark shouldn't get drawn towards the ball. Positioning is definitely a coaching issue. It helps when the midfield doesn't contain Westwood of course.

That side last night was nowhere near our best and a smart manager would know that and believe there are more than enough tools to work with to improve us.

[rob_bridge]

-------------Guzan-----------------
Hutton---Richards--Okore---Amavi
Gil----Gana-----Sanchez----Grealish
---------Ayew-----Kozak-----------

Or put Gil in behind a lone striker with Adama on the right.
Or play Gana Sanchez Veretout in the middle and go 4-3-3.

Or do anything really, just don't start Gabby, Lescott, Gestede, Richardson, Westwood or Bacuna. Not even one; let alone all of them at once you stupid twerps.

4-4-2 is an obsolete formation to all intent and purpose. Most especially with our midifeld.

[FranzBiberkopf]

-------------Guzan-----------------
Hutton---Richards--Okore---Amavi
Gil----Gana-----Sanchez----Grealish
---------Ayew-----Kozak-----------

Thats probably as good as it gets, but fcuk me that has relegation writtten through it. There's just not enough goals in that set up to keep us up. That midfield is nicely balanced, but would deliver, what 5 goals between them between now and May. And to expect Ayew and Kozak to get more than 10 a piece would be pushing it massively.

[LeeS]

We would've had to play Liverpool next at our bogey ground.

Statements like that have always fried my brain. In my confused kind I can't avoid th conclusion that it wasn't predetermined that the Villa/Saints ball was going to be picked out in that sequence. So if you re-ran that moment in time over and over again you'd expect a variety of results. Which means if Villa had won, the whole draw would almost certainly have been different.

And we'd have been destined to draw City!

[Des Little]

I don't think we'd beat anyone at the moment.  We are in a big horrible mess.

[Walmley_Villa]

You know things must be bad when Alan Hutton is miles ahead of anyone else for Player of the Season....

[Nastylee]

Doomed or so it seems. We're going to need a Leicester like run and I can't see a goalscorer in our squad.

[olaftab]

I think Kozak is nailed on for player of the season providing he doesn't play!

[Monty]

The 4-4-2 was solid until the usual outnumbering thing happened and they jogged through the midfield to score. The 4-2-3-1 looked better - nearly good, in fact - and should be enough to provide a little bit of hope. However, the key thing to do is to play Jack as an inside left and not as a number ten in that formation - Veretout should be the more advanced of three midfielders.

Maybe if Remi does come in he'll play that 4-3-1-2, but with Gil as one of the 'strikers' playing off Ayew, and Jack as the '1'.