Aston Villa v Brentford Post Match Thread

[Hookeysmith]

Saw the line up and went What?

He is obviously trying to shoehorn in all his signings instead of a balanced side. There was no one on the bench who could have changed the game

GK
2 x Centre Halves (MR / NB)
1 x RB  (Bacuna)
1 x LB   (Amavi)
1 x winger (Green)
1 x midfielder (Gardner)


When I saw Amavi warming up at half time it was obviously due to Cissoko's head injury - like for like. WTF was he thinking bringing him on left mid when there were several other options available.

Ayew boils my piss - never seen a player make the wrong decision so many times

I asked a few games ago - Can RDM have any complaints if he gets the bullet soon after being supported so much?

[Chris Smith]

Saw the line up and went What?

He is obviously trying to shoehorn in all his signings instead of a balanced side. There was no one on the bench who could have changed the game

GK
2 x Centre Halves (MR / NB)
1 x RB  (Bacuna)
1 x LB   (Amavi)
1 x winger (Green)
1 x midfielder (Gardner)


When I saw Amavi warming up at half time it was obviously due to Cissoko's head injury - like for like. WTF was he thinking bringing him on left mid when there were several other options available.

Ayew boils my piss - never seen a player make the wrong decision so many times

I asked a few games ago - Can RDM have any complaints if he gets the bullet soon after being supported so much?

We were in such a mess he has more or less had to build a new team from scratch. Most of the considered opinion was that it could take two seasons to sort out the mess so to ditch him after two months would be madness.

Rebuilding is usually done on top of a core of players and over time so what we are doing is pretty unusual and coupled with the injuries we keep picking up means we haven't been able settle on a consistent line up. I think we need to hold our nerve and wait to see where we are once the latest batch of signings have played a few games, then we will have a better idea of whether or not he is the right man.

[Clampy]

Saw the line up and went What?

He is obviously trying to shoehorn in all his signings instead of a balanced side. There was no one on the bench who could have changed the game

GK
2 x Centre Halves (MR / NB)
1 x RB  (Bacuna)
1 x LB   (Amavi)
1 x winger (Green)
1 x midfielder (Gardner)


When I saw Amavi warming up at half time it was obviously due to Cissoko's head injury - like for like. WTF was he thinking bringing him on left mid when there were several other options available.

Ayew boils my piss - never seen a player make the wrong decision so many times

I asked a few games ago - Can RDM have any complaints if he gets the bullet soon after being supported so much?

We were in such a mess he has more or less had to build a new team from scratch. Most of the considered opinion was that it could take two seasons to sort out the mess so to ditch him after two months would be madness.

Rebuilding is usually done on top of a core of players and over time so what we are doing is pretty unusual and coupled with the injuries we keep picking up means we haven't been able settle on a consistent line up. I think we need to hold our nerve and wait to see where we are once the latest batch of signings have played a few games, then we will have a better idea of whether or not he is the right man.

Pretty much agree with that. It's been a disappointing start but not bad enough to be pining for Steve Bruce after 7 games.

[villadelph]

From Wollaston in the Brum Mail

Villa players new and old are under an intense scrutiny and trying to find their feet like a baby gazelle in a stampede of buffaloes.

Add 30,00 nervous fans into the occasion and it takes its toll.

These players are paid a lot of money to drown that out, the truth is though that nerves are contagious, you can’t ignore the anxiety of a crowd.

What a dickhead. Blaming the fans because the players on the pitch can't see out a one goal advantage. Tells the fans calling for RDM need to wobble their head. Foff.

[Pat McMahon]

From Wollaston in the Brum Mail

Villa players new and old are under an intense scrutiny and trying to find their feet like a baby gazelle in a stampede of buffaloes.

Add 30,00 nervous fans into the occasion and it takes its toll.

These players are paid a lot of money to drown that out, the truth is though that nerves are contagious, you can’t ignore the anxiety of a crowd.

What a dickhead. Blaming the fans because the players on the pitch can't see out a one goal advantage. Tells the fans calling for RDM need to wobble their head. Foff.

Garry Thompson on the radio was basically saying that the fans being anxious is natural, but players have the ability to change things and they needed to step up and earn their salaries. No excuses for not doing so.

[aj2k77]

The fans being anxious leads to the players not closing down the opposition, playing 4 upfront, sitting deep from 50 minutes on, giving away daft free kicks all over the place and playing with 1 midfielder?

[Jimbo]

The fans were frustrated because we sat back for an entire half, trying to protect a fragile one-nil lead. At home. To Brentford. If we'd shown some intent in the second half, it would have been a completely different atmosphere. This is basic stuff.

[villadelph]

The fans were frustrated because we sat back for an entire half, trying to protect a fragile one-nil lead. At home. To Brentford. If we'd shown some intent in the second half, it would have been a completely different atmosphere. This is basic stuff.

Ayew, McCormack, Rudy, Kodjia.. go score another god damn goal. People don't buy tickets to see a 4-2-4 sit back at home.

[Jimbo]

The fans were frustrated because we sat back for an entire half, trying to protect a fragile one-nil lead. At home. To Brentford. If we'd shown some intent in the second half, it would have been a completely different atmosphere. This is basic stuff.

Ayew, McCormack, Rudy, Kodjia.. go score another god damn goal. People don't buy tickets to see a 4-2-4 sit back at home.

It was bi-polar management at its worst. All out attacking for the first 45, cowering behind the halfway line for the next.

[Monty]

Perhaps sometimes we do get on players backs a little quickly, and given that most of this team weren't responsible for the reasons we can be so quick to despair it might seem harsh to them when we do so. After all, we're not just booing that display - we're kind of booing 6 years of near-endless spiraling into hopelessness, and to someone like Tommy Elphick he might feel like he doesn't deserve it.

However, they don't help themselves if that's how they feel. Also, if all it takes is a bit of crowd anxiety for them to shrink likes cocks in the cold while winning at home against a lesser side, then they're not mentally tough enough to cope with the rigour and gruel of a Championship season. And that's not our fault.

[aj2k77]

How do we explain why we're so bad away?

[villadelph]

Perhaps sometimes we do get on players backs a little quickly, and given that most of this team weren't responsible for the reasons we can be so quick to despair it might seem harsh to them when we do so. After all, we're not just booing that display - we're kind of booing 6 years of near-endless spiraling into hopelessness, and to someone like Tommy Elphick he might feel like he doesn't deserve it.

However, they don't help themselves if that's how they feel. Also, if all it takes is a bit of crowd anxiety for them to shrink likes cocks in the cold while winning at home against a lesser side, then they're not mentally tough enough to cope with the rigour and gruel of a Championship season. And that's not our fault.

Doesn't deserve it? You realize we're in the business of shipping goals and gifting points in the last 5 minutes of a match, right? He's our captain, and honestly I like the lad, but the late defensive lapses and ineptitude has been scathing. Again, we need to get it together.

[JJ-AV]

You'll never get Grealish, Ayew and McCormack in the same side successfully. IMO.

It hasn't worked yet but I think its got potential, I'd like to see Jedinak and Tish as the two before abandoning the idea but that has its own problems as a partnership as we haven't got a link man without Westwood.

It's a Football Manager formation. Ayew's never a winger, McCormack can only really play off the front-man and it's not really in Grealish's nature to do much going back the other way. We have solid but average midfielders and full-backs, we're trying to play like an elite side but without the players to do it. It'll occasionally work ala Rotheram but we're forgoing too many basic elements of what you need in a football side in an attempt to shoe-horn big players in the side.

Get Adomah in on the right and any 3 of our 4 midfield players and we'll be a lot more solid.

[JJ-AV]

The fans were frustrated because we sat back for an entire half, trying to protect a fragile one-nil lead. At home. To Brentford. If we'd shown some intent in the second half, it would have been a completely different atmosphere. This is basic stuff.

Ayew, McCormack, Rudy, Kodjia.. go score another god damn goal. People don't buy tickets to see a 4-2-4 sit back at home.

It was bi-polar management at its worst. All out attacking for the first 45, cowering behind the halfway line for the next.

I'm in agreement of the criticism of the management, but was it really sitting back that cost us? Or was it an inability to get a grip on the game with so few players capable of keeping hold of a football?

[Monty]

He might be used to the idea that booing is reserved for serial-offender arseholes, rather than try-hards who just aren't getting it right at the moment. Mind you, that could also be a bad attitude, as it cold suggest settling for hard-sweated failure.