Aston Villa v Wolves Post-Match Thread

[Jimbo]

I sincerely hope every last Villa fan can now sling any ideas of promotion this season into the bin and realise that what we have is a relegation battle. Make no mistake, every team in this league knows our many weaknesses, so absolutely every player will see an opportunity to get the better of us, and many will.

The fact that Bruce has articulated some of our problems, rather than spewing out a load of platitudes like his predecessors, is a positive sign. He knows what he needs to put right, and I believe he will, but it'll take time.

Fitness, mental fragility, lack of shape and cohesion are the things he needs to work on before he can strengthen in January. If we can get any form of win in the next few games, it will help immensely. But don't expect any more than mid-table stability this season. It only heaps more pressure on a nervous bunch of players, and it will ultimately lead to disappointment. We're going to have to take this one step at a time.

[Nunkin1965]

I think the great thing for me is that after 1 game Bruce sees it. In his post match comments he sees the flaws, the weaknesses and in my mind he will be able to address the issues that need sorting.

January will be very useful for him and stupid as it sounds after a £50 million outlay on players, it can't come quick enough.

[The Edge]

I sincerely hope every last Villa fan can now sling any ideas of promotion this season into the bin and realise that what we have is a relegation battle. Make no mistake, every team in this league knows our many weaknesses, so absolutely every player will see an opportunity to get the better of us, and many will.

The fact that Bruce has articulated some of our problems, rather than spewing out a load of platitudes like his predecessors, is a positive sign. He knows what he needs to put right, and I believe he will, but it'll take time.

Fitness, mental fragility, lack of shape and cohesion are the things he needs to work on before he can strengthen in January. If we can get any form of win in the next few games, it will help immensely. But don't expect any more than mid-table stability this season. It only heaps more pressure on a nervous bunch of players, and it will ultimately lead to disappointment. We're going to have to take this one step at a time.

Spot on mate. Wolves pummeled us second half. Reality check for many including myself.  Brucie has a huge job on his hands to rebuild our team. I hope he gets the time and the backing to do it. But the booing from the Holte end don't help anything. That's why we have a reputation for being fickle.

[auntiesledd]

What I find totally confusing, is that at the start of the season we were playing well but not getting the points we deserved. We played well against Huddersfield, Forest and Derby for example. But since the second half against Brentford we have been woeful. What has changed? Maybe we should drop Jedinak, we seemed to play better before he arrived.

It's because players are effected by levels of confidence. Negativity is infectious and in our case seemingly difficult to address. Players are humans not robots. Jedinak in the grand scheme of things has eff all to do with it.

I'm with you Tayls. Their confidence is shot to bits & they've become a sorry bunch of individuals who have little or no belief in themselves or each other. Bruce certainly has one helluva job on stopping this ongoing slide & eventually turning it round. I just hope he's given the time to achieve what is desperately needed; & given mid-season funds to help sure-up this unbalanced, disorganised and criminally unfit rabble. God alone knows what RDM was doing at BMH during the week.

[Walmley_Villa]

He needs them to go back to basics and get that right first. Then develop and confidence will grow.

[cheltenhamlion]

I sincerely hope every last Villa fan can now sling any ideas of promotion this season into the bin and realise that what we have is a relegation battle. Make no mistake, every team in this league knows our many weaknesses, so absolutely every player will see an opportunity to get the better of us, and many will.

The fact that Bruce has articulated some of our problems, rather than spewing out a load of platitudes like his predecessors, is a positive sign. He knows what he needs to put right, and I believe he will, but it'll take time.

Fitness, mental fragility, lack of shape and cohesion are the things he needs to work on before he can strengthen in January. If we can get any form of win in the next few games, it will help immensely. But don't expect any more than mid-table stability this season. It only heaps more pressure on a nervous bunch of players, and it will ultimately lead to disappointment. We're going to have to take this one step at a time.

Spot on mate. Wolves pummeled us second half. Reality check for many including myself.  Brucie has a huge job on his hands to rebuild our team. I hope he gets the time and the backing to do it. But the booing from the Holte end don't help anything. That's why we have a reputation for being fickle.

You can piss off with the fickle crap. They thoroughly deserved booing off the field after the absolute dogs breakfast of a second half.

Nigh on 5000 going to Reading on Tuesday. And we haven't won away for the best part of 15 months. One win all season. Fickle tossers.

[itbrvilla]

I sincerely hope every last Villa fan can now sling any ideas of promotion this season into the bin and realise that what we have is a relegation battle. Make no mistake, every team in this league knows our many weaknesses, so absolutely every player will see an opportunity to get the better of us, and many will.

The fact that Bruce has articulated some of our problems, rather than spewing out a load of platitudes like his predecessors, is a positive sign. He knows what he needs to put right, and I believe he will, but it'll take time.

Fitness, mental fragility, lack of shape and cohesion are the things he needs to work on before he can strengthen in January. If we can get any form of win in the next few games, it will help immensely. But don't expect any more than mid-table stability this season. It only heaps more pressure on a nervous bunch of players, and it will ultimately lead to disappointment. We're going to have to take this one step at a time.

Spot on mate. Wolves pummeled us second half. Reality check for many including myself.  Brucie has a huge job on his hands to rebuild our team. I hope he gets the time and the backing to do it. But the booing from the Holte end don't help anything. That's why we have a reputation for being fickle.

You can piss off with the fickle crap. They thoroughly deserved booing off the field after the absolute dogs breakfast of a second half.

Nigh on 5000 going to Reading on Tuesday. And we haven't won away for the best part of 15 months. One win all season. Fickle tossers.

Spot on.shoild be a banning offence to spout such shit about being fickle. As if were any different to any other set of fans, especially as you have mentioned the state of the last few years.

[onje_villa]

Interesting that Steve said "some tired badly" in the second half. It's been evident all season that the players simply are fit enough, which you can fully blame RDM and his fitness coaches. Basic fitness is surely a minimum requirement??

Didn't RDM come in and mention the fitness almost immediately? Or was that Garde?

[LeeB]

I sincerely hope every last Villa fan can now sling any ideas of promotion this season into the bin and realise that what we have is a relegation battle. Make no mistake, every team in this league knows our many weaknesses, so absolutely every player will see an opportunity to get the better of us, and many will.

The fact that Bruce has articulated some of our problems, rather than spewing out a load of platitudes like his predecessors, is a positive sign. He knows what he needs to put right, and I believe he will, but it'll take time.

Fitness, mental fragility, lack of shape and cohesion are the things he needs to work on before he can strengthen in January. If we can get any form of win in the next few games, it will help immensely. But don't expect any more than mid-table stability this season. It only heaps more pressure on a nervous bunch of players, and it will ultimately lead to disappointment. We're going to have to take this one step at a time.

Spot on mate. Wolves pummeled us second half. Reality check for many including myself.  Brucie has a huge job on his hands to rebuild our team. I hope he gets the time and the backing to do it. But the booing from the Holte end don't help anything. That's why we have a reputation for being fickle.

You can piss off with the fickle crap. They thoroughly deserved booing off the field after the absolute dogs breakfast of a second half.

Nigh on 5000 going to Reading on Tuesday. And we haven't won away for the best part of 15 months. One win all season. Fickle tossers.

Spot on.shoild be a banning offence to spout such shit about being fickle. As if were any different to any other set of fans, especially as you have mentioned the state of the last few years.

Anyone using the term fickle in relation to our support should be forced to have a picture under their username, maybe under the golden muppets bit, of O'Leary.

[auntiesledd]

He needs them to go back to basics and get that right first. Then develop and confidence will grow.

I'm sure he will. I just hope he gets the required response asap, otherwise I can see a hammering on Tuesday evening inflicting further psychological damage on those poor wee lambs...

[Boz]

Yesterday at least showed Bruce what a sack of sh*t players he's got. Another manager who couldn't get any new manager bounce out of them.

If we'd flattered to deceive in his first game he might have thought they're not too bad, so at least he knows there's a lot of work to be done starting with getting them fit.

[Jimbo]

On the fitness question, I can't help thinking it's tied in with a key problem at the club, and that's to do with arrogance. The idea that this is a big club, that you've somehow made it when you sign for it, that opposition players will be intimidated by it, that you might not have to work quite so hard on things like fitness and organisation because you're special, and when things click we'll just tear up the league because we have players oozing with natural talent.

I noticed in the first half, we started well enough but then we began to get a little cocky, trying tricky individual things instead of playing the simple ball as a team. Then we lost our shape and were overwhelmed by a side that worked harder and played as a team.

I've said this before, but it's as if some players think they're better than they are, as if they're above all this, when what they really need to do is just keep it simple and play as a team. It's very strange.

[PerthVillaWA]

I could be the manager, I'd say 'right men, under the previous 5 managers you were content to just sit back at let the opposition take their time and pick their passes...under me you close the f***rs down and don't give them time to scratch their balls before they pick out the defence splitting passes that 9 out of ten result in a goal, mostly in the last 5 minutes'....

...job done....3 million per year I thankyou!

[JUAN PABLO]

the more i look at it , spending £14 million on Ross Mc and not buying two £7 million midfielders was criminal by RDM when we have a forward line of Ayew, Kodja . Rudy and H-murphy which is plenty enough.

Im sure Bruce will sort it , will take time but hes been there days and already he knows the problems where RDM was just a muppet .

[onje_villa]

The thing about how we play that gets on my tits the most? Not being able to take a decent fucking throw-in. Everything else - dribbling, passing, crossing, shooting - can be trained (allegedly, but at Villa that's not apparent), but these people have been playing the game since they were knee-high and they don't seem to be able to perform the simple task of chucking a ball next to a teammate's feet.

Completely infuriating isn't it? A couple of Richards' were absolutely criminal. Also just general technique. It must be confidence surely? Average Championship side Wolves are flinging passes at each other's feet at 100mph with barely a mistake. Our passes are almost always inaccurate and we end up coughing up possession again and again.

I just don't understand it, on paper we have a lot of very good players (for this level)