St. Valentine's Day massacre (The Post-Shambles thread) (WITH POLL)

[Clampy]

We had patches (albeit very few) where we didn't play too badly but overall there was no belief, not a lot of fight and a massive lack of confidence. It might just take a win to give us the lift we need but at the moment, you just can't see that coming.

[AVFCRob]

Thought it was poor with the booing second half. It just makes it harder for the players operating with low confidence and being expected to perform to a counsel of perfection.

Responding out of sheer frustration to 2 points in 8 games and shocking lack of desire and execution seems perfectly reasonable to me. Or should we sit there and applaud politely as every defeat unfolds?

[Malandro]

The alternative, Nev, to crossing your fingers and hoping for the best is to walk away.  There is going to be a lot of walking away.

Not by you Brian, you are in too deep.

[Ads]

Thought it was poor with the booing second half. It just makes it harder for the players operating with low confidence and being expected to perform to a counsel of perfection.

Responding out of sheer frustration to 2 points in 8 games and shocking lack of desire and execution seems perfectly reasonable to me. Or should we sit there and applaud politely as every defeat unfolds?

I think that would be better yes or singing a few Villa songs and getting behind them during the 90. Booing does make it worse.

[Jimbo]

I agree with you there, Ads. If one of your colleagues at work is underperforming, go and stand behind their seat and boo at them. I bet they don't get any better. The booing is part of the spiral of failure. It only makes it twist downwards quicker.

[pauliewalnuts]

We look like the most mentally fragile team ever.

[UK Redsox]

Surely the management team are capable of this type of simple analysis?

It's post-fact world now

[UK Redsox]

Did not kick off here till 23.45hrs, so decided I would give it a miss, as work this morning, then you wake up and are just not surprised to see the scoreline 1-3, to Barnsley, not Bournemouth, Burnley, god forbid Barcelona, No fing Barnsley. It is a long way back from where we are presently going and have we reached the bottom yet, with Mr. Bruce at the helm I think not.

Considering how Barcelona played last night, even Villa might have beat them

[UK Redsox]

The dithering over the substitutions was strange. Bjork and Green were ready to come on, then they were told to put the bibs back on but then told to take them off again.

Why take off McCafu when he was one of the few attacking threats and actually putting some good crosses in ? Switching Adomah to right-back only to almost immediately bring Bacuna on to play right back wasted a substitution.

[PeterWithe]

Thought it was poor with the booing second half. It just makes it harder for the players operating with low confidence and being expected to perform to a counsel of perfection.

Responding out of sheer frustration to 2 points in 8 games and shocking lack of desire and execution seems perfectly reasonable to me. Or should we sit there and applaud politely as every defeat unfolds?

I thought the crowd were remarkably positive for the larger part of the game.

[The Edge]

The post match discussion in the pub has reached the point where no one can figure out what the fuck is going on. Someone even put forward that the only thing we haven't changed is the back room staff. He thought maybe the kit man or the groundsman is a nose and is somehow managing to sabotage the club. He was fucking serious!!!
Desperate times indeed. I said someone is due a thrashing when we start to gel. Well he started it.

[MarkM]

I listened to Paul Merson on Talk Sport this morning.

He was saying that we had plucked players from lower league / smaller championship clubs who were used to playing in front of smaller crowds with lower pressures. And then they come to us and have to play in front of 30,000 + crowds and simply can't hack it.

[ciggiesnbeer]

Which is all well and good and Merson maybe right about the new guys but what about the batch before? And the batch before that?

We are a palimpsest of players from several managers. Why it never works out only the universe knows, because I am out of answers.

[robbo1874]

It's often quoted, mainly by me on Twitter, that Brian Clough said a decent keeper will win you ten points a season. That's why he bought Peter Shilton. By my reckoning, shite keepers have cost us more than that in six months.

and that was probably in the days of 2 pts for a win, so by his logic it's probably more than that now - maybe 13-15?

[Dr_Fegg]

Which is all well and good and Merson maybe right about the new guys but what about the batch before? And the batch before that?

We are a palimpsest of players from several managers. Why it never works out only the universe knows, because I am out of answers.

Word of the day award!!