Newcastle United v Aston Villa Post-Match Thread

[PeterWithe]

Same old, same old. Didn't look too bad despite not having a midfield, then concede a daft goal and we melt.

We need some young energetic players in the team, this lot are all so slow and ponderous. Just like the team they replaced last month were all too slow and ponderous. What an utter waste of money.

[cdbearsfan]

We hardly ever score when we are on top, we always concede under the slightest pressure.

We have no fight and are effectively out of a game once we've gone behind.

We appointed Bruce on the basis that he's good in promotion battles. Unfortunately, his record in relegation battles is abysmal, and that's what we are in now.

He has to go, before it's too late.

[Clampy]

Didn't think we were too terrible overall without creating a fat lot but absolutely lousy goals to give away again. It's hard enough going to places like that without gifting them goals.

[Tony Erdington]

id like to say I saw some promising things tonight.

But presumably you didn't. Unless we were watching a different game!!

the ref wasn't to bad.

[Rudy65]

Right. The walking dead is on now. Add your own punchline.

Just watched them at St James Park

[London Villan]

We were adequate in the first 40 minutes. Slow, pedestrian, cautious which is ok when you are tight at the back. Which we aren't. As soon as a goal goes in we are beaten. No fight, no taking the game to the opposition. As they were tapping it around after 70 minutes, 2-0 up, compare us to Preston at Villa Park a couple of weeks ago. The were snapping into us, pushing us back, wanting to win. None of that from us.

Then our distribution... no pressure, give the ball away time, after time, after time... criminal. Embarrassing. How can we be so poor.

Substitutions - might change the game - no let's wait until the second (or third) goal goes in. Idiotic.

Finally, for the second time in six months we buy the top performing striker in the division. Another player who needs clever balls played through to him, to his feet. What do we do? Play him as a target man and thump balls towards him. Fucking stupid beyond belief. And now he is out for the season. Brilliant.

 

[django]

We had a decent first 40 minutes, didn't create anything but were definitely the better of the two sides. Hourihane looked pretty good I thought and our defence looked pretty comfortable.

But even before our usual meltdown, our shape wasn't great. I think we look much better when Kodja is playing more centrally, we never got any kind of service to Hogan who we wont see again this season. Bjarnason shouldn't have come out for the second half. In a generally decent performance he was way below par. We were a goal behind and there was nothing to suggest we'd get back into it. And so it proved. We all knew we wouldn't, it seems Bruce was just hoping despite the evidence that we could nick something. Which is a massive worry. Ironic that Bjarneson had the best/only chance in the second half cos he was no better after the break.

SHQ's observation about none of the Villa players going over to check on Hogan after he broke his ankle or tore ligaments was a bit of a revelation. Surely if a stranger broke his ankle in front of you in the street you'd check if they were ok? Doesn't say a lot for our team spirit that's for sure.

We haven't won in 9 games and if one of the bottom 3 starts to grind out a few wins I can genuinely see us going down.

[BOB MANSFIELD]

Positivity.......it was only 2-0.
Many contributors were thinking a real stuffing but we were causing them enough to worry them up to the goal ( as usual ) If only......we could have got a goal, but we didn't, so SB and Co now have to write that one off ( written off well before now, I guess anyway ) and work on the next one. Kodjia will be OK, he's just a bit of a fragile one, isn't he ?
And I guess Bakes will be back for Derby. We can do it. We will do it.

[Loxton01]

Lets just hope Sky don't put us on tv again on the grounds we get just enough points to scrape a 16th place finish.

It is truely desperate. So many players making individual errors which stems from a lack of confidence. It's time they got a fucking grip and got back to basics we need 12-14 points to stay in this league with the same amount of games. That should be the only focus now.

They should have double sessions and be working on positional sense, working in pairs, defending from frigging corners. No more hard luck stories don't let luck effect the game.

We are in real trouble and are sleepwalking to defeat after defeat.

[brontebilly]

No strikers fit now then? Green and Davis up top? Buggered.

We are the most consistently unlucky team i have ever witnessed.

Luck really doesn't come into it.  We're just shit.  As for strikers, we didn't have to sell Gestede the second the window opened, and he could have tried actually getting McCormack fit and integrated.

McCormack was given chances by Bruce but was awful.

Any player with any self respect should be fit enough to be play, McCormack was a slob on and off the pitch

Gestede the same, though I agree we shouldnt have sold him until the end of the transfer window if at all

Ayew can have no real complaints either but getting rid of three senior strikers in Jan was too much change perhaps

[Tony Erdington]

We hardly ever score when we are on top, we always concede under the slightest pressure.

We have no fight and are effectively out of a game once we've gone behind.

We appointed Bruce on the basis that he's good in promotion battles. Unfortunately, his record in relegation battles is abysmal, and that's what we are in now.

He has to go, before it's too late.

this

[Clark W Griswold]

Hogan totally isolated as were Bjarnasson and Kodjia. It wouldn't be too bad if our forward roaming dynamic pair of Lansbury and Hourahane got forward to support but they don't, in fact they were fucking shite. Bjarnnason looks like a load of bollocks anyway, although he still deserves time. Bacuna in next match though if we play the same way. Get Green on the left and Kodjia down the middle.

I thought Taylor and Jedinak largely did well tonight. The centre backs not too bad apart from the total panic for the 2 goals. Hutton wasn't as bad as he can be.

[WarszaVillan]

Great idea to sell Ayew, Gestede and McCormack

We didn't sell McCormack.

You're right. All's ok

[john e]

just look at our results

at least we got that stability everyone was going on about

[CJ]

Right. The walking dead is on now. Add your own punchline.

Just watched them at St James Park

Sleep-walking to League 1