Norwich City vs Aston Choking Villa Post Match Thread

[footyskillz]

Very very frustrating watch.
Too many back wards and sideways passing.
Once snoddy went off grealish should have been wide and Kodjia other side right.  Grabban and Hogan right up top. Some at times Grabban was wide right and he's a centre forward.

Bruce had to be ruthless with JT looked a struggle for him why carry him on at 0-0 Jedinak looked all set to come on

More forward passing and wide play to by line was needed and more movement off ball. Having Hogan loan flurry was tough and just so disappointed that never took advantage.

Grealish took goal well but very frustrating and I think if just stayed wide and further up field rather than Hourihane being there been better anyway was a surprise but lacking In rotating and using squad.
Just hope we put in better performance against Cardiff and Leeds
Up the villa.

[Taylor]

Long journey there. First train 06.35. Now on a long journey back to Brum. Had to interject when overhead “oh we’ll be alright” when talking about playoffs. Not with those tactics and starters. ‘A frank’ discussion persisted. Some people are deluded and these people watch us week in week out. FFS

Since Bruce has been the Manager there has been some misguided faith that despite all the evidence to the contrary, it will be all right.

There have also been people calling for his head prematurely. Sometimes the people in the former camp are right.

Prematurely?
I thought you were playing Right Back.

Ha ha. It just bugs me that people think sacking SB now would be a good idea, it most certainly won't, when we still have a chance of promotion.

[Keeno]

Long journey there. First train 06.35. Now on a long journey back to Brum. Had to interject when overhead “oh we’ll be alright” when talking about playoffs. Not with those tactics and starters. ‘A frank’ discussion persisted. Some people are deluded and these people watch us week in week out. FFS

Since Bruce has been the Manager there has been some misguided faith that despite all the evidence to the contrary, it will be all right.

There have also been people calling for his head prematurely. Sometimes the people in the former camp are right.

Prematurely?
I thought you were playing Right Back.

Ha ha. It just bugs me that people think sacking SB now would be a good idea, it most certainly won't, when we still have a chance of promotion.

Agree. The instability it would create right now would likely mess up any chance we have at promotion. As it is, it's still possible that we could anti-football our way through the play-offs and into the PL. However personally I'd like to see him gone within a few days of that final whistle at Wembley if we we somehow do it. On this season's evidence, we are CLEARLY not equipped in terms of both personnel and on a coaching level for the Premier League AT ALL. And making good additions to the playing staff will only solve half of that problem.

[footyskillz]

I kind of feel sorry for Hogan - if we don't go up he'll be a big scapegoat for the goals that could have gotten us there, when really it's management shortcomings. Having said that, I still don't want him in a Villa team, as I'm not quite sure what we get out of playing him.

Agree to extent.
However he should have flown in with his head not foot today and would have scored  at 2-1 down. Led with foot. No Scott!! and also should have scored at 0-0 v reading. He misses chances

 Villa need to play to his strengths.
Team and squad is disjointed as certainly very talented. It's brilliant Bruce tactics and his claim he's a 442 man 2 up top. Hogan would work with another striker or with a style of play. Those slide balls yo him rather than him competing against big defenders would work.

[sirlordbaltimore]

Whilst I see some folks are blaming Bruce yet again (despite picking the side i hoped) i'm going to give the players a good old fuck off

Defence, all of em looked well below their best. Ragged at times.

Midfield, what midfield ? Bjork did alright but Hourianne had one of his Mr Anonymous performances and Snoddy and Albert were fucking woeful just as they both have been since the Dogheads win. They're so invisible at times it's baffling how they keep getting picked. But that said, imagine the outcry if Bruce did drop either knowing how important their respective goals/assists have been?. Total no win situation for Cribbins.

Grealish, floated about looking neat and tidy but never seemed to have the required intensity/fire in his play that was called for today

Hogan, as with the Reading game. You watch him and you see the movement and runs and wonder how on earth non of his teammates do. Works hard and eventually runs out of steam due to our inability to spot he's on the pitch for 80 minutes a game.

Subs, all tried but all made decisions that were poor as well.

Bruce, picked the team i thought and hoped he would. Can't see how he can be blamed for their collective ability to fuck it up out on the pitch by looking abject and utterly devoid of any urgency.

Fucking twats.

UTV

[kippaxvilla2]

Aston Villa boss Steve Bruce slams his players, admitting: 'They've let themselves down'

The manager also admitted that he felt for supporters after the 3-1 defeat

Steve Bruce reckons his Aston Villa players let themselves and the supporters down in the battering at Carrow Road.

Any faint hopes of automatic promotion were extinguished with this 3-1 defeat and Bruce was quick to slam his under-performing stars.

“We didn’t do enough,” he said.

“Supporters get up at five or six o’clock to support their team.

“The supporters have been brilliant, they have sold out everywhere they go.

“You always feel you have let them down.

“But I think the players have let themselves down and the team.”

“We’ve squandered a good opportunity and that’s when it becomes disappointing and frustrating,” said Bruce.

“It ain’t over, certainly not with five games left and six for others.

“But the last few games we have found ourselves wanting.”

“What that is down to, I don’t know.

“That’s the most disappointing thing.

“I didn’t think there was any zip to us at all from the first whistle.

“I thought Norwich were the same in the first-half.

“I thought they were just as lacklustre. The kid scores a great goal.

“The second and the third goal are then so unlike us. In the end we got what we deserved, which was absolutely nothing.”

Goals from Josh Murphy, Dennis Srbeny and James Maddison inflicted a third defeat in five games on Villa, who had brief ray of light when Jack Grealish pulled one back at 2-1.

But in truth the scoreline could have been even greater in favour of the hosts with Norwich boss Daniel Farke admitting: “We could have scored five or six’.

[Three Spires Villa]

Bruce is the manager, got some of the players and  has a say on how they perform, sets training sessions (not sure on this), gives the pre match & half time talks and tactics & tells players how to play, how quick he wants the ball moved or slowed down. Makes tactical changes during the match, makes substitutions during the match. If a players doesn’t do what he wants, he drops them the next match.

I do understand that the players have a responsibility to play, but this is Steve Bruce’s team and the buck stops with him.

[kippaxvilla2]

Aston Villa boss Steve Bruce slams his players, admitting: 'They've let themselves down'

The manager also admitted that he felt for supporters after the 3-1 defeat

Steve Bruce reckons his Aston Villa players let themselves and the supporters down in the battering at Carrow Road.

Any faint hopes of automatic promotion were extinguished with this 3-1 defeat and Bruce was quick to slam his under-performing stars.

“We didn’t do enough,” he said.

“Supporters get up at five or six o’clock to support their team.

“The supporters have been brilliant, they have sold out everywhere they go.

“You always feel you have let them down.

“But I think the players have let themselves down and the team.”

“We’ve squandered a good opportunity and that’s when it becomes disappointing and frustrating,” said Bruce.

“It ain’t over, certainly not with five games left and six for others.

“But the last few games we have found ourselves wanting.”

Goals from Josh Murphy, Dennis Srbeny and James Maddison inflicted a third defeat in five games on Villa, who had brief ray of light when Jack Grealish pulled one back at 2-1.

But in truth the scoreline could have been even greater in favour of the hosts with Norwich boss Daniel Farke admitting: “We could have scored five or six’.

It was poor, really poor.

“My reaction, as it always is when we play like that, is disappointment.

“I didn’t think we did enough from the first whistle to the last and got what we deserved.

“The disappointing thing is we gave ourselves a wonderful chance through performances during the season and the last three of four games we have been found wanting.

[Keeno]

Bruce is the manager, got some of the players and  has a say on how they perform, sets training sessions (not sure on this), gives the pre match & half time talks and tactics & tells players how to play, how quick he wants the ball moved or slowed down. Makes tactical changes during the match, makes substitutions during the match. If a players doesn’t do what he wants, he drops them the next match.

I do understand that the players have a responsibility to play, but this is Steve Bruce’s team and the buck stops with him.

I agree, we've seen countless times this season alone how a good manager can get seemingly average players to transform the way they play. Coaching and improving players matters - it's not a case of just a group of good players being put out in 'a formation', geeing them up a bit, and expecting them to perform. That's a 20th century way of looking at management.

Did Conor Coady, previously Baker-esque Ryan Bennett or Matt Doherty at Wolves think they could play in the style they have done under Nuno before this year at Wolves? Probably not.. A good manager and tactician could have got those players to play in a way that would have won that match against an average team at a canter. We need one!

[PeterWithesShin]

It's the " last 3 or 4 games" kind of stuff that pisses me off. It isn't Steve, it's the last 10 games, nearly a quarter of the season. 14 points which is 1.4 ppg, not even play-off form.

[David_Nab]

He talks utter shit and devious with it too ..he can fuck off with all this I feel for the fans shit .He basically distancing himself from any responsibility ,your not a fan Steve sitting on the side powerless the team have no shape and no guidance thats on you and if they are just not performing well if you brought them then again it goes back to you

[JUAN PABLO]

Watched four hours behind as my van broke down .

Absolute woeful again , how  shite  Reading must be .

Adomah has been pants ever since Wolves , how he starts I just dont know but people will say who else can Bruce play , well mr Blobby would create more and thats for Bruce to sort.

The full backs were shite especially taylor , rubbish .  conor had one of his what have you done today games .

I thought Thor and grealish at least put the effort in and whats the point in playing ronnie corbett up front on his own when you just hoof it up to him .

Bruce is out of date  he should be managing Bolton to be fair , If he sneaks the play offs , the prem wont be pretty for us .    He just hasnt got alPLan B , thou is Plan A was pathetic today.

shower of Shite

[amfy]

I know you can't point the finger at one player today, but we never seem to play well when Taylor plays, Albert seems to play worse too when he plays. I'd be interested to see the point stats for when he starts.

I think that's because Huttons rampaging runs might always end in nothing, but they give defences something else to think about. When Hutton isn't there, it's far to easy to mark Albert out of the game.

[villabear]

The game finished at 14.15ish and I’m still travelling home. Grrrrr.

Oh and to whoever was singing in desperation “John Terry, he’s won more than you”  You can fuck off as well. Pathetic.

[J]

How does Grealish escape criticisim. Goal aside, he was fucking garbage

What game were you watching?

Also Hogan needs to be dropped asap. Can't fault his effort but brings nothing apart from that to the party.