Fulham 1-0 Aston Villa Play Off Final Post Match Thread

[PaulWinch again]

It’s why it doesn’t work.

Sometimes. Other times Cole, Yorke, Solskjaer and Sheringham all finishing a CL final puts you down in history and then no one blinks when you keep doing it every time you're losing in last 10 minutes.

It works the other week. People would be going nuts on here if Kodjia or Hogan had been an unused sub against ten men.

It’s different though, with 10 minutes against 10 men we very obviously needed to stretch them. We made it much easier by compressing the game.

[Mister E]

We’re also desperately static and slow.

This absolutely summed it up for me today:the players’ decision-making is painful - Grealish aside - and the movement is ponderous. Players like Snodgrass and Adomah need 3 or 4 touches every time to get it under control, or just because they want to try and impress. Or something.
The game is all about pace and control, and too many of the games I’ve been to these last two seasons have not featured these 2 critical facets. We’ve won a good number of games but through sheer force of persistence and will.
Wolves and Fulham move the ball like a ‘good’ footballing side; it’s the way games are won.

I’m saddened today because I thought we would adopt the appro@ch we took against Wolves; we didn’t. We sat back and gave Cairney and Sessegnon the time to structure the game.

[GarTomas]

What Fulham, and earlier Wolves, have shown is that you don't need a dinosaur manager who "knows the league" to get grind out results to get you promoted.  You can actually coach your team, play some decent football, bring through some young players,  and still get promoted.  The whole Bruce thing was misconceived in my view.  We needed a full top to bottom, grass roots rebuilding job with a long term strategy to develop a house style based on good technique and tactical nouse, bringing through young players playing the Villa way.  With the first team as the flagship.  Bruce is not that kind of manager and never will be. Anyone who thinks he deserves another shot is incredibly blinkered in my view, and far too ready to happy to accept mediocrity.     I'll be glad to see the back of him.

That’s the Villa Engine we keep hearing about.

Which is why Bruce has to go. O’Hare, Green, Davis, RHM nowhere near the squad.  Complete opposite approach to what around and Wyness are pushing.

[AlexAlexCropley]

All of us were crying out for change way before half time.But no,Bruce was convinced that what hadn't worked would work.
Woeful tactics.Thanks to the traveller kids that smashed our coach window on the way back to really put a cap on a shit day.

[andyh]

It seems that Bruce has run out of game plans.
To use the same approach against Fulham in final at Wembley, that he used again Boro in the semis was criminal.
Fulham are a completely different animal to Boro and he should have had a game plan to beat them.
Even we we did move away from that fucking boring, negative approach in the first half, our attack was pretty much the same as always.
Jack work some magic, feed Adomah who ‘might’ get a decent cross into the box and hope to fuck someone gets on the end of it.
That’s it.
No variation, no guile, no fucking through balls to someone runn8ng on through midfield (like their goal).

Steve, you are a decent bloke and you have a great job to stabilise the ship.
Now it’s time to call it a day and move on. I don’t want to see you sacked, let’s call it mutual consent, shake hands and say goodbye.

[ChicagoLion]

It was a Typical Bruce performance, defend a nil nil and have no idea what to do when we go a goal down.
The first half was a disgraceful performance, defensive, timid and dull.
Throwing Hogan on was a joke.

[myf]

Yet again showed up like a rabbit in headlights.  This time against the mightly Fulham.  New era of Leeds/forest glory. Made even better seeing brummie reds watch Liverpool

[SoccerHQ]

It’s why it doesn’t work.

Sometimes. Other times Cole, Yorke, Solskjaer and Sheringham all finishing a CL final puts you down in history and then no one blinks when you keep doing it every time you're losing in last 10 minutes.

It works the other week. People would be going nuts on here if Kodjia or Hogan had been an unused sub against ten men.

It’s different though, with 10 minutes against 10 men we very obviously needed to stretch them. We made it much easier by compressing the game.

Don't get me wrong I accept the point, just that in a big game losing 1-0 most managers would put on all their forwards and hope one comes up with something. Last five minutes any normal tactics or formations have to go out of the window as you don't have a second chance.

[OzVilla]

We’re also desperately static and slow.

This absolutely summed it up for me today:the players’ decision-making is painful - Grealish aside - and the movement is ponderous. Players like Snodgrass and Adomah need 3 or 4 touches every time to get it under control, or just because they want to try and impress. Or something.
The game is all about pace and control, and too many of the games I’ve been to these last two seasons have not featured these 2 critical facets. We’ve won a good number of games but through sheer force of persistence and will.
Wolves and Fulham move the ball like a ‘good’ footballing side; it’s the way games are won.

I’m saddened today because I thought we would adopt the appro@ch we took against Wolves; we didn’t. We sat back and gave Cairney and Sessegnon the time to structure the game.

We stood off them in much the same way we stood of Arsenal 3 years ago, but this was Fulham.  They were miles better than us in the middle of the park.

[garyshawsknee]

You're so right Andy. The tactics against Boro wouldn't work against Fulham. Jedi shouldn't have started, Kodjia deserved a start. It cost us against QPR when he didn't freshen things up  this is why he has to go.

[brontebilly]

It’s why it doesn’t work.

Sometimes. Other times Cole, Yorke, Solskjaer and Sheringham all finishing a CL final puts you down in history and then no one blinks when you keep doing it every time you're losing in last 10 minutes.

It works the other week. People would be going nuts on here if Kodjia or Hogan had been an unused sub against ten men.

Hogan had a good chance when he came in.   We didn't have another attacking option at that point really. BB coming in for Hourihane at that point wouldn't have improved things.

Not sure where Andre Green disappeared to but he needs to emerge from hibernation/injury over the summer. Would definitely prefer Davis on bench over Hogan.

[itbrvilla]

It seems that Bruce has run out of game plans.
To use the same approach against Fulham in final at Wembley, that he used again Boro in the semis was criminal.
Fulham are a completely different animal to Boro and he should have had a game plan to beat them.
Even we we did move away from that fucking boring, negative approach in the first half, our attack was pretty much the same as always.
Jack work some magic, feed Adomah who ‘might’ get a decent cross into the box and hope to fuck someone gets on the end of it.
That’s it.
No variation, no guile, no fucking through balls to someone runn8ng on through midfield (like their goal).

Steve, you are a decent bloke and you have a great job to stabilise the ship.
Now it’s time to call it a day and move on. I don’t want to see you sacked, let’s call it mutual consent, shake hands and say goodbye.

Couldn't put it better

[Zouch Villa]

Fulham seemed well set up to exploit our weaknesses, in particular Albert and Hutton didn’t seem to know who they were each supposed to be picking up in the first half, and left far too much space for them to get behind us.

For all our bluster in than twenty minute period in the second half, did we force a meaningful save?  Don’t think we can have many complaints, sadly Fulham deserved it for me, and Bruce should shuffle off and ply his befuddled tactics elsewhere.

[SoccerHQ]

You're so right Andy. The tactics against Boro wouldn't work against Fulham. Jedi shouldn't have started, Kodjia deserved a start. It cost us against QPR when he didn't freshen things up  this is why he has to go.

I honestly don't think Jedinak was the problem, he broke up play when he could today. I wasn't confident Hourihane would be as effective today as v Boro, think Bjarni or even Onomah would've been a bolder and better pick.

[Badsastard]

Long time reader of the forum who doesn't post. However, I don't think I've ever been so angry after a Villa match.

The first half was abysmal, Bruce's 'keep it tight' mentality has both stopped us from automatic promotion and from having a chance to win this game.

It may have been one of the worse refereeing performances I've seen in my 44 years.

That said, we should never have been in the play offs in the first place. With the resources available to Bruce not getting promotion is an abject failure. He seems to think he's managing Hull, Wigan or Blues. We should have ripped this division a new one and gained automatic promotion along with Wolves. His inherently conservative nature has been our undoing.

I like Bruce as a person and I sympathise with his family problems but it's time to go, one year too late but nobody can change the past.