Dean Smith - Confirmed

[Risso]

I just can’t shake the feeling that a couple of older heads on the bench and we’d have gone through last night. I really enjoyed the match and am immensely proud of the lads, but it still feels a bit like a missed opportunity. Impossible to prove one way or the other I suppose, but I’m not much of a fan of heroic failure.

[Mister E]

I just can’t shake the feeling that a couple of older heads on the bench and we’d have gone through last night. I really enjoyed the match and am immensely proud of the lads, but it still feels a bit like a missed opportunity. Impossible to prove one way or the other I suppose, but I’m not much of a fan of heroic failure.

This is where I am. A couple of different subs available to us could have made a big difference.

[john e]

Absolutely terrific night
The team were fantastic, Proud to be Villa last night

But I do agree with others Tuchel wanted it more than Smith and that is difficult to write when our team haven’t won anything for 25 years
Who knows what would have happened either way
But the simple truth is Tuchel wanted it more because he put his bigger hitters on the bench just in case, where ours were sitting at home tickling their balls

Yes they have a bigger squad but he didn’t put squad members on the bench he put his biggest stars
When you think that the carabao cup must be a long way down the list of priorities for Chelsea I think Smith must learn here
Tuchel is an absolute ruthless winner that’s the difference

[Drummond]

Tuchel wanted it more than Smith

What's your evidence for that bizarre claim?

[john e]

Tuchel wanted it more than Smith

What's your evidence for that bizarre claim?

literally just put that in the post

[sickbeggar]

Absolutely terrific night
The team were fantastic, Proud to be Villa last night

But I do agree with others Tuchel wanted it more than Smith and that is difficult to write when our team haven’t won anything for 25 years
Who knows what would have happened either way
But the simple truth is Tuchel wanted it more because he put his bigger hitters on the bench just in case, where ours were sitting at home tickling their balls

Yes they have a bigger squad but he didn’t put squad members on the bench he put his biggest stars
When you think that the carabao cup must be a long way down the list of priorities for Chelsea I think Smith must learn here
Tuchel is an absolute ruthless winner that’s the difference

yeah, I had no problem with Archer starting but if Chelsea can risk Lukaku for 15 minutes at the end of the game before Man City this weekend, then you'd think we'd have the option of Wakins or Ings to come off the bench for 15 mins

[pauliewalnuts]

Absolutely terrific night
The team were fantastic, Proud to be Villa last night

But I do agree with others Tuchel wanted it more than Smith and that is difficult to write when our team haven’t won anything for 25 years
Who knows what would have happened either way
But the simple truth is Tuchel wanted it more because he put his bigger hitters on the bench just in case, where ours were sitting at home tickling their balls

Yes they have a bigger squad but he didn’t put squad members on the bench he put his biggest stars
When you think that the carabao cup must be a long way down the list of priorities for Chelsea I think Smith must learn here
Tuchel is an absolute ruthless winner that’s the difference

yeah, I had no problem with Archer starting but if Chelsea can risk Lukaku for 15 minutes at the end of the game before Man City this weekend, then you'd think we'd have the option of Wakins or Ings to come off the bench for 15 mins

If he'd done that and they'd pick up a knock, he'd have got crucified for it.

There's an element of 'can't win' to this type of situation for clubs in our position.

[sickbeggar]

Absolutely terrific night
The team were fantastic, Proud to be Villa last night

But I do agree with others Tuchel wanted it more than Smith and that is difficult to write when our team haven’t won anything for 25 years
Who knows what would have happened either way
But the simple truth is Tuchel wanted it more because he put his bigger hitters on the bench just in case, where ours were sitting at home tickling their balls

Yes they have a bigger squad but he didn’t put squad members on the bench he put his biggest stars
When you think that the carabao cup must be a long way down the list of priorities for Chelsea I think Smith must learn here
Tuchel is an absolute ruthless winner that’s the difference

yeah, I had no problem with Archer starting but if Chelsea can risk Lukaku for 15 minutes at the end of the game before Man City this weekend, then you'd think we'd have the option of Wakins or Ings to come off the bench for 15 mins

If he'd done that and they'd pick up a knock, he'd have got crucified for it.

There's an element of 'can't win' to this type of situation for clubs in our position.

Maybe but seeing its the mancs and the best case scenario is us probably losing in the 96 minute to a penalty, I'm not sure it matters. To me anyway, as far as priorities and progressing at the moment, the LC was higher than the weekend game. And i'm not someone who usually takes that opinion.

[Meanwood Villa]

The element of "can't win" is that we can't win a trophy only playing back ups!

I know this debate rears its head on here around our biannual exits but it's remarkable how much of a free pass the manager (not just Smith, whoever it may be) gets for it. It's as if winning honours is such an alien concept there's no point giving ourselves the best opportunity to do so.

[LeeB]

Look at the winners of this tournament in the last 10 years, winning it isn't really realistic.

We got to the final with exactly the same approach to selection when we came up, just the draw suited us better, especially regarding the Liverpool game.

[Meanwood Villa]

Look at the winners of this tournament in the last 10 years, winning it isn't really realistic.

We got to the final with exactly the same approach to selection when we came up, just the draw suited us better, especially regarding the Liverpool game.

This may be reality but this attitude is ridiculous.

Not a personal dig. Clearly Deano is on the same page!

[LeeB]

Look at the winners of this tournament in the last 10 years, winning it isn't really realistic.

We got to the final with exactly the same approach to selection when we came up, just the draw suited us better, especially regarding the Liverpool game.

This may be reality but this attitude is ridiculous.

Not a personal dig. Clearly Deano is on the same page!

Mate, I'm 44 and I hate that the modern game is like this, but it is.

I try and look at the bigger picture rather than just this season. We're trying to gear up to become one of the teams that does try and genuinely win these things, in the short term though we need to use them to blood the players that will eventually get us there, and the signs are good.

I'm at peace with it. Had we cobbled a team together and they'd looked like strangers ( a la Bruce), I think he'd deserve stick for chucking the tie, but that's not the case, and a good few young players will have come away from playing a top side, in front of a full house with an atmosphere, and will know they belong at this level.

[Chico Hamilton III]

I wonder in a few years’ time whether we’ll be laughing at calling last night’s Villa team a “weakened side”. Some real talent on display. Reminds me ( a tiny bit, I’m not getting carried away) of when Fergie got stick from Man U fans for playing Beckham, Scholes, the Nevilles etc in league cup games when they were teenagers. Last night can only have done them good

[Risso]

Look at the winners of this tournament in the last 10 years, winning it isn't really realistic.

We got to the final with exactly the same approach to selection when we came up, just the draw suited us better, especially regarding the Liverpool game.

The thing is now we can give everybody a game and beat them on our day. I think the Manc teams are the only ones we’ve not beaten since we’ve been back, and we’ve been cheated in most of their games. If we were worrying about staying up, then I could understand a more cautious approach. As it is, I don’t think one of either Ings or Watkins, or one of McGinn or Luiz on the bench would have hurt last night. As I say, it was a good game and I enjoyed it, but am still just a little pissed off that it could be us now looking at an easyish home game against Southampton.

[john e]

Look at the winners of this tournament in the last 10 years, winning it isn't really realistic.

We got to the final with exactly the same approach to selection when we came up, just the draw suited us better, especially regarding the Liverpool game.

This may be reality but this attitude is ridiculous.

Not a personal dig. Clearly Deano is on the same page!

Mate, I'm 44 and I hate that the modern game is like this, but it is.

I try and look at the bigger picture rather than just this season. We're trying to gear up to become one of the teams that does try and genuinely win these things, in the short term though we need to use them to blood the players that will eventually get us there, and the signs are good.

I'm at peace with it. Had we cobbled a team together and they'd looked like strangers ( a la Bruce), I think he'd deserve stick for chucking the tie, but that's not the case, and a good few young players will have come away from playing a top side, in front of a full house with an atmosphere, and will know they belong at this level.

Pfft 44
Kids today