Swansea City 0-1 Aston Villa post match thread

[Tuscans]

Anyone got the boxing day farts?

[Rudy Can't Fail]

No.

[Ads]

I think I parked in Cardiff today!

Negatives

The first half.

The midfield 3 were flat and our movement on and off the ball was glacial.

We stood off them and couldn't keep possession.

Positives

Despite how bad we were first half they only created one chance and we probably should have scored at least one with McGinn and Abrahams header.

Second half was improved. Much more threat as McGinn and Hourihane committed further forward, with the ball moving at tempo and us pressing better.

We ground it out but as an attacking force second half we were much better than them.

It was a silly penalty, but we'll done Nyland.

We can get away with it against the likes of Swansea and first half we did. 2nd half I think showed why we'll make the Play Offs.

[Matt Collins]

3 points is all

The move to 4231 after 20nmins helped as mcginn was much closer to Abraham. Shame ohare is injured as he could play that role.

Good spell either side of half time and the goal was coming

With this run of fixtures, the good thing is we can win without playing well much more readily. It is odd that our home games are like basketball but we generally show good control away

Bree did well

I'd freshen it up a bit for Preston

[Clampy]

One thing we did in the second half which we havent done for a few games was close the opposition down when they had the ball. It wasn't a great performance but it doesn't always need to be. Anyway, it was a good response from the Leeds defeat.

[DB]

Automatics aint gone

Fkn right we aint, three draws and three losses behind dirty leeds, no problem.

Just over half the season gone, a long way to go. Just need to sort our defence out and we can get auto. Look what Fulham did last season.

[olaftab]

Automatics aint gone

Next season.

[jwarry]

3 points is all

The move to 4231 after 20nmins helped as mcginn was much closer to Abraham. Shame ohare is injured as he could play that role.

Good spell either side of half time and the goal was coming

With this run of fixtures, the good thing is we can win without playing well much more readily. It is odd that our home games are like basketball but we generally show good control away

Bree did well

I'd freshen it up a bit for Preston

Yes so good to listen to Dean explaining why and how he changed it.  Bruce would have just brought more strikers on

[Toronto Villa]

Automatics aint gone

Next season.

You can't get promoted from the PL Olly...

[Ian.]

Can't understand why people are worrying about Leeds. Unless we go on the mother of all runs, we are challenging for play offs at best now. To achieve even that, we need to bed in a new goalie  and hopefully, some other quality additions. I think we need to be patient and let this management team rebuild in this window and the next.

Absolutely right.

[frank]

This wasn't the Villa we were admiring so much until the Stoke game. We seem to have lost the exciting attacking flair, or perhaps other teams are getting wise to us. That said, we were the better side today and had the better chances. Even before the penalty I was thinking that Nyland was probably our best player, and the save confirmed it. He must have been encouraged by the warm applause he got at the end.

[PaulWinch again]

That was mostly a load of shite.  Still, won't sniff at a 1-0 win, but we need too be much, much better than we have been of late.

I will take more shite wins with a clean sheet

Playing shit and winning isn't sustainable though, as the 2 years under Bruce showed. We'll all take the shit 1-0 win today, if we want to be a top flight side next year we'll need to improve on the last few games, which I think we will do.

Precisely, sustained performance will ultimately drive the results we need to go up.

I think the players need to be fitter.

[AlexAlexCropley]

This wasn't the Villa we were admiring so much until the Stoke game. We seem to have lost the exciting attacking flair, or perhaps other teams are getting wise to us. That said, we were the better side today and had the better chances. Even before the penalty I was thinking that Nyland was probably our best player, and the save confirmed it. He must have been encouraged by the warm applause he got at the end.

And yet some of our fans would have hounded him out of town with pitchforks

[Matt Collins]

On performances, I agree something has changed since West brom

You'd have to say grealish being absent is a massive factor. Especially as we just don't have a like for like alternative (tho as above, if we do play more of a 4231 ohare could come in when fit)

It must also be that teams have watched us and are more attuned to what we're trying to do

I think a bit of tiredness too perhaps?

[pooligan]

I have this feeling that we will be playing Small Heath or Sandwell Town in the play offs or maybe even both .Both keep winning