Aston Villa Silhouettes vs Manchester City Post-Match Thrashing

[rougegorge]

Unacceptable but easily forgotton if we can get 7 from the next 3 league games. Two wins as an absolute minimum, any less than that and I can't see us staying up with our remaining fixtures and lack of quality.

I agree, although we said that about Southampton, Norwich and Watford and those were mostly shambolic.

[hilts_coolerking]

Unacceptable but easily forgotton if we can get 7 from the next 3 league games. Two wins as an absolute minimum, any less than that and I can't see us staying up with our remaining fixtures and lack of quality.

I agree, although we said that about Southampton, Norwich and Watford and those were mostly shambolic.

Yep, it's been said a lot this season.  And that's the problem with writing off games against top clubs: it piles pressure on to the team to get points elsewhere, and at this stage of the season those games are pressurised enough anyway.  Besides, those 'lesser' sides will be thinking exactly the same about us.

[Steve67]

Unacceptable but easily forgotton if we can get 7 from the next 3 league games. Two wins as an absolute minimum, any less than that and I can't see us staying up with our remaining fixtures and lack of quality.

I agree, although we said that about Southampton, Norwich and Watford and those were mostly shambolic.

This is the problem.  Unless we bring in better quality than Drinkwater, then we are going into these games with the same shit we have now, without SJM, Heaton and Wesley.  We need new faces to give the current players a lift, as much as anything.

[Bermuda Villa]

I do wonder how they scout and prepare for upcoming games if Dean thinks this is the team selection to compete against City. That midfield selection was just brainless with 2 defensive minded wing backs and a midfield three with 1 who has virtually not played for 2 years and 2 others are slow and cannot press or tackle. This off the back of doing the same thing against Watford (Just swap Angela for Drinkwater)and we know how that worked out .

Its clear as day to anyone the problem is in midfield and its borne out by the statistics on how many shots we have conceded and how much possession we have. There is acres of space in our midfield and as much time as the opposition want on the ball. At the very least you have to match their workrate and bust a gut to compete and in every game recently (Maybe minus Burnley) we have not done that. 

The worry is Dean has not recognized this nor done anything about it.

[UK Redsox]

That handshake with Pep after he was subbed, is as close as Doug will ever get to Man City

[RamboandBruno]

The starting line up was the most negative and defensive I can remember
even throughout the Bruce/Lambert/Mcliesh years

This coming from a manager we were told would give it a go everywhere he went
his biggest weakness Brentford fans said was not knowing when not to attack

the line up sends out a statement
And the statement said ‘we’re shit scared of you we’re going to pull our pants down and get let you fuck us all over the pitch’
and that’s what happened

to think we spent £130 mill and we still have Elmo and Taylor and a midfield who literally can’t pass a simple ball to one another

it was horrific
[/

Firstly how would you of attacked them more with the limited options we have?? Who exactly would you of picked to change the game?? Guilbert should of been in, but that wouldn’t of made all the difference.

Given the game I was at, if smith attacked them more it would of been an even bigger disaster. In fact loads were on here before the Burnley game saying we were too open with 433?

[Pete3206]

Good post Bermuda.

Reading page 1 and 2 of the match thread, everyone could see what was coming, based on the midfield selection

[Nev]

Games like this will be forgotten if, and it's a big if, we prevail this season. The true horror of a result like this will only hit home if it's the pre-curser to more appaling performances.
I believe we are better than this, the management and players believe it as well I'm sure.
Do not despair, it's not over yet.

[RamboandBruno]

I do wonder how they scout and prepare for upcoming games if Dean thinks this is the team selection to compete against City. That midfield selection was just brainless with 2 defensive minded wing backs and a midfield three with 1 who has virtually not played for 2 years and 2 others are slow and cannot press or tackle. This off the back of doing the same thing against Watford (Just swap Angela for Drinkwater)and we know how that worked out .

Its clear as day to anyone the problem is in midfield and its borne out by the statistics on how many shots we have conceded and how much possession we have. There is acres of space in our midfield and as much time as the opposition want on the ball. At the very least you have to match their workrate and bust a gut to compete and in every game recently (Maybe minus Burnley) we have not done that. 

The worry is Dean has not recognized this nor done anything about it.

With the squad we have, who would you of picked instead.

I also probably think we should give drink water more than this game before deciding he’s shit.

[garyfouroaks]

Rotherham is a top away.

[Steve67]

With all due respect, we did well at Burnley, but before that, these performances have become all too familiar.  Leicester 1-4, Watford 3-0, Southampton, 1-3, even Norwich, to a degree.  Leicester are a bit on the slide at the minute but we did well defensively there.  We really need some quality through the door, quickly.

[CT]

You could tell from the start, our only hope was if City went easy on us.

We literally looked clueless, no idea who should be where or what to do with that hot potato of a football.

Games against Man City may not define our season, the manner of the defeat does. I think we're gone following that. I'm not sure how we come back from it, we gave up, again.

We left at 6-0. I figured if the team had given up, I would too. Bad fan in some eyes, but I'd had a gutsfull of it.

[Bermuda Villa]

Nakamba is a must to start in these sorts of games even though he is not in the best of form. He is the only one who really presses the man in possession.

I would also have played Guilbert as he would have added some support higher up the field. The whole point of playing three central defenders is to let the wing backs get up field and support. By playing Taylor and Elmohamdy you are playing 5 defensive players.

Having said that we need more quality in midfield.

[TheMalandro]

I’m not sure if it’s correct (Getting my stats from a unreliable Bad English picture)

We fouled five times and they fouled 12.

Obviously not the most important statistic today, but it’s a little damning.

[Flamingo Lane]

We have in this squad two or three excellent players, a number of decent ones, a number of average ones, and a number of not so good ones, sufficient to have scratched a number of wins this season against pretty average teams performing below par themselves.

But now we are consistently turning in performances where we look beaten from virtually the first minute of the game.  Today is the obviously the latest, but recently we have had Watford A, Southampton H, Sheffield United A and Leicester H.

On these occasions, and whatever our starting 11 happens to be, the players on the pitch appear to have a complete lack of belief and confidence in each other.  Sorry to say I don't see us picking up points in the next few games against teams who are going to be right up for it.