Aston Villa 2-2 Always bitter Sam’s Bitters post match thread

[tony scott]

Good game for the neutral, we didn’t play to badly it was brilliant to see Wes back ,and Keinan score .  Target MOTM I think we give the ball  away a lot ,the Baggies have turned that ability into an art form.

[olaftab]

We were wank and got a lucky point.

To be fair you were around for our glory era so your standards are higher.

My uncle watched it and said we played well second half and he normally moans even when we win so we can't have been that bad.

That’s it. I am happy that we did what was necessary in the second half and had them under siege. I long for the day when can do that to Man City/manure etc.

[Goldenballs]

Mings is one of the last players we need to be looking at replacing and to see him described as a liability is laughable. He has the occasional lapse or mistake, but if he didn't have then he'd probably be at a better club than us.

Replacing him is miles down the list of priorities. I'd say Cash is more error prone. Yet still we have one of the better defences in the league.

[Jon Crofts]

We were wank and got a lucky point.

To be fair you were around for our glory era so your standards are higher.

My uncle watched it and said we played well second half and he normally moans even when we win so we can't have been that bad.

Is that a polite way to say ‘you’re an old bastard’?

24 shots, 11 on target suggests we weren’t that bad and if Sam Johnston hadn’t pulled off a couple of world class saves we’d have been out of sight.

[Kimaster1976]

"John McGinn had a fantastic game"

Those aren't my words, but the words of Jermaine Jenas on match of the day 2.

 You have to question if he watched the game at all......or why he is even in a job!

[algy]

I'd have Davis start every match in a 2 up front with Watkins - 6 games left in the season, try something new and let him sink or swim. If Grealish isn't coming back this season then more presence is needed up front because AEG, Trez and Traoré are all *bang* average, and Barkley seems to have lost any ability to make a correct decision.

I'd also use the 6 games to give Ramsey a lot more playing time. I've been impressed every time I've seen him, and it would be exciting to think that in a couple of years he could be an "experienced" 21-year-old PL midfielder helping Chukwuemeka into a homegrown midfield, with Barry coming along up front as well.

The second point - yeah, I'd be started Ramsey in each of the remaining matches now.  As luke:lamf said, it'd be great to have someone who's come through the youth team as a first team regular (other than Jack) ready for when Chukwuemeka & Barry come through.

For Davis - if one of the reasons Ollie's been brought in is because he's able to fill in on the wing, why not do that?  Same system, but Ollie on the wing and Davis up front.  Think we could really do with the fluidity to be able to swap between playing 4-4-2 and 4-5-1 as the situation dictates, and that'd allow us to try that in a relatively risk free environment (since we're not getting relegated this season, and aren't currently in the kind of form that'd see us doing much up the other end either).

[The Edge]

"John McGinn had a fantastic game"

Those aren't my words, but the words of Jermaine Jenas on match of the day 2.

 You have to question if he watched the game at all......or why he is even in a job!

It was Jermain Jenas who made that comment. He talks a lot of sense that's why he's in a job. Calling SJM fantastic after last night's game was too generous in my view but he wasn't as bad as many people said and you're alluding too. He gave away the ball a few times which was irritating but he attempted a lot more passes than he usually does and that must have been a plan last night. His pass to Ollie in the second half was sublime and he should of scored. I find the reluctance to praise our players baffling sometimes and just as baffling is some posters constant scrutiny of anything negative. It's been said many times on here that we're a work in progress, Rome wasn't built in a day, etc etc. I enjoyed lest night's game warts n all.

[Drummond]

"John McGinn had a fantastic game"

Those aren't my words, but the words of Jermaine Jenas on match of the day 2.

 You have to question if he watched the game at all......or why he is even in a job!

I sometimes think the professionals see a completely different game to the rest of us. And Jenas is usually full of shit too.

McGinn is always looking for the ball, always in the thick of it, and breaks stuff up too; but he's tried some very odd passes of late, and a lot of it hasn't come off.

[JUAN PABLO]

I think SJM made 4 or 5 brilliant passes some long balls he hit was stunning , he jst needs to stop running into blind alleys thinking he can take 2 players on and the simple lack of concentration with simple balls.  He was better than Luiz and Barkley .   He still needs competition thou , the midfield at the moment is really poor.

[Drummond]

Part of the problem of perception is that we're not as good as we were earlier in the season. I think we all probably started to get carried away and had hopes of Top 6 so it's naturally disappointing not to win every game.

It took a dodgy pen and an own goal to get a draw against us.

[London Villan]

McGinn's passes in the final third are ambitious and often clever - they work less in the PL than they did in the Championship though.

[Mister E]

It certainly was a curate's egg of a game: parts where we played really well (often when Target was getting forward), and parts where we looked inept (often involving miss-passes from McGinn and Barkley).
Looking forwards, I wonder whether it would be worth putting Wes in the no.10 role in place of Barkley and behind David and Watkins. Ramsey Major deserves more gametime.

[Risso]

"John McGinn had a fantastic game"

Those aren't my words, but the words of Jermaine Jenas on match of the day 2.

 You have to question if he watched the game at all......or why he is even in a job!

I sometimes think the professionals see a completely different game to the rest of us. And Jenas is usually full of shit too.

McGinn is always looking for the ball, always in the thick of it, and breaks stuff up too; but he's tried some very odd passes of late, and a lot of it hasn't come off.

I guess the pundits on Match of the Day probably just watch the edited highlights and comment on those.

[Footy-Vill]

Thought on for a big win dominate 1st half and created many opportunities and second half lacked final thrust but good endeavour to not lose another match after taking lead.
Davis fantastic alertness in the box for his goal.

Martinez 7.5
Elmohamady 6.5
Targett 7.5
Mings 7
Konsa 5.5,
McGinn 7.5
Douglas Luiz 6.5
Barkley 6.5
El Ghazi 7
Traore 6
Watkins 8
Davis 7.5
Ramsey 7.5
Wesley. Welcome back!

[paul_e]

Thought on for a big win dominate 1st half and created many opportunities and second half lacked final thrust but good endeavour to not lose another match after taking lead.
Davis fantastic alertness in the box for his goal.

Martinez 7.5
Elmohamady 6.5
Targett 7.5
Mings 7
Konsa 5.5,
McGinn 7.5
Douglas Luiz 6.5
Barkley 6.5
El Ghazi 7
Traore 6
Watkins 8
Davis 7.5
Ramsey 7.5
Wesley. Welcome back!

About fair I'd say, maybe a touch harsh on Elmo but his crossing was way too floaty for my liking.