Aston Villa vs Brentford Post-Match Thread

[KRS]

Watched it on stream. Would have taken a draw before the game given the depleted team so can’t really complain with the result…and the performance was pretty much as expected too. The squad simply isn’t good enough to sustain so many injuries/Covid to so many of our better established players.

Any ambitions of qualifying for Europe are purely delusional fantasy unless they bring in a few more players, and that’s true even with our best starting XI…we are way off where we want to be as a team and a squad, and we’re already dropping points so it’s simply not going to happen this season. Realistic mid table at best.

[Nunkin1965]

I really didn't think  there would be much criticism of the side or the manager today but I got that wrong a bit!
A decent point in the circumstances I felt.

[john e]

Target - my MOTM today
Tuenzebe - good solid game
Cash - very poor
Konsa- no one passes the ball back to the goalie more than him
Hause - one of the worst players I’ve ever seen at trying to control a football, like watching a cat playing with a balloon
Ings - quiet day but no service
Buendia- great goal, keeps getting caught in possession hope he adjusts
El Ghazi - tried all game
Carney - did well, at least tried to move the ball forward unlike Marv
all other players not mentioned-  ok but non descript
Smith - difficult with players missing 5.5/10

Also so much for Brentford’s lovely football style, thought we were playing the old Wimbledon in the second half at times
not a great deal of football played by either team to be fair though very stop/ start game

Edit - oh and Watkins looked lively when he came on

[RamboandBruno]

There was a moment towards the end where the Scouse co-commentator tried to sum things up. He said 'both teams have set their stall out for the season: Brentford, they keep the ball, they press aggressively; Aston Villa...well...they're trying to move into this post-Jack Grealish era now...erm..."

And that about sums it up for me. I know we had injuries, a draw isn't a bad result considering those. But what is our style of play? Can anyone actually tell me what our plan is? How do we attack, how do we press, how do we beat the opposition press, how do we move in the final third. We must be the team whose players spend the longest average time on the ball, because a player will just get it, everyone will run away from them, and they'll end up tapping it sideways or playing one of those shit slice-chips into the channels or up to well-known target man Danny Ings.

I don't think we want to be some sort of long-ball team. But we don't have any actual positional patterns, or movements, or strategies. We're aimless. And the period of play with the 2 up top - I know it was a disjointed end to the game, I know everyone goes long at the end anyone, but it's probably the least coherent passage of play I've seen from any team this season. Please, coaches, sort it out.

Sorry just don’t agree. How can possibly judge the style of play, formation etc when up to 6 players who would be expected to start or possibly start were out injured or ill. The squad depth that has been built, allowed  us to at least compete today. Apart from Man City and Chelsea, I can’t think of another team who wouldn’t struggle without 6 first teamers and that includes Man U and Liverpool.
On top of that we have 3 new players in the team today if you include Tuanzebe and a kid making his first start.

Four points from 9 not an ideal, but Jesus some perspective is needed. Let’s see what’s happening after 10 games with our main players back.

Because I've watched Dean Smith's Villa for a few years, and without Jack Grealish there isn't a plan for breaking teams down. If you read my post instead of just quoting it, you'll have seen that I don't think a point is a terrible result. My problem is the style - or rather, the lack thereof.

Everyone in a squad should know what the style of play is. He chose to put Young in midfield, to bring in Carney, rather than more experienced options like Hourihane and Nakamba, so he must have had some confidence they knew how we play. Yet does anyone? There's no evidence of it.

I’ve been watching Dean Smiths villa for the same amount of time and I did read your post. My point being, which granted I may not have articulated very well, how can you judge the performance, approach, style of play with half the team out. I would rather judge what that style of play for the season is going to be with bailey, Traore, McGinn, Watkins, available along with Beindua and Ings.
I really like Connor and what he has done for the club, but I don’t think either him or Nakamba starting would of changed much today.
I think Smith and the team deserve a break with this one.

[gpbarr]

Target - my MOTM today
Tuenzebe - good solid game
Konsa- no one passes the ball back to the goalie more than him
Hause - one of the worst players I’ve ever seen at trying to control a football, like watching a cat playing with a balloon
Ings - quiet day but no service
Buendia- great goal, keeps getting caught in possession hope he adjusts
El Ghazi - tried all game
Carney - did well, at least tried to move the ball forward unlike Marv
all other players not mentioned-  ok but non descript
Smith - difficult with players missing 5.5/10

Also so much for Brentford’s lovely football style, thought we were playing the old Wimbledon in the second half at times
not a great deal of football played by either team to be fair though very stop/ start game

I think the Brentford reference is a bit silly. We have all seen what happens to promoted teams who come up and try to play lovely football - they get hammered and go straight back down. I thought they played it right today and fair play to them.

With our missing 6 first team picks, and a forced last minute switch to 4141, we did ok. Sooner we get everyone on the pitch the sooner our results will pick up.

[Monty]

Fair enough. My problem is less today in isolation, but the fact that it's looked the same for years when there's no Jack Grealish. Last week's midfield have all had plenty of time to learn the style together, but there wasn't evidence of it. I hope today is an aberration going forward - the problem is, for now, that it's not one if you look back.

On Conor and Marvelous, the point was more that they've spent more time playing together and with the coach, so would presumably take some displacing if there were reservations about Young or Chuck knowing their roles.

[rougegorge]

Having just got back, and reflected, I am still disappointed despite the injuries. The insistence on the formation given the players available seemed wrong. Smith said he phoned Ashley Young last night to tell him he was playing in midfield.

Chukwuemeka will improve and he's very young, but I thought it was tough to play him in such a pivotal role given the absentees, and the game passed him by.

Hourihane would've been a better bet in the circumstances or the midfield we ended up with Nakamba, and Luiz more advanced.

Anwar played quite well, but we didn't give Danny Ings much service. We were better when Ollie came on.

Cash was poor and lacked defensive judgment and their goal was a poor one to concede.

Brentford were happy with a point as you would be having just come up, and they were well drilled, fit and energetic, but nothing more on the day.

I was expecting at least 7 points from the first 3 games, but we don't deserve more than the 4 we have got.

[Meanwood Villa]

Are we ever going to beat these ******?

[john e]

Target - my MOTM today
Tuenzebe - good solid game
Konsa- no one passes the ball back to the goalie more than him
Hause - one of the worst players I’ve ever seen at trying to control a football, like watching a cat playing with a balloon
Ings - quiet day but no service
Buendia- great goal, keeps getting caught in possession hope he adjusts
El Ghazi - tried all game
Carney - did well, at least tried to move the ball forward unlike Marv
all other players not mentioned-  ok but non descript
Smith - difficult with players missing 5.5/10

Also so much for Brentford’s lovely football style, thought we were playing the old Wimbledon in the second half at times
not a great deal of football played by either team to be fair though very stop/ start game

I think the Brentford reference is a bit silly. We have all seen what happens to promoted teams who come up and try to play lovely football - they get hammered and go straight back down. I thought they played it right today and fair play to them.

With our missing 6 first team picks, and a forced last minute switch to 4141, we did ok. Sooner we get everyone on the pitch the sooner our results will pick up.

Its them that go on about it all the time though that’s all I’m saying
In reality not trying to play football at all in the second half just spoil which I didn’t think was there style

Like you say probably did the right thing but don’t pretend your the new Barca 2008

[john2710]

Injuries, illness & pre-season changes means we're very disjointed & trying to find our feet.
Brentford kept the ball, killed & spoiled the game.

Referee was weak & every bit as bad as he was in the championship.

All things considered a fair result.

[brontebilly]

Also what the hell was that defwnding fir brentfords goal? Its unbelievable a premier league defence gives a dangerous striker completely unmarked.  Wtf

I thought Brentfords defending for our goal was funny. Their defender picked a very strange time to drop off Buendia and he made him pay.

[CT]

Just back, and considering we were missing so many players, it was a decent point.

Brentford were pathetic. Marshalled by Johanssen, he had his team falling over, holding their faces at the slightest touches. I don’t pay good money to watch a team NOT take a throw in.

The referee was an absolute joke. He clearly forgot the memo on letting the game flow, stopping it at every opportunity. His decision making was horrific.

The injuries keep piling up too, that’s becoming a major concern.

[Villa Lew]

Considering the team, we had, an ok performance, but Dean left it far too late to bring Ollie on, should have been on the hour, he looked very good the short time he was on the pitch. Was impressed with Brentford, will give a load of teams a tough game. Here's hoping we see a much different line up at Chelsea.

[Big Ming]

Whichever way you slice it, we've played Watford and Brentford and managed a single point. We would have been chasing the game against Newcastle but for a glaring miss.

Unless our luck with absentees improves we are going to struggle with the upcoming run of tougher looking games.

Our football has been turgid.

[john e]

Those calling for Hourahine and Marv to start today
I don’t think they would have made an hapeth of difference apart from slowing the game down even more