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Author Topic: Mediocrity.  (Read 13255 times)

Offline SoccerHQ

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Re: Mediocrity.
« Reply #90 on: May 20, 2022, 11:02:12 PM »
Interesting that our 55 points last season would have us 8th pushing 7th now and European qualification so that does reflect how disappointing this season has been. Like it or not, losing our best player in a generation has set us back.

Big shoes to fill but Buendia has been much improved since January at least and at least positively impacts on majority of matches he plays compared to first three months when he was really struggling.

Coutinho fizzled out but we saw his quality in first 5-6 games.

We need pre season to try to figure out how to get them combining effectively on the pitch at same time. If we can achieve that I think that gets us past 50 points next season as for all the criticism our defence gets we've largely conceded similar number of goals to a few teams in 5th-8th positions.

Key is getting DM right. If we do then I think matching points total of 20/21 is realistic and who knows how high we could finish.

Online ChicagoLion

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Re: Mediocrity.
« Reply #91 on: May 20, 2022, 11:04:14 PM »
We also have to solve the striker problem.

Offline SoccerHQ

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Re: Mediocrity.
« Reply #92 on: May 20, 2022, 11:07:56 PM »
I hate to say this, but being honest, we've been mediocre for way more than ten years. More like thirty. Not that I care, but I think the general public's consensus of Villa would be a middling, do-nothing club, because a whole generation has grown up with us being also-rans. I'm not sure how to change that.

Saying that, in this timeframe we've lost more cup finals than some clubs will see forth-rounds.
Not 30 years but close. 1996 was a very competitive season end for us. Won the League cup, semi final of the FA cup and 4th place in the League. it was the "love it" season but after that Doug decided to prune us down a little like his roses and restricted the fertiliser and here we are.

Brian Little would tell you that the money was there, he just bought the wrong players. I think history has shown that the big mistake was appointing John Gregory; however well you may or may not have thought he did, a bit more imagination from all concerned could have been massive.

Gregory was fine for first 18 months. Was in danger of getting sacked when we had that poor run in early 1999 season but then we responded with incredible run of form that should've got us to two cup finals and also a solid league position.

At the start he thought big with the signings but mistake was giving him a new contract just before the cup final (reminds me of Arteta getting one and Arsenal immediately implode to miss out on top 4).

Should've waited and perhaps we could've still kicked on after the trauma of the Chelsea match with new manager and group of players. Instead we've never recovered at all from losing that game.

22 years today btw, a few 6th place finishes is all we've mustered in the league since then and two cup finals.

Offline SoccerHQ

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Re: Mediocrity.
« Reply #93 on: May 20, 2022, 11:11:19 PM »
Breaking our transfer record two seasons in a row with Sasa Curcic and Stan Collymore were huge mistakes. We totally lost momentum and although we signed some good players between 98 and 2002 we also lost quite a few. Doug then pretty much gave up by 03 and took 3 years to sell us.

We gave up straight after losing the cup final.

James, Ugo, Southgate, Merson all put in transfer requests IIRC and Dion was never quite the same force after his neck injury so our spine was massively weakened and we went from a top 6 team to one just treading water in premier league.

2003 I actually thought the O'Leary appointment was a masterstroke but other than that nice run in his first season we again flattered to deceive.

Then didn't quite believe we were good enough to really kick on under O'Neill which is a common failing with the club, hopefully one day it will change.

Online dave.woodhall

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Re: Mediocrity.
« Reply #94 on: May 20, 2022, 11:36:36 PM »


Gregory was fine for first 18 months. Was in danger of getting sacked when we had that poor run in early 1999 season but then we responded with incredible run of form that should've got us to two cup finals and also a solid league position.

At the start he thought big with the signings but mistake was giving him a new contract just before the cup final (reminds me of Arteta getting one and Arsenal immediately implode to miss out on top 4).

Should've waited and perhaps we could've still kicked on after the trauma of the Chelsea match with new manager and group of players. Instead we've never recovered at all from losing that game.

22 years today btw, a few 6th place finishes is all we've mustered in the league since then and two cup finals.

Gregory started to fall apart after his first Christmas, at the time when Stan went AWOL. We had a bad end to his first full season and the start of the next one, then we recovered to get to the cup final. From then on it was, as you say, a case of treading water. He did okay, and in hindsight he did a better job than we realised given that he was dealing with a chairman who was waiting for him to do something sackable. The trouble was that we were in such a good position and for the first time in decades money was available yet he spent so much time, as he put it, fighting fires and most of the money on average or past-it players. A more imaginative appointment who made imaginative signings and we could have been well set.
« Last Edit: May 21, 2022, 12:57:32 AM by dave.woodhall »

Offline LeonW

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Re: Mediocrity.
« Reply #95 on: May 21, 2022, 12:25:37 AM »
I hate to say this, but being honest, we've been mediocre for way more than ten years. More like thirty. Not that I care, but I think the general public's consensus of Villa would be a middling, do-nothing club, because a whole generation has grown up with us being also-rans. I'm not sure how to change that.

Saying that, in this timeframe we've lost more cup finals than some clubs will see forth-rounds.
Not 30 years but close. 1996 was a very competitive season end for us. Won the League cup, semi final of the FA cup and 4th place in the League. it was the "love it" season but after that Doug decided to prune us down a little like his roses and restricted the fertiliser and here we are.

Brian Little would tell you that the money was there, he just bought the wrong players. I think history has shown that the big mistake was appointing John Gregory; however well you may or may not have thought he did, a bit more imagination from all concerned could have been massive.

I could not agree with this more. I liked John Gregory as a bloke and was angry when he left but neither get away from the fact that he was the wrong appointment at that time. I remember being shocked when he walked into that press conference.

If there’s anything that sums up the Villa for me, it’s undertaking the wrong action at the most critical junctures.

Offline Percy McCarthy

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Re: Mediocrity.
« Reply #96 on: May 21, 2022, 06:19:33 AM »
We are also spending more money than any recently promoted side ever, I imagine. There can be no excuses for not challenging for Europe next season. We shouldn't be finishing below nonsense clubs like Brentford and Brighton.

Not much of a net spend last summer though.

Offline N'ZMAV

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Re: Mediocrity.
« Reply #97 on: May 21, 2022, 06:55:44 AM »
appointing McLeish was the moment we decided to cement our place in mediocrity forever

Offline LeonW

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Re: Mediocrity.
« Reply #98 on: May 21, 2022, 07:12:10 AM »
appointing McLeish was the moment we decided to cement our place in mediocrity forever

I’ll always remember how my blood ran cold upon hearing the news about that appointment (I’m sure it was a Sunday). It wasn’t so much that he’d been at SHA as much as it was that he was clearly a mediocre manager who set out sides to play awful football. That was when Lerner truly gave up.
« Last Edit: May 21, 2022, 07:14:49 AM by LeonW »

Offline N'ZMAV

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Re: Mediocrity.
« Reply #99 on: May 21, 2022, 07:38:14 AM »
I was thinking 'this surely can't happen, Lerner and Faulkner can't be that stupid...'

oops.

Offline Goldenballs

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Re: Mediocrity.
« Reply #100 on: May 21, 2022, 08:08:41 AM »
I remember reading on here at the time, it started with us laughing that the press could up with such a stupid rumour. Then his odds started to tumble but we still laughed it off, then it slowly started to look like it was actually happening....

Offline Lucky Eddie

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Re: Mediocrity.
« Reply #101 on: May 21, 2022, 08:25:58 AM »
If only a few thousand more had felt strongly enough to turn uo for that protest.



Offline Steve67

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Re: Mediocrity.
« Reply #102 on: May 21, 2022, 09:14:04 AM »
Brian Little, Ron Atkinson and Martin O'Neill are the only appointments I have ever really been excited about.  I was a tad young when Ron Saunders was appointed, God bless him.   The appointment of Lambert, I thought at the time was a good one but turned our to be poor.  McLeish, wow, just wow!

Offline N'ZMAV

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Re: Mediocrity.
« Reply #103 on: May 21, 2022, 09:16:07 AM »
Lambert made sense at the time.

Offline olaftab

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Re: Mediocrity.
« Reply #104 on: May 21, 2022, 09:29:19 AM »
Brian Little, Ron Atkinson and Martin O'Neill are the only appointments I have ever really been excited about.  I was a tad young when Ron Saunders was appointed, God bless him.   The appointment of Lambert, I thought at the time was a good one but turned our to be poor.  McLeish, wow, just wow!
I would agree with you Steve but add Graham Taylor to that list. The appointment of Ron Saunders was anything but exciting. We appointed Ron when he was struggling at Man City. Believe it or not I got excited at DO’L but truly detested him towards the end.

 


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