Unai Emery

[Chris Harte]

Boozey's post nails it for me.

We have key players returning, hopefully not too long from now. And there's over a quarter of the season left to play. There are no limits to our dreams.

[garyellis]

I think where I differ from the general feeling here is that I think our current squad would really struggle to finish in the top half of the league. It's a miracle we're third, and if we can somehow finish in a Champions League place, it will be probably the greatest achievement for a Villa squad in my lifetime. It's insane where we are, given the resources available. At the start of the season, I genuinely thought top half would be a decent finish, given the restrictions we're working under. How many of our squad would be playing Champions League football if we sold them?

Look at the teams we're competing with. Look at the money they've spent. Even Leeds spent over £100 million in the summer. We are not the sort of squad that can just turn up and expect to beat anyone in this league. Every point is a scrap.

We're struggling a bit at the moment, but if you took the best three midfielders out of any squad in the league, you'd see a massive drop off in form. Most teams are struggling to put a run together with a fully fit squad. The problem we have is that we can't completely change the way we play for a month or two, and the players we have at the moment simply aren't capable of covering for the players we're missing. Youri, Bouba and McGinn aren't just our best three midfielders, they're the only players that can get us up the pitch. Without one we'd be fine. Without two we'd struggle. It's no wonder performances have fallen off a cliff without all three.

We just need to hold our nerve, on and off the pitch. Get as many points as we possibly can over the next few weeks, and then get some of our midfield back. At our best, we can beat anyone in the league. At our worst, we can lose to anyone. But we're at the stage now, where we don't need to be at our best every week to achieve something remarkable. Which, I guess, is why everyone is worried we're going to fuck it up.

McGinn being fit again will be a massive boost. I am praying for some news about that this week. He'd make such a difference to this team. We all just need a bit of a lift now. A win on Friday, ideally with us playing a bit better, would be huge.

I am with you Boozey 110%

[Ian.]

As always, Boozey, spot on. Great post.

[PaulWinch again]

I’m not sure I agree that every point should be a scrap. The injured players put us out of reach of most, but I reckon even with them out man for man we’ve got a better team than the vast majority of the league. Unai is obviously a genius, and has done incredible things, but we are underperforming at the moment.

I do agree with the general sentiment though, hopefully the improvement is round the corner.

[Mellin]

I disagree with the squad assessment...to an extent. The goalkeeper, defence and midfield (including Rogers) are all top five, probably top three. The depth is there too. The wingers and forwards are, at best, midtable as a collective. Problem we have is the midfield isn't top three right now, so we're relying on the defence and the goalkeeper.

I reckon Emery knows this, hence Mings, and is trying to 1-0 every game until Tielemans and McGinn are back.

[Nunkin1965]

I think where I differ from the general feeling here is that I think our current squad would really struggle to finish in the top half of the league. It's a miracle we're third, and if we can somehow finish in a Champions League place, it will be probably the greatest achievement for a Villa squad in my lifetime. It's insane where we are, given the resources available. At the start of the season, I genuinely thought top half would be a decent finish, given the restrictions we're working under. How many of our squad would be playing Champions League football if we sold them?

Look at the teams we're competing with. Look at the money they've spent. Even Leeds spent over £100 million in the summer. We are not the sort of squad that can just turn up and expect to beat anyone in this league. Every point is a scrap.

We're struggling a bit at the moment, but if you took the best three midfielders out of any squad in the league, you'd see a massive drop off in form. Most teams are struggling to put a run together with a fully fit squad. The problem we have is that we can't completely change the way we play for a month or two, and the players we have at the moment simply aren't capable of covering for the players we're missing. Youri, Bouba and McGinn aren't just our best three midfielders, they're the only players that can get us up the pitch. Without one we'd be fine. Without two we'd struggle. It's no wonder performances have fallen off a cliff without all three.

We just need to hold our nerve, on and off the pitch. Get as many points as we possibly can over the next few weeks, and then get some of our midfield back. At our best, we can beat anyone in the league. At our worst, we can lose to anyone. But we're at the stage now, where we don't need to be at our best every week to achieve something remarkable. Which, I guess, is why everyone is worried we're going to fuck it up.

McGinn being fit again will be a massive boost. I am praying for some news about that this week. He'd make such a difference to this team. We all just need a bit of a lift now. A win on Friday, ideally with us playing a bit better, would be huge.

I am with you Boozey 110%

You've got my vote Boozey as this is how I feel about our current situation.

[PeterWithesShin]

On no planet are there 10 better squads than ours.

[PaulWinch again]

On no planet are there 10 better squads than ours.

No, quite. We’re hindered by our injuries obviously, and the fact they’re concentrated in the same area emphasises it. But we’ve still got a stronger squad than most of the league.