Abject Villa v Chelsea post match thread.

[PaulWinch again]

Let’s just fucking hope we put in a show versus those ****** at the weekend to wash some of this away. Fuck sake man.

Yeah, I'm hoping Unai is furious and we take it out on them. If we're in the CL and lifting a trophy in Athens then it'll all be forgotten about, but we need a reaction on Sunday or the season could fizzle out.

The one tiny silver lining I’m clinging to is we’ve generally followed up a crap performance with a win. Based on what I’ve seen tonight I’ve got no confidence in that, but got to hope.

[Brazilian Villain]

Puke football.

You are Pat Spillane and I claim my £5.

[pauliewalnuts]

Let’s just fucking hope we put in a show versus those ****** at the weekend to wash some of this away. Fuck sake man.

Yeah, I'm hoping Unai is furious and we take it out on them. If we're in the CL and lifting a trophy in Athens then it'll all be forgotten about, but we need a reaction on Sunday or the season could fizzle out.

The one tiny silver lining I’m clinging to is we’ve generally followed up a crap performance with a win. Based on what I’ve seen tonight I’ve got no confidence in that, but got to hope.

Yeah, but the last shit performance which we reacted to with a win, was only two matches before this one.

[PaulWinch again]

Like I said tiny silver lining….

The reality is Unai needs to do something to improve this, we can’t be performing like this. It’s one thing to lose, but to twice be completely outplayed at home by teams that are struggling just isn’t good enough.

[curiousorange]

The only way we'll win is if Emery has some magical revolutionary new tactics he's been withholding for no particular reason which will leave the rest of the league wondering where the hell they came from. Given there would be no reason not to have used it since late December, I can foresee we'll set up the same way as tonight, with the ponderous build-up from the back, trying to hit Watkins and failing.

[Richard]

Disappointed, but watching at home it was more a shrug of the shoulders - maybe different if I'd been there. Like watching a re run of Newcastle. Beforehand, I honestly wanted to win Sunday given the choice, so really hope Emery works out a way of dealing better with these kind of teams who cut through us so quickly. Oh and Torres has to be brought back in, it's now or never.

[kippaxvilla2]

Something has not been right since that Brentford game.  I don’t know what but I blame Heck.

[BC Villain]

I'm concerned about Sunday now.  They've starting picking up results and know they need to beat us to start closing the gap on them and the top 4.  We do seem to lack a plan B at the moment, which Bruce, Smith and Gerrard got hammered for (albeit the latter never appeared to have a plan A either), but Emery's lacked one at times and seems to be getting away with it because of 2023.  He needs to be asked questions about the last two performances at home.  I'm not saying get rid of him, not by a long shot, but tonight and last Wednesday were nowhere near good enough.  Yes we've got players out injured, but then we took the piss out of Spurs for moaning about that, so we can hardly whinge about it ourselves.

[Brazilian Villain]

Something has not been right since that Brentford game.  I don’t know what but I blame Heck.

I can get on board with that.

[Paul.S]

Terrible from start to finish. Both fullbacks caught out time and time again with no support from anyone in front of them.
We definitely have been sussed out because Chelsea used the same tactics as Newcastle did. They swamped central midfield, won the ball and exposed both fullbacks. Hopefully Torres is back for Sunday but we need a sitting midfielder to protect this defence without Konsa.
Emery will have to have a rethink and change something because that lot on Sunday play on the break. If we do the same then I fear for us.

They will tear us apart if we don't get our act together. They have players with lightning pace and they stretch the pitch. FFS

Without Torres we were weaker but without Torres and Konsa we are so vulnerable. We cannot send both fullbacks flying forward without some sitting in front of them. We don’t have a lot of speed to recover and they will tear us a new one.
Emery is a top coach and I’m sure he’s seen it and I await another tactical masterclass. Sunday is so important now, win and tonight is forgotten, lose and we could struggle to recover.

[Drummond]

Well I said you'd be stupid to write them off

[curiousorange]

Kamara hasn't been right since that ban, but he return coincided with the defence losing Torres, so I guess that's why.

[curiousorange]

Terrible from start to finish. Both fullbacks caught out time and time again with no support from anyone in front of them.
We definitely have been sussed out because Chelsea used the same tactics as Newcastle did. They swamped central midfield, won the ball and exposed both fullbacks. Hopefully Torres is back for Sunday but we need a sitting midfielder to protect this defence without Konsa.
Emery will have to have a rethink and change something because that lot on Sunday play on the break. If we do the same then I fear for us.

They will tear us apart if we don't get our act together. They have players with lightning pace and they stretch the pitch. FFS

Without Torres we were weaker but without Torres and Konsa we are so vulnerable. We cannot send both fullbacks flying forward without some sitting in front of them. We don’t have a lot of speed to recover and they will tear us a new one.
Emery is a top coach and I’m sure he’s seen it and I await another tactical masterclass. Sunday is so important now, win and tonight is forgotten, lose and we could struggle to recover.

I personally think we haven't recovered from Boxing Day. It really flicked a switch in our heads.

[tomd2103]

Really disappointing result and performance.  Totally outplayed by a side who were quicker than us and wanted it more.  We've had really poor cup performances under Unai Emery before, only to bounce back in the league at the weekend, so hopefully that is the case. 

That back four tonight looks weak - Cash is getting worse, Carlos and Lenglet have got mistakes in them and I don't know what is happening with Moreno, who has had the body language of a petulant child for some time now.  Luiz and Kamara got blown away in midfield for the second time in a row at home, McGinn looks out of sync when he doesn't play on the right and the attacking players were ineffective. 

We haven't really got the squad options to change things at the moment either.  Diaby is horribly out of form, Ramsey is struggling to find his form and Zaniolo has been ineffective.  I found myself thinking tonight about what happens if Watkins gets injured or suspended.  Seriously, what is the plan?

All that said and as disappointing as it was to go out tonight, its time to take a deep.breath.  We are still 4th in the league and in the last 16 of a European competition.  Hopefully, we'll get some players starting to come back and we can go again.  We've got a decent run of fixtures now where we can hopefully cement ourselves in the top 5.   
. 

[Clampy]

Thought we were dreadful first half. Only looked a bit more like it at 3-0 down. It's almost of they had one eye on Sunday.