Pundit and Media Watch on Aston Villa 24/25

[Olneythelonely]

I was a singer in the 44th best band from Birmingham in the noughties (as voted for by Blue Whale Studios and readers) and that is Blues.

Not my words Carol, the words of Blue Whale Studios.

Only the band the Beatles could have been.

Didn’t realise d*gsh*t autocorrects to Blues. Changed it to cack.

[Footy-Vill]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/crejqw34r3xo

Sorry why is it a black and white photo ?
I don't like how BBC article has put Villa victory against Bayern Munich in black and white depicting it's as if it was even longer than it was.
They made a decision to do that rather than colour didn't they?
I mean it wasn't black and white photos then?

[Olneythelonely]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/crejqw34r3xo

Sorry why is it a black and white photo ?
I don't like how BBC article has put Villa victory against Bayern Munich in black and white depicting it's as if it was even longer than it was.
They made a decision to do that rather than colour didn't they?
I mean it wasn't black and white photos then?

Black and white photos exist now. Could easily be a stylistic decision. I wouldn’t worry too much.

[Footy-Vill]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/crejqw34r3xo

Sorry why is it a black and white photo ?
I don't like how BBC article has put Villa victory against Bayern Munich in black and white depicting it's as if it was even longer than it was.
They made a decision to do that rather than colour didn't they?
I mean it wasn't black and white photos then?

Black and white photos exist now. Could easily be a stylistic decision. I wouldn’t worry too much.

I have my suspicions though trying to do us an injustice!.
Thanks anyway . Enjoy the match or feel the moments when you can this evening.
Up The Villa!

[rob_bridge]

They have been very good on 5 live tonight in the Villa coverage. Start to finish. Even relegated their favourites Liverpool to also rans.

[astonvilla82]

They have been very good on 5 live tonight in the Villa coverage. Start to finish. Even relegated their favourites Liverpool to also rans.

Same as TNT

[rob_bridge]

We Matter. We matter.

[Monty]

I liked Hargreaves.

[enigma]

I liked Hargreaves.

Same. Very considered in what he says.

[tomd2103]

They have been very good on 5 live tonight in the Villa coverage. Start to finish. Even relegated their favourites Liverpool to also rans.

They did on Talksport earlier as well.  Think it captured the imagination a bit more than the same old teams in the competition.

[Tuscans]

Popping this here because Guillem Balague is media/pundit I guess.

[PeterWithe]

Oliver Holt in the Daily Mail, he should post on here, maybe he does...

Unai Emery's men channelled the class of 1982 in conquering of Bayern Munich... their silencing of Vincent Kompany's free-scoring German giants proves Aston Villa are BACK, writes OLIVER HOLT
 
A couple of hours before the bus carrying the Bayern Munich players even arrived at Villa Park, home fans began making their pilgrimages to the mural on Trinity Road that abuts the ground.

Kids and adults alike, they stood with their backs to the giant likeness of that big-eared European Cup, to have their pictures taken, framed against the claret and blue of Aston Villa, and flanked by digits, ten feet high, recording the greatest number in their history: 1982.

Around the corner, flowers had been laid at the foot of the statue of William McGregor, who served variously as president, director and chairman of the club in the late 19th century, and was the founder of the Football League.

The flowers, and the messages that accompanied them, were for Gary Shaw, the striker who died last month but will be forever enshrined in our memories as the lad with a startling shock of blonde hair who was one of the stars of the Villa side that won the greatest club tournament of all.

Upstairs, in the crowded press room, one seat remained empty and, on the desk next to it, there was a picture of Shaw with the European Cup that he and his team-mates won in Rotterdam 42 years ago when they beat Bayern in the final.

 The occasion needed little billing. Long considered sleeping giants, the West Midlands club were back where they feel they belong
And the mind drifted back. All the way back to March 2nd, 1983, a Wednesday night, a school night for me then, the last time Villa played a European Cup or Champions League tie in front of their own fans.

I was here at Villa Park that night when Villa played the mighty Juventus. Not in the comfort of a press box seat, not with grey hair and a pair of spectacles, staring at a lap-top, fretting about words and deadlines.

But wide-eyed with excitement, carried along by the crowd, swaying and surging in the roiling, broiling magnificence of the Holte End, a majestic terrace that seemed to rise up all the way to the night sky.

I still remember the visceral thrill of seeing Paolo Rossi, the hero of the previous summer's World Cup, scoring in front of us in the second minute as if it were yesterday. For a long time, I did not watch replays of that goal. I wanted to preserve it in my memory as I had seen it, not have it refracted by television.

I remember the thrill of seeing Michel Platini play live. And Zbigniew Boniek. And Marco Tardelli, still the holder of the prize for the greatest goal celebration of all time. And Rossi. And the notorious hatchet man, Claudio Gentile.

And then there was Villa. English clubs were kings of Europe then, even more than they are now, and Villa had beaten Bayern Munich to lift the trophy the previous summer to add their name to the recent triumphs of Liverpool and Nottingham Forest. They were our standard-bearers that season.

I loved watching Gordon Cowans play most of all. He scored the equaliser for Villa in that European Cup quarter final first leg before Boniek grabbed a late winner for Juve. I loved Cowans' elegance, his passing and his vision. He was my favourite Villa player.

Shaw was not far behind. What a striker he was. There was something wonderfully unvarnished about him, too. He was the kid of the team, the youngest of all of them. There was nothing cynical about him. He played with joy written all over his features. He was the kind of player neutrals loved.

So this was a hugely emotional night in the Second City. It was a hymn to the past but it was also an embrace of Villa's renaissance under coach Unai Emery. That it should be Bayern who were Villa's first Champions League visitors gave the evening a beautiful symmetry.

In the place of Rossi, Platini and Tardelli, a new generation of Villa fans, including Prince William, will remember this night as the occasion they saw another of the great European giants at this cathedral of English football, the night they got to watch stars like Manuel Neuer, Joshua Kimmich, Jamal Musiala, Kingsley Coman and England's all-time leading goalscorer Harry Kane.

Bayern have scored 30 goals in seven games under the management of Vincent Kompany this season, including their 9-2 rout of Dinamo Zagreb in their first Champions League tie. They started like royalty, too. Kane had an early header saved by Emiliano Martinez but replays showed he had drifted offside.

Villa were not overawed for long, though. They thought they had scored midway through the half when Torres toe-poked the ball past Neuer after a goalmouth melee but a VAR check showed Jacob Ramsey was offside earlier in the move.

Dayot Upamecano was booked for pulling down Ollie Watkins when Watkins span away from him to chase a high ball over the top but Bayern should have taken the lead when Serge Gnabry burst free down the right. Kane was screaming for the ball in the middle but Gnabry blasted it high and wide. Kane made his displeasure clear.

Kompany brought Jamal Musiala on at half time. Quite why he had not started the match was a mystery because he is a Rolls Royce of a player and his influence helped Bayern regain the upper hand. An hour had gone when he dribbled past half the Villa team and was only denied a goal by a last-ditch block.

Now and again, the cameras showed some of the Boys of 82, including the captain, Dennis Mortimer, and Peter Withe, the scorer of the winner against Bayern 42 years ago, gazing down from the stands.

Withe may have been particularly interested in the performances of Kane and Watkins, the strikers duelling for the role as England's centre forward, but both were relatively peripheral. Watkins was substituted with 20 minutes to go.

His replacement was Jhon Duran, the supersub who has made a habit of scoring spectacular late goals. Now, on this night of all nights, he did it again. Pau Torres swept the ball forward to him, and even though Upamecano was shadowing him, Duran saw that Neuer had ventured out of his goal.

Duran swivelled and hit the ball with his left foot in one movement, lifting it brilliantly over Neuer and into the net. Villa Park erupted in joy. Fans hugged each other. Some wept. Football is beautiful like that. Its traditions and its histories echo down the ages.

And sometimes, on special nights like this, history repeats itself. Martinez saved superbly late on from Michael Olise and when the final whistle went, Villa had won 1-0, just as they did on that golden night in Rotterdam 42 years ago.

How Gary Shaw would have loved it. How he would have revelled in what is happening at his club. Villa are back.

[SaddVillan]

Posted this on the post match page  but perhaps it should be here


From The Athletic

ASTON VILLA 1
BAYERN MUNICH 0
HOW SUPERSUB JOHN DURAN SCORED HIS CHAMPIONS LEAGUE STUNNER

Jhon Duran scored a stunning goal off the bench once again to deliver a famous Champions League victory over Bayern Munich on a big night at Villa Park.

Villa thought they had taken the lead in the 22nd minute when Pau Torres poked home, only for VAR to rule Jacob Ramsey had strayed offside in the build-up.

The game was the first in this tournament to be played at Villa Park in 41 years and was also a repeat of the 1982 European Cup final that Villa won. In attendance was William, Prince of Wales, the heir to the British throne.

Bayern dominated possession at times and had good chances themselves with Emi Martinez at his best to deny Harry Kane but it was Duran who again showcased the talent that has led team-mates to say he “can be one of the best strikers in the world”.

HOW DID DURAN SCORE FROM THERE?
Duran is arguably the best supersub in Europe. And on Villa Park’s biggest night in decades and in the Champions League against Bayern Munich, he was the difference-maker again.

Duran was introduced in the 69th minute after Ollie Watkins’ battle with Dayot Upamecano had run its course. Villa manager Unai Emery recognised that with Duran’s pace and power, freshness might offer the point of difference.

The goal itself was a mess from a defensive standpoint but was a result of Bayern’s defenders being content to follow Villa’s attackers and, in turn, be dragged out of shape.

Goalkeeper Martinez started off the move quickly before Torres played a whipped left-footed pass into the channel where Duran was ahead of Upamecano.

As the ball bounced towards him, the Colombia international had one look up to spot how far advanced Bayern goalkeeper Manuel Neuer was.

And while he had little time to set himself, he epitomised his confidence by backing himself to lob Neuer, who was stranded outside of his box.

Duran’s record off the bench in all competitions now reads nine goals and 38 shots from an xG of 4.55 — effectively finishing twice as well as the average striker.

DID WATKINS SOFTEN UP UPAMECANO?

Bayern’s aggressive, man-for-man pressing took one major risk: they were leaving Watkins isolated against Upamecano.

Vincent Kompany clearly felt there were enough upsides, being able to stifle Villa’s central-focused build-up and dominating possession (65 per cent in the first half).

However, the fatal flaw in the scheme was consistently exposed in the first half. Villa’s early counter-attacking play struggled to materialise, often picking the wrong pass after a regain or executing it poorly. It took them 15 minutes, but they found their rhythm and the passes to Watkins started to click.

On the first occasion where Watkins was in a footrace against Upamecano, with the France international the only defender between him and the goal, they got their legs in a tangle and both hit the floor. Watkins had him booked later in the half when he dropped in as Villa built up, then spun in behind and Upamecano pulled him over.

Kompany had spoken of Villa’s “threat on the counter and the runs they want to make in behind” before the game, listing it as the reason for their success last season.

It took them 80 minutes, and the substitution of Duran for Watkins, but Villa finally made the most of Upamecano being on a yellow card. He’d made some risky but clean and aggressive touch-tight tackles when Watkins dropped in and received passes to feet. With a fresh Duran on, Villa could double down on going in behind, and Duran’s freedom to lob Neuer owed to Upamecano being booked and unable to dive in.

HOW LOUD WAS VILLA PARK?

There are venues where the Champions League anthem is drowned out by boos. Not Villa Park. Aston Villa’s supporters were so pumped up — so excited to hear it inside their stadium at last — that they belted out the last words, “THE CHAMPIONS!”, the way some of the Italian fans do.

There were fireworks too, adding to the sense of occasion, but a party atmosphere gave way to a certain nervous tension once the action started and Bayern enjoyed long spells of possession, undeterred by the enquiries from the Holte End, where the home fans asked, “Who the f***ing hell are you?”

By the end of the evening, the atmosphere had changed completely to one of celebration. It called to mind some of the great nights at Villa Park against Anderlecht and Juventus in the 1980s and Inter Milan in the 1990s. Bayern’s supporters will not forget the deafening roar that greeted Duran’s goal. Villa Park was back on the European football map and it felt so right.

WHY WAS TORRES' GOAL RULED OUT?

Villa Park celebrated wildly after Torres finished smartly in the 22nd minute to put the home side ahead only for it to be ruled out after a VAR check.

While there was nothing wrong with Torres’ poked close-range finish, the video official spotted that Ramsey (41) was offside from the initial long free kick.

Play was initially allowed to continue and the 23-year-old eventually chased the ball down to keep it in play before it was worked back into the box for Torres eventually to finish, only to have his celebrations cut short.

WHy DID BAYERN’S ATTACKING TALENTS FAIL TO FIRE?

Can any club in Europe rival Bayern Munich’s attacking options? Real Madrid for quality, perhaps, but not in terms of strength or depth.

Bayern could never quite find the right combination tonight, though. Kompany started with Serge Gnabry, Michael Olise and Kingsley Coman behind Kane before turning to Jamal Musiala at half-time and Leroy Sane midway through the second half. Bayern dominated possession and frequently enjoyed spells of pressure, but chances were scarce until stoppage time, when Gnabry missed a sitter and Kane saw a free kick deflected wide and a header brilliantly saved by Martinez.

Villa defended superbly, responding to Emery’s call for better concentration, but an off-night for Bayern’s forward line might focus minds in Munich following their free-scoring start to the season.

They have scored 29 goals in their first six games of the season in all competitions but the last two games, at home against Bayer Leverkusen and away at Villa, have seen a lack of penetration — exacerbated in this case by the manner in which Duran punished Upamecano for the type of minor lapse that always seemed Villa’s most likely route to victory.

HOW WAS PHILOGENE'S FIRST START?

There was only one surprise in Aston Villa’s starting XI — Jaden Philogene replacing Leon Bailey. Philogene was yet to start a game since rejoining Villa from Hull City in the summer.

Philogene was tasked with offering support to Ezri Konsa down Villa’s right, which was an arduous challenge for a 22-year-old who had only played regular football in the Championship to this point. Bayern would station their full-backs high and wide, while Coman would drift into pockets in the left channel and along with Olise drifting over, Bayern intended to create a three-versus-two against Philogene and Konsa down that side.

In the early stages, Philogene looked visibly unsure of who to track — particularly when the ball was on the opposite side, often being either too deep and replicating a right-back or too high. Villa had just 34 per cent possession in the first half, meaning Philogene’s role was mainly without the ball.

He did, however, look more comfortable after switching flanks, owing to Ramsey midway through the first half. Philogene was secure with the ball and combined well with Lucas Digne but had very few one-on-one opportunities against Bayern right-back Konrad Laimer, attempting just one dribble before the break and remained focused on a disciplined role in the second half, even switching back to the right on the hour mark.

While his performance was not one of his typical flair, he carried out the functional remit Emery desired.

[frankmosswasmyuncle]

Oliver Holt in the Daily Mail, he should post on here, maybe he does...

Unai Emery's men channelled the class of 1982 in conquering of Bayern Munich... their silencing of Vincent Kompany's free-scoring German giants proves Aston Villa are BACK, writes OLIVER HOLT
 
A couple of hours before the bus carrying the Bayern Munich players even arrived at Villa Park, home fans began making their pilgrimages to the mural on Trinity Road that abuts the ground.

Kids and adults alike, they stood with their backs to the giant likeness of that big-eared European Cup, to have their pictures taken, framed against the claret and blue of Aston Villa, and flanked by digits, ten feet high, recording the greatest number in their history: 1982.

Around the corner, flowers had been laid at the foot of the statue of William McGregor, who served variously as president, director and chairman of the club in the late 19th century, and was the founder of the Football League.

The flowers, and the messages that accompanied them, were for Gary Shaw, the striker who died last month but will be forever enshrined in our memories as the lad with a startling shock of blonde hair who was one of the stars of the Villa side that won the greatest club tournament of all.

Upstairs, in the crowded press room, one seat remained empty and, on the desk next to it, there was a picture of Shaw with the European Cup that he and his team-mates won in Rotterdam 42 years ago when they beat Bayern in the final.

 The occasion needed little billing. Long considered sleeping giants, the West Midlands club were back where they feel they belong
And the mind drifted back. All the way back to March 2nd, 1983, a Wednesday night, a school night for me then, the last time Villa played a European Cup or Champions League tie in front of their own fans.

I was here at Villa Park that night when Villa played the mighty Juventus. Not in the comfort of a press box seat, not with grey hair and a pair of spectacles, staring at a lap-top, fretting about words and deadlines.

But wide-eyed with excitement, carried along by the crowd, swaying and surging in the roiling, broiling magnificence of the Holte End, a majestic terrace that seemed to rise up all the way to the night sky.

I still remember the visceral thrill of seeing Paolo Rossi, the hero of the previous summer's World Cup, scoring in front of us in the second minute as if it were yesterday. For a long time, I did not watch replays of that goal. I wanted to preserve it in my memory as I had seen it, not have it refracted by television.

I remember the thrill of seeing Michel Platini play live. And Zbigniew Boniek. And Marco Tardelli, still the holder of the prize for the greatest goal celebration of all time. And Rossi. And the notorious hatchet man, Claudio Gentile.

And then there was Villa. English clubs were kings of Europe then, even more than they are now, and Villa had beaten Bayern Munich to lift the trophy the previous summer to add their name to the recent triumphs of Liverpool and Nottingham Forest. They were our standard-bearers that season.

I loved watching Gordon Cowans play most of all. He scored the equaliser for Villa in that European Cup quarter final first leg before Boniek grabbed a late winner for Juve. I loved Cowans' elegance, his passing and his vision. He was my favourite Villa player.

Shaw was not far behind. What a striker he was. There was something wonderfully unvarnished about him, too. He was the kid of the team, the youngest of all of them. There was nothing cynical about him. He played with joy written all over his features. He was the kind of player neutrals loved.

So this was a hugely emotional night in the Second City. It was a hymn to the past but it was also an embrace of Villa's renaissance under coach Unai Emery. That it should be Bayern who were Villa's first Champions League visitors gave the evening a beautiful symmetry.

In the place of Rossi, Platini and Tardelli, a new generation of Villa fans, including Prince William, will remember this night as the occasion they saw another of the great European giants at this cathedral of English football, the night they got to watch stars like Manuel Neuer, Joshua Kimmich, Jamal Musiala, Kingsley Coman and England's all-time leading goalscorer Harry Kane.

Bayern have scored 30 goals in seven games under the management of Vincent Kompany this season, including their 9-2 rout of Dinamo Zagreb in their first Champions League tie. They started like royalty, too. Kane had an early header saved by Emiliano Martinez but replays showed he had drifted offside.

Villa were not overawed for long, though. They thought they had scored midway through the half when Torres toe-poked the ball past Neuer after a goalmouth melee but a VAR check showed Jacob Ramsey was offside earlier in the move.

Dayot Upamecano was booked for pulling down Ollie Watkins when Watkins span away from him to chase a high ball over the top but Bayern should have taken the lead when Serge Gnabry burst free down the right. Kane was screaming for the ball in the middle but Gnabry blasted it high and wide. Kane made his displeasure clear.

Kompany brought Jamal Musiala on at half time. Quite why he had not started the match was a mystery because he is a Rolls Royce of a player and his influence helped Bayern regain the upper hand. An hour had gone when he dribbled past half the Villa team and was only denied a goal by a last-ditch block.

Now and again, the cameras showed some of the Boys of 82, including the captain, Dennis Mortimer, and Peter Withe, the scorer of the winner against Bayern 42 years ago, gazing down from the stands.

Withe may have been particularly interested in the performances of Kane and Watkins, the strikers duelling for the role as England's centre forward, but both were relatively peripheral. Watkins was substituted with 20 minutes to go.

His replacement was Jhon Duran, the supersub who has made a habit of scoring spectacular late goals. Now, on this night of all nights, he did it again. Pau Torres swept the ball forward to him, and even though Upamecano was shadowing him, Duran saw that Neuer had ventured out of his goal.

Duran swivelled and hit the ball with his left foot in one movement, lifting it brilliantly over Neuer and into the net. Villa Park erupted in joy. Fans hugged each other. Some wept. Football is beautiful like that. Its traditions and its histories echo down the ages.

And sometimes, on special nights like this, history repeats itself. Martinez saved superbly late on from Michael Olise and when the final whistle went, Villa had won 1-0, just as they did on that golden night in Rotterdam 42 years ago.

How Gary Shaw would have loved it. How he would have revelled in what is happening at his club. Villa are back.

That's lovely, that is.

[frankmosswasmyuncle]

JHON.