All Time Worst XI

[algy]

Since there’s a Best XI …

Rules - players can be from any era, even before football was invented in 1992. They should’ve played a reasonable number of games (say equivalent of a full season, so roughly 40 games minimum).

Edit: to loosen the criteria a bit, the playing time rule is meant purely to exclude short term loan signings (Drinkwater, Gabor Kiraly, ..) and players who just made odd substitute appearances or didn’t play at all, eg Andy Marshall was never in serious contention for a first team spot. Use your own judgement as to whether a player meets those criteria.

Go.

[Dave]

It's probably just a lucky dip of players from 2015 - 2018, with Grealish and Agbonlahor taken out isn't it?

Because anyone who was doing a poor job for us at any other any other time was still good enough to be doing it for us in the Premier League rather than 13th in the Championship.

[cdbearsfan]

The shitebags that scratched the Oxford University game.

[TaxDodger]

Based on the approx. 40 games minimum criteria I'll go as below (since 1996). Obviously the likes of Tonev, Balaban, Danny Drinkwater, Mark Bunn etc. would be included with a less strict criteria on the amount of games. It also feels harsh to include Nyland considering his performance in the League Cup semi, but I'm struggling for a terrible keeper that played that many games.

Nyland

Richards, Elphick, Lescott, Cissokho

Bacuna, Kinsella, Sanchez, Richardson

Gestede, C.Cole

[cdbearsfan]

We've had far worse than Bacuna.

[ASHTONVILLA]

This one sadly, is more competitive that the best 11. Going to have to rule out some real stinkers.

[algy]

Edited the criteria to cover the intention of the playing time rule (exclude short term loans and players who were signed as 3rd choice keeper or the like)

[Dave]

We've had far worse than Bacuna.

That was the stand-out for me too. Think that back four is probably the textbook answer though.

[DC1874]

There's a few from the 1986-1987 relegation season I can think of too!!!

[paul_e]

With the adjusted criteria:

Bunn

Beye Senderos Baker Shorey

El Ahmadi Sylla Sanchez

Holman Hogan Richardson

I know a few of them didn't play all that often but all of them were signed with the intention of being regulars and the ones who didn't manage that were so shit that we either spent again to replace them or played people out of position in their place. I can accept that I'm probably being a little harsh on El Ahmadi but, for me, having him in our midfield after the likes of Barry, Milner and Delph is the point where the hope under Lerner really died. Baker might also be harsh but if he hadn't come through our academy he'd probably have struggled to have a career much above League 1, that he played well over 100 times for us shows just how far we'd fallen by the time we got relegated.

[London Villan]

There are loads of crap midfielders…. Djemba Djemba, Carlos?, that Egyptian guy that just used to chase opposing midfielders.

I’ve tried to blank out most of them…

[Dick Edwards]

It's too painful to recall our worst players but it's easy for me to highlight Rudy Gestede as the poorest footballer I've seen in a Villa shirt.

[SoccerHQ]

It's probably just a lucky dip of players from 2015 - 2018, with Grealish and Agbonlahor taken out isn't it?

Because anyone who was doing a poor job for us at any other any other time was still good enough to be doing it for us in the Premier League rather than 13th in the Championship.

Tonev has to be in there as I think he just missed that 2015-18 inglorious period.

I remember when he signed someone posted the obligatory YT video of him playing in Polish league and most of it consisted of him firing shots and crosses wildly into the stands.

Gets on VP turf and starts doing the same....

Hate using the term "competition winner" to describe players but he looked every inch one so he comfortably goes on the right of our worst ever team.

[SoccerHQ]

It's too painful to recall our worst players but it's easy for me to highlight Rudy Gestede as the poorest footballer I've seen in a Villa shirt.

Gestede had no chance having to replace Benteke with his limited technique. However he did score 6-7 goals that prem season and also the winner v SHA so just on that he dosen't go into worst team.

We signed McCormack a year later for massive fee, wages and expectations and he was a complete disaster so depends how you judge signings and what you expect.

Think we also got most of our money back for Gestede when he went to Boro so it was just a poor player in a poor era for us.