Ashley Westwood

[Keyblade]

Ah yes, a lot of what has been wrong with Aston Villa is down to Ashley Westwood and his huge sphere of influence despite not doing enough™ or not being influential™. 

This thread is borderline comical.

[Stevo985]

That's incredible logic.

The only player good enough to regularly keep his place in the midfield for the past few seasons is the reason the midfield was so bad.

[Keyblade]

Delph was also a mainstay in our midfield for 4 seasons. 4 awful seasons I should add. We did well flogging him off to Man City

[HeyAnty]

Ah yes, a lot of what has been wrong with Aston Villa is down to Ashley Westwood and his huge sphere of influence despite not doing enough™ or not being influential™. 

This thread is borderline comical.

AstonVilla are the same as Ashley Westwood in terms of ambition and ability over the past few seasons.  I was using comparisons between the type of player he is and the type of club we are and continue to be.  

[KJT123]

Watching the first half of the Stoke match after i missed it on Saturday. Westwood is our best player, didn't do anything wrong at all. Good passing, a few good interceptions, and managed to wriggle out of some tight situations with some great ball control. Any criticisms of his corners should be directed at the management. 

[The Fun Factory]

I think people are getting largely tired of him as he has played over 100 times for Villa in a period in which we have been useless, and that he is probably not really going to get any better.

He might be neat and tidy but he was any good he would have a- had a England cap by now, and b- have probably been sold.

It took Delph 18 months of superb form to get an England call-up. I bet if Westwood was on Liverpool's bench for one game he'd get a call-up. That's not a way to measure a player's worth.You never see other players in the squad analyzed using such silly metrics. Besides those are illogical reasosn for disliking Westwood, and completely unfair. He played 100 times in a bad Villa side? Hardly his fault. He might be neat and tidy, but it's his job to be neat and tidy and by your own admission he seems to be doing his job okay.

Most people haven't been as analzyed as Westwood as either they have not been here for long, or have left the club in the 3 seasons since he joined us.  Unless we are talking about Gabby, Guzan, or Clark. In which most people at present don't appear to rate. He is probably is doing enough to still be at Villa but he is hardly pulling up any trees either?  Does that really warrant having two  bigger new contracts in said time?

[TRO]

He had a couple of bad games but was back to himself yesterday and put in a good performance, oh and his corners were better than the 3 that were taken when he went off.

But there's the massive problem. He's back to form but has zero effect on the outcome of the game for us. I go back to the 'when is he going to stand up and be counted'' debate. 

Tho all you get is he is not that kind of player. Which is as ironic as the fact he can't play in a 2.

For someone who has amassed some outrageous praise in the past (not only was he going to play for England he was a future England captain), he hasn't half got some excuse courtesy of his supporters.

Unfortunately, ashley westwood is one of our best players now it would seem and that is a massive massive issue in terms of having any hope of surviving.

                      Lightweight in most aspects of his game.....and gets turned so easily.

[bobzy]

Expected by those who don't rate him to be both offensive and defensive when, in reality, he isn't made for either.

People can't seem to get past this, though, and think you either need to be assisting/scoring or destructive.  No other type of midfielder exists!

[mikeyp102]

Expected by those who don't rate him to be both offensive and defensive when, in reality, he isn't made for either.

People can't seem to get past this, though, and think you either need to be assisting/scoring or destructive.  No other type of midfielder exists!

Surely a midfielder has to do at least one of attacking or defending? Otherwise what's the point in them being in the team. It is said he bases his game on Carrick, well Carrick is very good defensively. 

[bobzy]

Expected by those who don't rate him to be both offensive and defensive when, in reality, he isn't made for either.

People can't seem to get past this, though, and think you either need to be assisting/scoring or destructive.  No other type of midfielder exists!

 

Surely a midfielder has to do at least one of attacking or defending? Otherwise what's the point in them being in the team. It is said he bases his game on Carrick, well Carrick is very good defensively. 

How about simply getting the ball from the defence and moving it forward?

FWIW, I've just checked the oracle of football stats (WhoScored) and comparisons with Carrick as follows:

 

Westwood: 1.9 tackles per game, 1.3 interceptions, 1.1 fouls, 1.1 clearances, 0.5 dribbled past, 0.5 blocks

Carrick: 1 tackle per game, 1.6 interceptions, 0.5 fouls, 0.8 clearances, 0.6 dribbled past, 0.1 blocks

 

[meregreen]

Expected by those who don't rate him to be both offensive and defensive when, in reality, he isn't made for either.

People can't seem to get past this, though, and think you either need to be assisting/scoring or destructive.  No other type of midfielder exists!

 

Surely a midfielder has to do at least one of attacking or defending? Otherwise what's the point in them being in the team. It is said he bases his game on Carrick, well Carrick is very good defensively. 

How about simply getting the ball from the defence and moving it forward?

FWIW, I've just checked the oracle of football stats (WhoScored) and comparisons with Carrick as follows:

 

Westwood: 1.9 tackles per game, 1.3 interceptions, 1.1 fouls, 1.1 clearances, 0.5 dribbled past, 0.5 blocks

Carrick: 1 tackle per game, 1.6 interceptions, 0.5 fouls, 0.8 clearances, 0.6 dribbled past, 0.1 blocks

 

Just goes to show what a load of bollocks stats can be. Do you really think Westwood can stand comparison with Carrick?

I prefer to use the evidence of my eyes, he's mediocre at best.

[VillaIRE]

For what my two cents are worth, I think Westwood is largely ineffective.  What he does, he does okay, but that's often the problem: football seems to be a game of 'hot potato' for him. He's hasty to find the simplest pass - and it's definitely not always the right one.

He has talent, but it's clearly not up there with others in this league. This league is for premier players.

[Bunnski]

For what my two cents are worth, I think Westwood is largely ineffective.  What he does, he does okay, but that's often the problem: football seems to be a game of 'hot potato' for him. He's hasty to find the simplest pass - and it's definitely not always the right one.

He has talent, but it's clearly not up there with others in this league. This league is for premier players.

Strange how he gets so many key passes for a player who does nothing and looks for the easy pass while trying to get rid of the hot potatoes ball, was on par for key passes with Gerard a couple of seasons ago and only behind Lallana out of all English players. He started this season well and was 8th in the league for key passes after 4 games, doesn't look like an average player most games I watch him play!

[bobzy]

Expected by those who don't rate him to be both offensive and defensive when, in reality, he isn't made for either.

People can't seem to get past this, though, and think you either need to be assisting/scoring or destructive.  No other type of midfielder exists!

 

Surely a midfielder has to do at least one of attacking or defending? Otherwise what's the point in them being in the team. It is said he bases his game on Carrick, well Carrick is very good defensively. 

How about simply getting the ball from the defence and moving it forward?

FWIW, I've just checked the oracle of football stats (WhoScored) and comparisons with Carrick as follows:

 

Westwood: 1.9 tackles per game, 1.3 interceptions, 1.1 fouls, 1.1 clearances, 0.5 dribbled past, 0.5 blocks

Carrick: 1 tackle per game, 1.6 interceptions, 0.5 fouls, 0.8 clearances, 0.6 dribbled past, 0.1 blocks

 

Just goes to show what a load of bollocks stats can be. Do you really think Westwood can stand comparison with Carrick?

I prefer to use the evidence of my eyes, he's mediocre at best.

Your eyes are wrong.

[AntrimBlack]

Stats, stats, stats. Where would Westwood be without stats? Nothing else to prove his worth. Ignore the stats, watch the game, he is totally ineffective.

I said last season Westwood, Delph and Cleverly were one of the worst midfields I could remember at our club. 4/5 decent games under a new manager bounce changes nothing, it was still a terrible midfield. 

I don't know what the stats say about his corners, but I can tell you they are bloody awful, and waste opportunities to score which we can ill afford. And the fact that other players put in shit corners is no excuse.

[andym]

For what my two cents are worth, I think Westwood is largely ineffective.  What he does, he does okay, but that's often the problem: football seems to be a game of 'hot potato' for him. He's hasty to find the simplest pass - and it's definitely not always the right one.

He has talent, but it's clearly not up there with others in this league. This league is for premier players.

 

Strange how he gets so many key passes for a player who does nothing and looks for the easy pass while trying to get rid of the hot potatoes ball, was on par for key passes with Gerard a couple of seasons ago and only behind Lallana out of all English players. He started this season well and was 8th in the league for key passes after 4 games, doesn't look like an average player most games I watch him play!

 

you know key passes are just any ball that leads to an attempt at goal, know matter how poor the chance actually is or where it is from.

For example, according to whoscored, Westwood had 3 key passes against Stoke. 1 was a 8 yard square pass, 30 to 40 yards out between the centre circle and opposition box, to Gueye, who then took the ball to just outside the area and had a speculative shot. One was a hopeful floated free kick from 40 yards out into the box that Gestede got a weak looping header on. The final was actually a great chance setup, the one Richards should have scored. 

But the point is, given he takes practically every set piece, it is no surprise his 'key passes' stat is high. All it needs is for a villa player to touch it in the box and have it go towards the goal, no matter how poor the actual chance created is.

And to prove stats are not the be all and end all, our whoscored ranking is 9th best in the league, yet we are in the bottom 3 on a pitiful 4 points.

 

Edited October 7, 2015 by andym

[Bunnski]

Stats, stats, stats. Where would Westwood be without stats? Nothing else to prove his worth. Ignore the stats, watch the game, he is totally ineffective.

I said last season Westwood, Delph and Cleverly were one of the worst midfields I could remember at our club. 4/5 decent games under a new manager bounce changes nothing, it was still a terrible midfield. 

I don't know what the stats say about his corners, but I can tell you they are bloody awful, and waste opportunities to score which we can ill afford. And the fact that other players put in shit corners is no excuse.

Nothing else to prove his worth? So stats count for nothing in this case? Truth is the stats back up what a lot of us see and others don't so that's why stats get brought into it as they can't really be argued against and prove a point especially when someone says he just plays it safe all the time and plays the easy pass, yes he does that plenty of times as he is hardly going to try the killer ball everytime but he takes plenty of risks and creates plenty of opportunities for us by being quick with his control and passing and looking for the openings when they are on.

[meregreen]

Expected by those who don't rate him to be both offensive and defensive when, in reality, he isn't made for either.

People can't seem to get past this, though, and think you either need to be assisting/scoring or destructive.  No other type of midfielder exists!

 

Surely a midfielder has to do at least one of attacking or defending? Otherwise what's the point in them being in the team. It is said he bases his game on Carrick, well Carrick is very good defensively. 

How about simply getting the ball from the defence and moving it forward?

FWIW, I've just checked the oracle of football stats (WhoScored) and comparisons with Carrick as follows:

 

Westwood: 1.9 tackles per game, 1.3 interceptions, 1.1 fouls, 1.1 clearances, 0.5 dribbled past, 0.5 blocks

Carrick: 1 tackle per game, 1.6 interceptions, 0.5 fouls, 0.8 clearances, 0.6 dribbled past, 0.1 blocks

 

Just goes to show what a load of bollocks stats can be. Do you really think Westwood can stand comparison with Carrick?

I prefer to use the evidence of my eyes, he's mediocre at best.

 

Your eyes are wrong.

No they're not. He's mediocre.

[bobzy]

Stats, stats, stats. Where would Westwood be without stats? Nothing else to prove his worth. Ignore the stats, watch the game, he is totally ineffective.

I said last season Westwood, Delph and Cleverly were one of the worst midfields I could remember at our club. 4/5 decent games under a new manager bounce changes nothing, it was still a terrible midfield. 

I don't know what the stats say about his corners, but I can tell you they are bloody awful, and waste opportunities to score which we can ill afford. And the fact that other players put in shit corners is no excuse.

Where would any footballer be without stats?  Why would teams bother hiring specialists to analyse stats if they were so irrelevant?

Westwood isn't a world beater, but he's good enough to be a Premier League footballer and plays an important role in our midfield if we're to play a central trio.  Every other midfielder we've had recently has had nowhere near the stick Westwood gets despite all of them failing to be anything other than alright.  It's incredible.

Westwood can clearly cross a ball - just look at the one he presented for Micah Richards to miss against Stoke.  Non-whipped corners can be exactly the right type for teams with an aerial threat that love to attack the ball, rather than having a delivery with all the pace on it in the world.  Benteke and Gestede absolutely fit that bill.

[Zatman]

For what my two cents are worth, I think Westwood is largely ineffective.  What he does, he does okay, but that's often the problem: football seems to be a game of 'hot potato' for him. He's hasty to find the simplest pass - and it's definitely not always the right one.

He has talent, but it's clearly not up there with others in this league. This league is for premier players.

 

Strange how he gets so many key passes for a player who does nothing and looks for the easy pass while trying to get rid of the hot potatoes ball, was on par for key passes with Gerard a couple of seasons ago and only behind Lallana out of all English players. He started this season well and was 8th in the league for key passes after 4 games, doesn't look like an average player most games I watch him play!

I hate the phrase key pass

What the **** is a key pass? If he on the same level as Gerrard for them then its not a good thing