M_Afro

Targett incredibly lucky to keep his place if Deano is dropping on form. He’s been our worst player so far this season!

Only three teams have fewer points than us now! We need a win big time today. COYVB. Hause, Marv and Ramsey need to step up and show us what they’re made of.

I thought Smith said Traore was fit. Strange omission from the squad if true!

Happy with that. Shame there’s no Dougie but otherwise it’s spot on. A massive surprise that Mings has been dropped but he has been poor. COYVB

What makes you say that? Mings is class in the air. I would be surprised if he were dropped for this game. I would be tempted to play him and Hause in a two.

True. It would certainly help if he were available for selection. Hopefully he will get over this mystery illness and then have a sustained spell of being fit and available

He was an ok championship player. He only rose to prominence when he moved to 9. He doesn’t have the ability to play wide in my view. He would just be another square peg in a round hole.

It definitely feels as though there are some internal issues here. As some have already stated will things change in the event that a new manager is incoming? Possibly but bad eggs are usually just bad eggs. I can’t believe that Dean won’t have been anything other than very fair with him so maybe it’s just not the right fit for anybody. It happens.

I do like that formation but I don’t think we have the players to play it effectively. You need 2 dedicated and effective defensive midfielders like Rice and Phillips for England. I’m not sure Dougie is that player and I’m certain SJM isn’t. You need a proper 10. I think Buendia could be that player but I would keep him on the right until he finds some form. You also need quality wide forwards. Ollie is a 9. Move him away from that and he is a championship player again. I think we need to go back to 4-3-3. The same back 5 as you have. Luiz as the pivot. SJM and Ramsey as 8’s. Front 3 of Buendia, Ollie and Bailey.

I personally wouldn’t sell either of Watkins or Ings, I just wouldn’t start them both in every match but if I was forced to get rid of one of them, it would be Ings. Watkins has proven himself here, is much younger and has greater growth in him. I’ve always felt a little uncomfortable with the Ings signing for some reason. Probably because I thought we had glaring deficiencies elsewhere that needed to be addressed first. I don’t ever want us to sign another player until our midfield is sorted out first! It’s the key thing holding us back.

I agree with the sentiment entirely but why play Ollie out wide when you have Buendia and Traore (and arguably AEG) who have played that position far more effectively in the past? One of Ollie or Ings needs to start on the bench, 100%. I would start with Ollie with Ings to play super sub if required.

I agree. If we play to our potential we have a very good chance of winning. West Ham’s players are no better than ours and we are at home.

Dean won’t be judged on tomorrow. He will be judged on a much longer period. It does feel like tomorrow is important but only because of our poor form in 2021. I think he is at a junction now. Turn it around and show greater consistency moving forward or he will be gone. Whatever happens the decision will be based upon a general overview of his performance on the whole. Villa don’t do knee jerk!

He will 100% start in my view. He has to. The bigger question is will Dean have the balls to drop Ings or Ollie?

There’s absolutely hope for tomorrow. We are due some luck against West Ham. They are also nowhere near as good as people are making out. We played them off the park at their place last season, despite the result. We are at home. We have got the players. Dean needs to pick the best 11, in their best positions and employ the most beneficial tactics. That’s his job and if he does it well we will play well and have a very good chance of winning. If he doesn’t then he deserves all of the stick that will come his way.

It’s going to be interesting to see what Smith does in terms of selection tomorrow. In his press conference he stated that our performance against Arsenal was not formation related but simply just poor individual performances. He can’t really believe that. He also tried to make out that Bailey possibly isn’t ready to start. I don’t think he believes that either. I suspect that Bailey will start. That means that one of Watkins, Ings or Buendia really needs to come out of the team to accommodate Bailey. Which will it be? Will he try to keep them all in? I really hope that he starts with Ings on the bench. Watkins is class at playing the loan striker role and with Bailey and Buendia either side of him, I can see him flourishing again. I’d also be happy enough with Ings starting with Ollie on the bench but would prefer it the other way around. I really think this is where Smith will need to earn his corn. He wanted options and he now has them. It’s his job to select those best suited to getting three points and employing them in the right formation. It genuinely is intriguing because I have no idea of what Smith will do so you can bet that Moyes will be guessing too. We pretty much know what to expect from West Ham so Smith may be able to work this to our advantage. We need a fast start and then who knows. Over to you Dean.

I never wanted us to appoint Smith but I would never call myself anti-Smith. I think that most fans love Dean, I just felt that his cv was a little underwhelming to be considered to be manager of our great club. In his time as manager there have been some great spells where he has really won me over but the nagging doubts keep returning. I still want Dean to turn things around but for various reasons that I have posted over the past week or so, I am still unsure that he is capable. I am absolutely certain that he is on the edge now and a decent run must be forthcoming. Hopefully it starts with a sensible balanced team selection on Sunday, a motivated team, a good performance and something other than another defeat.

If Emi is available, we play 4-3-3 and drop either of Ings/Watkins then there’s absolutely no reason why we can’t beat them. Emi would be a big loss but he could still be back in time. I fear for us if we go 5-3-2 although I would expect a much more pragmatic approach which might help us. If we try and open up like we have been it could get messy!

There’s time for him to get back. We don’t play until Sunday. Hopefully his Dad will be fine and he can return in time.

Overrated- Sanson Underated - Sanson Depends on day/hour/poster/previous result! I am now going to run for cover but I always thought Ian Taylor was a bit over-rated!

No. I genuinely can’t. Maybe Norwich if they got rid of their manager but otherwise no.

I would say it’s highly unlikely that he will leave. I really hope not as well. He is a class act. I have never known our club to be so well run. He is calm, authoritative and decisive.

Just when you thought this could not get any funnier a disallowed goal for CR7!

I honestly think the next 2 games are massive. This next International break is always a precarious one for managers who are struggling. Fail to win either match and Dean could be gone. Lose both and he will be gone.

Are we a mid table side though? The stated aim of the club at the start of the season was to challenge for Europe. Smith said on Friday that we have a top half squad. There is a subtle difference between saying we are a top half side and a mid table side but it is important nonetheless. Top half suggests that we are at least in the hunt for a European slot. Mid table suggests we are neither in the hunt for Europe or in danger of relegation. I know you really want Smith to stay and I do empathise with you. Smith has much to like. He brings things to the table that are unique to him because of his history with the club. I also have to admit that I never wanted him in the first place. There have definitely been stages where he has really started to win me over but then we revert to the same things that ultimately hold us back. In my view however, our form has largely been poor all year. This is backed up by our points accumulated during that period.