Pongotastic

The thing about draws is that they rarely come about through choice (unless you're Alex McLeish). If Arsenal score early for example then Wigan score soon after but fail to score again Arsenal are going to spend the rest of the game trying to get that winning goal. They're not going to suddenly let Wigan score in the dying seconds if they think they won't be able to get that winning goal.

 

One important factor in this for me: Arsenal and Tottenham both contesting fourth. Bad enough if its two sides cities apart vying for the CL, but this also has the 'local bragging rights' issue to it. There'll be no corners cut in either game and I think Wigan and Sunderland will both have to play the games of their lives to get out of trouble.

Agreed. Nothing's for certain but given that Man United have already won the title I don't think there's two sides I'd rather Wigan and Spurs playing than Arsenal and Spurs fighting for CL and local bragging rights.

Definitely. Imagine one of them playing the Baggies and the other lining up against QPR on the last day that would be a nightmare.

Traditionally Arsenal have struggled against teams that stifle the game and don't let them move the ball around in the way that they have in recent history. However, Wigan, who will be visiting in desperate need of a win, will make it an open game and there will be gaps that Arsenal can exploit.

I

Someone said they would drive to another poster's house and personally deliver 50 quid if we finish 17th!

Feeling lucky punk?

I was reading through old e-mails the other night and found a great joke I sent to my SHA fan mate back in May 2011.

'I've just bought one of those Premier League compilation albums. Lots of rock and jazz....... but no Blues'

Hope Villa beat Chelsea and Wigan beat Arsenal. Would make the final day very interesting.

Seconded.

And Sunderland to drop.

Rather than some self gratifying gesture which doesn't do anything other than give us a sense of inner warmth, it would be much better if the club took positive steps to helps fight the illness - a % of season ticket sales going to a leukemia charity, a benefit match, lending weight to Stan's cause.

Retiring a squad number isn't going to help leukemia sufferers.

He's still alive and I sincerely hope his health improves and he recovers from this horrible illness.

I don't think you can retire numbers on that basis. Reading the dignity and humility of the statement I doubt he would want it retired!

I don't have any sympathy for them at all. Horrible city and horrible fans.

Undoubtedly the biggest moment of the season was when Benteke signed on the dotted line. Without that we would have been in all sorts of 'brown stuff'

I hope that rumour was true. Anyone got a link/

 

Sad sad bastards

There's some clown on SHA called Olly Onion or something who talk about nothing else but Villa and he's definitely going and there's a number of knuckle draggers going with him.

We know that you're here, we know that you're heeeeere

F*** off Small Heath, we know that you're here.

are they all still going down to Wigan on final day of season?

It's their biggest away following of the season.

 

I want to see Sunderland, Stoke, or Wigan go down. 

I want Stoke or Wigan to go down. Probably Stoke more so, cuz Pulis is such a clearing in the woods, and they play some really ugly football. I'd prefer Sunderland to stay up as long as they keep DiCanio, who adds a bit of lunacy to things, which is always amusing.

 

Would take one hell of a set of circumstances for Stoke to go.

Sunderland for me.

I would like to get tickets at WHL on the last game of the season and run in front of Di Canio doing the higher/lower gesture.

Sunderland would be the funniest of all.

Someone mentioned a few pages back that Wigan are the 'unflushable turds' of the premier league.

So very true.

 

Bookies are now offering between 22-28/1 on Villa being relegated.

 

All of my non Villa supporting mates say that we are safe. I think it's just us fans that are so concerned. Being Villa fans we were put on this earth to be negative, cynical and pessimistic.

 

 

That must go for all sets of fans who are still down there then.

 

Maybe its because your non villa mates havent truly looked at the fixture list and taken into account who we have on the last day. Maybe they are a lot like mine and just see - '40 points' - until you actually map out the rest of the season to them - making them realise 'oh, your not quite safe yet'.

 

True, but being impartial gives you a more rounded outlook and from the outside looking in you can see that the wheels have totally fallen off at Newcastle, Sunderland are without 5 key players and Norwich can't buy a goal right now. That quite aside from the fact that we sit 5 points ahead of Wigan with Southampton sandwiched in there too.

Saying all of that, I am still very worried!

Bookies are now offering between 22-28/1 on Villa being relegated.

All of my non Villa supporting mates say that we are safe. I think it's just us fans that are so concerned. Being Villa fans we were put on this earth to be negative, cynical and pessimistic.

I don't get this teams rolling for one another, it's a myth. Liverpool had sod all to play for but smashed Newcastle for 6, did Sunderland have nothing to play for when they played us? Sometimes its harder playing the teams who have no pressure, no fear. WBA will lose tonight, do you really think they'll want to go to Norwich and lose a 3rd on the bounce. Remember last season, when WBA had nothing to play for at Bolton? That result effectively killed Bolton, what about Stoke on the last game of the season. I will sound like PL but no game is 'easy'.

Totally agree.

Teams simply do not roll over regardless of anything. For evidence go back to the last day of the '95 season. Liverpool were playing Blackburn at Anfield and if Liverpool lost they would have denied United the title and Blackburn, managed by Liverpool legend Kenny Dalglish, would have won it. Did Liverpool roll over? No. Quite the opposite. They beat Blackburn 2-1, which risked gifting the title to United (albeit Blackburn still won because United couldn't beat West Ham).

Put simply, no team rolls over.

There seems to be an idea that Swansea are 'on the beach'. This is the team that have just drawn at home to Manchester City.

Hughton confirmed Sebastien Bassong is fit to face Paul Lambert’s side after being withdrawn late on in the 1-0 Premier League defeat at Stoke suffering some discomfort in the right knee injury he has been managing over recent months. Fellow centre-back Michael Turner (groin), however, has lost his fitness battle.

Source: Eastern Daily Press

I think Bassong will play sadly. Don't think Turner will.

Rumours as well that Ruddy might be back which isn't ideal.

 

Michael Turner is out... yay!

I think Bassong is too

 

Last I saw Turner is very doubtful and Bassong was taking off with what they think might have been a precaution. I'd wager that Bassong will play but Turner won't.

The way I see things is that if we don't win this game it will go to the last game of the season!

Newcastle are equally hopeless. Full of French mercenaries. I read that Ben Arfa (who has come back from injury twice the man) was in a gym in Newcastle whilst the Villa/Sunderland game was on and didn't play a blind bit of notice. They don't care. Pardew has lost the dressing room. It's like the 100 years war over that way. The French and the English are at each others throats.