screwdriver

Lansbury deserved some minutes after setting up two goals agains wolfs. The same old story every week. take the lead. gradually get pushed further and further back conseed. subs come on.let in another. Smith is making the same mistakes he made in august when he destroyed our momentum against spurs by taking off trez and bringing on jota. Happened every week burnley, arsenal spurs etc. he should do a gregory and it in the stand if he can't see whats happening from the dugout He obviously prepares the team well as we start strong. but if all goes wubs up after his subs. and why make trez play 90mins against a load of kids on weds and again today? this guy was breathing out his ring piece. and why are these lads not fit with the facitlities they have at bodymore. are you telling me teams like burnley hace facilities like that?

WEsley was terrific. I agree tho once Kodjia came on nothing was going to stick up front and his work rate was never going to be on a level as wesleys. Elmo was ok but the other two subs stunk. SMith cannot get away with making the same mistakes week in week out. The like for like subs is a bottle job way of doing things..

Well we gave them a bloody nose but that is the cruelest way to lose a game. Have to say Wesley was incredible the way he repeatably clattered both their centre halves in a performance I'd never seen from him before. Won loads of ball in the air that he had no right to. I think the players were suprised he would win them they sometimes didn't move for his flicks. If he can play like this everyweek we will have the new diego costa on our hands. He battered them. Trez was outstanding. work rate from him has always been there but he was a handfull in possession jinking his way thru. Guilbert was outstandiing up and down the pitch. Mings McGinn el gazi target all solid 8 out of 10's I thought Luiz again was poor. Althought Smith made a big mistake bringing on hourihane. It should of been Lansbury. Hourihane had a big chance to make it two. but opted to square to trez who couldn't get a clean shot. I am really deflated. especially sheff united winning. all the other promoted teams have had a big scalp except Villa. Liverpool fans look me in the eye and tell me you deserve that win. After watching Salah closely I thought he looked knackered and probably peaked whilst we were in the champ. Sane is an absolutle despicable cheat. Diving all over the place and cynical fouls. However he looks like pele the way he moves. Firminio wasn't that good today did nothing really. Lallana looked like a deep laying playmaker today played in front of the centre halves. Liverpools best players were their full backs that arnold can just ping balls 60 yards with no back lift.

I go to Villa Park today feeling no desire to get any sort of result just to get the 90 mins out of the way and check out salah to see where he rates in the list of the greatest players I've seen live. (currently Christiano is number1). As long as we give them a bloody nose and make it difficult I'll take a 0-3. I don't think we are their bogey team at Villa Park. It's anfield where we have caused upset. Lamberts boys, think McCleish used to get something. only houllier's team got bummed probably under instructions from the manager. . I think even the 2015 season we narrowly lost under garde 3-2 gestede got one. Grealish must play! We will probably have at least one spell in the game where we will have a stone wall chance. (Mcgins first half shot against city, Kenian Davis chance) we need to take these opportunities. Things that are due: 1 in 3 striker wesley is due to score today Liverpool are due a defeat Firmino sane and salah have player something like 200 games together. surely they're due an injury (even a freak tripping over the xbox controller) Virgin Van Dyke is due a mings style rush of blood to the head.(even the great mcgrath scored a few o'gs)

Didn't scotland play a fixture when the other team never turned up? they just had to kick off and score and the game was awarded to them. I would so buy a ticket to watch Villa kick off against no opposition. The ticket stub would be a collectors item.

Whats it got to do with the premier league? This is the league cup. Liverpool must respect the integrity of the competition by putting out 11 lads from skelmersdale if there's no one else. which is bs anyway. call back all their loan players like ryan kent they have about 3000 up and down the champ. etc. Villa should stick to their guns and do what it takes to play the game in December. I want to watch this game in December. Im sure we played liverpool at this stage in about 2002 when it didn't kick off till about 10pm cos the tkts messed up massive queues outside the ground. IT was freezing cold aswell. Put a team out in dec or forfeit the game.

Lansbury and Davis looked like the only ones who could be arsed. Trez was busy but lacks quality in everything. Luiz had loads of ball and space but I agreed with the guy who said he didn't look interested. he didn't.......there were times when he had acres in front of him but he just played it back to the centre halves. maybe he's just a berbetov nonchalant type I was disappointing to see Lansbury subbed instead of luiz. I think lansbury would make a terrific deep laying play maker. gutted DAvies limped off without scoring. Will this guy ever score goals? However Wolves B team are worse than tipton town. you'd think an establised prem team would have got a few squad players in the summer to bolster the ranks. like we did players like Konsa and jota. I only recognised one name on their team sheet Ruddy who looked like father time has caught up with him. It was a strange game I thought it was a sell out but the attendance was 34k but it looked pretty full. we're in the hat thats the important things

the league cup is the best route to wembley........ im so used to going to wembley now every may I am desperate desperate to go again. Consider: a) we've got this far already....... I can smell those credit card only hotdogs 2) we have won this trophy many times (probably only behind liverpool) so for me it's special e)big sides playing each other so will leave a clear route to the final. f)wolves are shattered from flying all over europe they will surely play like a team who don;t give a monkeys. just like the Villa team in the 96 fa cup semi. 3)even poor Villa teams always do well in this competition. the 86 bottle job boys got to the semi's. David o'learys "honest bunch of lads" got to the semis and I'm sure I remember Juan Pablo Angel scoring a screamer against chelsea when Taylor was the gaffer. We need to field the strongest possible team. Grealish must play. Just like baggio in the 94 world cup final. We can take him off at 2-0 or 60mins at 1-0. I just hope these villa report guys are propaganda merchants and it's all spin. why would an express and star journo know before a birmingham mail?

I was so looking forward to wednesday night but then I was dreading it. Even Grealish's cover man jota is crocked. How did this guy pass a medical? However I just had o'kelly interview running on my other monitor and he said knowing Jack he will recover. I can now go about my daily business in a relaxed way. We ARE! a one man team. JAck is the new baggio, I can't watch Villa without Grealish, I dread flashbacks from last winter.

first half was ok but as soon as the 2nd went in heads dropped and it was all over. least we got this game out of the way.

mings has been wretched today

Davis does the basics so much better than wesely. Have we all been seduced by price tag and brazillian passport? remi8nds me of Ian Onley v Cascarino debate.

cancelo has been excellent.

thank god de bruyne going off......oh no aguero on

Davis on.......to move us further up the pitch. be nice if we could score just to keep it respectable

we are still in the game at 1-0 still up for grabs

decent opening 3 mins by Villa then man city taken over and we look scruffy at the back. We are struggling to keep the ball. Wesley needs to do better. it's one decent chance each. disgusting dive by sterling got grealish booked. we should appeal that

Today is must win for Smith. one win away in the prem all season? disgrace. Trez should play in the adama traore role. otherwise unchanged. Conner must start! as our only chances will be set pieces. remember bacuna's curler! One thing i did notice i watch both teams pre match presser things. Smith relaxed as always Pep very short and agitated with the media. maybe behind the scenes issues? glimmer of hope? if we going to go down to man city at least give them a bloody nose. even when mancuty were crap they always used to beat us I can remember david white scoring about 4 goals before disappearing back to his usual standart of centre forwad play the week after.

I agree our target for the next two games is 1 point. The Premier League has now turned into the farce that was the SPL with only 2 good teams and the rest make up the numbers. only the European places and the off the pitch issues make it interesting. But look at liverpool without salah.... they look doable they don't seem to have any other natural dribblers. and the run of games without defeat becomes a ball a chain around their necks. everyone knows they're due. a hostile welcoming committee for their team bus with flares etc and a rocking Villa Park and we can give them a bloody nose at least. then look at man city. Midfielders at centre defence? a direct game plan could undo them.

Brighton were incredibly comfortable on the ball and even with 10 men turned the old Paul Lambert 6 yard box goal kicks into an attacking chance time and time again we just couldn't deal with it. not enough intent in the press. However that disallowed goal really fired us up this was the only part of the game we looked totally like we were on top. Even in the 2nd half when we had loads of ball in their half I thought any moment they could easily cut through us and move the ball up the pitch in 5 passes and create a chance. El Gazi didn't get into the game he had a few flashes but was rightly subbed when he blazed that 2nd half chance over the bar. 2nd half Trez playing left wing and McGinn playing right wing? ridiculous. both turning the ball inside to their strongest foot for crossing. Mings has moments where he appears to have disappeared up his own rectum. The brighton fans were giving him loads of verbals did he turn them down to come to VIlla or something? Grealish majestic yet again. He will be the new zizu. Ruthless finish from target. Crucial 3 points. 1 point out of next two is the optimistic target.

This is must win today for smith. One win at home all season is unacceptable. I would have tore strips off the lads for that last 5mins capitulation against norwich. What was McGinn doing? What was Mings doing? What was heaton doing? disgrace. The team picks itself no tinkering is necessary. Not sure what to expect from Brighton as they destroyed spurs. However so should have we. But brighton and hove albion at Villa Park should be a formality. Thier badge is a seagull ffs! Thier stadium is named after a credit card. They are the unacceptable face of capitalism I go to Villa Park in a bit in expectancy I want some champagne football today. With ruthless finishing.

Abraham had the touch of a trampoline when he came to Villa. and even more annoyingly seemed to have a nervous breakdown really embarrassing tantrum type strop if no one passed or if he put one wide that would go on for several minutes. he cut it out after a month or two.

If Luiz thinks the way to get into the team is to come off the bench and curl one into the top corner the solution is.......keep him on the bench.

I can't remember heaton having much to do regarding acrobatic saves. Mings got in the way of most. I'm not sure whether a shot that is blocked by centre half is counted as a shot on goal. btw I just got up have they had a press conference yet?

It is crucial Smith comes out and tell the fANS who the designated penatly taker is. I demand a press conference first thing monday! I think wesley only took the pen because he was on a hatrick. No one else springs to mind. It goes down as one of the worst pens I've ever seen. worse than gary linkekers last pen for england. Wesleys pen was just as pathetic. the run up was a joke too short and the execution was like the guys who do the half time kick the ball into the circle game at Villa park...ie utter garbage. you look through the squad 1 to 11 and think there's no obvious guy who is going to take the pens. Maybe Connor hourihane. you'd thkn Grealish would be all over it to boost his stats for his impending england call up. You want a run up to be like shearer or gerrard. Long run up full power. like waddle in the world cup. Id rather miss the target with a thunderbolt than live with the shame of a 3rd choice veteran keeper palming my soft shot away. I can't believe Smith is happy with a 5-1 when it really should of been 6-0. disgrace.