John

There were flames and a pre-match firework display yesterday but we missed the spark of invention around the box that Jack had until his injury at WBA been providing us with, during the game itself. Dean Smith indicated after the match that he anticipated being without Jack for the rest of this month. His two-month absence will deal a potentially lethal body blow to our promotion hopes. It has already badly dented them, with us having taken only 6 points from a possible 15 from the games he has already missed. We have taken rapid steps to remedy our goalkeeping and central defensive issues already during this transfer window. I feel we now need to do the same in finding someone who can give us some sort of midfield creativity when Jack is absent. This was to be a sorry start to the New Year for us with another two points dropped at Villa Park. The number of games played during the festive season has clearly taken its toll on our team which has also suffered from injuries that have had a noticeably adverse effect on our performance level. We started well yesterday but couldn’t put the game out of the reach of our visitors and we once again dropped points after being in front. Had we not done this quite so often, our promotion prospects would be looking considerably rosier now. We have 3 draws and a defeat to show from our last 4 home games. That is not promotion form. Tammy’s goals have kept us in touch with the play off places, but we have not closed in on sixth place and are instead treading water 5 points off it. We have failed to take advantage of the recent slip ups of Leeds and Norwich and it is Sheffield United and WBA who are now within reach of these two clubs in the battle for automatic promotion. Whilst we look on now focusing on 6th rather than 2nd place. We started well against an anti-football, cynical, time wasting QPR side who were aided and abetted by an inept refereeing display and who after this fixture remain above us having taken 4 points off us this season. Having drawn level on 75 minutes with 11 minutes of stoppage time still to be played once 90 minutes had been reached, QPR might have anticipated their goal being put under constant siege as we pressed for a late winner, but they got the point they came for all too easily without undue cause for concern. My player ratings from a game that produced goals but not the three points that we needed are: Jed Steer – 6 – Held a 69th minute shot from Freeman at his near post and made a good stop with his legs on 86 minutes from an Eze shot. Offered us some level of assurance between the sticks on his recall from Charlton. Had no chance with their first and their second flew past him into the top corner so on a day of only 4 on target shots 50% of them produced goals for the visitors. James Bree – 6 – Did well enough in his natural position. James Chester - 6 – Clipped the ball over their bar on 5 minutes. Played with a tad more confidence alongside Tommy. Tommy Elphick – 6 – Welcome back! Tommy will offer us some reasonable cover in the second half of the season. His Hull loan seems to have helped him to get back on track and he looked better than he had last time around yesterday. Alan Hutton – 4 – Looked good enough coming forward again and he always gives 100% but his primary job is to defend, and he wasn’t up to scratch in that area yesterday. Lost an aerial challenge for the ball during the build up to their equalizer and left oceans of room on his flank too often. A glaring example of that was when he ambled back into a central position and Wszolek was allowed to run unchallenged and cross for Eze to hit their second past Steer and into the top corner of the net. Birkir Bjarnason – 5 – Still in need of game time to build up his match fitness following his injury. Hit a 60th minute shot over from the edge of the box. Seemed to know what needed doing but often did not quite have the legs to do it. John McGinn – 7 – A Bjarnason cross was deflected off a defender to John whose 20th minute shot from the edge of the box rattled the crossbar. His accurate cross a minute later produced our first goal. On hand in his own box to head a 33rd minute cross out for a corner. Had a shot saved at the keeper’s left post in stoppage time Conor Hourihane – 5 – Failed twice to get any challenge in during the build up to their second goal. Hit an 81st minute free kick onto the roof of the net. Albert Adomah – 5 – Can do better than this. Jonathan Kodjia – 5 – Hit a shot wide of the near post from inside of the box on 44 minutes but demonstrated again that he is not a natural wide player. Tammy Abraham – 8 – MOTM – How many goals does he need to score to be on the winning team? Scored his first on 21 minutes when he nodded in a perfectly placed cross from McGinn and added a second on 75 minutes when he touched home another splendidly inviting cross this time from El Ghazi. Ran onto a sweet ball played through from McGinn on 23 minutes and hit his shot over the bar. Also had a 9th minute shot blocked at the near post by Lumley after Adomah had found him well. Substitutes: Anwar El Ghazi - 6 – Replaced Kodjia on 61 minutes. Hit a perfect cross which Tammy turned in for our 75th minute equalizer. Yannick Bolasie - 6 – Came on for Adomah on 61 minutes. Hit the ball across the face of the goal on 78 minutes and headed an El Ghazi cross onto the roof of the net in stoppage time. Had earlier headed a Hourihane corner towards goal that was scrambled away from the goalmouth. Glenn Whelan – Replaced Hourihane on 91 minutes. He was not on long enough to earn any rating and it was a surprising decision to see him coming on rather than Hogan or Davis with a winner being surely our objective in the last 10 minutes of the game. Up the Villa! John Lewis

Davis could be another possibility.

John Gidman was rather good as was Kenny Swain, but I'm going back a few years in both cases.

It appears to me that the whole work permit issue thing mainly kicks in when we are the ones that are looking to sign a player. I wonder if we would even be able to get Messi through without someone being uncomfortable about his qualifying for a work permit!

We owe them one having lost a game we had dominated at Loftus Road a couple of months ago. The Wally with the Brolly will be paying us a visit with his team a place and a point ahead of us in the league table. QPR won on their visit to Villa Park last season and those were three dropped points that played a big part in our failure to secure an automatic promotion spot last season, so we need to get the right result this time and start the New Year off strongly. We have won 15 and drawn 11 of the 49 league games between the two clubs so they have become a bit of a bogey team for us. A win would take us above them and could take us within 1 or 2 points of the play off places as the two clubs that currently occupy the last two play off spots meet on the same day. Injuries and the number of games we have played over the festive period have had their impact on our recent performances. This is a game we need to start and to finish well. It comes at the start of a month that we could end in the play off positions with a strengthened squad. Let's win this one and then make this a year to remember for the right reasons. A 2-0 win would be nice.

I thought it had earlier seemed likely that he would be called back so that the new management team could have a look at him, if not use him in the squad. It would therefore be quite a surprise if that doesn't happen and his contract is left to run down with him remaining out on loan. Any source available? Just read your explanation above.

I would be surprised if Chelsea brought Tammy back. They have a bunch of talented forwards on loan as well as on the fringe of their squad. They can also buy a forward it they need one. Fingers crossed.

Whilst we are looking at the prospect of recalling loan players does anyone else think that Gary Gardner has become so crucial to Small Heath that we should bring him home rather than leave him to catch something there? After all, what have they ever done for us and why should we help a club that hates us and that is currently (albeit temporarily) above us? Just imagine how those knuckle draggers would react! It's the least we should do isn't it?

We will be in the top six within a month and will stay there. I think second place may still be on but it may take until near the end of the season to get up there. Otherwise, it's likely to be another shot at the play off lottery. By then, we will hopefully have a new more solid defence to keep the ball out at one end as we continue to score goals for fun at the other one. Fingers crossed.

I thought I had read that he could.

Surely Moreia or Sarkic or even Bunn can sit on the bench for a couple of games?

With Axel out he is a better short term alternative to the ones we have been using to play alongside Chester. I think he can fill a gap whilst we look to bring another central defender in during this transfer window. Once we have done that and Axel is back he can provide some cover until the end of the season. He's not the solution to our problems at the back but he might offer a reasonable sticking plaster for us. I'm sure he would rather have stayed where he was but we are paying his wages and were likely paying the bulk of them whilst he was at Hull so we were right to call him back. Do a good job like you were doing there for them Tommy.

Would love us to bring him back home, but I suspect that bird has flown. He's playing and performing well for them so they would be foo!s to let him go but Gold and Sullivan are fools so perhaps there is a chance. They would hold us to ransom on the price though..

A good point. Players of this type can produce moments of true quality but they can also drift out of games and be ineffective. Others can be more consistent but less of a handful for defences. Snodders offered us the best of both. I think we probably have more pressing needs than for another winger, but if we were in the market for another, I wouldn't necessarily rule out a cheeky bid for someone like Shughie McShowboatface though.

Not his best game today and he did miss a sitter, but he is not alone in either case and good as he is he can't be sensational every time that he plays. We will just need to try to settle for him being sensational in 99% of his games for us!

I hope the opportunity presents itself, to prove that one way or the other (if we don't make top two).

2 points dropped there. A poor display and the referee cost us by leaving Johnson on as did the one at Villa Park when sending Chester off. 4 points dropped to Preston that should keep them up and may well cost us!

Just like Chester's sending off was in the home game.

Should be winning this. We may well lose it.

Agreed, we could use someone who would be capable of filling in for Jack because we badly miss him when he's out of the team. How many players of that sort of ability would be willing to join us when they would not be a first choice though and would we be up for spending quite a bit of cash on what would be a squad player? Romaine Sawyers, Nick Powell or someone else on loan perhaps?

Agreed, but I'm sure we would feel a bit differently about him if Dean had him wearing a Villa shirt at some point in the future.

If Dean wants him he is our player. I agree the player might prefer to stay where he is but I suspect that you are correct and we are paying the bulk of his wages. If Hull want him that much they can pay his wages or most of them or he can agree to take less wages from us in order to stay where he wants to remain. I am hoping we can do better than bringing him back though and can therefore leave him where he is.

A little like how moving from us to Liverpool ruined Benteke, I would suggest....

We have won 51 and have drawn 17 of the 103 league games between these two founder members of the Football League. Preston were the first league and cup double winners in 1888/89. We were the second club to achieve that feat in 1896/97. We dropped two valuable points to then bottom of the table Preston earlier this season when they were aided and abetted by a dubious penalty decision that the referee felt also merited bringing us down to ten men by giving Chester his marching orders. Preston are now sitting more comfortably in the league. They are currently in 17th place, 7 points clear of the relegation zone and only 8 points behind us. Another away win would be a very nice way to close this year and that might just bring us within a point of the play off places as we approach the January transfer window. Another clean sheet should take us to 39 points from 25 games. A 2-0 victory would be most welcome.

Nyland MOTM! Who would have thought it? Certainly saved us throwing away 2 points near the end. Three points off the play offs and 2 points made up on Norwich. Another win on Saturday will make things look a lot brighter than they did on Sunday.