TRO

3 hours ago, Pinebro said:

Funny to see Borunemouth constantly playing it long trying to break our lines.

It's such a basic and cheap way to try to counter Unai.

You're basically handing over the initiative of the game to us by doing that. More teams will do it but it will fail miserably.

Playing hoof ball is not a good way to counter Unai.

Man U did it, Newcastle did it, Liverpool did it......I have seen Spurs do it to us, in the past.

The long ball, is not necessarily hoof ball, it can be, but not necessarily so......Good teams can get purchase on a game, with the long ball.....but it's perhaps unwise, to keep playing it, during the game, because it will get countered.

Many possession based teams, use it from time to time.....we did on Sunday. Emi was picking out, our boys with precision kicks out.

The very essence of a threat, is surprise....so whatever system a team chooses, you can't keep playing the same way, because you will get found out.

If a team, plays a highish line, it's an invitation to play the long diagonal ball......Liverpool with quick runners and good ball control, do it well.

There is an antidote, to every system......There is no fool proof way of playing football, you find the one you favour and run with it. ..but, The top guys, like Unai, create adjustments to his overall mantra, to suit the opposition.

On 09/04/2024 at 15:29, VillaJay said:

Ollie will be 29 next season has a contract with us until he's 32 and he's in his prime, can't see anyone paying the money we'd want for him.

As crazy as it sounds though, depending on FFP if we were offered 100m+ I'd consider it, if it meant we had room to buy 3/4 top top level players to take us on another level. Spurs have sold Bale and Kane and still pushed on.

Unai also has a history of getting goals from his number 9s everywhere he goes.

Can't see us selling anyway and Ollie has been brilliant for us and would be difficult to replace.

I think he is too entrenched in the project.....money talks of course.

but you can easily spend £100 mill unwisely too.....so it's not always a good move.

I think Ollie is an integral cog, in the way we play....so selling him, would not be prudent to me.

Ollie is fast approaching, as important to us as Jack......if he hasn't surpassed that already.

On 14/04/2024 at 19:49, Delphinho123 said:

Can I just say as well, there is so much talent to be had in the Championship. You look at some of the high performers in the league in certain positions and there are a fair few who have spent time in the Championship.

Eze, Bowen, Maddison, Gibbs-White, Olise, Grealish…

Rogers, Konsa, Watkins…

I don’t think we should exclusively shop there, of course not, but my god, you can pick up some fantastic talent with proper scouting in that league. 

I agree....some of them just need that chance.

All those have good feet, you do need good ball control, to step up.

it's certainly an area, I'm sure we are aware of.

2 hours ago, tinker said:

I think that's where he struggles, aggression. He's not the biggest but he seems to have been lacking in aggression. After that point he seemed to just get stuck in more,  not going to win every header or challenge but he needed to try, after that point he did and it made a difference to his influence on the game. 

I agree.

I often talk about having bigger players, but I am acutely aware, smaller players with aggression suffice part of it...Salah, Aguero, Messi all show/showed controlled aggression.

Moussa imo is still acclimatising to the Prem, and it takes various players, varying time scales. He will adapt, I am sure.

I think when he gets right, the resistance to the bullies, and adapts a more physical stance, ( and that can also be timing) we will see the best of him.

I thought Bournemouth looked very good at times.

They came in to this game with good form....we beat a good side.

A very comprehensive performance from us.

12 hours ago, paul514 said:

He was far superior to Bailey at Leverkusen.

He will make a proper nob out of the doubters.

I think they'll be delighted.

I thought that challenge, that hurt his back, got his "paddy" up.

He seemed aggressive after that.

1 hour ago, VillaBrum said:

Thank you, Dean Smith, for bringing him here.

Yeah.....and thank you Unai, for transforming him, in to the powerhouse he is today.

15 hours ago, HeroesAndVillans said:

Gonna say it and yeah it might be spur of the moment... Genuinely think this'll be the most successful Villa era I ever get to see.

Then it will be some era.......I have to say, it's getting very exciting.

I was so heartened yesterday, on how many players could claim MOTM. I feel like a special mention for Tielemans is in order, such a good player, in transition.

16 hours ago, catanzaro said:

Thanks for posting Jas.. for a old boy like me who doesn’t know how to work X.. your posts are so appreciated 

ditto.

16 hours ago, Lochheads twin said:

For those old enough, TW3.

This week went as well or better than even the most optimistic Villa fan could have hoped.

Good performances all over the park today but looking especially good up front. All 4 forwards carried a threat.

make the most of a few days respite and recharge the batteries. A win against Chelsea may be enough to secure the first objective!

onwards and upwards!

I think Rogers is lighting the touch paper......He is bringing in, so many of our players in to dangerous positions...and love his strong running.

Tielemans is also playing with such a classy swagger.

it all bodes well.

18 hours ago, Brumstopdogs said:

 

That goes some way to explain what kind of striker he is......many strikers, don't do assists.

Such a complete forward, a true thoroughbred....a real specimen of a footballer.

and when you factor in, his ever present fitness record...wow.

He is a gem..........and he is our gem.

Ps I think he has eclipsed Jack, in value to us.

16 hours ago, stewiek2 said:

Fatigue is for pussies

purrrrrrrrrrrrrrrfect.

16 hours ago, stewiek2 said:

Ollie was superb second but have to say Rogers all game was superb all game.

growing in confidence, all the time.....I see similarities with him and Cole Palmer.

16 hours ago, BleedClaretAndBlue said:

From the moment Dougie got that yellow at the end against Brentford, it couldn’t have gone much better.

Huge effort from this side and manager. Top class. UTV. Perfect weekend.

27 minutes ago, WakefieldVillan said:

En route now, it's the first home game I've been to since Dean Smith's first Villa match against Swansea.

My dad used to take me on the train a fair bit when I was younger, so I wanted to return the favour that day and take him. Hopefully we can get the same result (1-0).

Unfortunately he passed away in January, so I feel a little emotional sat on the train, on my own, thinking about all the times he used to take me and now he's not here. Hopefully he's watching and can bring some good luck upon us!

Hoping for a great atmosphere, and can't wait to see Villa Park again in all it's glory, been far too long.

We got this!

UTV

 

 

sorry to hear of your loss too...mark is right, he'll be with you.

hope you enjoy your day.

ps I use to go with my Dad too.....I sense how you're feeling.

UTV

53 minutes ago, markavfc40 said:

Aside from Bournemouth being a decent side on a good run of form as others have said the biggest issue today is going to be tiredness. it is hard to say from just watching the game on the tele but I didn't get the impression that too many of our lads put an all in shift in against Lille. Our performance, whilst not great, was quite controlled and we never seemed at full pelt possibly because of tiredness already but hopefully more that being the plan to conserve energy for the following games. I think you have to factor in that we also ultimately got through on Thursday and the jubilation and adrenaline from that can go some way for making up for any tiredness, certainly mentally. Had we have gone out on Thursday today would have been much tougher. 

I have a feeling we'll plan to win this from the bench again and may well see Bailey on there and coming on with fresh legs around the hour mark again. I also would not be surprised to see Carlos and/or Lenglet come in from the start and possibly Tim.

Will be a tough game but hopefully our backing as fans will help see us over the line. I'm going for a nervy 2-0 win. 

I always find it difficult to fully comprehend fatigue.....it seems to be more of a modern game issue.

I can see us playing slow, or sluggish, but remain unsure, as to the reason.

It didn't seem to be as talked about, years back, for a variety of reasons....other than just too many games.

This is going to be a tough one...and teams will be aware of our aims, and try to spoil the party.....patience is key.

crowd need to be up for this one....and stay with the team.

On 16/04/2024 at 19:11, lexicon said:

Well mostly by the club and Emery because they have to decide if he's a first-teamer or not. Rotation or back-up on 120k a week is not really something we can afford to do.

From a fan's perspective, wages set a baseline of performance expectations; the higher they are, the more you expect from the player because of the financial resources committed. 

It doesn't make any sense to me to not be bothered about that sort of thing when the financial wellbeing of the club is incredibly important and as we saw under the Lerner/MON era, we have to be careful. 

 

I am not telling you how to be a fan, and what to be interested in, its ok, if you like that sort of thing.

I trust the club, to manage its affairs.....and don't like drifting in to area's. I feel, don't concern me.....as the saying goes " curiosity killed the cat"

I accept the well being of the club, does impact on us, but it's not in our control.....I trust the management and the owners, to get those things under control.

I really only concentrate on the football.

I was privvy, many years ago, to some of the behind the scenes issues.....and it spoilt it for me as a fan.... so I left/resisted the invitations to the players lounge and the ambience of that.....and went back to the terraces, where I feel I belong.

and that's where, i want to stay.

Some of the behind the scenes stuff, I don't want to know......It spoils the dream of being a fan.....but hey ho.

On 19/04/2024 at 20:47, Mantis said:

Think the phrase was "blotted his copybook again"

**** off he was literally the hero of the hour for his team.

I agree.

He could be called a clown or a jester, but his antics are not intimidating or threatening.....disruptive maybe, only if the mental approach of the kicker is frail......which is their problem.

The descriptive words aimed at Emi, need to be reined in.......He is a comedian, and at a penalty shoot out, it's probably the last type of person you want to encounter....but let's get the context right here.

They want to concentrate.....Emi wants to fool around......thats the top and bottom of it.

On lookers need to get a grip of the context.

Ps he has blotted nothing, just another brick in the wall, to say he is one of the best goal keepers on the planet.

PPS Bruce Grobbelaar was much the same with his antics.

2 minutes ago, HKP90 said:

While saying VAR are checking this. On both those occasions he was told by VAR what to give/not give.

There was 10 minutes in the first half when he was carding everything that moved. I think the grass at Lille may be banned for their next game. Both coaches. Duran got carded because Santos didn't want to jump for a 50/50 (go back and have a look at the utter confusion on Jhon's face when he gets the yellow). Emi got carded for time wasting while the ball was in play. Only one of the yellows on either side was close to being one- the Digne challenge. And that was by most definitions not a yellow. And then there was the farce during the shootout. 

The guy totally lost control of the match. He left himself nowhere to escalate if and when things got spicy, and was completely out of his depth. He also wanted to be the centre of attention. Someone must have had a word at halftime as he kept his cards away for a while, but during that time he compensated by calling a foul for everything. Any touch whatsoever by any player on any other player. The game became basketball. 

The only consolation was that he was equally shit for both teams, but that aside it was absolutely the worst single refereeing performance I've witnessed in 30 years. 

and what part of my comments, do I suggest different....I agree.

but to me....the 2 main incidents of the game, i have seen given against us......while he was referring, it was overlooked, whether it was VAR or him....i have seen incidents like that go against us.

I don't think either was an infringement.....but I am a "hand to ball, man, not ball to hand man, to cause a penalty, but things have changed over the years.....I agree, Duran was not instrumental in bringing chevalier down, but again, i have seen those given against us.

anyway....his grandad was a good entertainer, like our Emi.

Immaculate.

1 hour ago, tinker said:

They was taken out of his hands and went to var. Duran never got near their keeper,  it was their own player. 

that's what, I said....whether it was VAR or him the outcome was the same.....He waved away the protests from the Lille players.

1 hour ago, ChesterDad said:

TRO - not sure about this, Jones was a Thug and not on his own in that era.

Emi is full of xxxxhousery, whether you like it or not is down to the individual.

My concern would be that this type of thing has a habit of biting you on the bum.

I only hope that he is not setting himself up for a fall

I stand by my interpretation.

I think Emi is loosely associated  with ****housery as an easy description....but in context, I don't think it is.

what Emi does, is passive.

Roy Keane was ****housery, or Mark Dennis and Julian Dicks

Look, I am not an authority on football descriptions, but that's the way, I see it.

Emi just teases the patience and seriousness of opponents....that's fine by me....refs are just rocked by the outcome, and feel they have to react....that's as much on the recipient for being weak, as Emi, for being strong.

14 hours ago, Lille fan said:

well..... too disgusted by the outcome to say anything more ! football can be so cruel...

good luck with the end of the season in C4 and especially in premier league and hopefull we'll meet again in Champions league next year !

I think you played very well over the 2 legs and probably deserved better.....but football or any other sport, digs deeper than just talent, as these games, bore witness too.

We can both call on reasons why our teams, did not perform as well as they can.....and we can both call on elements of luck, that remain a feature of football games.

We as Villa supporters can bear witness on many occasions of unfair referees or over zealous opponents who render our players lightweight....and we have to ride with it, and improve. Last night, we stayed with it, when we wasn't at our best....that was the most redeeming factor for me.

You may not approve of Emi Martinez, for numerous reasons, but what he does, is passive, and more psychological....football is also played in the head, and he knows that, more than most......your players, should have scored, and you would have gone through. They should have rose above Emi's foolery, because that's all it was. It wasn't intimidating or threatening, (folk using those words are wrong) it might be off putting, but that's not illegal......we have to find context here.

This was a tight fought game, and both teams can claim mitigation of sorts.....but in the cold light of day, i hope mutual respect prevails, between our clubs and supporters.....I for one rate Lille, as a very good side, and your manager too.

As a result of these games, I am enlightened, but what a good side, Lille is, and how competitive they are......I hope the feeling is mutual.

15 hours ago, briny_ear said:

I’ve just watched it again. Did the female commentator say after the last penalty save that Martinez had “balls of steel”???

she is sexist