VILLAMARV

hope Ramsey and Moreno have a good day down the left.

Ham's simmering away, flat smells lush. Guests arrive about lunchtime nearly chore free

I think the thing I miss most about living in the pubs is the ice machine.

I'm a big believer in the bags of ice from the shops. Aldi's super ice is this years thing for the larger ice cube conisseur

The bottom shelf in the cider cupboard (a load of bottles of one of last years batches of sparkling cider) has the nicest cider We've ever made on it. I think it was heavy on the aforementioned Fuji Apples. A natural aweetness survived the yeast and we've made a Medium Dry thing of wonder.

Week off as of now for me. Xmas party tomorrow. One parcel to post tomorrow to the neice and nephews. Other than that just waiting for deliveries in the post. Off to the outlaws for Christmas day so no cooking for me except that I'll be doing a mustard glazed ham as ever for Xmas Eve when we also crack open our first still cider of this years batch. Ham and cider on Xmas eve has become my favourite bit.

9 minutes ago, Leeroy said:

Currently on course to get 85 points. We will probably need to play even better in the 2nd half of the season to win the league, aiming for 88-90 points, which would mean getting minimum 50 points from 21 games. We would need to win around 16 of our final 21 games, with three draws and two defeats. Very hard to do that while trying to win the Europa Conference but we can of course try. 

 

I still think top 4 and winning the Europa Conference has to be the realistic aim. If we get 70-75 points we should make top 4. We would only need 32 points from 21 games to get to 70 and 37 points from 21 to get to 75. We can definitely do that and our games up until early March are favourable and we should be looking to win the majority of them. Our next 10 games are Sheff U (h), Man Utd (a), Burnley (h), Everton (a), Newcastle (h), Sheff U (a), Man Utd (h), Fulham (a), Notts Forest (h), Luton (a). We will be favourites in 9 of those 10 games, except the game at Old Toilet where they are only narrow favourites. Everton and Fulham away might be tricky, but we can win both. I think 20-25 points is realistic from those which would have us on around 60 points with 11 games to go. 

 

Our final 11 games are harder, we go away to Man City and Arsenal and play Liverpool and Spurs at home. Even games like West Ham and Brighton away will be hard and Chelsea at home is no guarantee if they improve in the 2nd half of the season. So we need to be targeting lots of points in the next 11 games, if we can get to minimum 60 points from 27 games we would probably only need 10-15 points from those last 11 games to finish top 4. If we were genuine title contenders we would obviously do better than that and take it all the way, but I think with Europa Conference games back after that Luton game and the games being more difficult in those final 11 games I think we'd be looking at top 4 and winning the Conference but I may be wrong and we exceed that. 

In that first batch we still have 3 teams that have beaten us this year (Ok, Everton was in the cup but the point still stands - and Dyche is doing what he does to good effect for them they'd be in the top half without the points deduction) so far from easy games at Goodison or against Newcastle or the double header against Man Utd , and hopefully the FA Cup to contend with aswell

6 minutes ago, Herman22 said:

Bailey is on fire at the moment but you can play him twice!! 

No he can't

Would have given Kamara POTM before the red card

54 minutes ago, sne said:

Someone who puts gravy on chips/ fries?

This is totally normal behaviour sne it's the fish which upsets the pitchfork waving locals

yeah good to see Ramsey and Moreno back. Nice for Zaniolo to get the goal he needed and so obviously wanted.

Just now, MNVillan said:

Are you staying the night in the stadium?

what stadium?

On 08/12/2023 at 23:10, Designer1 said:

Actor Ryan O'Neal gone at 82.

The Driver.

On 07/12/2023 at 10:50, Vive_La_Villa said:

Imagine if we managed 19 home wins in a row. Season ticket holders definitely getting their moneys worth! 
 

Anyone know what the PL record is for all teams?

1 - 24 - Liverpool
2 - 20 - Man City
3 - 19 - Man Utd
4= 15 - Man City
4= 15 - Aston Villa
6= 14 - Newcastle
6= 14 - Tottenham

On 08/12/2023 at 01:40, maqroll said:

I keep staring at the league table like an obsessive maniac. 

Not just me then

On 09/12/2023 at 21:35, Follyfoot said:

Charles 'Charlie' Charles, one half of the famous Charles brothers 

I'd like to see what Finney on the wing could do myself

18 minutes ago, TRO said:

poor losers.

Aston Villa are not...

we've had the practice to be fair

I got all excited for the Newcastle and Liverpool games. So I'll temper it a little bit for these next two. I think they're all the obvious competition for the top 4 so it would be nice to think we can mix it with the very top sides by taking at least a point from one of them. I think we can beat them both but I'm not sure we will. As others have said no Rodri and no Grealish, No DeBruyne it doesn't tip the scales in our favour but you'd rather it than not. I'll find somewhere with the match on later but I'm mentally prepared to lose the next two and still remain happy/upbeat about it all. Anything more is a real bonus.

My Uncle took me to my first match at Maine Road so I've always had an affinity for City and it's my most watched fixture over the years. I always remember the banner wishing us luck that wound up my uncle the year we were pushing Manyoo for the title. They weren't always oil rich etc etc

But I think the pressure is off us in the next two games. No one expects us to win either of them. Except Unai perhaps.

Nothing mutually exclusive about it being true that there's a player in there who could yet still show us what a decent player he is while at the same time it's true that he's been underwhelming and that his performance in the first half against Bournemouth was dreadful.

Duran hit the post, and Digne's marginal offside to disallow Carlos's redemption goal after the wayward pass that started the trouble suggest we weren't that far off taking all 3 points but in reality a great header from Watkins salvages a point.

We really have to stop gifting chances with wayward passing around at the back. Not as bad as the one against Warsaw the other night but the same result. And this one arguably cost us the win.

Ref was inconsistant. I didn't see the first yellow for either of them but Semenyo really should have walked before half time and Kluivert was lucky not to pick up a second yellow too I thought.

Martinez made some great saves to keep us in it.

FA cup is the holy grail

1 hour ago, Strog said:

What a pathetic twunt this nose is. Hard as nails, NOT mate.

 

A home win?

I think the answer is no

34 minutes ago, Demitri_C said:

string worded statement

No Ollie?