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eholm

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Everything posted by eholm

  1. eholm
    I read a lot of others saying that we should be grateful as to where we are now in comparison to where we were. I get the sentiment but that mentality will never drive ambitious improvement. Now, I’m not at all saying that our owners are not ambitious and fully appreciate how they have transformed us, however, it is now about ramping up the forward momentum and not reminiscing about ‘how far we’ve come’. In football, like business, it’s about timing and opportunity. I see this window as THE opportunity to take that next step. Teams around us have potentially stalled a bit, eg Leicester, Wolves, Brighton in addition to Newcastle not quite being at the stage yet where they can buy literally any player they want, due to their mid table position. We must take advantage of this opportunity and the timing could not be better financially following excellent FFP friendly sales in JG and CC. We all know we require a top quality no 8 as the current crop simply are not at that level and probably will never be (with the exception of JJ and his potential). I also accept the squad is large and in a ideal world we would sell before buying….but this is our best opportunity right now to really go for it as my fear is that this time next year will be too late and that the gap we are looking to bridge will just widen even more. Of course we need to recruit a better player than we already have but if anyone genuinely believes that there isn’t a better CM than McGinn or Luiz out there who would want a move to the PL then I respectfully disagree. This is the time and this is our perfect opportunity. Should we not recruit this Summer then I believe we will have made a serious error of judgement and missed a great opportunity.
  2. eholm
    Superb post, sir. Perefectly encapsulates our current CM deficiencies and the type of recruitment we need.
  3. eholm
    This 100%. BALANCE, BALANCE, BALANCE. We havent had it in midfield since returning to the PL. Nothing will drastically improve/change until we achieve that balance no matter how we rearrange our current no.8 incumbents......definition of insanity 'n all that.
  4. eholm
    This 100% mate.
  5. eholm
    I’m normally quite optimistic but I have to admit I’m disappointed at the moment. As it stands we look ponderous, poor in possession, passing is poor and we do not create chances. Also, we are so, so predictable Our midfield is still not right and so will still fail to control games. I can’t see what this much-fabled pre-season has produced in regards to progression from last season. I would love to be proved wrong and that all this is just the players still being in self preservation mode…..if not I just cannot see how we will get anywhere near top 7 and will do well to get top half.
  6. eholm
    Rennes….the team I want us to be.
  7. eholm

    John McGinn

    eholm replied to PompeyVillan's topic in Villa Talk

    If SG had shown more willingness to drop players in bad form/play those in good form, the issue of the captain would not be such a contentious one. It is the concern and perception that JM will now be undroppable that is the frustration here. I just hope that as a highly successful player who has played in the top flight all of his career, SG will have no qualms about benching John if he is underperforming, captain or not. Logic would dictate that SG the will do this as required even though the previous season didn’t demonstrate this. Over to you Mr Gerrard.
  8. eholm
    Respectfully disagree re your stated financial flexibility we have. Appreciate that we do have cash available but believe that the money it would take to buy a quality striker upgrade would massively impact on our ability to buy a quality CM.
  9. eholm
    Not massive issues but it will still be restricitng us to a certain extent. Especially when this striker 2.0 would cost huge money and wages.....that was more my point re FFP.
  10. eholm
    Our striker situation is a tricky one tbh. I get the consensus around upgrading but that is not as easy as we would like. There is no way that the club looks to improve on Ings….yet. Prior to signing he was one of the leading PL goal scorers and we invested a serious amount on him. There is probably real belief that he will recapture that form….not saying he will but I’m just trying to look at it from the Club’s perspective. Ollie, as most of us agree, is not a ‘natural’ goal scorer. However, to upgrade on him would still require in excess of £40M, imo. The lad Scamacca has had one good season a has been mentioned and West Ham are taking a significant risk on him at £30-35M…..we aren’t yet in a position where we can spend that sort of money on potential. To buy a ready made upgrade we would be looking at huge money - money we probably can’t spend yet due to FFP. SG has consistently said he will only bring in players that he believes are of a better quality to what we have (this is a more straightforward process regarding the midfield) and so I think he will be content to go into new season with the 3 strikers we have, knowing the financial ability we have and the quality of strikers we could realistically attract. Summer 2023 will be window we sign the top striker we desire. Imo.
  11. eholm
    That’s where I am too mate.
  12. eholm
    It’s a real viscous circle TRO. Assuming we don’t have the funds and/or target availability for both which would you prioritise? Also, SG has specifically referenced the need for more quality in CM. For me, a CM in this window and last chance saloon for OW and DI with a striker the priority for next Summer.
  13. eholm
    Good post. We cannot play with 2 B2B CMs as it vacates the space in front of Kamara too frequently. Solidity is the key as you say…..great example from Arsenal of the 2 kind/type of CMs we need behind Phil. Of our current crop I would have Doug alongside Kamara. Ramsey and McGinn together is far too open and allows teams to play through us. If Phil plays as part of front 3 (from the left) then have Ramsey in the midfield 3 along side DL and BK as he will give us a genuine goal threat but more importantly a ball-carrying threat. Have always liked McGinn but with the attacking players we have, I’m finding it more and more difficult to see where he fits in.
  14. eholm
    Agree we need both…..just any see us getting both due to overall cost and availability. Personally, think the CM is more of a priority if had to choose one. Would enable us to control games more and create more chances.
  15. eholm
    No Guilbert or Marv on the bench. Think they may well both be off.
  16. eholm
    Even though the current options (bar BK) have shown nowhere enough to be a top 7/8 midfield? All decent players but I’m desperate for an upgraded 8 - if not then hopes of pushing for Europe will remain just that.
  17. eholm
    100% this. I'll be amazed if our no8 signing isnt of the more physical type.
  18. eholm
    Exactly where I am with this one. We are still very lightweight in CM.
  19. eholm
    Bissouma is not a specialist 6 though. He’s more of an 8 who has decent defensive qualities. We need a proper CDM AND a better 8. Buying Bissouma as an 8 in addition to a 6 would be where SG is going I would hope.
  20. eholm

    Tim Iroegbunam

    eholm replied to useless's topic in Villa Talk

    Valid points, however, if SG genuinely believed TI was completely ready he would have had him starting games already considering our lack of genuine CDMs.....I mean, he even tried McGinn there first!
  21. eholm

    Tim Iroegbunam

    eholm replied to useless's topic in Villa Talk

    100% TRO......and that technical and mental progression only comes with consistent, competitive game time in matches that matter. Fantastic prospect but a season too soon for Tim, imo.
  22. eholm

    Tim Iroegbunam

    eholm replied to useless's topic in Villa Talk

    I see your point around the 5 sub rule but he needs regular 90 minute matches as this is the only way he will learn all of the aspects of his game, his role and men’s football in general - both mentally and physically. 10 minute cameos here and there will do very little for his development IMO.
  23. eholm

    Tim Iroegbunam

    eholm replied to useless's topic in Villa Talk

    Head over heart for me regarding TI. As has been said looks very comfortable on the ball, an athlete, physical etc. However, he’s an 18 yr old kid with no experience of men’s football. We all know that the CDM role is pivotal for next season and that SG will be buying one as well as a more defensive 8. This will push IT further down the pecking order and limit his game time. The boy needs regular football at this stage. IMO, give him some game time between now and the end of the season as preparation for a Championship loan next season. This will be the best way to allow him to develop. He has the potential to be a first team player soon but just not yet. Don’t get me wrong, I’d love to see him as a regular starter ASAP but let’s let the lad grow as a player before pinning all of our hopes on him.
  24. eholm
    Persistence and determination is admirable, however, there is the danger that his 2x10's system is just not robust enough and/or creative enough for the PL. I can't recall any other team playing this way. Not to say it couldn't work......but even with a stronger midfield the signs are not encouraging at present, IMO.
  25. eholm
    Exactly this. I agree that players are currently significantly underperforming (as per TRO’s comments) but for me the system is the main issue here. As long as we continue with our FBs playing as wingers we will always need our 8s to fill in and cover them. This will then constantly result in us vacating central midfield and so be very easy to play through. Tbh it doesn’t matter who we have as CDM, there is just far too much space for one player to cover. Initially we were very compact but that has now changed. I don’t see SG changing his set up just yet...he still probably believes more coaching of the system is required so patience is the key. One relatively simple tweak would be to only allow one FB to attack at a time and the other one retaining their defensive position. This then means thatat least 2 of our 8s stay central so we have more control and presence if we lose possession. Personally I believe the system is too open for the PL but accept that SG will give it as much opportunity as possible to succeed. Also I’m 100% certain that as much as we are all attempting to analyse its weaknesses, SG, MB, GMac et al are all fully aware of the current imbalance that the system is creating at the moment. Gerrard will look to improve performance by changing the personnel initially before contemplating a structural change, IMO.
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