villabromsgrove

if thats the case, he is not worth the money we paid, or a place in the England squad. He needs to offer the team more as much as the team needs to offer him more The point is Woody that if Bent gets no service then he's easily marked out of the game. If he gets regular supply then he becomes hard to mark because he makes intuitive runs into the danger areas. If he gets a lot of service then he's almost impossible to mark. I'm a great believer in identifying your teams strengths and playing to them, rather than setting up to just stop the opposition playing. I understand the point - my point is that he is only easily marked when there is a lack of service because he allows that to happen. He becomes lazy and looks like hes not arsed. If the ball isnt coming to you, go and get it or at least attempt to. Just do something. He isnt good enough to justify standing waiting for the ball. Not by a long way. Id let him off if he was Linekar, Solskjaer or Muller because Id be confident that they only needed 1 sniff. Bent needs 5 or 6 sniffs and we just havent got the players to create that for him. Its unfortunate and frustrating but he needs to shoulder some of the blame too imo You're right Woody and that's always been the criticism at every club he's played for. I'm of the opinion that Villa have to accept his shortcomings and play to his strengths because we need his goals.

Due to injuries and MON he is still almost in his first full season in the PL. I agree with the poster who said that he would like to see him in a more attacking role as he has all the weapons in his game to be a threat in the final third, wheras tackling has never been his strongest point. Take off the shackles of being a defensive midfielder, and I think you would see a different Delph. Also, to write him off at this point in his career is foolish. I seem to recall quite a few people on here slating Bale and Dawson a couple of seasons back, those two players are not doing so bad now are they. Agreed, Delph is a potentially outstanding attacking midfielder. Judging him in a defensive role is unfair imo.

if thats the case, he is not worth the money we paid, or a place in the England squad. He needs to offer the team more as much as the team needs to offer him more The point is Woody that if Bent gets no service then he's easily marked out of the game. If he gets regular supply then he becomes hard to mark because he makes intuitive runs into the danger areas. If he gets a lot of service then he's almost impossible to mark. I'm a great believer in identifying your teams strengths and playing to them, rather than setting up to just stop the opposition playing.

Bent finishes for a "team", and he has always needed 4/5 chances to put one in the back of the net. As a "team" we need to increase the number of six yard box opportunities to enable Bent to do his part of the job.

Just like watching the Blues!!!! Not my words but the words of a good friend who is a Blues season ticket holder. I asked him in what way and he said that AM's priority was protecting the back four with two sitting midfielders rather than possession, and he wondered why a more talented squad like Villa's was doing the same instead of playing to our strengths. He based his comments on the last two TV games and said that in his opinion we should be a lot more positive on the pitch with the players available to us. I'm not criticising, just passing on an unbiased opinion.

Player for player our squad should be battling for a 7th/8th place finish imo. Team selection and nervous negative football are going to make that unlikely unless the manager addresses the above two issues. So PF isn't too far away with his expectations, but AM's current mindset is doing the board no favours imo.

By extended I presume you mean until he gets injured? :winkold: There's a fair chance of that.

AM will be giving Jenas an extended run in the team, so no place for Gary at the moment.

The exciting thing about Gary is that he is just the type of player that we need urgently. A goal scoring midfielder.

Not quite 2 relegations in 2 years is it. Relegated Promoted 9th Relegated still not great though. Just a thought, If RL/PF had made it clear to Martinez that he was 1st choice as long as he accepted the wage bill constraints etc. would Roberto's reaction have been different? Being offered the job and being told that you are one of a number on the short list are two very different scenarios.

not a chance in hell SGC, I suspect that a lot of your comments are tongue in cheek but I'm surprised that you think so little of GG. I've watched him a fair number of times over the past three seasons and I'd expect him to do very well in the Premiership.

McLeish must believe that player for player he can put out a better team than Swansea on Sunday. Whether he can pick the right eleven players and get them to play better as a team than Swansea is unfortunately debatable at the moment.

I'm a satisfied Villa fan despite our obvious shortcomings, because I believe that Randy is doing his best within the context of his own ability (both financially and intellectually). The ability to delegate football related planning and application to a highly experienced football administrator, would ensure that whatever money Randy intends to make available in the future is more usefully spent imo.

Its funny because no one on here has run a football club or played football at a high level yet many seem to know whats best for the club and have all the answers... Well said. And not only that, but also none of us have any experience of running a football club, but a large number seem to think we have the just the skills and faculties needed to authoritatively pass judgement on the capability and suitability of RL and PF for that role. It's the nature of messageboards and internet, but anyone taking the comments of any of us lot as anything other than mildly diverting waffle from the virtual food holes of skivers and obsessives probably wants to have a word with themself. Hmm, I don't think that skills and faculties are needed to understand that owners and CEO's from a non footballing background would be better served by leaving football related decisions to experienced experts. RL and PF are on a learning curve that will take a great deal longer than five years to turn them into experts in their field. There must be experienced football administrators out there who could turn RL's thoughts into deeds more efficiently than PF at this moment in time imo. It's not brain surgery Blandy.

Has Delfouneso ever justified a run in the team? I'm sure Delfouneso is and will be a decent player, but he's never going to live up to the expectation that fans put on him, and therefore will be seen as a disappointment, even if he's perfectly decent. I'm hoping the same doesn't happen to gardner If the Fonz put himself about and demanded the ball like GG he would be a fixture for the Villa. He has the skill and technique but has yet to show the desire and application in my opinion.

RIP, and deepest sympathy to his family.

I'm guessing that Coventry have guaranteed McLeish that he will play. Good move for Gary as it's a small daily commute. Only downside is that Coventry are a very poor team at the moment. Still it will help prepare him for the physical battles of regular Premiership football.

Totally agreed. Fine sentiments. I'd argue with some of your earlier statements, but your finishing-up is one I like. But - and this is the serious issue - does the RL/PF team know enough about football to be able to run the club effectively? As ex-bankers they no doubt understand the world monetary situation and doubtless that explains some of the decisions that have been made. But I share the views of some others; I am not convinced that they do understand football enough and that is why (in my view) they need someone on board to balance-up that aspect. If that's not done then I can see a lot of very disappointed supporters for a long time to come - barring a bit of luck in the appointment of the right team manager. I completely agree with Blandy, and I also agree with John that while Randy and Paul have the financial nous they lack the footballing background to be sure of taking the right football decisions. The obvious example of this lack of real understanding became obvious during the last managerial appointment process. RL's criteria reflected his business background in that Premier league experience and "sharing his vision" were deemed more important than football related potential, and also clearly demonstrated his shaky grasp on how the game is actually planned and played. The often mentioned disparity in football philosophy between Martinez and McLeish was glaringly there for every fan to see, and yet they were both approached within a few days of each other. An experienced footballing CEO would have made sure that if we wanted an exciting attacking Martinez type manager then the alternatives would be Coyle/Lambert/Rogers types. If McLeish was really the type of manager they originally wanted then the no nonsense defence minded alternatives would have been Allardyce/Pulis etc. I think that this one example demonstrates better than anything the need for a forensic football brain to come in and sharpen up the rather cosy well intentioned bumbling that seems to pervade footballing matters at Villa at this moment in time.

I've had the pleasure of watching Herd play a fair bit over the last few seasons. Don't forget he's playing in a team that currently ignores the center midfield area. He's also very dangerous in the box which means that his current midfield holding role makes him less effective. He and Gardner could do an exciting job for Villa if Clark was schooled into the holding position to give them both the freedom to play in my opinion.

Good post. He doesn't just want the ball, he demands it. How many players have we got with that attitude? Bannan, Herd, Delph, Clark and Albrighton also want the ball. Can you spot a trend here? Monday night clearly showed that a lot of our older players would rather some one else had the ball (even if it is the opposition), so it's an issue that needs addressing.

Good post except I'm not sure RL is really aware as to what the problems are!! The business of a football-orientated CEO came up earlier in the thread, but then someone suggested a Director of Football to allow PF to concentrate on admin. I like that idea ... And I certainly like the idea of positivity. Problem is, how to convey your points to the board? John, Do you not think that someone at Villa scans fan forums occasionally? It's probably not the most satisfying task that you can give to an enthusiastic Villa employee at the moment, but the combined experience of committed Villa fans may occasionally point the club in a direction that the Board could benefit from. I'm talking rubbish aren't I!

We didn't seem to be man marking or zonal marking last night, as two or three of our players would be attracted to each cross with players left unmarked. Which is AM's preferred system?

Imo we are not going to be targeted by an ultra rich buyer. In all probability Randy will be the Villa owner for the foreseeable future. So this debate should be about what Randy can do sensibly within the constraints of the current worldwide recession to improve Villa as a club. Randy knows that he has made mistakes, and it must be his intention to address the issues that face Villa. Constructive criticism from Villa fans could help to move things forward. An experienced CEO with a deep knowledge of football could be a valuable addition to the staff, with PF perhaps concentrating on the administration side of things. An early appraisal of our team's intentions each time they go out on the pitch could be useful, with Swansea, Norwich and even QPR as examples of teams that try to play without fear and often in an entertaining manner. Positivity is the way forward imo.

There aren't many potential Premiership club owners available, ask an Everton fan to confirm this fact. Apart from the obvious attraction of the really big clubs with all their built in marketing potential, owning a Premiership club is a guaranteed way to lose money. Randy is a decent guy who is doing his best for AVFC in his own somewhat inexperienced way. Would you swap him for the Venky's?

I hope for a win but I don't particularly expect one. However, with little or no expectation from either Villa fans and the media maybe we can play with a freedom which could cause Spurs some problems. UTV!!!!