Thug

Really pleased with, and for, him today His passes are a little more wayward, but I’ll take that over him dallying on the ball any day. Superb today, well done Ty.

I honestly fail to see what an extra £30m and £80k per week gets you over Hourihane. In fact, Hourihane is likely to get more goals and assists, and his set pieces were phenomenal. Both are equally poor without the ball. It really is like buying a name. No thanks. Unless in the next few matches he suddenly doubles his work rate. As for the petulance in coming off, he acknowledged Smith, he did the tag with Ramsey, so I think it was frustration in himself more than anything alas.

Pay the damn fine.

He’s better than Barkley, and actually our own player to boot. Is nowhere near £100k a week or £30-40m fee. I hope we see plenty of him starting for us in place of an overhyped, unfit (?lazy) loan player.

No point in pulling those guys out of position, when our player who is supposed to take advantage of that space is too slow to actually bloody react or do anything with the damn ball before it’s nicked off his feet.

100% agree re: Barkley being poor. I’ve wanted him dropped for a few weeks now, AEG left, Traore Right, and JG in the middle. Barkley is a luxury we don’t need, and was awful today. I thought it was really unfair to drop AEG for an unfit Barkley. HOWEVER, as bad as Barkley was, those 45 minutes from AEG have to be the worst I’ve seen from any Villa player this season. I would still start him LW next match though, at the expense of Barkley, because we looked good like that.

I’ve been asking for him to come into the team for a few games now, so was happy to see him start. what I didn’t expect was it to be at the expense of Traore. Yes, he’s not a right winger, but inspite of that, he was awful today. Had about 4-5 times where he basically just gifted the ball to them in extremely dangerous positions. rightly pulled off at half time. Had a ‘mare.

Look at our guys out on loan, if they’re not deemed good enough to start, they don’t. I don’t know why we’re persisting with him. He offers nothing when we don’t have the ball, and 3 games in 4 offers nothing when we have it. The way we play, he can’t be in the team. Players will get pulled out of position pressing where he is supposed to be doing it. I’ve said before, he’s a luxury we really don’t need.

Love this guy. He’s like having an extra player on the pitch.

Superb. I gave him my MOTM

I take it all back Ross

I would LOVE to eat humble pie come on Ross, prove me to know **** all!

Well I hope he ups his game today. I would love for it all to come good.

I don’t agree with this. we’re Aston Villa, not the ‘Chelsea Players Rehabilitation Club’. This exactly what we were doing with Drinkwater situation, ‘getting him up to speed’. Completely different calibre of player, but same mistake. He can get up to speed out of the team, or the number of minutes that his fitness warrants. If we didn’t have the players who can fill in, fair enough. But we had a player in a hot streak flying high in confidence that we dropped so that a loan player can get his sharpness back by strolling around? He’s blowing out of his arse after 45 minutes, he needs to be hooked off. This is probably on Smiths head, but 81 minutes? The last 30 of which he was a liability? Shouldn’t start. Come on after 60. 30 minutes to run around and put in a shift. Earn his place, not be gifted it.

He needs to try harder than what he’s doing. He just watches the opposition stroll past. He doesn’t put in a tackle. Absolutely not what we need. If he’s unfit, he needs to be benched. If he’s fit enough for 30 minutes, then come on at 60 minutes. If he’s fit enough for 60, then for those 60 minutes show a little effort. Smith is definitely partly to blame for this for leaving him on so long, but makes you wonder what kind of agreement we have as part of him being here. Play if ‘fit’? If he’s fit, then he’s not working hard enough, if he’s not fit, then he should be on the bench. Either way he shouldn’t be starting if he’s unwilling/unable to track a man or put in a tackle. Theres a player in there somewhere, but a couple of 30yd screamers a season and few flicks a game aren’t enough in this day and age. He drastically needs to up his off the ball game. He only needs to watch Grealish play to see the effort and work rate required to be a top player. If he could even do 10% of that he’d be a better player for it. The rest of the team are working their socks off trying to get the ball back - wonder how long before they start to think why it’s ok for him to stroll around but not them? Step it up Ross.

Honestly, we were in total control until that equaliser. I wasn’t even worried after they equalised for 1-1 because we were so much better than them. We were extremely unlucky not to win that game, but I fear we get complacent and stop working when we are so on top.

I think I’ve seen enough to know that I don’t want us to sign him. Hes non-existent when we don’t have the ball, and for someone as big as he is, he’s scared of putting in any kind of tackle at all. In a midfield position, that’s criminal. Once he’s been beaten by a man, he just stopped trying. When you have a defensive contribution of 0, you need to make up for it going forwards. He’s got 1 assist and 2 goals this season - he’s only played 9 games - because he got injured running towards the corner flag. I don’t see a sound investment here. I see someone who used to be a top prospect, and I can completely see why he’s about 5th choice at Chelsea. The days of the luxury no 10 have gone, as Ozil has shown. He either needs to adapt by pulling up his socks and putting in a shift, or he’s gonna end up wasting away. And I’d rather that wasn’t on a fat contract at Villa Park. Sanson to replace him, or El Ghazi back in with Jack back into the middle for the next match please.

Grass is always greener in this forum. Lets face it. Barkley has been very average so far... but some people here are ready to spunk £40m + £100k+ a week on him. He’s made 1 assist, and scored 2 goals in 9 games. He’s strolled around letting people walk past him, and I couldn’t believe it when against Burnley there was a point where he was favourite to get to the ball but the Burnley guy slid in and won it whilst Ross jogged nonchalantly towards it. He puts in an average of 0.22 tackles per game from a central midfield position. But El Ghazi is the one that isn’t good enough for us.

I didn’t like this decision either. He’s been on fire, but got dropped for a guy who’s been very timid thus far, and lacking fitness.

I don’t know much about his playing ability, but Personally avoid anyone who ‘followed the money’ at the peak of his career, is 31, and is looking for one final contract. He’d be looking for a 3 year contract, and has not (for me) shown any ambition for his career. There is nothing to motivate him to put in a shift. Nothing to play for. Has McCormack part 2 situation splattered all over this. I’d steer clear.

They probably would have got a third too. Just becuz.

I suspect after being on the receiving end of the Pogba fall.. smith has thought ‘**** it’

Yh u have a good point here.

Very surprised by that line up. would’ve brought El Ghazi back in. But, to a man, this squad has surprised me this year, so let’s see how Nakamba responds. Very odd tho, considering we’ve just about to buy another midfielder which you would think would push him further down the order?

He’s quick, he scores, he can dribble He’s CANT tackle, and he’s not brave, and he’s inconsistent. Yes he’s a limited player. Along with 90% of the footballers out there.