sticky2000

As a general critique of the tactics, I still remember the Swansea game last season, Benteke's first game when he came off the bench.

We passed the ball out from the back and played through midfield, dominated possession and beat a good side.

Playing on the floor, with the 2 wide forwards pulling the defence apart and creating space for an attacking midfielder to exploit, it worked brilliantly.

Now it seems to be hoofing it up to Benteke / Kozak and hoping that they are able to control or flick on the ball on every tenth attempt.

I'd rather see patient, expansive passing play from the whole team than waiting to get a good touch or header and then get a quick shot away.

4-2-2-2

                  Guzan

    Lowton  Vlaar  Okore  Luna

           Delph     Westwood

    Tonev                        Gabby

  Benteke         Helenius / Kozak / Weimann

This would enable us to cover opposition wingers when they're attacking, and then have much more variety moving forwards.

The link between the midfield and forwards just isn't there.. And the forwards don't make many runs, which is an issue when the midfield is sitting fairly deep.

People were asking for the vid, and I'm sure no one wants to trawl through 43 pages all over again...

Nice to see what he'll be doing soon in our team anyway

Excellent, quality defender!

And here is the requested link, beasting Chelsea players off the ball time and time again

£850,000

Though how anyone can be behind the useless, waste of space Bendtner is beyond me..

Story is still on the site, just have to click through to all latest news.

So, people who have seen him play, what's he like? A tip from Martin Laursen would also be nice.

He'll help Okore settle in too... Ah fantastic news.

I have tried countless, countless times to recreate Lowton's goal down the park. Even the initial chest forward is difficult to control, and I don't have 2 neanderthals running at me...

With RVP's, once he starts running and can see the ball, it's (fairly) easy to swing a leg at it as its a volley.

Lowton has to get the chest spot on, then wrap his foot over it, and with power, dip and direction.

Insane goal.

Lambert had to put up with Holman, who was a McUseless signing, as he needed the squad.

His own squad is now starting to take shape. Holman can run and run and run, but not much else..

Ah, positivity instead of the usual pointless bickering over the phrasing of a sentence. Can't all posts be like this?

Ah yeah, I have time to check through it all

Might want to alert everyone to these quotes on the Sky Sports site:

"I am definitely aware that there are five clubs with serious interest in me," said Belhanda. "The president told me how much I will cost for any team that wants me.

"I have told everyone that England will be my first choice.

"Aston Villa is a great club with a big history playing in the best league in the world, so let's see what will happen."

*excitement quiver*

Marc and Brett both work their socks off to help out defensively, and we need players who are willing to hug the touchline as width creates crosses and more room for the forwards to operate.

Stevens looks rubbish, played against Tranmere and really struggled.

Delph dallies on the ball and was caught a number of times, only played a few decent balls.

The creativity of the tem shot up when Bannan came on and suddenly we were breaking through their back line, delph gets the ball and rarely goes forward with it.

Quite easily the best full back we have. Numerous vital challenges made in the final third to deny teams a shot on goal, good strength against blokes far bigger than him and gets in dangerous positions if given licence to do so, provided the winger does the right thing too.

This is all getting too ridiculous.

Just because he managed SHA he's not good enough.

He went down with SHA largely because after the cup win he lost a large number of first team players from his squad. I honestly think they would still be in this league had that not happened. Bear in mind that they finished 9th and last year we ended up 9th but were in a relegation battle until the penultimate game of the season when only secured our prem status by beating arsenal. 6 points in the last 2 games and we shot up to 9th!!!!!!!!!!!!! Papering over the obvious cracks if you ask me. Thise cracks are still here and McLeis has to be given time to address these. We're not Man City who can leave a 35m striker out of the squad becuase they don't like him anymore.

He hasn't had money to spend (he's replaced people not built his own swuad) and what he has spent has actually been good imho.

As Rob182 said all of his signings were generally welcomed as good signings with maybe a question mark over hutton.

Everyone on this sight works off hindsight. In hindsight Nzogbia hasn't performed as we would have liked, or expected, but has ashley young hit the heights at ManU? No one thought it was a bad signing and I still don't think it is.

People say he's playing in the wrong position but has anyone thought thst perhaps this is because Mcleish feels he can't yet play him in his favoured position because he needs him elsewhere on the pitch becuase we have a small squad?

Hutton has been poor but the guy hadn't played in god knows how longs never mind the move to a new club. Will he come good, i'm not convinced, but was it a bad signing? Who else was available for a right back position that we could have got?

Given quite simply has been excellent.

Plus he has to work with a squad that:

1. is not his squad (he's not even had one season in the position to stamp his mark on things)

2. in which there seems to be a few cliques and divisions.

He's here to stay gents so get used to it. The club (no doubt under his guidance) has shifted out a number of high earners from the wage bill this year and a few more will go in the summer.

Those on what I call MON contracts with a year or two left will be harder to shift but no doubt we will try if he feels any of them are being disruptive. Whether he can shift them is another matter (and not his fault if he can't).

I truly feel we will buy this summer and McLeish will stamp his own mark on the team a bit more. How much - I don't know. I'll judge him more next season when it's less of an O'Neill team (which frankly it still is) and more of a McLeish one.

If the football is poor at that time then he'll start to lose my support (as any manager would). in the mean time give the man a break and support your team through thick and thin.

For me he's making all the right noises but perhaps is being hampered by one or two seniors who think they are indispensible. They seem to want to play their way instead of his way. Can he drop them? With our squad, probably not.

A few players need shifting. Give him a chance to make it his team.

All the right noises? He said after the Arsenal defeat 'we lacked experience' yet our team had more experience than the Arsenal team.

He harps on about the defence yet the only change he has made to it, despite countless errors by at least 3 of the back four, has been enforced due to Collins being injured.

He says he likes 'attacking football' yet last week against Newcastle, after a decent first half, we resort to long ball and he then starts with his hopeless substitutions and has no idea how to re-adjust his tactics to change the game.

Letting him 'build' his own team here would be a disaster. We'd end up a dog-of-war team with the little creative flair we have stifled in favour of his 'let's see if we can nick a goal then put 10 behind the ball' tactics.

Mcleish is exactly the same as Neil Warnock. A decent Championship manager but nothing more. His record in the Prem is crap. For the guy spouting about facts, here is one...

HE GOT A TEAM RELEGATED TWICE

Name me another Premiership manager who has this on their CV and is currently managing a top flight club?

He should not be anywhere near Villa Park. He can give it all the talk he wants in press conferences but press conferences don't win matches. Motivating your team, sorting out a completely shot defence and having a bit of tactical know-how wins matches. He can't do any of this.

As for the woman saying 'performances are improving'. How? If we had 'improved' then results would be better, surely? The win at Chelsea was a fluke, Wolves would probably have got a draw at least if it wasn't for Henry being stupid and beyond that we have been a complete joke. When we were 2-0 up at Arsenal, I knew we'd loose as soon as that first goal went in. Not because I'm psychic but because Mcleish has no answer when a team changes their style of play against us. By constantly hoofing the ball 60 yards up the pitch (towards a forward who can't hold it up) you are just recycling the ball back to the opposition team. When that opposition team can actually string passed together, take note Mcleish, by law of average they will create chances and score goals.

People who continue to justify him being here IMO have given up. He should be sacked now. Get Curbs in. He's available, did well at Charlton until they had to start selling (due to bigger financial problems than we have) and knows this club and what it means to be a Villa player.

That would be too easy though for our thick board.

Excellent post.

Also:

1: Newcastle game, 1-1 at half time after 'some' attacking play. Second half, the midfield is behind the half way line from our goal kicks. Now that's a defensive manager setting out for a draw when they were there for the taking. How big a gap do you want between the midfield and forwards when we're hoofing it up front to forwards who thrive on midfield assistance?

2: Petrov AND Clark in the middle of the pitch. 2 defensive minded midfielders who's first thought is the safe ball backwards, to a defender who then lumps it up top again. Everyone saw when Bannan came on, his brilliant passing and vision to get the ball moving up top and into the feet of the strikers.

3: Give Gardner a go. A kid with a physical presence who will go box to box repeatedly, looking to score and mopping up losse balls from the opposition.

Rant over.

Makoun was probably the sole provider of through balls to the strikers, sure, some of them were intercepted but his vision and first time passing were far better than any player we've recently had! Bent and gabby looked much more lively when Makoun actually gave them passes they could run onto...

Let's think of other players more deserving of vitriol, like umm, I don't know, Hutton & Warnock!

Both absolutely awful, beyond belief yesterday! Out of position, poor deliveries, giving the ball away and not tracking back, unlike Marc.

Marc put in decent crosses but when the team is told not to get too far forward so that they're always in position defensively (not that this seems to stop the oppo scoring) then no-one is going to get on the end of his cross. One corner yesterday was beautifully placed on the near post but no one went for it.

His work ethic and willingness to get back and help out gives far more than zoggy and gabby.

As for his level being at Bristol Rovers, what a joke. I applaud your hilarity.

Look how good he was when he played with a brilliant full back like Walker last season. Other top quality wingers have this vital support, and they can't beat the full back, centre back and defensive midfielder all at the same time like Marc has to try and do.

Judge him when the team is at least attacking with purpose and has decent players in the right position.

Queue ridiculous responses..

general,

is it possible for you, or any of the guys here, to give me a link to an official site or webpage detailing both the shuttle service you are running and the new swipe card system at the ground?

I need to refer to them in my business coursework!!

many thanks, and keep up the good work!!

click the links - starter for 10 - or phone Aston Villa consumer sales on 0800 612 0970. Blandy