Cizzler

SPOILER:

Guessed De la Cruz,.. Missed Yorke

'Field a team' as in pick the eleven best from a VP crowd.

The population of San Marino is 32,000. This would obviously include a significant demographic of women and OAPs, if you assume that the majority of Villa's match day spectators are middle-aged and male. Theoretically, why not.

What the hell is going on in that picture xD?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1ka6ngVSRI

youtube footage of Bennett and McShane's disagreement.

Yeah, I had a little look on BlueMoon and they seemed absolutely baffled by the "sick chants" accusation. Although a few admitted they didn't join in the 19th minute clap cos they didn't know what on earth was happening, they said everyone applauded when Petrov was mentioned at half-time. They seem to be blaming United fans for the rumour. Nothing to see here, move along.

Is there any reason why Bowery gets on the bench ahead of Baker/ Herd or any other defensive cover? A third striker just seems a bit of an unnecessary luxury to me.

Don't understand why we are helping Holloway out again (as we did with bannan a few years back) after his remarks about our club when we were linked with Charlie Adam!

Hopefully this will have soemthing to do with a first crack at Matty Phillips when he becomes available?

Good to see Nathan getting a brace. I hope he starts to deliver on his supposed potential and earns the opportunity to get a crack at VP or, if nothing else, makes himself more valuable for a sale!

Matty Phillips has been pretty average this season, mate! Was on the bench yesterday. Tom Ince is the player they're most excited about over there.

I'm sure Chris Herd hasn't looked that similar to Weimann every other time I've seen him.

By all accounts he had a good game today. Although apparently so did ol' Isiah Osbourne

0 goals 0 assists so far under lambert

That includes 6 pre season games & tranmere

Who do you think got the assist for Herd's goal against Tranmere then :?. Your perpetual vendetta against Ireland is so boring, it hurts.

Tariff. Again, it's the old English thing of where the double letters should be put. I always used to struggle with necessary too until somebody on here made it into an acronym for me. Never eat celery eat sausage sandwiches and remain young if you were wondering.

Ahhhh, 'necessary'. My spelling nemesis until I was taught the 'one coffee, two sugars' mnemonic.

I only watched it on a stream but I thought he played well today.

Sat in the upper Holte and didn't hear N'Zogbia getting booed at all? Maybe a few groans the second time he dribbled it off the pitch though!

A comfortable win albeit against poor opposition. Bannan did alright. I think a few posters here are too quick to criticise him. He can be a frustrating player but he always wanted the ball and played a few incisive passes. Ireland played well. Baker deserves a mention too, in my opinion. I'm not jumping to a conclusion, but at the moment I feel Baker could be the type of player who will boss the lower leagues but find some of the football and movement at the highest level a bit too much.

On a side note, Joe Bennet, who we've been linked with from Boro didn't play today and wasn't named in the squad.

Probably due to his knee injury, than interest from us though?

Heard an outrageous rumour that RVP is off to United.

What did Batman say to Robin before they got in the car?

'Get in the car'.

Grant Holt has handed in a transfer request. A bit out of the blue, wonder if he has another club lined up.

Admittedly this is a rumour (and I can't remember if there's rules about posting such like?)

Yet, a fairly reliable source, informs me that allegedly Holt is not happy his best mate Tierney got dropped. Tierney was dropped for allegedly porking Steve Morison's missus. Thus Holt's ultimatum was Morrison or me. And hence his transfer request.

Allegedly.

Gossip.

Oh right. Thanks for clearing that up.

Grant Holt has handed in a transfer request. A bit out of the blue, wonder if he has another club lined up.

Admittedly this is a rumour (and I can't remember if there's rules about posting such like?)

Yet, a fairly reliable source, informs me that allegedly Holt is not happy his best mate Tierney got dropped. Tierney was dropped for allegedly porking Steve Morison's missus. Thus Holt's ultimatum was Morrison or me. And hence his transfer request.

Allegedly.

Aston Villa boss Alex McLeish: "It was an absolutely shocking, woeful display. Maybe some of the boys were thinking about their holidays already.

"That team needs a change and there will be change. That wasn't an Alex McLeish team today. We need to bring more quality into the squad.

"I take (the fans' booing) on my shoulders for the sake of the players, I agree with the fans' frustration about our display.

"I'm expecting the board to back me. I have no reason to think I won't be (Villa manager next season). We've got through a really tough season. I've won lots of trophies as a player and manager and I haven't turned into a bad manager overnight."

Speechless.

In all seriousness

GK: Hart, (ideally)Foster, Fraser Forster

RB: Walker, Richards

LB: Cole, Baines

CB: Lescott, Ferdinand, Cahill, Jones, Smalling

RM: Lennon, Oxlade-Chamberlain

LM: Young, Johnson?

CM: Carrick, Gerrard, Lampard, Milner, Scholes

ST: Rooney, Bent, Carroll, Sturridge, Welbeck

There's 26 players in that squad, trim 3 out.

Haha. Oh dear. Gonna say it was my preliminary squad and I wanted to observe training closer.

Smalling is injured though, so he might as well be cut. Sturridge can do a job on the wing - so I'll let Johnson go too. Welbeck can do one and all.

In all seriousness

GK: Hart, (ideally)Foster, Fraser Forster

RB: Walker, Richards

LB: Cole, Baines

CB: Lescott, Ferdinand, Cahill, Jones, Smalling

RM: Lennon, Oxlade-Chamberlain

LM: Young, Johnson?

CM: Carrick, Gerrard, Lampard, Milner, Scholes

ST: Rooney, Bent, Carroll, Sturridge, Welbeck

That team is a thing of such ugliness as I've never seen before.

You've got a CM which is made up of 2 thugs who would be getting sent-off within half an hour by any international ref. Holt and Carroll would just get in each other's way and give away free-kicks every time they go for a header.

Team would be wide open for attacks down either wing as Walcott/Lennon/Dyer are not wing-backs (Wigan play Beausejour and Boyce in these positions in their system, completely different players with much more defensive awareness).

And also despite getting rid of the old guard elsewhere you still want to play Terry, who is the main problem element in the squad.

If you wanted to play something that actually ressembles Wigan's 3-4-3 system, I'd go with something like:

Hart

Smalling-Ferdinand-Lescott

Milner-Parker-Barry-A.Cole

Young-Welbeck/Rooney-Walcott

Hmmm :? Perhaps a revert back to the good ol' fashioned 4-4-2 then.

GK: Charles Hart

RB: Tony Hibbert

LB: Ashley Cole

CB: Joleon Lescott

CB: Mike Williamson

RM: Ryan Shotton (utilise the long throw)

LM: Ashley Young

CM: Leon Britton

CM: Danny Murphy

ST: Adam Lallana

ST: Ricky Lambert

Lescott and Williamson are both coming off the back of fantastic seasons. Williamson would dominate airily, whilst Lescott could sweep with his pace. Hibbert and Cole have been two of the most consistent full backs in Premiership history.

Then the midfield. Britton's ball retention rate is comparable to Europe's elite. Murphy provides the more experienced head and has the bonus of knowing Hosgson very well. Both can keep the ball. We all know what Young is capable of at his best and Shotton provides both pace and a danger with his throw.

Lallana and Lambert have taken the Championship by storm this season.

GK: Hart

CB: Lescott

CB: Terry

CB: Ferdinand

RM:Lennon/ Walcott

LM: Dyer

CM: K.Henry

CM: Cattermole

ST: Holt

AM: Rooney (Osman to play when Rooney is suspended)

ST: Carroll

Inspired by Wigan's 4-3-3. Terry organises the back three a la Caldwell. Sheer pace out wide. Centre mids to intimidate those horrible foreigners and win the ball back and give it to a deep-lying Rooney (if he's playing or out wide). Whip in the crosses and let the big men nod it in the back post. No Stevie/ Lampard nonsense.

what about carew, would rather have him over crouch and maloney.

You'd rather have the player who can't get on the bench in the Championship than the two Premiership first-teamers. Why?

Have I just completely misunderstood the 'who would you have back?' question?! It's not really 'having them back' if we're moving the era they're playing for the club in, is it.

Could we create a decent team out of currently playing ex-players?

From all the strikers you could have chosen, how have you ended up with Crouch and Maloney??? and to top it off carlton cole on the bench??

Humour me then and let me know which players you think used to play for us and are currently (as I stipulated at the top of the eleven) better than Crouch and Maloney.

Obviously these two didn't set the world alight here. But the likes of Carew and JPA are currently not playing as well as the two I picked.

My point was to see if we had let go eleven players who would right now have improved our league position. I think we have.

Sagna out of the Euros.

I didnt even know he was French, thought he was Senegalese :oops:

His cousin is the Senegalese international Ibrahima Sonko, so we'll let you off...... just about :winkold:

Edit: Just checked and Sonko's only had 4 caps for Senegal! Forgiveness withdrawn.