Shaw_nuff

I'm going to go further and say that 20% possession isn't just concerning, it's scary and we will implode. Not just because our luck will run out but because our squad will become knackered. It takes much more energy to defend and play high-tempo, non-possession football. It's why MONs teams always faitered towards the end, and why England always fail at tournaments. I'm going to stick around and take the abuse but I think we are in a relegation battle come the end of the season. We play pub football. There comes a time in every mans life when you have to step forward and say you know what I was talking complete rubbish there. Step forward son. I will. But you know what? Neither you, nor I can predict the future. Sorry for not following the meme. I will eat my words in May (if and when). The football we play is S..... H..... I.... T...... !

I'm going to go further and say that 20% possession isn't just concerning, it's scary and we will implode. Not just because our luck will run out but because our squad will become knackered. It takes much more energy to defend and play high-tempo, non-possession football. It's why MONs teams always faitered towards the end, and why England always fail at tournaments. I'm going to stick around and take the abuse but I think we are in a relegation battle come the end of the season. We play pub football.

As much as I appreciate your sentiment and philosophy, mathmatically, that's not true. Mathematically, it is true. Now, will it happen over the course of one season? Unlikely. But the way the ball bounces evens out over thousands of simulations hence why it's stupid to complain that we were lucky or unlucky. But the 'bounce' resets itself. e.g. My mate wins the lottery - he's lucky. he and I do the lottery the following week. What are the chances of me winning instead of him? Answer: 50/50. Him being lucky the week before has nothing to do with it, Luck is arbitary from the present. If you asked if the chance my mate wins the lottery twice before i win it once, then that's a different story. BTW. I kind of agree with you, I'm being deliberately obtuse.

Said in the match thread were easily the worst in the league with the ball. Exactly why we're set up not to use it (if that makes sense??). In games where we do have a fair share of possession, we tend to do very little with it, so why not take it out of the equation? In our case: I suspect he was paraphrasing marx, not watching football.

Our luck continues. Long may it hold out (fingers crossed)

As much as I appreciate your sentiment and philosophy, mathmatically, that's not true.

Tell Barcelona that.

I know it's barely allowed for one to go against this myth of 'progress', but we are luckier than this time last year IMO, and for me that accounts for our slightly better position. We are playing some of the worst football I have ever seen and at Villa Park and that's up against some pretty stiff competition. If it improves and is all part of a big plan of Lamberts then I'll be as happy as anyone and I'll eat, but I don't see how anyone can argue that the football is anything other than one dimensional and dire. Any chance of giving us some stats on how "lucky" the rest of the other clubs have been in comparison to last season? some detailed examples and analysis would be appreciated. How on earth can you say progress is a myth when we are doing far better in the table? I fear you really don't understand football, my friend - unlucky you. Wind your neck in you arrogant knob. I haven't called for Lambert's head, nor have i been rude to you or anyone else on this forum so I don't warrant your condescending keyboard-warior BS. The fortune is to do with what I have seen (hence the IMO). It is also a comparison between Villa last season and this at the same juncture- it has nothing to do with other clubs. But feel free to do some of the detailed analysis yourself. Maybe some possession or hoofing stats compared to this time last season, or other teams not putting away the plethora of 'certs'. I'm all ears, because I don't understand football apparently, which is understandable 'cos I haven't seen much of what I call football lately.

I know it's barely allowed for one to go against this myth of 'progress', but we are luckier than this time last year IMO, and for me that accounts for our slightly better position. We are playing some of the worst football I have ever seen and at Villa Park and that's up against some pretty stiff competition. If it improves and is all part of a big plan of Lamberts then I'll be as happy as anyone and I'll eat, but I don't see how anyone can argue that the football is anything other than one dimensional and dire.

Have we been lucky, really? Okore getting injured and out for the season. Benteke in a fine run of scoring, then gets injured and struggles to find form or fitness. Gabby playing through injury and then missing games through injury. Weimann, Delph and Luna out through injury. We're not even upto Xmas and we've played quite a few games with three or four key players missing. We may not be playing great football but we have cut out the defensive mistakes, to a large degree, and thats not down to luck. Also it's not beyond the realms of possibility that when the majority of these key players are back to speed that our game will improve. Yes, I believe we have ridden our luck. The last two games we were lucky to get anything. Every team gets injuries. I stand by what wrote earlier. If we carry on playing like this without the luck then we're in serious trouble. Of course, a few things can happen. We start playing a lot better and/or we stay lucky. I hope we do both. Against West Brom we had more shots at goal, and more shots on target. They were dominant in the first half, we were dominant in the second. Neither team had a dubious goal given or a legitimate goal ruled out. We got what we both deserved, a draw. On Saturday the only time the ball was put into the back of the net it was ruled offside, and it was offside, no arguments about it at all. We both got what we deserved a 0-0 draw. Of course every team gets injuries but we've had a lot of injuries in a short space of time, to key players. Thats hardly lucky is it. West Brom should have been out of sight and Sunderland missed the sitter of the decade. We've been luckier than this time last year.

Have we been lucky, really? Okore getting injured and out for the season. Benteke in a fine run of scoring, then gets injured and struggles to find form or fitness. Gabby playing through injury and then missing games through injury. Weimann, Delph and Luna out through injury. We're not even upto Xmas and we've played quite a few games with three or four key players missing. We may not be playing great football but we have cut out the defensive mistakes, to a large degree, and thats not down to luck. Also it's not beyond the realms of possibility that when the majority of these key players are back to speed that our game will improve. Yes, I believe we have ridden our luck. The last two games we were lucky to get anything. Every team gets injuries. I stand by what wrote earlier. If we carry on playing like this without the luck then we're in serious trouble. Of course, a few things can happen. We start playing a lot better and/or we stay lucky. I hope we do both.

IMO, the main improvement (same time this year to last) is our luck. Last year we had none up until Xmas. This year we've had a fair bit (apart from Chelsea away). If we carry on playing like this, but the luck deserts us, we are in the doo dah, because it's woeful stuff. I really want Lambert to work some magic as I want him to succeed here, but I'm really just sitting back and watching what happens, game by game, with the sort of interest you give a car crash. I hope the training is different to the match play.

Football is an entertainment industry. This rubbish at the moment is not entertaining. Villa Park is going to empty at this rate. I'm willing to accept that we may have a transitional period here and that the football will follow. But if we stick with this style of football for longer than necessary, I'm not interested. I was really looking forward to this season and have been to five matches. We're dishing up long-ball crap and I think we have ridden our luck so far too! It isn't what I expected at all. I thought we'd kick on from the end of last season but no end of freak results (Man City) can mask the agricultural approach we're taking.

We have completely dumped our football philosophy of last season. I find it bizarre that we've gone from Martinez to Allardyce in the space of one summer, especially as the it was coming together in those final 10 games.

Weymouth also changed to Claret and Blue in homage of AVFC and for a change of luck. It worked, they've never been heard of since.

I'm going to make some homemade BBQ sauce and butterfly some chicken breasts. What is everybody else having for tea? Bubble & Squeak. I'm going to fry some puke left over from the first half

He won't get much. Learner's business has hemorrhaged money. He didn't sell the Browns because he wanted to. He sold it because he had to.

Me a dustbin and Cabaye would make a better midfield. Wouldn't be much to do with me or the dustbin though.

Anyone else baffled? I know I am.

nice to see an actual footballer on the pitch like Joe Cole.

I'm speechless. I have no idea what it is I'm watching. Is it football, hoofball, runawayfromtheball. What is it?

With the greatest respect PaulC 33,000 back then was immense. It was the dark era of hooliganism and the peak of Thatcherite industrial break-ups. NUFC averaged 17,000 in 1981, so all their BS about 50,000 turning up just to see a shirt is just that. I'm surprised we get anything over 25,000 with the constant dross served up at home for years, even decades.

Just thought this gives an interesting insight into how the club is being run under Lerner. Full thread is here. Lerner is a man whose money is wrapped up in a western 'binge' credit industry that is on its knees and will never recover. Once they can't keep printing money any longer the US is screwed. This is the only reason for his change in strategy.

Perhaps it's a new style: Counterintuitiveattack

Nosebleeds