Archie

Hi mates, with the last competitive game played last May, we desperately need to re-start the season, don't we? As a foretaste, why not to gather some funny (sometimes even bizarre) Villa-related images? I have got a huge amount of these (many taken in occasion of the visits in Italy of the Villa delegation for the Latin Lions annual meetings), so I can start and wait for your contributes. Ian Taylor and the Villa delegation behind the bar of my local pub, in Italy. Tayls tasting grappa (a local pride), in a Venetian "baccaro" (bar). Peter Withe surrounded by a group of adoring American girls in Piazza Santa Maria Novella, in Florence. The celebration for the baptism of one of our mates'son in a restaurant called Villa (as you surely know, Villa is a Latin - now Italian - word, that means big, elegant country house). Peter Withe with his lucky-charme number nine in the Fiorentina dressing room one hour before the kick off of Fiorentina Milan, for the Italian Serie A. Casting out nines, as we say in Italy. . . (to be continued)

It's well known that if you are not a glory hunter Villa is the club n° 1 in the world, and if you are (glory hunter) you have chosen the wrong team At Villa we won't win many trophies but surely we don't risk to annoy. First of all, we are not arrogant. We don't want to buy the best players in order to win easy. Where Liverpool have Coutinho, we have Barry Bannan, where they have Gerrard, we have Sylla. It's so exciting. . . And we always give a hope to our opponents. Every game we have 15 minutes of complete black out (normally in the second half) in which our manager fells asleep, the players limit to belt the ball clear, and the opponents smell the blood, they know that they can score one, two, or three goals, it is all (and only) a question of time. This is the main reason why managers like Alex Ferguson are so glad to play at Villa Park. And we also are a charitable institution: we go all around the world, for instance to Holland, we pick two players, one CM and one CD, that are depressed because in Italy wouldn't play even in Fourth Division, and we tell them: "hey mates, we make your dreams to come true, you are in Premier League now. Mister Vlaar, let me introduce to you to el Senor Suarez. Mister El Ahmadi, the ball is that white or yellow spherical object, you can even try to hit it". But in the Next Gen Series all change. In that competition, you really have a good team, some promising players, for instance a gifted and tricky winger like Jack Grealish, and a midfielder that knows the art to pass the ball like Samir Carruthers. So, you can't miss the fantastic occasion to follow the boys in claret and blue in a beautiful small city, Como, laid on the banks of a lake with excellent wineries, to see the Next Gen Series Semi finals. Como have an old, maybe decadent, but proper english-style football ground With the Villa staff attending Arsenal Chelsea. The prospective from the bench. Tactics repetition before the start of the extra times (ok, they only said: "come on" and "calm down", Lambert docet). After the game, with the MOM Jack Grealish, the new hero.

The Reading game showed once again that our strikers are very good. Weimann will not be Messi but he did the hard work with pace and committment, and Gabby and Benteke could score more than twice. Our problem is that the too often the midfield is not able to serve the strikers, and that the defence commits comic, comic blunders every game. In these conditions is not easy for the strikers, but we are improving game after game. If we had even only a Rosicky, fantastic player that is a regular Arsenal reserve, our strikers would score every game.

Imo we played 4-2-3-1 with Westwood and KEA in the role of DM, and Weimann, Zog and Gabby behind the lonely striker. It is a formation that suits us very well and that i hope to see confirmed.

For one hour I have seen the team that I expected from Lambert since the beginning. Four (not five) defenders, a very attacking-minded approach to the game with four offensive players even away, attractive football, and three quality strikers. In the last half an hour we collapsed as usual, we went under pression, we stopped playing limiting to belt the ball clear in Dunne style, and in these conditions the opponents' goal is only a question of time. Vlaar's marking was once again ridiculous, Clark is not a central defender, and generally speaking the defence has not the minimum of the organization that one would expect from a Premier League team. We must work hard on the defence and on the midfield that doesn't protect the defence.

I would say that my Villa is better than Lambert's on set pieces, isn't it? http://v6.tinypic.com/player.swf?file=1zmyphl&s=6 http://v6.tinypic.com/player.swf?file=e7ey61&s=6

I have always been a fan of Lambo, he has built an incredibly strong team at Norwich in three seasons, taking over the day after the canaries had lost 7-1 with Lambert's former club Colchester. But THIS Paul Lambert looks as the double of THAT Paul Lambert. For instance, Paul Lambert's Norwich conceded the lowest % of goals from set-pieces in 2011-12, Aston Villa the highest (47%). Apart from the fact that our midfield is the weakest ever, this Villa don't have even the clue of a defensive organization. Since the Chelsea defeat the team deeped in a crisis of mistrust that Lambert hasn't been able to manage. But I don't blame Randy for this. Everyone that now blames him was happy for signign Lambo and we must not forget thet the chairman pays 80000 £ a week for players like Stephen Ireland. It's quite clear that we must do deep changes if we want to avoid relegation. But I still would prefer to be relegated with this Villa, run by people that love the club, than to play in champions league with a club that sells its roots and identity to a russian billionaire

I remained positively surprised for the verve that we displayed in the 1st half. Then we showed the same problems: - the lack of physical presence in the midfield and in the defence (ridiculous the way we conceded their goals, as if we were predestined victims); - and the lack of experience. We miss some experienced players (Parker and Lescott?) who can encourage and tell the others what to do when we are under pression. In this situation we immediately panic, we keep throwing long balls and the opponents'goal it's only a question of time. We also suffered when Delph came out as he was playing strangely well, one of the best performances with the claret and blue shirt for Fabian. Being a fan of P.L. I am surprised and obviously disappointed for the total lack of any form of defensive organization. And it's quite clear that our midfield is too weak for the Premier League standards, even if in the 1st half this was hided for the (strangely) fine performance of Zog in the hole. Even if we can score as we have quality upfront, we can't keep the result. If we want to avoid relegation I thnk we need two experienced midfielders and one defender at least.

I was a great fan of Lambo since he was in Norwich's books and I remain convinced that he is the right man for the job but I must admit that, like against Pool, I haven't understood his tactics yesterday. Apart from the awful approach to the game and the total lack of consistency of the team, how can you deliver the keys of the midfield in the hands of two championship-level players like Delph and KEA? And how can you play together two lightweighs like Ireland & Holman when it has just been proved (the last time time at Anfield) that they can't play together? P.S. Why Weimann didn't play nor was in the bench?

I hadn't noticed this, nice touch mate.

Positives of the Chelsea game. 1 - I was not with my two fellow countrymen, members of the Latin Lions, that spent about 800 £ and quarrelled with their girlfriends (that wanted to spend with them the Christmas Eve) to see the worst Villa defeat ever! ;D 2 - Today is that kind of day that (maybe because of the Christmas atmosphere?) all your friends that support every other English teams (not only Chelsea or Man. Utd but also Crystal palace or Blackpool and even Arsenal) and that you haven't seen for ages, fell the urgent need to turn up for greetings and wishes and generously send images of tasty gifts. .

It could be worse, after all. It could be raining!

Fully agree mates, Paul Lambert and a bunch of young, motivated and committed players, make all the difference of the world.

I'm over the moon mates, last season we had Mc Leish, Hutton and Dunne (with the like of Weimann, Clark and Bannan on the bench), now we have Lambert, Lowton, Westwood and Benteke, anf the likes pf Weimann, Clark and Bannan in the starting XI!

This guy is fantastic, an unsung hero but probably the best Villa keeper after Mark Bosnich left.