srsmithusa

dotcomsimon I love you!

I have no stream. So far I have read "good touch hesky" "Nice skill NRC" and several other similar things that make it clear the posters have no stream either... making stuff up.

Oh, great work rate, Stan !!!

He's not dire, he's just not good enough for USA or Aston Villa. Most USA fans want to see a change. He is a good motivator but not much of a tactician. He stubbornly stuck to his 4-4-2 while it was obvious that the best formation for the USA squad was 4-5-1. It was the same formula every game, open with 4-4-2, play poorly and give up early goals, bring in an extra midfielder in the 2nd half and start to play well. That's why we ultimately lost against Ghana. You can't keep giving the opponent an early advantage, that was his downfall.

Nonsense IMO. The formation had nothing to do with the early goals. The reason for the early goals is that the team had absolutely NO one strong enough to play central defense. Jay DeMerit and Onyewu were the best available, but they were too slow. DeMerit plays right side in lower level english teams and Onyewu loses focus and wanders off physically and mentally. He washed out in english leagues, and was just coming back from an injury. Cherundulo and Bocanegra could only cover if there was time.

The 4-4-2 was to free up Donovan and Dempsey both to attack from behind the forwards and from multiple angles. The defense could not hope for clean sheets, so he needed to create the best attacking formation possible. Donovan and Dempsey have both played up front at times, but both are much more effective as the wings in a 4 man mid-field. They can move inside and outside more easily. Bradley's strength IMO is thinking the match through and making the best adjustments possible. His weakness is picking the roster to begin with.

Thanks for your last response, General, I consider every villa fan a mate, but some of my mates are cranky, suspicious, paranoid, unlikeable sorts.... I think your irritation at them is every bit as reasonable as their disappointment of the "Newcastle nightmare."

I have a request of you or the mods. Is there some way to flag your responses to make them easy to locate? Sometimes I like to check in and see your most recent posts.

Yes there is - click this or save it as a bookmark

Wading through a bunch of amateur attorneys trying to ask a question in such a way as to trick you into revealing things you cannot possibly know. (i.e. when will we get a new manager?.

thanks,

Well, it seems that the players don't really want KM as manager after all

Thanks the tvoo link was working wonderfully until you posted here, then it crashed for me.... grrrrrr

Whatever else KM will do, I can only see Ireland and Albrighton both on the start. Maybe you guys know something I don't.

OK, so at least three think I'm far too demanding. Maybe so, but I don't like "not a bad result considering the team" or "not a bad result considering it's european football" or "or not a bad result considering" anything. Those considerations should be made before the match, not afterwards to downplay a result that would be disappointing if it weren't for whatever excuse being tendered.

Shouldn't we consider those things in advance? Bottom line, I'm not happy we fielded a team that we feel lucky to escape with a 1-1.

Not a bad post considering I'm an american.

Didn't see match, but not really happy with result. 0-2 should have been the minimum acceptable. The door for Rapid is far from shut. I think KM should have started and played a team that would get at least 0-2 result. Most on here are content "considering the line-up" but the lineup was one our manager selected. Should have selected a better one.

I'm not trying to be negative, but trying to use claret colored glasses, not rose colored. I think we can and should do better.

Excuse me, I'm looking for the thread where we discuss the next manager?

Rikjaard, please. But KM can stay in any capacity he wants, even if Rikjaard has to wait till January.

Rikjaard does sound more exciting than any other name I've heard. Other than McDonald after the opening match.....obviously

Bradley has not done enough at a big club to know how he would handle it, but I actually think he might be very good as an interim at least. People here moan that MON never gave fringe players a chance. Bradley was always looking at fringe players and giving them playing time. People here moan that MON didn't sub and went like for like when he did. Bradley has proven to be willing to yank a player that isn't performing on the day, to do it early, and to try new combinations. I think Bradley's strength is watching the match, seeing what's happening, recognizing the strengths of his players and making the necessary changes to get the right guy in the right place. As a caretaker, doing the best you can with the players you have, that's a pretty good strength to have.

It's pretty common knowledge here that he is hoping for a move to a European club.

Again, I'm nowhere near convinced he would be good in the long run, but I think he would actually do quite well as an interim. If he brought Michael with him, I'd be thrilled.

Been a football player, fan, referee, referee assessor for many years. Didn't pay much attention to club business until the past few years. Why are so many always so angry that MoN leaves it late. Who cares when he does business. It seems to me that the business that's done is the key. I don't care if it's day one or the 11th hour. More often than not, I have liked the deals he has made. (Not all of them, mind you, but more often than not.)

Anyway, I would like to see a holding mid-fielder, and a forward. If we take the 30 mill for Milner, then add a creative midfielder to that list and use the money to get all three just a little better than we could afford without it. (But August seems as good as yesterday, to me.)

are we still discussing the match on Sunday?

Here's hoping Randy backs MON in the summer and we bring in some quality to replace the deadwood.

what if randy considers mon to be part of that deadwood?

Then we're screwed.

We need a scrappy forward that makes all the runs a forward should make.

Nobody consistently makes the runs to get on the end of the good crosses we make. A fair number of our "poor crosses" are because the ball is being "forced" in. Why are we trying to force balls in rather than making the simple cross? No-one is consistently making the runs to where a really good cross would land.

I'm still glad that we were pushing. Even though it cost us painfully.

I do like that we're positive. At least one center half pushing up all the time, and both of them (with Cuellar back) often.

I wonder why our players are prone to dropping their heads and getting in a panic?

Well, their fans berate one for attempting an overly optimistic challenge in the box.

2 minutes later, their fans berate another for not attempting an optimistic challenge with poor footing in the box.

Clearly, in hind sight, they both made the wrong decision. But grip needed.

Penalty appeal - my stream has stopped, what did we think?

Would have been overly harsh. Clattenburg would never call it. (although i've seen some that would)

YYEEEEEEEESSSSSSSS Get in! Downing with a brilliant feed !!!!!

FRIEDAL !!!!!

I was feeling cautiously optimistic about this one until referee named. I don't think Clattenburg is bad or unfair, he is consistent in calling very little. He does not interfere much, but that gives Manc license to be more physical. I do not think we, as a team, handle physical challenges or a physical presence well.

I'll stay cautiously optimistic, but a little more cautious and a little less optimistic.

Sorry if already posted

http://blogs.birminghammail.net/birminghamcity/2010/04/rage-against-the-machine.html

Or, in summary, "when things don't go our way, our players whine, pout, try to cheat by altering the pitch, commit egregious team dissent, become obscene and offensive, basically they just turn into mindless, petulant, children in a tantrum. So does our manager. Our team public relations outfit supports it all, and that's what makes us so great." :shock: :?:

Even the ref that argued it's impossible that there is corruption in football refereeing has emailed me to say how the press have got it wrong again calling the penalty controversial.

I was wondering what he would think, and thought he would agree that a slight nudge on the ball does not negate taking a man down on the follow through.

The only thing the ref didn't get right was controlling the gang complaining by BC at every call. From the first foul where 4 surrounded him, to the PK where their reaction was outrageous, to after the match where he let each one come and have a bitch.