striker

Thought he was poor against Barnsley. Didn't do a lot right but it's early days yet. Better to give him a few more games before judging him.

For the sake of clarity I was referring to Championship games. I too couldn't care less what team he puts out in cup games.

It's just a question of rinse and repeat the team without playing on the break and that should be plenty good enough to get another win against Forest. Sometimes I think Bruce's problem at the Villa is he has more quality to choose from than at his previous clubs where his choice of player was limited. Basically his best team was forced upon him every week. He needs to start doing that at Villa but just change his best team when injuries require it.

Mmmm. I would hazard a guess that there are few if any teams in the Championship that have the same quality of player as Everton to warrant Villa playing two defensive midfielders. If you also consider the results gained by Villa with more offensive players I would absolutely hate to see Bruce return to a more pragmatic approach against opposition that do not warrant that type of respect. It was that approach which caused 'hysteria' in the first place.

Just goes to show that this Villa squad is plenty good enough to turn over the opposition in this league by some distance without Kodjia scoring and even when not playing well if the right players are chosen in their preferred positions. The point is, will Bruce stick with that now or will he become more defensive again knowing his job is safe in the immediate future? Maybe the fans should keep on his back through social media until the end of the season to keep him angry and vindictive so that he will become more adventurous and pay Championship teams less respect?

Could be mate but I would hate that to eventually rebound on the club and lose the player.

Not being played more won't exactly entice him to sign a new contract. Think he is a super little player.

One thing did concern me watching tonight's game especially in the first half. Villa still give possession away an awful lot. Now you'll get away with that against mediocre teams like a Barnsley but against the better teams even in the Championship you will eventually come a cropper doing it. It must drive JT mad watching his teamates doing that when he's used to players around him being much more careful when they pass. Bruce must get another coach in who will teach the players to be less panicked when pressurised on the ball. Someone like Phelan perhaps who he has worked with before?

Stating 'that maybe this will shut a few people up' and sarcastically mentioning 'crisis' at the club again won't do him any favours at all with fans or pundits. Obviously the criticism has got to him but his players had already spoken for him on the pitch so no need for the vindictive smart arsed remarks. Its a real pity that he didn't just speak with grace and thank the fans for the tremendous support they gave him and the team tonight and left it at that. No need to score more than the three points gained!

Criticised the signing of Terry but he was very solid today. Played like an old time sweeper being in the right place at the right time. Yet another immense performance from Davis. Love to see young players being brought through. Reminds me of Peter Withe. Fantastic potential. Johnson also improving and starting to dominate his area. A very professional smash and grab performance then but Barnsley were very, very, poor so not getting too excited yet that Bruce has turned the corner.

I don't believe for one moment that Rafa could be enticed back into the Championship again. At this moment in time I do not believe Villa would want to spend the compensation fee to Newcastle and then the wages he would ask for plus the promotional bonus should it happen. However this Villa squad imo is better than the one at Newcastle last season and again imo Rafa would gain automatic promotion with it but unfortunately I just don't see Rafa at Villa being a realistic option at the moment.

How Bruce sets Villa up this evening will be interesting considering his comments on the hysteria surrounding the club at the moment?

I don't think he is fearing the sack considering the content of his latest interviews. He is however fearing the damage done to his reputation hence the amount of excuses to the media before the axe falls.

Thanx very much lads for that.

Where did you see this interview?

Villa have already been in trouble without Kodjia so you raise a fair point but if Davis and Hogan were used together and O'Hare played more then I don't think Kodjia would be missed as much. I also feel Villa would be more of a team rather than having to rely solely on a maverick goal scorer or an inept McCormack to supply him.

Excellent post as always Tro. I think he has consistently answered your question why Villa are in this situation through his interviews. According to Bruce it was too many player changes at once which time was going to heal. With a pre-season and several games into the new season I still haven't seen anything to suggest that Villa are becoming a cohesive unit. That's because he keeps changing it, looking, searching for his magic ingredient. Its like young kids on Christmas morning having too much to choose from and going from one toy to another to try it out but don't know what they like best! Bruce also suggested that it was taking further time for some of his signings to adjust to a big team mentality. See my answer to that in previous post. Bruce then recently rounded on the younger players stating they were jaded and that he should have noted it. That's despite those younger players being able to rest through the international break. Tro any manager worth his salt should not criticise younger players being introduced to the team especially in public and when they were doing so well. He has also implied recently that he hasn't been backed throwing in the statement that Boro had spent 50m on players and were favourites for promotion. You mention the win ratio and you are correct in implying I should have included that in my previous post to make it more balanced but when Bruce was initially employed as manager his remit was to gain promotion and not to have a win ratio that saw Villa eventually finish 13th in the Championship last season. I'm sure you will note that Villa with a pre-season, seven games into the new season and more new signings on lower to mid Premiership wages collectively forming one of the best squads the Championship, are currently situated 18th! The overall answer to your question if you asked Bruce is that it is the fault of anyone else but him why Villa are in this situation and that won't change even when he is rightly sacked.

We're pretty much on the same page with that mate. I really do wish Bruce had shown something, anything, to not warrant yet another managerial change but can anyone honestly say that during his time here performances and results have been on an upward spiral or have given birth to seeds of hope that Villa fans could hang onto? He hasn't been able to find a system to suit the players he has purchased. In fact some would argue that most of his signings have regressed in ability since coming here. Bruce has argued that is due to his signings not being able to handle big club atmosphere but if that is the case why did he sign that type of player in the first place? Surely he would have done due diligence on character? I happen to believe that it's been nothing to do with the traditions of AVFC. For instance you cannot play Davis and Hogan on their own. One must play to complement the other. With Kodjia near fitness watch Villa yet again become a one dimensional team with Bruce playing Kodjia on his own and too much reliance on the spectacular from Villa's star forward which is far too predictable to be consistently successful enough to gain enough points for promotion. He hasn't got the midfield right either with Hourihane criminally misused until very recently and when given his normal berth look at the return yet Bruce changed system again. No wonder players like Hourihane and Lansbury have found it difficult to settle. It's got **** all to do with not being able to deal with big club expectations. If your going to purchase attacking midfielders then let them do the job you purchased them for and not shoe horn them into something they're not used to. To commend him he did bring O'Hare through but then dropped him when the kid was flying. Hayes also. I also think Lyden should have been given a chance instead of signing Whelan who to date has been poor. Bruce then split up a very solid central defensive partnership to bring Terry in. He should have left well alone as Terry's legs have gone. If as we all believe Bruce is on the verge of being sacked then it is his own doing and he can have no excuses.

Got good touch and control for a big lad and will only get better when he has a second striker beside him to form a partnership.

I have always been one of Moyes greatest fans for what he did at Everton. He took Everton by the scruff of the neck and rebuilt the club but as you say for the same reasons I wouldn't want De Boer, Moyes wouldn't be my first choice at the Villa either. Too much damage has been done by previous unsuccessful appointments no matter the circumstances. Furthermore, football has moved on from the successful era of Moyes, O'Neill, Allardyce and indeed to a much lesser extend Bruce. More teams are trying to play progressive football, even in the Championship now, so Villa must look to the future and as I've stated before in previous posts, rather than spunk another fortune on more players, spend that extra money on compensation to nab Dean Smith or the manager at Fulham. It's the only way Villa are going to move forward.

What a tackle by Lansbury ffs.

Mate I think it's better that I concentrate on the game tonight hoping for a Villa win but I will do as you ask and simplify my posts so you can understand them better.

Or maybe a complete ridiculous misunderstood overreaction to my post more like. I didn't suggest they should do it. I stated we will see if Bruce has lost the dressing room by how the players play and react tonight. That was abundantly clear in my post. As to the last part of your post it doesn't even deserve an explanation.

Can't see Monk setting Boro up conservatively tonight. He will know Bruce is under pressure with the fans ready to turn so Monk will go for the throat.

Think we'll see whether Bruce has lost the dressing room tonight? If the players want him gone it's the perfect opportunity to down tools and get him sacked.