striker

Going for an uncomfortable win for the Villa to finally kick start the season.

Pretty much as above with the exception of Baker in for Elphick and Lyden for Westwood.

Going on what I've seen Ayew has been Villa's best player by some distance. Just needs to be a little less greedy in possession and be more aware of the players around him. If he continues to put in performances I'd be more than a little worried about interest in January and not all from Premiership teams. Rafa must have been impressed on Saturday. McCormack hasn't looked 100% fit to me.

Speaking of lessons learnt. Noted the lack of closing down the shooter particularly in the first half. Newcastle were given far too much time to get their shots off. If I had been Gollini I'd have been ripping the defence to pieces for that. Not nearly enough pressure on the player with the ball all over the pitch from the Villa in the first half and that needs to improve if Villa are to start a winning streak. One other point I wish to make is that Rafa evidently told Gayle to pair up with Elphick. Rafa identified Elphick as a weakness and now other Championship managers will do the same. Elphick was terribly exposed yesterday and that will happen more often now. Four at the back with Chester and the impressive Baker at it's centre will benefit the Villa more.

Ayew was magic second half and the Villa played some great football after Tish coming on. Newcastle should have been out of sight first half though after disastrous tactics by the manager.

Yes.

Ffs post again.

Di Matteo has got his tactics badly wrong. Must change it. Elphick is a walking disaster waiting to happen. Awful signing.

Think the Villa will concede one or two so Villa must put away their chances this time. Going for an entertaining 2-2.

Or one of the forwards dropping into midfield when Newcastle have the ball?

Wasn't there a rumour that some of the players (John Terry) were running the team rather than Di Matteo?

Both are injury prone but a fit Diame has everything Villa are currently missing. Good player.

Ok maybe i'm being more than a little harsh on McCormack? I so want him to be the success to get Villa going but i'm not sure he has done that. Would Gil have shown less so far which was my point? Maybe it's a fitness issue more than anything else? I'm also not sure that Jedi or Tish have been great signings either hence my original post concerning the Villa midfield. Much time to improve though but i'm not sure Di Matteo will be given that time if Villa don't start winning games soon on a consistent basis?

Using Everton as a yardstick, last season they were missing a bit of pace and energy in midfield. Everton under Koeman have addressed those issues and look a very solid team now. The point i'm making here is that for many seasons Villa have been poor in midfield yet time and time again they have failed to address that. After selling Gana to Everton he was replaced by a young player with a poor injury record. Jedinak was then signed but is he really much of an improvement on Westwood and Gardner? Gil was sold and a fortune spent on McCormack. Has McCormack been much of an upgrade on Gil when you consider the outlay? Villa have improved their defence and forward line but neither are really kicking into gear yet because the midfield don't have the creativity to supply the forwards while there is not enough energy or physicality to protect the defence.

Newcastle fans were booing yesterday after the very good run their team has been on. Just imagine the reaction from the Geordie fans if their team had been on the same run as the Villa. Desperately want to see Villa turn over Newcastle and get the team going in an upward trajectory while having a wee quiet snigger at the abuse the Newcastle fans will surely dish out towards their team.

Missing the point that the Villa are playing in a lower division and against inferior teams compared to last season so should be fairing better. Until there is more quality in the Villa midfield then I fear the struggle will continue.

18th in the Championship. Not good.

Most of the other half of my family were glad to see Stones go. Thought he made too many mistakes defensively. Everton also have one or two young CBs coming through who are potentially every bit as good as Stones. Everton are better this season and have toughened up the spine of the team with the signings of Williams and Gana. Bolasie adds more pace which was needed. Everton will surprise a few this season and will finish top 7 barring serious injuries.

Losing Amavi last season was a major blow as it took Villa's only real wide attacking intent out of the team. Losing De Laet, while disappointing and infuriating, may not have the same affect as Amavi is available now and the manager can use Bacuna as a decent replacement until January. If there was another LB available and unattached to a club could Villa sign him now?

Didn't see last nights game but reading forums and this morning's reports there seems to be an inbalance to the the team. A two man midfield isn't working when the defence comes under the cosh. Not enough physicality there and I'm not sure Jedinak is the answer either with Tish. It should have been obvious to a blind man that when Gana was sold the villa needed a direct replacement. It's not ideal to sign a midfielder on his last contract or one that has previously been injury prone and expect them to form a reliable engine to the rest of the team. At the moment Villa seem to be running on a half filled tank of petrol and when that is almost used up there's nothing left in the battery to see the car home. Having watched the Villa a few times this season I am unimpressed with Elphick. Very slow and has a mistake in him. If you put that together with a poor midfield then Villa really have a soft centre which is being exposed. Not sure it's anything to do with a weak mentality. Don't think Di Matteo has got the balance right in his signings. Could have forsaken McCormack for a fit box to box physical midfielder. By all accounts there was a young lad playing for Brenford last night who ran the show and that's exactly what Villa are missing at the moment. Must do better or Di Matteo will soon be out of a job.

More a succession of poor managers maybe? In Di Mateo and Clarke the Villa have the best set up managerial wise since O'Neil and if given time I would expect that partnership with the owner's wealth and exuberance to see Villa back in the top half of the Premiership next season or certainly the season beyond that.

Gana has been Everton's best player this season so far and looks a steal at 7m. Given license to play further forward by Koeman and showing he has a good pass on him. Under Di Mateo probably would have been a much better player for the Villa.

Not sure people are saying that De Mateo should be sacked yet. What they are saying is that results cannot continue like this for Villa and if they do then the manager will come under increasing pressure. No harm in saying that. I don't think anyone felt Villa would be looking downward after six games. Results so far haven't been good enough and that's a fact but performances have in general been excellent without getting the points those performances deserve. In the games I've seen, De Mateo has the Villa playing a brand of football I haven't seen Villa play in a very long time. He needs and the team needs more time to turn those displays into the wins that they deserve but they will need to come soon as there is already a gap developing and that may be insurmountable after the 15 game stage.

Played great for most of the game but not winning when dominating will eventually have an affect on team moral. If this team clicks a lot of teams in this division will be put to the sword.

What a confidence booster that should be for the Villa. Actually overhauling a deficit. Great to see. Need a third now to kill the game.