Only2McInallys

This is an important game. Avoiding relegation this season is our priority and I think Palace are going to be in the relegation mix at the end of the season so avoiding defeat is important. Palace have some really good players but they seem to be unsettled and this may help us get something there.The 3 ex villa players could have an impact and I am kind of expecting Benteke to score. We are still finding our feet and were a bit lucky against Everton ,with better finishing we could have lost that game. Think Grealish might have an impact. 2-2

Just saw the game highlights on YouTube with Arabic commentary very amusing .Jackie Grealish was getting him excited. Strange game really we played almost complete second string and win 6-1 but highlights suggest they had over 10 good chances to score. Davis looked impressive and hopefully this will bring him confidence when he comes on in Premier league.I have always been impressed by his ability to keep the ball he seemed to be a bit quicker than I remembered.

Good railway station

We do need to give people like Targett,Nakamba,Konya Steer some game time.The problem is when you play a completely new team it is difficult for them to play at their best and it could have a negative effect on their confidence.I don’t think we should be too concerned with this cup .We have limited attacking options and the loss of Mings would have a major effect on us. On the other hand a run in this cup may give us some momentum and allow our new players more time to get used to playing with each other. Difficult selection decision.

What’s worrying me is are there 3 weaker teams than us? Currently it seems only Watford maybe Palace. I look at other teams like Brighton and Southampton and see similar strength to us. My hope is as a team we are likely to improve and I think there maybe some money in January to buy another striker.

We seemed under the cosh for so long forgot about 2nd goal!

We really needed that win. It would be hard to pick any of our players who had a bad game but we could have lost that game 3-1 with better finishing from Everton. Alotof positives Wesley,Jota Engels ,Guibert and Mings(hardly needs mentioning) We seem to have a very strong defensive shape when opposition have the ball and this means we can defend 1-0 leads which will be crucial to our survival.

We have had a number of loan players in the last few years .Some of them leave a bigger mark with fans than others.I felt Abraham was a player who gave his all for us.He reminded me a bit like Snodgrass in that regard.His goals and also his defensive duties at set pieces were a major factor in us getting promoted.He turned down the chance to play for Wolves so I will always remember him with affection. I really felt sorry for him last night and it is easy to forget he is only 21.Not sure if Chelsea is the right club for him.

I seem to remember we announced a number of players who were being released like Jedinak,Hutton etc but Whelan wasn’t mentioned. It was suggested he was maybe going to be offered a new deal but the next day it was announced he was leaving . I wonder if Villa tried to contact him and were unable so they didn’t announce it with the others but after 24 hours they felt it had to be announced.He probably shouldn’t have turned his phone off.

There is often a lot of knee jerk reaction on here after a game.We win a game 1-0 and we are world champions lose a game 1-0 and we are relegation fodder.We could have drawn that game if we had held out for the last 5 mins and on here it would mostly regarded as a brilliant performance. Our big game is actually next week against Bournemouth.They are an established premier league team with a very good manager who have actually spent quite a lot of money .Some on here will expect us to win that game.I am not sure. We are a team in transition that is going to need time to gel.Instant results are not going to happen.Weneed to be patient with all our players.I remember when Bergkamp was signed by Arsenal he took quite a long time to settle.Wes was playing against some of the best central defenders yesterday ,he will time to adapt. if fans get on the backs of players this early we are in trouble.

And gentlemen in England now abed Shall think themselves accursed they were not here Its really difficult to get away tickets these days

This game is impossible to predict. We have a large number of new players playing in the premier league for the first time .Will they be inspired or nervous probably both. Spurs have some injury problems which might help us.I can’t see us winning but a positive performance would be enough for us. Its a shame Douglas only got his permit a few days ago because that defensive midfield position is crucial for us.There does seem to be times when we are wide open in that area and Spurs have the players to cause us big problems.

He has been given a big vote of confidence by Smith today. I thought when we played WBA in second leg and we were desperate for a goal and Smith left him on the bench I took it that he couldn’t trust him and he would leave in the summer. I think he may be better suited to the Premier league .When he stepped in for Abraham last season I thought he did well .He has shown good attitude since he became second choice CF and I can see him scoring goals this season.

I do think we need another striker.A Fox in the box type of striker to come off the bench with 15 mins to go. I would be happy with a loan deal but this is not deemed acceptable now.I think someone towards the end of their career who won’t mind not playing regularly.Trying to think of a name.

What about RHM?Thought he looked sharp in pre season .Another striker option?

Romavillan mentions the score was 2-1 I can’t believe that we scored and it was that close .My memory must have blocked it out.

The funny thing is Villa played against Juventus in 1983 after winning the European cup against Zoff ,Rossi, Tardelli,Betagga,and Platinini and we were completely outplayed.I remember for very large periods of the game we didn’t touch the ball.Probably the best away team I have seen at Villa park.

I bought 2 memberships in my name ,I was unable to speak to anybody on the phone and want to check does that allow me to buy 2 tickets?

Steer playing in goal for both halves might indicate we have a new keeper coming and not risking Kalinic

Looks quick and tall .We are going to have the tallest team in the league. Could come in handy if we have any Leeds type situations.

I personally would rather stick with Smith even if we are in danger of relegation which I think is a strong possibility. Unfortunately the money we are spending on transfers (100 million plus)means relegation would be a financial disaster. I don’t think the owners can allow that to happen.This means Smith is under a a lot of pressure to start our PL campaign well. I have mixed feelings about the money we are spending ,on one hand we could be a strong mid table team but it means 3 or 4 defeats in a row and people will start questioning Smith.The media will also use this to criticise Smith and Villa. Part of me would prefer a lower transfer spend which accepts relegation as a possibility and would allow time for Smith to rebuild again in the championship if the worst happened.

I think we need another striker and Maupay might be the right fit.It might take time for Wes to settle and having some other striking options may help to ease some of the pressure on him especially as he doesn’t seem to be prolific. I would keep Kodja he provides continuity and can play in different positions .His main weakness is his work rate but last season he chipped in with some crucial goals.

Not sure about a manager needing to understand the history of the club and what it represents. Did Clough understand the history of Forest before he was there.Was Wenger following the history of Arsenal ?Both of them created their own history and style. Smith seems an incredibly likeable person and his playing style is easy on the eye.He is a Villa fan and knows our history . But at the end of the day he will be judged on results.lf he loses his first 6 games no one will care if he gets us or our history. To me him being a villa fan is an afterthought.His most important attribute is his ability to get players playing as a team and winning football games. I expect next season to be really tough for us.We are not used to losing games and getting beaten heavily.Ihope our fans are prepared this this and don’t turn on Smith.

I may be in a minority here but I think Bruce has some managerial skill. He is a good judge of player and knows how to set up a team to avoid getting beaten. He made mistakes here especially in his last season and the style of football was poor but I think he will do well there. He will get in some experienced players and they have some really good players. His problem is the general direction of the club ,it reminds me of our relegation season when Lerner wanted to sell.

He was crucial to our promotion 8 goals and 11 assists .In the playoffs his goal against WBA and his pass to Adomah in final were vital. I think he is an underrated player who might surprise people next season.