Five Ken McNaughts

A goal a game? I would have been cock-a-hoop with one in the last ten PL matches. When a cross arrived at his feet 8 yards out against Southampton, he not only failed to swivel his body to turn the ball goalwards, he didn't even swivel his foot – just kicked it the way he was facing, straight into the hoardings. I would love for Wes to make me look an absolute fool for ever doubting him (every week I cheer for exactly that!) but we appear to have spent £22m on the Emperor's New Clothes and, try as I might, I just can't see the magnificent finery that some posters swear is right there in front of me.

"Something" has to change. And I hope the necessary changes are recognised and implemented by Dean Smith. IF, at some hypothetical point in the future, there is no evidence of that happening – and we are sinking deeper into the mire with blind adherence to "Plan A" – then change will, inevitably, have to happen at a different level. I sincerely hope it is Deano who finds the solution(s) but at the same time I understand the concern. Strangely enough, the last time I found myself counting the number of players on each team, scratching my head at what I was watching, was also against Southampton (5-1 down at half time under Sherwood).

Take a look at Guilbert's long-range shot that was tipped over just before half-time. Four players – El Ghazi, Luiz, Hourihane and Targett – all charge into the six-yard box in the hope of picking up a rebound or deflection. Where is Wes? Totally static, on his heels, somewhere near the penalty spot. Look, I'll cheer him on every time he is on the pitch in a Villa shirt, but can you teach "predatory instinct" to a 23-year-old? I'm not so sure.

As an aside (to take my mind off more depressing issues), I have never seen a ref that gets more physically in the way than Craig Pawson. Constantly sprinting to stand in the path of the obvious pass – in the hope that he can dummy it, nutmeg himself or swivel away at the last moment. Not surprised that his circus tricks eventually resulted in him hoofing a Villa through-ball. What an absolute clown.

Bjorn Engels? Fourth fastest player in the league? I've heard it all now.

Tuesday presented Dean Smith with the perfect chance to move on from the Wesley debate – a new role for Kodj (as starter) and a new role for Wes (from the bench) with both offering at least the potential for goals. I wish he had taken it. Wes fades badly – in last season’s Jupiler league he scored in just three matches after the break (not including a penalty). A total of 34 blanks in 37 second halves as starting centre-forward for the league’s top-scoring team. Not pretty reading. Unfortunately for him, those 93 kilos don’t get any lighter as games progress.

Bring him back. I like the guy. Can’t help it. Some people you just find yourself rooting for in life. Maybe it was the time I saw him signing autographs at the back of the North Stand long after some dismal home defeat. He was out injured, Villa had been crap, everyone had endured a shit day. But there he was on his own, very polite, helping at least a few young fans have something to take away from their afternoon. Yes, somewhere along the way he lost some spark of self-belief. But as long as he is a Villa player, I will continue hoping against hope that he somehow finds his groove and fulfils that potential he had. If not, well, then the hope cost me nothing and I will still wish him all the best.

I thought he was very good against Everton in both the whole match and the highlights. He and Guilbert down the right were a breath of fresh air that night.

Ihenacho trying to score instead of giving the ball back v Norwich today. Oh dear, oh dear. Shameless behaviour.

I'm still not sure who exactly we were fending off with this contract. Who was bashing down the door to poach the manager of the team in 16th? Why the sudden need to tie Deano down (a lifelong Villa fan, already in his dream job)? Four years? It's a strange one.

The Trinity Road stand is such an evocative Villa name, I would be sad to see it changed. And while the North Stand carries no such fondness (and is the only part of Villa Park to remain from the Ron Saunders era) it would feel a bit like personalising a chipped mug. My personal preference is for a statue outside the Holte End (with the potential for it to be moved to a redeveloped North Stand – named the Ron Saunders Stand – however many years down the line that may be).

If Wesley is supposedly so popular around Bodymoor Heath, why do we see constant bad vibes between him and his teammates on the pitch? Compare it to how the humble and hard-working Davis is clearly loved by everyone when he plays. Something is badly wrong here, no matter how much (understandable) damage limitation Dean Smith engages in.

I daydream of the time when every hacked / hoofed / sliced clearance was taken majestically on the chest by Benteke.

Come on, now. Reading through this thread... All this talk of "them" and "vendettas" is a bit much, isn't it? Surely we can all express our honest views on Wesley here. It's just opinions, folks. I have my doubts about the guy but I'll be cheering him every bit as hard as his most ardent believers on Sunday. (And, no, I've never known any Villa fan who would want a player to miss just so they can "win" an argument. I'm really not sure that person exists).

Right now, I would take a random & infuriating Kodjia over a predictable & infuriating Wesley.

Football fans have never had any problem with the common sense expression "in line with the last defender". VAR started down the short path to mockery and resentment as soon as it began pretending it had the technology to atomize these situations. When visual technicians pointed out the unavoidable margin of error in frame-by-frame footage, VAR officials continued to proudly declare an armpit was 1cm more advanced than a buttock. These are not "correct" decisions. They are guesses. I don't know whether to laugh or cry at the hubris of these people.

Yep. As is surely borne out by the evidence (including Andreas' deliberate toe poke to the calf after just 50 seconds yesterday). The "most fouled" tag tells only half the story. In terms of targeted kicks & rakes to the calf / ankle / achilles, no other Premier League player takes punishment like Jack. For someone whose talent is constantly put at risk by spineless refereeing, he is remarkably good humoured.

Yep. He is up against rotational fouling in every single game he plays. Maybe football could adopt a rugby-style approach to this cynical tactic. "Your team has committed multiple identical offences in the last X minutes (i.e. cheap shots on Grealish). The next person to commit the same offence gets an automatic yellow. Don't care if it's his first transgression." It would at least give the opposition pause for thought.

Fair play to him for the finish, but that first Man Utd goal... It's the the déjà déjà déjà déjà vu that gets to me.

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Noticed the same. Plenty of 3-on-2 breaks in the last ten minutes – none of which ever looked like they would end with Wesley being played in and tucking it away. Hard to say exactly how much was down to Wes, and how much was a lack of belief in him from his team-mates. I would be drilling those 3-on-2's in training all week. Until Keinan's injury, Wes wasn't generally on the pitch in those final moments when the game gets stretched. Do we actually have a specific striker / attacking coach?

To echo previous comments – genuinely sorry to hear you had your night ruined by a moron, @terrytini. If at all possible, when you feel ready, perhaps you could try to turn a crap experience into some kind of positive. Say goodbye to the Holte Upper rather than the whole of Villa Park and spend the next few months on a tour of other stands and tiers to find your new favourite spot. It might even be a breath of fresh air! (And, if nothing else, you’ll definitely be closer to the pitch). You’re absolutely right about the first ten minutes of the second half, by the way. If ever there was a time the players needed telling to wake up, that was it. I think you’ll be very welcome wherever you end up.

My apologies @NurembergVillan. You are quite right. I saw your comment about immigration decisions in this thread and didn’t read back far enough to see it was actually related to Windrush. My fault entirely. I’m not sure if there is an “average Brexiteer”, @mjmooney. No more than an “average Remainer”. Obviously, the stereotype for each side has been rammed down everyone’s throats – bigoted knuckle-dragger vs out-of-touch metropolitan elitist. Reductive and divisive cartoons in my opinion.

Yep. 7 out of 10 for VAR's performance so far. Ha! Just in case we hadn't realised our VAR overlords are utterly delusional.

Just heard Neil Swarbrick (Premier League Head of VAR Operations) on Sky Sports News saying that refs going to the pitch side monitor “is not being discouraged”. Either he is lying through his teeth or there isn’t a single Premier League referee with an independent mind. I am not sure which is worse.