MattVillaPortsmouth

Tbf we have prob been the better team without threatening - but that’s what you get for having a striker on pitch. Need to play quicker and higher up, not out of this yet

That’s not the case, it’s 3 points for Top 25% of fee for All previous season transfers (Mitrovic was 20m), or 2 POints for top 50%. (You can also get 3pts for wages which again is top 25% - same rules). Needs 4+ points, so we absolutely needed one of either fee or wages

There is a good reason why this clown never got many minutes at Burnley FFS

I keep saying to myself it cant get worse, but this is worse than last week - Brighton are shocking but we are making them look quality. Hause, Drinkwater, Trez, Nakamba all useless.

No fight, sorry but that down to manager. Poor selection, that’s down to manager. Individual errors he can’t d9 much about. Seriously needs to up his game, but I also question Terry, surely if DS can’t inspire a team then JT should

Atleast he is trying, not like his midfield partners only one who gets up and down, yep has had a few dodgy touches/passes.

Difference is back up my claims with facts, you just spout your hatred of all players, presume Trez will get all your attention this week. I have seen all the games with my mark 1 eyeball - he scored a goal not out of nothing but out of progressive build up play (something we have hardly done), and key passes in lead up is the same, can only make a key pass or score if you have decent ball in decent territory. Only a small percentage can on a regular basis make things out of nothing.

Don’t know why, but I will humour you. His stats from today we’re below is average for passing, pass completion and shit touch (4 today, 2.4 is his average) - those are facts. He covered the same amount of ground as he normally does (factoring in less minutes). The reason he looked better as we set up and played to his strengths, Jack close to him (but also Nakamba/Luiz further forward), we didn’t hit high balls up to him to control, we hit his feet and put stuff on the deck. Our wide play was better, as we had options inside to move ball forward quicker.

Well I only hope we find out one way or another, as I think we can agree (regardless of which way round) something needs to change. Sometimes a good player just doesn’t fit in a club. Happy new year and all that jazz, here’s to Wes banging in a few in 2020

We could argue all day long, yes he is not great - but the midfield is the biggest issue, I watch enough football to know that

Easy to swing stats though. Average pass - He averages 30 passes per game at 84% completion, mcGinn 28 at 82, Grealish 40 @ 85,%, Luiz 30 @ 85% - hardly “some of the worst in squad” - I read it wrong, it’s average of 17 @72 so yeah dog toffee losing ball - on average 2.7 times per match, Grealish 1.7, Abraham spookily 2.7 times per match (just for shits and giggles), AEG 1.7 - so agreed first touch could be a lot better, but some of the balls we have pinged up to him not many could control - but for context sterling 1.9, Abraham 2.7, C Wilson 2.4, joelinton 3.8 Dribbles - He averages less than 1 a game (.6) but like you say if he doesn’t get the ball or has rubbish control this is expected. (Connor 0.2, AEG 0.9) and again for shots and giggles - Abraham 0.4 per game, Pukki 0.9, vardy 0.7 So Abraham/Vardy are part of their teams major problems? If we’re judging on those stats - like I said stats can be used however you want them (like I have). he is an issue, but not our major one

Don’t score goals - only 7 teams have scored more than us, take out top 5 (who always will) scoring is not our main problem! No wonder you can’t get your head around posts, you don’t seem to get your head around stats! Possession and Creativity is our issue, but that’s not for this thread. Like I have said (and others have also) he is not and was never brought to be our main 9 and top scorer - so you judging him by not being is well pretty much pointless. Judging by your posts I highly doubt you watch the full games and just see no goals scored (or Wes not on scoresheet) and use that as the basis of your posts. Yes he is not the finished article but he is no way our biggest problem.

Thought I would come on here to see it was all Wesleys fault - never disappointed, wouldn’t surprise me if a few on here don’t even watch the game just post on auto pilot. For the header - Held ball up well, played it out wide, got in box and got head on ball, put it back against the way the keeper came from - Big ticks for everything you all wanted from him. Great reactions from foster, yes he could have directed it better or got a bit more power on - but **** me deeney scuffed his first!! Was again not the real problem today, not by a long shot

Agreed, penalty aside at least he tried And was our best midfielder today, with penalty and Sar goal was busting a gut to get back. Deeney was just to clever for the pen, but that comes with experience.

Exactly this, the ball was back to Jota cuts out 2 of their players but Elmo doesn’t think that fast so he is left with aimless punt up or ball back. We need to be 10-20 yards further up, every other teams seems to be able to play balls forward to their players who can run on to it (either to space or first touch is forward) I can’t recall us doing that once out from back/mid Jota off for Trez, Lansbury off for Kodja for me

That’s true, 140m is a fairly sizeable amount to spend in 1 summer, but I think we are a year ahead of where our ‘plans’ thought we would be. By that I mean I presume we expected to push for promotion this year and some of the players we brought were planned for a year in championship to bed in and settle down, others were brought at ‘risk’ to try and keep us up with a slightly increased budget. was always going to be tough, I think we are there or there abouts on where we can reasonably expect to be, but there is a lot to be said for the way a manager sets out his team and gets best out of what he has, Smith IMO has still to do that.

I only hope ‘some’ in here don’t go watch their children play or even coach them (I say this with 10 years experience as a local club volunteer), I have seen first hand how that has an adverse effect. just a little bit of time and realism go a long way

It was instead of, I believe they always wanted someone with Wes (could imagine them both together) and if I was Maupay I would have chosen brighton over us.

Heaton Freddy Mings Konsa Targett Nakamba Luiz McGinn Hourihane Jack Wes Subs - Nyland, Hause, Engels, AEG, Kodja, Trez, Elmo Close between Konsa and Engels, for all good Engels does his pace kills him midfield not width, but don’t think AEG and Trez are good enough so strongest it is but unbalanced

Morelos, Benrahma and a leader in midfield (happy with loan) gonna cost 45m ish but is minimum what we need. Giroud, only on loan and as last resort, at 33 is not mobile enough (or has he ever been) for what we need although he is lethal in box (but we don’t cross enough) so yes but not as the one to save us!

Maybe slightly over the top, I am sure 22m pounds of our owners money, DS and The Brazil Manager beg to differ on your expert opinion yes he has not been great, but jeez a little bit of realism please

He is doing what he was when we brought him, he is not (and won’t) be a teams top scorer as to me he is more of a forward than a striker. So needs to either play as a front 2 or have runners off him (playing further up the field, ahead of him). It’s too easy for people to sit back and go ohh look a forward who doesn’t score, he is rubbish it’s his fault we are dropping like a lead balloon - others have said he is by a long shot not our biggest problem. His strike rate at Brugge was 1 in 3.4, here it is 1 in 3.8, so if he wasn’t scoring bucket loads in a weaker league was never going to do it in a new prem team. I am by no means saying he is playing well or anything, but our tactics make him (and others) look bad, smith must be telling him to be so deep (or if not why hasn’t he stopped him). Our players don’t play to his strengths, and that is tactics we are too 1 dimensional and only look for jack.

Hi, long time reader of villatalk thought it about time I posted. Villa fan born and bred in Acocks Green, but moved to Portsmouth at an early age and have stayed here since (job), still have famalam in brim so get up when I can and try to swing by villa park for a game or two a season. cheers