MJ_1874

Will always appreciate what Dean Smith did for us, he gave us our Villa back. Unfortunately this is a results business and no one is safe. I think he was unlucky losing Grealish for 10 games at the end of last season and all the injuries and disturbance at the start of this season but results are important and these owners will not accept failure. The one man I definitely want is Graham Potter. It would be a perfect appointment for both sides.

"Plenty to worry about" wtf are you talking about, we just outplayed the European champions away from home for much of the game. Plenty to be excited about more like.

Very good performance apart from the Mings mistake. Martinez does not concede 3 in this game. What I really hit me was how good our squad is now. Sanson couldn't get on, Buendia to come back. I've seen a few comments that we are in trouble this season, you people clearly no nothing about football. Our transition was quality, we pressed them and won the ball high up the pitch many times and kept the champions of Europe pinned back for much of the game. We could of easily scored 3 or 4 goals in this game and 18 shots away from home!

Several of our players have been upgraded though and overall we may be stronger than we were last season when most of the time we were sitting between 4th-8th. We started last season without Ings, Bailey and Buendia. Sanson has yet to really show what he can do. Ramsey has matured. If we had sold Grealish and signed no one then I would agree with you. I am still hoping for a solid DCM but don't understand your pessimism.

Did you actually watch last season? Until Grealish got injured we were looking good for a top 6-7 finish.

Stats are not everything but they can cut through personal opinions which (unless you watch every single game multiple times) are very subjective. Everything I said is supported by stats. Fbref (link below) provide a good summary. https://fbref.com/en/players/6613c819/Tomas-Soucek

Tielemans - stats are about the same as McGinns (the disrespect on his name is criminal)Maddison - A number 10 comparable to Buendia, we'll see who end up creating the most this yearNdidi - Defensive machine would love himRice - Overated can tackle ok but no where near to Ndidi's level. Doesn't really contribute much else. £100m for him a joke. Would prefer Bissouma.Soucek - Weird player, ok at tackling and scoring goals but that's about it. Benrahma - Comparable to Bailey/Buendia/Traore we'll see who scores/assists more come the end of the season So no we are not a million miles away from these two teams. We are lacking a true Ndidi type player which we all know.

I think we will have two main game plans. 1) Counter attack against strong teams using Bailey as a over-the-top out ball on the RW and Watkins as a hold the ball up/flick on out ball on the LW with Ings looking to score from either which means Buendia probably sits on the bench unless we go behind for these matches assuming everyone is fit. Hopefully there are only 4 or 5 teams we would set-up like this against. 2) Possession focused against weaker teams where the front three will stay the same but Beundia comes in as a 8/10 to add some creativity to break teams down. We might rotate Traore in to work some magic with Bailey/Watkins on the LW.

He hasn't impressed enough to play for one of the biggest clubs in the world. He has scored a relatively high number of goals and created a lot of chances considering his position, done a relatively high number of tackles and interceptions, high number of presses and he is good in the air. He would be a welcomed addition but not our priority in my opinion. He would be a Hourihane replacement.

Just watch the game back on Villa TV. Ramsey/Mings/Ings/McGinn the obvious ones stood out watching live. I never thought Ramsey was going to make it but the game today has completely changed my mind. Happy to be proven wrong. Watching back, I was impressed by Luiz and Young as well. Luiz kept the ball moving nicely and made some key interceptions and tackles. We missed him last week. Anwar, love him at the spot but he squandered 4 or 5 opportunities to break and set-up a big chance. Bailey starting in that position gets us another 2 or 3 clear cut chances and we win 3 or 4 nil.

I'm not sure he is better than what we have. Yes he did well in Ajax but can't seem to cut it in the premier league. His defensive contribution is what is lacking from what I understand.

CDM aside, would anyone take Lingard on a loan with an option to buy? If he can hit his West Ham form, he would be a decent addition.

Definitely need a strong DCM, Nakamba was bullied all game. Buerndia was not fit and Bailey did well but obviously had little time. Also Ollie was a big miss. I think we need to play a new DCM behind McGinn/Luiz and Buendia/Sanson with Bailey on the right and Ollie on the left.

It's mad, European football is bankrupt and in meltdown just as we are loaded, this transfer window could go up another gear!

It seems Juventus are not able to afford Locatalli, would love him as a statement signing. Pay him £100k a week and 40m euros should do it. His defensive stats combined with his creative long range passing would be amazing. Stats