FLVillan

I think we'll see Nakamba and Guilbert leave and possibly Olsen (if we can bring in a suitable number two GK).  I do have a funny feeling that there will be a surprise departure in there also if Unai is able to strengthen in the areas he wants to.... 

Not sure about Sanson and Coutinho - is Sanson injured again or has he blotted his copybook with a third successive manager?

2 hours ago, smg said:

Oh no he kicked three balls into the crowd and closed down a player inside the penalty area about to shoot on goal !! Much better to stay where he was and let the player shoot . Let’s be honest it didn’t matter what he did if we lost today it was his fault . 
In no way was he responsible for todays result, but it’s quite trendy to say so,

looking forward to a faultless end of season from Emi.

I never said he was responsible for the result.  If you actually read my post I was referencing the fact that Bailey was as culpable as he was for costing us in big moments in the game.  They were both poor when needed.  If he'd stayed big and under-control on the third goal he would have had an opportunity to force the player wide when he decided not to shoot initially.  Mis-hitting the odd pass is expected.  To hit routine passes ten yards over the head of the intended target continually is poor play/lack of composure and gives teammates no confidence in your ability to play out.  Bailey was poor today, so was Olsen.  He's not good enough at this level and has proven that in every match he's played.  

2 hours ago, flashingqwerty said:

Bailey worse than Olsen?!?!?

I think they were as bad as each other and equally culpable for costing us.  Bailey had two balls played directly to his feet in front of goal and air-kicked both of them.  I see people on these boards slating Watkins (at least Watkins made clean contact and put his efforts on target) but those two mis-kicks by Bailey were appalling.  Olsen kicked at least three "passes" directly into the crowd and only he can explain what he was hoping to achieve when he came flying out into no-mans land on the third (killer) goal. 

1 hour ago, sidcow said:

I want him gone just to end the innane squabbling on here. 

I'd love to think it would end the squabbling but let's face facts here... we are Villa fans   There's still arguments going on about ex-players who have long-since retired...

14 minutes ago, Vive_La_Villa said:

Good for us. We should be stronger in December / Jan with a near fresh squad. My biggest concern might be if Olsen has to start.

Exactly.  By his sheer incompetence, 'Agent Stevie G' has put us in a better situation for the second half of the season.... 

Oh, and please don't mention Olsen....

I seem to vaguely recall that Arsenal were prone to poor disciplinary record in the past.  Was that under Unai?

In the context of the good old days, it's annoying and considered gamesmanship.  In the context of the modern game it's necessary and is practiced by all.  We just haven't been very good at it - it shows a bit of a ruthless streak in a way.  There have been plenty of times over the past few years when we have been on the receiving end of it.  It's about time we started leveling the playing field and I have no complaints that we're doing it..... 

The comparison between us and Man City is irrelevant.  If we had the absolute best players that money can buy with half a billion quid's worth of talent sitting on the bench and could win matches by 3, 4, 5 goals then we'd also not be "wasting time" at the end of games.... 

Brighton post match interview he explains his decision to change the shape to get the best out of Danny Ings.  What type of sorcery is this?  Villa managers are supposed to pigeon hole players into their preferred system and watch them struggle! How dare he set up a team to get the best of the players! Emery out!

I like the new badge.  It's (mostly) claret and blue.  The finer details about letters being perfectly aligned etc. is irrelevant to me.  I'd have been happy with either to be honest because the previous four badges have had a yellow/gold lion as the predominant feature with the last two in particular being particularly horrendous - a light colour with a light background, neither of which are our predominant colour.  

I appreciate the thought that went into it.  I like the idea of returning to the round badge (which in my opinion should never have been removed) and I like the thought that went into facing the Lion in the same direction as our very first Lion (which I assume was inspired by the McGregor/Scottish connection). 

My only complaint is now my tattoo (the claret Lion from the old round badge) will only look right if I see it in a mirror.... 

Both Leeds and Everton have had a couple of spectacular failures with introductions of a new badge in recent years.  VILLA DID IT RIGHT! 

We were playing a high-line first-half and it was working.  United adjusted but still struggled to break us down.  The ball forward for their first goal is an easy, repeat easy ball for a competent goalkeeper to come and collect.  Then we got back into it and looked in control.  The Mings for Konsa substitution changed the game.  I like Mings, but he can never, ever play in a back-four that plays as high as that.  His tendency as a player has always been to drop off.  He simply couldn't do it.  Couple his introduction with Chambers changing sides and it all fell apart defensively.  Olsen was simply embarrassing.

2 hours ago, The_Steve said:

2 hours ago, Rds1983 said:

I remember Terry pointing out how we always got tired and couldn't finish games after Chelsea beat us 7-1.

MON signed so many players on ridiculous wages then only ever played the same few people. 

 Built a squad that could only go 60 minutes a game. 

I was coaching with a guy who is good friends with a few of the staff that were at Everton and ManUre at the time of his appointment.  We were having a few drinks and to a man they told me that his teams were notorious for fading off, both in terms of at the end of matches and the end of seasons.  I didn't want to believe it at the time as he'd just come in and hope was high, BUT How right they were...

36 minutes ago, Shomin Geki said:

What a day!  Had an absolute blast.  Give a great bunch of lads a sense of purpose and direction and watch them thrive.

TODAY'S PLAYER RATINGS (season average afterwards)

MARTINEZ 8 (6.5) An absolute rock.  Has probably wasted a game's worth of minutes already this season.

MINGS 9 (6.83) Thought he was absolutely outstanding today.  Dominant, urgent, and with a little classy swashbuckling thrown in too.  Won everything and was hungry for more.  Obviously such commitment and swagger would be completely useless at a major international footballing tournament. 

KONSA 8 (5.86) The assured by-the-book Good Cop to Mings's heartthrob maverick, Konsa today was calm, incisive and intelligent.  It's good to have the old Konsa back.  It's great to have the boys properly back together.

CASH 7 (6) Effectively marshalled the right side of defense all game.  There's something of a newfound seniority about Cash of late.  I very much hope he can spike the old sweat-gargling, every-game-a-marathon Cash into this emerging maturity.

DIGNE 7 (5.6) A lovely free-kick was the prettiest bow atop a winningly calming, measured, neat performance.  Clearly loved setting Villa Park alight.

LUIZ 8 (6.33) Key to our organisation, with just about the right balance of bite and flow to his game.  Dependable and authoritative.

DENDONCKER 7 (5.33) Some floppy moments where he seemed to lack a bit of awareness, but was everywhere today.  Put in a mighty shift, but hard to see him contributing a huge amount once Kamara gets back up to speed.  Vital to our shape today.

RAMSAY 9 (5.79) Following some hapless performances under the other bloke was great to see our boy once again charging towards his seeming destiny as a proper Complete Player.  Tenacious covering, thrilling sprints with the ball, impeccable late charges into the box, devastating finishing.  Our collective pulse quickens when Ramsey is in full flow.

BUENDIA 7 (5.77) Still not at his tight, metronomic best, with a few too many loose balls today.  Nonetheless, displayed an infectious, endless energy all game, his terrier attitude crucial in not letting the potential sucker punch of a late-half goal deflate us.  His imperious best is surely not too far away.

BAILEY 8 (5.38) Smouldered today.  Fire in his boots.  Today showed what Bailey is capable of: Red hot one minute, cool as nice the next.  Yet another play I can't wait to watch truly explode.

WATKINS 8 (5.38) That's much more like it!  More than a few defense-scaring dashes today, with some really handy hold up play too.  The nervy Watkins of a few weeks back doesn't even see Ramsay for the cut back.  The sheer volume of space Watkins can be effective in is a real asset.  Never gonna be a stone-cold killer, let's hope the smarts of Emery optimises the many positives in his all-round game.

INGS 6 (6)

YOUNG 6 (6.44)

MCGINN 6 (4.43)

KAMARA 7 (6.43) Saw out the game with an already reliable casual expertise.

Agree with all of that, although I personally thought Dendoncker was superb.  The key to our tactics and tactical adjustments to make the game so comfortable.  One minute he's playing alongside the strikers to be a target and the next he's slotting in at centre-back to cover a run by Konsa.  But, you were there, so your perspective is probably better than mine.  

I thought Young was worthy of an 7/8 also - a couple of brilliant defensive interceptions/clearances late on.....

And come on, let's give Sanson a 7 for the little pirouette...

OK, my take on things.  Buoyant Villa Park gives the team energy and we get off to a flying start.  Superb game management and tactical adjustments allow us to see things out and add a third goal for an emphatic win.  Emi did what he had to do to keep Utd at bay and only an incredible lucky deflection beat him (the shot was going so far wide it would have got a "wayhayyyy" from the Holte).  Bailey and Watkins electric.  Digne justified his selection.  To a man we were better than them.  Mings and Konsa made Ronaldo look like a pub player. 

Deandonker was superb, not just in his performance but his tactical discipline and tweaks and changes - at one point in the second half he was up in the centre-forward position playing as a target-man, the next minute he was covering centre-back as Konsa advanced into the united penalty area. 

United's Martinez should have seen straight red for the clear, after-the-ball elbow on Bailey.  He could have had two additional yellows for bad fouls, yet walked off the pitch without even a lecture from the ref.  Luke Shaw could arguably have seen red for the foul on Ramsey as he was clean-through on goal.  Ronaldo could have seen red for the head-lock and drag-down of Mings.  The referee was beyond abysmal. 

My MOTM today.  Covered so much ground.  Allowed Luiz to operate in space and execute passes, was a target for longer balls late in the game, got tackles in, won headers and used the ball well.  Outstanding.

4 hours ago, punkiller1981 said:

last point and I don’t really want to pick holes in how bad Utd were because I actually think we just outplayed them no more to it than that but. Ronaldo really is finished at premier league level, I have not seen many strikers look less threatening than he did today. It’s almost sad to see a once decent player looking so poor and past it but as it’s him I’m not going to shed to many tears

Tyrone Mings just got a phone call on his way home.  He reached into his pocket to answer the call and realized little Ronny was still in there....

30 minutes ago, TheAuthority said:

Just woke up hoping to see the team news and forgot the clocks have gone back 
I hate this lot!

#metoo 

2 hours ago, UpTheVilla26 said:

Messi. 

You can't really compare era's but modern day, they play a hell of a lot more football and to constantly do what he's done is unreal really. 

Plus, the goals he has scored are just perfection at times. Gliding past 5 or 6 players before finishing it, it's just a joy to watch. 

Besides the obvious candidates, there is 1 player I'd pay money to have watched alone - Xavi. He was brilliant. 

Xavi was absolute class.  Saw him play twice in the flesh.  He was absolutely superb.  Never got the limelight in those Spain/Barcelona teams, but was the actual reason why they were so dominant. 

Picking one, I'd go for Pele.

It's definitely a generational thing.  And really impossible to compare as the game continues to evolve.  I grew up watching Pele and subsequently Maradona.  In modern times, the best individual performance I've ever seen "in the flesh" was Ibrahimovic (I saw him playing for Sweden in Stockholm).  Just played the game on a different level.  I've never seen Messi live and Ronaldo always underwhelmed me when I watched him live.  Undoubtedly great players and I'd go for Messi over Ronaldo as he plays/acts with good deal more humility. 

It's rare that I'm on the fence about anything, but I'd happily take either.  Option 1 is different and option 2 reminds me of my youth.  I actually like the idea of the lion facing the other way.... 

I can say that, since the 1970's there has been discussion of "why yellow" anywhere in our badge.  Our colours, back before internet days were always listed as claret, blue and white.  The yellow came in for the old round badge and has become more and more prominent down the years.  With no real foundation or reason either.  The fact that Wet Spam and Burnley have a lot of yellow in their badges tells me that there must be something in the graphic design world that says yellow is a good colour to put with claret and blue.  I'd rather see white lettering personally, but I understand why it would be a challenging mix with anything whit a white background (ie. paper and white away shirts). 

He actually spoke at the press conference today! Albeit answering a journo's question...

44 minutes ago, maltesemike said:

Is it me or did he come across as nervous in his opening statement at the press conference? Could well be in the shit house after the Gerrard sh*t show 

I have a feeling that NSWE have left him in no doubt that he f****d up with the Gerrard appointment.  I would imagine he's feeling a bit butt-hurt being on the end of a good bollocking.... 

Did anyone else catch him say WED Edens?  

I hope we do, but I don't think we'll get the "new manager bounce" with Emery.  His approach is methodical and for the longer-term implementation of an actual plan and style.  It will take a while.  We will need to be patient.  My guess is that we won't see the real fruits until January/February....

It's obvious that at the 62-minute mark of the Fulham match that Nas, as owner of the club, made a decision about the future of our first-team coaching.  That's his right and it certainly isn't the first time that a club owner has overruled a CEO or Director.  Purslow got the Gerrard appointment horribly wrong and I'm sure he'd admit that privately.  He's probably been given a "talk" by NSWE and they will limit, or remove, his involvement in major football decisions.

Purslow isn't perfect.  Far from it.  Having said all that, he's a massive improvement on Faulkner, Fox, Wyness, and Ellis.   What he's done on the financial/commercial and development side has been very good.  I guarantee the new North Stand and surrounding development will be a massive upgrade on the in-house (cheap) build of the Witton Lane stand and he won't be naming it after himself either.