VillaAndLoyal

Very surprised, 6k away fans for a Local derby, All day drinking and a trip to Wembley up for grabs. Have WMP not done the maths? This will be messy! Will it though? I've never really seen or heard of any trouble between Villa and WBA. Be a completely different story if it was Villa vs Blues or WBA vs Wolves. Villa vs WBA is a "friendly" local derby imo. Trust me this is no "friendly" derby. Back in the day Villa-Albion was the main derby and many fans of a certain age would still consider this to be the main derby. They hate us and we're not too keen on them either. Heard about/seen plenty of trouble down the years to back this up.

My take on it: We're in a grim, grim place and all the statistics point to the fact we'll be relegated. If we're brutally honest, we've been toying with relegation for far too long now and I believe we do deserve to go. Those slating Tim Sherwood however are so wide of the mark it's untrue - the bloke has been here two weeks, he's not a miracle worker. The real culprit is Randolph Lerner and he's been a complete disaster ever since he walked into this club - from letting Steve Stride walk away to appointing Paul Faulkner with zero footballing knowledge to chucking money at a pipe dream hoping players like Habib Beye on £40,000-a-week were going to get us regular Champions League football. His whole tenure has been laughable. Sir Doug did many things wrong (don't get me wrong) but he's being made to look like a genius by this uninterested, clueless American. And one thing you can't say about HDE: he's never been an absent owner. Lerner's latest (and possibly fatal) mistake was keeping faith in a clueless Lambert for so long and it has provided Tim Sherwood with a massively tough task. Reading between the lines, Lerner's statement on Paul's departure makes it clear that so much faith was placed in Lambert because he was happy to be Lerner's 'yes man', puppet and shield from criticism, while the unsustainable spending was reigned in almost as fast as he first started chucking/wasting (delete as appropriate) money in the first place. A couple of very hard years beforehand, coupled with a spineless manager and spineless owner and vastly less resources was almost inevitably going to lead to the situation we see before us. The buck stops with Randolph Lerner, ultimately, and it fills me with great sadness that this almost constant descent he's been taking us on has largely gone unnoticed by the masses - instead frustrations being vented at previous managers and players. He's got away scot-free in all honesty and ironically today was the first time we've seen a banner in the Villa end directed at our owner. Sherwood has had two games with us now and despite the hugely disappointing end product, there have undoubtedly been signs that he's trying to get across a slightly different and more effective way of playing. In the first half against Stoke, we made more forward runs and were more positive with the ball (despite the fact it didn't convert to more shots on goal). Today we were the better team overall and definitely the better team in the first-half. We played more directly and are obviously trying to tap into our biggest threat (Benteke) - we passed when we needed to and used long diagonals to trouble the Newcastle defence. And, in fairness, we created chances today. Compared to some of our performances recently where even a chance was too much too expect, I call that small signs of progress. We're taking more risks now and that means we're more open at the back, hence why Newcastle almost countered us several times in the second-half. I'd rather be playing like that than some of the negative dross we saw under Lambert. The most disappointing thing for me about Sherwood today was his starting line-up. What more does Gabby have to do to get dropped? He's finished as a Premier League footballer and I'm worried if TS cannot see that. Carles Gil was poor against Stoke but he was being played out of position against a very physical side so it was inevitable one could argue. I felt today was the perfect game for him to come back in and show us what he can do linking up with Benteke. That said, he's the gaffer and we have to support him - he's come into a sinking ship. I thought Fabian Delph was an absolute travesty today - giving the ball away, turning backwards, conceding stupid fouls - he certainly didn't act like a Villa captain today and I'd give the armband to Clark immediately, who again had a good game. For me, there are several things we can do straight away to boost our survival chances: -Drop Gabby. He offers nothing any more. I think I could even beat him in a race, and that's the only thing he's ever been good at. -Play Gil. He's our most creative player, we struggle for goals. It's a no brainer. -Give Clark the captains armband to reward his performances of late. He's also a leader, I don't think Delph is. -Teach Benteke the offside rule. If he knows it already, tell him to prove it during a game because he's caught offside far, far too often. -Don't let Ashley Westwood take another set piece. I've seen a subbuteo player with more precision and quality than anything he serves up from a dead-ball situation. -Give Bacuna more game time and consider giving him a regular run in the team in an advanced position. Why? He can't be any less effectual than Gabby/Weimann and although he makes mistakes he does score goals & he can also take a free-kick, a department we're so limited in when he's not on the pitch. The situation looks desperate it really does and the two games against Baggies are huge and could be season-defining. We need a packed Villa Park on both occasions and we need to get behind them for the whole game - 90 minutes - no matter how badly we're playing. Two other glimmers of hope is that 1. we play Sunderland, QPR and Burnley before the end of the season and 2. QPR and Burnley have tougher run-ins than us. It's STILL in our hands and whilst we've still got a chance, a hope, I'll be there singing at the top of my lungs hoping that something will change and we'll get to the summer as a Premier League team. We need the fans now more than we've ever needed them before.

I'll probably get shot down for this but the thing that MOST disappointed me today (apart from conceding like that late on) was the attitude of the fans. Yes, you read that correct. Not the players, the fans. So often we as a fan base go on about how we deserve so much better because we're Aston Villa - well today we got exactly what we deserved. And I'll tell you for why. As others have said, today's game was so, so important being Sherwood's first game. We needed to create a siege mentality starting today and to keep that going for the rest of the season; we needed the positivity to continue if we're to have any chance of escaping from this mess. Yet, by the early stages of the second-half, Villa Park had turned back into the cauldron of negativity which has been eating away at this Club for the past 3-4 years. Before I get people saying: "Well the players can't be arsed, so why should i?" Well, this is modern day football chaps and it's a sad, sad fact that many footballers DON'T give a shit any more. They get paid tens of thousands of pounds each week for a few training sessions and a 90 minute match, why should they? We, as fans, are the only ones who will truly suffer if Aston Villa are relegated from the top flight. I get the frustration - I'm as pissed off at the players & chairman as anybody. But during the game we needed to put all that aside and support the team. Actually BE that 12th man for once. We should take that banner down as it's embarrassing - we have a fan base which is so used to moaning that we're seemingly far happier doing that than making Villa Park the cracking atmosphere that it can be on rare occasions. The thing that Albion and Blues fans usually chuck our way is that we're out-of-touch and expect too much. Well for the first time today I can see what they mean. Hardly anyone bothers singing in any regularity and the negativity in the second-half was infuriating as much as it was damaging. People shouting "f*ck off Sherwood" when he brought Weimann on, "get off the pitch you word removed" when Sanchez misplaced a pass, ironic cheering when Guzan released a ball early - why the hell are we not giving these useless muppets our undivided support for the last 13 games of the season? It's the only hope we have. Sherwood made mistakes today (formation, for one) but he's not a miracle worker and I actually did think he got a reaction at the start. I think we could and should have been 2-0 up at half-time and that sloppy equaliser was a massive blow. We may have had a lack of efforts on goal and a severe lack of quality in the second-half but at least we actually did try to drive forward. We had loads of corners for example - it's just we're the worst corner takers in the Premier League. If the fan base are going to 'turn' that easily from here on in, then we may as well all just give up and come back next season for the start of the Championship season. I know we're awful but we're not going to get out of this by moaning, are we? I for one was ashamed of some of our fans today.

Mate at the game yesterday (who runs another fans site) seemed to think Blackpool had only sold 500 odd tickets in their end. Their fans are apparently as uninterested as ours. If that's true, it could be around 15,000 surely...

The highlight of today's game for me (watching from the Holte upper) was also the half-time target competition although it sounds like I really missed out by not being in the lower Doug. Speaking to the old man after the game, apparently a Haribo sweet packet caught a gust of wind during the game and was lifted 30/40ft off the ground. By all accounts everybody in the vicinity was amazed and it provided them with a real talking point during the match with plenty of 'ooo's' and 'ahh's'.. Fascinating stuff!

You are Paul Lambert and I claim my £5. And no, what you have posted had definitely not already been said. One of our biggest problems (that is crystal clear for all to see) is a massive, alarming lack of movement when we have possession and a real lack or urgency in our passing. And yet you praise the team for their work rate? I used up more energy watching that game than Gabby & Benteke offered combined. If passing the ball around in pointless triangles between the midfield and defence is "definite progress" then why don't we get Houllier back? Because that's what he tried (and failed) to do. This is THE worst football I can ever remember in my 25 years as a season-ticket holder. The whole club, from the players to the fans to the management to the owners is LIFELESS... and yet you think there's some kind of progress? Not just some kind of progress but "definite progress"? We must be watching different teams. We'll be lucky to get 15,000 on Sunday, as Blackpool aren't bothered about the match either.

Thank god for one intelligent post in this thread - we, not Richardson, were our own worst enemies. Playing with 10 men makes it harder, clearly. But this was a very poor and low-on-confidence Albion team and one we should have coped with better even with 10 men. You often see teams go down to 10 men and they cope perfectly well, so why when we've got someone great in the air up top do we decide to play the ball around in silly little triangles in front of our own goal? This is clearly something which Lambert has asked the players to do and that's fine if we're 11 v 11 but when you've just had a man sent-off and the home crowd are buoyed why invite extra pressure on top of that? We were just clueless in that department. Loads of fans were screaming from the stands to hit Benteke and take a bit of pressure away but we kept trying to play like Bayern Munich. Why did Lambert not get a message on to the pitch? That really falls with the manager. I can't believe so many others have simply used Richardson as the scapegoat. It wasn't even a definite red card - we've seen them given and we've seen them not. Given that he made little contact with the player and made a genuine attempt to get the ball after over-running it, you'd have hoped Dean would have taken into account it was a full-blooded derby and not been swayed by the Albion moaners (who were screaming for decisions after every dive or coming together). But, alas, just like he did at Fulham away a couple of seasons ago, Mr Dean chose the spotlight once more. For those who said he made absolutely no wrong decisions: you must have missed the incidents in the first half when our player (maybe Hutton?) got away from the Albion player only to be hauled down with two arms over the top (no yellow card given), then a similar incident happens 5 minutes later at the Brummie Road End and the Villa player is booked. Where is the consistency in that? If that's an excellent refereeing performance then it just goes to show the level we've come to expect in this country. It was a really strange game in general yesterday. I, and many others, went into it with a lot of confidence. The pressure was all on Albion after their poor run of results and yet their players used the derby to gee themselves up & they seemed more 'up for it' and so did the crowd. It seemed like we were the nervous ones - on the pitch and in the stands (even before the red card). Our away end was very quiet first half, excellent for the first 20 minutes of the second half (thanks, in main, to that new chant which we got going in the concourse at half-time) and then quiet again once they had scored which I guess is to be expected when you've got thousands of yam yams 'boing-boinging' in their cup final. It's not the first time we've been quiet at the Hawthorns in recent seasons though so that was disappointing. One last point from yesterday: the new "YouTube celebrity" we have at the Villa (the one from the Benteke song) really did make me cringe. I saw him before the game in the away end having 'pictures' with other fans. Half expected a book signing to be taking place when I went down at half-time. He seemed to be absolutely loving his new found 'fame' - each to their own I guess...

We got over the line and the relief at the final whistle was palpable. We played fairly well and did what was needed but the Hull players (and fans) didn't turn up and there was only ever one team which really wanted to win. The fans were fantastic and helped push the players over the line. It was very telling in the second half that it was our real heroes, players like Ian Taylor, John Carew, Paul McGrath, Martin Laursen, Ollof Mellberg etc that received the recognition from the fans, not the current players masquerading as Premier League footballers. Many of the performances this season (Swansea, last week, for one example) have been nothing short of disgraceful and change is needed because we won't always scrape clear of relegation. Considering the *hit we've put up with this season, the fans have been very patient. Now it's time to sell to an owner who can invest in the team and squad, bring in a dynamic young manager (who, I don't know, anyone will be better than Lambert) and sign some players to replace this current dross.

I went yesterday and I'm completely baffled by people who say we played quite well. No, we didn't. It was a scrappy affair with loads of misplaced passes from both teams which, in part, was to be expected because of the torrential rain in South Wales which left me and most others looking like drowned rats even before the game kicked off. But despite a few spells where we kept hold of the ball, without doing anything with it I might add, Swansea were able to counter-attack at will and dominate us (in terms of chance creation) without really ever getting out of third gear. You'd have never guessed that it was Swansea which had been involved in the Europa League all season as their energy levels put ours to shame. So, coupled with defending which you wouldn't even see at under-10s level, and this was probably the easiest home game they've had all season. What infuriated the away following even more was how the players visibly stopped trying and gave up once the 2nd goal went in. Swansea should have netted their third goal long before they eventually did thanks to some frankly embarrassing and non-existent defending. The rest was elementary as Lambert reverted to his tactic against Bradford (H) last season by chucking on as many strikers as possible and hoping for the best. The guy is a fraud making his living as a football manager - he's literally fcuking clueless! The fact the Villa players got booed off at half-time and full-time tells its own story - we did not play well or better. It was dross, like watching League Two players at times. As someone else said, the away end was fairly muted yesterday but this is completely understandable and a few "what the **** hell is this", "we want our Villa back" and "We want Lambert out" chants were sung around the 70 minute mark but then until 87/88 minutes it was very quiet which I put down to the complete apathy and despondency around the club at the minute. At the final whistle, these songs were sung again and then a few of the players had the bare-faced cheek to clap or come over to us and there's no other way I can phrase this: they received dogs abuse (and rightly so). Some of the more self-righteous amongst us on here will I'm sure reply with "you're not proper Villa fans for not SUPPORTING the players blah blah blah" but I'm sorry, these players should wear our famous shirt with pride and the very least we expect is 100% effort in every game. NONE of those players, Gabby and Vlarr included, are worthy of wearing our shirt. It's all very well saying the right things like Vlaar does for example, but actions speak louder than words and when do you ever see him lead by example ON the pitch? All of them put in half-arsed performances and they must shoulder some of the blame. Us fans put in 100% effort when we fork out for tickets, travel, food and drink to support our club, only to witness a performance like that at such a crucial stage of the season. As for Lambert, well the guy as previously said is a fraud. He's had two games now to "get a reaction" after the Culverhouse and Karsa saga and has he? Like hell he has. Same old shit, just a different week and against a different opposition. He's already lost the fans and the way the players are playing, he clearly has no authority or credibility amongst them either. What the HELL is he still doing in a job? Should have been sacked weeks, or months ago. Many owners would have sacked him last season after the Bradford and Millwall debacles. Even in his post-match interview when describing the second goal where Guzan was clearly at fault for not slowing the tempo of the game down by holding on to the ball, he sort of admitted Guzan was at fault but then back-tracked and said how magnificent he had been since he was manager. It's as if he's too scared to upset the players - sometimes these overpaid prima-donnas need a kick up the backside but Paul Lambert has about as much authority as Carson Yeung now has at Blues. None. And it shows in the players performances. Lastly, this whole "let's party because the Blues are down" is incredible. We're on the brink of relegation and yet I come out of the away end and a few dozen numpties are singing "the sh*t are going down" - what the hell? Are they for real? Probably had too few many shandy's and neglected to realise we're on the brink of relegation ourselves and are in freefall... Rant over. Our club is an unmitigated disaster zone.

That post makes zero sense as, if Fulham win both their games, we'd need to win at least one of ours. One point will not be enough.

This is exactly spot on.

Please, please, please win Villa. Please. Don't care how.

Apart from Sunderland, but I agree And Swansea..

You've got more chance of Tonev scoring a hat-trick than that ever happening...

Taxi for drat....

Has a statement been released yet? Heard it's the Tea Lady today...

Truly incredible day in the life of Aston Villa Football Club. Some of the insights which have begun to emerge from the likes of Trent, the Bells are Ringing forum, the Telegraph and the Mirror are both fascinating, terrifying and almost beyond comprehension at the same time. The Club has been in absolute chaos and my only surprise is that much of this was kept so quiet for so long. It hasn't really changed my viewpoint on Paul Lambert and I'm 99% sure he's not up for the job however, if what we've heard is true, I do actually agree with the decision to keep Lambert in charge for these last five games at least to see if the removal of Culverhouse and Karsa brings about any renewed drive and confidence in the team. We could literally speculate until the end of the world about who is responsible for what in this sorry, sorry saga but the truth is we still know very much the basics and all today has proven is what a complex situation there is at Villa at the moment. We can all argue and fight like children on here during the week, that is people's prerogative. However, I urge anyone going to Southampton on Saturday to get 110% behind the club, team and manager to ensure we get these crucial 3 points. The inquest into this season can begin once we're safe but, apologies if I sound like Faulkner here, we do need to all pull together and do our bit, as we always do when the going gets tough. We need an atmosphere like Chelsea this season and Sunderland last season in a very similar high-pressured game which we ran out clear winners in the end. I'll be fuming if there's anyone spreading negativity in the stands on match day because the players clearly need a helping hand - us fans have proved time and time again we can provide that help when we really want. UTV! Keep the faith!

Each to their own and you're entitled to your viewpoint but, for me, comparing the great Alex Ferguson with Paul Lambert is like comparing chalk with cheese. Those instances were clear exceptions and not the rule. I backed Lambert for as long as I could, as most fans have, but his performance now is indefensible. Any other PL manager would have been sacked by now, financial constraints or not.

He hasn't lost the fans. I back Lambo 100% & I am not the only poster who holds that view on VT either. The reality is he has only lost the impatient fans & not the one's who believe in the Lambert Project & see that as the bigger picture. Some fans have only turned recently out of frustration at having to stick with a long term project that has been derailed mainly due to the loss of our talisman Benteke. Get over the line & many of these fans can easily be won back again. Also, there is no shame in being wrong or frustrated because it is only due to the hurt & despair of seeing our beloved Villa languishing down amongst the dead men. Lambert has balls & I like that. As for the fans currently against him I would say "Don't Ball's It Up For The Rest Of Us!" Are you honestly still coming out with this crap? Every time I put you right, you ignore my post and 20 pages later you're still bleating on about "impatient fans" and "Project Lambert" - it's getting really, really tiresome. Everybody knows, pro-Lambert/anti Lambert, that the Villa fanbase has been extremely patient with Paul Lambert. Will you please, please. please stop typing tosh. On Saturday he lost the away fans, notoriously the "last line of defence" for a manager and everyone knows this. Yes, sure, if we went on a 20 game winning streak now then he'd win them back because all football fans are fickle but there's more chance of you shutting up about "Project Lambert" than that happening. If you love Lambert, and think he can take us forward, fine. But please stop calling our dedicated away following "impatient" as if your viewpoint is the majority. It's not. I think you'll find the last line of defence is the Chairman. Wrong again. Chairman come and go, the fans are the constant. Give it a rest. No. Some fans go & never return. Fans are fickle. I know fans that have never gone back to Villa park because of Doug Ellis. The Chairman is the last line of defence because he ultimately chooses whether a manager stays or goes. That is my point & you know I am right. Oh dear, can you seriously not see that I am talking about fans as a collective here? Not individual fans Without the fans, there would be no chairman or football club. Your attempt to tell me that certain fans do not return because of certain issues, in a perverse attempt to somehow prove a point, is laughable. Besides the point, stop cherry picking one thing I said and understand my main point: the fans have not been impatient (as you keep wrongly suggesting) and when you lose the away fans, it is very, very unlikely you will ever win them back. No. You claim that Paul Lambert has lost the fans & that they are the last line of defence. Who will sack Paul Lambert? The fans or the Chairman? Go back & re-read all my posts & you will see that I also stated that the fans who had lost their patience can just as easily be won back round again. My overall point though is that Lambert has not lost the fans only some of them. I'm not "claiming" anything. It's fact. The away support, which is always the last group of fans to 'turn' and the most tolerant of our fan base as they generally see the players in the flesh week in week out and are less like 'customers' as our home fans can sometimes come across, let its feelings be known towards Lambert on Saturday. There is even a video if you don't believe me. It is generally accepted, hence why the media have made such a big fuss about that YouTube video, that when the away support turns with such ferocity and numbers like it did at the weekend then the manager is walking an extremely thin tightrope. You telling me that the Chairman makes the ultimate decision on his contract is by the by, the fact is when you lose the majority of the fanbase (including the away fans) THAT is your last line of defence just as it was for Alex McLeish. "The reality is he has only lost the impatient fans & not the one's who believe in the Lambert Project" is what you said - and that, as I've said repeatedly, is plain wrong and quite frankly insulting to those who fork out money for expensive away tickets plus all the add-ons that go with it week after week. By saying things like that you just come across as deluded, as everyone knows it's not just the "impatient fans" he's lost here. You know it too. Go on, admit it... No. I repeat once more that I also later stated that some of those fans had only just turned on saturday out of sheer frustration & could easily be won back again. As for the video I have both seen it & commented on it & it is also an insult to claim that their opinion represents every other villa fans point of view. let's see if lambert does win back the support of the away fans. What will you say then? Also, to further prove my point that losing the fan base is not the last line of defence, Doug Ellis lost the fan base years ago but because he was still Chairman he made the ultimate decision & just wouldn't budge. Need I explain this to you further? Where did I say the 'opinion of the away fans' represented every other Villa fans' point of view? Quote me... I didn't, so please stop putting words into my mouth... Losing the fan base is the last line of defence for a manager, who is on the front-line facing the fans each and every week. I never mentioned owners losing the fan base so you can continue explaining irrelevancies to the point we were discussing if you like?

He hasn't lost the fans. I back Lambo 100% & I am not the only poster who holds that view on VT either. The reality is he has only lost the impatient fans & not the one's who believe in the Lambert Project & see that as the bigger picture. Some fans have only turned recently out of frustration at having to stick with a long term project that has been derailed mainly due to the loss of our talisman Benteke. Get over the line & many of these fans can easily be won back again. Also, there is no shame in being wrong or frustrated because it is only due to the hurt & despair of seeing our beloved Villa languishing down amongst the dead men. Lambert has balls & I like that. As for the fans currently against him I would say "Don't Ball's It Up For The Rest Of Us!" Are you honestly still coming out with this crap? Every time I put you right, you ignore my post and 20 pages later you're still bleating on about "impatient fans" and "Project Lambert" - it's getting really, really tiresome. Everybody knows, pro-Lambert/anti Lambert, that the Villa fanbase has been extremely patient with Paul Lambert. Will you please, please. please stop typing tosh. On Saturday he lost the away fans, notoriously the "last line of defence" for a manager and everyone knows this. Yes, sure, if we went on a 20 game winning streak now then he'd win them back because all football fans are fickle but there's more chance of you shutting up about "Project Lambert" than that happening. If you love Lambert, and think he can take us forward, fine. But please stop calling our dedicated away following "impatient" as if your viewpoint is the majority. It's not. I think you'll find the last line of defence is the Chairman. Wrong again. Chairman come and go, the fans are the constant. Give it a rest. No. Some fans go & never return. Fans are fickle. I know fans that have never gone back to Villa park because of Doug Ellis. The Chairman is the last line of defence because he ultimately chooses whether a manager stays or goes. That is my point & you know I am right. Oh dear, can you seriously not see that I am talking about fans as a collective here? Not individual fans Without the fans, there would be no chairman or football club. Your attempt to tell me that certain fans do not return because of certain issues, in a perverse attempt to somehow prove a point, is laughable. Besides the point, stop cherry picking one thing I said and understand my main point: the fans have not been impatient (as you keep wrongly suggesting) and when you lose the away fans, it is very, very unlikely you will ever win them back. No. You claim that Paul Lambert has lost the fans & that they are the last line of defence. Who will sack Paul Lambert? The fans or the Chairman? Go back & re-read all my posts & you will see that I also stated that the fans who had lost their patience can just as easily be won back round again. My overall point though is that Lambert has not lost the fans only some of them. I'm not "claiming" anything. It's fact. The away support, which is always the last group of fans to 'turn' and the most tolerant of our fan base as they generally see the players in the flesh week in week out and are less like 'customers' as our home fans can sometimes come across, let its feelings be known towards Lambert on Saturday. There is even a video if you don't believe me. It is generally accepted, hence why the media have made such a big fuss about that YouTube video, that when the away support turns with such ferocity and numbers like it did at the weekend then the manager is walking an extremely thin tightrope. You telling me that the Chairman makes the ultimate decision on his contract is by the by, the fact is when you lose the majority of the fanbase (including the away fans) THAT is your last line of defence just as it was for Alex McLeish. "The reality is he has only lost the impatient fans & not the one's who believe in the Lambert Project" is what you said - and that, as I've said repeatedly, is plain wrong and quite frankly insulting to those who fork out money for expensive away tickets plus all the add-ons that go with it week after week. By saying things like that you just come across as deluded, as everyone knows it's not just the "impatient fans" he's lost here. You know it too. Go on, admit it...

He hasn't lost the fans. I back Lambo 100% & I am not the only poster who holds that view on VT either. The reality is he has only lost the impatient fans & not the one's who believe in the Lambert Project & see that as the bigger picture. Some fans have only turned recently out of frustration at having to stick with a long term project that has been derailed mainly due to the loss of our talisman Benteke. Get over the line & many of these fans can easily be won back again. Also, there is no shame in being wrong or frustrated because it is only due to the hurt & despair of seeing our beloved Villa languishing down amongst the dead men. Lambert has balls & I like that. As for the fans currently against him I would say "Don't Ball's It Up For The Rest Of Us!" Are you honestly still coming out with this crap? Every time I put you right, you ignore my post and 20 pages later you're still bleating on about "impatient fans" and "Project Lambert" - it's getting really, really tiresome. Everybody knows, pro-Lambert/anti Lambert, that the Villa fanbase has been extremely patient with Paul Lambert. Will you please, please. please stop typing tosh. On Saturday he lost the away fans, notoriously the "last line of defence" for a manager and everyone knows this. Yes, sure, if we went on a 20 game winning streak now then he'd win them back because all football fans are fickle but there's more chance of you shutting up about "Project Lambert" than that happening. If you love Lambert, and think he can take us forward, fine. But please stop calling our dedicated away following "impatient" as if your viewpoint is the majority. It's not. I think you'll find the last line of defence is the Chairman. Wrong again. Chairman come and go, the fans are the constant. Give it a rest. No. Some fans go & never return. Fans are fickle. I know fans that have never gone back to Villa park because of Doug Ellis. The Chairman is the last line of defence because he ultimately chooses whether a manager stays or goes. That is my point & you know I am right. Oh dear, can you seriously not see that I am talking about fans as a collective here? Not individual fans Without the fans, there would be no chairman or football club. Your attempt to tell me that certain fans do not return because of certain issues, in a perverse attempt to somehow prove a point, is laughable. Besides the point, stop cherry picking one thing I said and understand my main point: the fans have not been impatient (as you keep wrongly suggesting) and when you lose the away fans, it is very, very unlikely you will ever win them back.

He hasn't lost the fans. I back Lambo 100% & I am not the only poster who holds that view on VT either. The reality is he has only lost the impatient fans & not the one's who believe in the Lambert Project & see that as the bigger picture. Some fans have only turned recently out of frustration at having to stick with a long term project that has been derailed mainly due to the loss of our talisman Benteke. Get over the line & many of these fans can easily be won back again. Also, there is no shame in being wrong or frustrated because it is only due to the hurt & despair of seeing our beloved Villa languishing down amongst the dead men. Lambert has balls & I like that. As for the fans currently against him I would say "Don't Ball's It Up For The Rest Of Us!" Are you honestly still coming out with this crap? Every time I put you right, you ignore my post and 20 pages later you're still bleating on about "impatient fans" and "Project Lambert" - it's getting really, really tiresome. Everybody knows, pro-Lambert/anti Lambert, that the Villa fanbase has been extremely patient with Paul Lambert. Will you please, please. please stop typing tosh. On Saturday he lost the away fans, notoriously the "last line of defence" for a manager and everyone knows this. Yes, sure, if we went on a 20 game winning streak now then he'd win them back because all football fans are fickle but there's more chance of you shutting up about "Project Lambert" than that happening. If you love Lambert, and think he can take us forward, fine. But please stop calling our dedicated away following "impatient" as if your viewpoint is the majority. It's not. I think you'll find the last line of defence is the Chairman. Wrong again. Chairman come and go, the fans are the constant. Give it a rest.

He hasn't lost the fans. I back Lambo 100% & I am not the only poster who holds that view on VT either. The reality is he has only lost the impatient fans & not the one's who believe in the Lambert Project & see that as the bigger picture. Some fans have only turned recently out of frustration at having to stick with a long term project that has been derailed mainly due to the loss of our talisman Benteke. Get over the line & many of these fans can easily be won back again. Also, there is no shame in being wrong or frustrated because it is only due to the hurt & despair of seeing our beloved Villa languishing down amongst the dead men. Lambert has balls & I like that. As for the fans currently against him I would say "Don't Ball's It Up For The Rest Of Us!" Are you honestly still coming out with this crap? Every time I put you right, you ignore my post and 20 pages later you're still bleating on about "impatient fans" and "Project Lambert" - it's getting really, really tiresome. Everybody knows, pro-Lambert/anti Lambert, that the Villa fanbase has been extremely patient with Paul Lambert. Will you please, please. please stop typing tosh. On Saturday he lost the away fans, notoriously the "last line of defence" for a manager and everyone knows this. Yes, sure, if we went on a 20 game winning streak now then he'd win them back because all football fans are fickle but there's more chance of you shutting up about "Project Lambert" than that happening. If you love Lambert, and think he can take us forward, fine. But please stop calling our dedicated away following "impatient" as if your viewpoint is the majority. It's not.

I think it does come down to habit for a lot of fans. At the end of the day, you get into a routine and although I sometimes wonder what else I could be doing with my time when we're losing to Fulham or Palace at home; I know deep down that I'd be even more depressed and watching the game on TV anyway if I didn't go. Plus, the big point for me is this: many football clubs have downturns in their history which last for years, sometimes decades. That's football. For all the shit we have to watch, and all the losses we have to put up with, games like Chelsea at home actually make it worthwhile. It is those moments of unbridled joy that keep me travelling home and away watching this pile of dross. I support Aston Villa, not the current imbeciles doing their best to send us down and I'll always stick by the club and its fans. It's all about the match day experience and having a few drinks with your mates, hence why so many people prefer away days. I can totally see why, if you sit in the upper Trinity and go purely for the 90 minutes, you'd be totally disillusioned. I am, too. But when your old man brings you up supporting such a wonderful club with such rich history then I almost feel compelled to carry on the family tradition and it's what will ultimately keep this football club alive for the next generation to enjoy (moan about).

Spurs will send us down last game, we'll finish 18th imo.