markavfc40

It won't have done him any harm playing yesterday. If he didn't already know what a tough league the Premiership is and how big a step up it is then he does now. I thought he did OK given his lack of experience and who we were up against. I hope he plays regularly for the rest of this season and that also goes for Albrighton and Clark ( when fit again ). This season has been a write off so lets at least get these lads some more experience so hopefully next season they hit the ground running or conversely we find out that they may not be good enough to be regular starters.

Mark, I'm with you when you say that you don't have a problem going into games against the top sides, looking to soak up pressure and then attack on the counter. But you say '. Do you really think that that's what McLeish has advised the players to do? Is there not also a chance that it could be due to the poor movement/ lack of ability of our players? I am sorry but it is McLeish's fault. On paper you think Bent, Keane, Albrighton, Heskey, Gardner could be pretty attacking. It quickly became apparent though as in many games this season that these players are being told that their first thought is a defensive negative one rather than a positive. You really think Bent is frequently found defending deep in our own half out of choice or that Heskey is deciding off his own back to play as a second right back, or that Gardner didn't make one run off the ball into the box, which is his natural game, because he decided he fancied a run out at as defensive midfielder, or that Albrighton spent more time running towards his own box than he did the oppositions because he forgot which way we were kicking. All of the above meant that when Keane,a real creative player, ever got the ball he had no forward options as quite simply the players mindset was a defensive one. That all comes from the manager and has happened on numerous occasions with Ireland, Gabby, NZogbia, Keane, Bent, Albrighton, Heskey. None of those players natural instinct is to defend and be negative quite the opposite. It is as clear as the nose on Phil Thompsons face that McLeish is frequently sending the players out with a negative defensive minded attitude. Teams will reflect the manger and his philosophy on how the game should be played and ours is no different.

I am disappointed in McLeish. I thought after the Tottenham and Liverpool games he had learned a lesson that we, the supporters, will not stand for going in to games playing to basically keep the score down. It was something we did on a number of occasions under his predecessor and its simply not good enough for this proud club. We are better than that. Its quite apparent though after yesterday that no lessons had been learned and quite simply this is the McLeish way. It seems he is scared when we go in against the better teams. Scared of getting a good hiding. The games against Arsenal and Chelsea where we gave it a real go seem to be the exception to the rule. I don't have a problem going in to games, especially against the better sides, soaking up a fair bit of pressure and then looking to spring on the break with some pace and real intent. Its pretty much how we achieved our recent top 6 finishes. Under McLeish though its simply a case of soak up the pressure get the ball up to the half way line, panic due to lack of forward options/movement, give it away and then soak up more pressure. He, and us as supporters, have blamed the defence for conceding too many goals from set pieces but for me when you are soaking up the amount of pressure we are in games, pressure that we are inviting due to how we are set up, then it is inevitable you are eventually going to concede. I am not sure how many corners we conceded yesterday but it must have been in double figures and we also conceded a fair amount of free kicks around the box. Law of averages then says you will conceded eventually. I think we'll stumble on to safety this season and finish on around 38 - 44 points. Come the end of the season there will be talk of a rebuild. For me though it really doesn't matter if we had a totally new first 11 come next season. Due to the managers mentality we will always be served up the kind of dross we were yesterday more often than not. We will get the odd game where we will play well but they will be the exception to the rule. This squad of players isn't great but its decent and any squad containing Bent, Gabby, NZogbia, Ireland, Keane, Albrighton should be able to go in to games confident of being able to give the opposition something to worry about. When a players first thought though is a defensive minded one then you are always going to struggle to impose yourself on a game in a positive way. I look at the likes of Swansea and Norwich and envy them and how sad is it as an Aston Villa supporter I should be saying that. They have managers who will have a go though regardless of the opposition. As an Aston Villa supporter that is the least we should expect for this great club to not be scared of anyone and to have a go. Sadly under McLeish it isn't going to happen is it. He quite simply isn't made that way and he isn't going to change regardless of how much he is given to spend. For that reason he needs to go.

As others have said credit where its due as he did well today.

Clark has a knee ligament injury and will be out for a few weeks.

The atmosphere wasn't that bad I didn't think. The players were clapped off at half time and the crowd really got behind them in the last 10 mins. Dunne, who was superb, got a very good reception when he went off and so did Heskey who also put a good shift in. Apart from that is was quite but in all fairness I thought that Man City fans were also very quite until they scored. I think Villa fans have just become almost resigned to the fact under McLeish we are unlikely to win and in the main are going to be served up crap and that's the reason for the lack of atmosphere. Last season the atmosphere was far more vicious at VP especially when we played Tottenham, Sunderland and Wolves as I think expectations were still reasonably high. As seen against Arsenal at VP a couple of months ago though if the players have a real go the fans will get behind them.

Just back from VP and I didn't notice any protest. There was however a Get The Fe'ck Out Of Our Club banner that was hung from the Upper Holte just before the game but was taken down with in a couple of minutes.

Just back from VP and Dunne was a rock toady. Up there as his best performance this season alongside the Arsenal game at VP when he was also excellent. The whole back 4 was good today though which was about the only thing that was.

I must be mental then, Mellberg, Laursen, Bouma, Hughes is a far better back four than we have now. Plus we had Barry the rest is much of a muchness. Of that list only Mellberg played in most of our games. In fact he was ever present. Laursen spent much of that season injured and only played 12 games. Bouma missed around half the games through injury also. Hughes made around a dozen starts. Ridgewell and an inexperienced Cahill played in half the games that season. Phil Bardsley came in on loan in the second half of the season.

Another last minute winner tonight it seems. They will go third with a win two points off second.

Whether we like it or not we are not going to be challenging for the top 4 again or even the top 6 without spending big again and being amongst the top half dozen wage payers. Our recent three top six finishes came at the cost of having the 8th, 6th and 6th highest wage bill. That was deemed unsustainable. Given that the other clubs we would be competing against for a top 6 finish will be Man Utd, Man City, Chelsea, Arsenal, Spurs and Liverpool we are not going to again break into that group on the cheap. Not one manager or club has consistently maintained a top 6 finish and won things with out spending money and having one of the top half dozen wage bills in the country. The only ones that came close were Everton who had three seasons on the spin of finishing in the top 6 but have since faded. Maybe there is a manager out there that can have us competing for a place in the top 4, consistently finishing top 6 and competing for cups and do it with out spending big and without having a wage bill that reflects your position in the league. If there is then I guess us and plenty of other clubs are yet to find him. One things for sure that person is not McLeish.

I agree. Some wouldn't be so keen out of the comfort zone of being hid behind their keyboads.

**** me the old Houllier debate is still alive and well I see. The best thing we can say about Houllier is that he no longer has anything to do with this great club. The man was an over the hill, disrespectful fool who unbelievably given the squad he inherited and the money he spent had us in and around the relegation mire for 5 months playing tippy tappy gutless crap and had a defeatist attitude. Why Randy in a time of cutting back chose a known cheque book manager is about as beyond belief as appointing McLeish which is why I worry about him being in charge when it comes to appointing our next manager. I know none of us are happy with McLeish but **** me thats no reason to look back on Houllier with any fondness.

Been comfortably our best performer this season. Never gives less than a 100% and leads by example. If we had more players with Petrovs attitude we'd be far higher up the league. Its a shame that he probably only has a season or two left with us. Seems nailed on to win the player of the year award.

Stallone as Rocky. Apparently they originally wanted Stallone to let them have the script and were looking to cast Robert Redford, Burt Reynolds or James Caan as Rocky.

I think apart from the odd extreme either way most people are saying he did what you'd expect him to do given what he spent and our wage bill. Whilst three top 6 finishes on the spin is nothing to be sniffed, certainly given that it was the first time in over 50 years we'd done it, for me arguably his biggest achievement was taking a club that had finished 16th to one that finished 6th two years later. It should also be noted that in 2007/08 we had the 8th highest wage bill when finishing 6th. The fact he was only able to maintain 6th place in the following seasons, whilst admirable, it is obviously a shame he did not over achieve in getting us a little higher. The pity in all this is of course that it may take only two years for those that have replaced him to undo the above and take a club that had finished 6th down to one that finishes where O'Neill found us when he came in - having just finished 16th.

I agree with the previous two posts. He was an idle **** today.

I find it funny how you slated the manager and defended the player last season in a similar situation. That's not to say N'Zogbia was wrong though, as he was wrong just like Collins and Dunne were last season. Like I said in a subsequent post you got beef with the management say it to their face. Don't hide behind your **** keyboard like Charles has.

How do you know he hasn't? They aren't likely to put it on the official site are they!? IF he has then he has done what he needs to do. Don’t go bleeting on twitter knowing it is going to get in to the press and heap more shit on the club. I’d rather hear about players literally squaring up to the management behind closed doors than this gutless hiding behind your keyboard crap.

What a **** coward. Sits behind his **** keyboard tweeting he ain't happy playing football. You got a problem Charles go speak with the manager face to face. Gutless ****.

They never sacked O'Neill. They did sack O'Neill. But that in this instance its totally besides the point. O'Neill on a one year rolling contract got a pay off of just over a mill, Houllier on a 3 year deal took in excess of 3 mill in a pay off. Why the **** Lerner put McLeish on a 3 year deal is total **** madness especially given how much he pissed up the wall on Houllier. A lesson should have been learned and he should have been put on a one year rolling contract and then if he **** up he could be sacked for a relatively small pay off.

The only way McLeish will get the boot any time soon is if we go down. Thankfully we ain't going down so it ain't gonna happen. I see him being here for the next couple of years and us stuck somewhere between 9th and 15th.

The only way McLeish will get the boot any time soon is if we go down. Thankfully we ain't going down so it ain't gonna happen. I see him being here for the next couple of years and us stuck somewhere between 9th and 15th.

You’d think a penny might of dropped for Lerner/Falkner over the summer. Having sacked O’Neill who was one a one year rolling contract they found themselves having to give him just over a mill in a pay off. Having thankfully **** off Houllier they found themselves having to pay him in excess of 3mill in a pay off due to having given him a 3 year deal. Armed with the above what do they do? They give McLeish a 3 year deal. It is bad enough they appointed McLeish but like Houllier to give him a three year deal was madness.

He can't be trusted to appoint a manager its as simple as that. He has made two monumental **** ups in Houllier and McLeish. Firstly Houllier who it was clear was past it and out of touch and to make things worse at the time when we were trying to cut back on spending he was a known cheque book manager. It was therefore no surprise he needed the best part of 30 mill to drag us out of the shit he got us into and left a with a poor record of 33 points from 28 games. Now we have McLeish who has two recent relegations on his CV and has not surprisingly done little better than his predecessor taking 28 points from 24 games. Its quite remarkable really that the best Lerner could do with a club of the stature of Aston Villa - 4th most successful club in English Football and when he came to appoint Houllier one that had re-established itself in the top six - was to attract the managers he has. I dread to think who he will be able to attract if we continue to slide as we have over the last 20 months.