villanesque

Looked as if the emotions of scoring for their country on international duty did Ashley and Darren in. They both lacked energy and effort. I know that they are pro athletes but I accept that they are human. They both played as if they were hung over recovering from some drunken night out. Emotional energy can exhaust quicker and for longer than physical exertion. Darren got a goal and did 90 mins so he was really spent. Ashley was trying to win free kicks the cheap and easy way. I'd call it lazy play if he had not had the game he had against Denmark. But since he did have a big week for him I'll spare him too much abuse for today's effort. Thought Dunne and Reo-Coker showed the most will out there. I went for Dunne as MoTM because he really put in a real shift in a way Houllier has probably been challenging him to do and he came through. He's looking more and more comfortable playing the style being asked of him so all credit to him for not continuing to pout but instead get after it. Bradley looked winded and a little lost, tbh, when he came on. But then he seemed to dig in and make crucial plays to deny Blackpool more chances. A draw is better than a loss but still a disappointing result for me. UTV!

Especially if your ego is lying to you telling you that you've had a good game when clearly you have not! Denial is one strong emotion isn't it? :winkold: We played the best team in the league, went down in the first minute and still managed to play with enough positives to not dampen our spirits. I'd say that's a game and attitude to build on.

Makoun is small in size but HUGE in class. I'm sure not all of his games will be gems but this one was 24 karat gold. Wait until he feels really comfortable with his team mates. He glides and doesn't look to fast but then next thing you know he's there making the play. Can't wait for Saturday.

Makoun MoTM to me. Friedal close second. I give Houllier some bonus points at the end for trying to throw the offensive kitchen sink onto the pitch in hopes of scoring. Think Reo-Coker should have played instead of Petrov. Think Stan feels the hot air of Makoun and Bradley breathing down his neck.

Makoun's passing is aces

Collins and Dunne doing a Laurel and Hardy act, I'm afraid. They can't be this bad in the second half, right?

Come on you Lions! We're on a winning streak at Old Trafford. Okay, so the streak is at 1 but hey you have to start some where 8) UTV!

simple and to the point for DB this weekend: Darren **** Bent, Darren **** Bent Hi Ho and cherry O we've got Darren **** Bent He's going to score some goals, he's going to score some goals Hi Ho and cherry O he's going to score some goals The Villa's gonna shine, the Villa's gonna shine Hi Ho and cherry O the Villa's gonna shine (and a zillion other possibilities...) sung to "The Farmer In The Dell"

I voted yes for one reason only. If you think the squad looks **** up and confused and shell shocked and lack confidence and tentative and pants now - wait until you see them after having FOUR different managers trying to instill in them variations of the style of play all in a single season. Come on, gents. You seriously want yet ANOTHER manager to come in right now? Four since August? You honestly think the squad wants another manager? Up the Villa!

Hi General, Minor observation regarding the website. (I'm curious if other non-locals have the same issue or if it's something I need to adjust) I have noticed that the "countdown to the match" clock used on the home page on the website is really not all that useful for one not living in that actual time zone. I'm not sure if I can explain this coherently but here is an example of the issue. I'm 8 hours behind Birmingham/London time. So when checking the website it must recognize that I am viewing from a different time zone. So it gives the countdown based on my time rather than based on Birmingham's local time. So, for example, if the Villa kick-off is 7:30 PM Birmingham time that means the game kicks off at 11:30 AM my time. However, if I were to check the website at 11:29 AM (7:29 PM local) rather than the clock showing 1 minute to go for the kick off it would show that the kick off is still 8 hours and 1 minute away for me. Obviously I know how to add and subtract and I haven't missed a kick off yet and I have no clue if it's possible but is there a way that the countdown on the home page can simply remain at local time rather than adjust to the time of the person viewing the webpage? That way it wouldn't matter if one plans to watch live from Canada, Singapore or Kansas it should still show that kick off is 1 minute away. (or maybe there is a way I can adjust it myself?) Thanks

Eric was the highlight of that dreadful match. I'm glad I was able to awake from my boredom induced coma to watch the second half. Eric was fantastic going forward then tracking back. He showed his speed and solid decision making. The cross to Altidore was fantastic. An accomplished striker would have buried that gem in the back of the net. Eric was poised and focused. A real good display from the Aston Villa man.

Looked good early. Looked a little tired late. Villa played some good stuff out there today though. I have a belief in them and in Houllier. And you know things have changed at the club when the thought of Heskey going down and bringing in Carew causes inner depression and concern. I think Carew is counting the days until his next team. He was dreadful, imo. Half-assed. The touch line was more active and more effective than Carew and had a better chance of scoring, too. Carew needs a goal GPS system attached to his boot and his head. It's like he truly does not know where the goal is this season. Petrov works hard and sweats a lot but he's lost a step or two and really can't be counted on in any offensive going forward way. Thumbs up to Reo-Coker. He does everything he can do at the skill level he has. Tenacious. Would love if he could get a few shots on goal on target to keep the opposition defense in panic mode. Goodness Heskey works hard! That first goal effort and build up was brilliant. Get well soon, Emile! Ashley really needs to stop complaining and just play the damn game. Ireland seems to be the type of player that needs more time on the pitch to be effective. He needs time to read the players and pick out opposition weaknesses. He is not an off the bench impact player. Hope he gets a run in the team in the next week or two. I really wanted Cuellar to start. No offense to Dunne at all. Just think Carlos is quicker and more agile. Overall, disappointed in the result but not necessarily in the team's effort.

Hou's your daddy, Allardyce! Villa's hopes for silverware are alive and well.

Not sure if this is the spot for this comment/question but it would be most appreciated if someone could post what is sung for Houllier tonight. It's not every day that a new manager begins his tenure. The game tonight is not televised in the US so the chants can't even be heard through a TV feed. Thanks much to anyone willing to share.

Thanks for responding to the Nike kit questions, General. I have bought my two kids the full kits for 3 years in a row now but I will not be purchasing the kit for this year. Nike has treated Aston Villa lack the classic fairy tale step-child for as long as Villa has been in contract with Nike. Nike does not carry anything Aston Villa through their on-line store. I bought the claret and blue track jacket from the Villa Direct store last month and several friends who have Nike store accounts tried to purchase the same jacket directly from Nike on-line and Nike doesn't carry it. Forget the kit, Nike sales no Villa training gear, no jackets, no shirts, no nothing. I know Villa doesn't have the same global appeal as Arsenal and Man U but heck a person can even buy a full compliment Celtic gear and Werder Bremen gear through the Nike on-line store. Having that swoosh across the chest isn't all that great or valuable if the only place you can buy that swoosh is in Birmingham or through Villa's on-line store. If the goal is to broaden the Aston Villa global visibility then Nike really are not holding up their end of the contract. As an avid fan outside of the UK I wanted to share my opinion of the limitations of the Aston Villa brand that Nike fosters.

Crap. Villa really have a flair for the dramatic. Villa on the road = Greek tragedy. I hope after seeing that melt down, Houllier is grabbing the FFF by the collar and forcing them to watch the last 30 minutes of the game. Guarantee the FFF will allow him to leave when they realize what a charity case we are on the road It's inhumane for them to keep Gerard.

To me Houllier sounds like a guy with a huge ego and I for one am perfectly fine with that. I don't think you can be successful at this level of your professional career and at this type of public hyper scrutinized work without having an inflated ego. In my opinion two traits tend to be found in "winners" at this level. A big ego (hyper confidence in ones own skill and ability) and a big competitive desire (will use anything as an edge or motivation to beat some one else). Now, having listened to and read far too many Alex Ferguson interviews where he deflects all that ails Man U from his own choices and decisions and puts things squarely on the shoulders of bad officials, the other coaches, the other underhanded tactics of his opponents, the parasite media, and on any and every body else on the planet but himself, I still have a hard time calling Ferguson a coward and an even harder time making him out to be some sort of shady character. I'm sorry but Houllier has won things. Big things. He's admired by those who are also trying to win the things he has. No amount of fan ambivalence or media shit stirring is going to damper my enthusiasm at having a proven winner at the reigns of Aston Villa.

Thanks. Must admit that it's constantly stuck in my head now. It's so simple and repetitive that it's contagious.

Too bad about the Stoke game. I wanted Houllier to inherit a 4th in the table Aston Villa squad for the Stoke game and never relinquish that spot. 8) I do hope the boys are highly motivated on Monday so that they can pull in all 3 points and up the their goal differential and remain a leader in the Premiership. When Houllier does officially take the reigns having the squad in a top of the table position even at this early stage will do wonders for the transition and boost morale, spirit, desire and ambition all the way around.

Here's the easiest, quickest, everybody can get it immediately chant EVER for Houllier's first game. Sung/chanted to the Ole chant: Allez Allez Allez Allez Allez Houllier Allez Allez Allez Allez Allez Houllier Allez Allez Allez Allez Allez Houllier Allez in French is used as "come on" or "lets go!" Sung loudly frrom the terraces for a good 5-6 minutes and Gerard will feel most welcomed to Villa Park. There's always the When I Was Young chant: When I was young, I had a dream,
 To watch the greatest football team, 
 So here I am, my dream’s on its way,
 With Randy Lerner and Houllier, Houllier, Houllier, Houllier Houllier

Bienvenue, Gerard ! Portez-nous à la Champions League! Le claret et bleue armée de Houllier !

That, kind General, is the type of answer that for me, at least, makes a huge difference. So thank you. I doubted you would name names but in a round about way you have. As for some who think or suggest you and Mr. Lerner and the Board have been down to the local pub having a beer or two while singing old college songs for the last few weeks and are now playing taps on a bugle, well, you can't really do much to appease some one with that point of view.

Thank you for that! At least with Donatello we'd know we were in the Renaissance Age and not the mist of the fall of the Roman Empire!

Greetings General, I am going to ask a couple of questions that you may not be able to answer but it doesn't hurt to ask, right? 1) If Randy and the Board are not satisfied with those that have currently applied for the managerial post and have interviewed so far, will the board consider only offering a one year contract for who ever is brought on as the permanent manager for the 2010-2011 season? Even Kevin Mac? I know that by doing a one year contract makes the person temporary so bringing in personnel even in January could be tricky because the one year manager may not manage the next year. BUT it would seem that if a player is quality and is well rated than whoever takes over should be able to use that player in a positive way. 2) Would Randy and the board ever consider making known (public) who the people were that the club reached out to to gauge interest in the Villa job? Obviously being public is not Randy's "way of doing business" but by allowing the the club to publicly identify those who were of interest, who were contacted, who were pursued may give supported proof that the club was thinking big when thinking of a replacement. Of course, in doing that one wouldn't want to under mind the person who actually is selected but in Kevin Mac's case surely he would know that Randy and the Board were exploring other options for manager. From all the big emotions expressed through this internet medium it seems that the underlying issue is "is the club thinking big. Is the club turning over every stone in their pursuit?" My son and I are planning a Villa Park trip in the spring and we will be there whether no one is seated in the manager's chair, a blow up doll is seated in the managers chair or Jose Mourhino is seated in the manager's chair! Best to you and the Board on whatever decision you all make and then best to whomever will be charged with keeping Villa on the right path on the pitch.

Interesting theory. Oh how I wish to be nicely surprised. So that's it. Until more details emerge I'm adopting your theory. A man has to believe in something, right? Right now I'll pray at the altar of Hopeful Nice Surprise. The theory of having a major power broker getting us hooked up with a quality manager puts a smile on my face. UTV!