Ratings and Reactions: Villa 0-1 Leyton Orient

[darrenm]

How will we ever score again?

sign an AM at the same level as Sanchez.

[heid3ster]

What is the point of Baker on set pieces? He wins headers but I don't think he's ever even had one on target before, he only seems to know where our own net is. And if we can't score from corners or free kicks then I have no idea where we are going to get goals until Kozak and Benteke come back.

[Spoony]

Doooooooon't give a ****

[Rodders]

I'm sorry, the whole losing this is better for the league is total crap. It's not a case of 38 or 60 games, it's 38 or 45 and an excess that a squad should be able to cope with, not to mention the positivity that spreads through successive wins, that feeds back to players and fans. Absolute horseshit to spin a home defeat to leyton orient as good. If we'd lose to another premier league side, then disappointing it may have been but we'd have accepted it. Fans are bored - look at the attendances. There is little hope, and the cup represents some hope. So even if the likelihood is marginal it's infinitely preferable to the dull certainty of finishing no better than 11th or worse than 17th.  It's the manner of the defeat that is dispiriting as much as the loss to random lower league sides, and it is embarrassing. We got to the semi finals last year, and should have been in the final - and against a Swansea side that though were a bit better, over the one off nature of a final we could have won, So it is possible.  The only focus on the league thing is complete horseshit. We have to beat Hull, as after that we have 5 consecutive games where our chances of picking up even a couple of points are small and unlikely due to the increasing gap in quality between the haves and the have-nots. 

[VillanousOne]

A result so predictable that I opted to watch Jurassic Park instead.

how did that end?

[VillanousOne]

any game were we don't score and have Baker in defence you know we'll lose

[PaulC]

This competition did matter as its one of only two things we have a chance of winning. We can enjoy our annual fight against relegation but the cups are the only relief we have..... Our home form is still a major worry... 

[villalad21]

13 shots 1 on target says it all really..

Based on those stats, 0-1 seems like a fair result.

[andyh]

Knocked out of the only cup competition that we could realistically progress in before the end of August!

And people are happy about this? People are happy the team lost to lower league opposition, again?

**** hell !

[villainjock]

gutted to be out, we were robbed. I thought there was a good atmosphere tonight in the holteend. for me grealish is over-rated, very much like a poor mans lee hendrie. people are clinging on to the academy.

bacuna was sloppy, Richardson is a great signing. bent doesn't fit into our style of play. cole was making the runs into the corners and gave options that weve missed, but is not fit enough for villa.

[JoshVilla]

Same old, same old. So disappointing.

 

Every year is the same. The thing is, it's just just a regular loss against a team in our division. It's a humiliating loss to a lower league team for the 3rd year in a row. We have no one to put the ball in the net. Our overall play, I thought, was okay, but it was just wasted chance after wasted chance. Even in the closing minutes of the game, there wasn't enough urgency, just mucking about on the edge of the box looking for another pass when we need someone to just take a chance and work the keeper. Leyton Orient had a chance pop up, and they took it, and on those grounds they deserved to win the game. I do wonder whether Lambert did just want us out of the competition to concentrate on the league and staying up. Surely he would have made another couple of subs if he wanted to push for a win? Delph? Or even Gabby (yes, really) just to inject a bit of pace into the strike force. Bent looked awful and so static tonight.

 

On the positive side, Grealish looked very good, Sanchez looked pretty solid, Cole made some good moves and Bacuna looked lively (apart from that miss). Sort it out for Sunday, Lambert. I can't believe this has happened again, but it has and it needs to change..fast.

[turnbull]

Please can someone put the ball in the fuggin net!!! Jeez, it ain't rocket salad is it?

 

Bit mystified by the sub tonight, surely Delph for Cole would have given them more to think about. Some pace would have been welcome too.

 

But hey ho.

 

Very impressed with Jack. The kid has such a lovely touch and at least he looked like he had the confidence to try things himself rather than just play the safe ball.

 

A bright spot in a rather dull night.

[Kingman]

It's gonna be a long season based on that showing, If we are not a drift in the bottom 3 after 10 games that is.

[The Fun Factory]

What is the point of Baker on set pieces? He wins headers but I don't think he's ever even had one on target before, he only seems to know where our own net is. And if we can't score from corners or free kicks then I have no idea where we are going to get goals until Kozak and Benteke come back.

I will shorten this post.

 

What is the point of Baker?

[Bottle Maker]

any game were we don't score and have Baker in defence you know we'll lose

Where you there? I thought Baker played very well compared to last season and was unlucky not to score with his header.

[benireduk]

Was looking forward to this. First half was half decent and didn't have much cause for concern. Second half was similar but they took their chance. I'm not going to say it was smash & grab from them because the had one disallowed for offside just before they got the winner.

Most annoying thing....not the result, but some burk who on leaving the ground said "Oh well, at least the blues got smashed" is this how low we've gone? Thoroughly pathetic, and I told him so

[KJT123]

Just got back from the game.

 

I thought the line up was good and had more than enough about them to beat LO. Grealish was outstanding, you really can tell that he is a class above everyone else on the pitch, the ball really does stick to his feet, Messi-esque. Solid performances from most players, most notably Westwood who i don't think gave the ball away at all tonight. The attack was the main problem and it is glaringly obvious that we need someone that can tuck away some of the many chances we had. Bent was surprisingly good at winning aerial duels but seems to have lost his knack of being in the right place at the right time. Senderos was good, Baker was okay but how many chances did he have to score from a corner? He should have had a hattrick. I'm not sure about Richardson, he seems to me, to put it lightly, brainless. 

[turnbull]

Big up to Big Phil for the "through ball" of the season though. Top notch. Shame Bent effed up the finish.

[adw95]

Baker, Hutton, Sanchez, and Grealish played well. Cole looked out of it within 15 minutes. Bent made some good runs but it just didn't happen for him. Westwood and Richardson were poor. the rest were okay. Not sure we were as bad as a loss to a L1 team looks but there is an obvious issue with putting the ball in the opponents goal... A loan for a striker with good ability to create their own chances would be ideal before getting our main two back.

 

There is a nice symmetry to Lambert's reign so far:

 

Year 1 - Terrible defence, good offence

Year 2 - Up and down defence, up and down offence

Year 3 - Good defence, terrible offence.

[Richard]

Utter disgrace