Houlston Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 An Everton side suffering from a lot of injuries and playing without a recognised striker and we come off the back of two good performances with four at the back, creating going forward and looking likely to score. So what happens we see a revert to 3/5 at the back and start Holt. Why anyone should defend this as a good thing imo is odd. 4 shots and 1 shot on target all game, which we managed to score from and on a counter attack, something we could rarely do yesterday due to our poor set up. Who knew Southampton away wasn't a great model to go by. I'm sure it's probably Tonevs fault though. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amo69 Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 I'm not sure why Lambert is getting so much blame for the way he set us up. Had we been more open the game would probably have been over at half time. We played same way against Southampton, City and West Ham. We got 7 points and most have forgotten the anti football. Yes it's horrible to watch and yes once breached there is no way back. But if you'd all prefer another 8-0, 4-0 and 3-0 back to back results. You have to get used to it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morpheus Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 Or the ref's. At least the fans can't be blamed this time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big_John_10 Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 I'm not sure why Lambert is getting so much blame for the way he set us up. Had we been more open the game would probably have been over at half time. We played same way against Southampton, City and West Ham. We got 7 points and most have forgotten the anti football. Yes it's horrible to watch and yes once breached there is no way back. But if you'd all prefer another 8-0, 4-0 and 3-0 back to back results. You have to get used to it. Like it was over at half time when we played Liverpool? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amo69 Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 I'm not sure why Lambert is getting so much blame for the way he set us up. Had we been more open the game would probably have been over at half time. We played same way against Southampton, City and West Ham. We got 7 points and most have forgotten the anti football. Yes it's horrible to watch and yes once breached there is no way back. But if you'd all prefer another 8-0, 4-0 and 3-0 back to back results. You have to get used to it. Like it was over at half time when we played Liverpool? I was waiting for that. Let's be honest John. The way we played in that game was the exception rather than the norm. Lamberts job is too keep us in the league on a shoe string budget. He will always look to defend first and scrape points. I'm not defending him or his style. I just don't think many managers could do much with what we have and can understand why he would set us up that way. Keep him as manager and we'll continue to do enough to stay in this league. Replace him and we may improve or we may go down. Is it worth the risk? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brumstopdogs Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 Continuing to do enough to stay in the league will not be enough for many Villa supporters! Lambert got it wrong big time yesterday and the stats back this up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big_John_10 Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 Liverpool was an exception because we haven't even attempted to play that way before. After 2 good performances and results resorting back to that way was a mistake. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swerbs Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 Lets see if we continue it against West Ham at home, then moan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr_Pangloss Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 Utterly baffling approach. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SempiternalVillain Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 Villa were too tired from the Olbion game? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PieFacE Posted February 2, 2014 VT Supporter Share Posted February 2, 2014 Avoided posting about yesterday til now as it wound me up quite a lot But yeah, Lambert had an absolute shocker yesterday. After playing well against Liverpool and getting the win against WBA it made no sense to be so negative against an Everton team missing crucial players. We should have just gone for it. I'd have felt much better about an open 4-0 loss than the McLeish style 2-1 loss yesterday. I'm all for playing a counter attacking system, if you have pace going forward, ie, Gabby. Playing Holt in a counter attacking team with Benteke is just ridiculous. I really hate that we've signed Holt, he's just a lump. Offers us next to nothing going forward, i'd seriously rather Tonev play. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AntrimBlack Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 (edited) Cannot understand why he did not keep the same team that played against West Brom. Why change a winning formula? And as for having the ponderous Holt up front - the guys best years are past - he is emergency cover for Benteke - nothing more. I like what Lambert has said he is trying to do, but I am beginning to have niggling doubts about his capabilities. And why has he or his staff not done something about Guzans constant long balls, our possession stats will never improve while that continues. Edited February 2, 2014 by AntrimBlack Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xela Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 To be fair to Lambert, we are 10th in the league with a poor squad. That's probably the highest we can expect to get without serious investment, so in that regard, he's doing a decent job. However, i don't mind losing but its the manner of defeats. 29% possession yesterday. Its poor. How many games have we had less possession than the opponents? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AntrimBlack Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 Villa were too tired from the Olbion game? Yes, does not comput. With being out of the cups Villa have had a lot more rest than most of the others. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AntrimBlack Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 To be fair to Lambert, we are 10th in the league with a poor squad. That's probably the highest we can expect to get without serious investment, so in that regard, he's doing a decent job. However, i don't mind losing but its the manner of defeats. 29% possession yesterday. Its poor. How many games have we had less possession than the opponents? Yes, 10th is great, but I am anxious that we are so close to the relegation battle. The next few games are so important. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xela Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 To be fair to Lambert, we are 10th in the league with a poor squad. That's probably the highest we can expect to get without serious investment, so in that regard, he's doing a decent job. However, i don't mind losing but its the manner of defeats. 29% possession yesterday. Its poor. How many games have we had less possession than the opponents? Yes, 10th is great, but I am anxious that we are so close to the relegation battle. The next few games are so important. True, its very close down there. 3 or 4 games without a point and we are back in the mix,. Next 2 games (Wet Spam and Cardiff) are vital. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mantis Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 What needs to be remembered is that tactics must be tailored to each game. What works well against one team might not work well against the next. Not that I don't think he made mistakes yesterday, but it's not as if there's one magical tactic that will give us the best chance of winning in every single game. I don't think our tactics yesterday were as bad as people make out, as we probably would've got a point where it not for a wonder free kick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ozvillafan Posted February 2, 2014 VT Supporter Share Posted February 2, 2014 I hate 5-3-2 (or the 5-2-3 aberration we saw in this game). It says one thing to the opposition: We cannot play you - we will defend. That's fine and good given the opposition we are facing..... .... but, please, nobody ever tell me again that Lambert always plays attacking football and tries to win every game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big_John_10 Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 I think our tactics were poor and the execution was poor. When you can't average more than 2 passes before giving the ball away what can you really get out of a game? Too many long balls, far too much space given to their team and no goal scoring threat of our own. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jacketspuds Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 I'm just baffled by it all. We had 2 really encouraging performances against Liverpool and WBA playing a 4-4-2 diamond formation, which coincided with Benteke finding some form and us troubling teams and picking up points. Then Lambert decides to revert to a 5-2-3 formation that revolves around hoofing the ball to Benteke and hoping for the best. Unsurprisingly it didn't work. We were outrun in midfield and, having played all of our fit CB's in the same game, now potentially face some time without our captain and best CB by a mile. We had the opportunity to sign some players in key areas in January and we did not. The one signing that was decent was Bertrand, but he already added to a squad containing 2 LB's. We then sign Holt and, although he has done ok, we didn't really need him. We have Benteke, Gabby, Weimann, Bowery and Helenius already in the squad so his signing makes no sense when we had other areas that needed strengthening. We have a CB that could still be out until April, and another that is rather injury prone, so why we didn't sign someone like Heitinga or Dann instead of Holt doesn't really make sense. Then there's the fiasco with the coveted "number 10" that Lambert had been scouring Europe for. What a load of bollocks. We tried 3 times for Hoolahan and were told to bugger off each time, so now we are left with one of the poorest midfields in the league. However, for all Lambert's bizarre decisions, I still think the majority of issues stems from Lerner and his desire to cut costs at every opportunity. Don't get me wrong, we needed to reduce the wage bill and Lambert was/is the right man to do it. But to do it so drastically in such a short space of time has put so much pressure on the club, and the players that are still there. The way we have been this season I wouldn't be surprised if we finished 10th, but I wouldn't be surprised if we finished 20th. You just never know with this team. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts