Paul Lambert

[Mantis]

 

While I won't deny that we've been quite defensive in the opening games (I'm pretty sure injuries and illness have played a large part in that), I think perceptions have been skewed somewhat by our ridiculous start which has seen has face all of last season's top 4 in 7 games, not to mention Stoke away which is always a tough fixture.

 

Accusations of us being "the new Stoke" are just rubbish though.

I am sorry but the old "excuses" of injury and illness are just a weak one.

 

even if you accept the illness one that was in one match against Arsenal. In terms of injuries, who exactly, Vlaar and Benteke - is lambert so dependent on these two players that if they are not available then its a certain loss?

 

As said previously in this and many other threads there has been "wait unit Okore is back" , is he back now?

 

Also you mention our "ridiculous" start - again a weak argument. You have to play all of the teams twice so that has no relevance at all. What about the loss to Orient was that due to the fact that like previous years we have played some of the top teams? Was the turgid display against Newcastle down to this, was the past two years awful football down to this, was the defeats to lower league sides down to this? ....... etc etc

 

No we are not the new Stoke, that is because they at least had a plan that threatened the other teams goal. They also had a good chance of finishing mid table.

 

Now we may see a massive performance increase in terms of threat and attacking ability, and let's hope we do, as we play the next few matches, but please lets not throw out frankly weak arguments if they do not.

 

But you have your views and while I respect them, I am struggling to see their validity based on the excuses line

 

I think you'll find that there are no "excuses" there (that really is a tired old word by the way that people need to stop shoehorning into everything) I was merely explaining why the stats look like they do. Most teams are not going to come out of their opening 7 games with high or even average possession stats when 4 of those games were against last season's top 4.

 

You seem to have completely missed my point entirely.

Edited October 6, 2014 by Mantis

[AntrimBlack]

I think all the points raised, for me, will be answered soon. The tough run of games has ended, and the acceptance that we would struggle in those games because of the quality of the opposition has ended. We now need to show that we can compete with teams that are at our level.

[bannedfromHandV]

I'm so confused, what has Lambert done wrong so far this season?

Not kept the ball enough against teams assembled for hundreds of millions of pounds

[Richard]

 

I'm so confused, what has Lambert done wrong so far this season?

Not kept the ball enough against teams assembled for hundreds of millions of pounds

 

Or played expansive flowing football against said teams creating chance upon chance against them,  in a run of games many fans were predicting we would pick up nothing 

[AntrimBlack]

Usual OTT comments.

I suspect that most posters are like me, not expecting much, just wanting us to give it a go and do the best we can.

I think we are entitled to expect that. There is a middle ground, you know.

[DCJonah]

Usual OTT comments.

I suspect that most posters are like me, not expecting much, just wanting us to give it a go and do the best we can.

I think we are entitled to expect that. There is a middle ground, you know.

Completely agree. And the previous two years aren't going to be wiped from peoples minds. Yes Lambert has the chance to improve things this year and I'm behind him. But I can see why plenty of fans aren't going to change their opinion of him.

[rodders0223]

Usual OTT comments.

I suspect that most posters are like me, not expecting much, just wanting us to give it a go and do the best we can.

I think we are entitled to expect that. There is a middle ground, you know.

 

Yes but then you will all have a fit when we predictably open ourselves up and get spanked by 6 or 7.

[DelboyVilla]

 

Usual OTT comments.

I suspect that most posters are like me, not expecting much, just wanting us to give it a go and do the best we can.

I think we are entitled to expect that. There is a middle ground, you know.

Completely agree. And the previous two years aren't going to be wiped from peoples minds. Yes Lambert has the chance to improve things this year and I'm behind him. But I can see why plenty of fans aren't going to change their opinion of him.

 

 

Considering that there are very obvious worrying issues with the evident again so far this season I think people do have the right to point them out and hope they are resolved. And some of us still wonder what he did to earn a new 4 year contract and will for some time to come!

[ozvillafan]

 

Usual OTT comments.

I suspect that most posters are like me, not expecting much, just wanting us to give it a go and do the best we can.

I think we are entitled to expect that. There is a middle ground, you know.

 

Yes but then you will all have a fit when we predictably open ourselves up and get spanked by 6 or 7.

 

 

Same number of points gained if we sit back and lose 3-0.

[Keyblade]

What's the point? With the former approach there's at least the chance that we can pull a Liverpool and get something from the game. In the situation we're in, we have to be more pragmatic. We might not like it, but that's how it is.

[ozvillafan]

What's the point? With the former approach there's at least the chance that we can pull a Liverpool and get something from the game. In the situation we're in, we have to be more pragmatic. We might not like it, but that's how it is.

 

Perhaps if we make a game of it against "better" opposition we might actually gain some confidence in that style and use it successfully at home against the "weaker" teams.

 

Or we can just sit back against them too and hope to pull a Liverpool.

[BG_Villa_Fan]

 

What's the point? With the former approach there's at least the chance that we can pull a Liverpool and get something from the game. In the situation we're in, we have to be more pragmatic. We might not like it, but that's how it is.

 

Perhaps if we make a game of it against "better" opposition we might actually gain some confidence in that style and use it successfully at home against the "weaker" teams.

 

Or we can just sit back against them too and hope to pull a Liverpool.

 

 

Isn't this our main/only tactic anyway? 40% and 0 shots against Newcastle, 45% and 3 shots against Hull. 

[ozvillafan]

Isn't this our main/only tactic anyway? 40% and 0 shots against Newcastle, 45% and 3 shots against Hull. 

 

 

I fear this is true - but I want to believe Lambert has something else planned this season. What I saw against Man City was encouraging.

[Stevo985]

 

 

Usual OTT comments.

I suspect that most posters are like me, not expecting much, just wanting us to give it a go and do the best we can.

I think we are entitled to expect that. There is a middle ground, you know.

 

Yes but then you will all have a fit when we predictably open ourselves up and get spanked by 6 or 7.

 

 

Same number of points gained if we sit back and lose 3-0.

 

Exactly.

 

Just with a higher loss of morale, reputation and goal difference.

 

May as well play with no defence!

[Keyblade]

 

What's the point? With the former approach there's at least the chance that we can pull a Liverpool and get something from the game. In the situation we're in, we have to be more pragmatic. We might not like it, but that's how it is.

 

Perhaps if we make a game of it against "better" opposition we might actually gain some confidence in that style and use it successfully at home against the "weaker" teams.

 

Or we can just sit back against them too and hope to pull a Liverpool.

 

 

I don't know how much more confidence you can gain (or lose less of) in a 6-2 loss for example as opposed to a 3-0 one. In any case, I don't think we'll play the same way against the weaker teams. As we showed against Hull, we can play attacking football and with Benteke back I think we will see it more consistently rather than in sporadic 45 minute showings.

[ozvillafan]

Exactly.

 

Just with a higher loss of morale, reputation and goal difference.

 

May as well play with no defence!

 

 

Massive jump in logic.

 

It's almost as if there was a valid point there.... and you couldn't see it and jumped to conclusions. Almost.

[AntrimBlack]

 

Usual OTT comments.

I suspect that most posters are like me, not expecting much, just wanting us to give it a go and do the best we can.

I think we are entitled to expect that. There is a middle ground, you know.

 

Yes but then you will all have a fit when we predictably open ourselves up and get spanked by 6 or 7.

 

 

It is almost as though you did not read my post.

The essence of my post is that many of us will not have an extreme reaction.

[Stevo985]

 

Exactly.

 

Just with a higher loss of morale, reputation and goal difference.

 

May as well play with no defence!

 

 

Massive jump in logic.

 

It's almost as if there was a valid point there.... and you couldn't see it and jumped to conclusions. Almost.

 

Your point was, presumably, that there's no difference between losing 3-0 and getting "spanked by 6 or 7".

 

I was merely making the point that there is a difference (albeit rather sarcastically).

[Oaks]

What's the point? With the former approach there's at least the chance that we can pull a Liverpool and get something from the game. In the situation we're in, we have to be more pragmatic. We might not like it, but that's how it is.

 

Perhaps if we make a game of it against "better" opposition we might actually gain some confidence in that style and use it successfully at home against the "weaker" teams.

 

Or we can just sit back against them too and hope to pull a Liverpool.

 

Isn't this our main/only tactic anyway? 40% and 0 shots against Newcastle, 45% and 3 shots against Hull.

11 shots 4 on target according to BBC. We all should know what happened there, we went 2-0 up in the first half, then sat on it.

[Mantis]

Shots on target can be such a misleading stat anyway. 3/4 shots on target against Hull doesn't sound like much but we absolutely dominated them for the first two thirds of the game.