Pre match thread

[jackbauer24]

I recognise we might need to play one of Elphick, Whelen or Jedinak but if more than one of them is on the pitch at any one time we have no chance. If all three play it'll be a cricket score.

Personally I'd play;

             Johnstone

Elmo Chester Hutton Taylor

Snodgrass Jedinak Onomah

     Hourihane Grealish

                 Hogan

Assuming reported injuries are confirmed. No CB available is great but I'd trust Hutton over the other options. Jedinak to sit deep and protect defence but not be the last man due to lack of pace/passing...skill. Hourihane further up as he'll take pot shots and pass more than Onomah. Equally Onomah is more defensively capable than Hourihane. Hogan needs a run and, whilst his hold up play needs work, I have much more faith he'd score 1 on 1 than Davis would.

Can't see this being any better than a draw. Bruce hasn't got a clue. He'll set us up defensively, with no pace, with players with zero passing ability or zero shooting ability. He'll play players in the wrong positions, make odd substitutions far too late, failing to respond to the match. He'll then tell the media it's all hysteria and just down to individual mistakes (aren't practically all goals?!) and that we just need to focus on the next game. Hopefully he won't be in charge for a single day in 2018.

[villianusa]

Our most successful formation this season has been 442, I would revert back to that with:

                           Johnstone

Hutton     Chester      Elphick      Taylor

Snodgrass Jedinak Hourihane  Grealish

                         Hogan  Davis

Subs

Steer

Whelan

O'Hare

Elmo

De Laet

Hepburn-Murphy

Onomah

[villan-scott]

I wonder if he’ll still manage a dig about us being in the Championship and WBA being in the prem? 

Not a fan of Pulis. Hate coming up against his teams. Also, a horrible time to play him and Boro away, with it being his first game. 

I can’t see anything other than defeat, and I’m usually optimistic!!

[Demitri_C]

Hoofball to Rudy will be pulis tactic 

 

[Robtaylor200]

I think we will just scrape a win in this one and the circus will continue

I have my normal £1 on 4-1 Villa at 80/1 

[Michael118]

                Johnstone

Hutton Chester Elphick Taylor

           Jedinak Hourihane

Snodgrass  O'Hare  Agbonlahor

                      Davis

Steer McKirdy Onomah Adomah Grealish Bree Richards

[TheStagMan]

On 12/27/2017 at 09:24, Raver50032 said:

The manager might be gone by 9pm on Monday night.

If only!

[TheStagMan]

22 hours ago, Grasshopper said:

Boro will score from their 2nd or 3rd corner

Pulis will put someone on SJ

He‘ll send out a busy Bee to hassle Whelan and or Jedi into a mistake

He‘ll have his MF line picking up every second ball from our hoofs & Goal kicks

He will tell them to „press“ our throw ins to turn over possesion

and

it wouldnt suprise me if they fast start for a quick goal or 2 then sit back and watch us misplace our possesion and create chance after chance eventually scoring.

prediction

bad performance

certain defeat

Pulis will have done his homework

You mean having some tactics and a gameplan? Well that's just not fair! Surely you just select your favourite 11 players, throw darts at a board to select their positions, and tell them to go out there and keep it tight and hope Kodjia knicks a goal?

What do you mean "Kodjia's injured"?, quick get Gabby out there.

[maqroll]

A loss here and Bruce will get the sack. Massive game.

[Grasshopper]

29 minutes ago, maqroll said:

A loss here and Bruce will get the sack. Massive game.

I think we will lose.

The sack? would be the best for everyone concerned, 

will it happen? I think it‘ll go down to the wire (01.01.18 v BC)

[Grasshopper]

I‘d go

                       JS

     Bree Chester RDL Taylor

Elmo Onomah Hourihane Snod

                   Grealish

                     Hogan

Bench

SJ Hutton (no other choice) Elphick (no other choice) Jedi Doyle-Hayes/Lyden O‘Hare Davis

A dark cynical side of me thinks that if Bruce went the whole hog of selecting

                Bunn

Hutton Richards Elphick

 Elmo Whelan Jedi Thor

    Hogan Davis Gaby

Our suffering would reach such an embarrassing climax that it would result in the end of this torturous nightmare

Odds on it‘ll be

                         SJ

Hutton Chester Elphick Taylor

Elmo Whelan Jedi Hourihane Snod

                        Davis

90+mins of sitting back, sideways passing then Hoofing.

[alreadyexists]

It’s mad how we have two games in three days, 30th vs Middlesbrough and then 1st Jan vs Brizzle.

 

[Vive_La_Villa]

Their home and away record same as ours. 

I see a boring 0-0.

Edited December 29, 2017 by Vive_La_Villa

[markavfc40]

Bruce is in last chance saloon now in terms of his future prospects here and he needs to be brave in his selections from now on. No more of this overly defensive bollocks. I don't think he will but I'd be looking at going with this front 6 tomorrow.

Davis and Hogan up top, Grealish just behind, Hourihane and Onomah behind him and Whelan or Jedi sitting.

This 2 wide men doesn't really work for us as we rarely get the ball in from wide and someone on the end of it. I think the above offers a nice mix of Davis being able to hold the ball up allowing Grealish/Onomah/Hourihane the chance to break off him and get in behind or you have Grealish/Onomah/Hourihane all with the nous and ability to play through balls into Hogan.

I am sick to the back teeth of seeing us with line ups with too much emphasis on what the opposition will do. We need to go out with some real attacking intent and put the opposition on the back foot.

I hope Bruce doesn't go out with a whimper over the next couple of games but I have a feeling he will as that overly cautious, grind out results is in his DNA by the looks of it despite me hoping it wasn't.

Edited December 30, 2017 by markavfc40

[Demitri_C]

26 minutes ago, markavfc40 said:

Bruce is in last chance saloon now in terms of his future prospects here and he needs to brave in his selections from now on. No more of this overly defensive bollocks. I don't think he will but I'd be looking at going with this front 6 tomorrow.

Davis and Hogan up top, Grealish just behind, Hourihane and Onomah behind him and Whelan or Jedi sitting.

This 2 wide men doesn't really work for us as we rarely get the ball in from wide and someone on the end of it. I think the above offers a nice mix of Davis being able to hold the ball up allowing Grealish/Onomah/Hourihane the chance to break off him and get in behind or you have Grealish/Onomah/Hourihane all with the nous and ability to play through balls into Hogan.

I am sick to the back teeth of seeing us with line ups with too much emphasis on what the opposition will do. We need to go out with some real attacking intent and put the opposition on the back foot.

I hope Bruce doesn't go out with a whimper over the next couple of games but I have a feeling he will as that overly cautious, grind out results is in his DNA by the looks of it despite me hoping it wasn't.

There is absolutely no chance he will do that Marcus. I agree it would be interesting but this is far too out there for Bruce. It will be ultra defensive midfield with that hopeless oaf whelan and jedinak. Grealish hourihane and onomah in midfiekd and the ineffective Davis lone striker

[OutByEaster?]

15 hours ago, villianusa said:

Our most successful formation this season has been 442, I would revert back to that.

I can't remember us playing 4-4-2 this season. We've almost exclusively played with just one striker haven't we? 

[OutByEaster?]

Well, the beauty of this period between Christmas and New Year is that I have far too much time on my hands, so I've checked.

We've played with 2 strikers on 7 occasions this season, most successfully in a period of four games in September where we paired Kodjia and Davis, winning all four.

We've won four and lost three of the games we've played 4-4-2 in, but not won any that haven't featured the Kodjia-Davis combination.

The last time we played with two up was the defeat to Sheffield Wednesday.

 

[dAVe80]

Must win for both sides. Pulis's anti football vs Bruce's is that even football. I'm going to the match. 0-0 written all over it.

[AvfcRigo82]

I think the new manager bounce will prevail here.

What's the odds and the irony that Gestede or Traore will rub the salt in the wound scoring the only goal that beats us and see's Bruce get the sack!

[villianusa]

1 hour ago, OutByEaster? said:

I can't remember us playing 4-4-2 this season. We've almost exclusively played with just one striker haven't we? 

When Kodjia came back, it was pretty much

                 Johnstone

Hutton     Chester    Terry     Taylor

Snodgrass Whelan Hourihane Adomah

                      Davis Kodjia

It was the start of our best run of the season before Kodjia was injured and we went back to more of a 441. We tried it once with Hogan and Davis but lost to Sheff Wed. We played well that game, but got caught cold at the start with a wonder goal, and then Terry got injured. 

The games were

Barnsley 3pts

Forest 3pts

Burton 3pts

Bolton 3pts

Wolves 0pts

Sheff Wed 0pts

I think losing the last two games and Kodjia, Hogan, and Gabby all injured, forced Bruce to move back to a 4411.    I hope Bruce goes with it tomorrow back to it and give the teams better options in attack while still having plenty behind the ball.