Dean Smith

[Lerner's Driver]

11 minutes ago, DCJonah said:

So no credit to us then. Gotcha. 

Sure, we can give credit where credit is due for our early season form. Anyone excited about what that means now is misguided. 

[DCJonah]

1 minute ago, Lerner's Driver said:

Sure, we can give credit where credit is due for our early season form. Anyone excited about what that means now is misguided. 

It means we are a prem team next year and get to spend big again. That's exciting to me. 

[DCJonah]

8 minutes ago, Demitri_C said:

Because i am entitled to my opinion.

Elmo played because smith sidnt ahve faith to play kesler who looks good enough to have come in. Trez has been pure ahit this year 

Aeg hit some good form.then was dropped

Whose fault is that?? He didnt think to go for another striker in jan or try traore up front or use a youth player like  Barry?

I think its more blind faith you will defend smith no matter what and you critise anyone who dares criticise him.

If your happy with the last 5 games thats down to you but its been nothing short of garbage.

You can have your opinion but it's based on nothing. Like I said, no team in the top half have squad depth issues that we do. 

Ignore it if you want. It doesn't surprise me 

[DCJonah]

3 minutes ago, NurembergVillan said:

I liked your post, but only based on the first bit.

12 months ago we didn't even have the bits in bold, and they weren't all new signings in the summer - Mings, Konsa and Targett have all improved individually and collectively.

We were playing high energy, entertaining football until Covid ripped through our squad and the one player we have who could arguably start for any team in Europe got injured.

You're right about what we need to sign, but FFP and the realities of squad integration have prevented us from doing it already.  Even looking at strikers - we've got a £20m player trying to find his way back. Doesn't help us on the field, but in terms of FFP we couldn't go out to sign another one.

I think people have bought into the press rhetoric about Spurs being shit, when earlier in the season they were looking a good shout for title challengers.

Ran out of likes but totally agree with this. 

[VillaJay]

Beaten the defending champions 7(Seven!)-2, Arsenal twice, Leicester and built a solid defence whilst playing some top attacking football until recently. If we can finish on 50+ points it will have been a solid season with plenty to build on.

[nick76]

6 minutes ago, Demitri_C said:

Because i am entitled to my opinion.

Elmo played because smith sidnt ahve faith to play kesler who looks good enough to have come in. Trez has been pure ahit this year 

Aeg hit some good form.then was dropped

Whose fault is that?? He didnt think to go for another striker in jan or try traore up front or use a youth player like  Barry?

I think its more blind faith you will defend smith no matter what and you critise anyone who dares criticise him.

If your happy with the last 5 games thats down to you but its been nothing short of garbage.

I don’t think he’s happy but your alternatives are just as poor as what has been done.  

Kesler and Barry play? Just not in the real world.

He did try for another striker, which has been talked about on this site for the last week but it didn’t come off because the player ultimately rejected us.

Nobody is happy with the last five games but some fans think our squad is in a difference place to where it is currently.  Rome wasn’t built in a day! It takes time to build a squad and when our first XI go through a poor period we don’t have many alternatives and throwing in kids who aren’t ready is just fantasy football talk.

[Lerner's Driver]

Just now, DCJonah said:

It means we are a prem team next year and get to spend big again. That's exciting to me. 

Fair enough, we all see things differently. In my opinion, staying up - comfortably this time in mid table - IS an achievement after last year, but in a season where we started strongly and then have utterly failed to capitalise on the inconsistency of 'better teams' to really push on, only an unambitious, owner, manager, or fan would be excited by where we are headed currently. Anyone being honest would admit, we spunked our load in December and now the cum is slowly crusting. 

[gaffer85]

I think we probably should change tactics when Jack isn't there

Maybe 3 5 2 

                   Martinez 

     Konsa     engels/hause   mings

Cash       Nakamba  luiz        targett 

                       Mcginn

           Watkins      Davis 

 

I think with this it also makes us more dangerous on set pieces because of extra height 

[VillaJay]

1 minute ago, Lerner's Driver said:

Fair enough, we all see things differently. In my opinion, staying up - comfortably this time in mid table - IS an achievement after last year, but in a season where we started strongly and then have utterly failed to capitalise on the inconsistency of 'better teams' to really push on, only an unambitious, owner, manager, or fan would be excited by where we are headed currently. Anyone being honest would admit, we spunked our load in December and now the cum is slowly crusting. 

I don't think anyone is excited about the prospect of finishing mid table after the start we had, but the reality is that's the level this squad is at. It's a chance for us to finally show some stability and build on this side in the summer.

[DCJonah]

1 minute ago, Lerner's Driver said:

Fair enough, we all see things differently. In my opinion, staying up - comfortably this time in mid table - IS an achievement after last year, but in a season where we started strongly and then have utterly failed to capitalise on the inconsistency of 'better teams' to really push on, only an unambitious, owner, manager, or fan would be excited by where we are headed currently. Anyone being honest would admit, we spunked our load in December and now the cum is slowly crusting. 

You say unambitious, I'd say realistic. 

We don't have the squad to produce the consistency needed to finish in that top 6. Liverpool, arsenal and Everton currently can't do it, spurs might not. There's nothing realistic about thinking we should have. 

I wanted to, it would have been tremendous but there's no panic. We have awesome owners willing to invest. The journey will take time. 

[DCJonah]

9 minutes ago, nick76 said:

I don’t think he’s happy but your alternatives are just as poor as what has been done.  

Kesler and Barry play? Just not in the real world.

He did try for another striker, which has been talked about on this site for the last week but it didn’t come off because the player ultimately rejected us.

Nobody is happy with the last five games but some fans think our squad is in a difference place to where it is currently.  Rome wasn’t built in a day! It takes time to build a squad and when our first XI go through a poor period we don’t have many alternatives and throwing in kids who aren’t ready is just fantasy football talk.

I think some people think it's Fifa. 

We have an academy and coaches and a technical director that will monitor and develop these kids. But we should just **** all that and throw them in the first team because Dem on VT is fed up. 

[Mark Albrighton]

Jeeez, the accountants are out again.

Villa have spent about £240m on 18 players. 

Go back to the end of the 2018/19 season, make a first xi from that squad at Smith’s disposal to compete in the premier league. You don’t get to pick Mings, El Ghazi, or Hause if you feel inclined. They weren’t permanent squad players. 

Go on, try and make a decent first xi. Can’t do it? Thought not. So money had to be spent. Could they have spent it on 3 or 4 elite players? Theoretically, yes, would they have come, probably not. And they might have got injured, but you know, we’d have solid back ups like Thor and Whelan, so people would probably be happy with the squad depth.

Let’s look at tonight’s opponents. At the end of 2018/19 Spurs finished 4th. They have spent around £220m on about 9 players. They might finish fifth. And like Villa they have a world class player they have for “free” in Kane to help them out not spending too much.

So Villa had more holes to plug and have incrementally improved their league position. Spurs have spent a similar amount from a FAR higher position and look like they will have regressed come the end of the season. 

I think most on here are in agreement that at the start of the season, finishing 8th - 12th would represent a significant improvement on last year. For whatever reason, some on here seem to think that finishing mid table wouldn’t involve losing more than a couple of matches or having a period of bad form.

It’s fine to criticise Smith, the performances, whatever. But **** me, I honestly think for some on here we may as well have gone bust three years ago when we nearly did as I think they’d be equally as (un)happy in the lower reaches of the championship or League One as they are suffering the indignity of not finishing in the top 8 of the premier league.

[nick76]

2 minutes ago, Mark Albrighton said:

Jeeez, the accountants are out again.

Villa have spent about £240m on 18 players. 

Go back to the end of the 2018/19 season, make a first xi from that squad at Smith’s disposal to compete in the premier league. You don’t get to pick Mings, El Ghazi, or Hause if you feel inclined. They weren’t permanent squad players. 

Go on, try and make a decent first xi. Can’t do it? Thought not. So money had to be spent. Could they have spent it on 3 or 4 elite players? Theoretically, yes, would they have come, probably not. And they might have got injured, but you know, we’d have solid back ups like Thor and Whelan, so people would probably be happy with the squad depth.

Let’s look at tonight’s opponents. At the end of 2018/19 Spurs finished 4th. They have spent around £220m on about 9 players. They might finish fifth. And like Villa they have a world class player they have for “free” in Kane to help them out not spending too much.

So Villa had more holes to plug and have incrementally improved their league position. Spurs have spent a similar amount from a FAR higher position and look like they will have regressed come the end of the season. 

I think most on here are in agreement that at the start of the season, finishing 8th - 12th would represent a significant improvement on last year. For whatever reason, some on here seem to think that finishing mid table wouldn’t involve losing more than a couple of matches or having a period of bad form.

It’s fine to criticise Smith, the performances, whatever. But **** me, I honestly think for some on here we may as well have gone bust three years ago when we nearly did as I think they’d be equally as (un)happy in the lower reaches of the championship or League One as they are suffering the indignity of not finishing in the top 8 of the premier league.

Great post!

[Zatman]

11 minutes ago, Lerner's Driver said:

Fair enough, we all see things differently. In my opinion, staying up - comfortably this time in mid table - IS an achievement after last year, but in a season where we started strongly and then have utterly failed to capitalise on the inconsistency of 'better teams' to really push on, only an unambitious, owner, manager, or fan would be excited by where we are headed currently. Anyone being honest would admit, we spunked our load in December and now the cum is slowly crusting. 

Yes but from the  inconsistent better teams the top 4 will probably teams that have recently won the title and only West Ham look like breaking the top 6. If anything a team like Everton or Spurs should be a lot more disappointed in the season than Villa 

I think if you ranked teams now on where they were expected to finish the season we would be one of the 5 best teams in the league. West Ham, Leicester, Leeds and us are probably the only teams outranking there expectations

[DCJonah]

7 minutes ago, Mark Albrighton said:

Jeeez, the accountants are out again.

Villa have spent about £240m on 18 players. 

Go back to the end of the 2018/19 season, make a first xi from that squad at Smith’s disposal to compete in the premier league. You don’t get to pick Mings, El Ghazi, or Hause if you feel inclined. They weren’t permanent squad players. 

Go on, try and make a decent first xi. Can’t do it? Thought not. So money had to be spent. Could they have spent it on 3 or 4 elite players? Theoretically, yes, would they have come, probably not. And they might have got injured, but you know, we’d have solid back ups like Thor and Whelan, so people would probably be happy with the squad depth.

Let’s look at tonight’s opponents. At the end of 2018/19 Spurs finished 4th. They have spent around £220m on about 9 players. They might finish fifth. And like Villa they have a world class player they have for “free” in Kane to help them out not spending too much.

So Villa had more holes to plug and have incrementally improved their league position. Spurs have spent a similar amount from a FAR higher position and look like they will have regressed come the end of the season. 

I think most on here are in agreement that at the start of the season, finishing 8th - 12th would represent a significant improvement on last year. For whatever reason, some on here seem to think that finishing mid table wouldn’t involve losing more than a couple of matches or having a period of bad form.

It’s fine to criticise Smith, the performances, whatever. But **** me, I honestly think for some on here we may as well have gone bust three years ago when we nearly did as I think they’d be equally as (un)happy in the lower reaches of the championship or League One as they are suffering the indignity of not finishing in the top 8 of the premier league.

No likes left but standing ovation from me. 

I genuinely thought a few years in the championship might have humbled our fanbase. 

 

[villa4europe]

Just now, Zatman said:

Yes but from the  inconsistent better teams the top 4 will probably teams that have recently won the title and only West Ham look like breaking the top 6. If anything a team like Everton or Spurs should be a lot more disappointed in the season than Villa 

I think if you ranked teams now on where they were expected to finish the season we would be one of the 5 best teams in the league. West Ham, Leicester, Leeds and us are probably the only teams outranking there expectations

Agree, chuck in wolves too, massively regressed this year 

[DCJonah]

Just now, Zatman said:

Yes but from the  inconsistent better teams the top 4 will probably teams that have recently won the title and only West Ham look like breaking the top 6. If anything a team like Everton or Spurs should be a lot more disappointed in the season than Villa 

I think if you ranked teams now on where they were expected to finish the season we would be one of the 5 best teams in the league. West Ham, Leicester, Leeds and us are probably the only teams outranking there expectations

This. I really don't get it. If we finish 8th or 12th or even 13th? What's going to happen that's worth all the **** whining? 

[foreveryoung]

26 minutes ago, VillaJay said:

Beaten the defending champions 7(Seven!)-2, Arsenal twice, Leicester and built a solid defence whilst playing some top attacking football until recently. If we can finish on 50+ points it will have been a solid season with plenty to build on.

But wheres that form gone?

[Lerner's Driver]

It just seems odd that people are analysing our season now, as though it's already over and already a success. The only metric by which that is true, is the one that says we are mathematically safe, but do you think our owners spaffed all the cash they did just to finish 13th or 14th? Sure it's an improvement, but is it enough? And yes, we may not finish that low, but it's also not completely unlikely that we will, given how we are playing. It all feels like a missed opportunity to me.

[LxYoungAVFC]

We don't seem to be exploiting our opposition's weaknesses at all.

Last season when Targett was having a difficult time, teams were often overloading our left side. This season when Cash was injured, teams were targeting our right side because they know Elmo is past it. Other teams have obviously looked at our zonal/hybrid system from corners and targeted the area McGinn is covering.

I'd like to see us take a similarly ruthless approach.