Ratings & Reactions: Villa v Sheff Utd

[stegzy]

Feels weird that I thought the centre backs were really good apart from one misplaced pass from Elphick.

[LakotaDakota]

11 minutes ago, fightoffyour said:

Smith’s PPG for the whole season would have us in the top 6. And he’s had a much tougher set of fixtures. And we’ve been missing arguably the best player in our team,  or even the whole league, for much of that. And the refs have consistently shafted us.

Not really.

29 points in 19 games is 1.526 points per game.

Multiply this over a full season and you get 70 points and finish 8th/9th, which rather strangely is pretty much what Brentford ended up with last year (68pts)

Over the 31 games we have played this season it would be 47 points which would actually put us 7th (on goal difference) but the 4 teams immediately above us all have 2 games in hand

 

[smg]

No I wasn’t at the game but if I had been I would not have left at 79 minutes.

[OutByEaster?]

It's all complicated in my head so what I'm going to do is start with the referee, use him as an unnecessary and complicated metaphor for our performance, talk about the game a bit and about moments, lose my way, then finish in the opposite way to usual on a big fat negative, 

Nudge in the back. Nothing. Foul. Nothing. Good challenge. Whistle. Free kick. Take free kick. That's how it worked under this referee. Or at least that's how it worked when United had the ball. When we had the ball, it went. Nudge in the back. Nothing. Foul. Nothing. Good challenge. Whistle. Free kick.Take free kick. Whistle. Take free kick again.

Have you ever watched a game where the commentary is out of synch with the visuals, so you're never sure if the commentator is commenting on what just happened or what's about to happen? He was like that with a whistle. The Dali of referees. 

Even so, after about an hour I'd come to notice that he'd had no real influence on the game, he was strange for everyone and the players seemed to accept it and just try to do their best around him. Of course, then he decided to pull a foul up off the top shelf for their second goal and spoil that for me. He was always a step ahead, or eight seconds behind, I'm not sure which.

In many ways that's reflective of our performance in the match; we were awful, absolutely abject - but in the same way that the referee's decisions weren't influenced by play, our ability to score goals isn't in any way attached to our ability to play football - they just come, almost at random, for very little reason.

For no reason at all, we fumbled our way to a corner on 81 minutes and Mings who had a decent home debut headed home, I didn't celebrate that goal because I was in a mood. Then, we started to play with a little bit more intention than we had for the rest of the second half - that annoyed me further, if you can do it, why weren't you doing it for the previous half hour? Then, sort of out of nothing a ball popped up on the back post and Tammy Abraham did his thing to put us in sight of it. I clapped reasonably politely. We weren't good enough to get back into it, we didn't deserve it and if anything United would score again to ensure that order was restored. Of course, magically that wasn't to be.

Football gives you moments as a fan, things you remember, things you'll take with you to the end of your footballing days - moment when you're bellowing like a donkey with its cock on fire and throwing your arms around like one of those inflatable things you sometimes see outside car hypermarkets, moments where you forget where you are, who you are, what you've got to do tomorrow, that you're in your forties, that you have been in a mood for 90 minutes - everything. Moments that take you away and make you part of something that's just.....wonderful. 

I had a bit of a moment when we equalised. Andre Green slid directly at me and the players celebrated right of front of my moment. I had an eye contact moment with Glenn Whelan, it was unnerving but special. We were as one. It was only a moment, I'm sure Glenn is over it. It left me breathless; that's a first for him.

Some fans left after United's second goal, an awful lot left after the third goal - those that left after the full time whistle bounced out of Villa Park with manic grins and red faces - shared moments, moments for themselves, times to remember.

And that's why it's complicated - to try to separate the moment from the game, the magic from the underlying performance, because lets be in no doubt about it, this was a terrible performance - Taylor was poor, Jedinak showed that his next move should be retirement, the limitations of our midfield were exposed, Kodjia was half arsed and ineffective, El Ghazi hit-and-miss, Abraham alone. Individually we were second best and as a team we were miles away from the opposition - they opened brightly and passed the ball round us like we were cones, at times it was dazzling, but you always felt both team were contributing to it. We were still in the game at half time because we'd worked our magic over forty-five minutes and made them worse. 

If anything we were worse after the break, we lack energy and spark, we lack the ability to pass and keep the ball, we have a manager famed for a pass-and-move approach and either he's gone off the idea or they aren't listening, because the only passing we do is around our back four and even then we look like we're about to lose it at any moment, especially when the big Aussie in front of them has never been able to pass and is rapidly losing the ability to move. 

Ultimately today, we've got another draw - and as magical as the moment was, it's probably a draw that in the cold light of day puts an end to our hopes of reaching the playoffs. We should have had a penalty and they should have had a goal disallowed twice, but we haven't been unlucky, quite the opposite - we've robbed Sheffield of a win and their fans of their own table topping moment. If I had an ounce of decency, I'd apologise to Sheffield United.

We're a long way short of being a good Championship team and if we're to compete for the playoffs next season, we'll need to replace eight of this first eleven - given that half of them are retiring or on loan, we'll need to replace almost that many just to have a team, and before you start - there are no kids. There's no one ready to step in next weekend and make us better.

We're playing badly, we're badly organised, we have an ageing and disjointed squad and we're being propped up by loanees. We play two good sides next and I fear for us a little bit, and yet I know in five years time I'll have forgotten that and I'll still remember me and Andre, me and Glenn. It's a curious and magical game this thing of ours. 

I don't think dark times have ever been quite so much fun.

 

[fightoffyour]

5 minutes ago, LakotaDakota said:

Not really.

29 points in 19 games is 1.526 points per game.

Multiply this over a full season and you get 70 points and finish 8th/9th, which rather strangely is pretty much what Brentford ended up with last year (68pts)

Over the 31 games we have played this season it would be 47 points which would actually put us 7th (on goal difference) but the 4 teams immediately above us all have 2 games in hand

 

If we had 47 points we would automatically have a greater goal difference, thus we would be in the top 6 now, as I said.

You can’t compare with different seasons, its pretty meaningless.

Edited February 8, 2019 by fightoffyour

[LakotaDakota]

9 minutes ago, fightoffyour said:

If we had 47 points we would automatically have a greater goal difference, thus we would be in the top 6 now, as I said.

You can’t compare with different seasons, its pretty meaningless.

You can't imagine a greater goal difference........

[fightoffyour]

4 minutes ago, LakotaDakota said:

You can't imagine a greater goal difference........

You can’t inagine having a greater number of points without having a greater goal difference.

To get 47 points instead of 44 there’d have to be 1 draw turned into a win and 1 loss into a draw or 3 losses turned into draws, that’s a +2 or +3 goal difference minminum respectively. 

Edited February 8, 2019 by fightoffyour

[TRO]

48 minutes ago, Junxs said:

Thats the 2nd time this season the ball has been knocked out of the keepers hands when he's had both hand on it. Jay Rodriguez punched it out of Nylands hands earlier in the season and it wasnt given.

Whilst I'm on the topic, its worth pointing out how many pelters Nyland got for that from you lot, yet when you're all being rational I don't see anyone blaming Kalinic for pretty much the same "mistake"

it was foul play, it looked offside too....but 10/10 for Billy Sharps tenacity.....would we do that?

[LakotaDakota]

2 minutes ago, fightoffyour said:

You can’t inagine having a greater number of points without having a greater goal difference.

what if when you are busy imagining your results we only scored 1 instead of 3 in some games or lost 5-0 against wigan instead of 3-0...

 

Comparing different seasons may be meaningless but it is remarkably consistent & one thing for sure is that 70 points isn't going to get you promoted

13/14 season 70 points = 8th

14/15 season 70 points = 9th

15/16 season 70 points = 7th

16/17 season 70 points = 8th

17/18 season 70 points = 9th

[fightoffyour]

28 minutes ago, LakotaDakota said:

what if when you are busy imagining your results we only scored 1 instead of 3 in some games or lost 5-0 against wigan instead of 3-0...

 

Comparing different seasons may be meaningless but it is remarkably consistent & one thing for sure is that 70 points isn't going to get you promoted

13/14 season 70 points = 8th

14/15 season 70 points = 9th

15/16 season 70 points = 7th

16/17 season 70 points = 8th

17/18 season 70 points = 9th

Smith’s GDPG is +0.32 with +6 from 19 games giving +9.79 from 31 games. No more imagining.

I see you conveniently stopped before 2012/13 when Leicester got 6th place with 68 points. Also Blackpool did get promoted with exactly 70 points in 09/10!

Edited February 8, 2019 by fightoffyour

[Hughes]

Fact of the matter is that, up to 82 mins this was one of the worst performances at Villa Park for quite some time. No tempo (did you see the difference is time-per-touch - scary), no movement (it was crazy difference) and no effing urgency. It has been like this for a long period  now. I would love, absoluelty love (in the words of KK) for Dean to succeed, but he needs to do better. Bringing in Jedinak was a disaster (he surely must be done now). Anyway, here's to another season in the Chchip.  The good thing is that Dean has plenty of time to prepare. 

[Pelle]

I really shouldn't be eas happy as I am for a draw. But I am. We can discuss the awfull performance all night long, but we came back from being 3 down with 10-15 minutes left. That's magic. That's football at its best. And we fans were due one after having seeing so many points lost in the dying minutes.

[maqroll]

what a lovely pass that was from McGinn to Green.

[Supervillan78]

Jedinak should be dropped, Green should start and the ref should be shot! UTV!

[LakotaDakota]

25 minutes ago, fightoffyour said:

Smith’s GDPG is +0.32 with +6 from 19 games giving +9.79 from 31 games. No more imagining.

I see you conveniently stopped before 2012/13 when Leicester got 6th place with 68 points. Also Blackpool did get promoted with exactly 70 points in 09/10!

didn't look any further, just went back 5 years & for someone who says comparing previous seasons is meaningless you're going a long way back to 2009

Anyway we'll be 11th/12th by the time everyone has played their game(s) in hands so none of this really matters anyway

[AJ]

Granted, we played poorly, but it feels to me like we won 3 -2 against 12 men.

[The Fun Factory]

Er I left when it was 3-0 down. Whoops. Serves me right for being a rubbish fan.  I can't believe we got a point from that.

[tinker]

2nd goal for me ........keepers hands were a fraction a head of the strikers foot , it's was 50/50 and tbh a goal was a fair conclusion. Our defenders just stood and watched the utd players shoot , that was the shit part of it all .

[sidcow]

Jesus I gave the referee very poor before I watched any of the telly. 

I knew he'd failed to give a ridiculous foul on Kodjia in the lead up to their second but even having given the very poor rating we need something new to demote his performance even more in the light of the goal being awarded having being kicked out of the keepers hands and the nailed on blatant penalty right in his line of site in the 88th minute. 

It's impossible to believe anyone could have a worse game. 

[terrytini]

@OutByEaster?that match report is wonderful. If you aren’t already employed in some capacity as a writer, you should be.

It was like the cigar and port after a marvellous dessert following a rancid dinner.

And “ he was always a step ahead or eight seconds behind, I couldn’t tell which “made me choke on my coffee. Brilliant. Thanks.

Edited February 9, 2019 by terrytini