Ratings & Reactions: Villa v Wolves

[villalad21]

26 minutes ago, Robtaylor200 said:

Gutted absolutely gutted, Dean said he didn't see that coming well I did and every one else in the ground could see it coming

IMO Ings and Ollie are not fitting together, wingers for Ings or through the midfield for Ollie.

Dropping Hause didn't make sense to me.  Tuanzebe was sadly lacking in all aspects and should have been subbed before end of first half

Talking subs I felt  they made no difference as were swapped for like for like and not to change the game apart from Ramsay

Ming's WTF, he couldn't decide if was going to be a CB, a winger or a midfielder, he was in a bloody dream world. How can he lead the team when he is out of position so often. When was the last time we had a real captain who can read the game ?

We just totally switched off 

We sang 2:0 on your big day out and they laughed at us, fair play to their supporters they sang throughout and were often the loudest. They were laughing at us and god that hurts. They will be laughing at us when we go to work Monday and the rest of the week and I don't blame them what a bunch of clowns we were.

Big apologies are due to us. I haven't felt this hurt since walking away from Wembley following the Fulham defeat. 

 

It was bad enough watching it unfold on NBC. Can't imagine how it must have felt being at the ground. 

[villalad21]

2 minutes ago, DCJonah said:

We replaced Grealish with 3 players, 2 of them, for various reasons have not been regular starters for us. Bailey still hasn't started a game for us. 

It was never going to click instantly. I've said it from the start, I expect us to click and be stronger 2nd half of the season. 

 

That game had nothing to do with not clicking and everything to do with mentality. Or lack of I should say. 

[sheepyvillian]

1 hour ago, AVFCforever1991 said:

To be 2-0 at home, we should 100% be closing that game out, absolutely no excuses

We totally surrendered momentum after our second goal. It's not the first time and it needs to be eliminated from our psyche otherwise these moments will continue to haunt us. 

[AvfcRigo82]

20 hours ago, AVFCforever1991 said:

2-0 up and cruising and we lost 3-2, serious questions needs to be asked..

... of Dean Smith and whether he is the right person to take us forward and progress this club. I don't think he is.

With all the money and resources he has had and yet we still look no better than a Mid-table team?

Edited October 17, 2021 by AvfcRigo82

[VillaFaninLondon]

I'm sure everyone is angry, including one of the owners (Edens) who I believe was there yesterday. Wouldn't be surprised if he asked Smith directly WTF that capitulation was all about.

 

And it's not like it hasn't happened before under Smith. In the Championship a few years ago we were 2-0 up against Leeds and cruising and ended up losing 3-2. His in-game management has still barely improved - either make no subs, make subs too late, or make subs that lose us the game. 

 

This squad is better than it is currently showing on the pitch that's for sure. Heaven forbid things get worse over the coming weeks. 

[hippo]

8 hours ago, CVByrne said:

We have a good record of holding on for victory based on last season.

Sometimes games like this happen. Yes the players lost concentration but at the same time it's a bit of a freak event. We were much the better team for 80 mins. 

Poor to throw the game away but it was the players errors nothing to do with how the the was set up. Tactics worked, we were 2 0 up and could have been more. 

Can't see how we can criticise Dean for this 

 

 

 

Last season yes agreed we were good at lockouts.

But the team has changed a fair bit since then. We don't have the opposition fearing Jack's every move for one thing.

Don't agree the tactics didn't affect the game. 3cbs at home to bang average wolves game.

If it's all nothing to do with DS - why is he there ?.

 

 

[villalad21]

13 minutes ago, VillaFaninLondon said:

I'm sure everyone is angry, including one of the owners (Edens) who I believe was there yesterday. Wouldn't be surprised if he asked Smith directly WTF that capitulation was all about.

 

And it's not like it hasn't happened before under Smith. In the Championship a few years ago we were 2-0 up against Leeds and cruising and ended up losing 3-2. His in-game management has still barely improved - either make no subs, make subs too late, or make subs that lose us the game. 

 

This squad is better than it is currently showing on the pitch that's for sure. Heaven forbid things get worse over the coming weeks. 

In game management thing is a big reason to why I have never been able to get fully on board with this guy. 

I think he is a squad builder not a winner. Never a winner 

He was required to do the rebuild job but its time for the next step now. For me he has till May to turn this around. 

We can't keep being mid table or there is no process and will start losing our best players. 

[CVByrne]

4 minutes ago, hippo said:

Last season yes agreed we were good at lockouts.

But the team has changed a fair bit since then. We don't have the opposition fearing Jack's every move for one thing.

Don't agree the tactics didn't affect the game. 3cbs at home to bang average wolves game.

If it's all nothing to do with DS - why is he there ?.

 

 

We were 2 0 up with 10 mins left with the 3 CBs. Errors are what let the game slip and the player have to be accountable for that. 

[villalad21]

1 minute ago, CVByrne said:

We were 2 0 up with 10 mins left with the 3 CBs. Errors are what let the game slip and the player have to be accountable for that. 

The manager creates the mentality. 

Just look at Chelsea with Tuchel vs Lampard. A world of difference in the mentality. 

Buck stops with the manager I'm afraid. 

[chappy]

Didn’t post last night because I was still fuming. Almost an hour to get out of Tesco car park didn’t help (first time I’ve driven to a game - may need to find a better place to park).

 

Couple of things I’ve spotted reading the thread this morning. Not sure how people are criticising the Douglas Luiz sub - he was playing in Manaus less than 40 hours before this game and on a plane for about half that recovery time! I was very impressed with how well he played considering and it was right to sub him off.

I was baffled by the Cash sub at the time but hadn’t noticed him limping. Buendia probably isn’t at full fitness yet having been injured in pre season - when they were doing sprints on the pitch in the warm up he was taking it easier than the others. Played well today but I understand taking him off if fatigued. So I don’t blame the defeat on the substitutions, I blame it on awful defending. So many lapses of concentration in a ten minute spell. It seemed obvious that free kick was going in as soon as it was given but cruel for it to take such a deflection as Emi had it covered.

Starting to see better link up between Watkins and Ings (Ings impressed me with his work rate too) but I think the future, if having both in the team, needs to be in a front 3 with Bailey or Traore and Watkins wider.

First half I was thinking Mings MOTM here but he completely lost his head in the second, very disappointing. Voted McGinn fwiw. Smith average as I’m not sure what he could’ve done to prevent those defensive errors at the end. Voted Michael Oliver as poor, felt he let Neves get away with too many fouls before booking him, allowed Saiss to completely take Watkins out without a booking and have Watkins a strange yellow card too.

We were coasting at 2-0 and I’ve not left a ground that angry in a long time. But someone said worst defeat under Smith…? Don’t remember Hause’s debut away at Wigan? Or when we were sleepwalking to relegation before lockdown away at Soton and Leicester?

Hopefully we’ll have our two exciting wingers back ASAP and we can stop relying on Targett for creativity. Though he had a decent game (first 75) defensively but offers such little threat now there’s no Grealish for him to link up with. Cash offers more but would prefer to have a Traore there.

 

 

[Risso]

1 hour ago, DCJonah said:

We replaced Grealish with 3 players, 2 of them, for various reasons have not been regular starters for us. Bailey still hasn't started a game for us. 

It was never going to click instantly. I've said it from the start, I expect us to click and be stronger 2nd half of the season. 

 

Possibly, but that's no excuse for the last 10 minutes.

[VillaFaninLondon]

34 minutes ago, villalad21 said:

In game management thing is a big reason to why I have never been able to get fully on board with this guy. 

I think he is a squad builder not a winner. Never a winner 

He was required to do the rebuild job but its time for the next step now. For me he has till May to turn this around. 

We can't keep being mid table or there is no process and will start losing our best players. 

I completely endorse what you are saying although I am not sure I would give him until May.

 

I think we're underachieving even at this early stage and if he doesn't win at least one of the next 2 games against top half teams then I think I will be firmly Smith out. 

[7392craig]

10 hours ago, TRO said:

what is working?

do you see some kind of magic turnaround should this happen?

They ain't the problem..... 2 was enough to win that game.

We can't stop opposing teams coming at us....thats the problem.

 

I agree. However the problem with the two together is that too many attacks are breaking down, Ollie in particular is wasted in this formation. We’re losing the ball too easily in the final third.

[jim]

6 minutes ago, Risso said:

Possibly, but that's no excuse for the last 10 minutes.

Yes but that isn’t Smiths fault it’s the players’.

[romavillan]

4 hours ago, est1874 said:

Ramsey for Buendia isn't anything close to a like-for-like change. Apart from the fact that both are footballers; that's about the end of the comparison.

Position is what i meant!

[Risso]

4 minutes ago, jim said:

Yes but that isn’t Smiths fault it’s the players’.

He coaches the players, picks the players and the formation and makes the subs though. 

[villalad21]

1 minute ago, Risso said:

He coaches the players, picks the players and the formation and makes the subs though. 

He was being ironic 

[romavillan]

7 hours ago, TRO said:

 

Bar for a huge save from Emi M on traore, we could have been a goal down.....so they did have moments when they breached us throught the middle......the last 10-15 minutes they adopted a siege mentality, had nothing to lose and threw everything at it, we lost composure and control....the fact that 2 defenders scored their goals showed the magnitude of our collapse.

There were players of ours simply not prepared to fight for the ball.....and their sheer numbers created the chaos to cause confusion and bungle the ball over the line.....it was shoddy play from some of our players.

We have an innate issue of being able to play some good football....but at  the same time, we allow opposing teams to get at us too easily.

Equally Ings should score first half, we had half a dozen good chances apart from that too. Wouldn't have been that against the run of play for us to have gone in at half time 2-0 or 2-1. 

Yes the collapse was terrible and yes Wolves' talented players managed to create against us. Not the whole story and it's something we can fix.

[icouldtelltheworld]

Frustrating stuff but we are still very much a work in progress - its a blip, not a crisis. Thought we were very good for the first 80 mins and that John McGinn was head and shoulders the best player on the pitch 

[Louis]

Oh no. What a shocker. Serious work needs to happen before Arsenal on Friday. If we play like this at Arsenal, we could get spanked. Glad I left as soon as Wolves scored their 1st goal. Wolves fans were bonkers on the train from Witton into Birmingham.