Pre-match thread

[VillaFaninLondon]

57 minutes ago, Nigel said:

Behave!

I think you are grossly underestimating a good palace team. They will be fighting at the same level as us this season.

Tbh with the Carlos news and our general play atm I'd even have them as favourites. 

 

That's why we'll be lower half because if Palace is our level then we ain't gonna improve much on last season. If you're happy with that then fine, personally I'm really not as I want more from this club and clearly Purslow does as we've heard it directly from his mouth.

 

This and the West Ham game are where we see what Gerrard is made of. Our aim has to be 6 points, so beating Crystal Palace really is important. West Ham seem to be beating us a lot in recent times, but Forest beat them yesterday and I expect us to at least not lose that game.

 

Selhurst Park is a difficult place to go because of the noise etc but this is where tactically we have to get it right. He managed to last season and we came off with a win, he needs to do so again because we need to win this game we really do.

 

We play Southampton before the international break, that will be our 8th game of the season. We got 10 points from those games last season (if we consider Bournemouth to be the equivalent of Watford) so our aim has to be something like 11-13 points from those games. None of the next 5 are particularly easy but we have to find a way to win a couple of them just to be around midtable after the Leicester game. If we don't I can see Gerrard will come under more pressure from fans and eventually the owners.

 

Honestly as fans we have to start demanding more from this team. A draw will be a disappointing result at Crystal Palace and a win must be the desired outcome. That's not arrogance, that's just simple expectations from a team that wants to finish in an average position of 10th.

[Nigel]

30 minutes ago, VillaFaninLondon said:

That's why we'll be lower half because if Palace is our level then we ain't gonna improve much on last season. If you're happy with that then fine, personally I'm really not as I want more from this club and clearly Purslow does as we've heard it directly from his mouth.

 

This and the West Ham game are where we see what Gerrard is made of. Our aim has to be 6 points, so beating Crystal Palace really is important. West Ham seem to be beating us a lot in recent times, but Forest beat them yesterday and I expect us to at least not lose that game.

 

Selhurst Park is a difficult place to go because of the noise etc but this is where tactically we have to get it right. He managed to last season and we came off with a win, he needs to do so again because we need to win this game we really do.

 

We play Southampton before the international break, that will be our 8th game of the season. We got 10 points from those games last season (if we consider Bournemouth to be the equivalent of Watford) so our aim has to be something like 11-13 points from those games. None of the next 5 are particularly easy but we have to find a way to win a couple of them just to be around midtable after the Leicester game. If we don't I can see Gerrard will come under more pressure from fans and eventually the owners.

 

Honestly as fans we have to start demanding more from this team. A draw will be a disappointing result at Crystal Palace and a win must be the desired outcome. That's not arrogance, that's just simple expectations from a team that wants to finish in an average position of 10th.

You can tell yourself that we are better than these teams all you want, the fact is we are not currently. 

Palace have bought well to add to an already more seasoned team that finished above us...playing at their ground. 

If we get a result here its very much a positive,  not a run of the mill result.

 

[VillaFaninLondon]

1 hour ago, Nigel said:

You can tell yourself that we are better than these teams all you want, the fact is we are not currently. 

Palace have bought well to add to an already more seasoned team that finished above us...playing at their ground. 

If we get a result here its very much a positive,  not a run of the mill result.

 

I think we are marginally better than Crystal Palace yes but have a poorer manager in charge, West Ham are probably better but then they're also much better than Forest in theory and lost to them. We should have done more in this transfer window and we haven't and it makes me sick.

 

What you seem to be saying in bold is that last season was acceptable, we can't expect to beat teams that finished 12th because we finished lower, which is fine if you want to finish 14th at best again. And they are not more 'seasoned' than us, if that's the term you want to use, Olise, Eze, Mitchell, Guehi, Doucoure are all regulars and under 25, most of our team are in their late 20s because we have gone for the 'results needed now' approach.

 

My point is, if the club want to charge much higher ticket prices, expand the stadium to 50,000+, and bring in players in their late 20s for instant results, but we can't expect to beat teams finishing in the top 12, then what exactly is the point? We may as well scrap our objectives because we'll never achieve them.

[Nigel]

10 minutes ago, VillaFaninLondon said:

 

 

What you seem to be saying in bold is that last season was acceptable, we can't expect to beat teams that finished 12th because we finished lower, which is fine if you want to finish 14th at best again. And they are not more 'seasoned' than us, if that's the term you want to use, Olise, Eze, Mitchell, Guehi, Doucoure are all regulars and under 25, most of our team are in their late 20s because we have gone for the 'results needed now' approach.

 

 

Its not what im saying at all. Im not concerned with where we should finish this year or where we finished last year, only on what Saturday brings.

By 'seasoned' im not talking about the age of the players, rather the construct of the whole club.

[VillaChris]

14 hours ago, JAMAICAN-VILLAN said:

Palace a pretty good side to be honest.

Our games are usually very competitive, did we beat them twice last season or was it a win and a draw?

But yeah agree on the whole, but reckon they are definitely a tougher test than Bournemouth and Everton so we will have to be at it.

 

I'm still intrigued by how they're replacing Conor Gallagher. They're losing plenty of goals from midfield given their attack is inconsistent at scoring.

Think they're playing Eze in his position but that's a different type, more of a creator than finisher.

They've had a pretty disrupted pre season, half their squad not going to Australia due to not taking up covid jabs so I'd be hugely disappointed if we lost this as their fitness probably won't be 100%.

[VillaChris]

3 hours ago, VillaFaninLondon said:

That's why we'll be lower half because if Palace is our level then we ain't gonna improve much on last season. If you're happy with that then fine, personally I'm really not as I want more from this club and clearly Purslow does as we've heard it directly from his mouth.

 

This and the West Ham game are where we see what Gerrard is made of. Our aim has to be 6 points, so beating Crystal Palace really is important. West Ham seem to be beating us a lot in recent times, but Forest beat them yesterday and I expect us to at least not lose that game.

 

Selhurst Park is a difficult place to go because of the noise etc but this is where tactically we have to get it right. He managed to last season and we came off with a win, he needs to do so again because we need to win this game we really do.

 

We play Southampton before the international break, that will be our 8th game of the season. We got 10 points from those games last season (if we consider Bournemouth to be the equivalent of Watford) so our aim has to be something like 11-13 points from those games. None of the next 5 are particularly easy but we have to find a way to win a couple of them just to be around midtable after the Leicester game. If we don't I can see Gerrard will come under more pressure from fans and eventually the owners.

 

Honestly as fans we have to start demanding more from this team. A draw will be a disappointing result at Crystal Palace and a win must be the desired outcome. That's not arrogance, that's just simple expectations from a team that wants to finish in an average position of 10th.

Yeah my other half is a Palace fan and she's actually worried about them being in a relegation battle as they really haven't signed much at all this summer and lost Gallagher who had a top season for them.

Don't think they'll drop down table that much but they'll probably be 13th/14th unless they make 2-3 good signings in next few weeks so it will just be a repeat of last year if we're not going to do much better than them.

That said I'd be o.k with 1-1 as think beating West Ham will do more for team's self esteem over next few months given we can't even get draws off them.

[TRO]

3 hours ago, Nigel said:

You can tell yourself that we are better than these teams all you want, the fact is we are not currently. 

Palace have bought well to add to an already more seasoned team that finished above us...playing at their ground. 

If we get a result here its very much a positive,  not a run of the mill result.

 

We are loaded with talented players.....but sadly this league has an abundance of physically/mentally prepared players, even the top teams have their share of physically adept players....this is often overlooked, as we think unadulterated talent is the answer to everything.

We are generally a fragile/lightweight  team, this is rarely factored in, when describing our ability to win matches and beat other teams.

Crystal Palace is not an easy fixture, and any points will be welcome.

Edited August 15, 2022 by TRO

[VillaFaninLondon]

19 minutes ago, VillaChris said:

Yeah my other half is a Palace fan and she's actually worried about them being in a relegation battle as they really haven't signed much at all this summer and lost Gallagher who had a top season for them.

Don't think they'll drop down table that much but they'll probably be 13th/14th unless they make 2-3 good signings in next few weeks so it will just be a repeat of last year if we're not going to do much better than them.

That said I'd be o.k with 1-1 as think beating West Ham will do more for team's self esteem over next few months given we can't even get draws off them.

They're a decent team, not great and not poor, and as you say have lost a major player from last season in Gallagher. I would normally be satisfied with a point there but the problem is we are already playing catchup to where we want to be after losing to a poor Bournemouth team. I had us on 7 points from our opening 3 games and we are already a point down on that even if we beat Palace.

 

I tend to look forward about 4-5 games which is why I'm looking at the difficulty of each fixture (from easiest to hardest) in this order: 1) Crystal Palace, 2) West Ham, 3) Leicester, 4) Arsenal, 5) Man City

 

We are only on 3 points, if we are only drawing the 'easier' games on that list (Crystal Palace and maybe West Ham and Leicester) then we are going to be on around 6 points from our opening 7 fixtures. That's unless Gerrard manages to pull off wins against teams like Arsenal or City or beats Leicester away which I can't see happening. No games in this league are easy but I'm fed up how so many fans just want to accept mediocrity and then complain when we finish in a mediocre position. We really need to demand more if we're ever to achieve anything. 

 

If we win against CP, that makes me believe again and I haven't felt that way under Gerrard probably since March. Beating two relegated teams and a poor Everton team is not grounds to make us think he can be successful. This is the sort of fixture we have to be winning if we're to finish top 10 given we have already dropped points so early in the season so a draw for me will just be a very meh result.

[roonst83]

I feel Palace would punish us more than Everton did the other day given the opportunities they had. We need them to come right at us and not sit back as we find it too hard to break teams down if they sit back. Palace, I don't think, will sit back.

[villa89]

1-1 draw. 

[srsmithusa]

So,  cp seems to be playing a rather defensive mindset this year and trying to strike on counter attack whenever possible.   That’s exactly where we have struggled.  Breaking down a tight and compact defense and keeping possession are not our forte.   I think kamara will help break up the counters, but need speed in CB.   having 2 up top and spreading them out with central support from midfield worked against Everton.  I suspect that’s what we will see again.  
 

oh, and we need some way to clear corner kicks.  

[AshVilla]

I'm dreading to find out who will be playing CB with Diego out.

Whoever it is needs to be on top of their game or Zaha's going to roast them.

[Louis]

The defence needs to be sorted ASAP otherwise thing s could go very wrong!

 

Would a 4-3-3 formation be ok? 4-5-1 no because your only playing one up front. We’ve only made only a few signings this summer, unlike Leicester who haven’t done anything! I saw Kamara and I thought he was ok.

I don’t know from this one, Stevie might set us up to be defensive.

Prediction; 1-1

 

[Galway Lion]

10 hours ago, VillaFaninLondon said:

I think we are marginally better than Crystal Palace yes but have a poorer manager in charge, West Ham are probably better but then they're also much better than Forest in theory and lost to them. We should have done more in this transfer window and we haven't and it makes me sick.

 

What you seem to be saying in bold is that last season was acceptable, we can't expect to beat teams that finished 12th because we finished lower, which is fine if you want to finish 14th at best again. And they are not more 'seasoned' than us, if that's the term you want to use, Olise, Eze, Mitchell, Guehi, Doucoure are all regulars and under 25, most of our team are in their late 20s because we have gone for the 'results needed now' approach.

 

My point is, if the club want to charge much higher ticket prices, expand the stadium to 50,000+, and bring in players in their late 20s for instant results, but we can't expect to beat teams finishing in the top 12, then what exactly is the point? We may as well scrap our objectives because we'll never achieve them.

Don’t know where you are getting your information from but Villa’s average age is 26.3 compared to Palaces 26.4. We however have many young homegrown players very highly rated on the verge of breaking through. Just maybe that experience is needed until these players are ready

[VillaChris]

7 hours ago, VillaFaninLondon said:

They're a decent team, not great and not poor, and as you say have lost a major player from last season in Gallagher. I would normally be satisfied with a point there but the problem is we are already playing catchup to where we want to be after losing to a poor Bournemouth team. I had us on 7 points from our opening 3 games and we are already a point down on that even if we beat Palace.

 

I tend to look forward about 4-5 games which is why I'm looking at the difficulty of each fixture (from easiest to hardest) in this order: 1) Crystal Palace, 2) West Ham, 3) Leicester, 4) Arsenal, 5) Man City

 

We are only on 3 points, if we are only drawing the 'easier' games on that list (Crystal Palace and maybe West Ham and Leicester) then we are going to be on around 6 points from our opening 7 fixtures. That's unless Gerrard manages to pull off wins against teams like Arsenal or City or beats Leicester away which I can't see happening. No games in this league are easy but I'm fed up how so many fans just want to accept mediocrity and then complain when we finish in a mediocre position. We really need to demand more if we're ever to achieve anything. 

 

If we win against CP, that makes me believe again and I haven't felt that way under Gerrard probably since March. Beating two relegated teams and a poor Everton team is not grounds to make us think he can be successful. This is the sort of fixture we have to be winning if we're to finish top 10 given we have already dropped points so early in the season so a draw for me will just be a very meh result.

We had a good start last season, 10 points from first 6 games so that would've been 60 points over a season but we were miles off that in the end and sacked the manager five games later.

Think it's too early to be worrying about dropped points as bad as losing to Bournemouth was.

It's a tricky start but from mid September we have Southampton at home and then games v Leeds, Fulham, Forest and Brentford up to end of October so that is going to be the period Gerrard will be judged on as we need to win a few of those games to be close to top half. Or a new manager can win some of them instead.

Edited August 15, 2022 by VillaChris

[AvonVillain]

Palace will be well up for this game, Selhurst Park will be rocking and full of expectation of 3 points. Not sure we'll have the mentality to come away with a win here.

[Demitri_C]

Ill take a point now if offered

[Mantis]

Don't think we can read too much into tonight's game as far as our game is concerned. Everton looked quite good against Chelsea and then were pretty comfortably dominated by us (aside from the last 10 minutes). Likewise I've seen teams play crap and then turn up the next week and smash us.

[grobs]

Gonna be a tough game. Can’t concede first in this.

[WallisFrizz]

With only 1 point on the board after a really tough start, Palace will be really fired up for a home win against us. There’s a bit of disrespect for them on here but they were good in the second half against a very good Arsenal side and deserved their point at Anfield. 

Our lads will have to be determined to give 110% to get anything. Which is part of the problem, we were determined against Everton but we now need to push on again with the same intensity. Let’s see if the consistency issue that SG keeps correctly alluding to is being fixed.