Ginko Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 (edited) I saw a lot of people on social media (and a couple of posters here, on the previous page) talking about how fired up he was at the press conference and thinking it was a good thing, but I couldn’t help but feel a bit uncomfortable by it. Now, it could just be coincidence, but judging by his manner and the things he was saying at the presser, I did start to think the FA Cup wasn’t exactly a priority of his. That’s fine, and understandable, but I don’t think he conducted himself well in the press conference, and now he looks a little daft after the result tonight and the way we played. I know some people here would take the FA Cup over a top four finish (I personally wouldn’t), but it’s clearly not Emery’s priority. He put out a strong team tonight barring our back four, but I do wonder if his demeanour at the presser and his somewhat apathetic feeling towards this competition rubbed off on the players, or perhaps he even told them to not play at full speed tonight to save energy for the next PL fixture. His tactics and lack of subs don’t exactly fit that rhetoric I suppose, or maybe he just a) doesn’t trust the second string or b) knew he’d get an earful if he played a weakened side. Maybe that dilemma is what pissed him off so much. We do have to take into account our threadbare back four at the moment, though, and the lack of depth we have. He’ll bounce back, but I do wonder if he’ll be a bit embarrassed about the presser and the result tonight. Edited February 7 by Ginko 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mantis Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 I'm sure it'll retroactively become the received wisdom that actually we weren't great against Sheffield United and that we only smashed them becuase they're really poor, but we genuinely looked lively and full of zip in that game, and I don't really know why there was such a marked lack of application tonight. Even setting aside tactics and the quality of opposition, it was like watching two different teams. If we'd have played like that on Saturday we'd have lost or drawn at best. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PieFacE Posted February 7 VT Supporter Share Posted February 7 I'm not even remotely doubting Unai cos he knows far far far more about football than I do. But I wouldn't mind us maybe taking a slightly more pragmatic approach to games in the first 15/20 minutes. It seems when we play really poorly we concede early and just can't get into the game after that. Or maybe a more pragmatic approach when several first team players are out injured like today. Give us a bit more chance to grow into games. I'd still really like to see a 4-3-3 formation with both Diaby and Bailey playing wide with Ollie in the middle. Tho, it won't happen. Our home performances recently have been very concerning and it's clear we're missing Pau and Digne amongst others. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Zatman Posted February 7 Popular Post Share Posted February 7 55 minutes ago, Captain_Townsend said: We had a lot of forward momentum as a club from Unai's very first day. I genuinely believe small things can be significant and the more I reflect the more I feel Heck's interventions have been unnecessarily distracting and we just haven't been the same since he messed with the badge and the stadium and talked Billy big shot about Champions League and rejecting bids for our players. Could he not have just kept in the background and let us ad a club focus on the amazing season we were having? And made his announcements at the end of the season? Yep, Heck is now running tactics and it seems Carlos and Lenglet are playing poor not because they are 4th and 5th choice centre back but because Carlos is fuming about the North Stand and Lenglet wants a circular badge 3 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
useless Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 I think people were reading his press conference manner out of context, I watched the whole thing, and he was only angry because he was asked which was more important FA Cup or the league, it wasn't him being fired up for this game, which I'm sure he was, but that wasn't what his press conference was about 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woody1000 Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 58 minutes ago, Captain_Townsend said: We had a lot of forward momentum as a club from Unai's very first day. I genuinely believe small things can be significant and the more I reflect the more I feel Heck's interventions have been unnecessarily distracting and we just haven't been the same since he messed with the badge and the stadium and talked Billy big shot about Champions League and rejecting bids for our players. Could he not have just kept in the background and let us ad a club focus on the amazing season we were having? And made his announcements at the end of the season? Rumour has it that it was Heck’s idea for the Nazi’s to invade Poland in 1939… 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PieFacE Posted February 7 VT Supporter Share Posted February 7 It kinda feels like if teams press the centre backs and also press Kamara/Luiz then we really really struggle to play out of the back and end up going long. It's an issue that Unai needs to look at. May be different once Pau is back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post JAMAICAN-VILLAN Posted February 7 Popular Post Share Posted February 7 26 minutes ago, est1874 said: FFS our on field dip in form has got absolutely nothing to do with Chris Heck. What is wrong with you? Unai: " Lads... Wtf was that performance???!!! " Players: " Boss the badge is shit " 12 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jas10 Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 (edited) 35 minutes ago, M_Afro said: The main problem is the players. They look incredibly anxious and it’s really impacting the performances. It was always going to be difficult to maintain our levels as the pressure cranked up. Our players aren’t used to being in this position. They aren’t handling it very well at the moment. All’s not lost yet though. There’s still a long way to go. UTV. I wonder if complacency creeps in from time to time and one or two are “believing the hype”… midfield was so poor today, Bouba was atrocious in the early stages at least… not his usual self. None of them played to their usual standard in there… overall, it was really disappointing… there’s no getting away from that.. I don’t want to make excuses, I hate and am embarrassed by poor performances and results but… we just have to be patient and not forget all the progress and work so far… we have an amazing, and highly experienced manager & coach and a genuinely good set of players… As you say, these players aren’t used to these heady heights and even level of praise… the expectation and pressure too… but, they have to get on with it and focus… Unai has a lot to manage but I am really sick and tired of the injuries… they are costing us and making his job more difficult but… that doesn’t excuse having the wrong approach and lacking focus and determination… I’m confident we’ll overcome this… and come out better for it… maybe this is the first “challenging period” for Unai at Villa but we also don’t deserve to criticise too harshly or be excessively negative… he has transformed us into a top team in a short space of time, expectations have been raised purely because of that… we can’t just drop that level of appreciation and so quickly/suddenly… if anything, now’s the time to really show just how much we support him and these players… not just sing when we’re winning… It’s not the first challenge he has experienced in his career… I’m intrigued as to how we will shape up and approach Sunday’s game… I’m certainly not going to give up or go into it expecting defeat… Unai will be fired up and the players better get into shape fast… those that don’t… they won’t be sticking around for the long term… It almost seems silly to say all this seeing as we’re sitting in 4th in the PL(!) but I can’t deny that we have not been ourselves and have certainly dropped off since beating Man City and Arsenal…. I’m sure we’ll be back to our best soon and Unai will solve these issues… would be wonderful if that begins on Sunday… Keep the faith UTV Edited February 7 by Jas10 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kurtsimonw Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 I don't think we can just keep playing the same way every game. United, Newcastle and Chelsea have all pinned their wingers as high and wide as possible, and had midfield underlaps which ave caused us a mass of problems, and we seemingly have no way of adjusting within the structure of how we play. It's compounded when it's our second string XI. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leeroy Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 It was a weird press conference he gave before the game and he seemed agitated. Some took that as a sign of good things. But he didn’t need to behave like that after our 5-0 trouncing of Sheffield United. He doesn’t seem to be learning from his mistakes and that is the worry. He took the blame for the Newcastle fiasco, will he take the blame tonight too? Not making any subs until so late in the game was inexcusable, given the starting 11 he put out was so, so poor. He rewarded them for that performance by leaving them on most of the game, he should not escape criticism for that. He needs a performance against Man Utd next game, if our league form continues to suffer like it has now we are the cup too then the season is going down the pan. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duke313 Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 3 minutes ago, Leeroy said: It was a weird press conference he gave before the game and he seemed agitated. Some took that as a sign of good things. But he didn’t need to behave like that after our 5-0 trouncing of Sheffield United. He doesn’t seem to be learning from his mistakes and that is the worry. He took the blame for the Newcastle fiasco, will he take the blame tonight too? Not making any subs until so late in the game was inexcusable, given the starting 11 he put out was so, so poor. He rewarded them for that performance by leaving them on most of the game, he should not escape criticism for that. He needs a performance against Man Utd next game, if our league form continues to suffer like it has now we are the cup too then the season is going down the pan. What a bizarre thing to say. It was literally our strongest available starting XI 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
string28 Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 I got to admit the comments after the game from UE was a bit strange. Was he watching the same game? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
turvontour Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 31 minutes ago, Mantis said: I'm sure it'll retroactively become the received wisdom that actually we weren't great against Sheffield United and that we only smashed them becuase they're really poor, but we genuinely looked lively and full of zip in that game, and I don't really know why there was such a marked lack of application tonight. Even setting aside tactics and the quality of opposition, it was like watching two different teams. If we'd have played like that on Saturday we'd have lost or drawn at best. Do we play at a slower pace in all cup games or am I just imagining it? It feels that we play at about 50 to 75% of the Premier league tempo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lerner's Driver Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 23 minutes ago, Mantis said: I'm sure it'll retroactively become the received wisdom that actually we weren't great against Sheffield United and that we only smashed them becuase they're really poor, but we genuinely looked lively and full of zip in that game, and I don't really know why there was such a marked lack of application tonight. Even setting aside tactics and the quality of opposition, it was like watching two different teams. If we'd have played like that on Saturday we'd have lost or drawn at best. I don't think you can set aside the quality of opposition, but it wasn't just that, they also, inexplicably, just let us play and we invariably dispatch the teams that do. Bizarrely, they worked out how to nullify us in the game at Villa Park and then were wide open in their home game, so of course we steam-rollered them because they invited us to do it and we have better players. In tonight's game, Chelsea looked up for it and were excellent. They harried us, wanted it more and did not let us play, so were miles better. It's not complicated. They did to us, what we did to Sheffield Utd, albeit on a lesser scale. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jas10 Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 Would’ve loved for us to add a quality central midfielder in Jan… unfortunately, we were restricted by what we could do or who we could bring in…. Something to freshen up that central area, especially defensively… there is no one pushing or keeping Luiz, Kamara and McGinn on their toes… we lack depth and competition there imo… they can’t be expected to play amazingly in every game… Tielemans is not that player (better in attack, supporting Ollie and creating chances. Has only looked poor in midfield for us, but that was early days tbf)… Despite what Unai said or told the media… I don’t think Tim is ready to step in there… Will just have to see how we manage it… my faith and confidence in this manager will not be knocked… I’m more interested in seeing how he solves these dilemmas and the tweaks he makes… Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom13 Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 9 minutes ago, duke313 said: What a bizarre thing to say. It was literally our strongest available starting XI He means they played poorly, which they did. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jas10 Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 (edited) 8 minutes ago, string28 said: I got to admit the comments after the game from UE was a bit strange. Was he watching the same game? Tbf, he doesn’t have to be completely transparent, honest or sincere to the media (who often like to twist and exaggerate things too)… they may not necessarily reflect what was said to the players behind the scenes or in the dressing room… he’s too intelligent and experienced to make petulant or inflammatory comments (in public at least)… what benefit would there be to berating the players in interviews? I don’t think we should pay too much heed to comments like that… it’s the work he does on the training ground and decisions he makes internally and in games that actually mean anything… He will be racking his brain for solutions… no doubt about it… Edited February 7 by Jas10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom13 Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 9 minutes ago, string28 said: I got to admit the comments after the game from UE was a bit strange. Was he watching the same game? What did he say? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leeroy Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 11 minutes ago, duke313 said: What a bizarre thing to say. It was literally our strongest available starting XI I mean the performance from them was poor. It was the strongest team but he should have hooked several of them well before he did. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts