Ratings & Reactions: Villa v Fulham

[pintpotvilla]

2 minutes ago, mykeyb said:

Yet again the report on our game is way down the BBC sports page in my mobile, even below the Sheff Urd game. It's got to be on purpose

It always is. It is not appreciated by the BBC or SKY or Talkshite that we just might be a serious threat to their beloved " Traditional Top 6"

[oishiiniku_uk]

Even if the press aren't paying us much attention still, at least some other clubs' fans are. ZeeZeeTopFulham on the Guardian post match thread gets it:

https://profile.theguardian.com/user/id/14615060?page=1#:~:text=Unai Emery’s Aston,should we expect%3F

Quote

 

Unai Emery’s Aston Villa beat us last season with a convincing performance, if slightly tempered by a narrow 1-0 scoreline. Today felt like a nice summation of the direction the two clubs have travelled in since our meeting last April; Villa doubled their win margin, tripled their goal tally and only mathematical constraints* hold me back from describing the magnitude Villa’s performance exceeded ours by today.

It is strange to suggest that Villa haven’t been praised for their performances, because clearly people have noticed the upturn in form at Villa Park since Gerrard was ousted, but their football doesn’t seem to be turning enough heads, nor drawing the acclaim it deserves. Perhaps the dreary traipsing of the media circus around the “big clubs” shoves Villa’s achievements out of the limelight - a tragedy, because the football Emery has conjured is breath-taking and makes for fine viewing (at least when you don’t support the opposition!)

Their 4-4-2 is far more flexible and dynamic than its reputation allows it. Emery’s roster of strikers all come blessed with pace, power and explosiveness, bursting between the backline and tearing defensive structures apart. This is supported by a swashbuckling crew of midfielders, all traditionally viewed as centre midfielders but versatile in their positioning, dedicated to the cause, intelligent in where they deploy themselves on the pitch. It allows Villa to be effective when in possession and a constant threat without it, smooth on the ball and ravenous to snatch it back when deprived of it. Watkins, Diaby and later Bailey offered the velocity at the front of the team, with the latter two capable of drifting wider to drag our centre-backs out of formation. McGinn surged into attacking positions with driving runs, bursting away from Palhinha and sending Bassey and Ream into a state of panic. Tielemans’ acumen as a footballer and revitalisation in Emery’s side saw him venture left-wards today, challenging Castagne along our right and funnelling numerous insightful crosses into our box.

The more defensive midfielders, Douglas Luiz and Kamara, are deceptive - they occupied advanced positions at numerous points, battering rams for our defence to try and protect the ball from whilst deep in supposedly-Fulham territory and contending with the barrage of preceding attacks. Their full-backs, Digne and Cash, were all too happy to burst forward, overlapping with their teammates and gaining free ground ahead of them. At any point, a pocket of space was an avenue to tear into, which Villa did successfully throughout the game. This constant, terrifying energy immobilised us - we were tired in the face of a rampant opponent and wilted under the weight of their speed.

Fulham conceded three today, Leno responsible for preventing several more, and it served as a cruel reminder of what an effective attack looks like for our struggling forwards. Their first, though an own-goal, saw Tielemans outmanoeuvre a hapless Castagne, draw Bassey wide to create space, cross the ball into our depleted box and cannon in off Robinson’s dangling feet. Their second was the culmination of several waves of relentless pressure, our defence struggling to clear the ball, the Villa army pinning us into our own final third, and the peerless force of McGinn lining up his sights to strike the finishing blow, a powerful drive to best Leno from distance. A third was added after the restart, after our own changes were noted, managed and overcome; the pressure we created was turned against us, Robinson having the ball plucked from his feet, McGinn launched into attack, drawing our scrambling defence onto him and then pinging the ball onto the newly free Bailey, who had an easy task setting up Watkins for a tap in. Jimenez’s consolation did little to sour the mood - a jubilant Villa claimed a well earnt win, and sees them take another step towards the prestigious Champions League spots.

It is very tempting to ignore Fulham completely and leave the focus on Aston Villa. They are a side competing in Europe, with clearly acclaimed footballers, a manager with an incredible record and now on a 13th consecutive victory at home. Certainly we looked pedestrian in their reflection, a shadow of the side that cruised to a 3-0 win over them a year or so ago. Villa boasted several MOTM contenders - the general McGinn, the maestro Watkins, the wizard Tielemans - and Fulham stare longingly to the desert for theirs to return. What other outcome should we expect?

 

 

[cheltenham_villa]

1 hour ago, Talldarkandransome said:

How has the ref got 25 goods, he was beyond crap, he's made me lose my voice

I was also a bit torn on this but in the end decided he did well. 

At the time I was frustrated to not get the pen but it clearly hit the guys face.

He seemed slow to get his cards out but on reflection that suited us also as I can recall points that I felt Luiz, Kamara and Digne could be in trouble with the ref which would have mean suspensions. 

While I didn't think he got advantages right a few times, he was probably consistent throughout and didn't manage to let a lot of the game flow. 

[blunther]

Just now, cheltenham_villa said:

I was also a bit torn on this but in the end decided he did well. 

At the time I was frustrated to not get the pen but it clearly hit the guys face.

He seemed slow to get his cards out but on reflection that suited us also as I can recall points that I felt Luiz, Kamara and Digne could be in trouble with the ref which would have mean suspensions. 

While I didn't think he got advantages right a few times, he was probably consistent throughout and didn't manage to let a lot of the game flow. 

I assume it's a VAR thing rather than the ref himself, but the 'handball' went out for a corner. The ref gave a pen then rescinded it, and the game restarted with the Fulham keeper. There's no way the ref blew the whistle before it went out for a corner, so how on earth are the laws of the game set that we lose possession and a scoring opportunity there? The whole system is mental. 

[cheltenham_villa]

1 minute ago, blunther said:

I assume it's a VAR thing rather than the ref himself, but the 'handball' went out for a corner. The ref gave a pen then rescinded it, and the game restarted with the Fulham keeper. There's no way the ref blew the whistle before it went out for a corner, so how on earth are the laws of the game set that we lose possession and a scoring opportunity there? The whole system is mental. 

I think it's because he gave a penalty. If its wrong it's the only way you can restart the game. As you say that's probably the rule. Fulhams would probably say he's poor for giving the pen in the first place. 

[robby b]

3 hours ago, alreadyexists said:

And it’s hi ho Aston Villa!! 

And take that, Fulham badgers !

Sent scampering off back to London with their tails between their legs. The latest in the long line of victims to be 'Villa Parked".

[foreveryoung]

25 minutes ago, pintpotvilla said:

It always is. It is not appreciated by the BBC or SKY or Talkshite that we just might be a serious threat to their beloved " Traditional Top 4"

FFY

[Talldarkandransome]

18 minutes ago, cheltenham_villa said:

I was also a bit torn on this but in the end decided he did well. 

At the time I was frustrated to not get the pen but it clearly hit the guys face.

He seemed slow to get his cards out but on reflection that suited us also as I can recall points that I felt Luiz, Kamara and Digne could be in trouble with the ref which would have mean suspensions. 

While I didn't think he got advantages right a few times, he was probably consistent throughout and didn't manage to let a lot of the game flow. 

Fair point

[Lerner's Driver]

31 minutes ago, pintpotvilla said:

It always is. It is not appreciated by the BBC or SKY or Talkshite that we just might be a serious threat to their beloved " Traditional Top 6"

Why do you or any other Villa fans care?

[Rugeley Villa]

What was the crowd today? Also what was it against AZ in the week ? 

[pintpotvilla]

3 minutes ago, Lerner's Driver said:

Why do you or any other Villa fans care?

I don't. It is just a fact. Quite amusing really

[Jas10]

 

[RicRic]

4 hours ago, Farlz said:

First half was just superb, complete control. Couple dodgy moments in the second half but wouldn't say I was ever worried. 

We are blessed to be watching this, can't believe sometimes that this is Aston Villa. Another brilliant Sunday. 

We really really are and we must remember to not take any of this for granted because this is no the norm even though it is

Every result like this I appreciate because we have always been a team used to losing for the last 25 years bar the O’Neil Era. 

[Django_Zooms]

2 hours ago, oishiiniku_uk said:

Even if the press aren't paying us much attention still, at least some other clubs' fans are. ZeeZeeTopFulham on the Guardian post match thread gets it:

Unai Emery’s Aston Villa beat us last season with a convincing performance, if slightly tempered by a narrow 1-0 scoreline. Today felt like a nice summation of the direction the two clubs have travelled in since our meeting last April; Villa doubled their win margin, tripled their goal tally and only mathematical constraints* hold me back from describing the magnitude Villa’s performance exceeded ours by today.

It is strange to suggest that Villa haven’t been praised for their performances, because clearly people have noticed the upturn in form at Villa Park since Gerrard was ousted, but their football doesn’t seem to be turning enough heads, nor drawing the acclaim it deserves. Perhaps the dreary traipsing of the media circus around the “big clubs” shoves Villa’s achievements out of the limelight - a tragedy, because the football Emery has conjured is breath-taking and makes for fine viewing (at least when you don’t support the opposition!)

Their 4-4-2 is far more flexible and dynamic than its reputation allows it. Emery’s roster of strikers all come blessed with pace, power and explosiveness, bursting between the backline and tearing defensive structures apart. This is supported by a swashbuckling crew of midfielders, all traditionally viewed as centre midfielders but versatile in their positioning, dedicated to the cause, intelligent in where they deploy themselves on the pitch. It allows Villa to be effective when in possession and a constant threat without it, smooth on the ball and ravenous to snatch it back when deprived of it. Watkins, Diaby and later Bailey offered the velocity at the front of the team, with the latter two capable of drifting wider to drag our centre-backs out of formation. McGinn surged into attacking positions with driving runs, bursting away from Palhinha and sending Bassey and Ream into a state of panic. Tielemans’ acumen as a footballer and revitalisation in Emery’s side saw him venture left-wards today, challenging Castagne along our right and funnelling numerous insightful crosses into our box.

The more defensive midfielders, Douglas Luiz and Kamara, are deceptive - they occupied advanced positions at numerous points, battering rams for our defence to try and protect the ball from whilst deep in supposedly-Fulham territory and contending with the barrage of preceding attacks. Their full-backs, Digne and Cash, were all too happy to burst forward, overlapping with their teammates and gaining free ground ahead of them. At any point, a pocket of space was an avenue to tear into, which Villa did successfully throughout the game. This constant, terrifying energy immobilised us - we were tired in the face of a rampant opponent and wilted under the weight of their speed.

Fulham conceded three today, Leno responsible for preventing several more, and it served as a cruel reminder of what an effective attack looks like for our struggling forwards. Their first, though an own-goal, saw Tielemans outmanoeuvre a hapless Castagne, draw Bassey wide to create space, cross the ball into our depleted box and cannon in off Robinson’s dangling feet. Their second was the culmination of several waves of relentless pressure, our defence struggling to clear the ball, the Villa army pinning us into our own final third, and the peerless force of McGinn lining up his sights to strike the finishing blow, a powerful drive to best Leno from distance. A third was added after the restart, after our own changes were noted, managed and overcome; the pressure we created was turned against us, Robinson having the ball plucked from his feet, McGinn launched into attack, drawing our scrambling defence onto him and then pinging the ball onto the newly free Bailey, who had an easy task setting up Watkins for a tap in. Jimenez’s consolation did little to sour the mood - a jubilant Villa claimed a well earnt win, and sees them take another step towards the prestigious Champions League spots.

It is very tempting to ignore Fulham completely and leave the focus on Aston Villa. They are a side competing in Europe, with clearly acclaimed footballers, a manager with an incredible record and now on a 13th consecutive victory at home. Certainly we looked pedestrian in their reflection, a shadow of the side that cruised to a 3-0 win over them a year or so ago. Villa boasted several MOTM contenders - the general McGinn, the maestro Watkins, the wizard Tielemans - and Fulham stare longingly to the desert for theirs to return. What other outcome should we expect?

How very polite and true. Well written and thank you, Richard Osman (presumably).

[oishiiniku_uk]

1 hour ago, cheltenham_villa said:

I think it's because he gave a penalty. If its wrong it's the only way you can restart the game. As you say that's probably the rule. Fulhams would probably say he's poor for giving the pen in the first place. 

So the attacking team lose a corner because the ref made a mistake? I don't get how that can be correct when the ball was out of play before he blew for the penalty. 

[Zero7]

Someone pinch me 

[tomav84]

i was nervous going into today's game. no idea why. years of following villa and getting disappointed i guess. mad that these just seem like routine wins now

[Xela]

I think we're safe now. Can't see the bottom 3 getting 25 points.

[Jas10]

 

[Jas10]

1 hour ago, Zero7 said:

Someone pinch me