Ratings & Reactions: Villa v Spurs

[Risso]

7 hours ago, Zatman said:

For people moaning about the system, its how we lined up vs Spurs earlier in the season

We got played off the park in the first half at Spurs doing it, and were exceptionally lucky to be only one down. He then took Cash off at half time, changed the formation, and we improved massively. So I think you've inadvertently proved what a shit decision it was yesterday.

[AshVilla]

14 minutes ago, Risso said:

We got played off the park in the first half at Spurs doing it, and were exceptionally lucky to be only one down. He then took Cash off at half time, changed the formation, and we improved massively. So I think you've inadvertently proved what a shit decision it was yesterday.

Spurs also had a heavily depleted team when we played them then.

4 fullbacks as a back 4 playing along with no Maddison e.t.c.

We needed to put in a better performance than we did in the away game to match them this time and we failed miserably.

I don't want to see Cash in the starting eleven next season let alone playing RM for us.

It just doesn't work.

Edited March 11 by AshVilla

[sidcow]

On 10/03/2024 at 15:07, fightoffyour said:

It all started when the North Stand got cancelled. Just sayin.

Cough. Badge being dropped. Cough Cough 

[sidcow]

On 10/03/2024 at 15:07, Don_Simon said:

Forum warning points need to be given for anyone who uses the phrase "bottled it".

We totally shat the bed.

[DJBOB]

MNF had a good tactico on the Spurs pressing structure. For me - I think teams are figuring out that they can easily roll Tielemans and that they are actively shaping the press AWAY from Pau and towards Konsa. The lack of Kamara in front of Konsa means that it becomes he and Cash's primary responsibility to build out from the back and they've been falling short of it. Consider the second goal for Spurs where they were quite content letting Konsa have the ball until he made a mistake.

 

[Brumstopdogs]

 

[striker]

8 hours ago, TRO said:

couldn't muster a run to close down the lively Son, as he pulled the trigger....its all so very sad.

He must have our fixture marked down on his happy calendar, each year.

Currant midfield has no pace or physicality. One reason why the top teams love playing against Villa TRO!

If FFP is going to be adjusted in the summer which looks likely then the bulk of the budget must be spent on restructuring midfield!

Edited March 11 by striker

[striker]

7 hours ago, The_Steve said:

Go back and watch the penalty shout - Van de Ven cleaned Ollie out. He wasn’t the same after. 

Watkins hardly got a touch even from the start of the game so to me it made no difference to his performance.

[JAMAICAN-VILLAN]

1 hour ago, imavillan said:

i assume you mean this.... 

 

 

Saw this as well, aside from this there are a couple of " fans " who pipe up with it every time we lose or have a bad patch.

One bloke said " Yes... The pattern does seem to be emerging now ".

I had to tell him that the " pattern " is that we were 16th when he came.in, 7th last year and are now competing for top 4.

I really hope we don't become Arsenal TV types with more success

Edited March 11 by JAMAICAN-VILLAN

[479Villan]

When all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. 
 

piss off, Carra. 

[Don_Simon]

8 hours ago, sidcow said:

We totally shat the bed.

Now this I absolutely agree with.

[ben1505]

[StefanAVFC]

12 hours ago, striker said:

Currant midfield has no pace or physicality. One reason why the top teams love playing against Villa TRO!

If FFP is going to be adjusted in the summer which looks likely then the bulk of the budget must be spent on restructuring midfield!

We have one of the best midfields in the league. The issue is we can't get them all playing together due to injury/suspensions.

[duke313]

1 minute ago, Risso said:

 

Sunday was a major down though. It was a gutless display from the manager and all the players. I'm still hugely pissed off with it. The set up, the actual game, Konsa, McGinn, and wiping out our goal difference advantage, listening to Emery chuntering on about "teams who are more contenders to be in the top 7 than us". All of it. It had a very strong feel of the O'Neill years about it. Spurs will definitely overtake us now, and I'm pretty certain Man U will too.

That's the spirit.

[Teale's 'tache]

Spurs went into that game with a few advantages, a near first choice and fully fit first 11, all with plenty of extra rest throughout the season when compared to us. They also knew what they had to do, they had to win, plain and simple, and so their game plan was very clear.

On the other hand, we were decimated by injuries, tired and we seemed to be more concerned with not losing, a draw would have been fine for us, I don't think it was the intention of Unai for us to have that mentality, but that's how it seemed to play out in the end, confused minds can create confusing performances.

It's a bad result, a poor performance and a brain fade from our captain that adds to our current list of woes. However, things can change quickly in football, Spurs do not have an easy run of games coming up, and we have 10 games to put it right, that's over a quarter of the season, and there will be plenty of twists and turns before the end.

I just think we are really missing Kamara, we're finding it difficult to have the level of control in games we want without him, Emery is trying different things to resolve it (hence the switch to the back 5 which didn't work), there doesn't seem to be a straight forward easy fix but I back him to land on something eventually, it's just going to take a little time.

We've lost some momentum, and it can be difficult to get that back sometimes, but a good result/performance on Thursday could be just the thing to give us a boost. I'm sure the players are hurting and want to put it right.

Every match is an opportunity to get back on track. Get a few players back from injury/suspension and go on a bit of a run and we'll be grand, all is far from lost.

We just need to keep our discipline, our composer, and trust Mister Emery to find us a way.

 

[sheepyvillian]

If only there was a "spit" button.

[Wainy316]

I do wish we had it in us to grind out a draw now and again.

Drawing at home to either Man Utd or Spurs would have been really good results.

[imavillan]

28 minutes ago, Vive_La_Villa said:

This is bullshit. He made the change due to injury’s and fatigued. Simple as.   
 

We just haven’t got the squad to compete for top 4 and a European run. Now with McGinn out I worry for the next 3. Hopefully we can just end the season really struggling once he is back.

agree, but a lot of that gets over looked and hardly mentioned.

These pundits either simply don't know or the researchers don't do there homework properly.

Media muppets 

[TRO]

22 hours ago, Jas10 said:

Ok… I’m trying to control my emotions… but it’s not easy. I feel utterly deflated tbh.

I’m just talking in general terms mainly so don’t see any of this as an attack… or a personal response/reaction or argument.

First of all… there is no masking going on. I don’t see why we can’t look back on or quote the season as you said… we have shown we have what it takes to beat anyone in the league on our day. The way we played against Man City should not be forgotten, for instance.

We blew teams away like Brighton and West Ham (who you often use as an example, mainly in terms of things we lack in physicality, but we are way better than them and have proven it emphatically and consistently)…

This squad (when the majority or best/important players are available) has the ingredients but… and you’re probably not going to like me saying this… or see it as some sort of excuse… we have been ravaged by injuries and disruptions like suspension and players out of form and unable to keep fit or in the team. Maybe having JJ back and injury free would be a good boost (how does that help CM though?)…

Still… we should always have the right approach and mentality (easier said than done, to do that consistently)…

I take zero pleasure or amusement from poor performances and results… or criticising the team… no matter how justified it may be… even though I do it… it is not enjoyable at all…

I was disappointed by our approach to the game… I do feel we gave them too much respect (but I wouldn’t go as far as we “feared them”) and should have imposed our game on them (especially at home) rather than focus on restricting them… but we did make inroads in that first half and could have been more clinical… I didn’t enjoy the long balls up to Ollie though…

It looked like we strayed from our normal style… when we are out out best, we are controlling possession and dictating play, pass after pass with accuracy and genuine intention and threat… there wasn’t enough of that yesterday (or all that much recently)…

We just don’t have the depth of squad or array of quality as some other teams do…

When our best players are available… we will give anyone a game… this should not be forgotten…

it’s too easy to be overcome with negativity and pessimism and wallow in that kind of misery… I don’t see why we can’t look at the high points and use that as reasons for hope and belief…

Like I always say… this is not the old Villa. Performances like this (and worse) were more the norm than the exception… that isn’t the case under Unai but… at the same time… I acknowledge that we haven’t been all that great this year so far and have thrown points away… it’s frustrating. 

I just feel a bit down… because this was a big opportunity and… tbh… I am dreaming of Champions League football and how transformative it would be for our club… I really want us to “rise”… (we may not get such an opportunity or, at least, it will be more difficult in future seasons… and we can’t match the spending of our rivals either) I’m not all that bothered about the Conference League in comparison but… it is a very useful experience and good preparation in terms of experiencing and managing European football… and a trophy would be lovely, sure…

What’s most got me down (as well as our poor showing against a team we should have faced and tried to dominate… like we have done in previous games a la the examples I gave) is how depleted our midfield is… I don’t feel confident about upcoming  league games…

Losing McGinn for 3 games is huge… he is the heartbeat, the energy and the drive of this team. He has fully grown into that leadership role… we are going to miss him… moreso because Kamara is out and all we really have for central midfield is Doug (he is really going to have to step up and shine again and take on that leadership role… I do think he has dropped off a little but… he is still a massive player for us… we need him on top form) and Tim (not been impressed by him yet, but young and inexperienced - we have to be patient with him and he could develop quickly and impressively. Unfortunately, he is going to have to be thrown in now and the pressure to perform is immediate…)

I do think injuries and some form of lethargy or fatigue are playing their part… I’m not looking for excuses but reasons for our drop off… and I think it’s reasonable to point this out. Also… the make up of this side has almost been constantly changing… we have had to change our defensive lineup over and over again for example… there has been little stability… I wish we could just stick with Pau and Konsa as our CB partnership and let them grow/develop/improve together but… injuries have put paid to that…

I have all the faith in the world in Unai and huge sympathy for the adversity and challenges he has had to face… (as noted above) how many times have we had our strongest team out on the pitch? Obviously we have to disregard Mings and Buendia… but the Kamara injury is more recent and a huge blow. I do wish we had signed a CM/DM in Jan but we were restricted…

We can’t put out the side that we did in some of our best performances… that has to be acknowledged to some degree.

I am a bit worried now… I can’t live in fantasy land or have unrealistic dreams… it’s gonna be tough without our captain in the side…

I‘m not the biggest fan of Tielemans… it would hurt us to play him back in central midfield (unless maybe, Doug is sadly forced and restricted to a mainly/purely defensive role again… which would hold back the potential/ability of our side) and even worse in a defensive role… the guy has no pace and regularly looks shattered…

He is only effective in the role and position Unai has found for him… to support and create for the likes of Ollie and Leon… I don’t see another worthwhile place for him in the side… if he drops back, it’s only going to hurt us imo and we have seen him cost us there on several occasions. But his performances have dropped off anyway… he is not creating as he was… needs to get back to it quickly. Diaby’s form has fallen off a cliff too… our attack seems weaker not just our defence…

Anyway… maybe after this dies down or has been forgotten a bit… I’ll feel more optimistic again…

If there’s anyone who can deal with this and get us going again it’s Unai…

it’s just that… it’s gotten even harder now… I really don’t want to see a decline or run of losses…

I believe in Unai… but… the squad is light and there aren’t enough players performing atm…

Can only wait and see what Unai can conjure up…

Just hope we can fight back and perform…

We must keep fighting and us fans should keep supporting and believing in the team and manager… look what they have done this season… no matter what, it is still our best PL season in ages… let’s not overlook and fail to appreciate that… the progress has been staggering and swift…

Thanks for your response Jas....enjoyed it.

I think after over 60 years of supporting Villa, I am not going to abandon them now, and even at 73 I am still quite vocal.

Coming on here, and voicing opinions is not to be confused with supporting the team....I still do, vociferously.

However, I refuse to suppress my opinion of the recent drop off in performances and my fervent support in Aston Villa, has to make way for honesty.

I don't doubt, injuries have affected us greatly, as they have other Premier league teams.....I guess Van der Ven, will be huge loss to Spurs.....but it's a bit more than that for me.

In terms of the squad depth, we make our bed, we lie on it......There is an army of recruitment people, what's the point if we can't use them to our benefit. If we can't buy players, we are going to have to adjust our expectations....and even then, we have to buy ones who will enhance the team/squad.

I have always thought Champions League places were a big ask, and even if we get there, are we really ready for such a huge task?

We may have been in the top 4 for 16 games, but are we really a top 4 team?.....apart from the few games, I am not so sure. I think some of our players are top 4, some are not.

All teams have their highs and lows....but our lows are too low, for what we think we are.....The difference between a teams high and low, usually indicates their consistency, amongst many things.

I have no joy whatsoever embroiling myself in writing about our poor games.....I want to be waxing lyrical about the better games....but I am sorry to say, I see something in many of our games lately, that disappoint me.

I am not a person, that comes out of the woodwork, when we lose....it disappoints me as much as it does you.....The thing that disappoints me the most is, I was hoping the team would prove me wrong, to my inner thoughts....That result and performance was lurking in the shadows....It was there against United, Newcastle and Chelsea.....These things cannot be denied, these performances and results are with us, until we banish them....Since Sheff Utd, we have morphed, back in to a soft underbelly, and some players, I emphasis some players are fighting to resist it, but we haven't got enough with fight.

I too want to be optimistic, but despite my inner thoughts and they have been manifested by years and years of watching football, not just my beloved Villa......I cling to hope as opposed to expectation.

I have no intention of telling other fans how to be a fan...it's their call...and I admire your strength in continuing to believe, we can overcome these setbacks......I am weaker than you, and my head is ruling my heart right now, and I wished it wasn't.

I will continue to attend matches, continue to support the boys......as for expectation, no not for me, not with the current circumstances.

 

[ender4]

2 hours ago, Risso said:

 

Sunday was a major down though. It was a gutless display from the manager and all the players. I'm still hugely pissed off with it. The set up, the actual game, Konsa, McGinn, and wiping out our goal difference advantage, listening to Emery chuntering on about "teams who are more contenders to be in the top 7 than us". All of it. It had a very strong feel of the O'Neill years about it. Spurs will definitely overtake us now, and I'm pretty certain Man U will too. Sunday was our 'Stoke' moment. Bottled it, completely.

Until we beat West Ham, Wolves and Brentford in our next 3 PL games and suddenly we’ll be nailed on for 4th and maybe looking to sneak into 3rd