Relegation

[Mantis]

I'm not sure it is, but thats not really here nor there. Is the squad good enough?

to stay up? yes, by a 5-8 point margin

What have you seen from this squad that makes you think that? All other teams in the league have strengthened and look stronger remember too. All the positive talk from Lambert, Faulkner and co preseason has been pointing towards having a much better season that last year, though I find that hard to see realised if we don't invest in the this small/low in quality squad of players.

it's simple really. the squad we had last year was a touch weaker, and we were playing a very negative game. there was no scope for improvement because of the way we lined out every match. it was all about trying not to concede at all costs. nobody improves in that environment

this time around we're trying to play football. we'll be dreadful for a while, but there'll be glimpses of change happening. we're seeing it already. the tippy tappy shite that people on here hate among the back 4 and the midfielders is a sign of progress. it's dull to watch, but it means we're intent on holding onto the ball. if you can hold onto it, the next thing that comes is using it better. when you use it better, you tire out other teams, and the next step of cutting them open starts to happen.

the difference is not in the personnel, it's in the way we're approaching games. keeping the ball leaves scope for plenty of improvement as time goes by. it also leaves scope for a few thumpings here and there, but we'll hit our stride about 10 games in, and start picking up plenty of points against the lower teams and lower mid table teams. that alone will be enough to keep us up, but with that comes confidence to put in the odd performance against better teams, and you end up getting the odd draw or nicking a win against top 8 clubs. from there you grow

we're at ground zero, and there's a long way to go, but we're approaching it the right way. the issue is our fans want great, successful football without the actual process of getting there

Yeah, I agree with this. I think trying to play a completely new way is probably one of the reasons we've been so poor these first two games. Hopefully things will start to gel in time, although we do need some more players to come in.

[P3te]

Yeah, I agree with this. I think trying to play a completely new way is probably one of the reasons we've been so poor these first two games. Hopefully things will start to gel in time, although we do need some more players to come in.

new players could potentially make things a touch quicker, not by much though, and it's always nice to get replacements in for weaknesses early. im not saying we don't need signings. we do. but the players we have should be able to keep us up by 5-8 points come the end of the season if the fans don't get on their backs, and allow them to grow into the playing style with confidence, rather than hating playing at home because they're being booed off the park for trying to adapt a style that the fans actually want long term

[smetrov]

I think the club are clearly better then Southampton, Wigan and Reading. I know Wigan came 2 points ahead last sason but they have been weakened slightly.

Problem is wigan and reading are tiny clubs - they tend to pull together when things go wrong. Villa is and always will be a massive club - but when we start to tumble - we fall apart ....

TBH if we finish 4th from bottom I will be chuffed. But lets be honest weve farted around the bottom for 2 seasons - and just managed to get out of it. You can't keep doing that - eventually you go.

The underlying problem - the clubs finances - hasn't been addressed - the plan of cutting player and players wages is a very crude answer to the problem - and ultimately lead us to ruin.

I will be honest I don't know what the answer is - yeah would love new owners - but were a loss making - non london club - there doesn't seem the hint of a takeover.

Short term - I would replace Faulkner - he seems pretty inept - has no football background - and strikes me as a bit Niave

[Rodders]

I'm not sure it is, but thats not really here nor there. Is the squad good enough?

to stay up? yes, by a 5-8 point margin

What have you seen from this squad that makes you think that? All other teams in the league have strengthened and look stronger remember too. All the positive talk from Lambert, Faulkner and co preseason has been pointing towards having a much better season that last year, though I find that hard to see realised if we don't invest in the this small/low in quality squad of players.

it's simple really. the squad we had last year was a touch weaker, and we were playing a very negative game. there was no scope for improvement because of the way we lined out every match. it was all about trying not to concede at all costs. nobody improves in that environment

this time around we're trying to play football. we'll be dreadful for a while, but there'll be glimpses of change happening. we're seeing it already. the tippy tappy shite that people on here hate among the back 4 and the midfielders is a sign of progress. it's dull to watch, but it means we're intent on holding onto the ball. if you can hold onto it, the next thing that comes is using it better. when you use it better, you tire out other teams, and the next step of cutting them open starts to happen.

the difference is not in the personnel, it's in the way we're approaching games. keeping the ball leaves scope for plenty of improvement as time goes by. it also leaves scope for a few thumpings here and there, but we'll hit our stride about 10 games in, and start picking up plenty of points against the lower teams and lower mid table teams. that alone will be enough to keep us up, but with that comes confidence to put in the odd performance against better teams, and you end up getting the odd draw or nicking a win against top 8 clubs. from there you grow

we're at ground zero, and there's a long way to go, but we're approaching it the right way. the issue is our fans want great, successful football without the actual process of getting there

Cracking post. Sums up my thoughts too. It is going to be a tough journey but we will improve.

[pacbuddies]

I think the club are clearly better then Southampton, Wigan and Reading. I know Wigan came 2 points ahead last sason but they have been weakened slightly.

Problem is wigan and reading are tiny clubs - they tend to pull together when things go wrong. Villa is and always will be a massive club - but when we start to tumble - we fall apart ....

TBH if we finish 4th from bottom I will be chuffed. But lets be honest weve farted around the bottom for 2 seasons - and just managed to get out of it. You can't keep doing that - eventually you go.

The underlying problem - the clubs finances - hasn't been addressed - the plan of cutting player and players wages is a very crude answer to the problem - and ultimately lead us to ruin.

I will be honest I don't know what the answer is - yeah would love new owners - but were a loss making - non london club - there doesn't seem the hint of a takeover.

Short term - I would replace Faulkner - he seems pretty inept - has no football background - and strikes me as a bit Niave

Faulkner is useless, hence why he has been appointed at the FA. He fits the profile well.

[CI]

Very much on a knife edge down B6 right now. Next few days are monumental.

The squad as it stands will be relegated quite comfortably and I say that with a very heavy heart.

[P3te]

Faulkner is useless, hence why he has been appointed at the FA. He fits the profile well.

to be fair, faulkner has done a brilliant job in terms of what he was brought in to do. the issue is that we'll not see the rewards from that for a while, and his lack of footballing knowledge is a big problem. getting rid of him would be stupid, but he needs to have a footballing man alongside him now at this point, since the bulk of the money saving has been done now. from this point onwards every single cost cut needs to be weight up with someone who knows the game inside out to see if it's feasible for the on the pitch health or not

[P3te]

The squad as it stands will be relegated quite comfortably and I say that with a very heavy heart.

no you don't. you say that with absolute delight, it's perverse. the squad as it stands won't be relegated comfortably. look at the teams who have been relegated comfortably throughout premiership history. then look at our squad. it's not close to being anywhere near that bad. to be relegated from the premiership you need to be genuinely awful. we're not that, and we'll improve as the season progresses, rather than get worse as we have done in the past

[calcifer]

I have to say that if nobody comes in and we are stuck with the bunch of lads we have now we struggle, Bent is just a passenger we have no width so he is pretty much usless! There are no balls going into the box and that's what he thrives on! The kids have no confidence and the way the results keep going its only gonna get worse! Come on Lerner if you was a fan you would see there are problems if you can't afford it get lost and sell up before we end up in the championship!!

[Voinjama]

We lost 1-3 to an in form Everton side with bags of talent. Can everyone please calm down.

[CI]

P3te, I think you underestimate how poor our squad is.

[P3te]

P3te, I think you underestimate how poor our squad is.

i dont. i fully appreciate how poor our squad is when we play the same negative game as last year with no room for improvement. i also fully appreciate that our squad will improve an awful lot playing the right type of football. it's not a dead end like previous approaches. it encourages players to keep the ball and use it properly. we're lacking the latter part at the moment, but that'll come the more we hold onto the ball. look at swansea, do you reckon rodgers came into work one day and said "right lads, here's what we're going to do" and all of a sudden they're in the premiership playing lovely football?

no, it started with martinez, a long time ago, and it was embraced and grown gradually, with improvement coming step by step. that's what needs to happen at villa

the squad, as it is, is capable of growing into that and securing a midtable position this season. it just needs patience and foresight

[Morpheus]

Patience and foresight with our present squad is only going to end in relegation. We presently don't have the players with a cutting edge to give us an end product and we also have a weak defence.

[P3te]

Patience and foresight with our present squad is only going to end in relegation. We presently don't have the players with a cutting edge to give us an end product and we also have a weak defence.

cutting edge will come with time, we're only figuring out how to move when we don't have the ball at the moment. bring in the best player in the world and plop him into our starting xi and we'll have the same problem for 10 games or so

[villarule123]

Can anyone list the clubs that have a worse squad at the moment?

I can list Wigan, Reading, Southampton and Norwich, maybe WHU too. To combine with our terrible squad is our total lack of confidence, and we must have the least feel good factor in the league. All those teams that I listed have either come up or have something from last season that they can live off, we are in serious trouble and I hate to say it but looking at our fixtures we might struggle to get our first point(s) until the Southampton game.

I'd be amazed if we stayed up with the current squad we have. The one thing we have going for us is that our manager makes average players play better.

Bent is totally useless in this team, we have no width whatsoever, I can't remember the last time we put in a good cross for him to head in. Not to mention he's a prick who would rather go shopping than support his club. KEA looks good but who will play alongside him? Delph just hasn't done it for us since he arrived, Bannan is not good enough, Gardner is out for the season.

Writing this post has got me even more worried, especially in the centre of midield.

[P3te]

I'd be amazed if we stayed up with the current squad we have

if you'd genuinely be amazed if we stayed up with the current squad, then how many signings do you think we need to stay up?

your use of the word amazed would suggest, that by your line of thinking, we'd need at least 6 or 7...

[Rino8]

the squad as it stands won't be relegated comfortably. look at the teams who have been relegated comfortably throughout premiership history. then look at our squad. it's not close to being anywhere near that bad. to be relegated from the premiership you need to be genuinely awful. we're not that, and we'll improve as the season progresses, rather than get worse as we have done in the past

There is a bit of an exception to that rule with big clubs as Leeds found out, this isn't that different of a situation to them, just a less dramatic fall. I think we'll get out just about, but I wouldn't be so shocked if we didn't. As it was said earlier, it's somewhat different when say, Reading is in this situation, compared with a club that shouldn't be there.

[BleedClaretAndBlue]

Its like Newcastle 4yrs ago. Too big a club to go down, but a squad incapable of staying up. I cant remember the last home game we had where we didnt look like the away side!

[Robbie09]

We lost 1-3 to an in form Everton side with bags of talent. Can everyone please calm down.

This x 1000.

We've got an excellent manager who is implementing a new style of football. His signings to date are solid so whilst new additions would be welcome i am sure we won't be relegated.

It'll be a bumpy ride but we'll be fine.

[pacbuddies]

Know what you mean. Bloke sat next to me at the Everton game (casual fan , never seen him before) stating that he can't ever remember watching Villa at home where the away team looked more like the home team.

I commented that he obviously didn't get down to any games last season!