Richard Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 I'd argue that the fact that all of us saw the need to replace warnock and Hutton and it seemed no fan wanted either at the club due to their ineptness, two fullbacks were needed actually Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DCJonah Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 I'd argue that the fact that all of us saw the need to replace warnock and Hutton and it seemed no fan wanted either at the club due to their ineptness, two fullbacks were needed actually I agree that they needed to be replaced, but we were (still are) much weaker elsewhere (CB and CM) so them positions should've taken priority. If we had actually managed to shift both Warnock and Hutton, then I wouldn't have a problem. The simple fact is that we have 3 RB's and 3 LB's at the club. Why are we paying Hutton and Warnock about £70k a week to do nothing? I also don't think either Bennett or Lowton are actually an upgrade on what we already had Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sne Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 3 defenders and worst defence in the league. Created a squad and team worse than the awful season last year. The only positive is they are on low wages but who the **** cares if it results in relegation? Agree Next season we'll be the team with the highest wage budget in the Championship and the cost cutting will begin again. This idea that once we get the high earners of the book Lerner will start spending big again is just a silly dream. The only "positive" thing Lambert has managed to do is reduce the wage bill, nothing more. Shockingly it seems that this is the only requirement Lerner has as that joke of a manager is still here, even more shocking some fans seem fine with this as "they see the bigger picture" and that given 2-25 years Lambert will be the next Alex Ferguson and lead us to glory Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denis_B Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 Agree Next season we'll be the team with the highest wage budget in the Championship and the cost cutting will begin again. This idea that once we get the high earners of the book Lerner will start spending big again is just a silly dream. The only "positive" thing Lambert has managed to do is reduce the wage bill, nothing more. Shockingly it seems that this is the only requirement Lerner has as that joke of a manager is still here, even more shocking some fans seem fine with this as "they see the bigger picture" and that given 2-25 years Lambert will be the next Alex Ferguson and lead us to glory Agreed - he is trying to cut the wage bill in the Premiership. No relegation clauses in player contracts so we will have to offload and lose money on transfers as it will be a 'fire sale'. Then those on lower wages now will still be on high, for the Championship, wages and he will want those lowering and the cycle continues................. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryanvilla_1994 Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 two good full backs were needed Richard Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hanky Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 dont see why. Salt him off for poor tactics if you want, for not being able to set a team up to defend set pieces, for strange substitutions do all that, but you can't have a go at his signings. For me his signings have been our better players this season and if we were to sell them we'd get far more than we paid for them. That alone means they are decent signings , return on investment. All of his signings have been poor apart from Benteke and Westwood for me, and even he has blown hot and cold this season (as expected of course, he is still learning his trade as a striker). Even though Westwood is neat and tidy, but not the sort of player we required in the summer. He has pretty much spent £14 million on lower league players. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AVFCforever1991 Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 (edited) We desperately needed a DM as well. Had a chance to get Diame and we didn't make it happen. Edited January 26, 2013 by AVFCforever1991 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morpheus Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 dont see why. Salt him off for poor tactics if you want, for not being able to set a team up to defend set pieces, for strange substitutions do all that, but you can't have a go at his signings. For me his signings have been our better players this season and if we were to sell them we'd get far more than we paid for them. That alone means they are decent signings , return on investment. Thats fine in stating that his signings have been our better players but is that really saying much? I mean the last time i looked we are being outplayed by lower league teams and are currently one place above the trap door which would suggest that his signings have had little or no impact on our form. So 'we'd get far more than we paid for them' would we? I wonder since Lambert's signings have been so good, why aren't other clubs beating our door down to sign them? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adbo9 Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 I'm not one to slag a manager, but I gotta admit that Lambert has changed me on this...... the man is totally inept........ I feel that it is time to get him out the door........ if only for the inevitable "new manager syndrome" which will see us pick up a few points......... Lambert has been a total joke. At Millwall last night I was trying to play devils advocate and seeing the positives when chatting to fellow villans, but I struggled. One guy levelled that it "isnt his team" ........ maybe not, but for the majority of the season weve had Lowton, Vlaar, Bennett, Westwood, Benteke. On top of that he's made Guzan his no1 and Weimann his preferred partner for Benteke. He's also promoted Clark to the senior centre back role. So for me the majority of this team is Lamberts. Most of the defence is Lamberts, and its the worst in the country, the strikers are lamberts and we score less goals than most. The midfield is pants, albeit with only one signing from Lambo. For me the money he spent in the summer was spent wrong. I aggree that we need an upgrade on Hutton and Warnock. But are Lowton & Bennett an upgrade?? IMO no where near an upgrade, but not only that Hutton & Warnock are training with the kids for most the season taking home best part of £80K per week........ what a total waste ??!! ?!! Vlaar?? Well i personally dont see the hype at all - if he was the answer then I really dont wanna know the question ?!??! Certainly not an upgrade on Collins for me. Westwood? Success for me. best of the lot. Benteke? On individual merits, yes a good buy.... but was he needed?. We had Bent, Weimann, Gabby already - would £7m have been better off signing a top class centre midfielder? Im certain we'd have been far better off with one................ In a nutshell, i just dont think Lambert is the man. I understand managers need time, and if he was saddled with another managers players then Id give it him - but in reality its a totally new side mostly all of Lamberts making....... and hes taken us so far back its untrue. I think he is trying to replicate what he did at Norwich and build a team full of young n hungry lads with an "us against the world" mentality - well it doesnt work at a big club, and regardless of form Villa are a big club. History is littered with managers who have had similar stories at small clubs lower down and tried to replicate it higher up the food chain and failed spectacularly............ Lambert is a small club manager........... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morpheus Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 I'd argue that the fact that all of us saw the need to replace warnock and Hutton and it seemed no fan wanted either at the club due to their ineptness, two fullbacks were needed actually Agreed that we needed to replace those players but results would suggest that neither of his signings in those positions have improved us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DCJonah Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 Agreed that we needed to replace those players but results would suggest that neither of his signings in those positions have improved us. Did we need to replace them before signing a CB and CM though? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dickyhell Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 I think his signings have been Ok for building a team for the future except, KEA. The problem is the here and now, this side is so obviously not good enough and Lambert is to a large part responsible for this. Lerner is responsible for the mess that the club is in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 I don't think the players are all that bad. The problem is we don't have a balanced team. For example our midfielders, most of them are ok, but they don't play well together. We are desperate for a Petrov in midfield, leader by example who does all the small things the "average" fan doesn't see but at the same time is so important for a team to function well. A midfielder that makes his teammates better footballers. Another problem with a poor balanced team is that you usually don't defend or attack well as a team. The outcome of a game will always rely on a individual skill/effort rather than a team effort topped with individual skill. That is why I think two players (midfield and winger) might be enough to turn this season around. I also think Dunne (if motivated trying to get a contract with a new team) good be important with his experience, helping the younger lads get their confidence up. Because as other posters have been saying we really lack confidence that has cost us at least 4 points the last two weeks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 What kind / level of players do you think we could attract? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
praisedmambo Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 (edited) I think he is trying to replicate what he did at Norwich and build a team full of young n hungry lads with an "us against the world" mentality - well it doesnt work at a big club, and regardless of form Villa are a big club. History is littered with managers who have had similar stories at small clubs lower down and tried to replicate it higher up the food chain and failed spectacularly............ Lambert is a small club manager........... "It doesn't work at a big club"...I'm not sure he's really had enough time to prove that. We've been in a mess for too long and I agree with what he's trying to do. He hasn't had long enough...he's not clueless. He achieved a lot at Norwich that you don't get to achieve unless you have talent. There have been mistakes, which happen, but he is the most promising long term manager we have had in ages and we should stick by him. That's the only way I see it. How bleak did things look in the summer when we were managerless? The choices were dire but we actually got someone with credentials that on paper seem exactly what Villa need to turn around and move on from the last three years. He has made good signings but unfortunately what was there in the squad he inherited has been a number of ultimately disappointing players. The balance of the squad was all over the place. As for those saying well, he bought three defenders and now we have the worst defence in the league - we had a shit defence last season too, with more experienced players, and a team that played all out defence, defenders in midfield, defenders up front. This transition was never going to be easy and maybe its been worse than expected but the plan is a good one. All his signings look talented - it is the overall team that's the problem, and the non-existent options from the bench. Our squad also isn't big enough or good enough for the injuries we have dealt with. For example, when we lost 8-0 the only Lambert defensive signing that played was Lowton. The defence that day was Lichaj Clark Baker Lowton. In other games Vlaar's been out for a while. The fact is the big wage earners were not adding enough to the team and had to or still have to go (Hutton, Warnock) - everyone was crying out for a new defence after last year (the all out defence year). The way I see it the thinking behind Lambert's actions have been pretty sound. Er, yeah, except for the 3-5-2 wingback formation, which I think really needs to stop. He's a good manager taking on a tough job at a club that has **** itself up from some terrible signings and decisions over the previous years. Like it or not he is taking on all the problems and trying to build for the future. It would be short-sighted to sack him. We might not like some things that happen (the recent losses etc, risking relegation, maybe even getting it) but it doesn't look like the club are going to solve these kinds of problems by throwing stupid money around any more (fair enough, the money in football is what drives me mad). Lambert is as good as we're going to get and not bad at all as some people make out looking for someone to blame. Also, I hope none of you are the people who got Houllier his heart attack, because if he hadn't been abused so much there's quite a high chance all those players Newcastle have signed would have been playing for us, supplying a happy Darren Bent. We were in trouble when Houllier came and many, in my opinion, were short sighted in the abuse they gave him (forgetting his Liverpool love in actually, which was stupid) and look what that got us, Alex McLeish. Edited January 26, 2013 by praisedmambo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
troon_villan Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 dont see why. Salt him off for poor tactics if you want, for not being able to set a team up to defend set pieces, for strange substitutions do all that, but you can't have a go at his signings. For me his signings have been our better players this season and if we were to sell them we'd get far more than we paid for them. That alone means they are decent signings , return on investment. Agree with Richard, can't really argue with Benteke, Westwood, Vlaar and Guzan. A decent team could be built around them imo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbie09 Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 What happened to the money set aside for Dempsey in terms of transfer fee and salary? It all points to a U turn by Lerner in my opinion which could explain the difference in Lamberts demeanour. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P3te Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 What happened to the money set aside for Dempsey in terms of transfer fee and salary? it bought benteke Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AshVilla Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 (edited) What happened to the money set aside for Dempsey in terms of transfer fee and salary? It all points to a U turn by Lerner in my opinion which could explain the difference in Lamberts demeanour. PR stunt there was no money It was used to force genk's hand Edited January 26, 2013 by AshVilla Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 "It doesn't work at a big club"...I'm not sure he's really had enough time to prove that. We've been in a mess for too long and I agree with what he's trying to do. He hasn't had long enough...he's not clueless. He achieved a lot at Norwich that you don't get to achieve unless you have talent. There have been mistakes, which happen, but he is the most promising long term manager we have had in ages and we should stick by him. That's the only way I see it. How bleak did things look in the summer when we were managerless? The choices were dire but we actually got someone with credentials that on paper seem exactly what Villa need to turn around and move on from the last three years. He has made good signings but unfortunately what was there in the squad he inherited has been a number of ultimately disappointing players. The balance of the squad was all over the place. As for those saying well, he bought three defenders and now we have the worst defence in the league - we had a shit defence last season too, with more experienced players, and a team that played all out defence, defenders in midfield, defenders up front. This transition was never going to be easy and maybe its been worse than expected but the plan is a good one. All his signings look talented - it is the overall team that's the problem, and the non-existent options from the bench. Our squad also isn't big enough or good enough for the injuries we have dealt with. For example, when we lost 8-0 the only Lambert defensive signing that played was Lowton. The defence that day was Lichaj Clark Baker Lowton. In other games Vlaar's been out for a while. The fact is the big wage earners were not adding enough to the team and had to or still have to go (Hutton, Warnock) - everyone was crying out for a new defence after last year (the all out defence year). The way I see it the thinking behind Lambert's actions have been pretty sound. Er, yeah, except for the 3-5-2 wingback formation, which I think really needs to stop. He's a good manager taking on a tough job at a club that has **** itself up from some terrible signings and decisions over the previous years. Like it or not he is taking on all the problems and trying to build for the future. It would be short-sighted to sack him. We might not like some things that happen (the recent losses etc, risking relegation, maybe even getting it) but it doesn't look like the club are going to solve these kinds of problems by throwing stupid money around any more (fair enough, the money in football is what drives me mad). Lambert is as good as we're going to get and not bad at all as some people make out looking for someone to blame. Also, I hope none of you are the people who got Houllier his heart attack, because if he hadn't been abused so much there's quite a high chance all those players Newcastle have signed would have been playing for us, supplying a happy Darren Bent. We were in trouble when Houllier came and many, in my opinion, were short sighted in the abuse they gave him (forgetting his Liverpool love in actually, which was stupid) and look what that got us, Alex McLeish. you were doing so well until I came to the last paragraph! Much to agree with Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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