Rating and Reactions: Villa 2 (3) - 1 (4) Bradford

[CI]

We have some absolute imbecile supporters. I have never been surrounded by a bitters group of a grade dickheads in my life. From talking about (seriously) us having a bigger firm than Bradford, giving them a kicking, travelling to Millwall next week for a ruck, through to trying to start songs or sing about the Bradford fire.

If the football isn't enough to turn you away then paying money to be surrounded by a bunch of cretins certainly is. God, how depressing a trip to Villa park is.

Can we keep the abuse directed at the manager and players today please. The fans are the least of our worries.

[Stevo985]

We'll direct our anger at whoever the **** we want, thanks very much.

On the subject of the crowd, one of the guys I was at the game with was a relative neutral. He's not a Villa fan but he was certainly supporting Villa last night.

Anyway, he commented that he completely understood why the team crumbles. He couldn't believe how quick the crowd were to get on their backs, even in the first half, and commented that the change in atmosphere once Bradford scored (which we all predicted) was incredible and didn't help at all.

The fans aren't to blame. Of course we're not. but I sure don't think we help sometimes.

[butler50]

Still depressed after singing my heart out in the holte last night! The blame lies with Lambert for me here, both ties he failed to see where there weak point is which is wide and he stuck with playing threw the middle. Not once did he go 4-4-2! We needed goals and playing the way we did last night wasnt gonna get us that yet he still didnt change anything! 20th goal conceded from set piece now why isnt he working on this? Any other club would have sacked him weeks ago but i dont see who is out there that will SAVE us so wonder whether sacking him is the right thing to do.

We are also so weak in CM the fact we havnt strenghthend suggests to me Lerner has had enough and is likely to sell!

Bad times at the club and to be a fan, im like 50/50 on buying my everton ticket now!!!!

Pray4Villa

[Robbie09]

We'll direct our anger at whoever the **** we want, thanks very much.

On the subject of the crowd, one of the guys I was at the game with was a relative neutral. He's not a Villa fan but he was certainly supporting Villa last night.

Anyway, he commented that he completely understood why the team crumbles. He couldn't believe how quick the crowd were to get on their backs, even in the first half, and commented that the change in atmosphere once Bradford scored (which we all predicted) was incredible and didn't help at all.

The fans aren't to blame. Of course we're not. but I sure don't think we help sometimes.

Good point. We went very quiet once they scored because we all knew what the outcome would be. It's not a dig at the fans but there's such an air of inevitability and negativity around the place. There were fans around me that were on the players backs throughout the first half.

The whole club needs a lift and to do that new faces are needed now. Too many of our players are mentally fragile and need taking out of the firing line.

[Rugeley Villa]

We have some absolute imbecile supporters. I have never been surrounded by a bitters group of a grade dickheads in my life. From talking about (seriously) us having a bigger firm than Bradford, giving them a kicking, travelling to Millwall next week for a ruck, through to trying to start songs or sing about the Bradford fire.

If the football isn't enough to turn you away then paying money to be surrounded by a bunch of cretins certainly is. God, how depressing a trip to Villa park is.

. Just wondered where u sat last night??? If hooligans want to fight hooligans then let em but to sing about the bradford fire is a disgrace, we'll see how brave those lads are down millwall

[myb]

Holte lower, L2 around row s. scumbags of the highest order. You know the sort... All shouting various things and trying to start the most vile songs to get a rise from one of their equally cretinous friends. Just one part of a very sorry night.

[Stevo985]

Not once did he go 4-4-2!

We played 4-4-2 for the first hour last night, albeit with a diamond midfield.

[Rugeley Villa]

They probaly only come the villa once in a blue moon but act like their the clubs hardcore following ye I know the sort, they ay even proper villa lads(hooligans) they just think they are which is even worse,bet they applauded petrov but then try and start sick songs! Tossers

[VillaAndLoyal]

Thank you for backing my point up Stevo. The fans are not in any way to blame for this mess we're in, and it is understandable how quickly people are turning now, having to watch that dross week in week out.

But, this was a one-off cup-game, and I posted before the game how (if we were to have any chance) we'd need loud vocal support for 90 minutes to roar the lads on. I think we're only kidding ourselves if we say we even got close to achieving this. We were loud at points in the first half, but even then as Stevo says we had idiots moaning at certain players instead of putting their efforts into supporting the team and club. Then, as i've already said, when Bradford scored it was like a light switch flicked in the ground and everyone went back to their bickering, negative best. Disregarding how shit our team and manager are, how were we supposed to turn it around in the last 30 minutes with zero vocal support and just lots of moaning and negativity from the crowd? I tried to keep the songs going, along with a fair few others, but the appetite had gone and that confirmed to me that the game was gone. It also confirmed to me that we perhaps didn't deserve a trip to Wembley. Bradford have gone through far more bad times than us in the last decade and their support over two legs was first class, ours was not.

There are also certain fans in the ground, as well as on here, who choose to berate certain players for the sake of it. In the second-half, the ball was played to Stephen Ireland and it initially looked like he was going to lose it. So out came the "f*ck off SI you ******" blah blah blah from the same couple of dickheads next to me who were abusing him all game. It turned out, despite their foul-mouthed tirade, that Ireland managed to pass the ball on and keep the move going. So he got slated for making a good pass, that makes sense, right!? Anyone watching that game last night with a clear head would see that Stephen Ireland had a decent game, and was fully committed to the cause. Sorry if that doesn't sit well with certain people's agenda.

[AvfcRigo82]

I feel numb and sick.

What the **** has happened to our football club!!

This is not Aston Villa hasn't been for a long time now.

[PussEKatt]

Dec 23 - Chelsea 8 Aston Villa 0

Dec 26 - Aston Villa 0 Tottenham 4

Dec 29 - Aston Villa 0 Wigan 3

Jan 1 - Swansea 2 Aston Villa 2

Jan 5 - Aston Villa 2 Ipswich 1

Jan 8 - Bradford 3 Aston Villa 1

Jan 12 - Aston Villa 0 Southampton 1

Jan 19 - West Brom 2 Aston Villa 2

Jan 22 - Aston Villa 2 Bradford 1

Clear you desk Paul.

Thats not bad.....2 points from 6 games.At this rate we could end the season with something like 22 points.

[sherl]

its a two way street though. villa go to bradford, poor tactics, miss chances, crap defending, followed by a two week propoganda campaign from gabby, lambert etc etc roar the boys home, the fans can get us there blah blah blah. you dont need to blackmail the people who support the club to buy the tickets. we will come.

BUT give us something to cheer, to support you with, we arent the millionaires who seem to think the game is to pass the ball along the half way line for 80% of the game. we arent the manager bereft of ideas and tactics who says he is as gutted as us. no you arent mate, this isnt your team you support, its your job, and you are doing it badly, and all this talk of we go again is rubbish. you poick the team, you tell them how to play. if you play four centre forwards and no wingers then what happened will happen.

one of bradford centre halfs was on radio this morning and he said the defenders actually stopped to count 5 villa centre forwards at one point and he actually said if we could stop and chat it shows we werent under that much pressure. he wasnt taking the mick but he said we tried to play route one, div 4 football which is what they do week in week out. theyve only won one game in january and lost the rest.

gabby wide left, weiman wide right, bent, benteke in the middle. if you persist with 4 up front at least try and play some formation. lambert needs to stop hiding and come ouyt and say he was tactically out of depth; my son's under 7's wouldnt play like that,

Edited January 23, 2013 by sherl

[AvfcTheObsession]

On the subject of the crowd, one of the guys I was at the game with was a relative neutral. He's not a Villa fan but he was certainly supporting Villa last night.

Anyway, he commented that he completely understood why the team crumbles. He couldn't believe how quick the crowd were to get on their backs, even in the first half, and commented that the change in atmosphere once Bradford scored (which we all predicted) was incredible and didn't help at all.

Very easy as a neutral to turn up at one game and criticise.

Bit different for those who have forked out £500 for a season ticket, as well as whatever else for cup games, and have been served up utter dross by a team who cannot even do the basics. Not like it's just this season either.

Where I was sat nobody was on the players' backs first half, we were singing and supporting the team throughout.

Yes the atmosphere changed when they scored, we needed 2 goals in half an hour to even force extra time. That, coupled with how dreadful we've been this season, understandably killed people's belief, which transpired to the atmosphere.

[VillaAndLoyal]

Agree entirely about Lambert. It was desperation from him and he completely lost the plot. We could have played extra time with that 'formation' (if you can call it that) and we'd have never got the third goal, let alone the fourth.

[Rugeley Villa]

Thank you for backing my point up Stevo. The fans are not in any way to blame for this mess we're in, and it is understandable how quickly people are turning now, having to watch that dross week in week out.

But, this was a one-off cup-game, and I posted before the game how (if we were to have any chance) we'd need loud vocal support for 90 minutes to roar the lads on. I think we're only kidding ourselves if we say we even got close to achieving this. We were loud at points in the first half, but even then as Stevo says we had idiots moaning at certain players instead of putting their efforts into supporting the team and club. Then, as i've already said, when Bradford scored it was like a light switch flicked in the ground and everyone went back to their bickering, negative best. Disregarding how shit our team and manager are, how were we supposed to turn it around in the last 30 minutes with zero vocal support and just lots of moaning and negativity from the crowd? I tried to keep the songs going, along with a fair few others, but the appetite had gone and that confirmed to me that the game was gone. It also confirmed to me that we perhaps didn't deserve a trip to Wembley. Bradford have gone through far more bad times than us in the last decade and their support over two legs was first class, ours was not.

There are also certain fans in the ground, as well as on here, who choose to berate certain players for the sake of it. In the second-half, the ball was played to Stephen Ireland and it initially looked like he was going to lose it. So out came the "f*ck off SI you ******" blah blah blah from the same couple of dickheads next to me who were abusing him all game. It turned out, despite their foul-mouthed tirade, that Ireland managed to pass the ball on and keep the move going. So he got slated for making a good pass, that makes sense, right!? Anyone watching that game last night with a clear head would see that Stephen Ireland had a decent game, and was fully committed to the cause. Sorry if that doesn't sit well with certain people's agenda.

To be honest mate I thought last nights atmosphere was not great at all, first half was ok but that's it, second half it was shit, I'm not gonna say the fans should of supported the lads for 90mins vocally because I can understand why it went like it did but we have this thing at the villa where we turn so quickly on the team and we get this really negative vibe around ground, the holte can hold 14000 but the noise for a lot of the game was nowhere near what it should of been, their was loads of people near me not singing at all and I was sat in holte upper, forget the trinity and doug ellis because they will rarely ever sing, the north lower generates a bit of noise at times which is great but if we could get most people in the holte singing that in itself would create a hell of a noise and that's just the holte on its own, to many people sit in the holte aswell, I wish the holte was just one stand instead of the double tier it is because that kills some of the atmosphere, nowhere near enough noise last night for such a big game,I'd like last nights atmosphere to be the norm against your shitty average teams and for big games be 3 times better than it was last night,

[CI]

People really shouldn't be having a pop at the fans (apart from the obscene chants)

The players and manager have killed off the goodwill with a completely pathetic season

[Rugeley Villa]

Regardless of what other clubs think of our fanbase I think we have a very loyal set of fans, I can understand all this negativity because its awful at the moment, kills me seeing our name not being in that final, we had by far the easier draw and we blew it in both games

[islingtonclaret]

Eugh. Papers and websites this morning full of 'Bradford's historic win'. (not arguing with that: it is). Oh, the humiliation.

[CI]

No mention of it in the FT

[Stevo985]

Very easy as a neutral to turn up at one game and criticise.

Bit different for those who have forked out £500 for a season ticket, as well as whatever else for cup games, and have been served up utter dross by a team who cannot even do the basics. Not like it's just this season either.

Where I was sat nobody was on the players' backs first half, we were singing and supporting the team throughout.

Yes the atmosphere changed when they scored, we needed 2 goals in half an hour to even force extra time. That, coupled with how dreadful we've been this season, understandably killed people's belief, which transpired to the atmosphere.

He wasn't criticising.

And in fact he spent most of the first half saying how fantastic the atmosphere was.

He was just making an innocent observation. He goes to a few games a season, despite not being a Villa fan, so it's not like it was his first time.

Anyway, point is it wasn't a criticism. And neither was my point. It was merely an observation that that agressive atmosphere probably doesn't help, especially for a young team lacking in confidence.

The fans have the right to say whatever they want (within reason) imo. But doesn't mean the fans are immune to criticism either.