Southampton - Aston Villa, Wednesday 28th October, League Cup

I swear to god. EVERY SINGLE TIME Hutton runs and crosses the ball, we have NOBODY attacking the first post. He's done this for about 24 months now. MAYBE just FUCKING MAYBE they can have the brains to realize this soon.

2-0 goodnight, seven straight defeats

I think we have to accept the fact that we are a terrible terrible team. They are miles better than us, and then some. We have no leaders, no quality, no strikers that can finish. Nothing. Relegated 100%.

I can't remember the last time I saw us play good football. Suspect it was the semi final last year, but can't really remember it.

I picked up on that a long time ago, too. Our players seem to wait to see where the ball goes (by which time it's too late to react or a defender is there first) rather than taking a gamble and making a run.

But that's something that can (and should) be taught so just what the fuck is going on in training?

Dreadful just dreadful.

The only crumb of comfort is that it was a shirt starting line up.

I still do not know why everyone can pick a better team than the soppy fuckers whose job it actually is.

I'm going to say that KMac has realised that our focus needs to be on the league. Fuck the cups now. Shame it only looked like Crespo had a run....would liked to have seen a few other players who are pushing for the first team.

It is what it is. Let's see what happens in the next few days and how w go against Spuds.

let's hope the instructions from Randy were to throw the cup and focus on the league because that line-up was throwing the cup.

We need more Vertout, Okore, Gardner and Traore and less Agbonlahor, Westwood, Lescott, and Sanchez.

Yeah. I don't think KMac had that much influence on who started todays match. I'm pretty sure he's been informed to rest the most important league players. Whether that's from higher up or the next manager I have no idea. But even KMac enjoys winning. I'm certain he would have started our best players if he had the choice. Especially after his losses the last time he was interim manager.

Trotters wrote:I'm going to say that KMac has realised that our focus needs to be on the league. Fuck the cups now. Shame it only looked like Crespo had a run....would liked to have seen a few other players who are pushing for the first team.

It is what it is. Let's see what happens in the next few days and how w go against Spuds.

I think we al know how it's going to go against Spuds.

That goal from Yoshida, we didn't have anyone on the pitch at the time who could have done that. I like to think Grealish could, but he needs to go for goal himself more often.

I don't really know what to make of it all. It looks like we were just treading water. No point whatsoever starting Gestede without getting balls in the air that get to him. We had a few chances but no one to finish them properly.

Yet another game we lose by 1 goal

De Kuip wrote:Yet another game we lose  by 1 goal

I think they could have won by 5 if they wanted to. The goals they took were brilliant. They let us play for a while here and there, but they knew they could outclass us at any moment, and they did when the chose too.

Who picks two centre backs, four full backs, two defensive midfielders and two strikers and expects to win a game. If this is an example of Mcdonalds team selection then there is a clear reason why he isn't a manager.

The only way we are staying up this year is if RL gets his checkbook out and spends £50-60m in January. Only Amavi looked Premier League quality out of the starting lineup tonight.

Crespo and Clark: awful
Richardson and Hutton: worse
Sanchez: liability
Westwood: invisible
Gestede: championship
Gabby: just leave...
Bacuna: ?

Another thing that annoyed me, last minute meaningless penalty...why not let Ayew take it after he won it to keep his confidence going? I know Sinclair is our penalty taker for some reason but he contributes nowt other than tap-ins regardless of confidence.

Thought Crespo was alright

Crespo got skinned completely for the second goal.

Why not play Ayew up front? We've spent £8.5m on a striker to play him on the wing every match.

By all accounts it wasn't a terrible performance tonight and having Amavi and Bacuna in midfield wasn't really defensive because they both attack well.

A lack of goals is critical though and I'm beginning to think Kozak has accidentally been killed at Bodymoor heath and it's being covered up. Has anybody seen him lately? Him and Ayew would be a great partnership

Joppe84 wrote:Thought Crespo was alright

I'd play him left back against Spurs instead of Richardson and leave Amavi further forward.
Richards Gana Ayew and Kozak to start also and maybe Veretout.

DVilla wrote:Who picks two centre backs, four full backs, two defensive midfielders and two strikers and expects to win a game. If this is an example of Mcdonalds team selection then there is a clear reason why he isn't a manager.

The only way we are staying up this year is if RL gets his checkbook out and spends £50-60m in January. Only Amavi looked Premier League quality out of the starting lineup tonight.

Crespo and Clark: awful
Richardson and Hutton: worse
Sanchez: liability
Westwood: invisible
Gestede: championship
Gabby: just leave...
Bacuna: ?

With 25 players to choose from - but only 11 first team places, you could ridicule the selection every week. Is there a winning formula from the 25 we have ? it eluded sherwood, kmac didn't find it tonight, will a new geezer who doesn't know the players stumble upon it quickly enough.....

Bloody disappointing goals to concede, especially the second one.

There were positives though. We were better than Southampton in the first half, and the team (in the first half at least) did actually seem to play better than they have for a while under Sherwood, but too many good chances were squandered.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/34589610

Amazingly, if you look at the BBC's stats (which are usually heavily against us, I swear they count far too few shots on target for us in most games that I watch) we had 7 shots on target to Southampton's 3! But, yet again, Villa, it's a case of shoulda, woulda, coulda, DIDN'T!

Also, the omission of Kozak continues to baffle and confuse me.

smetro wrote:

With 25 players to choose from - but only 11 first team places, you could ridicule the selection every week. Is there a winning formula from the 25 we have ? it eluded sherwood, kmac didn't find it tonight, will a new geezer who doesn't know the players stumble upon it quickly enough.....

When the selections are ridiculous, it easy to ridicule. When the selections make absolutely no sense, then they become nonsensical. Picking Gabby week in week out, playing Gestede and not playing to his (one, very limited) strength, starting with such a defensive team against Stoke that even McLeish would have questioned it.

K Mac looks like he's going down this road with 4 full backs and 2 DMs tonight. Sure, Bacuna and Amavi can pick out a cross, but Bacuna has done the sum total of jack shit all season and Amavi looked somewhat lost.

I think it's pretty easy in all honesty... Amavi, Clark, Richards, Gana, Veretout, Grealish and Gil need to be on the pitch. Kozak needs a chance. Ayew needs a chance. Traore needs a chance. Gestede needs to be dropped. Westwood or Sanchez on the bench. Gabby needs a taxi away from VP along with Lescott.

And sure, that team might not get us out the shite... but, politics aside, I doubt many people would disagree with a team like that.

It is very strange that the majority of supporters know what players are required to play and in their proper positions but the people who get paid vast amounts can't see it, it totally baffles me!

achilles wrote:It is very strange that the majority of supporters know what players are required to play and in their proper positions but the people who get paid vast amounts can't see it, it totally baffles me!

I'm pretty sure that I can't claim to be part of that majority. I can't think of a side from our current squad that could win a game of football.

Our situation is very serious. We shouldn't give up hoping and obviously we should get behind the new manager but my advice to all fans is, prepare for the unthinkable.

Thinman wrote:

achilles wrote:It is very strange that the majority of supporters know what players are required to play and in their proper positions but the people who get paid vast amounts can't see it, it totally baffles me!

I'm pretty sure that I can't claim to be part of that majority. I can't think of a side from our current squad that could win a game of football.

Our situation is very serious. We shouldn't give up hoping and obviously we should get behind the new manager but my advice to all fans is, prepare for the unthinkable.

Isn't that a reflection of just how bad Villa's new recruitment policy is, involving Director of recruitment Paddy Reilly and sporting director Hendrik Almstadt who are both amateurs at this sort of thing?

You may be right and if that is so, the whole lot of them should be sacked, not just the manager every time!

smetro wrote:

DVilla wrote:Who picks two centre backs, four full backs, two defensive midfielders and two strikers and expects to win a game. If this is an example of Mcdonalds team selection then there is a clear reason why he isn't a manager.

The only way we are staying up this year is if RL gets his checkbook out and spends £50-60m in January. Only Amavi looked Premier League quality out of the starting lineup tonight.

Crespo and Clark: awful
Richardson and Hutton: worse
Sanchez: liability
Westwood: invisible
Gestede: championship
Gabby: just leave...
Bacuna: ?

With 25 players to choose from - but only 11 first team places, you could ridicule the selection every week. Is there a winning formula from the 25 we have ? it eluded sherwood, kmac didn't find it tonight, will a new geezer who doesn't know the players stumble upon it quickly enough.....

Well apart from Clarke, I'd be happy with none of the players mentioned in the list above starting. not saying it'd be a winning formula, but at least I wouldn't go WTF every time I see our starting line up.