Aston Villa v Man City all in one thread

[NARLA24]

How is this one going to go ?
The Beast may play some part but will it be enough ?
Full house, Beast making his return, so i am going for a sneaky Villa win.

[Villa_Dan]

Not being negative but again, can't see us winning. Think we'll play well but lose.

I thought we played well against Chelsea but they were just too good, Man City won't be as slick but will be too much for us

[Army villain]

I would love to see villa win at home, with the beast getting some goals.
But he needs service and not hoof ball stuff. I hope it's not like the last two games.

[VillaBill]

went to last years corresponding fixture more in hope than expectation but, I cant see us getting diddly squat .
Villa 2-4 Man City :x

[Green Villan]

I would love to see villa win at home, with the beast getting some goals.
But he needs service and not hoof ball stuff. I hope it's not like the last two games.

This is where Grealish can step in

[villabromsgrove]

If Lambert uses the word pragmatic, it will be an easy 2 or 3 nil to Man City.

[NARLA24]

If Lambert uses the word pragmatic, it will be an easy 2 or 3 nil to Man City.

If he uses the words "We go again" then Keano should have "A word."

[Morpheus]

Stuffed like a Christmas Turkey and 'we go again' from Lambert.

[Synopsis]

Got to say I fully expect Lamberts squad to reflect an attempt at strangling the game, sitting deep and praying they don't put many past us.

[Villa_Dan]

I think Grealish could be of use against City - he wins freekicks with his quick feet so could be deployed to create us chances with set-pieces but, more importantly IMO, would win freekicks which could ease pressure on us and break the game up.

[villabromsgrove]

If we don't have a right go at them we'll lose.

If we do have a right go at them we'll probably concede more.

Not trying to win or draw as happened at Chelsea is unacceptable.

Villa 0-2 Man C. (pragmatic non pressing football)

Villa 1-3 Man C. (pressing and kicking lumps out of them)

I know which I'd rather watch.

[Trotters]

Spot on!!

Grealish to have half of the Citeh team on yellow cards by the 30th minute and Gabby will run at them and get 2 sent off.

1-0 Villa.

Or Lambert will go defensive/pragmatic and lose 3-0

[kimbo]

This is one thing I don't get from the 'happy clapper' fans.

No-one expected us to beat Chelsea, but there is a big difference between being beaten and not trying to do anything.

Yet the happy clappers don't get that; they just see we lost to Chelsea and see it as how it should be, and anyone that had a problem with anything that happened in the game should "shut up and support the team", "fuck off to Small Heath" and other such intelligent debates.

[Con]

Grealish for game time against city is a great idea - toward the end. There is no way he'll start, nor should he.  He is not good enough defensively yet (adequate for 15 minutes but not proven longer than that). He's also not as powerful a runner as Gabby so we can'treally use him on the counter-attack yet.

He can't break out powerfully at speed like a Bale, Ronaldo or Gabby. This should change as he gets older and more physically developed, but right now for him to be most dangerous we need to have possession in the final third, which isn't going to happen much against Man City.

That's my impression anyway.

[kimbo]

right now for him to be most dangerous we need to have possession in the final third, which isn't going to happen much against Man City.

Or just about anyone unfortunately.

One of those things really, he'll actually help with that, so will Benteke due to him holding it up better than anyone we have now.

But Grealish is yet to start a league game and Benteke is just coming back from a horrific injury, so I suppose Citeh probably ain't the game to start 'em together in.

Soon though.

[Con]

I'm more positive than that. With our best team out I'd expect us to have about 50% of it against Burnley, QPR, Sunderland, Hull, West Ham, Leicester, Crystal Palace, Stoke, WBA and maybe even Swansea and Southampton.

Even 45% possession can be enough for an attacking player to make chances.

It's against the top sides when possession is something like 25% and you're defending the entire game when it's pointless playing him until the end.

[villabromsgrove]

I'm more positive than that. With our best team out I'd expect us to have about 50% of it against Burnley, QPR, Sunderland, Hull, West Ham, Leicester, Crystal Palace, Stoke, WBA and maybe even Swansea and Southampton.

Even 45% possession can be enough for an attacking player to make chances.

It's against the top sides when possession is something like 25% and you're defending the entire game when it's pointless playing him until the end.

Interesting post. I'm going to check the stats at the end of this season to find out how many times we have more possession than our opponents. It won't be often Imo.

Is that down to the manager or the players?

[CoE82]

I'm more positive than that. With our best team out I'd expect us to have about 50% of it against Burnley, QPR, Sunderland, Hull, West Ham, Leicester, Crystal Palace, Stoke, WBA and maybe even Swansea and Southampton.

Even 45% possession can be enough for an attacking player to make chances.

It's against the top sides when possession is something like 25% and you're defending the entire game when it's pointless playing him until the end.

Interesting post. I'm going to check the stats at the end of this season to find out how many times we have more possession than our opponents. It won't be often Imo.

Is that down to the manager or the players?

I'd have to say the players, regardless of what some think about our manager, no manager set there team up to have about a quarter of the possession, a few of our players just aren't good enough or confident enough to hold onto the ball that fraction longer to pick out the right pass, but this isn't a new thing for us as it's happened under to many managers recently.


But I do think some people are more obsessed with stats on possession that the end product, arsenal are proberly the best team in the league at possession but for years they have struggled to win anything, myself I prefer the counter attacking teams, and lovely watching us under MoN, that seem was lethal on the counter and most teams just couldn't stop it.

[De Kuip]

I've gone for 1-0 villa but to be fair if you've seen my position this month on Predict the Premiership, I wouldn't go dancing in the streets just yet...........................

[Con]

I agree, it's how good your players are at keeping possession versus how good oppositions players are.

However, keeping possession is not enough. you also need to win it. So the top teams have great ball winners like Ramires, Oscar, Ya Ya Toure. I'd put Schniederlin in that bracket too.

Arsenal seemed to go through a period when they didn't have a great ball-winner but right now they have Ramsey and Flamini second choice.

Our problem in Lambert's first season was we didn't have a great ball winner. We managed to dominate possession against the weaker teams when Bannan played, such as against away at Reading.

Ball-winning in midfield was a problem last season too, although Sylla helped somewhat. Again we had majority of possession only in one or two games.

This season against the weaker teams we should be better at controlling possession. Cleverley, Sanchez are a step up from nobody at all and Sylla.

[kimbo]

I'm more positive than that. With our best team out I'd expect us to have about 50% of it against Burnley, QPR, Sunderland, Hull, West Ham, Leicester, Crystal Palace, Stoke, WBA and maybe even Swansea and Southampton.

Even 45% possession can be enough for an attacking player to make chances.

It's against the top sides when possession is something like 25% and you're defending the entire game when it's pointless playing him until the end.

Depends what we're talking about. You said final third, and without Grealish or Benteke, our current front players have a first touch like a five yard pass, so I don't see us having that much in the final third. Even when we have fairly equal overall possession, most of ours is irrelevant, slow, and not in the final third, and most of what is in the final third is, well, at the risk of getting too technical... it's just crap.

[kimbo]

I'm more positive than that. With our best team out I'd expect us to have about 50% of it against Burnley, QPR, Sunderland, Hull, West Ham, Leicester, Crystal Palace, Stoke, WBA and maybe even Swansea and Southampton.

Even 45% possession can be enough for an attacking player to make chances.

It's against the top sides when possession is something like 25% and you're defending the entire game when it's pointless playing him until the end.

Interesting post. I'm going to check the stats at the end of this season to find out how many times we have more possession than our opponents. It won't be often Imo.

Is that down to the manager or the players?

A little of both. Gabby, Weimann, N'Zogbia, Richardson.... none of these are players that are going to keep much possession. Into his 3rd season though, Paul Lambert simply can not be absolved from blame. I keep saying it, but better players are needed in that area, and thankfully we already have some waiting in the wings.

[CoE82]

I hope tekkers plays from the start, if he does I think it will give the crowd a boost, plus that new centre half looks like he hasn't adjusted to the league yet and the beast can bully him.

I know people will say he's only had 60+ minutes of. An u21 game but, I'd rather he started and came off then us be losing and him thrown on for last 20 minutes when nothing on the game, he's been out a while and think he will be pumped up to show what people have missed.

If all fit I'd go

Guzan

Hutton, Vlaar, Senderos, Cissoko

Grealish, cleverly, Westwood, Delph, richardson

Benteke

With Grealish and richardson supporting tekkers at times.

[Villa_Dan]

I'd be really annoyed if Benteke started, he's played 60mins in over 6 months! Rush him back and we'll lose him for longer. It'd reek of desperation and I'd rather wait another 2 weeks and have him at full fitness for longer

[Green Villan]

I hope tekkers plays from the start, if he does I think it will give the crowd a boost, plus that new centre half looks like he hasn't adjusted to the league yet and the beast can bully him.

I know people will say he's only had 60+ minutes of. An u21 game but, I'd rather he started and came off then us be losing and him thrown on for last 20 minutes when nothing on the game, he's been out a while and think he will be pumped up to show what people have missed.

If all fit I'd go

Guzan

Hutton, Vlaar, Senderos, Cissoko

Grealish, cleverly, Westwood, Delph, richardson

Benteke

With Grealish and richardson supporting tekkers at times.

You on about Demichelis? he is Citeh's biggest liability.

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