Re: Leeds Utd v Aston Villa, Elland rd, saturday 3rd December, 17.30 kick off. Build up and matchday thread

by smetro Sat Dec 03, 2016 7:01 pm

Predictable - slight question mark over keeper IMO

by achilles Sat Dec 03, 2016 7:03 pm

That was crap keeping, Gollini has to do better!

by achilles Sat Dec 03, 2016 7:06 pm

I must admit that some of these players think they are actually better than they really are!
January cannot come quick enough for me!

by smetro Sat Dec 03, 2016 7:09 pm

Think a new keeper will be bruces first signing. Hes been very quiet on Gollini. although adomah must carry some blame - you going nowhere if you miss chances like that.
Will be very chuffed if we snatch a point here - cos it looks unlikley

by smetro Sat Dec 03, 2016 7:21 pm

woeful since the goal

by Villa_Dan Sat Dec 03, 2016 7:28 pm

Very poor performance today. Just never got going.

Time for Brucie to show us why he's the manager he is. I fully expect us to bounce back and give a shit Wigan team a pasting

by smetro Sat Dec 03, 2016 7:32 pm

no complaints leeds totally deserved the 2-0

The problem with keeping it tight in the first half is that limits the time we have to put things right should we concede. brining on the attacking options at 60 minutes has worked well for us - but it always had a limited lifespan.

Sure Gollini will get bad headlines - but when we have a whole forward line except kodjia firing blanks they have to take some of the heat as well

by Cha Ching Sat Dec 03, 2016 7:34 pm

Immediate reaction (knee jerk alert)

Bruce has got to learn from this.

Gestede has no mobility. If you're playing counter attacking football away from home he's useless.

Amavi got totally schooled today and lost his composure.

Gardner AND Westood do not work.

Ayew looks like he doesn't fancy it any more.

Elphick makes our defence look dodgy and Gollini looks less secure behind Elphick and Chester

by AstonThriller Sat Dec 03, 2016 7:35 pm

These struggles away from home is the reason an automatic spot is beyond us now. I know we were bound to slip up again at some point but only winning once away from home with nineteen games gone simply isn't good enough.

by Guest Sat Dec 03, 2016 7:35 pm

Should consider selling Ayew and McCormack to finance better midfielders. McCormack doesn't suit our tactic and Ayew will never get his head around team play. If we can recoup £ 15 million on those two and spend that on two midfielders I'm happy. We simply won't be promoted with Gardner and Westwood. We've seen this for half a season now. And Gestede should NEVER start in front of Kodjia up front. Never. I don't care what bullshit tactical advantage Bruce thinks he's getting. No more of that.

by Saunders82 Sat Dec 03, 2016 7:39 pm

Gollini should have done far better with that cross and so should Elphick IMO, once the goal went in we lost all disipline, Leeds were crap and suddenly they were all over us, the 2nd goal just summed us up, sloppy. We had a great chance to move up and blew it, why do we always try to dribble through a ruck of players pass the ball and move for crying out loud.

by smetro Sat Dec 03, 2016 7:40 pm

We have to start winning more away.

Worry for me is that as much as I wanted Bruce if he has weakness its getting his team to score goals. I did hope with all those forwards on the books that a couple of them would start firing. But only Kjodia has

by AstonThriller Sat Dec 03, 2016 8:03 pm

Elphick coming back and us losing cannot be a coincidence. For me he's a cancer in that backline. Also a total lack of a goal threat from central midfield is another major weakness we have. Between Jedi, Gardner and Westwood we have a grand total of ONE goal and TWO assists. That right there is the reason why we are where we are.

And tbh our away woes will probably continue when you consider that we're going to Norwich and QPR next. Just have to get to January either in the top six or very close to it and Brucey needs to do some dealing. I thought Gollini's mistakes were behind him but sadly it seems like they will be a regular thing as he develops and I'm not sure we can afford that.

Gestede is also not good enough for where we need to be. Bruce seems to think Kodjia is better out wide but the evidence thus far has proved otherwise.

Hopefully a big win at home next week and then it's two away games on the spin and lord knows we simply MUST win one of them at least.

by Dions_Bald_Head Sat Dec 03, 2016 8:08 pm

It was one of the big problems of RDM's recruitment: too many strikers = too much competition = unsettled players. Strikers thrive on confidence & at the moment there isn't even an obvious pecking order. I'm desperate for a more consistent list of names on the teamsheet.

by Cha Ching Sat Dec 03, 2016 8:28 pm

AstonThriller wrote:Elphick coming back and us losing cannot be a coincidence. For me he's a cancer in that backline. Also a total lack of a goal threat from central midfield is another major weakness we have. Between Jedi, Gardner and Westwood we have a grand total of ONE goal and TWO assists. That right there is the reason why we are where we are.

And tbh our away woes will probably continue when you consider that we're going to Norwich and QPR next. Just have to get to January either in the top six or very close to it and Brucey needs to do some dealing. I thought Gollini's mistakes were behind him but sadly it seems like they will be a regular thing as he develops and I'm not sure we can afford that.

Gestede is also not good enough for where we need to be. Bruce seems to think Kodjia is better out wide but the evidence thus far has proved otherwise.

Hopefully a big win at home next week and then it's two away games on the spin and lord knows we simply MUST win one of them at least.

I'm also totally unconvinced by Elphick. It might be he fact that him and Chester are both similar types and both work better alongside a more physical type like Baker, but they don't work well together.

by deadbuzzardalive Sat Dec 03, 2016 8:29 pm

Very disappointing result, but I guess a loss had to come sooner or later. The test will be how we bounce back from it. Still disappointed to be five points from the play-offs, despite having gone on a good run.

Shame there's not a game on Tuesday, but Wigan on Saturday should be a good chance to get things back on track

by VTID85 Sat Dec 03, 2016 10:11 pm

Never thought I'd be saying this, but we really missed Baker today. Whilst the suggestion of Elphick being cancerous to the back line is probably a little over the top in my opinion, it was a markedly poorer defence today. But that's not just in the centre and sadly I don't see Amavi getting better. He's got some spirit but I'm really not sure he's good enough - I'm prepared for people to disagree but a replacement LB is as important as a replacement for Hutton at RB for me. Chester is the only keeper from today's defence.

As for Gollini, his confidence seems to be very reactive to who's playing in front of him.

by Guest Sat Dec 03, 2016 11:12 pm

It's always beneficial to have continuety in a back four, but I wouldn't give Elphick or Gollini too much stick for Saturday. It just removes focus from the fact that we should have played for the win.

We need to start scoring more goals. The choice of Gestede instead of Grealish was utter daft.

by DelboyVilla Sun Dec 04, 2016 6:03 am

Blimey we missed Baker, who this season has been more Tommy Elphick like than Tommy Elphick???

Everyone knows the problems with our midfield and Ashley 'fucking' Westwood...boooooooooo!!!!!!!

by AstonThriller Sun Dec 04, 2016 8:55 am

VTID85 wrote:Never thought I'd be saying this, but we really missed Baker today. Whilst the suggestion of Elphick being cancerous to the back line is probably a little over the top in my opinion, it was a markedly poorer defence today. But that's not just in the centre and sadly I don't see Amavi getting better. He's got some spirit but I'm really not sure he's good enough - I'm prepared for people to disagree but a replacement LB is as important as a replacement for Hutton at RB for me. Chester is the only keeper from today's defence.

As for Gollini, his confidence seems to be very reactive to who's playing in front of him.

Elphick was in the defence when we kept conceding late goal after late goal. And when you consider he was the captain at that time it doesn't look good. He was also in the defence when we lost those three games under RDM. He then gets injured and the Baker/Chester partnership sees our fortunes turn around and we were seven unbeaten. He then comes back in and low and behold the defence looks vulnerable again and funny enough another late goal went in again aswell. I don't believe it's a coincidence and to me he's this season's Micah Richards!!..an absolute liability in the backline.

Hutton also needs replacing forthwith but I don't agree about Amavi. Imo Amavi has been very decent in the recent games and even set-up a goal against Cardiff. He's only 22 so he's not gonna be Patrice Evra overnight but for me he's a sure starter and his potential is quite obvious.

by Guest Sun Dec 04, 2016 9:26 am

You need to understand that correlation does not equal causation.

by Guest Sun Dec 04, 2016 9:27 am

DelboyVilla wrote:
Everyone knows the problems with our midfield and Ashley 'fucking' Westwood...boooooooooo!!!!!!!

He was by far our best midfielder Saturday IMO. Still not good enough, but give credit when it's due

by Saunders82 Sun Dec 04, 2016 9:54 am

AstonThriller wrote:
VTID85 wrote:Never thought I'd be saying this, but we really missed Baker today. Whilst the suggestion of Elphick being cancerous to the back line is probably a little over the top in my opinion, it was a markedly poorer defence today. But that's not just in the centre and sadly I don't see Amavi getting better. He's got some spirit but I'm really not sure he's good enough - I'm prepared for people to disagree but a replacement LB is as important as a replacement for Hutton at RB for me. Chester is the only keeper from today's defence.

As for Gollini, his confidence seems to be very reactive to who's playing in front of him.

Elphick was in the defence when we kept conceding late goal after late goal. And when you consider he was the captain at that time it doesn't look good. He was also in the defence when we lost those three games under RDM. He then gets injured and the Baker/Chester partnership sees our fortunes turn around and we were seven unbeaten. He then comes back in and low and behold the defence looks vulnerable again and funny enough another late goal went in again aswell. I don't believe it's a coincidence and to me he's this season's Micah Richards!!..an absolute liability in the backline.

Hutton also needs replacing forthwith but I don't agree about Amavi. Imo Amavi has been very decent in the recent games and even set-up a goal against Cardiff. He's only 22 so he's not gonna be Patrice Evra overnight but for me he's a sure starter and his potential is quite obvious.

When Elphick comes in Chester has to move across which obviously upsets both positions, when Baker is in its obviously more comfortable, say no more, lets not forget that Amavi has just come back from a massive injury the pace, touch, confidence etc take time to get back, you can see improvement week on week but you do get the occasional blip, I think time is needed. Unfortunately we just have to grin and bear it until January I think, keep the faith. lol!

by Boldfinger Sun Dec 04, 2016 10:18 am

Has anyone mentioned that jedinak passed the ball (without even looking) to their player that allowed them to break and score.
How can a professional footballer do that ?
Yesterday was a poor performance but it's not the end of the world, we will lose more and so will our rivals.
Bad day at the office. - we move on.

by **NARLA24** Sun Dec 04, 2016 11:12 am

Predictable result in my view. Leeds will be in the mix for promotion, as long as their crazy Chairman does not sack Monk for winning to many games. Onto Wigan and a fucking goal fest for us.

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