Re: Promotion discussion thread

[smetro]

Hate these injuries where they are reported as 'minor' - ie he is doubtful - then roll on for much longer.

I personally think we lack up front, Grabban hasn't looked great in his albeit fleeting minutes for us- Never been convinced by Hogan, and whilst I like Davis - I don't see him scoring many goals.

Preston will tell us much - Can someone fill the creative and goalscoring exploits of Grealish and Adomah ? - I hope so.

[VTID85]

Sorry to have to share a bit of light positivity, but going into yesterday's game we were one of the five top form teams in Europe alongside PAOK, Bayern, Juventus and PSG. Drink that in for a moment.

We lost to Fulham which was in many ways stacked against us.

I didn't lose any sleep last night. Game 33 kicks off at 19:45 on Tuesday and we remain within shirt-pulling distance of 2nd so onwards and UP THE FUCKING VILLA.

Totally agree pal but this losing feeling sure sucks, doesn't it? Just want the Preston game to come around and hopefully we can get back on track.

For me, it's taking the rough with the smooth though. It does suck, of course it does, but having just come off a decent winning streak there are - broadly speaking - reasons to believe. After some of the horrorshows we've endured in recent history, I'd take 1 loss out of 8.

[The Utterer]

The thing which concerns me is that we have repeatedly heard how we have the "strongest squad (or one of)" in the division and yet we have a couple of injuries and can't cope?! Doesn't say an awful lot about the squad really does it?

"Strong squad" means you are covered in all positions surely?

Earlier in the season we were without almost a whole team and yet still got quite a few results so i can't buy the injuries excuse for the Fulham game.
For me it was far too much tinkering with a successful line up.

A New RB making his debut and players being moved about all over the shop was quite ridiculous when going into a game against the in-form team of the division. Obviously some of it was enforced but even so. It was a team selection & set up which got exactly what it deserved which is infuriating considering the run we had to go on to grab 2nd spot.

Vital game now on Tuesday against a difficult team. Only a win will do but you really do struggle to see where the goals will come from & i fear we will see even more "over-tinkering" which could cost us dear again.

[FoxyAV]

I think we have the players to cover the injuries but it's a complete disaster there's virtually no time to train the squad before the match on Tuesday. They really do need it too after the slight disarray at Fulham, especially if Grabban comes onto the pitch while Hogan's still on it. Adomah and Green have hamstring problems, we couldn't play Grealish on the left anyway even if he was fit and our only player capable of playing there properly is Thor, which leaves us with issues in front of defence. If it were me, Jedi with Hourihane and Lansbury in front of him. Tuanzebe and Hutton at full back. Davis up front to do what he does (I really am not sure we have time to integrate Grabban and am not sure Hogan works without Grealish and Adomah). NO ONOMAH! He's really not the answer, unless he's that man in front of the defence (watch as he plays in the AM position and scores three screamers).

If we get one of three back for the match on Saturday that'll be great but two would have us back set up how we should be. I don't know about Tuesday. I hope they train their socks off!

[FoxyAV]

The thing which concerns me is that we have repeatedly heard how we have the "strongest squad (or one of)" in the division and yet we have a couple of injuries and can't cope?! Doesn't say an awful lot about the squad really does it?

"Strong squad" means you are covered in all positions surely?

Earlier in the season we were without almost a whole team and yet still got quite a few results so i can't buy the injuries excuse for the Fulham game.
For me it was far too much tinkering with a successful line up.

A New RB making his debut and players being moved about all over the shop was quite ridiculous when going into a game against the in-form team of the division. Obviously some of it was enforced but even so. It was a team selection & set up which got exactly what it deserved which is infuriating considering the run we had to go on to grab 2nd spot.

Vital game now on Tuesday against a difficult team. Only a win will do but you really do struggle to see where the goals will come from & i fear we will see even more "over-tinkering" which could cost us dear again.

I was writing my reply before you posted your post (or before I saw it, who knows). I worry we'll see Thor on left wing and Onomah in Jack's position, while Tuanzebe at RB is ok providing he can actually go forward to help Snodgrass. If he can't, it's just another cog falling out of the wheel. I want to see Lansbury and Hourihane in the middle with Jedi, just because I think it's our strongest set up. I think the winning formula for the last few matches is a bit screwed and trying something different in the middle is for me the better plan than trying to patch what's broken.

[DelboyVilla]

I think that the ideal replacement for Jack is O'Hare but however well he plays for the U23's he seems a million miles away from Potato Heads plans?

[Guest]

I'd prefer O'Hare as well. Kid needs match practice. My main issue with our line-up was that it was all grafters and no playmaking.

[Dazzle]

Too many square pegs with round holes, I hope we try to address that on Tuesday evening. With Albert and Green out injured we simply have to accept that the width for the left side is gone and do something that suits the personnel. The back 4 has been working, put it back in place with elmohamady at RB. Jedi or Thor work sitting in front of the back 4, so put 1 of them back in position. Hogan has been working as the one up top. Put snodgrass back where he has been on the right. If Grealish isn’t back then give O’Hare the opportunity as he is probably the closest we have to Grealish in that part of the field. Replacing Albert is probably our biggest headache in terms of direct player replacement

Edit; we shouldn’t overlook or discount the injuries we’ve had and seem to continue to suffer from. If you take the top 3 players out of any championship side they will suffer, and arguably suffer more than we have. To lose Kodjia, Grealish, and Adomah is pretty bad luck. Added to that there has been long term injuries to Agbonlahor, RHM, Lansbury, Steer, Terry, Green, Hogan. They are all players that have spent a considerable part of the season on the sidelines. It’s my suggestion that if any of our nearest rivals suffered an injury list half ours then they would drop a good many points. I’d certainly like to see someone like a Derby lose a Vydra for a month or two, or Fulham a Sessegnon or Kiate for a month or two and see how they cope

[De Kuip]

Yeah absolutely agree with @Dazzle if this season doesn't pan out in the way we want it to I think in the main it'll have been down to a shocking catalogue of injuries.
There are other reasons but I'm not raking over those coals again, suffice it to say that any dubious team selections allied to our injury listt would together sink most teams, that we're still scrapping for second is something of an achievement that oughtnt to be overlooked. Just hope we get Jack and Albert back soon as those daffodils are well and truly flowering, this is very much the business end of the season.

[The Utterer]

We need to win tonight end of! I don't think for a minute it will be easy eitherr as when we beat Preston at theirs i think i remember they had major injury issues so this will be a different beast tonight.

[Army villain]

This is a must win, big let down on Saturday, Bruce had the set up wrong, plus the subs ??. Agree we have some bad luck with injuries. It's a mystery why we are not using the under 23, that's down to Bruce..

[De Kuip]

This is a must win, big let down on Saturday, Bruce had the set up wrong, plus the subs ??. Agree we have some bad luck with injuries. It's a mystery why we are not using the under 23, that's down to Bruce..

Fuck it I said I wasn't going to rake these coals over but I am going to casually shovel them around a bit with my foot. For me not having injuries has two major elements. Obviously the first is that the strongest team plays and is consistent. The second which for me is more pertinent than it might be with some other managers is that a lack of injuries gives Bruce less opportunity to fuck things up. I still truly believe quite a few of the players that form our strongest team are playing - and playing where they are on the pitch - in spite of Bruce not because of him. For me the less chance he has to fuck things up, the better.

[achilles]

That raises a question for me, in that would Steve Agnew pick the same side that Bruce would pick, basically do they agree on the side with Bruce having the final say or does Bruce solely decides?

[De Kuip]

That raises a question for me, in that would Steve Agnew pick the same side that Bruce would pick, basically do they agree on the side with Bruce having the final say or does Bruce solely decides?

Well I do remember Calderwood or Agnew saying when Bruce was away the couple of games he missed due to bereavement, that he still picked the side and they just made sure the training was as effective as it could be. That probably says a lot - I'm sure there's plenty of discussion but Bruce has final say.

[De Kuip]

Just looking at the fixtures and every other team in the top 6 play tomorrow. If we can get a win tonight it'll really put some pressure on them.

[The Utterer]

Well that game was pants! Poor result and now we have relinquished control to Cardiff. It's no longer in our hands as even if we beat them at Villa Park (which looks extremely optimistic to say the least on tonights performance) they can still stay ahead of us if they win their game in hand.

[smetro]

Well that game was pants! Poor result and now we have relinquished control to Cardiff. It's no longer in our hands as even if we beat them at Villa Park (which looks extremely optimistic to say the least on tonights performance) they can still stay ahead of us if they win their game in hand.

Cardiff worry me , they seem to have it in there locker to just keep going.

We just have to keep going - every team will have a few ropey results - look at Derby, - I can't totally blame Injuries as the warning signs IMO were there against the noses, we scored just in the nick of time, as we looked to be running g out of ideas in the final third, even with grealish.
Grabban played quite well last night and has his first goal under his belt - I think he will start up front next match. Especially as Davis got injured right at the end. Somebody said Terry was limping towards the end - didn't see it myself - need a few players back for saturday thats for sure.

[achilles]

Well that game was pants! Poor result and now we have relinquished control to Cardiff. It's no longer in our hands as even if we beat them at Villa Park (which looks extremely optimistic to say the least on tonights performance) they can still stay ahead of us if they win their game in hand.

Cardiff worry me , they seem to have it in there locker to just keep going.

We just have to keep going - every team will have a few ropey results - look at Derby, - I can't totally blame Injuries as the warning signs IMO were there against the noses, we scored just in the nick of time, as we looked to be running g out of ideas in the final third, even with grealish.
Grabban played quite well last night and has his first goal under his belt - I think he will start up front next match.  Especially as Davis got injured right at the end. Somebody said Terry was limping towards the end - didn't see it myself - need a few players back for saturday thats for sure.

Cardiff have Warnock who as a short term solution is pretty impressive, basically he manages by the rule of 'whatever it takes... literally'!

[FoxyAV]

Apparently Bruce says the reason we're playing hoofball is because the pitch is fucked:

“All of a sudden we’ve got a very difficult Villa Park pitch. I’ve never seen it the way it is at the moment. I know it needs replacing. It hasn’t been replaced for 11 years. The groundsman has done a remarkable job. He’s won groundsman of the year for 10 years! The pitch is always immaculate. Unfortunately, it’s difficult at the minute.”

I imagine that's why we have to resort to hoofball when we play away too. Still, surely everyone else is in the same situation when they come to Villa Park but we'll have the advantage because we'll know how to play the pitch.

[De Kuip]

Apparently Bruce says the reason we're playing hoofball is because the pitch is fucked:

“All of a sudden we’ve got a very difficult Villa Park pitch. I’ve never seen it the way it is at the moment. I know it needs replacing. It hasn’t been replaced for 11 years. The groundsman has done a remarkable job. He’s won groundsman of the year for 10 years! The pitch is always immaculate. Unfortunately, it’s difficult at the minute.”

I imagine that's why we have to resort to hoofball when we play away too. Still, surely everyone else is in the same situation when they come to Villa Park but we'll have the advantage because we'll know how to play the pitch.

Yeah I think someone else said well why didn't Preston start hitting it long then?

[The Utterer]

So Cardiff are the main rivals clearly. I am very worried by us though, we look mediocre at best at the mo.

[Villa_Dan]

We'd lost Adomah, Grealish and Elmo. 3 players who, to varying degrees, are attacking options who can create chances. Add to this Snodgrass looked exhausted after about 3mins and I feel Preston probably wasn't an overly bad result. Fulham was a game too far with our squad in the shape it is.

I know we've got a good squad with decent depth but take out your 2 best attacking options, with another then out injured, and a 4th in need of a rest, add in the long-term injury to last season's top scorer and I don't care what team you apply it to, they'd be struggling!

We either have to get some of these players back to fitness ASAP or find a solution - Grabban looked lively but seems wasted out wide, however he could do a job there whilst they're out (or play 2 up top...), or look to the youth

[De Kuip]

For me, and I'm starting to bore myself now, but if we don't at least give O'Hare or the Russian a chance, how can we say we're down to bare bones (which is what Bruce is saying)?
I know that they are all high stakes games now but if we don't try we'll never know.
I really believe that if the two above mentioned aren't  given a chance this season we might as well get rid of the U23s cos I simply cannot see the point of them.
If O'Hare isn't ready now he never will be cos he's starting to run games regularly and surely is deserving of a chance. When I don't even see these lads involved in the matchday squad I just am left scratching my head.

[deadbuzzardalive]

I think we've blown automatic promotion now, no sooner do we finally get into second place we then go and allow ourselves to become four points adrift, just two games later, when it came to the crunch we just weren't good enough to hold our position. Looking at Cardiff's fixtures come the end of March they will be well clear of us, in fact I wouldn't put it past them to cause an upset and steal the title from Wolves.

[FoxyAV]

For me, and I'm starting to bore myself now, but if we don't at least give O'Hare or the Russian a chance, how can we say we're down to bare bones (which is what Bruce is saying)?
I know that they are all high stakes games now but if we don't try we'll never know.
I really believe that if the two above mentioned aren't  given a chance this season we might as well get rid of the U23s cos I simply cannot see the point of them.
If O'Hare isn't ready now he never will be cos he's starting to run games regularly and surely is deserving of a chance. When I don't even see these lads involved in the matchday squad I just am left scratching my head.

But why would we do that? In our last season in the PL when it was very very clear we were going down we just got to see the same old crap from the same old players. Were the academy players being protected because they were so young (load of bollocks, there was no expectation on them at all), were we afraid it would just showcase our best talent for other clubs to buy or was the intention to give the money-paying fans a two-fingered salute every match? Same shit, proven to not work and be completely uninspiring while waiting to see which PL club they'd be at next (with a small number of exceptions like Amavi). Onomah doesn't care and despite four goals just isn't interested in playing on left wing or wherever: unless he wants to play and is put in his natural position he shouldn't be anywhere near Bodymoor Heath let alone a starting or subs place. Look at Thor and Hutton, even Snodgrass and Tuanzebe. They're players who I want to see do well because they seem to care, even if the last two are on loan. Look at Terry pulling Ndoye off Jedi at the end of the Blues match. O'Hare is not only looking bloody good but he's Villa. Add that to piles of experience playing with the likes of Davis and Audrey, why isn't he even on the subs bench? Isn't PL promotion more important than promotion to the top level of academy football?

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