Match thread Bolton v Villa

[Saunders82]

We all know we need to win this one the players & management too, so hopefully they will give us a performance, I think this time we will see a few fresh legs in there, I'm going for  2-1 to Villa.

Lets also hope for some results in our favour elsewhere in the Championship.

[Dazzle]

4-1-3-1-1

................................................Johnstone.................................................
Elmo.........................Terry.............................Chester.......................Bree
.................................................Bjarnason................................................
..............Snodgrass.................Hourihane....................Adomah..............
.................................................Grealish...................................................
..............................................Grabban....................................................

Bench; Bunn, Hogan, Lansbury, Jedinak, Davis, O’Hare

[Saunders82]

4-1-3-1-1

................................................Johnstone.................................................
Elmo.........................Terry.............................Chester.......................Bree
.................................................Bjarnason................................................
..............Snodgrass.................Hourihane....................Adomah..............
.................................................Grealish...................................................
..............................................Grabban....................................................

Bench; Bunn, Hogan, Lansbury, Jedinak, Davis, O’Hare

I could live with that.

[Dions_Bald_Head]

Genuine, unloaded, non-agenda question from someone who can't get to games:

Is Grabban better than Hogan?

[De Kuip]

Genuine, unloaded, non-agenda question from someone who can't get to games:

Is Grabban better than Hogan?

Maybe his form is currently better - I always think it's tough to say who is better than who.

Like you though I would be interested in the views of those that go to games regularly.

[danclare82]

We need this one badly and living up here in Bolton I couldn't live with the stick off the in laws if we lost!

Zach clough is their best player but he's not been getting in team as Parkinson has been loading midfield. Itll be physical and we will need to play on floor as wheater and beevers will deal with long balls all day long. Grealish will terrorise them imo and I can see a big reaction from villa following Tue night.  1-3

[De Kuip]

We need this one badly and living up here in Bolton I couldn't live with the stick off the in laws if we lost!

Zach clough is their best player but he's not been getting in team as Parkinson has been loading midfield. Itll be physical and we will need to play on floor as wheater and beevers will deal with long balls all day long. Grealish will terrorise them imo and I can see a big reaction from villa following Tue night.  1-3

Good post Dan, nice to get a bit of local intelligence!
I really have no idea how to call this - I would have said Bolton is a trickier fixture than QPR but look how that turned out.
Bolton have certainly improved on their abject start to the season and started to grab a few points here and there.
My head says a disappointing 1-1 but my heart pleads for a 1-2 to Villa.
We really do need this game to be the one that starts our next run of wins.

[Fpuppys]

Not looking good weather wise, blowing a blizzard at Bolton hopefully the Villa players don't freeze.

[achilles]

[De Kuip]

Got to be honest, I'm in the ABT camp (anyone but taylor) so Bree in at LB works for me.

[achilles]

Normal service has resumed, utter crap defending!

[FoxyAV]

I sincerely hope our players play their socks off now, 1-0 against Bolton is not happy viewing.

[FoxyAV]

That is fucking outrageous.

[FoxyAV]

I like Snoddy more and more every time I see him.

[De Kuip]

The bad news - we might be doing another season in the champ. (Although tbh I quite enjoy it here), the good news is we might fuck Bruce off and get a progressive manager that understands the championship is also about hunger and speed and will use some of our international standard youngsters.
Considering Bruce is a negative defender at source, why have we always looked so shonky against young mobile teams.
Oh, and if anyone thinks I'm being fickle, check out my 3,985,000,000 posts saying I think Bruce isn't right for our club.

[Fpuppys]

Hourihane needs to be replaced at half time, been a waste off space first half.

[Villa_Dan]

Playoffs if we don't turn this around.

I'm preparing for another season in the championship. And I've said all along that if we don't go up this season we will be stuck down for a good few years. Starting to see some tough times ahead

[smetro]

The bad news - we might be doing another season in the champ. (Although tbh I quite enjoy it here), the good news is we might fuck Bruce off and get a progressive manager that understands the championship is also about hunger and speed and will use some of our international standard youngsters.
Considering Bruce is a negative defender at source, why have we always looked so shonky against young mobile teams.
Oh, and if anyone thinks I'm being fickle, check out my 3,985,000,000 posts saying I think Bruce isn't right for our club.

He probably isn't right - But youve always got more chance of saying a manager will fail than succeed - theres only two auto places - and we still look set for the play offs. Personally I don't think he will be changed - We quite rightly have high expectations - But what I am seeing\hearing is that money is a scarce commodity at Villa Park - So youre looking "Mr midtable Dean Smith" which quite frankly fills me with dread - or another wimpy overseas unknown manager like Remi Garde.
I think there is more chance of Bruce walking away than him being sacked TBH.

[smetro]

Playoffs if we don't turn this around.

I'm preparing for another season in the championship. And I've said all along that if we don't go up this season we will be stuck down for a good few years. Starting to see some tough times ahead

Yep if the rumours of a fire sale materialise I wonder where we go from here.

[FoxyAV]

Playoffs if we don't turn this around.

I'm preparing for another season in the championship. And I've said all along that if we don't go up this season we will be stuck down for a good few years. Starting to see some tough times ahead

Yep if the rumours of a fire sale materialise  I wonder where we go from here.

Build from the academy, shed the likes of Richards, Gabby etc, hope like hell Grealish stays, hope we can afford to maintain the pitch so we can stop playing hoofball* hope like hell we can find a manager.

* apart from Grealish**
** who, when he gets the ball in midfield doesn't immediately pass backwards.

[Wookster]

if only Grealish had the drive of Snodgrass, he really needs to start to back himself against the opposition

[Villa_Dan]

The really scary but genuine possible situation is:

No Johnstone
No Terry
No Chester (I can see a lower Prem team coming in for him and us needing the cash)
No Hutton
No Adomah (see Chester)
No Snodgrass
No Grabban
And no funds to adequately replace them.

Would Grealish and Kodjia stick around? I'm not sure. We will be another Leeds - a once great team clinging to history.

The playoffs are a lottery and I'm dreading it.

[smetro]

Playoffs if we don't turn this around.

I'm preparing for another season in the championship. And I've said all along that if we don't go up this season we will be stuck down for a good few years. Starting to see some tough times ahead

Yep if the rumours of a fire sale materialise  I wonder where we go from here.

Build from the academy, shed the likes of Richards, Gabby etc, hope like hell Grealish stays, hope we can afford to maintain the pitch so we can stop playing hoofball* hope like hell we can find a manager.

* apart from Grealish**
** who, when he gets the ball in midfield doesn't immediately pass backwards.

Notice you put the most important part at the end.....find a manager. Im not seeing an option myself. I think we would probably end up with dean smith.

Sure build from the academy - but who is there ? - Sure Davis had a good six or seven games, O'Hare - Im not convinced, same for RHM , Sulliman ? so good he can't get a start for grimsby ! Bree for me has always looked out of his depth.
If you take out the loan players we currently have, and those leaving at the end of the season - IMO the academy doesn't even plug the gaps - let alone improve the first 11 - Throw in Dean Smith as manager if you like .....I wouldn't be hopeful of top half TBH.
You have to question why a club that regularly gets over 30k gates, has no money for a 1 year contract for hutton - to me thats more of an issue than who the manager is.

[smetro]

Oh great - Hogan - hes never let us down !

[De Kuip]

To be fair if we don't qualify in second as long as we win the playoffs it literally doesn't matter if we finish 6th.
That's where I'm looking for love now.....

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