Re: Match day thread: Aston Villa V Sunderland... Sat August 29th 3:00 Kick Off

[villabromsgrove]

At the end of the day, he's come from the second division and needs to learn how to play in the Premiership. For that reason, he shouldn't be our main striker. He needs to learn without that kind of pressure on him.

Yep we need an experienced leading striker or we may struggle. Thoroughly miserable after that!!

Turn it on its head and what are the positives to take from that?

I've thought about this for the last thirty minutes and the only positives I can think of are .... Sinclair scores again, no more injuries, and Gil looked decent when he came on.

[Sandie]

I think the midfield showed promise. Gana particularly so.

[GadgetMan]

At the end of the day, he's come from the second division and needs to learn how to play in the Premiership. For that reason, he shouldn't be our main striker. He needs to learn without that kind of pressure on him.

Yep we need an experienced leading striker or we may struggle. Thoroughly miserable after that!!

Turn it on its head and what are the positives to take from that?

I've thought about this for the last thirty minutes and the only positives I can think of are .... Sinclair scores again, no more injuries, and Gil looked decent when he came on.

Fair points and defo good to see Sinclair add another two.

Re the midfield and what Sandie ahjs put, I personally don't want to see Sanchez and Westwood together at home. I think either of those could have been left out today and Gil slotted in with Gana having enough about him to get forward and back. Not sure what TS was thinking with Bacuna in a free role? Ideally if we're to play a diamond midfield I'd have (when fit and well) Sanchez/Westwood sitting, Gana left, Veretout Right and Grealish at the tip of the diamond. I think he will line up differently when Grealish and Traore are back though.

Desperately need an accomplished EPL Forward to lead the line and allow Rudy, Kozak time to settle in/Get fit etc!!

[GadgetMan]

Incidentally a few people on Twitter a lot more positive about today's performance and think we largely played well. Always good to see how others have viewed the match.

[Sandie]

I can understand people saying we played well. We had plenty of the ball and made chances. Sadly, we defended poorly and Sunderland are very poor. Like I said earlier, without a defensive ballsup and giving away a free-kick we'd be in a brighter mood having won 2-0.

[GadgetMan]

This will cheer you guys up (it did me ha) gotta love Tim

[GadgetMan]

I can understand people saying we played well. We had plenty of the ball and made chances. Sadly, we defended poorly and Sunderland are very poor. Like I said earlier, without a defensive ballsup and giving away a free-kick we'd be in a brighter mood having won 2-0.

Totally agree and now it's digested and I've looked at it a bit more objectively (as well as the stats) we're still heading in the right direction. Lescott in on Monday which leaves Tuesday to focus on getting Adebayor or Charlie Austin.

[Jim Villan]

Gutted that we didnt win today as I really felt it was a game for the taking. However I can see many positives within the performance and particular the way the team started to play when Gil was on the field, there were also some very decent idividual performances. However all this will continue to account for diddly squat whilst Ciaran Clarke remains in the side. I know clarke completly polarizes  fans opinion, which is something that amazes me. If clarke was a foreign import rather than a home grown player i dont think so many would remain as supportive of him. I love his attitude and he seems like a thouroughly decent lad, He signed my little boy and girls first villa kit which I will always remember, and he seems to be a top young fella. However centimentality aside, Clarke makes an indvidual error at least every other game (thats being kind) that directly leads to a goal. I am fed up of watching the Villa nearly win or get a result, when clarke pops up with dreadful bit of defending that leads to a goal, This happened throughout Paul lamberts Reign. I genuinely feel if we can get lescott in and clarke out the side this will be worth 10 points at least over a season the differnce between being in the brown stuff and comfortable.

Negative out the way Amavi ,Sinclair, Gueye and Gil were awesome today, we are begining to see some standout performers emerge within the side which is important as Tim can start to build the side around those players. I thought gestede looked far more dangerous when Gill came on, and with Grealish and Traore to come in, we are going to create many chances each match. I also think the fact that that we should have beaten Sunderland with ease but ended drawing the match could give TS TF RL the extra impetious to get the Centre Back in thats obvioulsy needed and also the top Striker.

This team needs to be judge over 10 games and i'm still comfident that by then we will be looking in good shape and we will get stronger as the season goes on. Anway im off to Warm up my vocal chords so I can sing along during X Factor!! have a cracking night  all!   UP THE VILLA!!

[GadgetMan]

Yep lescott coming in on Monday will improve not only the one position (that being Clark's) but the whole back four ad lescott is a organiser. With respect to Richards, who's a great 'leader' he's not an 'organiser' people sometimes throw the two together. Richards has spent most of his time at RB and positionally that is very different to CB, so in terms of organising a defence, lescott is on a whole other level.

He will improve Richards (who won't have to try and do it whilst babysitting Clark) but also ensure our FB's know when to push on and when to sit, as well as our DM. It will improve the whole side. No lescott isn't a world beater and his best days are behind him, BUT he is still a top defender with first class organisational skills. He will set us up to defend from corners and set pieces loads better, the silly errors will stop (or be less) as each will know their role.

Yes this is also a coaches role and practised on the training field everyday, but you need someone able to do it once the fame starts. Lescott will give us this. I can't wait. Add to that one or two more (greedy I know) and we will be infinitely stronger than last year. I have a tenner on Adebayor coming. I still think it may happen. It's unlikely, but not impossible.

Anyway, plenty to be positive about, chins up, we go again (hehe just a little joke) we will get there and this won't be another relegation scrap!!! UTV

[villabromsgrove]

I wish I was as positive as you guys, but today raised more questions for me about Sherwood's match day performance. I was unhappy about his team selection (again), his own impact on the match from the touchline (nil), and his substitutions (or lack of them).

I don't think he's got much right on match days since before the Southampton game at the end of last season, which is starting to worry me.

[GadgetMan]

I wish I was as positive as you guys, but today raised more questions for me about Sherwood's match day performance. I was unhappy about his team selection (again), his own impact on the match from the touchline (nil), and his substitutions (or lack of them).

I don't think he's got much right on match days since before the Southampton game at the end of last season, which is starting to worry me.

I said elsewhere in the summer (or the end od the season, I forget) since Southampton were we seeing the end of the new manager 'rub' and levelling out back to what we were (a poor side) I think TS got an initial boost out of a deflated and poor side. The Southampton game really showed up his tactical naivety for me. We were lucky there wasn't one more week left.

Move forward to your present, I agree re TS impact on a match day and inability to influence yesterday. I'm choosing for the moment to give him the benefit of the doubt. The last clown had many backing him after 2 years of dreadful stuff and a lot more money spent. So it's still too early imo to be worrying too much about TS. He has a whole new team and I'm choosing to see it as that will take time to all bed in. The window hasn't yet closed, so there's still more to come IMO.

With regards to specifically yesterday we don't know who was potentially feeling ill effects from the bug at BMH and maybe that influenced team selection?! We didn't beat a poor Sunderland side, but what we did do was still a million miles away from some of the dross under Lambert. We had 21 attempts at goal, admittedly only 6 on target, bossed possession and all the other key stats (except goals obviously) take away two poorly conceded goals (again) and we'd be talking about a comfortable 2-0 win for a newly put together side missing it's best players to injury and illness.

Yes I have some niggling concerns re TS long term, but for now on reflection and with a unemotive head, I think we're not too far off things clicking and looking a decent side. That CB and CF is crucial for me. Let's see what we can do between now and 6pm on Tuesday.....

[villabromsgrove]

I like Tim Sherwood, I think he's a breath of fresh air after the suffocating atmosphere of the last few years. He's good for the media side of the club and he seems to have got a good coaching team together.

So why am I worried about him?

I've compared our buying to that of other clubs previously, and the point I've made is that if you buy a player he has to be a nailed on first team player every week. Payet, Wijnaldum, Rondon, Mitrovic, Cabaye spring to mind. The common denominator here is price. The clubs that bought them realised what the going rate for a nailed on first teamer was, and went out and paid it.

Sherwood has made a lot of buys but he doesn't appear to currently think that some of them are good enough to even trust as a late substitute!

At the moment I see Tim as being good at everything he does, bar match days. That could become a problem. He has options, but he's choosing to do much the same as last season, and the same things are going wrong for us.

After the transfer window closes on Tuesday, Sherwood must take a deep breath and trust the players that he's bought in to do the job. We know where the same old tactics and giving too much respect to the opposition on match day will take us, so it's time to break the mould and say "we are Aston Villa, this is how WE play, try and beat us at our own game".

[GadgetMan]

I like Tim Sherwood, I think he's a breath of fresh air after the suffocating atmosphere of the last few years. He's good for the media side of the club and he seems to have got a good coaching team together.

So why am I worried about him?

I've compared our buying to that of other clubs previously, and the point I've made is that if you buy a player he has to be a nailed on first team player every week. Payet, Wijnaldum, Rondon, Mitrovic, Cabaye spring to mind. The common denominator here is price. The clubs that bought them realised what the going rate for a nailed on first teamer was, and went out and paid it.

Sherwood has made a lot of buys but he doesn't appear to currently think that some of them are good enough to even trust as a late substitute!

At the moment I see Tim as being good at everything he does, bar match days. That could become a problem. He has options, but he's choosing to do much the same as last season, and the same things are going wrong for us.

After the transfer window closes on Tuesday, Sherwood must take a deep breath and trust the players that he's bought in to do the job. We know where the same old tactics and giving too much respect to the opposition on match day will take us, so it's time to break the mould and say "we are Aston Villa, this is how WE play, try and beat us at our own game".

Good sensible post that VB

[Jim Villan]

I can see exactly where you coming from VB some of Sherwoods choices are a bit baffling at times, particularly yesterday when he chose to leave Gil on the bench despite all of our other creative options not being available. However I'm sure fans up and down the country have differing opinions on team selection to the manager, thats the nature of the beast, even the top managers frustrate their fans with their team selections. Wenger springs to mind etc. I think that because our squad has far more depth this year and there is a much better quality to that depth imo, this gives far more options in terms of team selection, formation etc and therefore this creates more opportunity for the manager to get it wrong in the fans eyes.

I feel very positive about the quality of our squad overall, but only time will tell wether a first team emerges that is good enough to move us up the table Having said that I don't think that having a fixed starting 11 is Sherwoods style. I think he will look to utilise a core of about 20 players rather than 14-15 in contrast to some managers MON being one. This means it will come down to how many of the new players come good. So far Richards, Gueye, Amavi, Sinclair, Traore all looked nailed on first teamer, Gestede has looked bot dangerous and ineffective at times, with Vertout and Crespo not having enough game time to Judge and Ayew as firm must do better. Thats a pretty decent ratio at the moment of players who look like they will make the grade. All we need is for one of the strikers Gestede or Ayew to flourish and i think we will be fine.

The most important thing to keep in mind is that the premier league is the most competitive league in the around and make them competitive again. We will find it impossible to consistently get results without getting the balance right in defence, hopefully Lescott can help us with that. Then it just needs time, Look at the teams that are currently better than us and will be knocking on the door of the tops 8, Swansea, crystal palace west ham etc They have slowly built their squads stronger they have and performance level over the past couple of seasons,s o they effectively have at least a year or two head start on us. We have tried to sort out our squad within one transfer window and therefore it will take time. I don't think we will see the best of this Villa side until post xmas and in the meantime we may all have differing opinions on best team etc, the most important thing, whoever plays is that results and performances gradually start to improve and that we avoid having long runs of games without getting a win.

[GadgetMan]

I can see exactly where you coming from VB some of Sherwoods choices are a bit baffling at times, particularly yesterday when he chose to leave Gil on the bench despite all of our other creative options not being available. However I'm sure fans up and down the country have differing opinions on team selection to the manager, thats the nature of the beast, even the top managers frustrate their fans with their team selections. Wenger springs to mind etc. I think that because our squad has far more depth this year and there is a much better quality to that depth imo, this gives far more options in terms of team selection, formation etc and therefore this creates more opportunity for the manager to get it wrong in the fans eyes.

I feel very positive about the quality of our squad overall, but only time will tell wether a first team emerges that is good enough to move us up the table Having said that I don't think that having a fixed starting 11 is Sherwoods style. I think he will look to utilise a core of about 20 players rather than 14-15 in contrast to some managers MON being one. This means it will come down to how many of the new players come good. So far Richards, Gueye, Amavi, Sinclair, Traore all looked nailed on first teamer, Gestede has looked bot dangerous and ineffective at times, with Vertout and Crespo not having enough game time to Judge and Ayew as firm must do better. Thats a pretty decent ratio at the moment of players who look like they will make the grade. All we need is for one of the strikers Gestede or Ayew to flourish and i think we will be fine.

The most important thing to keep in mind is that the premier league is the most competitive league in the around and make them competitive again. We will find it impossible to consistently get results without getting the balance right in defence, hopefully Lescott can help us with that. Then it just needs time, Look at the teams that are currently better than us and will be knocking on the door of the tops 8, Swansea, crystal palace west ham etc They have slowly built their   squads stronger they have and performance level over the past couple of seasons,s o they effectively have at least a year or two head start on us. We have tried to sort out our squad within one transfer window and therefore it will take time. I don't think we will see the best of this Villa side until post xmas and in the meantime we may all have differing opinions on best team etc, the most important thing, whoever plays is that results and performances gradually start to improve and that we avoid having long runs of games without getting a win.

Another very sensible and considered post, careful you'll get a reputation haha

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