January Will Be A Key Month

chin up lad.


at least you will surely finish above QPR? they are totally shiiiiiit.

Admittedly, compared to 92/93 it's a miserable season, but so have most been since then in comparison.

I think Vlaar back will be a huge boost, N'Zog is back soon too, but Gabby and Bent are out for a bit longer I think.

If i could pull any two players back from the physio's table it'd be Vlaar and Stan. I think left back is a problem, but quality (and experience) in the spine would have a dramatic effect.

In the mean time I'll take Vlaar and a loan or perm for a more seasoned commanding midfielder. Not sure if Makoun is the answer there.

AdotVilla

Your name is an even bigger joke than your team!

1987 - it's time to get your feet on the ground. Get real. Vlaar and the other experienced players are all injured. Lambert isn't a faith healer. He's lumbered with an injury situation he can't do much about, very little flexibility in who he fields, at a time of intense pressure in the PL.

A lot of the youngsters are just a bit out of their depth, but only a bit. Clarke has had to do a hell of a lot over the last few matches; he was doing pretty well, but is showing the strain, not surprisingly. Baker has the makings of a classic CB, but got injured. Westwood has class. Some of those we've got won't make it but a lot will.

The fact that Lambert hasn't been sacked is because the club IS ambitious, and most of us still believe he's the man to get us where we want to be. We knew this season would be rough, all ups and downs. A couple of weeks ago Savage was eating humble pie; things were looking bright. Now we've had a small run of dire results, worrying but nothing to panic about. The season has a long way to go. stick with it. Beating Swansea or Southampton would have everybody smiling again. Even if we don't, it's not a disaster. Being where QPR is is a disaster; we're a fair way off that.

McP I admire your optimism but I as well as others are getting real, these injuries do not appear as if they are short term.

A lot of the younger players although I am sure will be good are way out of their depth including Baker.

We are not ambitious, although I admire what Lambert is doing. Three to five years time if we survive I can agree that we will be somewhere near where we want to be, but still nowhere where we could have been.

Savage will sprout carp and I wouldn't listen to a word of it but how you can say that if we don't beat Saints or Swansea wouldn't be a disaster, I cannot apprehend.

QPR are useless at the moment, but arry will spend bucket loads in the window and I saw him on the TV. He is confident they will avoid drop.

We are in trouble but at present it could be worse.

UTV

Comment Deleted by Site Moderator

Adebayor?

MPG, I wrote "as soon as they're fit". I know they are injured. However, even when N'Zogbia, Gabby and Bent were fit, he wasn't using them. He must play them when they come back. Dunne was supposed to be back months ago - strange that he's still out.

Fine if you want to be totally calm, but I beg to differ big time. We have been dire for years now and I'm sick of it. It shouldn't be like this. OK if you want to rate our youngsters so highly - you sound like Lambert. I've watched Villa plenty this season to make my own judgement. Clarke and Baker you may have a point on, although playing them with two other rookies is a recipe for disaster. The full backs aren't good enough. Lowton may be ok going forward, but he's terrible at defending. On the left we're also very poor. You say Westwood is class, but how exactly do you make that judgement? Every time I see him he always tries to play the lofted ball over the top. And granted his passing is quite good. However, his all round play is not at all Premier League level, hence why we are constantly overrun. I honestly think he's a Championship player at best and I don't really rate any of our other young midfielders either. It's no wonder we can't keep the ball for any longer than 10 seconds.

If you want to develop a young team you need to do it gradually, playing a couple of youngsters regularly with experienced players and rotating other youngsters in and out of the team or sending them on loan to get experience. You should always play your most experienced team against the top sides like Chelsea, City and United because otherwise you are liable to a hammering. The 8-0 defeat at Chelsea is not only an embarrassment for the fans, but it's going to destroy the youngsters mentally.

He might have no choice right now because of injuries, but he signed these youngsters. We already supposedly had good youngsters here anyway, Lambert could have used what he had at Villa and signed experienced players during the summer. He turned down the chance to sign Tom Huddlestone on loan, and he sent a player with lots of experience and technically very good out on loan (Makoun). Those two would make a big difference to our team now. I think he was right to ditch Warnock and Hutton, but I don't think Lowton and Bennett were the right signings. This Debuchy who has just signed for Newcastle would have been at the very least worth inquiring about, and I'm sure if he had scouted Europe he could have found a much better left back than Bennett. Poulsen or Gebrie-Selassie from what I remember were linked but nothing was taken further.

If you honestly think the current Villa team - despite being hammered 3-0 at home to Wigan of all teams - is any good then I admire your optimism, but I think most fans are starting to question what the hell is going on at Villa.

comment by Andy Grays CC Benteke=£50 for Stan (U4819)
posted 1 hour, 32 minutes ago
Adebayor?

---

we couldn't give him away tbh. not sure whats up with him. i think he is doing it just to spite me.

1987 - Makoun couldn't get an entry permit. Experienced players last summer would have cost too much money. I think Lambert got in as much talent plus experience as he could given the budget. £7m on Benteke was a very good signing; Benteke still has a lot to learn, but the all-round ability is already there. Vlaar's easily good enough for the PL. Yes our back line currently is too inexperienced, but Vlaar coming back will help a lot.

Where we do have a problem is midfield. We've some good players but it doesn't operate well enough as a team, either in attack or defence. But even there when he can choose from a fit squad we aren't that bad either. Take our earlier Swansea match; they were flying high, but they never looked like winning when they came to Villa.

What's going on at Villa? What loads of fans said at the beginning of the season. That it would be a rough ride, it would take time to get things working properly, but that we had to back Lambert all the way. That's what I'm sticking with.