OK, so how good are we and Villa in Premier League standards? Not just yesterday, but overall so far I thought they were an average joey of a side that will do well to survive this year - they very nearly didn't last season. We are around the same standard but lack the likes of a Benteke type player who can win a game from nothing. We have nothing to offer going forward except collective endeavour, and it's going to cost us. Work ethic has got the points we have already, and we can't be anything other than delighted with the total we'd accululated up until yesterday. However our luck(?) ran out and we failed to take anything off a side that looks destined for a bottom half finish. That's not intended to be harsh on Villa, but the divide in this division is pretty clear already. They are no better than us and the rest of those below, and it's games between these clubs that will decide the drop zone. I fully expect Swansea to send Stoke home today pointless, and in all honesty do us a favour. Back to the thread title - should Malky react or accept? Shuffle the pack or play the same cards again hoping for better? The opposition for our next two games will probably make that decision easy for him, but after Man U and Arsenal, it maybe time to try something different up until the Jan window. Making better use of what you have should be the goal for every manager, but VT will need to fund something special in January because what he has at his disposal is pretty average at best.
I think we were all realistic enough to know we would have a hard season ahead. We expected some players to improve and others fall by the way. Bellamy is a shadow of his former self and is not as influential on the field as he used to be. We bought in Caulker, Medel and Theo who have all shown their worth over the games they have been involved in. Cornelius will hopefully be of the same or better standard when fully fit. Whitts has impressed so far this season as has Taylor. We need an out an out striker on the field with wide men providing the crosses. We can only hope Cornelius is the out and out striker, we still have a little time to find out if he is the answer. Do we have the wide men already? I think not an maybe a successful loan bid for Zaha will help. Personally I think Noone should get a shout against the likes of Villa, Man Utd & Arsenal will definitely see our defensive line up and rightly so 1 point from those game will be great but I fear 2 defeats. January must see players brought in that are old hands that can keep us in the premiership and an influential play-maker in midfield, sorry I do not think Kim is up to it, he has great technical ability but he needs to get a lot stronger on the ball. We can score goals if we only start shooting more and get up the field more, relying on scraps is not going to get us the points we'll need. A great effort thus far but we need to vary it a bit, I really thought we could have got something yesterday but as you say Sparky, we do not have the players.
Sparkey - ultimately the thing that you need to do is win your home games and pick up the odd result away from home against the sides in the bottom half. The next 2 games are "bonus games" - i.e. if you anything against Man U or Arsenal it will be a bonus. If I were Malky, I would rotate/rest a couple who need it in those games so that I had a fresh best XI for Stoke.
Yes Taff, we simply do not have the players to change a game. Another "Man City" type result looks a distant possibility at the moment, and we need to get something from these other games. smh - we have done OK so far but as always advised in financial circles when investing - "past performance is no guarantee of future income". We need to change something, and maybe as you say, a slight rotation in these two games against Man U and Arsenal could very well be an option. Problem is that we probably know Malky a lot better than you.
We played ok yesterday. Ive no idea why Gunnersson was in the team before Mutch. I dont think theres room for Gunner and Cowie in the starting line up. Out of the 2 Cowie has coped with the step up far better. Only change for me Mutch for Gunner. Then against sides we should be targeting as wins KIm for Cowie as well.
Aye, agree Hilts, we played OK and came away with fck all other than to be able to say we played OK. Whether we'd have beaten them with a couple of so called "flair players" like Noone or Kimbo out there will never be known. Nothing against Cowie. He puts in a good shift but he's not Prem League standard and wont change a game - it's the safe option every time for Malky.
We all knew this season would be tough, and that we would need to get used to losing quite a few games. but there's no need to panic, yet. The defence and holding midfielder are good enough for this division. It's further forward that we have problems. We don't frighten anyone going forward. Cowie, Gunnar and, I hate to say it, Bellamy are never going to create enough chances. We don't know whether Noone can. Campbell works hard chasing every ball down but he looks what he is, a £600,000 striker. It's fairly obvious where we need to improve but is there anything left in the budget? A long struggle ahead but I still think we will be safe, just.
I hate to appear to be having a go at MM but god we are so defensive. Cowie and Gunnarson together. Whitts basically playing a defensive midfielder, and our striker being abandoned. Play Mutch and let him get in the box to support Corny or Fraz. Bellamy out of the team and PO to the left where he played at West Brom. Medel to hold and Whitts to push up a little. Theo pushes up and well done to the lad, but Taylor can't ans shouldn't go much past midway for me which would allow to Medel to move right a little more for when Theo goes forward and would also allow Whitts to move higher up the left. Has MM decided that Kimbo is not good enough? Maynard not given a go?? As Sparky said we will not be getting consistent points playing like that. In the first half if we had of shown some intent, we could have come in at half time with the lead. The players our busting their guts and working hard, but they are on such a tight leash at the moment. Villa looked very poor, and we lost 2-0.
Villa were there for the taking and it was anyone's game until a wonder goal. My biggest issues are Gunna playing off the striker and a complete refusal to accept strikers need some kind of supply. Gunnar runs about and tackles/chases their back 4 and holding mid. When a player in that space should be finding gaps and threading passes. Then bring Maynard on, which is great but to take bellers off took away the only thing that resembled a supply line. That problem was intensified by the 'like for like' Mitch/Gunnar sub. Mm could have introduced kimbo and at least added a little flair to all our possession. I really hope that noone gets a chance soon but I'm not holding my breath.
We have no punch up front so we utilise the skills we have and stay on the back foot. I worry we are going to be on the ropes or even knocked out before the last round unless Malky looks at other squad options or goes shopping in the January sales, assuming the purse is offered. WE seem to be continuing the 14 man squad mantra.
agree with hilts i was also flabbergasted to see mutch on the bench, he's a much better all round player and created a chance with a long run which gunnar couldnt do, it seemed that gunnars job was to support the strikers and get forwards as whitts and medel were holding, but thats not his game and unsurprisingly we didnt support odemwingie enough........
Malky will keep setting up his team not to lose and hope to score from set plays or a lucky bounce in the box. We have players available to give us some go forward and at least try to win a game but they are not being played probably because defensively there not the best. This begs the question do you want to do a Blackpool (attack and try and score more goals than the other team) or a Stoke (combative, hard to beat and great on set plays).
Not until it is mathematically impossible to remain in the division. Can you mention on your board we cannot be relegated on lower points than Derby, I know many were thinking this would be the case.
Due to other commitments I wasn't able to watch the game, so I don't know how we played. But I'll take a guess and say it was the same as last week and the week before etc. We play more or less the same way every week, only the other team makes it look different, that and if one or two of our players have a drop in standard, or has upped their game. Not likely to change till January or maybe when Cornelius is up and running. Lightweight striker playing alone won't do anyone any damage, which is why we need set pieces to get anything, or a spectacular goal like Mutchs' the other week.
Taff - I don't know why you even bothered to honour that fatuous comment from the Town Hall Clock Jack with a reply. A decent thread talking about our team amongst us and we get a one-liner that you'd have expected from Phil in the past. Back to the thread - I thought Gunnar was so far off the pace playing that far forward, he was like a fish out of water. To be honest, he was a liabilty playing there rather than using him as a disruptive player more centrally. A bad choice by Malky. I still don't see that as an excuse for Odem. There were plenty of times when Odem received the ball (especially on the left) and had Whitts, Bellamy and Tayls right with him - he wasn't isolated at all at those times. He often chose the wrong options and lost the ball as many times as he passed it - a very poor performance for him, no excuses. Nothing inventive was the hallmark of our game. We tried to play it around and had the edge to be fair, but we didn't really know what to do with it in the final third. Needs something else as an alternative ploy, but without an out and out target man (Corny?) and someone pacey to supply him, we are stuffed.
We all knew it was going to be tough before we started and maybe the results against Man city & Everton have given some a false sense that we should be beating teams like Villa. As has been shown so far today nobody is guaranteed a win in this division.
Swamp/Sparkey, He offered his opinion and was on thread. I responded in kind, Mabbs is clearly upset as many Swans believed we were an easy six points (forgot to mention that) and going back down with less points than Derby.
