I don’t know which manager will be more annoyed today, Zenga or Bruce.
Zenga will probably come away from Villa park wondering how his team failed to collect the three points.
Whereas Bruce will be fuming that we just looked awful.
Pre-match, it was all good, as Bruce selected a side with players playing in position and went with a 4-4-2 or 4-4-1-1 maybe. It was a sensible choice on paper.
And that’s about as good as it got.
We actually looked okay in the first few minutes and you could see the players had upped the pace and were passing the ball quickly. But Wolves came into it more and more as the game went on, so much so that they completely dominated the game.
We got the early penalty then, after Grealish was judged to have been clipped and Kodjia duly put it away.
A good shot from Kodjia apart, that was it though and I hardly remember another chance being created. Oh, sorry there was one chance where Kodjia feebly went for goal instead of passing to McCormack who was in a much better position.
Wolves got a penalty when Cissokho handballed and it all went downhill from there.
Again we instantly lost all our shape and composure, which allowed Wolves to get in the game even more and create more chances. Fotunately they didn’t convert any and we came away lucky to get a point.
Which is what makes it all so frustrating.
We have a very decent team on paper and it’s not just us fans that say it.
Why then, can’t we seem to do even the basic things right? Grealish is the only player we have that looks remotely comfortable with the ball at his feet. The rest? well the ball just seems to always bounce awkwardly or it’s poorly controlled. Our passing at times is abysmal and there are far too many wayward passes.
A plus for me is that McCormack didn’t take any corners, which left Adomah taking them. But they were mostly poor.
You really have to wonder what the players actually do in training.
For what it’s worth I’d have taken McCormack off and replaced him with Gestede and gone with a more direct style.
I’d have pulled Grealish off too, as while he looked okay, he just didn’t produce anything really.
I thought Richards did reasonably well considering he hasn’t played for a while and Chester did well.
There were too many players that weren’t good enough though and it’s hard to know why when they’re well rated.
I’ll be interested to read Bruce’s after-match comments, but I’ll bet he’ll be more than a little concerned, as Wolves don’t look a paticularly good side to me, yet they dominated massively. At home too.
It’s difficult to know what Bruce is going to be able to do about it, but watching that game today, I’ll bet he can’t wait for the transfer window.
It’s all totally disappointing. Again.
I really wish we didn’t sell Okore, I seriously believe there is a great player in him somewhere and that Bruce, with his CB skills could’ve found him. On to the midfield, I’ve said it before, but could we do any worse than call back Sanchez, Veretout and Gil??
I totally agree, as at least you’d have options/competition.
But I’m fairly sure they’re all on season loans, with no recall clause.
Unbelievably short sighted, but so typical of the Villa, although in fairness we had to get players out to get new ones in. I don’t think anyone foresaw the whole midfield being crap!
It’s a good point but if the mentality of those playersafter lasy season is not right then a year away on loan might just prove to be an astute move – depends on whether or not right to buy clauses included in loan moves.
Call back revitalised and fully fit players like Sanchez and Gil for next season might be just what is needed.
To be honest i’m not too sure why we let Veretout go on loan, i always thought he looked fairly decent, was far more forward thinking that Westwood, never really given enough games to settle.
i was very annoyed with the second half performance. just at the fact i put off other things i could have been doing. we were poor and my reasons for this was fitness. wolves players stepped up the intensity second half. our players just couldn’t handle it. they are also can’t handle the demands of having too win. bruce will sort them out, but it aint gonna be pretty.
we need a massive break, this season is slipping away and we haven’t left the starting blocks. we have the players and iam sick of saying this. but they are bottlers & don’t seem to believe in their own hype. they came to play for a massive club they are picking up massive wages. so earn the money. very minimum we require is they are fit enough to run about for 90 minutes. yesterday game showed me that most of this team can’t even do that. what was RDM training session consisting off. watching a exercise video.
of the game, Ive seen wolves a few times already this year. they have played alot better this season than yesterday. we are lucky they couldnt finish us off and for a lenient referee
Bear in mind this is not a bad Wolves team they beat Newcastle away. Also if they get more consistent they could easily finish in top 6
Well said Oohah our lot get carried away with themselves Wolves ain’t a bad outfit.
SB speaking to the BBC –
“I wouldn’t like to say anything against another manager,” said Bruce. “But it’s fair to say that some of them could be in better condition.”
Perhaps that’s why we always let teams back into games but its something I can’t understand. RDM and Clarke had them for weeks before the season started and they’re still not fit?
Oh well at least it’s something that can be fixed hopefully
But that still doesn’t explain why we concede so many last minute goals due to individual errors. Gollini for example v Huddersfiled that was just stupidity nothing to to do with fitness
Gollini goal was just a freak. He could have hit that ball a hundred times without that happening.
It was just bad luck, of which we’ve had far too much lately,however not yesterday. Extremely lucky to get a point so perhaps out luck has turned!
In thinking about it the day after a bad performance I’m wondering why? Why do we let other teams bully us and press us seemingly at will?
Although its not perfect the defence isn’t bad and our attack should be brilliant but neither look good and that’s down to the mid-field.
We don’t have a leader like Petrov that can hold the ball and take the pressure off the defence and then link up with the attack. I think that’s why SB put Westwood in yesterday. We were getting overrun by Wolves mid-field and there was no-one commanding enough to make sure that the team kept their shape.
As we can’t buy anyone else why not try Lyden or Green? Whatever SB does mid-field should be the first area he looks at.
Jedinak was brought in to be the calm leader in the middle and I had high hopes for him.
I hope he’s just seriously out of form, because up to now he’s been frankly awful and looks totally finished (the latter point something I saw that was suggested on a Palace forum when we bought him).
Its just so depressing isn’t it? One thing is for certain – we MUST keep Bruce for the long term now, no more chopping and changing managers. To me, bar some miracle, it will be lower mid table this season, and even next season I’m unsure if we will go up.
But we can’t keep changing managers. It’s clear there is something wrong somewhere, and I do trust that in Bruce, we have someone who knows what needs doing and how to do it – but he needs the time to do it.
I mean, how do we make players like Gestede, MC and Kodija (who have all scored hatfuls for average teams), suddenly into players who dont score?
And then players like Sinclair and Gana, who didnt give a feck, sold for peanuts and turn into world beaters?
If we bought Messi and Ronny tomorrow, I bet they would look like duffers against Reading. I just dont understand it.
What I would give now for a Delph or a Milner or a Barry in that midfield area, because we look really, really weak.
Sad sad times for Villa, and I think it will only get worse before we get better.
Agree completely.
It’s been my view for years now that we never did find any replacement for Barry or Milner – although I don’t believe that Delph was ever in the same class – and that’s been a huge part of the problem faced by every manager since MON.
Having said that, I don’t have a clue who could actually fill that role, realistically, – i.e. not Fantasy Footie – for a team in the lower reaches of the “Championship” today?
Sinclair a world beater?
Bob Smith from the Boars Head second 11 could turn out for Celtic and be a world beater.
What where DM and his staff at, players not fit that is a disgrace . We may forget about this season . The dogs in the street knew that DM wasn’t the man but the Doc went for him and look at us now.
The Doc corrected his mistake by get Bruce, give him time .
Fitness is a problem but one that can be rectified. Confidence is.another matter.
However I do think that SB will halt the slide but it may take time.Mid-table at the end of the season wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world if we could see that things are improving.
I said at the beginning of the season that we wouldn’t go up straight away. The arrival of Dr. Tony and the new signings gave me some hope but there’s something fundamentally wrong with the team and it won’t be solved overnight.
Still very glad that SB is now in charge.
Why are we constantly being linked to strikers, when we’ve supposedly got the best at this level, yet can’t get them to score?
Total nonsense, these stories, imo.
Dr T has tweeted lies we are not in for strikers, thinking about how we have gone over the years is it no wonder players wanted out, to see attitudes like we have only work shy players would come to Villa. I hope Bruce can see through some players that want and those that don’t. We are fucked up team.
Agreed Bill. I think we are lucky to get Bruce – OK we should have taken him rather than RDM but now we have to stick with him for the foreseeable future. Forget his past with Blues, forget his average performance in the Prem; He is a very good manager and we have to stake our long term future on his tenure.
Hobbling together a load of players who did well elsewhere doesn’t make a team. You need a phiolsophy, a system, a style of play, which needs to come from the manager. Then you need to get all the players to buy into it. Those that can’t adapt to the system get moved on. Look at Liverpool.
I think we had a system for a while under Lambert, which was to soak up pressure and hit teams on the break. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it backfired horribly. Sherwood initially had a similar approach and then it suddenly turned very negative and we didn’t seem to attack at all! I think McLeish’s style was just hoof it up to Heskey, who would inevitably lose it or misshit it into the stands. Garde was just the wrong person at the wrong time and was lumbered with a load of players who had already lost all their confidence. I found DiMatteo’s approach also very negative – score a goal and then try to sit on it, which we just seem incapable of doing.
It’s ridiculous to hear that Bruce think the players aren’t fit enough. Just not acceptable. But it does explain a lot – we only ever seem to be able to play well for 45 minutes at most. I hope he will bust their asses on the training ground and get them drilling set pieces. At the moment it looks as though we don’t really bother to train and think we should be able to just turn up and get a result!
That’s a good point, I hardly remember the last time we scored from a set piece.
It all goes back to training, but we’ve talked about that for a fair while now and it came before RDM.
We’ve changed coaches god knows how many times, but maybe the problem is a bit further down the chain in whoever is in charge of fitness/conditioning?
Or is that the coaches? I really don’t know how it works these days, with sports scientists and all that palava.
What happened to the good old days, where the manager just ran the balls off the squad? 🙂
Ah, RDM bought Massimiliano Marchesi in as our fitness coach.
Another one for the bullet maybe?
Maybe the whole teams hitting the inert gases????
What, the nitrous oxide?
Strange stuff, that.
Makes motors go like the clappers.
Gone in 60 seconds – love that film!
Is about Villa holding onto a lead?
Nitrous oxide isn’t inert, its the players that are.
I don’t buy the idea that the player’s aren’t fit and can easily be made fitter. Sherwood said Villa players were not fit, and managers since have tried bringing in some staff sergeant from their own country to get the players fitter. Fitness and stamina are not the same thing. I do not think stamina can be increased in mature adults who are otherwise fit, if they do not have stamina by the time they are 18 they are not going to acquire it.
Stamina?
We ain’t talking SAS recruitment here we’re talking 90 minutes of football.
They looked slow…slugish….unfit from the start.
I read a viewpoint that reckons it’s down to fear, which makes you leaden-footed.
It sounds plausible to me. If you’re scared, you’re not going to want to rush in are you?
Bunch of wimps if that’s true.
According to the Sun SB is after Rhodes on loan –
https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/football/1984408/jordan-rhodes-new-aston-villa-boss-steve-bruce-plans-january-swoop-for-middlesbrough-outcast/
Some midfielders too please SB!
The first few games of the season we looked good; good movement, plenty of energy but we missed chances and the last minute goal at Wednesday and the one against Huddersfield were not down to lack of fitness. And so it progressed missed chances – poor goals conceded.
The longer we failed to win the worse the performances have got going from a positive to negative (fear of losing) mindset. I agree with Badger in that this ‘fear’ saps energy and affects performance and infects the fans who become anxious.
I have no idea how you change such a deeply embedded mindset coming on the back of last season but it sounds like we need a sports psychologist more than a fitness coach.
Hitch, I’m not tuned into today’s coaching and the way they perceived to make themselves a job.In my day you played the game to win, to be better than the opposition, what are we breeding wimps? I’ve had to walk away from watching my 10 year old play for his team, I’ve questioned his coaching methods to be told its now the way they shape a team, i.e. one day a defender, next time a striker, and he is a certificated coach.. I’m at a loss. You play to win in my book.
Can’t argue with any of that Bill. It seems to be how it is these days
Mc cormack looks overweight to me
He’s anorexic compared to shabby