Yes, I know.
On the face of it, it’s a really negative question.
But I’ve just been reading the Birmingham Mail (or Live, whatever) where their new Villa correspondent, Ashley Preece, is writing his usual incredibly over-optimistic views of anything Villa related.
Don’t get me wrong. Let me say straight out that I love the optimism.
It’s just that my experience tells me that if you expect a neutral outcome or even disappointment, you’ll feel a hell of a lot better if things exceed that.
That and the disappointment doesn’t hurt quite so much as it would otherwise.
So, with my approach in mind, I wondered how we’d feel if we were to draw this game?
Ashley informs us that this is a total sell-out and a quick check at the on-line ticket office seems to confirm this. That’s great, as Bournemouth aren’t usually such a big pull and it shows that if you can entertain the fans, they’ll turn out in droves.
Roll on the stadium expansion, if things go our way over the next couple of seasons (temper that expectation, Badger).
Ash goes on to say how Villa Park will be a cauldron if the players work their guts out, perform and win.
He’s dead right, simple.
But the point in this post is what if things don’t go our way tomorrow?
Would a draw be a total disaster?
I view this as a game, where we really ought to get three points.
Indeed we NEED to get three, to keep the optimism up.
A draw, in my opinion would be a bit of a setback, but let’s keep it real.
I fully expect Targett and Guilbert to start tomorrow.
I also expect Trezuguet and Luiz to maybe start too.
It’s the sort of game we need to try to win and I think Dean Smith will have realised that sitting too deep and trying to defend does you no favours. The truth is, I don’t know what he was thinking, given the way the game played out against Spurs on Saturday, but what do I know?
I’d fully expect us to attack Bournemouth a lot more than we did Spurs.
But Eddie Howe is no mug and Bournemouth, while not particularly being a club/side that stand out in the Premier league, are a very efficient side. One that to me, we’d be doing okay to equal at this stage of the season.
We have to bear in mind, that if Smith starts a lot of new players, they might not quite gel from the off, is what I’m trying to say.
Team news, then.
Bournemouth have Arnaut Danjuma, Lloyd Kelly, David Brook, Dan Gosling, Simon Francis, Lewis Cook and Junior Stanislas all out
Blimey, what’s happened there, that they have so many players unavailable, this early in the season?
As for us, Chester, Hause and Kodjia are all injured.
I find Kodjia’s injury convenient, given his links to Besiktas, but whatever.
Otherwise, we’re all good and I’m sure all our fit players are chomping at the bit for a start.
So what to think?
Well, I’ve asked a negative question and expect some pelters for even thinking of us not winning this game at home.
But I’m actually reasonably confident that we’ll get the win.
I’m going for 2-1, as much as I think it’s going to hard drawn out.
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