Villa – Everton: The script is simple.

130 thought on “Villa – Everton: The script is simple.”

1. BFR – Don’t start with DNA? But Palace bullied us off the park, we looked scared at Wembley… and we’ve been complaining about getting bullied off the pitch under Emery, Gerrard, Smith… who we gonna blame, the owners??

   DNA is mostly style of play, and the way we play leads to mostly signing players with quick feet and can pick a pass, who are often too lightweight leading us to get bullied, it does play a part

   1. No, Alfie. Winning is in UNAI EMERY’S DNA. So all his players and staff need to get with the f****** program!

      1. Emery is a segment of the club. We’re only as high as we are because of Emery, other things need to change or we won’t win anything !!

         1. He’s the boss. Follow the leader. His players generally do. But I cannot fathom how Monchi got Sancho and Elliott over the line on deadline day with Unai’s blessing. There’s no way. Those two signings – and their wages – completely f***** us up. To be third, level with Citeh, is literally miraculous when you consider their resources. It’s ridiculous. If Monchi had done something better than Sancho, Elliott, and Guessand, with that money and those wages, then we might not be up shit creek now. Screwed up monumentally. No wonder he was gone days later.
            And Unai is more than ‘a segment’.

            1. Unai is more than a segment in merit terms yes. But if you look at how restricted Emery is in the grand scheme of things and the amount of players he’s been forced to sign / sell, there is truly only so much impact one can have until you realise it’s the group upstairs that call the shots, making anyone who isn’t in that group a segment to the club.

               1. Disagree. Without Unai, the club will more than likely freefall. So not a segment.

2. The ability of clubs like Spurs being able to spend as they please after finishing 17th and currently being 14th in the league just leads me back to one mindset that I can never seem to wriggle out of.

   If we really want to compete with the best, we need a stadium with a higher capacity. It’s as simple as that. We need to rinse the benefits, host events there with high capacity, I don’t care what it is – start by having the Grand Slam of Darts at Villa Park instead of Wolverhampton, which can work because of our closing roof that has been built meaning we can facilitate such event. Darts fans get mad drunk, order overpriced food, pay for tickets etc. That’s profit and that’s the type of stuff we need to be doing. Host an NFL game… etc.

   If we don’t, I guarantee you we’ll be beaten to it by a club down the road that have similar intentions.

   Granted, this will sound like an outburst to those who don’t understand the concept of business, particularly in sport.

   1. Closing roof is hypothetical, obviously not happened yet.

3. Kamara out for the season – Jacob Tanswell.

   Well there we go. FFS!

   1. Fking hell! Paulinho needs banning. And that ref. And I hope Frank gets sacked.

      1. He only got a yellow because it wasn’t a violent tackle.

         Really!? It was a planted leg straight across Kamara at knee height; it was cynical, no attempt to get the ball, and aimed at taking Kamara out of the game. Palhinha then tried to kick Morgan Rogers off the pitch.

         It seems to be Villa’s fate – teams have now decided to kick us off the park. Garner should have been sent off on Sunday – that’s three games we’ve lost where the opposing side should have had a player sent off – and we still haven’t been awarded a penalty this season!

         Emery must be sick of it; no wonder he says we’re not top 5 contenders – we’ll soon have absolutely no mid field left and not allowed to spend on reinforcements.

4. Yes, Kamara. What a sickener.

   As for the ground, that’s my position exactly. We need a minimum 60k and preferably 70K.
   We should have gone the whole hog and moved to a new ground or move asap to flattening the North stand and afterwards, the Witton lane. Short term loss for long term gain.
   But it’s a done deal now and a massive mistake, imo.

5. Abraham very close.

   https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/sport/football/transfer-news/tammy-abraham-aston-villa-transfer-33265877

   1. Badger we need midfield reinforcements.

      Hope Emery and the owners can pull something out of the hat!

      Last laugh on Gallagher though – he would have had plenty of game time of he’d joined us!

      1. So what are you saying? Don’t bother with Abraham?
         I really think any mids will be loan only because we can’t buy and it’ll be ridiculous wages again, like the £350k a week for players we won’t use (Elliot and Sancho).

         I’d be happy to see Hemmings given Fener and Newcastle, so we get a look at him and hopefully McGinn will be okay in a couple of weeks.

         1. No, I’m not saying that – Abraham is to replace Malen and I rate him as a player (not that, that means anything) and he’s got experience in the EPL.

            I’m just saying that if we’re going for the CL then we do need another defensive mid field player – on loan as there’s probably no way we could afford to buy one (as with Rashford / Asensio) and then deal with the PSR issues in June.

            It’s clear that NSWE will take calculated risks as part of Villa’s growth strategy,

6. And to add to our financial challenges, Bailey is coming back from Roma loan – so that’s more dead money on the wage bill.

   I can see us having to sell a top player in June to balance the books!

   1. I’ve seen talk where it’s said Bailey has “lifestyle issues”, which is why he’s not wanted.
      I’d look to swapping him for Abraham.

      The same is said about Barkley and Duran was just a total basket case.

      Who did the due diligence for these players I wonder? Monchi?

      1. Barclay, by his own admission, is known to have suffered with alcohol problems but he, himself, has said he now doesn’t drink .
         I think we need to cut some of these players some slack unless we have absolute proof over ‘alleged’ life style issues.

         As for Bailey, it was his partnership with Diaby that immeasurably improved him and without Diaby his form dropped off alarmingly. So, whatever the issues might be, I do agree that Bailey has shown nothing that suggests he can contribute to the team when he returns.

         I assume they will be looking to send him out on loan again or sell him for whatever they can get.

         There’s also talk of interest in Spain for Garcia on a loan deal but Emery has turned it down as he needs depth in the squad. I wonder if one possible option Emery’s considering (until McGinn / Onana return) is to play Cash in front of Garcia?

7. I just don’t know why we are fluffing about here, Watkins has lost it and we need to offload, so Abraham is a choice, we don’t have a player like McGinn because Barkley is not capable, so surely somewhere in the Premiership there’s a loan available? capable of filling the gap. There a midfielder sitting on a bench not getting time play, bloody start looking Villa. Or put Bogarde in that role for now. Let’s do something for God’s sake .

8. At least leon is another body in and on his day is brilliant so welcome back leon for me
   Tamara out for the season is devastating tho

   1. But another one where it’s like playing with 10 men when he’s not having one of his good days.

      Meanwhile, good news for those who love the speculation.

      Palace considering a bid for Guessand.
      And we’ve expressed an interest in Mateta;

      https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6978612/2026/01/20/jean-philippe-mateta-transfer-palace-villa-guessand/

      Hah, two hopes, imo. We don’t get that lucky.

      1. Just about to comment on that piece.

         I’d take it all day long but Emery isn’t quite as obvious as we are as fans.

         He sees something in Guessand and is on record as wanting to keep him to develop him (shades of a more expensive Morgan Rogers), so maybe Glasner has the same opinion or maybe Glasner is trying to put the skids under Palace 🤣🤣

         1. ‘Another body’? Geez, little8, you make Leroy sound like a corpse! 😆

      2. Badger
         How about this for a scenario?

         Mateta joins Villa and we wave goodbye to Guessand. Bailey who has retired to Villa now replaced Guessand in the team until the end of the season. This option helps us with SCR and if we qualify for Champions League, Bailey will be sold and we can buy an upgrade on Bailey and Guessand.

         1. Sid, I’d take that all day.

   2. I’m pleased to have him back under the circumstances too!

9. Let’s hope McGinn hasn’t got a long term injury. He doesn’t go off unless he has to and it didn’t look good.
   A defensive midfielder on loan is priority now. Plus we need urgent backup to Watkins, assuming the Abraham deal eventually happens.
   I think we should play as many fringe players as possible on Thursday. Turkish teams are notorious for kicking lumps out of the opposition and we cannot risk another key player getting injured. Our season is already in crisis and we knew this was possible with a small squad.

   1. We can take a defeat Thursday and win our final home game would leave us in the top 8 – what we don’t want is having to play two additional games to reach the knock out stages!

10. I think it’s time the January transfer window disappeared. I’m fed up with negative news.
    All you see is Villa can’t spend, Villa can’t attract, every player in our starting 11 is leaving! It suits absolutely nobody at all other than the beloved so called “big 6” . How on earth can city be allowed to buy 2 teams best player and almost single handily destroy their seasons for the great good of theirs. Whist Villa have to sell a striker who was beginning to show signs of potentially pushing Ollie to more (deserved) bench time.

    1. It’s completely f***** up, Tom. Utterly ridiculous and blatantly helps the favourites while killing the already flailing competition. The Premier League, if you analyse how the windows work along with PSR, is a complete joke. If it really is a competition [snigger, scoff], then the clubs need to get around the table with Mr Masters and come up with some rules that work for ALL 20 teams. It’s pathetic.

11. Will Emery be happy to try and qualify for Europe by finishing top 6 every season? There’s not a hope of winning the league whilst top 4 will get more difficult every season. Teams like Spurs will eventually buy their way out of the hole they are in. Meanwhile we have to keep our squad size small so we don’t suffer penalties for breaking SCR / PSR.
    Unless they change the rules, we will only ever flirt with success.

12. I think Malen wanted to go: he was left out of the CL squad, then this season he has done enough to get the nod over Watkins but does not start. I think Monchi was fired on Emery’s orders. He did good business last January, but this Summer window was a disaster.
    The striker signing is always a pantomime in 3 acts but since it started – the midfield crisis has come from nowhere to be more important.

    1. I disagree completely on Malen wanting to go. He looked very happy and was contributing every week. Villa were forced to sell. Again. The horrendous error was selling before the deadline. If he’d been available on Sunday, we’d have gotten at least a point and it would’ve been ‘as you were’ at the top.

       1. BFR – sorry mate you’re wrong on this.

          Emery was very clear – Malen wanted more game time to ensure he made the World Cup and his representatives presented him with the Roma opportunity; Emery wanted him to stay but respected his position; in terms of the club (and dreaded PSR / SCR rules) Emery admitted it made financial (not footballing) sense.

          We are where we are – It’s a juggling game where dropping the baton costs either 15 points, exclusion from European competition or, worse still, both.

          The question is, Emery knew this when he joined us but at what point does he decide he can’t take us any further and, in his own words when he joined the club – I’m not here to waste my time?

          1. Fair enough, Hitch. But why not wait until after the Everton game? Or even better, until a replacement has arrived? Incompetence, is it not? Those 3 lost points could be the ‘what if’ game of this season come the end. I hope not because Unai and the players have worked wonders to eliminate all the costly draws and dropped points of last season – win after win after win. On a weaker squad. So, outrageous errors from upstairs and by match officials are totally unacceptable. There has to be accountability.

             1. Don’t know BFR but I can only assume there was a very good reason for the timing and suggests to me Malen was not in the right frame of mind to play – Guehi to Liverpool similar comment.

                Emery did a similar thing with Diego Carlos who wanted out and was, in Emery’s view, unlikely to contribute positively on the pitch so he didn’t pick him and used illness as a reason (primarily to protect the player) – another bit of info picked up from Ballague’s book.

13. Has anyone watched Canadian Pete on the Everton game yet? Someone sent footage of McGinn paying a bit of attention to his knee prior to KO. Was he carrying a knock beforehand?

    1. Another error, IF true. You can’t risk him, surely?

14. Talk of a loan move for Luiz as he’s not featuring at Forest. A damn good idea if you ask me, under the circumstances.

    1. Luiz left because Emery felt he’d reached his peak in terms of development and was struggling (source – Rise of the Villans). His subsequent record speaks for itself and vindicates Emery’s view.

       He’s a known quantity and maybe Emery could still get a tune out of him alongside Tielemans, It’s down to (a) whether Forest would countenance a pure loan to the end of the season and (b) whether Emery still believes he could get enough from him to make it a viable option.

15. Can we get Mateta instead of Abraham? I definitely would prefer him with recent proven premier league experience. Could we get Luiz on loan? Is he another injury risk? If he is fully fit then definitely a good option. Bailey till the end of the season? Groan but at least he knows Emery’s requirements.
    The Malen sale was down to regular football but for goodness sake, don’t sell before getting another striker through the door. I’m sure an agreement could have been made on this basis. We definitely should have said he couldn’t go till after the Everton game at least. Complete madness!

    1. Easy for us to say Holte.

       In a perfect world and all that!

16. The story that Inter Milan is interested in a deal for Martinez in the summer is an interesting one.

    I think that Villa will try and pull at least one significant loan deal before the end of the window (plus, maybe, Abraham’s transfer) which will leave them with PSR and EUFA SCR challenges to resolve before the end of June.

    The sale of Martinez to Inter May well offer a solution particularly if Emery thinks Bizot can step up as our No.1 GK.

    Just throwing out some thoughts.

17. I fear Villa are wasting precious time on Abraham; the negotiations are complex due to Besiktas having an agreement to buy. It’s too messy, with both Roma and Besiktas involved. Move on. Surely, Mateta is a far better option? I like Sid’s idea – Bailey for Guessand, then Guessand for Mateta. Mateta is a monster and a proven PL scorer. Not to mention a much bigger threat than Watkins. No brainer, surely?

    On the midfield, could Pau not play the Kamara role with Lindelof coming back in? Lindelof didn’t put a foot wrong did he? While Pau quite literally did.

    Meanwhile, in my dreams, Adam Wharton would be an amazing signing in the summer. He bossed the came against us recently, as he does most games, and his passing range is unbelievable – almost almost forward. Fantastic player and better than Anderson in that position for England, in my opinion.

    1. the game

       1. I agree BFR. We do have options.
          Pau is bloody useless as a defender anyway, far too weak, imo.
          And Lindelhof has indeed played well, so I’d go with that too.

          An incomer or two would certainly help, but I honestly don’t think the situation is as bad as is being made out. I well rember the days when it was common to have 10 players out in the middle of winter and I bet most of us do too.

          Put it this way. Spurs had three 17yos on the bench last night and it wasn’t through choice.

    2. Maybe Pau should have gone on as a sub to get into the swing of things rather than go straight into a game cold?
       JP Matata wants out. Contract expires next year. Maybe we could strike a loan deal now and 100% commitment to buy next season? The Luiz situation would I think work short ter. We simply need cover until Onana, Barkley and SJM are back fit.
       This is agony! And we’re sitting second in the table LOL!!!!!!!!!!!
       I think we’ll see 3 names in before the 31st.

    3. I totally agree with you BFR, that Mateta is the one we should be splashing the cash on, and that he is a bigger threat than Watkins with his ability to bully defenders.

       Additionally, I would like to see Torres trialled in the defensive midfielder position and agree that Lindelof didn’t put a foot wrong when he came in and made some vital clearances.

       I’m not sure about Adam Wharton, and I don’t think we will ever get him, I think he will be another one like Conor Gallagher who we are linked with probably until he is on his death bed.

       1. Glad we agree on this one, Alfie! 🙂

          1. Nice one BFR 🙂

18. Just to add to the above debate, it now appears that Bailey was recalled from his loan by Villa, with the agreement of Roma, to strengthen the squad.

    However, I think it’s more likely Villa will offer Bailey for Mateta, who I would love to see at VP, as Emery sees something in Guessand that we don’t.

    Unlike with Duran, I could well see Watkins and Mateta playing together.

19. If Mings is fit then I could see Pau playing in a mid field defensive role – he has the passing ability for it. That would allow either Mings or Lindelof to play as the left sided CB alongside Konsa.

    Allyson can’t play in the Europa League until the knock out rounds.

    I know we can add up to 3 players to the List A squad but not sure whether, in addition, we can replace Kamara if he’s out for the season.

    Another piece of information I’ve picked up is that Villa have raised with EUFA that the wages of players who suffer long term injuries should be discounted from the SCR calculations. As you might guess EUFA were ‘sympathetic but rules are rules’. A sensible and very fair suggestion so why can’t EUFA just change the rules?

    1. Confused with your spelling of UEFA, but there’s no way they’d let us off the hook like that. Watch a club like Fenerbahçe ask for it though, bet they’d get it, like when they got that suspension overturned conveniently to play Duran against Villa. UEFA have something against the Villa and it’s very clear.

       1. Never could spell at school Alfie 😄 but also I’m very slightly dyslexic – never ask me to give directions or you’ll soon be travelling west rather than east or vice versa!

          1. Ah apologies Hitch I wouldn’t have said that had I realised. But haha I’ll bare that last point in mind 🤣

             1. No problems Alfie you don’t need to apologise – it’s quite funny when I say to someone turn left then ask why they’re going the wrong way 🤣

    2. They will probably take it on advisement Hitch and maybe consider it in the close season.
       Don’t forget though they’d be helping the smaller clubs out and the consensus is that they wouldn’t want that.

20. Still no news…

    1. Is someone having a baby? 😏

       1. Yeah! Us lot at this rate!!!!!

          1. N, Bum bum. That would be kittens if we don’t do some business soon 🙂

21. Onana in Turkey but suggest he might start on the bench; Martinez not travelled. Is that because of Inters interest I wonder?

    1. I honestly hope so Hitch.

22. Oh, and in answering my own earlier question, Mings has replaced Kamara in List A for the league phase which means we can add up to 3 more for the knockout phase.

    This game is rather like the Monaco game – it’s on our own hands to cement our top 8 position tomorrow – hopefully we’ll play better than at Monaco

    1. We will lose tomorrow. Chaotic, hostile atmosphere + Asensio + Duran = we’re f*****.

       1. More worried about Asensio than Duran.

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