I’m sorry that I never wrote a review of the Swansea game, but the truth is we had a load of family round and I never really got to see much of the second half. Certainly not enough to write about it anyway.
What I did see was encouraging though, even if we didn’t score.
On to today then and it’s Sunderland at home.
It should be another interesting game, because the opposition sit just one place and one point below us in the table. They even have the same goal difference, on -11.
Sunderland have been very much the draw specialists over the last few games and I doubt many of us see there being many goals today.
It’s pretty much the same players available for the Villa today, with the exception of Gabby Agbonlahor who’s out because he picked up his fifth booking this season.
Some will see that as a big loss, because he does give us an option with his pace and he is after all our second highest scorer (not that that’s saying much), but I’ve felt he hasn’t really contributed much of late. Hence I’ve previously said that I’d like to see him “rested” for a game or two, even if it’s only to keep him on his toes and to not make things quite so comfortable as they have been.
With Gabby out then, I wonder how Lambert will play things?
I’d guess he’ll play Weimann just behind Benteke, but I really wonder if there would be some mileage in Grealish playing on the left, with Weimann on the right and them both floating infield as chances allow?
I don’t know, I prefer to leave the tactics to the manager, but this strikes me as a game we very much have to go for, as we need to get nothing less than three points today.
While Lambert says he has us playing differently and it’s true, the play has improved, I felt against Swansea that our build up play was way too slow and when we got to the halfway line we practically came to a standstill. We need to improve this, along with our off the ball movement in my opinion.
On the Sunderland front, they have Conor Wickham back for the game.
So what do I think then?
Well, I’d love to say I think we’re due to properly beat a team by a good couple of goals at least.
I suppose if we were to get lucky and take all of our chances, it might be possible.
I just don’t see it happening though and it has to be just the one goal again.
1-0 to the Villa, because anything less will be totally unacceptable.
