Good start?
Three wins on the trot, six points from nine in the league, out of the Europa Cup. Does this represent a good start or an indifferent one?
Winning at Liverpool seems to have shut the boo boys up. The win against Rapid was as tough a battle as I expected with them pulling ten people behind the ball. I also knew that we wouldn’t be able to keep a clean sheet. In some ways, going out at this stage might turn out to be a good thing, although MON may not have his ready made, “the players are tired”, excuse for later in the season!!
The Fulham game was as easy a win as we could have hoped for and one that Ciaran Clark would have wanted. An easy stroll in the park to begin his induction into the Premier League. That said, he was excellent from start to finish and looks like he’ll be yet another great defender from the Villa ranks. Shorey also played well, knowing that Warnock is ready, willing and able to take his place.
The pleasing thing from the last two league games is that Martin O’Neill has plumped for the 4-5-1 formation, one that gained Villa so many plaudits last season. Whilst I think we need more creativity through the middle and in particular, someone to weigh in with ten to fifteen goals a season from midfield, we look much more solid as a unit. Petrov can play his holing role, with NRC winning the ball and bursting forward but I think we also need a playmaker in there too. Van Der Vaart still hasn’t left Real Madrid!!
We head in to the international break now with plenty of our players flying off to all parts of the globe. It’s great to see Milner, Young (and Heskey) named in the England squad again. Milner has impressed me with his work ethic so far and is looking like a 12mill player.
Before the players return to Bodymoor Heath on the 11th, or so, of September, we may be in for a couple of new faces. Richard Dunne is negotiating his pay off from Manchester City before signing for Villa. We are still being linked with the likes of David Bentley and Jermaine Jenas from Spurs and West Ham’s James Collins. We’ll know much more at 5.01pm on September 1st. MON stated that he’s spend whatever was available to him, he said that he received some encouragement from the club doing the selling, let’s hope so.
Massive week ahead
This is arguably the biggest week in MON’s management of Aston Villa to date. Players in, players out, three big matches ahead, all starting tonight against Liverpool.
Ordinarily, I’d leave the blog writing until after the game at Anfield but I think that we need to get our skates on as a football club as I truly think that this week could define our season. Dramatic? Yeah, maybe but let me explain.
If we lose at Anfield, possibly without Curtis Davies, who has a knock to his shoulder, the knives will be out again as people, quite rightly, will be asking questions about why we have only one fit central defender in the camp. Not including the very untried Clark. Lose, and that will be three straight losses and doom and gloom, despite the fact that Liverpool just happen to be regular Champions League latter stage attendees and should be expected to beat Villa on the home patch.
Then we welcome Rapid Vienna to Villa Park on Thursday. Trailing 1-0 from the first leg, Villa, a bit down from our early season start and this game might not be as easy as people are suggesting. It is more than feasible, with the squad we have available, that we go out of Europe at the first hurdle. The the knives will well and truly be out.
Next Sunday, we come up against Fulham. A team with a tactically astute Manager and someone who out thought us twice last season. They battered us at their place in what was a dire Villa performance. Again, they are likely to be tough opposition and will be happy to leave VP with a point. Again, the knives will be out as we head in to the next game, against the filth without a win to our name, out of the Europa Cup and looking very, very low.
Ok. This is the worst case scenario and could all be avoided. Grab something at Anfield, brush Rapid to one side on Thursday and beat Fulham, and, suddenly things are looking up. However, if it pans out like I have predicted above and fans will be questioning whether we need a change at the helm. From reading other websites, as I’m sure you’ll agree, there is already a tide change against MON’s running of the club, particularly in the transfer market.
I think that this is where the week gets even more interesting, sign the players we are currently being heavily linked with, Warnock, Collins, Dunne/Distin and Jenas and we might be able to offer slightly more resistance to the teams we face in the next week. However, we can’t play any other new players against Rapid, or tonight against Liverpool so will have to do our best with what we’ve got. Yes, we can shore up against Fulham, if, and let’s face it, it’s a massive IF, we bring in these players.
Warnock was left out of the Blackburn Rovers squad at the weekend with Big Sam stating that Warnock’s head isn’t right, due to a proposed transfer to VP. However, he also said that they want more money. GET ON WITH IT!!
Mon was at two or three games over the weekend, scouting opposition or looking at players? Who know’s? But, surely, he already knows who he wants. Again, GET ON WITH IT!!
We might well be in a queue to see who other clubs buy, Lescott going to Manchester City, for example, might free up Richard Dunne, leaving us with their cast offs, but it make a mockery of suggestions that MON wants “five players who can walk into a decent Premier League side”. Something he said a while ago. I know we shouldn’t hang on to his every word, but it’s difficult not to when people care about the club. I have to say, I’m not a MON basher and I want him to carry on with being our Manager, but O also believe that he brings some of the stick he gets on himself with the way he deals in the transfer market.
This week is massive. Let’s watch it unfold, hoping for points on the board, a place in the group stages of the Europa Cup, a few goals, a few new players and, most importantly, belief that we are capable of challenging.
Lots to do.
Firstly, we have to do something we have failed to do so far this season in order to dispose of Rapid Vienna. Score a goal (or two to be precise!). Last nights performance was ok, nothing more, nothing less. Conceding after just 16 seconds smacks of a lack of concentration. I don’t think the second leg will be as easy as other people, including MON are suggesting.
Secondly, Villa have to decide on a suitable formation that works for us. I vote 4-5-1 as this gained us some success last season, allowing Petrov to stay in the side. We need a ball winner, maybe NRC and a forward breaking player to support John Carew up front.
Third, we need players. Simple as that. A left back to replace Shorey. Two centre backs, a striker and at least one creative midfielder.
As I said earlier, if we play 4-5-1, we need a midfielder who can chip in with 10 goals a season or so. If we play 4-4-2, we need to find someone who can compliment teachers pet Petrov (you all know he’ll play every week!!). Delph, great player but not yet ready to play every week. Sidwell is anonymous too often. Personally, I’d let him go if we can get in the right replacement.
I refuse to jump on the bandwagon for the removal of Martin O’Neill. He drives me mad in the transfer market as he appears slow and purchases the odd pony or two. But to remove him now may send us down the same route as the Newcastle United one and we end up in a similar position as them. I would agree that we have some problems, Buying at least 3 players would help, as would getting Luke Young fit. We simply have to replace mediocre with more quality and we can compete again for the top eight. At this time, with no more signings made, however implausible I feel that is, we will do very well to reach the top half. We most definately lack leaders. To this end, I can understand why we are being linked with the likes of Richard Dunne and Sylvain Distin. Both captains at their clubs in recent times. I’m not saying that I rate either of them particularly highly but they would be a start.
I still feel that MON WILL sing a couple of players but he has an awful lot to do in the remaining days of the market.
We’ve lost two games on the trot, to two mediocre sides. Confidence will begin to ebb if we lose at Anfield, Fulham out-think us. Lose to Birmingham and the knives will be out well and truly.
Wrong, wrong, wrong. (AV 0 WA 2)
I genuinely don’t like criticising anything about Aston Villa as I’ve been a supporter for 35 years and things have generally been pretty good, on the whole, in the last three years or so. Today though, I am miserable because I think I have to criticise Martin O’Neill for this rather abject performance against Wigan Athletic. In fairness, I did say that Wigan would win comfortably in my last post, well, almost!!
I think MON got the team wrong today and I’m more convinced than ever that Petrov cannot play in a 4-4-2. Also, to throw Delph straight in, and leave both Sidwell and Reo-Coker on the bench wasn’t a clever idea. I am not the biggest fan of either of those players and think they’ll be replaced and I’m sure Delph will be a great player over the years to come but today he looked a little out of his depth. We should have gone solid and made sure that we got something out of the game. I feel it’s important NOT to lose your first game.
Losing Carew before the game didn’t help us but we can’t keep making excuses about a lack of squad depth and then do nothing, or very little about it. The transfer window closes in just over two weeks and Villa need at least 4 more players in my opinion.
Warnock would be a good start. Nicky Shorey just doesn’t cut it at this level for me. He’s too small and isn’t a first team player. We need two leaders in the middle at the back and I also still feel that we need a playmaker in the middle of the park. We’re not in Sneijder’s league and I can’t see that one happening. Probably more like Jenas!!
Who do we sign? I don’t know, that’s MON’s job, get on with it. The Villa fans paid their money and quite rightly boo’d at the end of the game. A really disappointing crowd of 35,000 would have swelled had MON have brought in some additional quality. The players we have got in are solid without being exciting and I just sense that the tide might be turning against MON a little. Another couple of defeats and things might starting getting a bit fruity.
I like the fact that MON doesn’t dress things up. He said that we were poor and were second best. He’s right, but now he needs to do something about it. I haven’t lost faith in him but I do question how slow he appears to be in the market. I love his honesty and his quirky manner but I want Villa to move forward again this season.
One defeat does not make a season and there’s no panic at Villa. There might be, amongst fans, if MON doesn’t pull a couple of more than solid transfers off.
Villa 0 Wigan 2. Wrong, just wrong.
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Once again we beat a decent Italian team with only half a side. Great to see Fabian Delph thrown straight in and this would give him a real confidence boost. The other pleasing thing is that we still have lots of players not playing or injured and it shows us that we can be a real force when they are back, if we’re not already!! Fiorentina had their chances with the penalty and hitting the bar but so did Villa. A good workout with plenty of players getting a rest in readiness for the more important games to come.
We face Rapid Vienna in the Europa Play off with some decent prize money to be had for reaching the group stages and winning games once there. I’m sure MON would have liked easier opposition at this stage of the competition but he’s being a bit cautious by bigging them up a bit. Villa will have too much for them (I hope).
The league gets under way this Saturday with a home game against Wigan. I can only see three points for Villa here and see Martinez out of his depth in the Premiership at the moment. He’ll get them playing good, open football but I just can’t see them being as good as they were under Steve Bruce. They’ll struggle to score goals without Valencia and will do well to finish outside the bottom three. Cue Wigan winning comfortably then!!
I’d also be hoping that MON adds some more to the squad this week after adding Beye and Delph last week. Two solid signings in the bag and he’s also been talking openly about a certain Dutch player this week. Unusual for MON to be so open about his dealings, unless he hopes that his words of encouragement get back to Sneijder about him being wanted. The “surplus to requirements” quote was clever.
I hope that people don’t compare Delph to Ashley Young too often when it comes to settling in quickly. Young is a superb player, Delph, Like Young, is a player we have paid over the odds for and will take time to find his feet. We mustn’t think he’ll take to the Premiership as quickly as Ashley did, hopefully, he will, but they are different players and we can’t heap too much on him too soon. He is a massive talent though.
MON reckons that the new Captain hasn’t yet been selected. I wonder whether we’ve signed him yet. Petrov was the firm favourite but it could be a useful carrot to dangle in front of a potential signing.
It’s all coming together rather nicely!!
I’ve had the chance to calm down after the fantastic efforts of the players in defeating Juventus in the Peace Cup final. Ok, we were fitter than them because we start our season in two weeks and they don’t start for another four. But, we gave as good as we got and looked the better side in the first half. We struggles in the second but always looked dangerous on the break during extra time. Full credit to the penalty takers for having the bottle to put their necks on the line. Credit too for MON and his staff for getting the best out of some of the younger players.
Having agreed a fee for Leeds youngster Fabian Delph today, we look to have a great many quality young players at this club who will get better and better. Albrighton should step straight up and looks ready. Bannan will also be there or there abouts. Guzan and Lichaj didn’t let themselves down at all. I would like to see some of them go out on loan for the season. The likes of Herd, Bannan, Lichaj should go out on loan to give them some first team experience. I’m sure that they’ll receive lots of interest from clubs in the Championship or League One. Be nice for Walsall to come in for them so they can stay local.
I agree with waiting until we come back from Spain before the club starts to buy players. They had a tight knit group in Malaga and often, a couple of new faces can upset the great banter that they would have been experiencing. That said, now MON is back at his desk, I would expect two or three to come in very quickly this week with the likes of Delph, Beye and Distan being finalised. I would also like to see a quality signing such as Wesley Sneijder or Joe Cole come in too. Really set the club alight after raising their profile with the Peace Cup win.
It’s getting exciting. Only a week or so before the Premier League kicks off and we are finally making our move in the transfer market. I really hope it’s a case of “hang on to your hats” as we bring in the type of players that we can be proud of. I’m sure we’ll lose another couple but they will be replaced. Good times!!
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