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Yeah, he's normally covering for Baker & Clark's mistakes, so doesn't get to play his own game. Stick him in a decent back four and he's rock solid Roncrete!
Sadly I think after a very strong World Cup and being in the last year of his contract he's probably kicked his last ball for Villa. Given who the new incumbent is in the hotseat at Old Trafford I'd be expecting him to take a quick holiday then be heading up the M6.
Sadly I think after a very strong World Cup and being in the last year of his contract he's probably kicked his last ball for Villa. Given who the new incumbent is in the hotseat at Old Trafford I'd be expecting him to take a quick holiday then be heading up the M6.
PurpleTurtle said:
Yeah, he's normally covering for Baker & Clark's mistakes, so doesn't get to play his own game. Stick him in a decent back four and he's rock solid Roncrete!
Sadly I think after a very strong World Cup and being in the last year of his contract he's probably kicked his last ball for Villa. Given who the new incumbent is in the hotseat at Old Trafford I'd be expecting him to take a quick holiday then be heading up the M6.
United need centre backs and he's proved to Van Gaal he work in his system. I just hope we get decent money and a decent replacement. Okore was looking very promising until his injury, I would've liked to see him paired with Vlaar for a run of games.Sadly I think after a very strong World Cup and being in the last year of his contract he's probably kicked his last ball for Villa. Given who the new incumbent is in the hotseat at Old Trafford I'd be expecting him to take a quick holiday then be heading up the M6.
Giving this thread a bump due to our unexpectedly good start to the season, and not a bad start to the 'month of death'.
Gabby's wasn't the best of goals but if it means beating Liverpool at home I'll take a scuffed tap-in any time! I'm delighted to see us looking a lot stronger defensively, it's a long time since anyone used the words 'Nathan Baker' and 'Man of the Match' in the same sentence.
In my 35+ yrs of watching Villa we've never been the most exciting of teams going forward, but we have always, until the last few seasons, at least been a team that is difficult to beat. Being a walkover since MON departed has been hard to bear, I hope this Lambert team will manage to grind out some mid-table respectability at the very least.
How much of it is the Roy Keane effect, one wonders? Too early to say I know, but my rose-tinted view says he's had a very positive impact. Lambert is even growing a matching beard to Keano's, ain't that nice!
Gabby's wasn't the best of goals but if it means beating Liverpool at home I'll take a scuffed tap-in any time! I'm delighted to see us looking a lot stronger defensively, it's a long time since anyone used the words 'Nathan Baker' and 'Man of the Match' in the same sentence.
In my 35+ yrs of watching Villa we've never been the most exciting of teams going forward, but we have always, until the last few seasons, at least been a team that is difficult to beat. Being a walkover since MON departed has been hard to bear, I hope this Lambert team will manage to grind out some mid-table respectability at the very least.
How much of it is the Roy Keane effect, one wonders? Too early to say I know, but my rose-tinted view says he's had a very positive impact. Lambert is even growing a matching beard to Keano's, ain't that nice!
PurpleTurtle said:
How much of it is the Roy Keane effect, one wonders? Too early to say I know, but my rose-tinted view says he's had a very positive impact. Lambert is even growing a matching beard to Keano's, ain't that nice!
Certainly a few like Keane challenges going in - he certainly will have your lot wound up Great start with 3 clean sheets, although only 4 goals. Still, we've got Benteke to come back and Darren Bent or Kozak to fill in if needed. The resilience in defence is what I've enjoyed the most, especially against Liverpool. I was a bit worried going into the game without Vlaar, but Cissokho and Senderos have been fantastic for us without much of a reputation in the past. Baker was a liability in the last few years, but that was a good performance.
Arsenal, Chelsea, Man City and Everton in a row now. I'm not expecting much, if anything, but picking up a few points against these would be great.
Arsenal, Chelsea, Man City and Everton in a row now. I'm not expecting much, if anything, but picking up a few points against these would be great.
I always thought he was good player and felt he was shut out because he was on fairly high wages after Tottenham and Lerner/Faulkner wanted big (ridiculous) cut backs. I bet he's on double that of Bacuna or Lowton.
How old is he? 28/29? That's about peak for a lot of people so securing him now for a few years isn't bad IMO.
How old is he? 28/29? That's about peak for a lot of people so securing him now for a few years isn't bad IMO.
I've got to take my hat of to Big Al, he's been in the bomb squad, farmed out on loan all over the place and up for sale with no bidders, but has knuckled down and got on with it. I dare say 40 large ones a week for kicking a bag of air has softened the blow, but in the context of prima donna Premiership players he's kept his toys firmly in his pram, and (so far) has given a good account of himself this season.
When he was playing regularly before being dropped he had a propensity to give away stupid free-kicks on the edge of the box, so hopefully we'll see less of that from him. His clattering of Sterling on Saturday was case-in-point, but then again it was an old-fashioned 'welcome to big school' challenge that kept him quiet for the rest of the game. Worth the inevitable yellow card on this occasion!
Lambert banking a 4yr deal yesterday also surprised me, from a timing point of view, with the club openly up for sale. All of this soon after the departure of the clueless Paul Faulkner. Coincidence or not?
When he was playing regularly before being dropped he had a propensity to give away stupid free-kicks on the edge of the box, so hopefully we'll see less of that from him. His clattering of Sterling on Saturday was case-in-point, but then again it was an old-fashioned 'welcome to big school' challenge that kept him quiet for the rest of the game. Worth the inevitable yellow card on this occasion!
Lambert banking a 4yr deal yesterday also surprised me, from a timing point of view, with the club openly up for sale. All of this soon after the departure of the clueless Paul Faulkner. Coincidence or not?
6 weeks on from last posting on this thread, the wheels have properly come off!
I could accept losing 4 of the last 6 as tough fixtures, but the no-show against QPR was risible, and we managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory on Sunday!
Benteke getting his was hugely frustrating. I wouldn't so much have minded if he'd lamped the bloke, but a 3 match ban for stroking face of the bloke who is trying to headbutt you seems a tad harsh. Rules is rules though.
I am, understandably, not looking forward to going to watch us at West Ham on Saturday!
I could accept losing 4 of the last 6 as tough fixtures, but the no-show against QPR was risible, and we managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory on Sunday!
Benteke getting his was hugely frustrating. I wouldn't so much have minded if he'd lamped the bloke, but a 3 match ban for stroking face of the bloke who is trying to headbutt you seems a tad harsh. Rules is rules though.
I am, understandably, not looking forward to going to watch us at West Ham on Saturday!
We are monumentally screwed.
I've never really been part of the Lambert Out brigade but I can't really see how things are going to get any better while he remains in charge. Of course, he's not going to go given that he signed a 5 year contract a few months ago ( ) and there's no way RL would pay it off.
It's a profoundly depressing time to be a Villa fan.
I've never really been part of the Lambert Out brigade but I can't really see how things are going to get any better while he remains in charge. Of course, he's not going to go given that he signed a 5 year contract a few months ago ( ) and there's no way RL would pay it off.
It's a profoundly depressing time to be a Villa fan.
I cannot blame Lambert at all when he wants to sign Sinclair and we can't match Man City's asking price of £2.5M. Delph and Vlaar will go cheap, or free, because they've only got 6 months on their contracts, they'd be mad to renew given the offers they're likely to get.
Screwed is right, but I cannot blame Lambert for it.
Screwed is right, but I cannot blame Lambert for it.
I meant in terms of his tactics. I readily agree that it's not his fault that RL wants to sell and isn't making money available.
The team is clueless going forwards - completely bereft of ideas and creativity. Ironically, we seem to do better against better teams, playing on the counter-attack. Faced with less able teams, when the onus is on us to make the running, dictate the pace and apply pressure, there's frequently nothing.
True, we need a creative midfielder/playmaker type, and there's not much in the kitty to pay for one, but even so Lambert seems to have no idea how to make use of the (limited) talent available.
There are players who have scored more goals alone than Villa have managed as an entire team.....
The team is clueless going forwards - completely bereft of ideas and creativity. Ironically, we seem to do better against better teams, playing on the counter-attack. Faced with less able teams, when the onus is on us to make the running, dictate the pace and apply pressure, there's frequently nothing.
True, we need a creative midfielder/playmaker type, and there's not much in the kitty to pay for one, but even so Lambert seems to have no idea how to make use of the (limited) talent available.
There are players who have scored more goals alone than Villa have managed as an entire team.....
Lurking Lawyer said:
There are players who have scored more goals alone than Villa have managed as an entire team.....
Indeed. But Benteke is just back from injury, Weimann has never been convincing, Agbonlahor is a lazy toad, Kozak still only has one leg and players who are supposedly "quality" (Joe Cole, Tom Cleverly) either don't create enough chances or butcher them when they present themselves. Villa have come a long way from the desperate hoofball of last season and the defence has certainly tightened up, but there is only so much you can do when yout transfer kitty contains some shirt fluff, 3 buttons and a curly-wurly. It also doesn't help that so many players are picking up injuries or red cards when the squad is so thin.I'm not sure any decent manager would want the job without a large injection of funds, which is really what this team needs, Lambert at the helm or not.
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