Start of Season Review

A well-timed international break for a squad stricken with illness and a seeming lack of chemistry, and everyone can finally breathe a big sigh of both relief and exhaustion as the busiest and arguably most pivotal transfer window in the last decade has finally come to a close.

It certainly wasn’t short of action and interest, and you’d be forgiven for thinking the forums were discussing a trip to West Midlands Safari Park than the Villa, with talk of Snakes, Beasts, Frogs, and now Elephants running wild (Sorry Joleon).

Signings have ranged from signing Mark Bunn to Barcelona wonderkids, and most refreshing of all we seem to have finally found adequate replacements for positions needing upheaval for years.

An all-rounder, confident left back in Jordan Amavi; a game-changer in Adama Traore; and a box-to-box powerhouse in Idrissa Gana Gueye.

All the uncertainty around Sherwood’s first opportunity to buy players proved to be misplaced, and only our very own fantastic Mr Fox could turned losing our two best players and a cup final into yet another August of optimism.

This isn’t an absolute certainty however. Amavi’s mistakes against Palace and Sunderland have arguably cost us 3 points, Idrissa seems to run out of puff in pivotal moments of games, and Traore may well be too raw to risk against premier league full-backs.

This aside, 4 points from 4 games isn’t a bad return from a side many will have tipped to go down, and most importantly we haven’t been playing badly. The points dropped certainly aren’t due to a lack of chances or trying, promising in itself. If not for jammy deflections and Micah Richard’s knees resembling a 50p coin we could easily be in a far healthier position on the table.

The team are passing with more confidence and certainty with every coming game, well-balanced by Clark and Richards looking like a formidable force at the back, Adding the experience of Joleon Lescott will undoubtedly strengthen the teams resolve – hopefully we’ll see less of the errors that cost us at Selhurst Park.

What’s impressed me more than the new signings, however, is the continuation from the current players to free themselves from the Lambert-ian football that plagued the club recently. Ashley Westwood has pushed on further up the pitch like we all knew he could, Alan Hutton is continuing to prove himself worthy of the ‘Scottish Cafu’ moniker, and Carlos Sanchez proved against Sunderland that the ball-winning, long-passing, hard-hitting ‘La Roca’ we thought we’d signed is still in him.

Things aren’t all positive though.

Gabby continues to look a liability, Gestede may have a few goals in him but is nowhere near enough a replacement for Benteke, and Ayew and Veretout have gone missing when given the chance on centre stage.

Scott Sinclair's form has been nothing short of inspiring, but we won't be able to rely on him for goals all season. The likes of Grealish, Gil, Westwood, and Bacuna need to start chipping in with a few more from midfield. 

I’ll always be optimistic, and there’s plenty to be singing about right now – but what concerns me most are Sherwood’s comments about the players needing time and asking for patience. It’s a completely valid angle to take but after season after season of transitional periods it gets to a point where results simply need to start coming.

With a hatrick of Midlands derbies on the horizon – what a chance to get off the mark and put any doubt to bed.

Match Review: Aston Villa 3-3 QPR

It was always going to be a weird one for me last night. After having countless people unable to make the game with me, I woke up yesterday morning unable to keep away from a game of such importance.

“Screw it, I’ll go on my own.”

It turns out plenty of people go to Football solo, and if anything it really showed me the power of the game. I got friendly with the people around me; whom I’d later end up hugging and screaming in their faces, and I never felt awkward being on my tod.

This was particularly well-welcomed in a time where we, as Villa fans, have received much negative (not to mention hypocritical and hyperbolic) press for fan behaviour.

I’d always thought of football chiefly as a tool for me to spend valuable time with my Father and Brother, as well as a distraction from the general miseries life manages to throw at all of us – but going on my own proved to myself once and for all that I am deeply, deeply, and irreparably in love with this club.

But enough about me.

What a game of football we experienced last night.

Value was definitely achieved for the price of admission, but I was still left driving down the M42 feeling ripped off.

It was a game we should have won with some degree of comfort, but Villa being Villa, could never make it easy for ourselves, and again proved our reputation of being a team of two halves to be true.

After going a goal behind so early, we showed great character – probably the best thing Sherwood’s bought to this team - in quickly firing back with two of our own, and we really should have kicked on from there and sent QPR back to the capital with a sore backside from a thorough kicking at the home of Football.

But it took Benteke heroics to save us from dropping into the bottom 3 - the most powerful Christian since Jesus himself. (not my own but I love saying that)

Despite this disappointment, and as I will always stress even in the darkest of times, there were some real positives to take from the game.

Gabby proved somewhat that he is capable of turning up against teams from outside the midlands, Benteke showed form reminiscent to his 2012 killing spree of goalkeepers, and we (for the most part) were able to control a game and show attacking intent, something we haven’t quite been able to get in good balance for some time.The team also showed that there is certainly fight and a bit of steel about them, yet another factor we’ve been sorely lacking in season’s gone by – which I again must credit our Cockney maestro for.

I was also really impressed with the fan backing tonight, it would have been understandable to stay away tonight after the disappointment against Swansea and inevitable heavy loss at The Library of Dreams, but the Holte was full and made plenty of noise, not that I’d expect anything else.

This isn’t to say there weren’t glaring concerns in the team.

Defending for all 3 goals was sub-par with more horrendous marking, and the now-routine conceding from a set piece. As dominant as it felt we were, especially in the first half, I never for one second felt comfortable with the defence, and QPR were always a threat on the counter.

We also managed to continue the running theme of being gut-wrenchingly vulnerable at Full back, with Richardson and Bacuna getting caught out numerous times, though the entire blame for this can’t be placed solely on their shoulders. Frankly, the formation tonight got narrower and narrower as the night went on, and our lack of width was troublingly Lambertian – leaving the poor sods exposed as always.

But we’re still in the fight, we’re not in the bottom 3, and we ultimately managed to prevent QPR from getting all 3 points – probably more imperative than winning the game ourselves.

There’s still plenty of football to be played, and I still think Sherwood will see us safely into Premier League football next season, but the games don’t get much easier from here on out; and we can’t keep leaving games thinking ‘we should have got more from that’, that costs dearly in the relegation scrap.

Onwards to White Hart lane.

The Paul Lambert Show – Thanks for the Memories

This time 48 hours ago I was driving over the Aston Expressway, and as Villa Park appeared in my view, something happened that had never happened before.

I was angry.

Normally, I’d glance over and feel a burst of pride looking over at the most beautiful stadium in the world. Sure, those feelings have been slowly diminishing – but they’ve always been there.

This is the result of spending a 6 hour round trip on a coach to Hull on a miserable Tuesday night the previous day only to be served up something reminiscent of a betting scandal. The team not only didn’t look like winning – they didn’t look like they were trying to win.

Little did I know that beneath me the cogs were beginning to turn, and by the time I got home the news would be broken. It was the news that by now, almost all Villa fans had been waiting for, and the news none of us thought the club would make.

For me, at least, and maybe others – the initial wave of relief and joy has been slowly developing a tinge of anxiety.

What we have perceived to be the root of our problems has gone, but what now? With Scott Marshall in charge for Sunday’s game, what will the direction of the team be? Who will they look to for inspiration? What if the rot has run too deep into the club, and won’t subside until we see more significant overhaul? The threat of relegation is still very real.

Regardless, we as fans have a duty to fulfill this weekend, we need to play our part in lifting the team and being less on their backs than we have been recently – but I know that we will be.

As for the man himself, I was thoroughly behind him all along, but my waivering support changed in Hull, the straw that broke the proverbial Camel’s back. Enough was enough. But even with that said, reading over Lambert’s subsequent comments I genuinely have sympathy for the guy.

He was given the incredibly hard task of restructuring a huge club with a (rightfully) highly expectant fanbase on a shoestring budget, and I have a lot of respect for his efforts. For the various flops we’re all aware of, He purchased some potential club greats in Benteke, Vlaar, and getting Guzan to re-sign. This is also ignoring all the players he’s bought through that we have yet to see the best of, in Sanchez, Kozak, Helenius, Westwood, Senderos, Gil, Bacuna, all bought for very little in relation to their talent.

I also had a lot of respect for the game he tried to play during his first year, where we truly saw exciting attacking football, even if its success was hindered by a shaky defence and widely-acknowledged lack of experience. It was only when this clear direction was put aside in favour of an array of odd, under planned tactics in hopeless hoofball and sideways-going-nowhere did it start to seem like the man might truly be out his depth.

He cared greatly for the club and fans, and always wanted to deliver what we were asking of him. It’s such a shame that he wasn’t quite capable; it’s obvious from accounts of him that he’s a very genuine guy who is passionate about his work.

Even if he did greatly underachieve for us, he’s still created some magnificent moments over his tenure. I don’t think I’ll ever forget coming back from 2-0 down to Albion after 10 minutes to win 4-3; Delph’s incredible footwork to beat Chelsea; or putting 6 past Sunderland on a Monday night.

These will be the games I remember when people asking me about what it was like growing up as a Villa fan, and I will always applaud what Lambert was trying to do.

You may have overcomplicated football, broke various records for the worse, and left me feeling more frustrated than I knew I could be in football – but your intentions were always pure. Some of my most cherished Villa memories were from you Paul, and for that I thank you.