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Post by philm87 on Apr 11, 2015 15:00:35 GMT
Agreed. We obviously never practice them in training. Can't remember the last time we scored from one? new years day v the shit?? Completely forgot about that one. We have been really poor from set pieces since Hughes took over though. Hughes out.
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Post by philm87 on Apr 11, 2015 14:54:59 GMT
Agreed. We obviously never practice them in training. Can't remember the last time we scored from one? Think it was around 1989 against Hull. Have you erased the entire Pulis era from your memory?
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Post by philm87 on Apr 11, 2015 14:52:11 GMT
I still think £5-6 million is worth it. If he was capable to staying fit he would probably fetch £8 million in today's market.
Very frustrating. Watching him limp off is the story of our season.
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Post by philm87 on Apr 11, 2015 14:50:00 GMT
Agreed. We obviously never practice them in training. Can't remember the last time we scored from one?
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Post by philm87 on Apr 11, 2015 13:58:02 GMT
Main priorities for me are getting Bego and Nzonzi to renew their contracts, signing Moses permanently (probably about £8 million I would guess) and - most importantly - making sure Bojan is ready again. Once that it is all sorted our top ten place for next season is almost guaranteed and we can hopefully have a crack at the cups.
RB is obviously a problem area. If Hughes thinks he can resurrect Richards' career I genuinely think that would be a smart move. Yes he is shit now, but Ireland was failing to get in a relegation-threatened Villa side when we took him on and Bojan's career was going nowhere when we snapped him up. I think Hughes, like Pulis, is the kind of manager who can rejuvenate players who have lost their way a bit. The Micah Richards of a few years ago was one of the best right backs in the league.
As for breaking our transfer record, there is always a risk with those sort of deals. Hughes' record is similar to Pulis in that he tends to do well when he has less to spend. That said, the bloke has definitely earned the right to heavily backed by the owners. If he can find the next Wilfried Bony, or a player in that mould, then we can go to another level.
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Post by philm87 on Apr 11, 2015 13:43:21 GMT
Maybe because it is an Allardyce side?
Personally I don't get it. We are better when Pieters plays.
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Post by philm87 on Apr 11, 2015 13:42:00 GMT
What is wrong with Eric?
We looked much better when he came back in after his injury. Wilson has done okay this season, but Pieters offers us more width and far more going forward. Muni I'm assuming is still recovering his fitness after that injury.
Charlie's inclusion I think is justfied on the basis of that goal last week. His confidence will be high. Think we will play a proper 4-3-3 which gets the best out of him.
Happy with Arnie's inclusion. He has shown glimpses of his old self recently. Hopefully he can turn in a good show today.
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Post by philm87 on Apr 4, 2015 18:53:15 GMT
Disappointed with that missed chance at the end, but overall he did okay when he came on. Would have started him today. He has showed signs of his old form recently. I like both Ireland and Adam, but you can't play both of them at the same time unless you're at home to a shit team. Did ok ? He was put straight on goal for a one on one on courtois but failed to control the ball Forgot about that one. I don't think he was 'put through on goal' in the way you suggest though. The ball came slightly behind him and he miscontrolled it. He had many great touches, kept possession really well and made some good runs. Not saying he did great, I said he did 'okay'. He is given 20 minutes away from home against the best team in the country, so I'm not surprised he didn't have a massive impact. People on here think that every player must be either amazing or complete wank. Most of our players are somewhere in between and Arnie is no different. He's often very frustrating, but when he's on form he can be really good.
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Post by philm87 on Apr 4, 2015 18:33:11 GMT
Disappointed with that missed chance at the end, but overall he did okay when he came on.
Would have started him today. He has showed signs of his old form recently.
I like both Ireland and Adam, but you can't play both of them at the same time unless you're at home to a shit team.
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Post by philm87 on Apr 4, 2015 18:27:38 GMT
Without the error he was easily our MOM
No chance of dropping him. Hughes is not an idiot.
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Post by philm87 on Apr 4, 2015 17:26:34 GMT
That was a great goal, but Charlie really isn't working in that position.
Can't take off a guy who has just scored from 60 yards. Ireland off, Arnie on please.
4-3-3 with Adam in the middle alongside Whelan and Nzonzi and lets go for it.
Whatever tactical plan Hughes had isn't working, regardless of that goal.
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Post by philm87 on Apr 4, 2015 17:24:38 GMT
We can't get out of our own half!
We don't need to though...
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Post by philm87 on Mar 21, 2015 18:37:36 GMT
Disgraceful performance from the referee today.
They have always been shit, but this season they definitely have got worse. That's not biased either, because I'm pretty sure every fan and every neutral are saying the same.
In any other line of work, if you performed as consistently shite as Premier League referees do you would get fired.
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Post by philm87 on Feb 28, 2015 19:45:24 GMT
Thought we were okay today given it wasn't a great game.
Can't wait for Danny Rose to come back though.
Are there any other fans in this country who can claim they forced the opposition manager into making a substitution?
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Post by philm87 on Feb 28, 2015 18:54:32 GMT
I don't understand how they keep getting worse.
They are genuinely getting worse this season. I swear it's not my imagination.
We need technology to help these pricks see which player is which, never mind make key decisions.
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Post by philm87 on Feb 28, 2015 18:50:57 GMT
Decent performance today.
Only problem is his consistency.
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Post by philm87 on Feb 28, 2015 18:44:22 GMT
I thought at the time we were paying massively over the odds for him given his age and I also struggled to see how he would fit into a Pulis system.
I was never a big fan of Crouch personally, but he more or less won me over in the first season. He didn't get too many plaudits, but if you consider the complete lack of chances we created going forward that year, to finish on 14 goals was a very decent return. However, his lack of pace was part of the reason we struggled to create those chances when playing Pulisball.
What I didn't factor in was Crouch's fitness and professionalism. Add to that the fact that because his game has never been about pace, getting older isn't quite so much of a problem. Our playing style under Mark Hughes has certainly helped.
Now I'm more than happy to say he was worth it. Yes, for 10 million you can get a player who has potentially greater resale value, but when you consider how many other teams have wasted similar amounts of duds, Crouch has delivered for us.
While he has quality, the main thing I like about Crouch is his attitude. So many players seem to waste their talent. Crouch will know when he gets to the end of his career he consistently produced at the highest level.
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Post by philm87 on Feb 22, 2015 12:14:02 GMT
Don't think I'd like it if the media started heaping praise on us all the time. It wouldn't be authentic. They are mostly all sheep without any real opinion on anything. The tiny minority of pundits who actually understand the game have always recognised us as a good side.
Much prefer being able to nurture simmering resentments against London clubs and other media darlings because that way I enjoy it more when we keep getting results.
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Post by philm87 on Feb 21, 2015 17:25:02 GMT
He has always worried me defensively, but today showed how much we have missed him.
Really positive performance from him and hope his injury isn't too bad.
In the long run though... he does look like a player who just always get injured, so I think we need to think about strengthening in that area.
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Post by philm87 on Feb 21, 2015 17:21:46 GMT
Really do fear for Villa now.
That mood of optimism that accompanies a new managerial appointment will all have gone now.
I think it will go down to the wire unless Benteke can rediscover the form he showed a couple of years ago.
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Post by philm87 on Feb 21, 2015 17:16:33 GMT
We have a great many who have had decades of bitter experience so how about you guys cut them a bit of slack eh and dont be so sanctimonious! Bollocks. We have all endured years of nothingness. The fans that actually traveled to the game stayed with the team. If someone travels a long way to a game and we play crap then fair enough when they vent on here. But some of the negativity after one poor result is just pathetic. We know what we are. Pride of the Midlands. We have earned that right. What's the point in all those decades of bitter experience if we don't make the best of what we have now? Look at the table mate... we are comfortably 10th in the best league in the world despite having just gone through a major injury crisis and despite having our best two players out injured. People should think about that before they indulge in histrionics.
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Post by philm87 on Feb 21, 2015 17:07:07 GMT
Well that ends that debate.
Anyone doubt Glenn's leadership still?
Anyone think he has had a negative effect on Wolly? Or has disrupted squad harmony?
Say what you want about his footballing skills, but we have a strong spirit in our squad and players like Glenn are among the main reasons for this.
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Post by philm87 on Feb 21, 2015 17:02:57 GMT
We have too many bottlers in our fan base who panic after one bad result. Luckily our team have more bottle themselves.
Well done lads. Great result that is.
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Post by philm87 on Feb 18, 2015 23:15:09 GMT
It's frustrating because prior to all these injuries we were on the verge of something very special, but there is always next time.
Personally I'm just glad we are in no danger of going down. That in itself is an achievement given our injury problems.
If we can finish in the top ten in these circumstances, that is another excellent job by the manager.
Expectations of finishing 7-8th I think are unrealistic. If we achieve that I will be very impressed. If we end up slipping down the table and finishing between 11th and 14th I won't be massively concerned. I certainly wouldn't regard it as evidence of regression. We have all seen enough so far to know where we could be.
With a couple of signings and Bojan and Shawcross fully fit, we will have reached the zenith of what is realistically achievable for a club our size. I feel that day is not far away and our trophy drought will be over soon. In the meantime, I will enjoy supporting the team without worrying about relegation and without worrying about the future. We are in safe hands.
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Post by philm87 on Feb 15, 2015 0:00:39 GMT
I haven't seen the interview because I can't afford a subscription, but based on what people on here are saying I can't see what the problem is? The problem is he's no Captain and is in the shithouse himself. He shouldn't be calling people out personally to the press. He's let himself, the club and his teammates down on and off the pitch. no problem eh. Who did he mention personally? EDIT: Just read the transcript. I like what he is saying. The bit where he says 'maybe we don't have enough in the dressing room' I would rather he left out. The rest of it, however, sounds good to me. I like Whelan. He would run through a brick wall for us.
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Post by philm87 on Feb 14, 2015 23:55:43 GMT
Whelan is fine as captain. You don't pick your captain on the basis of footballing ability. It's players like Whelan that will keep us up if ever we find ourselves in trouble. Yep, telling off your own teammates in a post match presser is a "fine" and "mature" thing all Captains do especially when they have been if not just as bad, worse than most. I haven't seen the interview because I can't afford a subscription, but based on what people on here are saying I can't see what the problem is?
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Post by philm87 on Feb 14, 2015 23:54:14 GMT
No he came on late the other night. Was on the bench today. Think he must have fallen out with the manager. I've always liked him as a player but I don't understand how it is apparently so difficult for him not to pack on the pounds as soon as he is benched for a few weeks.
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Post by philm87 on Feb 14, 2015 23:52:32 GMT
We had years and years of moaning on here because Tone would come out after a game and try and make excuses or put a positive spin on a poor performance.
Then we have everyone moaning about players not lacking passion or commitment, not making an effort.
So our captain starts bollocking people, demonstrating that passion and commitment, and comes out and apologizes for a poor performance...
... and guess what people on here say?
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Post by philm87 on Feb 14, 2015 23:48:01 GMT
Good point. Think he should probably start next game. Extra man in a midfield three.
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Post by philm87 on Feb 14, 2015 23:45:38 GMT
Whelan is fine as captain. You don't pick your captain on the basis of footballing ability.
It's players like Whelan that will keep us up if ever we find ourselves in trouble.
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