Stop building Villa up to something they aren't!!

[Warren Hill 0]

I agree, Villa are brilliant. That''s why they''ve been below us all season. That''s why they are still below us now. That''s how the league works, QPR are awesome, Reading are like Brazil in 1970 and Wigan are playing like Arsenal''s invincibles (one for you there Ricky).

 

Sunderland were playing like Barca until they came up against Villa who "Bundesliga''d" them 6-1. You can tell Lambert played in Germany.

 

We''re doomed I tell ye....

[Row D Seat 7 0]

I''m sorry but I disagree with you. For a start Villa have a striker called Christian Benteke who is better than all four strikers at NCFC at the moment. Then you look at the other strikers Villa have in Bent, Weimann and Agbonlahor. Much better than our four.

In midfield I agree we have a similar setup there and Vlaar and Bassong have had similar seasons at the back (Vlaar''s injury lay-off aside).

I think Villa have something we don''t have. A manager with an edge. Someone who hates losing and will make changes if things aren''t going right and has the ability to pull something very special out of the bag when he most needs to. We have Mr. Nice Guy who constantly praises our opposition. Sets up the same way most weeks so teams know exactly what we plan to do. Fails to make the changes required to get maximum points and is constantly happy if we come away with a point. Unable to produce that special something that teams need at times.

There''s a reason managers like Ferguson, Mourinho and Mancini are disliked in some quarters. They have an edge. They have a side to them that''s ruthless. A side that''s down right bad at times, but it''s driven by the will to win, to succeed, and they often do. Hughton doesn''t have that.

When Newcastle sacked Hughton I was baffled. I read an interview with the Newcastle chief executive who said they wanted "a change of mentality in the dressing room". I was still baffled. Now I understand what he meant. His attitude can get you through a season in the Championship as his time with Newcastle and Birmingham proved. The Premiership is a whole different ball game though.

You can poke fun at my opinions all you want and I''m sure you will continue to do so. Yes, I have been very negative at times but I believe I have been right some of the time. Not all of the time, I will admit. Maybe I''ve been too negative at times, but negative tactics on the football pitch will often bring negative opinions from the terraces. Why should I be pleased with what I saw at Stoke? Why should I take the hit financially but still be singing Hughton''s name from the rooftops after a performance like that?

Did we go to Stoke and do what Villa did there? No. Why? We tried to match Stoke''s style. What did Villa do? Played football. Kept digging in and in the final 10 minutes, got what they deserved.

Everytime Villa have had to win this season, they have done. You could argue that we have too, in a way, but when it''s really mattered Villa have done the business. The reason they have been able to do this is they realised they needed a striker at the start of the season and backed Lambert to buy one. A very good one. We needed a striker at the start of the season too. We chose a Tottenham reserve team player called Harry Kane who''d never scored a Premier League goal. He still hasn''t.

Rip my opinions apart all you want but don''t question my loyalty to my football club. I''ll have you know, despite what many may think, I very very rarely shout anything at Carrow Road or any other ground that is to the detriment of my team. I''m one of many fans who, when in public, likes to keep my opinions to myself. Perhaps I should do the same on here as this message board seems to be filled with people claiming to know better than me. Even at the final whistle on Saturday, my mouth remained closed despite wanting to shout towards Hughton, telling him what a lousy job I think he''s doing.

[Snoots 0]

I thought that Villa''s performance last night was worringly good. IMHO Villa do look a better and much more dynamic side than us and possess a more formidable threat up front than we can offer. I''m not being negative and I hope that I am wrong but I can see them scoring at least 2 against us on Saturday and I don''t think we are capable of scoring more than 2. So, I would be delighted with a draw but not at all surprised if we lose. Like many supporters, I can''t help but worry about the fact that the last time Lambert came to Norwich for a league match as the manager of an opposing team he won 7-1 and of course the last time he came as the manager of an opposing team he won 4-1. The bigger and more important picture is avoiding the drop so regardless of vendetta with Villa and Lambo that''s what we have to focus upon and in that respect we have got to get our heads down, try and carve out a draw Saturday, win against WBA and in any case hope that the others, mainly Wigan of course, fail to gain the necessary points.

POS LP CLUB RANK LAST 6 MATCHES PTS

1 (1) Arsenal 4 W W W D W D 14

2 (2) Chelsea 3 W L W W D W 13

3 (3) Manchester City 2 L W W W L W 12

4 (4) Everton 6 W D W D L W 11

5 (5) Manchester United 1 W L W D W D 11

6 (6) Southampton 13 W W W D D L 11

7 (7) Aston Villa 16 W L W D L W 10

8 (8) Liverpool 7 L W D D D W 9

9 (9) West Ham United 10 W D D D W L 9

10 (10) West Bromwich Albion 8 W D L L D W 8

11 (11) Tottenham Hotspur 5 L L W D W D 8

12 (12) Wigan Athletic 18 W W D L L D 8

13 (13) Sunderland 15 D L L W W L 7

14 (14) Stoke City 12 D L L L W W 7

15 (15) Norwich City 14 D L D L W L 5

16 (16) Newcastle United 17 L L W L D L 4

17 (17) Fulham 11 W L D L L L 4

18 (18) Reading 20 L L L D L D 2

19 (19) Queens Park Rangers 19 L L D L L D 2

20 (20) Swansea City 9 L L L D D L 2

POS LP CLUB RANK LAST 6 MATCHES

[GJL Mid-Norfolk Canary 1,735]

I know what Villa aren''t but I also know that they are a side that contains a 20 goal striker in Benteke and a 10 goal striker in Weimann, plus Bent to come off the bench, which is rather more than us? Attackingwise they have more to concern us than we have to concern them with , especially moreso if we''re without one or both of our first choice centre halves.

In a straight shootout between two sides it''s not unreasonable to favour the side with more firepower over one who''s wholly relying on set pieces?

[nutty nigel 7,507]

[quote user="Row D Seat 7"]I''m sorry but I disagree with you. For a start Villa have a striker called Christian Benteke who is better than all four strikers at NCFC at the moment. Then you look at the other strikers Villa have in Bent, Weimann and Agbonlahor. Much better than our four. In midfield I agree we have a similar setup there and Vlaar and Bassong have had similar seasons at the back (Vlaar''s injury lay-off aside). I think Villa have something we don''t have. A manager with an edge. Someone who hates losing and will make changes if things aren''t going right and has the ability to pull something very special out of the bag when he most needs to. We have Mr. Nice Guy who constantly praises our opposition. Sets up the same way most weeks so teams know exactly what we plan to do. Fails to make the changes required to get maximum points and is constantly happy if we come away with a point. Unable to produce that special something that teams need at times. There''s a reason managers like Ferguson, Mourinho and Mancini are disliked in some quarters. They have an edge. They have a side to them that''s ruthless. A side that''s down right bad at times, but it''s driven by the will to win, to succeed, and they often do. Hughton doesn''t have that. When Newcastle sacked Hughton I was baffled. I read an interview with the Newcastle chief executive who said they wanted "a change of mentality in the dressing room". I was still baffled. Now I understand what he meant. His attitude can get you through a season in the Championship as his time with Newcastle and Birmingham proved. The Premiership is a whole different ball game though. You can poke fun at my opinions all you want and I''m sure you will continue to do so. Yes, I have been very negative at times but I believe I have been right some of the time. Not all of the time, I will admit. Maybe I''ve been too negative at times, but negative tactics on the football pitch will often bring negative opinions from the terraces. Why should I be pleased with what I saw at Stoke? Why should I take the hit financially but still be singing Hughton''s name from the rooftops after a performance like that? Did we go to Stoke and do what Villa did there? No. Why? We tried to match Stoke''s style. What did Villa do? Played football. Kept digging in and in the final 10 minutes, got what they deserved. Everytime Villa have had to win this season, they have done. You could argue that we have too, in a way, but when it''s really mattered Villa have done the business. The reason they have been able to do this is they realised they needed a striker at the start of the season and backed Lambert to buy one. A very good one. We needed a striker at the start of the season too. We chose a Tottenham reserve team player called Harry Kane who''d never scored a Premier League goal. He still hasn''t. Rip my opinions apart all you want but don''t question my loyalty to my football club. I''ll have you know, despite what many may think, I very very rarely shout anything at Carrow Road or any other ground that is to the detriment of my team. I''m one of many fans who, when in public, likes to keep my opinions to myself. Perhaps I should do the same on here as this message board seems to be filled with people claiming to know better than me. Even at the final whistle on Saturday, my mouth remained closed despite wanting to shout towards Hughton, telling him what a lousy job I think he''s doing.[/quote]

 

That''s exactlyt how I feel RowDee. Maybe it''s something to do with it being a message board based on opinions?

 

 

[Row D Seat 7 0]

@nutty nigel - I agree. It''s how those opinions are put across though. I agree that I don''t always put mine across in the right way but that''s only born out of being constantly shouted down even when you actually have a valid point. Most on here seem to already want to disagree with you before they''ve read what you have to say and considered it.

[hogesar 9,611]

[quote user="Warren Hill"]

I agree, Villa are brilliant. That''s why they''ve been below us all season. That''s why they are still below us now. That''s how the league works, QPR are awesome, Reading are like Brazil in 1970 and Wigan are playing like Arsenal''s invincibles (one for you there Ricky).

 

Sunderland were playing like Barca until they came up against Villa who "Bundesliga''d" them 6-1. You can tell Lambert played in Germany.

 

We''re doomed I tell ye....

[/quote]

This made me happy.

[nutty nigel 7,507]

[quote user="Row D Seat 7"]@nutty nigel - I agree. It''s how those opinions are put across though. I agree that I don''t always put mine across in the right way but that''s only born out of being constantly shouted down even when you actually have a valid point. Most on here seem to already want to disagree with you before they''ve read what you have to say and considered it.[/quote]

 

No.. you''re no different to anyone else. If you post on here then you should expect to have your opinion challenged. If you can''t hack that then wimp out and write a blog[;)]

 

 

[Row D Seat 7 0]

Of course I expect my opinion to be challenged. Not shouted down like you don''t know what you''re talking about.

[Orford65 0]

Don''t know if this has already been pointed out as I could''nt bear to wade through a lot of the dross on here, but Sunderland last night were pants and were far too wide open - a la De Canio.Their keeper was a living nightmare and they lost their best player when 4-1 behind.We will not give them anything like as much space to play in.

[nutty nigel 7,507]

[quote user="Row D Seat 7"]Of course I expect my opinion to be challenged. Not shouted down like you don''t know what you''re talking about.[/quote]

 

But take a look at what others have to deal with. Look at than girlie crab on the other thread who dived in just to give me stick As did lord snooty. Don''t let it get to you. Give them some back. You might enjoy it. Don''t be a snivelling victim[;)]

 

 

[morty 0]

Am just watching the highlights of the Villa game from last night (I couldn''t watch it as, like any other proper fan, was at Carrow road) and how dire was Sunderlands defending? They seriously made Villa look a lot better than they actually are!

[Citizen Journalist Foghorn 0]

[quote user="GJL Mid-Norfolk Canary"]

In a straight shootout between two sides it''s not unreasonable to favour the side with more firepower over one who''s wholly relying on set pieces?

[/quote]Why?  Our defense has been pretty good at Carrow Road this season. Our home record is excellent.If we lineup without Bassong and Turner things will be a tad more difficult.  But I wouldn''t worry too much unless we play our recent tactic of Tettey, Howson and BJ patrolling the centre circle.

[ricky knight 0]

Why cant people think we are on a loser and still be a City fan, i want City to win as much as anyone but i happen to think the momentum is with villa, they have more of an attacking threat than us, dont blame me, blame bad management leaving us with a blunt strike force when everyone could see in both windows we needed new blood up front and dont say we have got strikers cause there aint one worth a woodbine.Villas attacking three i would love in city shirt, how many on here would not. I just think things could be the same as the league cup if we are not careful, sorry for making an honest assessment.

[morty 0]

Binner.

[ricky knight 0]

[quote user="morty"][quote user="ricky knight"]lets have it right, right now Villa do look a better prospect than us, they have goals and pace in the side and now have the momentum imo. Hughton is far too defensive not calling for his head or nout, but sometimes you do have to have a go, the stats from Stoke saturday were pathetic in a game we could have won with a bit more belief. i said before yesterday that i think Villa will have too much for us Saturday but really hope i am wrong.[/quote]Even Alex Ferguson frets about going away to Stoke FFS.Yes it was a shit performance, but not truly representative of our current form, and certainly not representative of our HOME form.

[/quote]

yea i bet Alex has many sleepness nights worrying about Stoke lol, god give me strength.

[nutty nigel 7,507]

[quote user="ricky knight"]Why cant people think we are on a loser and still be a City fan, i want City to win as much as anyone but i happen to think the momentum is with villa, they have more of an attacking threat than us, dont blame me, blame bad management leaving us with a blunt strike force when everyone could see in both windows we needed new blood up front and dont say we have got strikers cause there aint one worth a woodbine.Villas attacking three i would love in city shirt, how many on here would not. I just think things could be the same as the league cup if we are not careful, sorry for making an honest assessment.[/quote]

 

I doubt anyone would accuse you of not being a city fan for that post Ricky. It''s the ones who make up ridiculous scenarios and that seem to think we will lose every game whilst our rivals win every game which seem to frustrate people.

 

(Mind you.. that post was a bit tame and unconfronational for you)[;)]

 

 

[Row D Seat 7 0]

Actually Morty is probably quite a good example of somebody on here who seems to speak from a position of some unknown self-given superiority.

"Like any other proper Norwich fan, I was at Carrow Road last night".

It''s that playground attitude of ''I''m a better fan than you'' that winds me up about these message boards sometimes. It''s like me saying ''Yeah, like every other proper Norwich fan I was at Stoke last weekend''. However, I know that''s not true because I also know that some proper fans had to work, or couldn''t afford it, or had other commitments.

[morty 0]

[quote user="Row D Seat 7"]Actually Morty is probably quite a good example of somebody on here who seems to speak from a position of some unknown self-given superiority.

"Like any other proper Norwich fan, I was at Carrow Road last night".

It''s that playground attitude of ''I''m a better fan than you'' that winds me up about these message boards sometimes. It''s like me saying ''Yeah, like every other proper Norwich fan I was at Stoke last weekend''. However, I know that''s not true because I also know that some proper fans had to work, or couldn''t afford it, or had other commitments.[/quote]Dry your pants, and dry your eyes while you''re at it.And lighten up for that matter too.

[blahblahblah 2]

re villa last night - I''m reminded of Swansea vs Norwich in the championship.  We had a cracking game against them, which I believe they won, but we went on to take the automatic promotion spot.  Could be that last night was villas'' cup final, and this Saturday will be ours.Failing that, there is more than a touch of the "Fulhams" about Newcastle and Sunderland right now...

[morty 0]

[quote user="ricky knight"][quote user="morty"][quote user="ricky knight"]lets have it right, right now Villa do look a better prospect than us, they have goals and pace in the side and now have the momentum imo. Hughton is far too defensive not calling for his head or nout, but sometimes you do have to have a go, the stats from Stoke saturday were pathetic in a game we could have won with a bit more belief. i said before yesterday that i think Villa will have too much for us Saturday but really hope i am wrong.[/quote]Even Alex Ferguson frets about going away to Stoke FFS.Yes it was a shit performance, but not truly representative of our current form, and certainly not representative of our HOME form.

[/quote]

yea i bet Alex has many sleepness nights worrying about Stoke lol, god give me strength.[/quote]I bow to your obviously superior footballing knowledge.[Y]

[Hackedoff 0]

What a difference a week makes. At home we will create chances. Against a poor Aston Villa defence (who have now gone 24 games without keeping a clean sheet) we will get them. If i remember we had around 17,18 shots last home game so keep the faith.

[Sussexyellow 55]

[quote user="blahblahblah"]re villa last night - I''m reminded of Swansea vs Norwich in the championship.  We had a cracking game against them, which I believe they won, but we went on to take the automatic promotion spot.  Could be that last night was villas'' cup final, and this Saturday will be ours.Failing that, there is more than a touch of the "Fulhams" about Newcastle and Sunderland right now...[/quote]

I am not sure about it being Villas cup final but possibly they just match up very well against Sunderland. I think they also played extremely well at the Stadium of Light in a 2 nil win.

Lambert had also faced Di Canio in a cup game at Swindon so will have learnt something about how he sets up a team and the new manager factor may have been lessened.

Saturday will be one tough game but lets not get carried away.

And yes lets make it our cup final if thats what it takes.....

COYY

[ricky knight 0]

[quote user="morty"][quote user="ricky knight"][quote user="morty"][quote user="ricky knight"]lets have it right, right now Villa do look a better prospect than us, they have goals and pace in the side and now have the momentum imo. Hughton is far too defensive not calling for his head or nout, but sometimes you do have to have a go, the stats from Stoke saturday were pathetic in a game we could have won with a bit more belief. i said before yesterday that i think Villa will have too much for us Saturday but really hope i am wrong.[/quote]Even Alex Ferguson frets about going away to Stoke FFS.Yes it was a shit performance, but not truly representative of our current form, and certainly not representative of our HOME form.

[/quote]

yea i bet Alex has many sleepness nights worrying about Stoke lol, god give me strength.[/quote]I bow to your obviously superior footballing knowledge.[Y][/quote]

and i bow to your knowledge of being a first class comedian, with some of your posts, Alex crapping himself over Stoke City being a classic.

[Row D Seat 7 0]

@Hackedoff - We didn''t create loads against an even worse Reading defence though and that game turned out to be harder than it needed to be towards the end.

However, I think after our 2nd goal, we thought the game was won, hence why they came back into it.

I''m hoping that Saturday, the players and management know that a win is a must to avoid any unwanted pressure.

[morty 0]

[quote user="ricky knight"][quote user="morty"][quote user="ricky knight"][quote user="morty"][quote user="ricky knight"]lets have it right, right now Villa do look a better prospect than us, they have goals and pace in the side and now have the momentum imo. Hughton is far too defensive not calling for his head or nout, but sometimes you do have to have a go, the stats from Stoke saturday were pathetic in a game we could have won with a bit more belief. i said before yesterday that i think Villa will have too much for us Saturday but really hope i am wrong.[/quote]Even Alex Ferguson frets about going away to Stoke FFS.Yes it was a shit performance, but not truly representative of our current form, and certainly not representative of our HOME form.

[/quote]

yea i bet Alex has many sleepness nights worrying about Stoke lol, god give me strength.[/quote]I bow to your obviously superior footballing knowledge.[Y][/quote]

and i bow to your knowledge of being a first class comedian, with some of your posts, Alex crapping himself over Stoke City being a classic.[/quote]You have never heard any top Premiership managers doing a pre match interview and airing concerns about Stokes bullying tactics, and their ability to stifle other teams play and tactics? Perhaps saying what a tough away trip it is?Never?Not once?Do you own a television at all?

[Yellowbeagle 0]

I understand some of the doom and gloom around some of our performances but the reality of it is that it''s the away form which has been truelly terrible and we''ve been actually pretty good all season at home results wise, we''ve picked up 28 points at home thats more than anyone else in the bottom half of the table, more than Swansea and only one less than Liverpool have managed. We need to get behind the team on Saturday at home we are more than a match for Villa.

[Bury Yellow 2]

Tune it tomorrow folks for another Nutty/Morty show.

Now a look at the weather ;-)

[morty 0]

[quote user="Bury Yellow"]Tune it tomorrow folks for another Nutty/Morty show.

Now a look at the weather ;-)[/quote]

[URL=http://s869.photobucket.com/user/mortymccarthy/media/14209195c6_thumb.jpg.html][IMG]http://i869.photobucket.com/albums/ab257/mortymccarthy/14209195c6_thumb.jpg[/IMG][/URL]

[;)]

[ricky knight 0]

[quote user="morty"][quote user="ricky knight"][quote user="morty"][quote user="ricky knight"][quote user="morty"][quote user="ricky knight"]lets have it right, right now Villa do look a better prospect than us, they have goals and pace in the side and now have the momentum imo. Hughton is far too defensive not calling for his head or nout, but sometimes you do have to have a go, the stats from Stoke saturday were pathetic in a game we could have won with a bit more belief. i said before yesterday that i think Villa will have too much for us Saturday but really hope i am wrong.[/quote]Even Alex Ferguson frets about going away to Stoke FFS.Yes it was a shit performance, but not truly representative of our current form, and certainly not representative of our HOME form.

[/quote]

yea i bet Alex has many sleepness nights worrying about Stoke lol, god give me strength.[/quote]I bow to your obviously superior footballing knowledge.[Y][/quote]

and i bow to your knowledge of being a first class comedian, with some of your posts, Alex crapping himself over Stoke City being a classic.[/quote]You have never heard any top Premiership managers doing a pre match interview and airing concerns about Stokes bullying tactics, and their ability to stifle other teams play and tactics? Perhaps saying what a tough away trip it is?Never?Not once?Do you own a television at all?[/quote]

trying to bring the match referee''s attention to Stokes tactics in a pre match interview is hardly fretting, its called mind games and ferguson is the master.