After a great few games in the holding role, Herd has been the main positive for fans to focus on recently. However Alex Mcleish doesn't want to heap too much pressure on him so early in his career. I've been so impressed with him this season, ever since I saw him play right back against Wolves. He should definately play whenever fit in the holding role and then we can play a couple of attack minded midfielders ahead of him, hopefully Gardner soon!
Here is what Mcleish said:
"What the boys have normally done after a defeat is give me a good reaction.
"We have a tough one at the weekend but I will be looking at possibly freshening things up in any way that I can.
"Guys like Chris Herd are getting a crash-course in the Premier League.
"He was all over the place. He made tackles, got booked, he's an athletic kid but his legs gave away towards the end. If we expose him too much we risk injury.
"To rely on these kids for the whole season is putting a lot of pressure on them.
"He's certainly shown the mental toughness to handle it. He's developing but let's not put too much pressure on him."
Wednesday 23 November 2011
The Youngsters Showing Us How It's Done
I've just watched the highlights from Villa's NextGen Series 3-0 victory over Ajax and all I could think throughout was, why can't the first team do that?
Obviously there were a few sloppy errors but you will always find them at youth level, they soon learn to cut them out once they are on the big stage and realise just how costly a mistake can be. The midfield duo of Gary Gardner and Daniel Johnson looked very comfortable on the ball and very dangerous coming forward. We've all heard a lot about Gardner and saying that he should be given a chance in the first team, and why not? The current lot clearly aren't cutting the mustard at the moment so things can't get worse by putting Gardner in there. He's 19 years old, that's about the age that top youth players start making an impact on their respective clubs first team and I feel that the time he is spending in the youth and reserve teams is a bit of a waste of time. The NextGen Series will do a lot of good for him to experience european competition but it's clear that he is way too good to be playing at that level.
His partner in midfield, Johnson, also looks like a very decent prospect. I noticed he made a couple of cup squads early last season without getting on the pitch. I can clearly see why Houllier liked him. He reminds me a bit of Barry Bannan. Quite slight but very comfortable on the ball, close control and a lovely left foot. I can't see where he would really fit in with the first team squad at this moment in time but I would like to see him maybe go out on loan and get some time playing championship football because I can see him having a good future.
Finally I would like to mention a couple of wingers, Jack Grealish and Jordan Graham. I've heard in the past about Chelsea showing an interest in Jordan Graham and I can see why. Still at a very young age he made the Ajax defence look stupid (those of you that have seen the highlights will know which bit I'm on about). That was quality wing play and the more he plays, the better he will get and I think he could be really special. The same applies to Grealish. I first saw him play in the 4-1 win against Rosenborg earlier in the competition. He looks like another very skillful player who, like Graham will just get better with time and could become really special.
I heard Alex Mcleish was at that match, so hopefully he will have picked up a few tips on how to set his teams up (TO WIN!). He simply has to start including Gardner in the squads over the next few weeks and we can all finally see what he can do in the Premier League.
Other than that I would like to leave you with my ones to watch:
Jack Grealish
Jordan Graham
Obviously there were a few sloppy errors but you will always find them at youth level, they soon learn to cut them out once they are on the big stage and realise just how costly a mistake can be. The midfield duo of Gary Gardner and Daniel Johnson looked very comfortable on the ball and very dangerous coming forward. We've all heard a lot about Gardner and saying that he should be given a chance in the first team, and why not? The current lot clearly aren't cutting the mustard at the moment so things can't get worse by putting Gardner in there. He's 19 years old, that's about the age that top youth players start making an impact on their respective clubs first team and I feel that the time he is spending in the youth and reserve teams is a bit of a waste of time. The NextGen Series will do a lot of good for him to experience european competition but it's clear that he is way too good to be playing at that level.
His partner in midfield, Johnson, also looks like a very decent prospect. I noticed he made a couple of cup squads early last season without getting on the pitch. I can clearly see why Houllier liked him. He reminds me a bit of Barry Bannan. Quite slight but very comfortable on the ball, close control and a lovely left foot. I can't see where he would really fit in with the first team squad at this moment in time but I would like to see him maybe go out on loan and get some time playing championship football because I can see him having a good future.
Finally I would like to mention a couple of wingers, Jack Grealish and Jordan Graham. I've heard in the past about Chelsea showing an interest in Jordan Graham and I can see why. Still at a very young age he made the Ajax defence look stupid (those of you that have seen the highlights will know which bit I'm on about). That was quality wing play and the more he plays, the better he will get and I think he could be really special. The same applies to Grealish. I first saw him play in the 4-1 win against Rosenborg earlier in the competition. He looks like another very skillful player who, like Graham will just get better with time and could become really special.
I heard Alex Mcleish was at that match, so hopefully he will have picked up a few tips on how to set his teams up (TO WIN!). He simply has to start including Gardner in the squads over the next few weeks and we can all finally see what he can do in the Premier League.
Other than that I would like to leave you with my ones to watch:
Jack Grealish
Jordan Graham
Tuesday 22 November 2011
Ian Taylor - Next Villa Manager?
I spoke about this during and after the match last night on Twitter and it all seemed to make good sense. Ian Taylor is Mr. Aston Villa, there is no 2 ways about it. He is a hard core fan, lived the dream by playing for his club and is now the ambassador for the club. Granted, he might not know much about management yet, but he would be able to learn the ins and outs of it through time.
There is no way that Alex Mcleish is the long term solution to our problems. All he has done is create a few more. Ian Taylor is still young in terms of management age so he has plenty of time to learn the ropes. If he was to get the job, he would be respected by the players and be worshipped by the fans. He is an Aston Villa legend, end of. I know people have said in the past that they would love Martin Laursen to manage us one day, and I would like to see that happen aswell. He would have a very similar effect to Tayls. Basically what I want is someone who knows Villa and will get the players playing with passion and know what kind of football the fans want to see being played.
There is no way that Alex Mcleish is the long term solution to our problems. All he has done is create a few more. Ian Taylor is still young in terms of management age so he has plenty of time to learn the ropes. If he was to get the job, he would be respected by the players and be worshipped by the fans. He is an Aston Villa legend, end of. I know people have said in the past that they would love Martin Laursen to manage us one day, and I would like to see that happen aswell. He would have a very similar effect to Tayls. Basically what I want is someone who knows Villa and will get the players playing with passion and know what kind of football the fans want to see being played.
A Day To Reflect - Not Much Has Changed
So, I've had a day to reflect on the appauling surrender at Tottenham and my viewpoint remains the same. We all saw the team sheet before the game and knew what the outcome would be. Even with a team capable of holding out a team like Spurs for 90 minutes I don't agree with those tactics at all. We are Aston Villa, we are a big enough and good enough team to go out and attack any team in the league. If we get hammered then so be it, at least we gave it a go. Playing the way we did we had absolutely no chance of getting a result, at least by throwing everything at Spurs might give them something to think about.
I often say things in the heat of the moment after a poor performance, and last night was the first time I have used the words "Mcleish Out". Maybe it was a bit premature but that's how furious I was at how he set us up to play. I knew when he came to Villa that he had been accused of being defensive in the past but he said that with the attacking options at his disposal at Villa he would play dynamic, expansive, attacking football. But here we are talking about his overly negative tactics making a mockery of our club.
I'm not going to start a whole Mcleish Out campaign just yet, but what I will say is that if he doesn't alter his tactics considerably for the Swansea match then I will start to consider whether I want this man in charge of our club. Obviously I'm not keen on him anyway but I'm still willing to give him another chance. Another episode similar to this one will spell the end of my belief in him. Randy will not sack him, not unless we are in SERIOUS trouble because he has it in his mind that he's the new Sir Alex, but that won't stop the fans in voicing their disgust at his tactics. ENOUGH DEFENDING, JUST ATTACK!!!
I often say things in the heat of the moment after a poor performance, and last night was the first time I have used the words "Mcleish Out". Maybe it was a bit premature but that's how furious I was at how he set us up to play. I knew when he came to Villa that he had been accused of being defensive in the past but he said that with the attacking options at his disposal at Villa he would play dynamic, expansive, attacking football. But here we are talking about his overly negative tactics making a mockery of our club.
I'm not going to start a whole Mcleish Out campaign just yet, but what I will say is that if he doesn't alter his tactics considerably for the Swansea match then I will start to consider whether I want this man in charge of our club. Obviously I'm not keen on him anyway but I'm still willing to give him another chance. Another episode similar to this one will spell the end of my belief in him. Randy will not sack him, not unless we are in SERIOUS trouble because he has it in his mind that he's the new Sir Alex, but that won't stop the fans in voicing their disgust at his tactics. ENOUGH DEFENDING, JUST ATTACK!!!
Sunday 20 November 2011
Optimism Mixed With Fear
It seems so long since my last post. In fact I think it was just after the 2-1 defeat to West Brom when I last wrote an article. I must apologise for the lack of posts but it has been a hectic few weeks but I'm committed to making this blog a success so my attention is now fully focussed on giving you, the reader, a good read about all things Villa. So, let's start with a look ahead to Monday's match with Spurs shall we...
I've just checked the table and noticed that if Spurs win thier 2 games in hand they will rise to 2nd in the table! And the way they are playing it is a real possibility. I would love to go into this game with confidence but whenever I start feeling optimistic, my mind switches to our full backs. Warnock against Lennon and Walker is bad enough but when you add Hutton against Bale to the equation, the outlook doesn't look good. Then they have Van der Vaart, Modric and Parker against Petrov and Herd which just adds to the woes.
On a positive note I definately feel as though we can make chances against anyone now that Gabby and Bent have formed a potentially lethal partnership. We need Gabby to be at his best to stand any chance of getting something out of the game. It is a potentially very high scoring game. Over recent years our games together have been very tight affairs and usually full of drama, but this time around I think we need to rely on Tottenham's midfield to have an off day to make it a close game. Nevertheless that won't stop me believing we can take all 3 points in great style, no matter how impossible that may seem. That's the feeling I get before every game and that will never change, so bring it on!
I've just checked the table and noticed that if Spurs win thier 2 games in hand they will rise to 2nd in the table! And the way they are playing it is a real possibility. I would love to go into this game with confidence but whenever I start feeling optimistic, my mind switches to our full backs. Warnock against Lennon and Walker is bad enough but when you add Hutton against Bale to the equation, the outlook doesn't look good. Then they have Van der Vaart, Modric and Parker against Petrov and Herd which just adds to the woes.
On a positive note I definately feel as though we can make chances against anyone now that Gabby and Bent have formed a potentially lethal partnership. We need Gabby to be at his best to stand any chance of getting something out of the game. It is a potentially very high scoring game. Over recent years our games together have been very tight affairs and usually full of drama, but this time around I think we need to rely on Tottenham's midfield to have an off day to make it a close game. Nevertheless that won't stop me believing we can take all 3 points in great style, no matter how impossible that may seem. That's the feeling I get before every game and that will never change, so bring it on!
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