Sunderland: PREVIEW

Another match day and once again I feel as though we need at least a point from the game.  Results have not been going our way recently for one reason or another, and it's about time we added to our points tally.

Sunderland are a vulnerable side at the moment.  They enjoyed a good victory over Bolton last week but I feel that if we can get at them early on and maybe take an early lead, we should be able to control the game.  We should be looking to start like we did against West Brom and hope that the ref doesn't ruin the game again.

Despite the loss of Bannan, we will go into the game with a strong looking squad.  Herd's suspension written off, Hutton fit and so is Jermaine Jenas who could make his debut finally.  Lets just hope he doesn't pick up another knock in the next 24 hours!  I expect Mcleish to look to try and steady the ship with a solid point, even though this is a very winnable game, so I expect the following line up:

                     Given

Hutton  Collins  Dunne  Warnock

              Petrov  Delph

  N'Zogbia  Ireland  Agbonlahor

                     Bent

I don't think Jenas will start but I expect him to play some part in the game.  I would love to see Herd keep his place but I can't see it happening and the same applies to Cuellar.  He's so reliable but managers always seem to want him as back up which is very unfair to him.

Hutton Doubtful For Sunderland (Thank God!)

Another good bit of news coming out of Villa today is that Alan Hutton is still a major doubt after a facial wound that forced him off against West Brom.  I'm not going to lie to you, I think he's a liability and we're better off without him.  I know I said i wanted to give him games to give him a chance but to be honest, he looks like he's getting worse! He could have seriously injured Shane Long last week and I think it's better for evryone if he doesn't play.  It also gives King Carlos a chance to show what he can do at right back (a much better job than Hutton for sure).

Herd Red Card Rescinded

A bit of better news coming out of Villa this week is the news that Chris Herd's shambolick red card against the Baggies has been rescinded so he will now be availible for the trip to Sunderland.  We were all expecting this outcome as I think the only people who think that it was a red card are Roy Hodgson and a few delusional Baggies fans.  I hope it hasn't affected the lad, he could have a future at Villa from what I've seen so far.

An Injustice Cost Us

You all know what I'm talking about.  Chris Herd's sending off was an absolute disgrace.  There is absolutely no way it was a red card, or a penalty for that matter.  The fact that Olsson didn't react to the so called stamp tells the whole story.  He didn't stamp on Olsson, he was just trying to free himself from him quickly which required him to do what he did.  For once though I'm not blaming Phil Dowd for this one, it was all down to his linesman.

What followed after that was inevitable.  I feel that if we had kept 11 men on the pitch then we would have taken all 3 points from the game.  We were looking good, had the lead and everything was going to plan.  Herd added the presence in midfield that we haven't had since Reo-Coker.  He must have been devastated with being sent off but I'm totally confident it will be recinded and he will be availible for our next match.

For me, Herd is a must start because he is the only player in the squad capable of putting himself about and get in the faces of the opposition.  If we give him a run of games I reckon he can turn into a key player in terms of winning midfield battles which is where we have been lacking recently.  I would love to see him in a 3 man midfield with Clark (instead of Petrov) and Bannan.  Youthful but with a lot of potential.

Next week I would like to see:

                      Given

Cuellar  Collins  Dunne  Warnock

                      Clark

            Herd          Bannan

Albrighton                      Agbonlahor

                        Bent

Hutton left out for obvious reasons, the main one being he is crap.  Cuellar is usually a solid defender and did well at right back a couple of years ago so I would lov to see him replace Hutton.  The 3 man midfield should mean we don't get overrun, therefore seeing mor of the ball.  Albrighton can give us much needed width and Gabby has already shown how good he can be on the wing.

Overall, despite the loss there are positives to take, but only if Mcleish chooses to act on them.  Unfortunately I feel as though he will revert back to Heskey and the whole experience will be for nothing.  Only time will tell...

West Brom: PREVIEW

Match day is upon us once again, and we are back at the home comforts of Villa Park.  The fact we are at home makes me think we should be going out all guns blazing to try and win this one.  After the submission at Man City I'm sure Eck will have the players fited up for this.

Despite this, I can't see there being many goals in this one.  West Brom are generally a solid team under Roy Hodgson and, apart from last week, so are we.  I'm expecting a very close faught game and predicting a 1-0 home win with Gabby grabbing the goal. 

In my previous post I stated what team I would like to see being played but this is what I think Mcleish will go for today:

                     Given

Hutton  Collins  Dunne  Warnock

                    Petrov

        Bannan           Delph

                     Ireland

               Gabby    Bent

It will be similar to the diamond we played against Wigan and I for one wouldn't be too disappointed to see that.  It seemed to work well last time so it deserves to be given another chance.

All in all I think we need to win today to give us a bit of a boost.  As we all know, we are drawing too frequently and even though a draw against the Baggies isn't bad, I feel it is needed.