I’m getting a bit bored of saying it, to be honest, but it is, isn’t it?
You can’t count your chickens, certainly not this early, but Norwich are beginning to look out of it to me.
Otherwise, it’s still really tight at the bottom and our once superior goal difference is practically neck and neck with the other teams around us.
We can score goals; that’s not a problem, but we concede far too many too. Even if you take out the Man City spanking we’ve still conceded the second highest in the league and it’s that which might be our undoing if we’re not very careful.
Squad news and little has changed. Borja was signed too late to be able to play in this one and I don’t think it makes much difference anyway as he’d be nowhere near the first team.
He seems a very strange signing to me and I’d rather have Rushian Hepburn-Murphy as backup, but I suppose it’s about him getting games and he’d have been unlikely to do that for us.
The good news is that Reina has got over his calf strain and will surely start, as much as Nyland did well against Leicester.
Samatta will no doubt start, although Dean Smith said he tired midweek, so we’ll probably see Davis come on too.
The other question is about Danny Drinkwater and will he start?
I’m guessing he will.
As for Bournemouth, they expect Jefferson Lerma and Diego Rico to be available, but it’s too early for Junior Stanislas, Jack Stacey and Joshua King.
So how do I see the game going?
Well, I definitely think we’re good enough to beat them on our day, but I’ve said many times that the way we play isn’t at all convincing and it worries me.
Even though we beat Leicester, our defence was atrocious again, but we’ve demonstrated that we can drag results from games where we look inferior. That’s a massive plus for a side in our position and it wouldn’t surprise me if our doggedness comes into play today.
I don’t see many goals because it’s going to be too cagey, I reckon, but I’m hoping we have enough to get the points.
A win would be massive, as it opens a gap on Bournemouth, but conversely, they’d go above us if they win.
So basically, its a “must win” and I think we will.
Villa 1-0.
I hope!
COYL!
Everton equalise against Watford who were 2 up!! Can we do the same???
No
Bournemouth deserve that as they’ve just outfought us.
This game was always more important than the Leicester game but we have lost focus and are heading back into relegation zone.
It doesn’t look to me like we can pull this one back.
Going to take a bit of Grealish magic if we do.
very disappointing performance by villa. first they allowed Bournemouth to dictate the game. they simply outfought us and that is unacceptable. they have slightly changed their style going more direct. they also have pressured our back 3 with playing three up front. but villa i think have been sleep walking through the half most of the time. yet we still had chances to punish them.
we made great progression lately and all that work is now wasted. just because we did not match our opponents. grealish should have got one back immediately but somehow went wide, 2 nil down maybe too much to come back from. but this is football if we can come out and up the tempo and press higher we can get back in this. need to score next and quickly
very very disappointing 1 step forward two back performance
A poor midfield, who cannot do anything constructive with the ball. No point in 5 across the middle if the central 3 cannot get it under control. Hause cannot pass the ball 15 yards to a colleague and has been absent fro the left back position from which Cherries scored both. To think we have parted with Chester and kept him – blimey!
Our threat is all one sided – Grealish on the left, nothing down our right – but Trézéguet isn’t playing, again.
Our biggest concern is that we totally rely on Grealish to make things happen. Trezeguet has quality in possession so why not throw him on. Nothing to lose now.
Engels on for Konsa
Messing about again!!!!!
Lermer off!
Looked like he barged Grealish to me, but comms saying he couldn’t get out of the way.
Engels punched in the head by their goalie. Pen???
No.
Definitely looked it to me.
Davis on for El Ghazi
My god, our passing is absolutely useless today.
Bournemouth nearly score again.
Sorry, but we are total rubbish.
Targett goes close though.
Why didn’t they keep nyland in goal Reina not so good today this result was going to happen anyway because they put everything into the Leicester match need winter break to reassess and get back to the basics and sort defence out looks like championship next season. And why let Hogan and Hepburn leave?
It’s about games for Murphy.
Samatta scores!
Our first headed goal this season!
That’s a disgraceful stat with the likes of Mings, Engels, and Wesley having plenty of game time this season.
Mings cannot head a ball like a forward. He is still rising from the jump when the ball hits his head (and it is that way round) so the ball goes up and away, or over the bar. A forward tries to get up earlier and meet the ball just above the eyebrows. So heading it down or level.
Fair point OLL, but can’t he learn how to win attacking headers? Can’t that be practised and coached? Terry wasn’t bad at scoring the odd one or two in his time. All the top CBs are capable of up to half a dozen goals a season, or at least they were, traditionally. A certain Mr Potato Head is right up there with the best of them, both for defensive and attacking headers. Ah well, times have changed, eh? We’ll have to rely on the strikers to score the headers, instead. Oh, wait…shit…
Come on Villa!