Villa 0-0 Wolves: Verdict Thread

[prawnking]

Have Taylor Perry, it sounds similar

I couldn't even be bothered to spell Nigel's surname either

 

[AndyWolves]

Please dont shoot me, but i thought Dendonker was a lot better in the second half.

I know what you mean. Problem is that he's not a great defensive CB and when we have more possession / play he's better, but still a defensive minded midfielder.

It's like the worst of both worlds.

For me, his best position should be defensive midfield / water carrier allowing Ruben or whoever to be more attacking.

 

[Deleted Cyber]

Ironically if we had kept Jota he would have linked well with WJ and Neto and Traore would have been the impact sub. Still, we are not going down. I don’t expect much entertainment though with the current mindset and formation .

 

[Deutsch Wolf]

No-one is going to link well with "WJ" (please stop calling him that), he doesn't link with anyone.

 

[Wilf Wolf]

If you take a manager who is cautious by nature and don’t sign centre halves that are good enough you get what we’ve got. We play three centre halves and then protect them with two deep sitting midfielders. That restricts your attacking options but then for good measure you play wing backs that stay wide and play two forwards whose instincts are to go wide irrespective of which side you play them. It leaves very little in the box hence the ball frequently going from advanced positions back to our own half. The fact we were quite successful in the past is simply evidence that Doherty drifting infield and scoring a few and Raul’s brilliance papered over a lot of cracks with the tactics.

 

[Derby Wolf]

I haven’t watched the game yet, and will do so tomorrow regardless of some of the comments...

It sounds like nothing particularly new, so I still get confused at some of the reactions. We aren’t physically capable of 90 minutes performances, I think

What in your opinion gives us those 90 minute performances? Is it concentration? Confidence?

What i find most interesting is if performances tailed off after 60 minutes whereas we grow into them. With the most glaring exception of Sheffield United this season (Maybe Leicester in the 4-3) we've never started a game like a train and tailed off its always, always the slow start which makes me think confidence and the players need to play and then think "actually we can match these" which is understandable as a newly promoted side but for that mentality to linger in season 3 is a worry, for me.

 

[Derby Wolf]

No-one is going to link well with "WJ" (please stop calling him that), he doesn't link with anyone.

Judging by some of your comments about him i thought he'd linked with your Mrs!

Have to admit, yesterday he lost me a little, moved away from the box got hold of the ball and played it to Traore, thats fine, now turn and get yourself back into position, no. He literally stood stationary behind Traore. Giving Adama no option and the ball was recycled into nothing areas. First time I've thought "what the fuck is he doing?" With him.

 

[Deutsch Wolf]

He's definitely the striker who's annoyed me most since Jigsaw Mason. He has the same characteristics of being no good at anything.

If you go back before that, I knew full well that Leon was shit and Cassidy was playing two levels above his ability. Trying to think who else compares. Lee Mills maybe, though he did at least score a couple.

 

[redvictor]

No-one is going to link well with "WJ" (please stop calling him that), he doesn't link with anyone.

His Mom disagrees....

 

[YoungWolf]

I don't think we're gonna quite agree on this, and while I respect your insights I think there's a lot of conjecture from you regarding Nuno's intentions and why we're playing this way.

Anyone who even suggested relegation during our January run was straight up ridiculed on here, but now you're saying Nuno is still worried about it?

I think it's perfect doable to play that formation now if Nuno really wanted to, or are we saying he's a fairweather manager who can only do it when he has a full squad? How many players do we need to buy in the summer if he doesn't trust anyone beyond the first choice XI?

I'm not saying he is worried about relegation, but the form until the Chelsea game was so, so bad, results wise. And the performances were getting worse. People were saying that if we went another five games like that he might lose his job. We've now only lost 2 in 9 by solidifying somewhat and gradually trying to progress to playing a bit higher up the pitch (with mixed results).

You might say it's doable, I might even agree tbh! But what I'm saying is Nuno has seen the results with Coady and Saiss, their inability to defend in the box effectively as a two and considered it not a viable option. If he had done that after the Arsenal game, and we'd only got 2/3 more points he'd be under plenty of pressure I think.

We've got ourselves into a more comfortable position now, and as I say if when we have Boly and Podence fit we don't play 4231 I'll be really disappointed. The academy teams have shifted to back fours, which is a big deal, and we want a new CB in the summer, it's pointing towards a back four more often in the long term IMO.

 

[Johnny75]

I'm not saying he is worried about relegation, but the form until the Chelsea game was so, so bad, results wise. And the performances were getting worse. People were saying that if we went another five games like that he might lose his job. We've now only lost 2 in 9 by solidifying somewhat and gradually trying to progress to playing a bit higher up the pitch (with mixed results).

You might say it's doable, I might even agree tbh! But what I'm saying is Nuno has seen the results with Coady and Saiss, their inability to defend in the box effectively as a two and considered it not a viable option. If he had done that after the Arsenal game, and we'd only got 2/3 more points he'd be under plenty of pressure I think.

We've got ourselves into a more comfortable position now, and as I say if when we have Boly and Podence fit we don't play 4231 I'll be really disappointed. The academy teams have shifted to back fours, which is a big deal, and we want a new CB in the summer, it's pointing towards a back four more often in the long term IMO.

I think both Coady and Saiss were more proactive yesterday in hunting the ball in the box. Saiss in particular went to meet the ball a couple of times with power and distance on the header.

It was a marked change from the straight jumping weak aerial defence we’ve seen this season.

If they continued that I could see them playing in a 2. Might be worth trying at least.

 

[redvictor]

I'm not saying he is worried about relegation, but the form until the Chelsea game was so, so bad, results wise. And the performances were getting worse. People were saying that if we went another five games like that he might lose his job. We've now only lost 2 in 9 by solidifying somewhat and gradually trying to progress to playing a bit higher up the pitch (with mixed results).

You might say it's doable, I might even agree tbh! But what I'm saying is Nuno has seen the results with Coady and Saiss, their inability to defend in the box effectively as a two and considered it not a viable option. If he had done that after the Arsenal game, and we'd only got 2/3 more points he'd be under plenty of pressure I think.

We've got ourselves into a more comfortable position now, and as I say if when we have Boly and Podence fit we don't play 4231 I'll be really disappointed. The academy teams have shifted to back fours, which is a big deal, and we want a new CB in the summer, it's pointing towards a back four more often in the long term IMO.

Agreed. He HAD to steady the ship a bit as the pressure was growing. Everything we talk about is just conjecture. Nuno and his staff know what they are going to do. We'll see next season what their plan is.

 

[Tredman]

I think both Coady and Saiss were more proactive yesterday in hunting the ball in the box. Saiss in particular went to meet the ball a couple of times with power and distance on the header.

It was a marked change from the straight jumping weak aerial defence we’ve seen this season.

If they continued that I could see them playing in a 2. Might be worth trying at least.

Yes I thought that too, though at times they were both going for the same ball which will be an issue if they don’t get it. Coady especially is better in the air than some of his weak performances have indicated - perhaps the result of being too reliant on Boly.

 

[Deutsch Wolf]

I think Saiss is fine in the air.

The oddest one was Dendoncker ducking against Newcastle, what the hell was going on there!

 

[Wolvensam]

We've got a decent run of games coming up after Liverpool and West Ham. If Boly is fit enough I'd go with him and Coady at the back - we definitely need a new CB but I think those two may pleasantly surprise us.

 

[redvictor]

Coady is a much better player than some people give him credit for. He has his weak points, but so does every other central defender. At least we found out he works in the opponents box!

 

[redvictor]

I think Saiss is fine in the air.

The oddest one was Dendoncker ducking against Newcastle, what the hell was going on there!

Donk is to defending what Napoleon was to Anglo/French relations...

 

[YoungWolf]

I think both Coady and Saiss were more proactive yesterday in hunting the ball in the box. Saiss in particular went to meet the ball a couple of times with power and distance on the header.

It was a marked change from the straight jumping weak aerial defence we’ve seen this season.

If they continued that I could see them playing in a 2. Might be worth trying at least.

Yeah I'll have to watch the game back tonight, but that sounds more promosing!

 

[sycophantia]

How many games did Saiss and Coady play as a two? I wouldn't have any issue with 2 of Boly, Coady or Saiss for 3-4 maybe 5 games, we have nothing to lose and would tell us more about our CB's

 

[YoungWolf]

I think the Brighton and Everton games are what did for Coady and Saiss as a pair I think. We conceded some really soft goals in the box from crosses/set pieces.

Boly is one of the best defenders in the air in the league IMO, and our most suited to playing in a higher line too. So it makes sense to be targeting playing a a back four with him as one of the centre backs