Pre Season Friendlies Thread | Page 22 | Vital Football

Pre Season Friendlies Thread

I thought RHM did ok to be fair to him. He could have scored early second half but for some good goalkeeping. He definitely needs a loan to someone who will play him every week. Tranmere has been mooted, they've just lost their top scorer and Corey Blackett-Taylor has just signed for them so there's an open striker spot and someone he already knows.

I was alarmed by the amount of times we looked like losing the ball whilst passing around the back. Similar to the Albion away game in the play offs. Too casual, though perhaps expected in pre season. We will be punished by premier League teams though.
 
crimsondonkey said:
Friendly run outs and some are using those to wet their panties and voice concerns! Get a fucking grip ?
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I know what you mean but every Villa game is one I want us to win and be as good as we can be even though I know it's mainly about fitness and game time at this stage.

Its the same every year. If we won every friendly 8-0 we'd have the more pessimistic among us saying it's only a friendly and doesn't matter but lose, or at least not win convincingly then it does matter and we're shit.
 
Just got back. Read a few comments and a bit of head wobbling needs to be done.

Think about it they have had a really hard week in high temperatures in America, we fly back Thursday and are expected a couple of days later to play like Man City or something. It was an exercise to stretch their legs and have a run out in my opinion , a few times in the first half we upped the tempo and looked fine , other than that we played in about second gear even SJM .

Jota looked good though a kind of lesser version of David Silva, clever on the ball and I would like to see him , Wesley , Super Jack and El Ghazi play together , that would create some chances. Wesley is a unit , quick as well and I can see him doing well.

Anwar was there , he warmed up just before half time but then didn't come on so whether he has a slight injury I don't know. Chester went off with a couple of minutes to go and went straight down the tunnel , so I reckon he has picked something up.
 
Good point Sir Den, whenever I’ve come back from the States I take a few days just to get my body clock back in check.

I’m not wholly convinced flying to the US or Australia to play better teams is actually a big advantage, the only advantage is the pay cheque at the end of it. I get they’re footballers, paid a fortune and fly business class, but biology is the same for all of us.

I’m quite happy a few local games with a step up in level across Europe somewhere. I do think we need two good tests, not just Leipzig but the management team will have planned this and in the management team I trust.
 
Fulford said:
I get that mate, but apart from Jota I haven't seen anyone who looks an upgrade on last season. Plus we need a goalscorer.
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Each to their own but how you can come to that conclusion after the sum total of one game per player (half per player today and in the US) is beyond me Fulford.
And I have been very sceptical about this summer's business so far.
 
I had totally forgotten about coming back from the states so

:sorry:

One thing though I don't see Wesley as a goalscorer but a good one alongside him will get tonnes of goals.
 
First pre season friendly on home soil, the performance is barely important it’s all about fitness hence why 21 players were given a run out. Anyone looking any more into it at this stage needs to calm down. If we are shit in the final friendly then I might be concerned, but even then there’s a huge difference between friendlies and real matches
 
I think what has stuck out for me across the two games is the tactical discipline and a system of play that doesn't rely on out-and-out wingers. Jota comes inside (alot) and in the second half of both games he has played strikers either side (Davis, Hogan, RHM). His teams at Brentford played in a similar way. It gives the midfield three the option to go into wide areas and you can see plenty of inter-changing when the full-backs push forward. On a number of occasions today we had Hogan cutting into the middle with Angela going wide, or Grealish coming out to the left with Green or Taylor coming narrower in attacking areas.
The way that (I think) Dean Smith wants to see his teams play is with fluidity in the attacking areas - lots of movement and inter-changing of positions. Makes you less predictable and not reliant on wingers. Last season he inherited wingers and went with it, but now he's able to bring in his own players such as Jota and has a full pre-season to ingrain what he wants from the likes of ElGhazi etc.
 
sirdennis said:
What struck me , is that both the first half and second half teams played in the same fashion. We have an established style of play now where 21 players know their roles and what is expected from them. So when the injuries come then there will be no surprises for anyone stepping in.
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You mean the Villa engine.
 
danvilla2 said:
Good point Sir Den, whenever I’ve come back from the States I take a few days just to get my body clock back in check.

I’m not wholly convinced flying to the US or Australia to play better teams is actually a big advantage, the only advantage is the pay cheque at the end of it. I get they’re footballers, paid a fortune and fly business class, but biology is the same for all of us.

I’m quite happy a few local games with a step up in level across Europe somewhere. I do think we need two good tests, not just Leipzig but the management team will have planned this and in the management team I trust.
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:wagging::wagging:
We'll have none of that talk danvilla2!! I fully expect a trip to the USofA at least once a year to fulfill my addiction. :yes::yes:
Another advantage of pre-season in hot/humid conditions is that the fitness builds quicker (body has to work harder to take in oxygen). And the facilities in the US are second-to-none. Villa used the Vikings gym this past week and I can say from first-hand experience that it is absolutely state-of-the-art....
 
Fulford said:
You mean the Villa engine.
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You're gonna give yourself a nervous breakdown Fulford, and the season hasn't even started yet. The Villa Engine was a good plan, only broke due to a crap owner and stubborn old-school manager.
 
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