Slipping ... and Dropping

Based on how the attack was at least getting shots in - and on target - in the first match back against the Blades, I felt that we were in a good state and would recover and avoid relegation. Particularly as our defence looked as though its leaks had been plugged.

The reality now appears to be different. We can see now that the Blades have fallen off from their previous, spirited, form, and it now looks more and more that we missed a great opportunity to take full points from them.

They say that "football is a confidence game". Confidence in the Villa players now looks to be at a low ebb: we look to be quite unconfident in the last third. Trezeguet has had two reasonable chances in the last two matches when his shooting seemed to have the hallmarks of a blown confidence, and when players like Grealish start over-hitting passes then it seems to reveal a loss of nerve - of confidence. Conor is another.

With McGinn looking like a shadow of his former self, it doesn't look at all good.

When I think back two years and remember how we blew a rampant Wolves off the park in a 4-0 win, I really wonder what has happened since. Memories like the pummelling of Sunderland 6-2 around six years ago, when we thought those were the dark days, leave me really wondering what has since happened.

I mention those two particular games not for the fact of substantial wins, but because in those games Villa stood up with gusto and were ready to be counted. The spirit was there. These days I get the feeling that the coach is almost telling the players which blade of grass on which to walk.

Discipline and order are good things, but it also needs confidence and inspiration to translate the organisation and effort into a win.

How - in a so-called breakaway - can you slow down to such a degree that you end up playing backward passes? This has happened around three or four times of late.

We are going backwards for sure, and I so hate to say that. Only by some incredible lift of confidence do we still stand a chance of avoiding the drop. I do not like to contemplate what would come after that, especially after such a recent and painful three years down under.

Meanwhile, Steve Bruce remains a Premiership manager.

UTV. ???

Jack Has To Go! - Hasn't He?

Well ... a predictable result, I suppose. But just as in the corresponding fixture at their patch, we took a surprising, and somewhat bundled-in, lead.

Their passing was way above our class it has to be said, but on reflection, I also think they are a physical side, and never let Jack get anywhere near constructing anything of note - except the time he took to set up Luiz to make an accurate and exploited centre for our goal. Fouling seems to be the way of stopping the only dangerous playmaker in our side at this level, and they gamble on the ref not doing anything about it 'til the game is near-finished. One yellow card for their misdemeanours against Jack is nowhere near fair - but that's football, it seems.

This brings me to an unfortunate conclusion - that whether Villa is relegated or not, that Villa should sell Jack and take what they can for him. I don't like to say that, but to have arguably our most dangerous player perpetually on the ground does not win a team any points. More often than not he seems to be a liability as far as points are concerned. The only way we can keep him and use him effectively (i.m.o.) is if we acquire a couple of other players who are at least of equal ability.

But let's turn away from that unwelcome topic and look at some other players. Davis did what he normally does, and Samatta also. But what, oh what, is the point of playing one striker so far from his colleagues? There's no-one nearby, usually, for the striker's strength to be translated into an attack. Certainly, against the likes of Chelsea that was mostly the case. We really should have made more effort to take the game to them - we lost anyway.

And there's Conor. Against a top side, I'm afraid he doesn't look very good. He runs and he tries, but what else? The very early utterly wasted free-kick made me feel this was not going to be his day, and I was waiting for him to go off at half-time.

Well, I've not yet lost hope of staying up - but we have to get something from the Magpies and Wolves games if we stand any real chance of staying up.

So, it's still UTV from me!

Villa's Blades Better Than Theirs!

Well ... It's back! It was almost hard to believe, but footie is back - just at the time when cricket, tennis and golf are usually getting into full swing.

The downside of last night's match, of course, was that we did not get the win to take us out of the bottom 3. And it could be a rich opportunity missed as I really thought that Villa should have had a win last night - they were certainly more worthy of a win than the Blades.

And yet the Blades were denied a real goal! An absolutely bizarre moment, it has to be said, as Villa's keeper was effectively bundled over the line by his own team-mate! But the technical stuff didn't pick it up and Villa were left with half a match to take what should have been a deserved win.

So much for technology, but it did work in Villa's favour! And - who knows - triggered a run of good fortune for Villa.

It was also bizarre that the man whose burly frame caused Villa's keeper to go back over his line was Keinan Davis, starting a Premiership match for the first time. How I love this player - possessing strength and no little skill he looked just the man to be Villa's main striker. But out of several chances he had to get the ball in the net (some very well saved), the only one he succeeded with was the effort that pushed his own keeper over the line! The last chance he had before being substituted was as a result of coming in just too late to prod the ball into the net.

As for anything else, well the effort was there and the back line looked ever so more solid in its latest guise. We'll see whether it works against the better teams that are queuing up to face Villa, but it was a much better-looking effort at the back and the Blades had so little chance to get any effort on goal.

What was so frustrating was that the Blades' keeper seemed always to be in the right place at the right time (shades of Sam Hardy I thought!), and but for him, Villa would surely have won well. There was no real fault to be seen in any of Villa's players really, except for a certain rustiness - particularly in McGinn, who I had expected to show more punch. Conor - amazingly - stayed on the pitch for the whole match and didn't do at all badly - particularly with his corner-kicks, most of which got to a Villa player. Jack did his usual stuff and seemed to have more freedom to play his game in the second half.

Villa, notably, had developed new tactics during their enforced break, sending in plenty of accurate over-the-defence long passes that may well have brought success before the break.

Well - we go again at VP on Sunday. But let's hope that Villa have been able to use this first match advantage over nearly everyone to good use. It might just have got Villa into a better state of preparedness. We hope!

UTV!