On the eve of what most Villains have declared as the game that could end the Lambert era at our great club, let’s look at why I believe that Paul Lambert is the right man to lead Villa through the rest of the season.
Knee Jerk Reaction
Sacking Lambert would be the ultimate knee jerk reaction from the administration of Villa. Just as the contract extension, after the first run of matches was a bit of a strange thing, firing him for this latest run of form would be exactly the same. Imagine if Villa stood in their current position but the fixtures came in a different order, would this idea of firing Lambert even exist? Probably not! The Premiership isn’t a knockout competition; it’s not the FA Cup. It takes 38 matches to decide a winner. Deciding the fate of Paul Lambert after a poor run that made up 10.5% of the domestic season, doesn’t make much sense to me. Not allowing Lambert to develop the likes of Grealish seen through the implementation of the players that he has brought in over the summer would be quite criminal. A club with young players still trying to find an identity needs consistency and a sense of belonging, not a revolving staff and contradicting development plans.
Roy Keane
The players that Villa has brought in over the summer have come to Villa for a chance to develop under Roy Keane. Roy Keane knows how to win!!! Look at his career at United; he won nearly everything there was to win. While his management career hasn’t been as prolific as his playing career, he has that ‘Been There Done That’ attitude that Villa desperately need. Also, as arguably one of the greatest midfielders to play in the Premiership in recent memory, Keane can play a major role in the development of the likes of Cleverly, Westwood, Delph, and Sanchez. In the coming years, Villa have the opportunity to have three midfielders realistically competing for a spot in England’s squad, this not only would be a great source of pride for Villans everywhere, but this recognition would boost the reputation of Villa not only at home, but worldwide. This boost could help Villa attract better players from England and abroad again boosting the reputation of Villa.
All The Pieces Are In Place
With the early season injury issues, including the illness during the Arsenal match and then obviously Benteke, Okore, and Alan Hutton missing crucial matches, Villa haven’t been at full fitness for any match this season. However, with Benteke returning to full fitness and the rest of the squad shaking off small knocks, we will soon see the full Villa side Lambert has put together out on the pitch. Imagine last season if you were to hear that Villa would have Ron Vlaar, Christian Benteke, Tom Cleverly and Fabian Delph all in the same side, couple that with the pace of Gabby and the technical ability of Ashley Westwood and you have a very solid core group in which to move forward with. The up and comers in the Villa youth system that have broke through are quite pleasing as well. Grealish and Weimann have shown that Villa can produce first team quality and that Lambert isn’t afraid to give youth a chance. Cissokho has played the most minuets of any Villa outfield player and has been quite a good signing by Lambert. The free transfers that Lambert brought in over the summer have contributed well in their appearances, and their experience will without a doubt help the youngsters to develop. So on paper, Villa have put together a decent upper mid-table squad and while I know that paper has never won a football match, it is reassuring that we are putting out a team of this quality week in and week out.
I know his tactics get a lot of flak and at times can seem puzzling, but let’s not forget his time at Norwich, League 1 to the Premiership in 2 seasons!!! Then after he gets them to the Premiership, what does he do? 12th place. I know that Villa can’t risk being relegated, but I seriously believe that Lambert is the man for the job. He’s finally in his third year, and due to limited funds, he finally has a fair amount of quality in the first team. If blame is to be put on anyone, it shouldn’t be Lambert. I agree that the QPR tactics were bizarre and at times, Villa made Rangers look as if they were a top of the table team but coming off 4 straight defeats, it’s not too unexpected, however, there’s no reason why Lambert and the lads can’t go on and get a result against Spurs this week, they’ve shown it at the start of the league. If Villa isn’t looking up by the West Bromwich match, then I see reason for concern. Until then, I say we get behind Lambert and push forward, because do we really want Tony Pulis at Villa Park?
Up The Villa
Article By: Austin Ellett Twitter: @Tip_Daddy
I think your right mate but this 433 is not working no width so u reley on left and right back making width and we know what this do to weak at back as we have seen I would change it to 352 it worked last year again man city and that was at home where we was no gd
It worked against Man City? A game in which we got completely and utterly played off the park? I give in !!!
This is a wind up right? “6 months of utter shit and “Sacking Lambert would be the ultimate knee jerk reaction” haha i’m sorry but if i was you i’d go down and watch his shite team lose game after game with no possession, no shots and no fucking goals!!! He should have been sacked 190 months ago after his team couldn’t beat a 4th div team over 2 legs the 1st time ever this has happened to a top flight club! NO this clown has had another 19 months to prove why he should have been sacked after Bradford 19 months of utter rubbish. Knee jerk reaction ???? Look it up you idiot!!!
It`s not 6 months mate,it`s bin nearly 2+half yrs! No improvement in performance,zero shape to side,especially MF.Def is extremely poor,with Lowton,Clark,Vlaar to name 3 making same mistakes over+over again.It`s time for new broom/brush.Would love to see Moyes,if not Bruce,yes Bruce, him with connections from the dark side of the city! Bruce for eg has 1 of best scouting networks in country,if not the best.UTV
It was a typo read my reply i meant 26 months
That should say 26 months
I havent posted on your blog for a while but this has got my back up !!! We could be pretty much relegated by the time we play the tesco carrier bags. The writting has been on his 3 year wall since he’s been hear, he’s had plenty of time to get it right, he hasn’t, he needs to go !!! We’re all entitled to our opinions, i just think you wrong on this one. Lambert Out !!!
Wrong!!! Only a bind Blue nose who’s in love with Lambert and is on a massive wind up would have wrote this piece!!!!
Although I wouldn’t put it as crudely has Jinksy the guy is 100% right. This man is taking us down. Sack him now before it’s too late.
Crude Moi?
Hi Jinksy, this is the first chance I’ve had to get my computer; Just thought it would be good to have a balance on my website with someone who had a different opinion to me; so do use a little favour mate, could you just please not go too hard on people who don’t agree with you, pretty please!!! Love most of your comments so keep them coming. The lad who wrote the article (who really is a Villa fan!!!) I’m sure will reply to some of the comments on here, so don’t scare him away, lol. It’ll be interesting as to how he might answer some the comments here, so give him a chance. Might have you on here to write an article one day, could be interesting. Cheers mate Glenn
This wound me up pal sorry about that but it’s a mans game..i can’t see how a supporter of our once great club could write such rubbish if it was a blue nose that had written it i still wouldn’t believe it wasn’t a joke. I’m totally amazed a Villa supporter could have that opinion and the Knee Jerk comment was a classic. You don’t start from scratch when you’ve been given a new contract.
Once great is the key in that. I love Villa, but we have to be realistic here. Until Lerner is gone and the club is sold, we are a mid-table team. Football is about money now. we don’t have any so we are going to have to find a way around that.
WE aren’t a mid table team with this clown in charge & he’s ha more than enough money!!!
At last someone with a bit of sense,,, Do we really want to be like the carrier bags of west brom and sack our manager every 5 minutes or worse still go back to the bad old days under Doug Ellis when every tom, dick and Harry were calling for is head as Ellis was coming to an en of his reign at villa,,, The man needs just a little more time and as you say in your post, if we ain’t nowhere near mid table by the time we play the carrier bags then I’ll have to think my opinion of Lambert again, until then lambert has my backing.
26 months of pure and utter disgraceful Football…OK lets reward failure!!!
PS. 26 months is not every 5min!!!! A little more time hahahah what to teach his team to have a shot? You keep taking the drugs pal!!!
Plain And Simple- Lambert Out
Obviously you have your head up your arse and therefore are incapable of coherent thought.
Years of lameberk has brought this club to its knees.
You should be ashamed of yourself spouting this rubbish.
Thankfully the majority of fans can see the truth of the matter and will sooner rather than later be rid of this parasite!
It’s a knee jerk reaction
He’s b shite for 26 months
You must be watching a different team to me. We were awful against Everton, threatened their goal once if I remember correctly.
Against QPR, we could have attacked for 48 hours and wouldn’t have found a way through their defence. There was more attacking nous, guile, skill and joie de vivre from the Italians in World War 2 than there was with us on Monday night.
That was just 2 games but this is far from a knee-jerk reaction.
140 years of history, which manager self-inflicted our heaviest ever defeat 8-0 vs chelski?
Which manager managed to get the most home defeats in a season?
Which manager got the most defeats in a season?
97 matches and he has contrived to lose 47 of them. Only one other manager in our history has a worse loss-ratio (Mr.Taylor 1964-67)
I was hoping he would have been dismissed in the summer, but no.
The results were there early on but, let’s face it, the performances were not.
VTID but this man has to go #LambertOut
Pulis would get the same squad of players to mid-table, no doubt.
Well said …1st top flight team to be knocked out by a 4th Div team over 2 legs ..In a semi Final as well!!! He couldn’t motivate so called premiership players to win a Semi final against Bradford!!!
Knee Jerk they should but that on the clown that wrote this’s grave.
One word about this article…………………….. WRONG
Regardless of performance I can’t see him being sacked, mainly for financial reasons. With a 4 year deal signed a month ago, his payout would be a multi-million pound deal – surely this money would come out of (any potential) transfer monies in January, meaning that the new manager would have very little to spend and would have to work with the current squad. Not sure that Moyes would come with the current restraints and not sure at all about Pulis – for many years every fan (including many Stokies) slagged him off for playing appalling negative football and didn’t want him anywhere near their own clubs – and yet now many of those same fans see him as the perfect answer to their club’s problems – how things change! I doubt that Lambo is going to walk, knowing he would lose his contract cancellation monies, so it wouldn’t surprise me to see him still in post at the end of the season, unless new owners come in. In February this year we were very much in relegation trouble – and Lerner didn’t sack him then. With the armour plating of a 4 year contract I doubt that he’ll sack him now – regardless of how much you want him out!
I appreciate all your comments on this article, and while I disagree on the idea of sacking Lambert right now, if things don’t improve but the run around West Brom then Villa are in serious trouble. The problems over the past 2 years, in my opinion, are from the tightening of the budget, the selling off of the core group and McLeish being brought in. Lambert cannot control that he was brought in to a team in crisis, but he’s finally gotten a core group that can be a building block for Villa. We should never entertain the idea of relegation at Villa but we shouldn’t become a carousel of managers in the mean time.
Not the god dam awful football & being devoid of ideas..Football is meant to entertainment and the Manager hasn’t got a clue how to entertain his team doesn’t retain possession, doesn’t score goals and he plays counter attack home and away. Yes when there’s 2 banks of 4 not attacking us he still plays counter attack. Wake up it’s the football we play the lack of goals etc etc the lame excuses it’s got nothing to do with budget. If he’s had no money why did he spend over £7m on Kozac when we were desperate for an engine..£7m on a player we didn’t need. You reward success and get rid of failure you don’t pussy foot around it by saying we can’t become a carousel of managers. You sack them until you get it right! You entertain your number 1 customer THE SUPPORTERS and in doing so you fill the stadium. I’ve never heard such rubbish in my life You can’t keep sacking managers YES YOU CAN IF THEY CAN’T DO THE JOB YOU ARE PAYING THEM TO DO!!!!! This clown we have has proved over 26 months he CANT DO THE JOB..Bradford, Millwall, Sheff Utd, Orient What kind of budget do you think they’ve had eh? Sorry to rant but you need to wake up!!! I’m off to buy a new keyboard because i broke this one!
I fully understand your concerns and agree that villa have lookee awful lately. You’re very passionate about the club and obviously want to see us at our best, so may I ask, who would you reccommend be brought in to replace lambert?
My choice would be David Moyes but lets be honest about this David Baddiel wouldn’t do any worse than Lambert. But like i ranted above if Moyes came in and wasn’t up to it you sack him and move on to the next man until you get it right you do not reward failure.
Ithats been honest villains it wouldn’t matter what manger we have with the club not given the manger any real spending money no one could do any better we not we are not in the oniel years any more if lambert the money Marin oniel had to spent I’m sure he would have done as gd job if not better the premier ship money as just killed it if u don’t spent big
Villa need to go back to old fashion English football 442 with two real gd winger who can run down the wings open the defence and pop gd ball into the boxs as I’m sure the Belgium batteram would get on the end of them young and dowing have never been replace nor Barry or Milner villa park is one of the widest pitches in the prem so we play 433 where the fuck is the width mainly at home
My knee has jerked so much since the Bradford debacle, that I’m beginning to wish I was Oscar Pistorius. The sooner Lambert goes the better. Jeez. How a few remaining ‘fans’ can still think 2.5 yrs isn’t enough to work out that he’s the footballing equivalent of the cabbages growing on the ridiculous ‘Villa allotment’, is beyond me. Is it the UK education system, the parents or additives in alcopops that are to blame? Who knows.
What I do know is, this man is a disgrace to our club. We are a laughing stock and an easy touch for almost anyone we play, Bradford, Sheff U, Milwall, Orient included. It’s not all his fault, the owner has to shoulder an equal share of the blame, but seriously, in 50 years as a devoted & loyal fan, I have never known such tactical incompetence & general buffoonery. Today, he warns us that the game against spuds will be ‘very tough’. he said QPR would be ‘tough’. Is this how to motivate players and play ‘Special One’ type mind games?? Spuds already know that Benteke won’t be sharp for another 6 or so games (as Lambert announced a few days ago)! Imagine Mourinho coming out with crap like this. Our own players must be briking it, having lost to the tough QPR, now having to face very tough Tottenham!
Some of his crimes are listed above, but don’t forget his bomb squad that meant a current Scottish International full-back was sidelined for 2 years and replaced with defenders that played more like girls. Add to that Bent & Given, the former now reduced to a shambolic figure as oppsed to the £24m striker we bought. prior to this summer, he signed/bought Steer, Lowton, Bennett, Luna, Bowery, Sylla, KEA, Bacuna, Helenius, Tonev, Okore, Kozak, Westwood, Vlaar, Holt, Bertrand, Culverhouse & Karsa. He signed Benteke too, but the groundwork had been done prior to Lambert’s arrival. The first ten in that list all cost money & salary – some not much – but KEA was thought to have cost around £3m, and we sold him for £500k. We can’t get a bean for the rest of them. He seems to have no faith in Okore, Vlaar is a real liability & likely to be caught out in most games in a goal giving position, and Kozak, who looks like a Cascarino to me – will hopefully improve once fit.
Unsure how much Keane has influenced this summer’s signings, who are admittedly, much better – on paper.
And if you’re worrying about who’d come to Villa when Lambert’s fired, I’d take Barney the Purple Dinosaur, Tinky Winky or Bungle form Rainbow.
If Lambert doesn’t do the walk, or our invisible owner – or silent CEO for that matter, don’t get him out, then the ones who really do care about this once proud club, will just have to throw him to the Lions.
I couldn’t have put it better myself, so I won’t.
Lambert Must Go!!!!!!
The job is beyond Lambert anyone can see except for Lerner.
I am sorry to say but I just can’t agree with you on this. Firstly it is not a knee jerk reaction. The man has over two seasons to put his mark down & he has certainly done that. We are the most boring, unimaginative, predictable, clueless team in the premiership. The football being played by us now is as bad as I have seen in my 47 years as a supporter, & that includes horrendous managers like Venglos, Turner & McNeil. It pains me to say this but it was even better under McLeish.
No! he has not had millions to spend but it is not what players he gets in, it is the style of football (or lack of it) that he gets his teams playing.
David Moyes is ready to return to management, we should be getting him in now before anyone else snaps him up