Tomaszk

The lad can play. Alongside Heaton, the only summer signing worth the money paid.

Great to see him back in midfield where he should be.

It's bad when a big fat McGinn is still our best option. I think he's always played in that higher position, he's just usually fit enough to get back in as well. As soon as Smith came in he started making runs in behind full backs if they pushed up and our CBs were on the ball. Grealish made them as well initially but ended up dropping with McGinn pushing on. Struggling yes, but it's not easy been out for six months. Anyone see Harry Kane so far? Oof, stinking the place out. Do I think he had Grealish's ultra professional approach to "getting fit"? No I don't. We need that next season please John.

So effing obvious. Very annoying. Should never be on v Chelsea. He knows he's not good enough and doesn't try to help the team in games like that, it's all about just not being caught losing the ball himself. Today was a game for him but I can see why he doesn't start. He can't move. Must have some sort of long term injury, he didn't used to be this bad.

Harsh IMO. He totally changed the way we played last year. We didn't go from clueless Bruce nothing football to scoring 3/4/5 in games by chance. Before Grealish injury v WBA we were excellent in the five games prior, it was working. I will die on the hill if we had a striker who could play football like Samatta all season we'd have amassed at least 6 more points before January. At least! I reckon 9 or 10 very very likely. Disagree. We had better players then definitely. Correct. The manager has issues, plenty, but this squad is gash. We're definitely going down and the next three games will really drive it home. Had to win that. Two great chances at 0-0, where are we if they go in? We'll never know. Delighted Smith moved Grealish back into midfield. Just imagine if we had some **** wingers who weren't crap. How could we get it so wrong in the summer. Suso screwed us big time. Keep Smith if we go down says I, change if we stay up. In the modern game you can't have a guy who only knows 433. He'll do bloody well to keep any fans onside as the season ends, I see most have gone here already, hold on to your arses because we're going to take some right kickings. I've been convinced it's going to line up Liverpool need 1/3 points against us to confirm the league. They'll win about 25-0. If we sack Smith, any manager coming in will take one look at this squad and say I need about 10 new players if you're going to sell Grealish/Mings. I think Purslow will be trying to salvage the value of some of these wasters we've overpaid for and at least Smith knows them now. Biggest problem at Aston Villa is the charlatan who signed all our players this summer. Not Dean Smith.

It's incredibly clear it's the main issue. People saying they're not worried about going down. I am if Suso stays. Big time.

Question marks over Mings for that price IMO. Getting pretty frustrating watching him scuff or overhit clearances week after week.

They are bringing in so many good young players. Copying Chelsea model. They'll be loaning plenty out and selling them to generate money.

Win or we're down.

Targett been good both games back I think.

Probably as many as his debut.

Every single time I've seen Brighton this season they play exactly like Smith has tried to get us to. Funny what you can do with some good players. Brighton's recruitment has been really good for years. Couple of whiffs but generally excellent and they're building for the future at the same time. Who's in charge of their signings? Get them here. We're down if we don't beat Newcastle. Liverpool, Wolves and Utd after that, that's a big fat zero points.

Nah, not implying that. As I said, they aren't a traditionally run club. Don't think anyone has had a agent outside the club completely in charge of all first team signing before. I'm sure other teams will try it but it sounds like a recipe for disaster when you read it on paper. Obviously it's been great for them because Mendes is heavily invested himself, and his mate is manager. Could turn sour if they fall out and he decides to move their five best players on. Yep, we've cocked up in a huge way with our transfers. Signed some shocking players for five times their price and I'm very unsure if half are good enough for the Championship.

I'm even equally concerned if he watched them and thought they were worth the money paid. Must be a bad judge of player.

Oh God, Wolves?! They'll trash us. Two midfielders in Neves and Moutinho who are as willing as Grealish to get on the ball and ping it around all over the place, they'll have 65% possession. Three forwards who are good enough to play in a front three and defenders who will pass into midfield. We've got five games it's possible to get points in. No chance at all v Wolves, Liverpool or Utd.

Paddy Riley researched players. Suso asked agents who to sign. Anyone could see Gueye and Veretout were incredibly good footballers. Anyone can see Trez and Wes are incredibly bad footballers. Sherwood really **** up the chance to setup a good base for us there.

Mendes brought Nuno in. Did you know Nuno was his first ever client as a player? Their relationship goes back a very long way. Perhaps he thought...if I bring Nuno in, I can get better players. Then said "Hey Nuno, go to this shite little hole in England and I'll bring you loads of great players" I've spoken to Wolves fans, it's always a frustrating conversation because sadly only one of our clubs has a super agent running the show and making them into a Champions League club. Mendes brought Nuno in. Mendes brought the players in. Of course they want to go and play for Nuno, he's brilliant. Mendes brought Nuno in. You can't compare us to Wolves. They have Mendes, we don't. Their success has all come from Mendes, nowhere else. Same people just talking themselves into a circle. They'll read this and still just refuse to even see the point, I find it funny. NO, WE SHOULD BE WINNING. THEY JUST HAVE TO TRY HARDER. Proper boomer mindset. I can't believe people have watched Smith manage us for 18 months, and watch him rip us the shreds with Brentford every time we played them, and think he's telling the team to not pass it and clearing in the woods it long constantly. He has a squad of players unfit for purpose. If the team do what Smith wants, we'll trash Newcastle. One way traffic for the last six or seven meetings between a Dean Smith side with a plan and Steve Bruce side without a plan. There is the caveat here of their players being better, but we can do it if the team will show some bollocks and pass the ball. Stop being cowards and hoofing it because it's easy. Pass and move. It'll take about 3 sequences and Newcastle will retreat back into their box like they have all season and we'll beat them.

Wolves are a totally different kettle of fish. No one can do what they have without a super agent being heavily involved. They aren't a traditionally run club. Not without a super agent we aren't. If we can find one, no problem. No they weren't. It was Mendes. Yes he would. Mendes would have said that's where you're going, pack your bags. Jorge Mendes has turned it on its head. Wolves happened to be the club lucky enough where that link was made. It wasn't through being good on the pitch prior, or having a good academy, or buying well. It was all Mendes. Without him no Nuno, Neves, Boly, Moutinho etc etc. Would have been great if it was us for sure, don't dispute that. Be great if we could **** Suso off and get a decent agent in so we stopped buying terrible players. You're mistaken if you think this was possible without an agent moving players freely around for a fraction of their actual value.

It's very very easy to not buy shit players.

Yeah I called him a coward then as well. Who says he's a 10? He arrived as a CM from a 442 who played left mid a bit as well. Don't think he was playing as a #10 for Plymouth in league two. He's meant to be a professional footballer and in this squad he is one of the experienced ones who should be leading from the front. Yet in games he hides away, actively selling his teammates down the river as he offers no out ball for them. He wasn't even that bad today tbh. That was very standard Hourihane.

Those options will always get a smile out of me.

He's a monstrous coward mate. Got the ability to play but doesn't want to in case he loses the ball, so he doesn't bother. Huge fan of Westwood here btw. Opposite attitude to Hourihane. Spent his whole villa career being brave and getting on the ball while most players ran the other way, wanting nothing to do with it. Was always clearly a PL player unlike this wally.

Page 1. Turns out a shitty YouTube compilation could be an alarm bell.

I will blame him because he's a coward, which I won't accept in players. There's very little difference at all technically between him and someone like Norwood at Sheffield United. All technique, no size or strength. Norwood is key to that side because he isn't a little fanny who is scared to tackle and scared to get on the ball. He's just as shit against Chelsea and he will be against Coventry unless someone does all the work for him. Passenger in the Championship, passenger in the Premier League. All that coverage he got at the start of the season waving his dick around because he'd "made it" to the premier league. Signed his fat new contract and started retirement seemingly. If any responsibility is placed on his shoulders next season we're in huge trouble and won't be challenging for promotion. Needs someone walking round looking after him or he's getting swept aside by 99.99% of Championship midfielders, you can forget Premier League.

All we heard was how prepared they were. They had two packed lists for if we went up and if we didn't. Wrong choices were made. For £20m we could have signed a striker and winger both better than Wes and Trez.