WSL Aston Villa (H) 20/10/24

[Mr HJ]

Playing right into their hands - they are very happy to let Alex, Yama and Kirsten in particular have the ball then look to transition on the break. We simply need to quicken it up and play more risk associated through balls. When our form dips it usually is around how slowly Alex plays the ball out. She will say there is a lack of movement but taking so much time allows them to get back into shape and cut out any forward passes.

Jill is going to get up to speed but it will take a few more games - still some great movement from her but as with her miss she is inches away from being back to her best.

Unlike others suggest we are not losing because of a keeper we are losing because we are taking over 10 seconds to pass the ball from our defence and when we do it is often backwards. Yamashita had zero chance with the goal and has tried to vary her kicks out creating two chances with longer balls.

Overall we look a little lacklustre so far. I don't think Bunny has had a single early pass in front of her. It's okay to play to a set system but we need to look at what they are doing and speed things up - do that and we win - we can do this as they tire.

 

[bluealf]

Why is there no English/British woman up for winning the BBC's footballer of the year?

 

[Kinkys Left Foot]

Certainly, Villa are more up for this than us. Ref is letting a lot of “ dodgy” tackles go and to be fair we are not strong enough, or brave enough to compete with Villa’s tough approach. We have been playing like this (side to side and backwards) for some time now and we are so slow to go forward. This must be on the instructions of management and as I have said for some time nothing will change until management changes and that won’t happen for a while as he has signed a new long term contract recently.
I still think we will win this one in the end but eventually this kind of play will be our undoing.
Do we have a crowd today or are they cardboard cutouts. I don’t blame them entirely as they are watching dross.

To say that was dross is fucking garbage. Not brave enough, wtf are you talking about we've been camped in their half with 80% posession.
It's almost like you don't know how we play.
Slate the girls performance and tactics yet still think we'll win. WTF does that even mean?
Save your crowd critic for when you're there.

 

[Bigga]

Hemp has been good going forward, I just think we need someone like Cloe Kelly on to get some more shooting and take players on, especially as we can't get Mary Fowler in the game, overall we are playing OK, just need to raise the tempo and get some shots going.

I dunno.

Not sure what Kelly would bring that Fowler doesn't. If it comes to shooting, if Fowler was instructed to do that more, she would. It seems Kelly did plenty of that when her teammates were in better positions, last year.

For me, Fowler is better for the team forward passes, but Villa must be closing the gaps or there's no movement of the forward line as per usual. She'd seen no slide rule passes that she normally does, so that says a lot for what's happening.

 

[Colin Bells Boots]

We beat Barcelona with our work rate closing down none stop what Villa doing now!

On today's evidence that approach was completely alien to the normal play.

Very slow and predictable allowing villa to pick us off .

 

[remember arthur mann]

Taylor is our Ten Hag, clueless.

 

[Mr HJ]

Casparij getting out-muscled too often too.
Come on girls, turn this around.

Yep I can understand why they went out and got a right back in the summer - Kirsten looked far better on the left a couple of games ago. We will turn this around!

 

[Blackley_Blue]

Our keeper was sent out early practicing long kicks ... Maybe a change in tactics second half

 

[knuckles]

I also think our players without the ball aren’t making enough effort to place themselves in a position to receive the ball.
It puts the player on the ball under ridiculous pressure as they have no one to pass to, which means they either have to turn/beat the Villa player (which not many outside Hemp can do), or end up getting pressured and losing the ball, or going back once again to the defenders/keeper.

There were quite a few times when Roord had the ball but others like Hasegawa were nowhere near close enough, or just stood behind a Villa player.

Yeah agree, the work rate you put in off the ball is as important as when you have possession

 

[Dave Ewing's Back 'eader]

Certainly, Villa are more up for this than us. Ref is letting a lot of “ dodgy” tackles go and to be fair we are not strong enough, or brave enough to compete with Villa’s tough approach. We have been playing like this (side to side and backwards) for some time now and we are so slow to go forward. This must be on the instructions of management and as I have said for some time nothing will change until management changes and that won’t happen for a while as he has signed a new long term contract recently.
I still think we will win this one in the end but eventually this kind of play will be our undoing.
Do we have a crowd today or are they cardboard cutouts. I don’t blame them entirely as they are watching dross.

The pattern of play is easily defended by teams with an athletic approach, add a ref who allows some robust tackling and a coach who seems devoid of a range of ideas to counter the opposition game plan and we have a team of talented footballers who might deliver but by God they make heavy weather of it!