[Archived] Sam Allardyce

[Hughesy]

All he's made clear to me is the man cannot learn.

I think he is playing mind games - he believes we have a formula to win the game and progress - lets just hope our players want.

I honestly believe that if our players are up for it like they can be and they are on top note, then we will win.....

Cant wait......COME ON YOU BLUES!!!!

[Majiball]

I think he is playing mind games - he believes we have a formula to win the game and progress - lets just hope our players want.

I honestly believe that if our players are up for it like they can be and they are on top note, then we will win.....

Cant wait......COME ON YOU BLUES!!!!

I hope your right and I'll be thinking of the team whilst I freeze outside.

If Sam plays to win tonight, IE to get 2 goals and kill the tie, then I'll be a bit more on board. If however he's true to his word and takes the approach of sitting back in vain hope that we can defend for 70 without conceding (hasn't really worked to date). Then I'm afraid I'll not be, I don't want to see Arsenal style football, but I do want to see some football and a positive approach and effort. Sam wants to nick games, personally I want to win games or at least try.

Tonight Sam has a great opportunity to placate a few more of the crowd by not taking an approach we have seen fail to date by actually trying to win it.

I await the team-sheet.

[AndyC]

I hope your right and I'll be thinking of the team whilst I freeze outside.

If Sam plays to win tonight, IE to get 2 goals and kill the tie, then I'll be a bit more on board. If however he's true to his word and takes the approach of sitting back in vain hope that we can defend for 70 without conceding (hasn't really worked to date). Then I'm afraid I'll not be, I don't want to see Arsenal style football, but I do want to see some football and a positive approach and effort. Sam wants to nick games, personally I want to win games or at least try.

Tonight Sam has a great opportunity to placate a few more of the crowd by not taking an approach we have seen fail to date by actually trying to win it.

I await the team-sheet.

If you put our 2 sides against each other on paper, there is no way we should get close to winning tonight. Quite simply - they have a much stronger, faster, more skillful team.

They have spent 10 times what we have spent.

but - this is football and anything can happen. If Sam has a cunning game plan ( and I don't expect for 1 minute, he'll just follow what he's been saying in the press) then we could be in for an exciting night.

Agree with the other post above about football being entertainment now. There's so much choice and people have so little money at the moment, that people will now start to vote with their feet.

[broadsword]

Sam? Cunning plan?

You mean in teh style of Baldrick, no?

[joey_big_nose]

If you put our 2 sides against each other on paper, there is no way we should get close to winning tonight. Quite simply - they have a much stronger, faster, more skillful team.

They have spent 10 times what we have spent.

I am not totally convinced by that, the gap between us is not that huge, and they do not play a high quality of football which we cannot keep up with like Man City or Spurs. They are a percentage team, and the only attacking player who has been in real form recently imo is Milner.

I'd rather have Villa to play away than anyone else in the top eight (yes, including Birmingham). So far I would say that O'Neill has failed to deliver value for money - but the team is young so it will develop.

That said I will be suprised and delighted if we win the tie. Allardyce has to come out shooting. I'm not talking committing the full backs forward or going nuts (suicide against Vill's pace) but two up front with decent support from wide.

[gumboots]

I am not totally convinced by that, the gap between us is not that huge, and they do not play a high quality of football which we cannot keep up with like Man City or Spurs. They are a percentage team, and the only attacking player who has been in real form recently imo is Milner.

I'd rather have Villa to play away than anyone else in the top eight (yes, including Birmingham). So far I would say that O'Neill has failed to deliver value for money - but the team is young so it will develop.

That said I will be suprised and delighted if we win the tie. Allardyce has to come out shooting. I'm not talking committing the full backs forward or going nuts (suicide against Vill's pace) but two up front with decent support from wide.

I too am not as impressed by Villa as a lot seem to be. They are fast and they are good at what they do. O'Neill wants his team to play a certain way and has been able to buy the players to fit that plan. However, they do not consistently look like a top 6 team. Efficient and organised and capable of scoring goals,yes, but really scary as City going forward are, as Arsenal or Chelsea on their day? No way.

[AggyBlue]

Sam? Cunning plan?

Tactically it will be the same old same old.

He must mean bringing the experienced players back.

I'll be well pee'd off if that's the best he can come up with.

[waggy]

i think lardarse should take up comedy after he retires he reckons we will sell out in a day for wembley

[S15]

Oh I dunno Waggy I'm sure quite a few would crawl out the woodwork for that one...

[Hughesy]

That said I will be suprised and delighted if we win the tie. Allardyce has to come out shooting. I'm not talking committing the full backs forward or going nuts (suicide against Vill's pace) but two up front with decent support from wide.

Who would you want to see on our 2 wings tonight?

Hoilett & Olsson?

MGP & Emerton?

MGP & Diouf?

[S15]

Ripley and Wilcox.

[joey_big_nose]

Who would you want to see on our 2 wings tonight?

Hoilett & Olsson?

MGP & Emerton?

MGP & Diouf?

If we play Dunn alongside NZonzi I would go Emerton and Olsson for the added robustness. If we don't play Dunn I would go Olsson and Hoilett, with Emerton in the middle with NZonzi.

[Steve Moss]

Who would you want to see on our 2 wings tonight?

Hoilett & Olsson?

No others need apply.

[ABBEY]

i think lardarse should take up comedy after he retires he reckons we will sell out in a day for wembley

time for this....another away day spanking.....3,4,5 ,6 still time for 7 tonight.

[Tom]

I thought he got it wrong today but the way we started shows he initially got it right, I think our second goal confused our own game plan as it was almost unthought of.

Still we have been undone by the ref today no doubt about it

[Amo]

Still we have been undone by Samba's moronic defending today no doubt about it

Fixed that for ya!

[DE.]

Samba is 90% to blame for tonight's scoreline. A stupid tackle that has let down the entire team and every fan that came to watch a competitive match.

Sam is certainly not to blame. The only people blaming him are those on here, everybody knows who they are, who have an unrelenting, life-consuming vendetta against Allardyce.

[ABBEY]

Samba is 90% to blame for tonight's scoreline. A stupid tackle that has let down the entire team and every fan that came to watch a competitive match.

Sam is certainly not to blame. The only people blaming him are those on here, everybody knows who they are, who have an unrelenting, life-consuming vendetta against Allardyce.

ITS NOT A CASE OF BLAME JUST FOR TONIGHT ITS BLAME FOR THE FIRST LEG AND THE REST OF THE AWAY FORM ....ITS PATHETIC.

[Amo]

I share your frustrations, Abbey. We got off to a flying start, but there was no composure of patience with the ball. We were back to hoofing it to aimless corners of the pitch, which simply gave the ball straight back to Villa. We were unlucky with their first goal, but we let IBongedaWhore in, and then Samba cocked it up for everyone with his brainless challenge. I could see we were playing into Villa's hands, so why couldn't Sam? He should have told them to keep the ball and make Villa work for it. It was all too easy for them to take advantage, and even more so once we were down to 10.

[John]

Only good teams can keep the ball well, especially when playing against decent opposition.

[Amo]

Only good teams can keep the ball well, especially when playing against decent opposition.

We were doing alright before that.

[ABBEY]

Even at 2-2 we shouldve carried on what got us 2 up in the first place...but hey it the refs fault not the experts.....

the buck stops at him when weve conceded so many goals all season away from home, ok we had 10 men but its still 6 no matter what way you dress it up.

[Mr. E]

Samba is 90% to blame for tonight's scoreline. A stupid tackle that has let down the entire team and every fan that came to watch a competitive match.

Sam is certainly not to blame. The only people blaming him are those on here, everybody knows who they are, who have an unrelenting, life-consuming vendetta against Allardyce.

Pathetic.

Samba got a foot on the ball, and even if you chalk it down to him, that was still one goal that he cost us. What about the other 5? This has happened a million times in the past and everyone knew that as soon as things got tough we would capitulate. BFS did not have a plan B, and the defenders looked completely helpless to stop Villa.

What next, with Allardyce? Surviving in the league, holding on to 13th-14th place if we're lucky? Is this the future some people want us to have? Cause BFS will more than happily settle for that, because it's "realistic for a club our size" and everything.

[Exiled in Toronto]

I don't know why the press keep parroting that Sam's teams are well organised. We're not. You don't let in 6 just by having a man sent off, with Robbo's saves it could have been 10. We've been disorganised all season. He makes 4,5,6 changes every game, always plays players out of position, we send 1 man to defend the short corner, never close down players within shooting range.

[Tom]

You have to admit Abbey both the ref and Samba were as much to blame for the downfall as Sam was today

It's easy to say we should have kept it up but with 10 vs 11 away its always going to be hard