Expecting the officials to see this is insane and unfair. Either way moments like these will not happen next year. To the future. Also worth noting is the amazing clearance by Ashley Westwood.
Image via TheJawbone
Archive for the ‘Aston Villa’ Category
Demba Ba’s goal that wasn’t
Posted by Devang Desai under Aston Villa, Chelsea on May 11, 2013
Robin Van Persie SuperFantastico Goal
Posted by Devang Desai under Aston Villa, EPL, Manchester United on Apr 22, 2013
Ummm, wow. Robin Van Perie has scored twice early at Old Trafford. His second goal was something else (what a ball from Wayne R). A 70 minute waltz to title number 20 for Manchester United is on the docket. Ho hum.
Gif via @FeintZebra
Steven Gerrard, jack of all trades
Posted by Devang Desai under Aston Villa, EPL, Liverpool on Mar 31, 2013
Sure he scored the match winner after Luis Suarez drew a clumsy challenge from Nathan Barker, but Steven Gerrard’s effort at the other end of the pitch was just as important. Liverpool’s captain ensured three points for the Reds at Villa Park with this goal line clearance, leading Liverpool to a 2-1 victory. It was a game worth watching, one that featured more excellence from Christian Benteke and a goal from Jordan Henderson of all people.
Villa slips back into the relegation zone with the loss. Six points separate 10th from 18th. It’s going to be a crazy few weeks.
MOTD: Reading 1-2 Aston Villa
Posted by Devang Desai under Aston Villa, EPL, Reading FC on Mar 09, 2013
Game in a sentence
It wasn’t pretty, but Aston Villa secure three points at Reading and move to 17th place in the table.
Observations
- Reading Goalkeeper Stuart Taylor made his first appearance in five years. Taylor’s first game since 2008 was a massive one, as both Reading and Aston Villa found themselves in the relegation zone heading in.
- Brad Guzan was busy early, making a crucial save off an Adam Le Fondre header just two minutes in. Matthew Lowton had a dreadful opening 20 minutes, allowing Le Fondre to beat him for that chance and committing a reckless challenge on Jobi McAnuff moments later. Lowton received a yellow for his exploits.
- Villa striker Christian Benteke came within inches of pulling Villa in front with a header of his own in the 11th minute, beating Taylor but not the crossbar after connecting on a Nathan Baker cross.
- After some nervous sequences that required Guzan to be on his game, the visitors took over. A counter attack created by Ron Vlaar nearly resulted in a goal from Andreas Weimann, who found in himself in front of goal with space only to send the ball wide with a poor shot. Paul Lambert’s side would fall behind five minutes later. Read the rest of this entry »
Cazorla 2-1 Aston Villa
Posted by Devang Desai under Arsenal, Aston Villa, EPL on Feb 23, 2013
Rather than do a typical game recap here are some brief thoughts on the game. Richard Whittall will not be singing on Monday’s Podcast because Arsenal supporters care about people’s emotions and doing the right thing. Villa’s dance with relegation intensifies with Wigan’s victory at Madejski Stadium.
A blanketed Stan Kroenke watched his team dispatch Aston Villa with difficulty at the Emirates. Never have I loathed an old man in a blanket this much. The official count indicated 60,079 tickets were sold for today’s game, but the large amount of empty seats told a different story. Usmanov wouldn’t have needed a blanket.
Santi Cazorla scored twice, with the winner coming in the 86th minute. While Mikel Arteta is a good soldier for this club Cazorla needs to play centrally.
Though Jack Wilshere had a hand in both goals, this was not his best performance. A reckless challenge to end the first half summed up an otherwise average day. That said, his ball into Nacho Monreal to set up Cazorla’s winner was fantastic.
The Malaga Connection has been signed to a five year deal with Interscope records. Suge Knight is said to be pleased.
Andreas Weimann equalizer will serve as the Counter Attack’s visual mascot. There is no such thing as a visual mascot.
Matthew Lowton and Joe Bennett had excellent days on the flanks, but Weimann was Villa’s man of the match. Paul Lambert’s side deserved a draw for their performance.
Arsenal move within a point of Spurs for fourth place. Tottenham takes on West Ham at Upton Park on Monday. At certain points today it looked as though Arsene Wenger wished he was in Japan. Japan loves him back.
Dean-Richards: Paul Lambert, please just give up
Posted by Ethan Dean-Richards under Aston Villa on Jan 28, 2013
Until Paul Lambert said that he wouldn’t even consider quitting as Aston Villa manager he’d been likeable, approaching cool. When he said “No. I can only do, or try to do my best. There’s no chance I’d walk away from it. You have to fight like anything to get up. You pick yourself up and there’s no point in lying down and accepting it,” he was no longer either of those things. Quitting’s been stigmatised to the extent that knocking quitters is now one of few blood sports society openly accepts, and now Lambert has joined the ranks of the knockers, shamelessly bashing those who can’t be bothered to defend themselves. The easiest of easy targets, he should be ashamed.
Quitting isn’t cool, but it should be. Is making the effort to carry on so great? Look at players like John Terry efforting their way to the top. They go red in the face: does that look good? They get injured and play on whilst hurting: does that sound like fun? They put the hours in on the training ground when they could be at home playing minesweeper, both warm and covered in bits of chocolate they can’t even be bothered to wipe of their clothes: does that choice make any sense at all? I’ll break it down for you. Life is meaningless, so making yourself happy and maybe making other people happy are the only really worthwhile pursuits, and even then they’re dubious if they require genuine work. All of this sacrifice nonsense is nonsense, particularly in the name of sport, which is a particularly ludicrous business for which to make sacrifices. This piece will adopt a totalitarian tone from here on in.
Okay, there is a line. Some sacrifice is fun and some effort is enjoyable, if you’re that way inclined (that is: wrongly inclined), but the business of constantly proving that you are working hard and will never give up is too much. The show must not go on. Bring down the curtain and go home. Driving yourself into despair for the sake of proving your capacity to carry the burden of said despair to a bunch of screaming football fans doesn’t make any sense. There’s a recession on so the anti-slacker rhetoric has been ramped up of late, but it’s a nonsense: giving up and doing nothing ain’t so bad. Actually, sometimes it’s real nice, baby. I’m tempted to give up on this piece righ…
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The Story So Far — January 23rd They’ll be dancing in the streets of Bradford tonight (which works because Bradford really is a place)!
Posted by Richard Whittall under Aston Villa, Bradford City, League Cup, The Story So Far on Jan 23, 2013
The Lead
And tomorrow night, and maybe the night after that.
Funny thing the Capital Carling One Coca-Cola Worthington Littlewoods Cup—despite the constant media asides that it’s a meaningless drag on the clubs engaged in fighting for 7th in the ever-important money-making Premier League, it’s still the best damn knockout competition in Blighty. Perhaps Europe (nah, c’est la Coupe de France, merci beacoup).
And it’s not just because last night fourth tier Bradford City Football Club withstood a victory against Premier League For Now Aston Villa to make it through to the final in the ungainly but still symbolically important Wembley. Because despite Villa’s utter, dreadful ineptitude at times, it was as close as you could get to the kind of football match you’d want to watch when you’re in the mood to watch a football match.
This was no Chelsea parking the bus at the Camp Nou. While Villa managed 23 shots and at times looked to run away with the game in the first half, Bradford fought back to earn 11, with 2 on target, including James Hanson’s vital tying goal in the 55th minute. Their performance was a homage to the Football League, and not just the one incidentally located in England. It’s a an old hoary cliche—football is a game decided in 90 minutes on a pitch—but it sure feels novel when it happens, and a minor miracle that it still happens, even if in fifty-year gaps.
But that the circumstances exist in which a League Two side can meet a Premier League side and defeat them in a knockout competition is a testament to the league system first proposed by an Aston Villa chairman, of all people. It’s why Bradford’s mayor can rejoice that the prospect of a Wembley final might give an economically ravaged city a needed morale boost, why a club all-but-ignored for the last decade can enjoy some time in the national sports news limelight, and why a grumpy Aston Villa supporter can wake up and feel something approaching respect for Bradford City and its sudden group of hangers-on in the millions. It’s why people who love football love it a lot.
If that’s the only reason to keep the lowly little Milk Cup alive for ever and ever, so be it.
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