has anyone really watched Villa this year at all. Barry rarely if ever plays DM for them, the defensive side of his game is completely unpracticed and no good anymore. Watch the liverpool game, he was pressing their back 4 more than he was sitting between his own midfield and defense. He hasn't been a DM for a couple of years and in the later stages of this season his game is suffering hugely from it. His attacking play has improved all year as his defensive game has steadily got worse, a starting DM for our national side, not in a million years.
he was ruddy awful against pitiful opposition, he frequently gave the ball away and despite their attacks mostly only having 2-3 people he was rarely covering or winning the ball back from them.
Lennon, SWP aren't anywhere near good enough, people can spend all year saying the same thing over and over, he's "only" got to learn how to cross. Except he's been playing football for over a decade, people don't turn up to a club at 20 and ask to start, he's been training for a decade and has played first team footie for a long time and has shown not one single hint of improvement. A run of 2-3 games where he LOOKED impressive but was his same wasteful self doesn't mean he isn't still completely useless. The only things lacking from his game are, a brain, passing, crossing, ability to read the game and know where to pass/cross and when. if you don't have it by now, you won't have it period. SWP is much the same but has a far far FAR better shot on him. If you insist on one or the other SWP is far more accomplished(but still quite crap).
DOwning is worse than them all, he CAN'T cross, pass, not great at getting past people, has half the pace of SWP/Lennon/Young, has a poor shot and a crap football brain. He does the odd trick then cuts inside shoots and misses. because he's a big fish in a small pond he gets away with 15 shots a game, a crap player will score one of those by fluke eventually, whats his tally this year, 2?
The answer to England getting good, is our youngsters being taught the basic's rather than tricks, being taught how to read the game rather than how to do a specific turn. Also maybe training 1 or 2 of them to be a freaking out and out defensive midfielder. Maybe someone should be suggesting to these kids that we have a massive shortage of real DM's across football let alone just for england, so you've really got more chance playing in a world class team in that position than any other.
JOhnson is also mostly turd, and I assume no ones been watching City lately as Richards has been simply superb at right back since they moved Zabeleta out of defence where he was just so bad he made the whole defence look terrible. He's bigger, stronger, faster, has more skill, more drive, does better wing work and is better defensively than Johnson.
I hate that formation ! /erage
