Unai Emery

[LeonW]

We have to keep Emery and build around him. He is an elite manager. He is not the problem. We need a clear out and reset and Emery needs to be the man leading it.

[VillaTim]

Might need to cash in on some big names while their value is still high and let the rebuild begin .

[LeonW]

Might need to cash in on some big names while their value is still high and let the rebuild begin .

I think that’s highly likely.

[Risso]

Success is not going to look a straight line growing only in the right direction, there are going to be ups and downs, poor patches and good ones.

It's frustrating as fuck to be looking so poor at the moment, but if we have to go through a patch like this, then this is a pretty good point to do it. There isn't much sign of consistency elsewhere around us.

There are only 4 points between us in 12th and Brighton in 4th at the moment.

Which would be fine, if we were inconsistent like say, Spurs or Brighton. But we’ve got an ingrained, deep rooted problem in that we simply cannot defend. We haven’t really played well all season, and at least half the team are in woeful form.  And the football is just horrible. Like, really, really bad.

[VillaTim]

There are only 4 points between us in 12th and Brighton in 4th at the moment.

lines like these have been trotted out for weeks now , we had a chance to go joint top a couple of months ago after a favourable set of opening fixtures. Since then we have got progressively worse and glaring issues remain unaddressed

[Sexual Ealing]

He doesn't say it in a fatalist way, but as a challenge. It's what he's been saying the whole time he's been here. Sounds better after wins than after defeats, but that's a huge part of his success - not being flustered by winning or losing, treating triumph and disaster both the same and all that.

This is the hill I'll die on: I much prefer triumph to disaster, and I treat both things accordingly, thanks very much Roald, you perv.

[LeonW]

Success is not going to look a straight line growing only in the right direction, there are going to be ups and downs, poor patches and good ones.

It's frustrating as fuck to be looking so poor at the moment, but if we have to go through a patch like this, then this is a pretty good point to do it. There isn't much sign of consistency elsewhere around us.

There are only 4 points between us in 12th and Brighton in 4th at the moment.

Which would be fine, if we were inconsistent like say, Spurs or Brighton. But we’ve got an ingrained, deep rooted problem in that we simply cannot defend. We haven’t really played well all season, and at least half the team are in woeful form.  And the football is just horrible. Like, really, really bad.

When he first came in and we had Mings and Konsa at centre back, we did look defensively strong and kept a number of clean sheets.

[brontebilly]

Other observations:
- McGinn looks like he's dragging a tractor-tyre behind him these days. When did he lose his pace?

He looks like he's carrying one around his stomach as well.

He was brilliant for Scotland v Poland a couple of weeks back. So it's not conditioning or anything else. Just struggling for form like many others. The shape of the team hasn't been right all season, that's the biggest issue. We need to fix the spine of the team and that starts with Mings coming back instead of Torres.

[Demitri_C]

Might need to cash in on some big names while their value is still high and let the rebuild begin .

Yep. I would reluctantly look to cash in duran.  If someone bids 70m upwards id sell because we could really add at least 2 quality players with that.

Mcginn might be another i would look to move on

Cash and carlos could be other casualties.

Dont think we would make much on buendia philiogene to be honest

[Bent Neilsens Screamer]

Success is not going to look a straight line growing only in the right direction, there are going to be ups and downs, poor patches and good ones.

It's frustrating as fuck to be looking so poor at the moment, but if we have to go through a patch like this, then this is a pretty good point to do it. There isn't much sign of consistency elsewhere around us.

There are only 4 points between us in 12th and Brighton in 4th at the moment.

Which would be fine, if we were inconsistent like say, Spurs or Brighton. But we’ve got an ingrained, deep rooted problem in that we simply cannot defend. We haven’t really played well all season, and at least half the team are in woeful form.  And the football is just horrible. Like, really, really bad.

When he first came in and we had Mings and Konsa at centre back, we did look defensively strong and kept a number of clean sheets.

There were a number of away games, I remember Brighton being one, where he set them up to be 6 at the back out of possession. Everyone knew their roles, we were disciplined and very difficult to break down. Haven’t seen anything like that for quite some time.

[LeonW]

Success is not going to look a straight line growing only in the right direction, there are going to be ups and downs, poor patches and good ones.

It's frustrating as fuck to be looking so poor at the moment, but if we have to go through a patch like this, then this is a pretty good point to do it. There isn't much sign of consistency elsewhere around us.

There are only 4 points between us in 12th and Brighton in 4th at the moment.

Which would be fine, if we were inconsistent like say, Spurs or Brighton. But we’ve got an ingrained, deep rooted problem in that we simply cannot defend. We haven’t really played well all season, and at least half the team are in woeful form.  And the football is just horrible. Like, really, really bad.

When he first came in and we had Mings and Konsa at centre back, we did look defensively strong and kept a number of clean sheets.

There were a number of away games, I remember Brighton being one, where he set them up to be 6 at the back out of possession. Everyone knew their roles, we were disciplined and very difficult to break down. Haven’t seen anything like that for quite some time.

Indeed. Side has changed since then and are much more offensive, particular with our build up. Emery has been trying to evolve us to a more elite side rather than a plucky side. There was always going to be a point where we had a dip like this because there are still a lot of plucky players who have been playing above themselves. A reset is needed and a big summer clear out. Some of the sales needed my not be very popular but necessary.

[BC Villain]

Unai also needs to be mindful of his language, saying stuff like at the start of season we can “sense some teams are better than us” and including Chelsea in that is frustrating. We shouldn’t be acting so defeatist, it’s beginning to permeate through our play.

We should be much better than we are at the moment Unai - sort it out.

When he says that stuff, I would say it's for the media audience.  I doubt very much the players and himself speak or think like that at Bodymoor.

Perhaps the players have become bored of his nine hour team meetings, especially as they've stopped having any affect.  The owners have been pretty ruthless with managers since they came here.  How long before they feel that way again?

[pauliewalnuts]

There are only 4 points between us in 12th and Brighton in 4th at the moment.

lines like these have been trotted out for weeks now , we had a chance to go joint top a couple of months ago after a favourable set of opening fixtures. Since then we have got progressively worse and glaring issues remain unaddressed

And yet we are still only 4 points off Brighton in fourth.

I am not making any comment as to the football, the shit defending, the poor results of late - we can all see that - my point was, poor though we are, we are still not that far off fourth.

That meaning we're still in touch with the better teams in the league, so all is not lost.

[aj2k77]

Unai also needs to be mindful of his language, saying stuff like at the start of season we can “sense some teams are better than us” and including Chelsea in that is frustrating. We shouldn’t be acting so defeatist, it’s beginning to permeate through our play.

We should be much better than we are at the moment Unai - sort it out.

When he says that stuff, I would say it's for the media audience.  I doubt very much the players and himself speak or think like that at Bodymoor.

Perhaps the players have become bored of his nine hour team meetings, especially as they've stopped having any affect.  The owners have been pretty ruthless with managers since they came here.  How long before they feel that way again?

Then change the players. Before he came the same players were getting pummelled on a weekly basis. If they are bored, they can go lose somewhere else and we should buy players that want long meetings on how to win games.

The manager and his methods are not the problem long term.

[LeonW]

Unai also needs to be mindful of his language, saying stuff like at the start of season we can “sense some teams are better than us” and including Chelsea in that is frustrating. We shouldn’t be acting so defeatist, it’s beginning to permeate through our play.

We should be much better than we are at the moment Unai - sort it out.

When he says that stuff, I would say it's for the media audience.  I doubt very much the players and himself speak or think like that at Bodymoor.

Perhaps the players have become bored of his nine hour team meetings, especially as they've stopped having any affect.  The owners have been pretty ruthless with managers since they came here.  How long before they feel that way again?

Any player who wants to go back to the 5 minute Gerrard coaching meetings of ‘just get it to Coutinho and he’ll give us a moment of magic’ is a player we probably need to move on.