Long ball Cherries caused problems for Villa

There was a different game plan for Aston Villa that worked extremely well in the first half hour. Instead of taking their time to get the ball forward, Bournemouth went long and drilled long passes and goal kicks up into the Villa half, and won the knock downs to get themselves on the front foot.

Ramsdale is getting the big kicks in now. It's a weapon that we can see is very effective.

Bournemouth have struggled to get the ball into areas where they can hurt the opposition, but there was none of that against Aston Villa. The players knew they had to attack and not get caught with the ball around their own box. It was refreshing to see the players so alert to opportunities as soon as the ball was in the opposition's half.

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I am sure it caught Aston Villa by surprise. The quick start to the game by Bournemouth was certainly helped by the way the players looked to win the ball back quickly and press when Villa did get possession. It was all fast play and it didn't give Villa a chance to slow things down and settle. I am not sure why the game is sometimes harder to do the same things from one day to the next, but for once Bournemouth carried out their game plan and it was effective.

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Causing problems for Aston Villa's defence might not have led to individual errors from Villa, but it did put them on edge and forced them back. Jack Grealish was less of a threat when he was having to help out their defence and for the first half, Bournemouth didn't have Grealish causing them so many problems. Keeping the pressure the pressure going was probably helped by the crowd's enthusiasm for what they were seeing, but that kind of intensity is a great quality to have that hopefully Bournemouth will employ in more games to the end of the season.

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Previous post on Cherry Chimes - A harsh sending off for Lerma

A harsh sending off for Lerma

Jefferson Lerma was the recipient of two yellow cards against Aston Villa and apart from Jack Grealish, there probably weren't that many people who really expected Lerma to see red for the two challenges he made. The first was a missed timed tackle and it warranted a yellow card. What was getting our backs up though was that Anthony Taylor wasn't being consistent with his yellow cards.

Lerma gets a raw deal over second yellow card.

The second foul that caused Taylor to give Lerma a second yellow card and consequent red was a travesty. Eddie Howe said it was difficult to see where Lerma could go. Indeed, Lerma was merely standing his ground when Grealish launched himself forward at the player, knowing Lerma down. There was no intent from Lerma to block off Grealish, he was simply standing in front of Villa's attacker and was taken by surprise when Grealish decided he would try to run at Bournemouth's number eight.

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The referee clearly saw something very different, but it was annoying that VAR could not be used to correct a misjudgement. It easily could have cost Bournemouth the game and the referee seemed to have it in for Lerma with the way he didn't even listen to Simon Francis' pleas to be consistent with the fouls that other players had been making and getting away with.

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While we need referee's to be firm, it only damages their image when they seem unable to control a game without some leniency when some challenges are open to debate and interpretation. Perhaps Eddie Howe should have withdrawn Lerma at half time when he had just the one card. Lewis Cook or Andrew Surman could have been used and it means now that Lerma will miss the next game.

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I don't blame Lerma for the fact that he was sent off, because I don't think the second challenge merited a yellow card at all. But these kind of things make the team even more determined to go and get a result against the next team and the players will play for Lerma and feel that they are owed another result because of what happened in the Villa game.

Previous post on Cherry Chimes - Great scenes at the end of Villa match

Cherries must put Villa under pressure

Aston Villa will be on cloud nine coming to Dean Court. Their dramatic late win in the Carabao Cup against Leicester City has given them a day at Wembley, but they will be desperate to retain their Premier League status just like Bournemouth.

Goalscoring has not been Villa's problem, unlike Bournemouth. They have scored 31 times in the league which is eight more than the Cherries. Their main striker Wesley might only have scored five of the goals but Villa have midfielders that chip in. Douglas Louis scored a stunning goal against Bournemouth in the match at Villa Park earlier this season and is on three goals, while Trézégeut who got the mid-week winner also has three goals, while winger Anwar El Ghazi has four goals. Conour Houihane and John McGinn have also chipped in with three goals each, even Tyrone Mings has grabbed a couple of goals for them.

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But Bournemouth will be wondering whether if they stop seven goal Jack Grealish, do they stop Aston Villa? I expect Eddie Howe will have to have some kind of game plan for Grealish. He might not admit it but he'll need a midfielder to get on him and pick him up rather than let him run at defenders untracked. Grealish is a player who can do the unexpected or unpredictable, that is why he is such a danger, beating two or three players to open the game up. Bournemouth have to keep him off the ball as much as they can.

Putting Villa under pressure and having to defend is the number one aim. Forcing them back is possible at Dean Court and Howe will have the previous meeting on rewind I should think to explain to the players this is a team they have beaten before and that they are under as much pressure as the Cherries. Getting a goal ahead will increase the pressure so a fast start will be expected, especially after the disappointing start against Arsenal.

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In other news, Josh King linked to Man Utd, says BBC. Crystal Palace are expected to put a bid in for Jordan Ibe.

Bournemouth will do well to spoil Villa's first big home game

Aston Villa may have come up to the Premier League through the play-offs, giving them less time to prepare than Norwich City or Sheffield United, but they haven't held back in their summer spending. Only Man Utd spent more than Aston Villa's £144.5m summer spend and while such spending didn't do much good for Fulham, the opening game showed that Villa will try and take the scalps of every Premier League team they line up against.

Villa have been big spenders this summer.

It's probably funny to Bournemouth fans that Aston Villa's biggest transfer business was for Tyrone Mings at £26.5m. The ex-Bournemouth centre-back has been exceptional when he puts on a Villa shirt and it annoys me a bit that Mings didn't get the games he should have at Dean Court during his stay. But that's football. Injuries and bad luck played their part and Mings has found a good new home.

Wesley Moraes is a Brazilian forward that signed from Club Brugge so I'd expect that Arnaut Danjum has the inside knowledge on him should Eddie Howe need information on this part of Villa's £22m strike force. Defender Matt Targett, 23, was signed from near-neighbours Southampton for £17m having been at Saints for 15 years. Douglas Luiz, 21, was signed from Man City although he had been playing at Girona FC on loan. He didn't play against Tottenham, but Villa stumped up £15m for him. Add in the experience signing of Tom Heaton and Villa aim to do a bit more than just survive this season.

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Dean Smith is the man with the most pressure on him. Now that he has made it to the Premier League he has to find out how to win games at this level. Aston Villa would be thrilled to get their first three points against Bournemouth, so the Cherries have to be at their very best as I expect Villa to come at them like a whirlwind. Jack Grelish and John McGinn already impressed against Spurs and this will be a real test for Bournemouth's defence.

Dean Smith and Aston Villa's Press Conference

T-shirt competition

Yes, it's back while I still have a few shirts to give away. Send in your score prediction for Aston Villa v AFCB to @CherryChimes (make sure you follow me) on Twitter and see if you can win the prize. It's free to enter and if more than one person has the correct score I will pick one from the hat.

Rival Lines: Villa - back where they belong?

Rival Lines
Match Preview: Aston Villa v AFCB
Blogger Interview: A Villa Fan
Twitter: @Avillafan

This weekend we kick off AFCB's first away game and it is against Aston Villa. I managed to grab a word with Stuart Young who works on the A Villa Fan website to see how he thinks Aston Villa will go this season and who we should be looking out for.

CC: What has Dean Smith given Aston Villa that previous managers were unable to do to get them to win matches?

AVF: He has given them belief. Jack Grealish highlighted this last week when he stated that Smith makes him feel like the best player in the world.

On top of that he has United a relatively split dressing room, and even club. The fans and players are one for the first time in a very long time. There is a real buzz around the place.

Something that impresses me personally is that he doesn’t insult the fans intelligence. For example, the defeat to Spurs, he highlighted where we did well and where it went wrong. Previous managers would have just taken the 3-1 defeat as a positive.

CC: Although Villa lost the first game against Spurs, did you see plenty of positives about the performance for the season ahead?

AVF: Yes. As I have already stated, there is a plan by the hierarchy at Aston Villa and the fans are on board.

The constant comparisons are embarrassing from a journalism point of view. As Christian Purslow stated on Sky Sports News on Monday night - there was a plan out together that has been executed. Now we can only hope the plan is enough to see us progress in the right way.

CC: John McGinn scored a great goal against Spurs. Is that the kind of goal he would do regularly in the Championship, holding off the last defender and picking his spot?

AVF: John McGinn reminds me of Gareth Barry a little. They both use their body very well to keep the ball. He is of course a lot more active on the field. McGinn will surprise a few away from B6 season in the Premiership.

CC: Which player would you say is your best signing of the summer and why?

AVF: Engels looks very impressive and Trezeguet could add that little bit of magic once he settles in. But I think Tom Heaton might prove to be a great bit of business.

Not only does he have the experience but he is apparently a very good character to have around the dressing room. Something Smith seems to be very keen on.

CC: How special will next Saturday be when Aston Villa plays its first home match back in the Premier League?

AVF: I think that the game is most likely going to be a sell out, tells you everything you need to know. We believe we are back where we belong. Now we have to prove it.

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CC: Can you see all three promoted sides surviving in the Premier League this season?

AVF: No. I think Norwich will regret not spending more money than they did. Sheffield United will be an interesting one as they won’t lie down and die. They have the never say die attitude but discipline may prove their downfall. Time will tell.

I am confident that we will stay up but we must get some points on the board ASAP.

CC: Is Jack Grealish a much better player than last time Villa were in the Premier League - how has his game developed?

AVF: Jack has grown up. He has matured. We have always known he has the talent but he needed to get his head in the right place which I believe he has now.

On top of that, he has added some muscle and he is closer to the complete product. But he must prove himself at the top level and no-one knows that more than Jack.

CC: What have you made of Tom Heaton in goal - was the keeper position something fans were worried about this season?

Many fans believed Jed Steer should have been given the chance of playing in the Premiership following his heroics last season.

Saying that, we did need that we experienced head in goal. The saves he has pulled off against RB Leipzig and Tottenham in recent weeks are showing just what a signing he could be for Villa.

CC: What position do you believe Aston Villa will end the season in?

AVF: We must aim as high as possible but I think we will finish around 12-14th.

CC: How do you think Aston Villa will line up against Bournemouth?

AVF: I think you will see a slightly more attacking side that the one you would have seen against Tottenham.

I believe Targett will come in for Taylor and Guilbert might replace Elmo. The only thing keeping Elmo in the side would be to help Trezeguet.

We may also see Luiz or Marvelous come in for Hourihane which will allow the wing backs to get forward while offering them cover.

Predicted XI: Heaton; Elmo, Engels, Mings, Target; Luiz, McGinn, Grealish; Jota, Trezeguet; Wesley.

CC: What is your score prediction?

AVF: I am going to go for a 2-0 home win. As I have already said, I believe we need to get points on the board especially at home.

CC: Great information from Stuart. While there are some Villa fans who expect their team to walk into the top six, Stuart can see that nothing is won easily in the Premier League. I fancy this will be a close match and perhaps there will be one or two mistakes on either side. I don't believe that defence is the strength of either team so I'm going for a 2-2 scoreline.

You should also see in the next couple of days some answers to the questions Stuart set me on the A Villa Fan website about AFC Bournemouth.

T-shirt competition
Yes, it's back while I still have a few shirts to give away. Send in your score prediction for Aston Villa v AFCB to @CherryChimes (make sure you follow me) on Twitter and see if you can win the prize. It's free to enter and if more than one person has the correct score I will pick one from the hat.


In other news, Jordan Ibe has been linked with a loan move away to Celtic, according to The Scottish Sun.

Rival Lines: The truth - what's gone wrong at Villa? Villa Underground explains

Rival Lines
Match Preview: Aston Villa v AFCB
Blogger Interview: Villa Underground
Twitter: @avfc_vilr

I spoke to Dan this week who is the editor of the Villa Underground website - in the current climate underground might be very appropriate, but Villa are not quite buried yet. It was quite a hard conversation as I found it difficult to be optimistic in what I could ask about the Villa. Still, Dan may have given up on this season but he has not given up on his club and neither have the other 35,000 who regularly attend Villa Park!

CC: Villa have been heading down all season so has it been like the inevitable car crash that you could do nothing about or could things have been done differently?

VU: We have been heading down for over 5 years. In previous seasons we have either been saved by good fortune or there being three worse teams than ourselves. We’ve been through a long period of austerity after owner Randy Lerner turned off the taps, but it has been compounded by wasting vast amounts of resources on dross. Despite the cut backs, Villa have spent terribly across a number of transfer windows and been guilty of tying ourselves to huge wages over long durations. Things could and should have been far different!

CC: You still managed to beat AFC Bournemouth on the opening game of the season, so will that give your players any reason for confidence when they take on the Cherries again?

The opening game was a strange affair. We stand to end the season being able to count victories on one hand after-all. Whilst we won the fixture, my memory of the game is how many clear cut chances you missed on the day.  Through rose tinted glasses at the time it was put down to “Premier League class”, but in reality it was perhaps nothing other than first day nerves for your guys. In terms of confidence going into the fixture, our club and it’s players are at rock bottom. As many teams have found, score first against us and you are home and dry, that will likely be your aim Saturday.

CC: Is there a real feeling from the fans that your next manager must have been a former player with true Villa running through his blood?

VU: The club has suffered greatly, in my view at least, for discarding so many “football” men following the Lerner takeover. Executives and commercially minded folk (allegedly) were brought in, but had zero understanding of how football works. They had even less understanding of Aston Villa. Whilst I don’t believe there is great clamour for a “true Villa” man to specifically take the helm, we are desperately in need of a man who “gets” football. This is in part why Nigel Pearson, unthinkable until recently, has gained traction as a potential manager.  We need a “proper” manager who can grab the club by the scruff of the neck and remind it of its potential. The elephant in the room is that in terms of former Villa players in management, it is slim pickings; Southgate? This is why the new Villa board is perhaps seeking familiar faces, such as recently appointed Brian Little, to take on advisory roles at the club.

CC: It is not just this season that has been a problem for Villa, so is the real problem Randy Lerner and the non-sale of the club that has prevented the players' from meeting fans' aspirations?

VU: The drawn out saga of the club being for sale is a big factor. Lerner wants out but expects somewhere in the region of £150/£200million to part with the club. If he achieves this, particularly given our relegation away from financial riches, would be a miracle. The other problem is that Villa have spent unbelievable amounts in both fees and wages on players who haven’t improved the squad. Equally, we have done the same with managers. If these funds had been put to correct use (look at Leicester…) then the fans would have greater sympathy. Signings such as Charles N’Zogbia for £10m (5 years ago) and £17m in wages since, sit as sour, wasteful examples. A player who neither cares, puts in any effort when he played and countless managers have passed over. And don’t even start me on Gabby Agbonlahor! Lerner started brightly, was badly advised, lost a huge amount of money on a dream and has regretted it ever since. His attempts to try and claw something back have destroyed us totally.

CC: Which was the worst defeat of the season for you to watch and why?

VU: Liverpool at home, 6-0. The worst defeat on our own pitch in over 80 years, to a Liverpool side that is as poor as any in living memory. A Villa team that not only gave up, but allowed an opposition to ridicule the club for 90 minutes and on TV. It was probably a fixture that defined the slide for many, embarrassed the Claret and Blue half of the second city and underlines Lerner’s culpability. There wasn’t a single positive and it confirmed what we knew about many who pulled on the shirt (*This was the game where Lescott “accidentally” tweeted the supercar afterwards…

CC: Did the FA Cup run last year put a mask over some of the problems that were deep routed at the club?

VU: Yes and no. Sherwood for all his failings motivated a desperate side into the final and somehow, miraculously I assure you, kept us up. That side has Benteke in unplayable form and Delph commanding it. Grealish was also a key figure in the run in. It was the beginning of the end however. The sale of our two best players and Grealish losing his way exposed the fact that beyond them we have very little indeed. This was a mess of a squad, but we had the resources to improve it in the close season in 2015.

CC: Do you want the new manager to build the side around Jack Grealish or is it best to rebuild from his sale?

VU: Grealish has all of the attributes to be a fine footballer. However, he has already shown traits that undo the best. With the right people around him he will go on to great things, either with or without Villa. If he wants success he has to remember that discipline and professionalism will get him there. Ideally I’d love to see Jack at the centre of a rebuild, but only time will tell. In truth we need more than one man, we need a whole new spine of a team. It would be a sad day when Villa needs to part with largely unproven players such as Grealish to fund a rebuild.

CC: Villa are very loyal and are there are still 33,000 turning up for home games but will they find it at all refreshing to visit grounds like Rotherham Utd or Burton Albion?

VU: Despite our situation this is one of the few silver linings.  Fans I talk to in person and on social media look to new grounds as a welcome change in scenery from identikit Premier League stadiums.  Villa often get singled out in the media for empty seats in recent years, but this is largely because many fans (1 in 4 realistically) refusing to fund Randy Lerner.  The fact that we still get 30000+ most weeks is actually quite unbelievable given the standard of football on offer and the lack of effort from the players.  An increasing number now only attend away games, so ‘new’ grounds will only fuel this until there is a change in ownership.

CC: Can going down to the Championship be the making of Villa or do you see it as a spiral to further problems?

VU: This will go one of two ways. The club has to make the right managerial appointment and use its size to orchestrate an immediate return to the top flight. I worry greatly if we conduct ourselves in the manner of recent years. That could see us in absolute disarray, ending...who knows where?

Bournemouth are probably one of the sides Villa fans would have expected to have done better than this season but do you think the newly promoted sides have had more ambition than some of those that find themselves down the bottom?

Looking at our downfall and having listened to former CEO Tom Fox, it is down to organisation. Bournemouth (and similar promoted teams in recent years) have made good solid plans and executed them well. Villa completely relied upon its size and perceived stature in the game to guarantee Premier League survival. This is why we became perennial 6th place finishers. Our lack of ambition inevitably translated into flirting season after season with relegation until we have finally been found wanting. Our revenue, despite the huge growth in terms of TV money has stayed relatively static. In short, despite being within the English domestic elite in terms of honours and fanbase, we were left behind. It is astonishing how poorly run we have been.

CC: How important is it that Villa win a few games at the end of this season for sanity and is it best to throw some of the youngsters in now in preparation for next season?

VU: I think the importance of winning is lesser than actually blooding the younger fringe players now. In truth, we have had very few players break through and make the grade for far too long. However, consecutive managers have been reluctant to use academy players, despite the clubs successes in both the FA Youth Cup and Youth Champions League equivalent. Most fans would welcome their inclusion, but there has been a baffling and frustrating perseverance with senior players that don’t try, hurl abuse at fans at games, misbehave in public and post crap to social media. We have become so accustomed to defeat that even a side that tried but lost would be a welcome change.

CC: What is your score prediction for the game?

VU: 1-0 to Bournemouth.
All the best for next season.

CC: Well I don't think we have ever had a more frank and honest Rival Lines from a fan who loves his club than this one. I sounds desperate to hear such mismanagement but we all know it happens at clubs at at Villa their has been a rotten core their for some time which is no help to the fans but fellow fans of other clubs can sympathise with people that get hold of their club and run it down even if they started with the best intentions. Now Aston Villa as a club needs to give its fans something back in the way of belief and direction and rebuild the trust. It's a huge job for someone but the Championship is a hard league and t takes hard work to get out of it. In some ways though if it was not for some big clubs losing their way there would never be room for some success stories like AFCB to find their way up the football pyramid so to Villa fans I say stick with your club and hope for the right people to come in, It's all about the future.

To read more of Dan's writings please visit his website at Villa Underground where he looks at possible new manager choices for the Villa such as David Moyes and Nigel Pearson. I have also answered some questions for Dan which you should see later after 10.30am.

You can also listen to a Birmingham Mail Villa podcast here to hear how Villa fans feel ahead of the game.