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Breathe

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I couldn't post after the Saudi massacre up on Tyneside. The gut punch of game one was too much to bear. All of the pre-season optimism was drained by losing Buendia (one of our best pre-season performers) to an ACL on the eve of the game, and then Mings in-game to another ACL). Villa got slaughtered, and even Pau's [otherwise promising] looking debut was punctuated by a sea of goals against. Football is a nightmare. The sheer swiftness of how we went from being a hugely strengthened squad with great hopes, to a depleted one with confidence sapped; is alarming.

What Villa needed of course, was a gimme of a match and Everton provided this. Pau replaced Mings and looked commanding against zero threat. We learn not a lot - but 90 mins of strutting about playing passes and getting a good feel for things certainly can't harm. Diaby continued to look a real menace. Bailey, who would likely not have been picked for the Newcastle game, but for Buendia's injury, kept his place in the absence of options and actually looked dangerous. 

So we end up mid table, in touch with the business end of the table and awaiting the next instalment of footy. Most alarmingly, I am already supporting 'the draw' in virtually all other fixtures, so that nobody stretches too far away. I feel its going to take a few months now for Villa to find their feet, with new players thrown in where the plan would have been to gently introduce them, so I think it is going to be all about grabbing wins when we can, and I think just accepting that we'll have likely some bad days (and ship 4 or 5 again!). 

Elsewhere in the table it is good to see Chelsea on just 1 point, good that Man Utd lost one and should easily have lost the other (Wolves were amazing and ripped through them, only to be denied by the most ludicrous VAR conspiracy at the end). Man City seem to be able to win irrespective of who plays. Brighton likewise seem to be able to sell their prized assets yet continue to impress. Luton are so poor they can't even host matches at their ground. 

It is great to have it all back and happening again, and not least because Villa begin their European adventure this Wednesday. Nothing screams Europa Conference League more than a 5:45pm KO in Scotland [to get the game out of the way in time for the proper matches later]. I am totally here for it!


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