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Just got home. Pretty awful. And confirmed what most posters have been saying through the pre-season. The defensive players are not up to it. We have no proper striker. And our mid-field can lack creativity. As for Villa the people I was with discussed whether he is giving 100%. By matches end we had come to the conclusion that he is not - does not track back to assist the defence and if there is physical contact he backs off. Having said that I think he has played some of the displayed the best skills I have seen on Australian soil. But for now, if he does not return from NY I am not fussed. Interestingly enough many people though that he would boss it, score heaps and take City to the top of the table. This has proven false because football is a team game and he can't do everything by himself; and the A-League is a lot better than what people give it credit for. For me both Ramsay and Hoffman were just as bad. Hoffman was slightly better because he scored a goal. Otherwise Victory could exploit either the left or the right. The A-League has passed them by (if they ever were up to the standard) and really the coaching staff have to make a decision: send them both to the Youth League and develop Garuccio, Archibald and Mauk or persevere with them so that we can come last again. There has been talk that City can sign either Bresciano or Kennedy as the marquee. I want Kennedy as we don't have a credentialled striker and we have plenty of mid-fielders. We need a linchpin up forward. And yes I am aware that we need more creativity out of Murdocca but I am hoping that Koren will come good by December and he can replace the uncreative mid-fielders. As for JVS I was willing to give him another go. But right now, at this very minute, you better contact your friends in the Dutch media about vacancies. I am going to bed knowing that there are 24 matches to go. Knowing that at season's end, Ramsay's, Redmayne's, Wieleart's and others' contract come to an end. If someone like me, who has just recently converted to football can see that these players are no longer good enough for the A League, the surely so can the recruiting staff at MCFC.

I agree, but you don't have to rebrand to change perception, you need to change the team performance to change perception. Out of curiosity, do you have any examples of clubs that have changed from failure to success? The only one I can think of was Hawthorn here in Melbourne, Sydney are a transplanted South Melbourne that have only succeeded by substantial amounts of money from the AFL. Fitzroy technically merged with Brisbane Bears but really not many remember Fitzroy. Outside of Oz I have no idea (actually outside of AFL).

Having very little history with football, I really don't know about youth development vs success. With a squad of 23+3 it seems to me that having a very young squad is a recipe for failure. Having an old squad could mean short term success but at the cost of not developing a culture and having to shop around for good aging players. And at 27 games a season there is little time to develop the players. Furthermore, if the player is young and gets an overseas offer for more money, then will the fans stand in their way? I really have no idea as to what a suitable path should be.

What is truly annoying is that as the marquee player he is meant to grow the club. IIRC the CFG said that the person may not be a household name but will become one - not if he is not on the pitch.

Massive blow. A loss of promotional value and for the younger players, a mentor that they can emulate. By and large visa players have been underwhelming and the rare gems that have played in the A League stand out and lift the overall standard of the game. In Villa Melbourne got the whole package. If people signed up as members because of Villa - welcome and I hope that they remain with the team in subsequent seasons. If people make the time to come and see Villa play (either as new members or as walk ups), welcome and hopefully you will enjoy the match and be tempted to come again. The more people at the stadium the better the atmosphere and a greater chance for the teams to put on a show.

Don't blame Redders. For two weeks running City's defence has been caught out. Redders had to cover both sides of the goal as there was no one marking the space on the far post. I presume that the coaching staff have reviewed the two games enough to ensure that this is not a regular occurrence.

Too early to call on JVS. All through the pre-season this forum has been highlighting the shortcoming of some of the players and of course the perplexing thing has been why some were given new contracts whilst for others the club is probably waiting for the contract to expire. Overall the team is playing tighter more cohesive football - they actually look like a team. The big concern through the pre-season has been the defence and the left back position, and they remain so. JVS has to develop game plans with the players he has right now and so far is OK but should do better. Additionally football is a low scoring game and hence a small mistake/lapse can be costly and the Jets proved that yesterday. Also perhaps the Jets deserve more respect than what they are getting. Changing the topic slightly to Mate Dugandzic - as mentioned above and elsewhere he has never seem to be the same player since his injury. But another thought crept into my head during the game - perhaps he is the same player but the game has now progressed beyond his talent/capabilities. He is not a complete dud - he can still harass and pressure the opposition, he can still run along the flanks, etc but maybe the requirement for better execution of passing and having shots on goal is now beyond what he can deliver.

Well that was a flat game. In the first half, City dominated but were unable to score. I will note that there is a lot of love for Villa but today he missed two gettable chances and then scored a freak of a goal. I read here that its Villa and therefore he should be forgiven - No. Yes he did score the equalizer but he still missed two opportunities. In the second half City did not show up until the Jets scored and their intensity lifted. The same happened last week A pattern is emerging where City spend their energy and the opposition defends tightly and in the second half they counter attack and score - then city plays catch up. This will end in tears. The tactics need reworking. A lot of people are heaping crap on Ramsay but after he was subbed of, Jeronimo on two occasions was left totally unattended - that tells me that Ramsay was following the game plan. If the game plan is not effective it is not the players fault - that is the coaches fault. JVS has 6 days to come up with a plan to defeat Victory. Cause right now, at least to me, the problem is in the tactics.

I don't think that it is a fair to compare the attendances between ADP and Villa in the forthcoming game. Primarily there is a huge Italian population here in Melbourne; whilst the Spaniards have been in Melbourne since the end of the civil war, the size of the community is not that large and subsequent generations have blended in with the locals so it would depend as to whether they are aware of his existence. Sports lovers of course seem to know about him so that may be a boost but they also knew about ADP.

This is great! At last we are talking about whether a player should keep their spot knowing that there are others hungry to replace him that are as good or even better. For me I thought that he did well and whether he deserves to keep his spot depends upon who may replace him and whether the game plan changes.

He mentioned that he scored the equalizer on his debut in the Australian League but unfortunately the team was unable to get the full points after all the work that has been put into the preparations. He also would like to thank his team mates, the club and all the Australians that have made his first week such positive experience as well as those who are contacting him through social media including people from NYC. He has been shown a lot of love by the people here in Melbourne. For a Spaniard he speaks remarkably humbly and understated. Had to do a re-listen just to make sure.

If he keeps that up for the remainder of his stay perhaps we can change from Melbourne City FC to Melbourne Villa FC...just saying...

Looking at it dispassionately, the build up by SFC and the shot by Gameiro were very good. To claim that Redders should have saved that goal does not wash with me as Gameiro's shot was top notch. If anything people should be asking how did the defence allow Gameiro, a known goal scorer, so much room and time to have a shot because it almost was like having a penalty (he just took it in an angle).

This! Mate is not a striker he has always played as a wingman. He is so light of frame that he was bossed around by all the SFC defenders. I am hoping that next week Villa starts and then is replaced by Willo. Not sure where I would put Mate but with Duff having a great game then for me its the bench.

On the positive side, compared to last season our passing and first touch has improved. The team was quite cohesive in the first 20 minutes and were pretty good for the remainder of the game. Villa did what was expected of him when an opportunity arose and Duff was MOTM for me. The midfield has improved and that augurs well. And remarkably the defence was reasonably solid, especially in the first half but they tired. The negatives are that the finishing remains a problem Villa excepted of course. And aerially the team remains pathetic.

When did South Melbourne become Sydney? From recollection it was in the 80s. And of course there is the rebranding of Footscray and North Melbourne. Also the rise and demise of the the Bears.

Same here. However I would loath it if he is selected to play purely for promotional reasons.

Wives -> wife's. For a minute there I thought you were the sheik and his harem!

Actually, what I am getting so far this year from the FFA, this thread (and others), and the MSM is that there is a dearth of talent at the moment. OK, we have Redders and Velaphi, neither of whom can be considered elite goalkeepers, yet, when I look at other A-League clubs there aren't that many that I would poach. Ditto for left back positions. So it is apparent that in the final years of the NSL and the beginning of the A-League youth development suffered but now that the A-League is in its 10th season why aren't there any young players coming through in all positions?

You don't think much of the other sides or coaches, do you? Reminds me of Clive Palmer when he said that he could build a club that would win the premiership in its first season.

Good point. I wonder whether that also means that there may be other constraints placed on City regarding DV such as that he can't play more than 60 minutes per game or that he is to be left on the bench when playing against hacks.

That sounds like a variation on Allan Jeans "its a simple game really, either you have the ball, they have the ball or its in dispute".

I did not watch the game but going by the comments above, I would hope that the players can do more than one training drill at the same time.

She must be really interested in his life... NOT!

It would be an interesting comparison to see how the other A-League clubs have managed to on-sell their younger talents. CCM is always selling players but not sure how many or whether they went on to better things; MV and BR have have successfully developed players but I am not sure about the other clubs.