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Hull City defeat the end for Paul Lambert at Aston Villa

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Aston Villa dropped into the relegation zone for the first time this season after losing 2-0 away to fellow strugglers Hull City. It was Villa’s four consecutive league defeat, and the eighth game of their last 10 that they have failed to score in. The Midlands club have gradually been dropping down the table week after week since December, and recent form has seen the majority of supporters turn indefinitely on the manager.

Fans were seen lofting banners with “Lambert Out” during the game, and they could well receive their wish in the coming months. Lambert’s post-match interview had the air of a defeated man who had little left to give. The task to keep the club in the Premier League has never been harder, as they are enduring the worst form since the Scot arrived at Villa Park.

“The dressing room is as flat as you’ll probably get it, the way they’re feeling. You’ve got to go into the next game and win it. You can’t feel sorry for yourself. We’ve got to keep battling away and keep our heads up. We’re certainly in a fight. You have to keep going and keep being positive. There’s a lot of football to be played,” said Lambert following the Hull City defeat.

There was an element of luck with how Hull City scored both goals to earn three points over the Villans, but the table doesn’t lie, and this season Aston Villa have been one of the weaker sides in the division. There’s enough time to get themselves out of the drop zone, but Lambert’s future was another story.

He found himself in a similar predicament as Alan Pardew did during his time at Newcastle, where supporters wanted the manager gone from the club regardless of the outcome to the campaign. The Aston Villa boss signed a four-year-deal earlier in the season to many fans’ surprise, but his current position was untenable after another disappointing result to a relegation-threatened opponent.

Defeats to the likes of Arsenal, Manchester City and Chelsea can be excused if the club are still picking up points against the teams around them in the table, but Aston Villa have lost to Hull City, Leicester City and West Brom in the last two months. A five-game losing streak isn’t even the worst of the season, but a lack of goals, and little indication of improvement have been enough to signal the end for Lambert.

Paul Lambert running out of luck with Aston Villa, but is he running out of time too?

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Aston Villa went down to their sixth consecutive Premier League defeat, with Sunday night’s opponents Tottenham Hotspur coming from behind to take all three points at Villa Park. The home side appeared to have the game won late on, holding a 1-0 lead until the 84th minute, but Nacer Chadli and Harry Kane scored in the last six minutes of normal time to turn the game on its head.

The Villans ended the game with 10-men, while Tottenham were perhaps fortunate to have ended the game with 11. And while the referee came under fair criticism for an inconsistent performance, it serves the under-pressure Lambert no good. The fact remains, Aston Villa have lost their last six games in the league, scoring during once.

Supporters vented their fury at both the chain of events that saw three points snatched away from them, and  the manager, for whom many blame for their current plight. Paul Lambert will always divide opinion, but one thing fans will agree on is that his tenure is under threat if things don’t improve.

Aston Villa are currently 15th in the Premier League, with 10 points from as many games. After a bright start, they have truly been sent crashing back down to earth, and Lambert finds himself the second-favourite among the bookies to be the next top flight manager sacked.

Villa owner Randy Lerner has been a man of patience in regard to how he treats his coaches, but if the club’s survival becomes a genuine issue he will be forced to take action. Lambert addressed the need for experience in the side by signing players who have hundreds of games under their belt at a high level, while strengthening his backroom staff with highly-decorated player-turned-coach Roy Keane.

But this season, their form has completely unravelled and confidence is at an all-time low. Lambert previously admitted his job will be on the line if things fail to improve. With West Ham (away), Burnley (away), Crystal Palace (away), Leicester City (home) and West Brom (away) as five of their next six games, Aston Villa have a real opportunity to get back on board.

Lambert will have been targeting the games to come as an opportunity to arrest Aston Villa’s slide, but how much time will he be afforded to get things right with the club, given he’s had two and a half years at the Midlands outfit already?

Why Rickie Lambert is Plan B for England

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As England prepare to face their toughest game of Euro 2016 qualifying, away to Switzerland, it will also be the time when Roy Hodgson will need to show the watching country that he knows his Plan B.

Recent England games have seen a toothless attack, yet the structure of Daniel Sturridge up front, supported by 3 attacking players behind him, has been the favoured choice for Hodgson. Sterling placed on the right of the three, Oxlade-Chamberlain or Welbeck on the left, and Rooney as a number 10.

However, England are without recognised striker Daniel Sturridge for the trip to Basel, meaning a shake-up will be necessary, and there are not too many choices for the national manager to choose between.

There has been talk of playing skipper Wayne Rooney up front in the number 9 role, however it has been years since the Man Utd striker has been a consistent danger in front of goal, and his seeming lack of speed would make for a slower attack than with Sturridge. It would enable Sterling to play in the number 10 role, however at a time when all eyes are on Rooney, it wouldn’t limey be doing him any favours to bring attention to his diminishing danger in front of goal.

Danny Welbeck has been touted as a player who should get a run up front for club or country. His £16m move to Arsenal has had a mixed reaction amongst Gunners fans, with the more favourable saying he will be a great success if he is played as a striker. Welbeck has never scored more than nine goals in a season, playing for one of the top clubs in the country, and there is far from any guarantee that he would provide an adequate replacement for Sturridge, even if his pace would help him link up play better than Rooney.

Finally, it is seemingly unlikely that Hodgson will go for Liverpool’s second choice to Sturridge, Rickie Lambert, but this is at least a striker-for-striker plan B. Lambert got into double figures in his only two Premier League seasons, in a fast moving and free-flowing Southampton side, with a style of play Hodgson seems very unfamiliar with. But with Rooney passing the ball through just as Lallana did last term, and Sterling with the ability to beat a man on the wing and place the ball on the head of Lambert, Plan B could well be Rickie Lambert.

He can hold up the ball better than his competitors for the spot, and for those that like Welbeck’s pace, would allow him to play on the left and feed off Lambert, replacing Oxlade-Chamberlain, who has been unimpressive so far this season. The show of confidence in Lambert could make him a key man in the qualification round, and importantly provide a genuine second style of attack during Euro 2016, something that was sorely missed in Brazil 2014.