Another jibe from Milan

The Times reports this morning that our favourite son Milan Baros has been loudly criticising Martin O'Neill's tactics at Aston Villa. "We play football at Lyon, not long-ball tactics...At Villa it was more like fighting than playing football".

Unfortunately, what Baros doesn't say is almost more important than what he does. So by way of a Villa Blog response to the whining Czech, let me make the following points to him:

1) Be under no illusion, Milan, that the move from Premiership to France's top flight is anything other than a step down. The quality of the French first division is lower, the athleticism lesser, and the competition less fierce and intense.

I can well understand why you have scored 4 goals in 9 outings there. When you talk about a "fight", maybe you mean that the Premiership boasts four teams realistically capable of winning the Champions League and probably another four capable of winning the UEFA Cup.

That is a highly competitive league - which is probably why it has attracted the cream of French talent for some time (Deschamps, Dessailly, Leboeuf, Cantona. Anelka, Petit, Vieira, Bartez, Pires, Henry, Wiltord). Of course, with players of that class gone, it will leave you with a less physically intense league in which to play your pretty training-ground football;

2) Villa supporters have also become frustrated by use of the long-ball game. However. most of us understand and are prepared to accept two things:

1) Villa under O'Neill immediately started to play with a system built primarily upon pace and width (not the long ball at all). Injuries (Moore) and exhaustion (Agbonlahor) have dented progress;

2) Until O'Neill has had the time and the funds to transform Villa's midfield (a top-class central midfielder is a priority), there is a limit to how much Villa can effectively play through midfield - simple logic given that opposing midfields will often be stronger and more mobile at the moment.

The vast majority of players and supporters understand what O'Neill is trying to build over the course of the next few seasons are are prepared to live with the fact that Villa may need to use some less attractive tactics while they evolve. A few, or maybe one, decided instead to sulk and fall over a lot. Maybe that suits France much better.

3) Lyon are several classes above their French opposition, which means they'll play an attacking, expansive game against inferior opponents all the time. A bit like Celtic in Scotland, maybe. Stan Petrov has had a shock, too, by the degree of competition in the EPL ... but all credit to him, he's knuckled down and looked increasingly determined, aggressive and effective. His creative game may be suffering as Villa lack penetration this season, but at least he's prepared to "fight"...

You are right: doing well in the Premiership is a fight. And I'll tell you what - the reason you left is that fight is a quality we never, ever saw from you.

Now shut up.