That sub was made in the 89th minute. We hardly drew due to that! Also, it was Parker for VDV. But are there still fans out there who didn't understand the tactical thinking behind that substitution? It was done to push MOdric forward into VDV's role. We were dominating the possession, but couldn't open them up, so pushed our most creative player forward. It was pointed out at the time by many fans that it wasn't a defensive sub and in fact an attacking move, yet still, months later, people can't get their heads around it. It was not the reason we didn't win that game and it was the right attacking move, as Modric was far more likely to play the clever ball needed to open them up, than Defoe would have been. Parker played as the last man, so even the defenders could push up. We put on a defensive player in order for them team to be as attacking as possible!
We all saw what he thought was going to work Joey, problem is, there were BETTER options.
Luka scored 4 goals last season.
VdV scored 11.
Defoe scored 11.
We needed players to stretch the pitch not try and pick a lock through the middle which wasn't going to happen. Defoe goes on for VdV, Ade drops in behind and starts dragging the walls around with him, Bale and Lennon have room to manouvre...there were other options which, I think, might have given us a better chance of pinching a goal.
Parker was also coming off his soon-to-be-reaggravated achilies problem. Livermore, at that point in the season a player who had performed a similar, deep-lying midfield role, often, passes the ball forward more quickly than scotty, who tends to hold the ball and run with it before releasing. In the 89th minute of a game where your theory might have been applicable so far as the logic of the substitution goes, I think it's fair to say that Livermore would've been a better option. I will never ever forget Scotty scuttling backwards towards the far left-hand corner of our half (the opposite corner from where we were sat) literally going in circles before being able to get the ball 20 yards back up the pitch; it took a minute!
The TRUTH is that you're absolutely right, neither that sub or those 5 minutes cost us that game. It was the first-half, which much like many in the second-half of last season (especially away) was played at the speed of a turtle when we really needed to impose ourselves on what was as poor a Vila side as we will see for a long long time.
If ever there was an away game to play like we were at home last season, that was it. Sorry, if AVB faces a game like this and we play with the same level of tepidity, I'll criticize him too