Paul Lambert

[Phumfeinz]

Thumbs up from Stan......

 

 

 Stiliyan Petrov ‏@StanPetrov19  4h

@AVFCOfficial so happy to see @No1shaygiven and Gordon Cowans involved in the first team coaching staff. Good luck!

 

Anyone know how Stan is doing lately? It'd be great to have him back in the fold.

[The_Lions_Roar]

Thumbs up from Stan......

Stiliyan Petrov ‏@StanPetrov19 4h

@AVFCOfficial so happy to see @No1shaygiven and Gordon Cowans involved in the first team coaching staff. Good luck!

Anyone know how Stan is doing lately? It'd be great to have him back in the fold.

I don't think he'll play for us again.

[VillaChris]

Trent's post was very interesting to read and goes against most of my thoughts on the current subject but I won't be complaining if we can actually win a flipping game or two in the run in.

 

What I just don't understand is if Karsa and Culver's attitudes were so poor why have they been joined to the hip of Lambert for pretty much the last 5 years and both followed him? Did Lambert not have any external candidates in his mind when he took over to appoint as assistants so better the devil you know or have their attitudes just dropped for whatever reason since working here?

 

I had an inkling at the time HH was Karsa given how low profile he was compared to Culverhouse, I'd love to know what his "football operations" title actually meant. I dunno if it is him but him mouthing off at Faulkner about transfer money allegedly does seem to fit with some of his posts here aswell as the obvious ITK training ground team news.

 

I still think Lambert's days are numbered here. It doesn't exactly reflect well on him that two people he personally brought into the club have been apparently so disruptive and we'll see if this expected revival actually happens, I'm not convinced given Benteke isn't suddenly going to magically come back from injury. 

 

Above all can we just get some more points on board this season please?!

[HeyAnty]

I doubt he'd get suspended just for playing the bad cop, must be something pretty bad.

I bet their was fisty cuffs in the changing room after the palace game.

Im telling ya, there was boxing in the changing rooms...

'It has emerged that problems with Culverhouse and Karsa were longstanding. Lambert's once extremely close alliance with the pair unravelled and disintegrated to the point that there was a total loss of trust, culminating in tension that surfaced again at Crystal Palace on Saturday, when another altercation – believed to have taken place in the dressing room – preceded a fourth successive Premier League defeat, leaving Villa only four points clear of the relegation zone before Saturday's visit of Southampton.,

[VillaForever1970]

Paul Lambert's assistants Ian Culverhouse and Gary Karsa suspended by Aston Villa after alleged row

Gordon Cowans and Shay Given promoted to assist Paul Lambert, with Aston Villa insisting the manager is not in danger of losing his job

By John Percy10:00PM BST 15 Apr 2014 3 Comments

Aston Villa have suspended Paul Lambert’s long-serving deputies, Ian Culverhouse and Gary Karsa, in a desperate attempt to revive the club’s battle against relegation but insist the manager’s job is safe.

Villa have disciplined assistant manager Culverhouse and head of football operations Karsa after a breakdown in Lambert’s relationship with the pair.

Villa’s European Cup-winning midfielder Gordon Cowans and reserve goalkeeper Shay Given have temporarily been promoted to first-team duties.

Lambert has barely been on speaking terms with Culverhouse or Karsa for weeks while it is alleged they have also been unpopular with the players, and Villa have made the decision in an attempt to lift the club for the final five games of the season.

With relations already strained, and the atmosphere frequently uncomfortable on the training ground, the tipping point came on Saturday when there was a heated confrontation in the dressing room before the defeat at Crystal Palace.

Lambert is understood to have clashed with Culverhouse minutes before the game kicked off, later hinting at problems “behind the scenes”, with Villa informing the pair to stay away from the club’s Bodymoor Heath base this week.

There have been persistent rumours over an alleged bust-up between Culverhouse and Cowans nearly a fortnight ago but Villa sources insist a combination of factors are behind the suspensions, culminating in the incident at Selhurst Park.

Culverhouse also clashed with supporters after the Boxing Day defeat by Palace at Villa Park, launching a foul-mouthed tirade at fans seated behind the home dug-out.

Randy Lerner, the club’s owner, and chief executive Paul Faulkner have both approved the move and while the departures would suggest Lambert’s position has been weakened, his job is not under any threat despite a run of four successive defeats.

Villa have launched an internal investigation and intend to reach a final decision before the end of the season, with the pair’s exits likely to be confirmed, leaving Lambert almost certainly looking for new back-room staff this summer.

The players were told the news after training on Tuesday, with Lambert and Faulkner both at the team meeting.

The surprise split ends a long association between the trio. Lambert worked with Culverhouse and Karsa at former clubs Norwich, Colchester and Wycombe Wanderers and they joined him at Villa when he was appointed in June 2012.

Cowans’s promotion will prove a popular move to a disenchanted fanbase but Given’s new role is ironic considering the former Republic of Ireland international has been frozen out by Lambert since his arrival.

Lambert said: “I’m delighted to have Gordon and Shay to assist me in preparing the team for Saturday, which is what the whole group is focused on.”

Given has been taking his Uefa coaching badges and is keen to take on a coaching role when he retires. The 37-year-old returned from a loan spell in the Championship with Middlesbrough at the end of February admitting, “Aston Villa want me out of the door”.

But now he will be joining Lambert in the dugout for the first time on coaching duties this Saturday, for the crucial game against Southampton, as Villa attempt to move away from the relegation zone.

Given said: “As players, it’s important that each and every one of us take responsibility right now and I’m delighted to play my part in helping the manager and the team go and try to win on Saturday.”

Villa are only four points above the relegation places and Lambert has faced heavy fire from supporters after another disappointing campaign.

clicky

[Kwan]

Culverhouse: "We're going with 5-3-2, mate"

 

Lambert: "Kwan warned me about this..."

[NurembergVillan]

 

 

I may have things wrong but I believe Lambert has the job of "manager" so if one or two of his staff were doing things he didn't like, why didn't he, er..., manage them and make them stop? Waiting for months then suspending them might be seen as a bit weak.

At present all the info seeping out is coming from Lambert so we are not getting the full story (and probably never will) and there are many puzzling aspects to the case.

 

 

You raise a good point Briny.

 

Very interesting post from Trent which for me raises as many questions as it gives answers.

Lambert has known both Culverhouse and Karsa for a long time and they have worked alongside Lambert for 8 years. He must know them inside out. He is either a terrible judge of character or they must have had complete changes in personality for Culverhouse to turn into a bully who was hated by most of the first team squad and Karsa to be acting Billy big bollocks and clashing with Faulkner.

For Culverhouse to supposedly be hated by the players it would suggest it is more than the odd incident which has led to this. It makes you wonder how little time Lambert spends overseeing training if things have gone on for so long and to such an extent that the first team coach is hated by the players. It is not as though they have been trying to coach players they inherited that wouldn't accept the new training regime. Gabby and Delph are the only senior players that Lambert and co inherited that haven't been bombed out.

I am not sure how all this reflects on Lambert. At the very least it seems that he was unable to keep in line his apparently trusted lieutenants.

 

 

A couple of things are required for context here.

 

Firstly, I'd imagine it's harder to just sack a coach than it is a manager.  You'd probably need good reason so as not to be hauled up in front of tribunals etc.  In the modern world (even within football) you can't just sack people.  Even swearing at a fan is probably only worthy of a written warning in reality, even though it seems Lambert wanted it to be treated more severely.  Perhaps that was the trigger for Culverhouse to starting playing up.  Perhaps it was part of a longer saga.

 

Secondly, what has happened doesn't necessarily reflect badly on Lambert.  He's worked with them for a number of years but under very different circumstances.  Previously they'd worked (apart from one season at Norwich) at smaller clubs, with lower profile players and under less pressure.  On the whole they'd enjoyed a great deal of success.  When the going gets tough etc.  Perhaps these lads just didn't fancy it.

 

I think thirdly there will potentially be an issue of cost, whether we like it or not.  We paid to hire them, we'd have to pay them off to get shot of them, and without the right evidence (hence the suspension and inquiry - doing things by the book) we might have had to pay them again following any legal proceedings.

 

Lambert has clearly identified an issue relating to the performance of two people who had previously been key members of staff throughout his career.  Not only has he taken steps to address that, he's followed it up by appointing two replacements who he feels are best placed to get the most out of the squad at his disposal.  From what we're hearing out of Bodymoor Heath it's a move which seems to have been met favourably with the team.

 

Rather than pick the guy apart for all this, I say he should be applauded for it.

 

There are plenty of other angles to have a pop at Lambert in the last few months.  This isn't one of them.

[Spoony]

With all the young players we have it's a bit worrying that there's possibly a bullying kind of culture at our club. Christ the place becomes more rotten every day.

[Mendi]

Gosh he still here.

 

Still has the backing by the club.

[Risso]

Just a thought, and I could be completely wrong (just for a change) but I wonder if Culverhouse's training methods have contributed to the spate of serious injuries this season?  If so, you could see why players would be pissed off with him.

[Big_John_10]

All good reasons but still why not take a more active role in day to day training? Why not relegate culverhouse to the youth team/bombsquad?d If sacking was too difficult there were other ways to deal with it. Instead it looks like we did nothing until this point which has left us in a dodgy position in terms of surviving.

Trent said Lambert has only today decided to be more hands on. If culverhouse has been disruptive for awhile that's a pretty weak decision from our manager.

He works for Lambert, he should be controlling the issue. No fuss moving players away so can't see why nothing was done earlier.

Edited April 15, 2014 by Big_John_10

[The_Steve]

 

 

 

I may have things wrong but I believe Lambert has the job of "manager" so if one or two of his staff were doing things he didn't like, why didn't he, er..., manage them and make them stop? Waiting for months then suspending them might be seen as a bit weak.

At present all the info seeping out is coming from Lambert so we are not getting the full story (and probably never will) and there are many puzzling aspects to the case.

 

 

You raise a good point Briny.

 

Very interesting post from Trent which for me raises as many questions as it gives answers.

Lambert has known both Culverhouse and Karsa for a long time and they have worked alongside Lambert for 8 years. He must know them inside out. He is either a terrible judge of character or they must have had complete changes in personality for Culverhouse to turn into a bully who was hated by most of the first team squad and Karsa to be acting Billy big bollocks and clashing with Faulkner.

For Culverhouse to supposedly be hated by the players it would suggest it is more than the odd incident which has led to this. It makes you wonder how little time Lambert spends overseeing training if things have gone on for so long and to such an extent that the first team coach is hated by the players. It is not as though they have been trying to coach players they inherited that wouldn't accept the new training regime. Gabby and Delph are the only senior players that Lambert and co inherited that haven't been bombed out.

I am not sure how all this reflects on Lambert. At the very least it seems that he was unable to keep in line his apparently trusted lieutenants.

 

 

A couple of things are required for context here.

 

Firstly, I'd imagine it's harder to just sack a coach than it is a manager.  You'd probably need good reason so as not to be hauled up in front of tribunals etc.  In the modern world (even within football) you can't just sack people.  Even swearing at a fan is probably only worthy of a written warning in reality, even though it seems Lambert wanted it to be treated more severely.  Perhaps that was the trigger for Culverhouse to starting playing up.  Perhaps it was part of a longer saga.

 

Secondly, what has happened doesn't necessarily reflect badly on Lambert.  He's worked with them for a number of years but under very different circumstances.  Previously they'd worked (apart from one season at Norwich) at smaller clubs, with lower profile players and under less pressure.  On the whole they'd enjoyed a great deal of success.  When the going gets tough etc.  Perhaps these lads just didn't fancy it.

 

I think thirdly there will potentially be an issue of cost, whether we like it or not.  We paid to hire them, we'd have to pay them off to get shot of them, and without the right evidence (hence the suspension and inquiry - doing things by the book) we might have had to pay them again following any legal proceedings.

 

Lambert has clearly identified an issue relating to the performance of two people who had previously been key members of staff throughout his career.  Not only has he taken steps to address that, he's followed it up by appointing two replacements who he feels are best placed to get the most out of the squad at his disposal.  From what we're hearing out of Bodymoor Heath it's a move which seems to have been met favourably with the team.

 

Rather than pick the guy apart for all this, I say he should be applauded for it.

 

There are plenty of other angles to have a pop at Lambert in the last few months.  This isn't one of them.

 

 

I'd like to think Lambert has done the best thing for the club, regardless of personal feelings.

[Kwan]

Just a thought, and I could be completely wrong (just for a change) but I wonder if Culverhouse's training methods have contributed to the spate of serious injuries this season?  If so, you could see why players would be pissed off with him.

 

On one hand, it's pretty hard to predict ACL tears. They happened in various circumstances and it might just all be bad luck. CNZ in training. Okore during an innocuous tackle in a game. Kozak clattered. Benteke with no one around him.

 

On the other hand.....

[villanmac]

Its just as likely that Lambert had no say in the matter. 

[NurembergVillan]

All good reasons but still why not take a more active role in day to day training? Why not relegate culverhouse to the youth team/bombsquad?d If sacking was too difficult there were other ways to deal with it. Instead it looks like we did nothing until this point which has left us in a dodgy position in terms of surviving.

Trent said Lambert has only today decided to be more hands on. If culverhouse has been disruptive for awhile that's a pretty weak decision from our manager.

He works for Lambert, he should be controlling the issue. No fuss moving players away so can't see why nothing was done earlier.

 

Sometimes you have to give someone enough rope.  I've no idea what line of work you're in, but I've certainly seen situations where you'd have to apply similar principles to what has happened here.  Employment law in this country is just as knackered as everything else.

[bobzy]

Just a thought, and I could be completely wrong (just for a change) but I wonder if Culverhouse's training methods have contributed to the spate of serious injuries this season?  If so, you could see why players would be pissed off with him.

 

Someone else (foreveryoung?) posted this point a few pages back - could be completely the case.

 

It could also, partially, explain why Culverhouse's methods might have been successful in lower league football for years with Lambert but just not up to scratch for the Premier League.  The old "let them 'av it" sort of style without much substance.

 

You can't really blame Lambert for entrusting people who he's been successful with for many years but something has obviously gone badly wrong here.  Glad to see it getting resolved though and, if Trent's post is true regarding player attitude already improving, hopefully we'll see a more spirited end of the season.  (As an aside, perhaps a partial explanation for the complete lack of energy in the past few games?).

 

 

 

 

Also, we have a very large amount of football managers on here - impressive.

[Big_John_10]

All good reasons but still why not take a more active role in day to day training? Why not relegate culverhouse to the youth team/bombsquad?d If sacking was too difficult there were other ways to deal with it. Instead it looks like we did nothing until this point which has left us in a dodgy position in terms of surviving.

Trent said Lambert has only today decided to be more hands on. If culverhouse has been disruptive for awhile that's a pretty weak decision from our manager.

He works for Lambert, he should be controlling the issue. No fuss moving players away so can't see why nothing was done earlier.

Sometimes you have to give someone enough rope. I've no idea what line of work you're in, but I've certainly seen situations where you'd have to apply similar principles to what has happened here. Employment law in this country is just as knackered as everything else.

Surely moving a coach from the first team squad is similar to moving a player from the first team squad. And like I said why not be there more. Lambert's the boss, if culverhouse is disrupting training and bullying players why isn't Lambert on the training ground every day to ensure it doesn't happen?

[snowychap]

There are plenty of other angles to have a pop at Lambert in the last few months.  This isn't one of them.

Without knowing the details, I think that it's a sensible angle to take that this isn't necessarily a reason to have a pop at him but, by extension, this isn't a reason (without knowing those details) to applaud him either.

[Big_John_10]

Also, we have a very large amount of football managers on here - impressive.

Classic.

[smetrov]

Just a thought, and I could be completely wrong (just for a change) but I wonder if Culverhouse's training methods have contributed to the spate of serious injuries this season?  If so, you could see why players would be pissed off with him.

 

Someone suggested that earlier - I thought it was a bit far fetched at the time ...but the more I think about it...

 

Mind you - the events of the last 48 hours nothing is off limits......Tonev might even score saturday....