Steve Bruce

[A'Villan]

After backing him all season, and through a season that I consider to be successful despite not gaining promotion, I have to question if Bruce is the best option moving on from here.

Cannot for the life of me understand why you would blame the players over the manager for that performance first half, they go hand in hand if anything.

There's a reason why Fulham knocked it about with ease and had the momentum first half, because they were 'prepared' funnily enough, our motto.

Their players acted as a collective as did ours, and it's not as if Fulham scored in what was otherwise a close first half, they just about dominated. We looked reluctant and hesitant and I feel this was largely an organisational and tactical issue rather than 45 minutes of constant individual errors. So, that would be Bruce's responsibility.

Don't get me wrong, Bruce has done some good things for this club, and I am thankful for having him.

I just wonder if he has given it his best shot and come up short of the clubs aspirations, he doesn't inspire me as someone who can reinvent themselves at this point.

[jacketspuds]

I am grateful that Bruce has come in, steadied the ship and helped sort out the dressing room. But, I would also say that Terry will have played a huge part in the helping with that as well

The other thing to consider is that, really, managing a dressing room is one of the basic expectations of a good manager. We should be able to take what Bruce has put in place and build on it now.

I'm just not sure if Bruce is going to have the skills to rebuild a team without Terry, Snodgrass, Johnstone, Grealish (probably), Grabban and potentially Hourihane or Chester. He would need a lot of money to put together a team that he can work with, and we just don't have that sort of money available now due to FFP.

[terrytini]

1 hour ago, TRO said:

He is cautious Terry and was too cautious in the first half......but ask yourself why?

if he was confident enough in the players, he wouldn't be.

i seen enough in our players to know, we wasn't going to win.....despite their one decent move.....which was shamefully basic stuff as well as it was well executed.

He was too cautious because it’s his default nature.

Im not going to over criticise him for it - it’s served us well and nobody knows if a more expansive approach would definitely have served us better today or any other time (although I think we ARE better when we are more aggressive).

Bit whilst I won’t over criticise I DO think he’s made the wrong call, and I DONT think it’s the players at fault - other than the 2 I’ve said.

But it’s gone, that’s that. If he stays we MUST be the most aggressive, positive, attacking side in the League next year.

If we aren’t, we won’t succeed and Bruce won’t get 5 minutes grace from the fans, with justification.

[Guest av1]

18 minutes ago, av1 said:

He failed this season, and next season he will have far fewer tools to work with. He has to go.

 

Just to expand on this. 

After failing this season, next season he is going to have next to nothing to spend. He will most probably have to rely on some of the youth lads, something he is loathe to do, and will still try to impose on them his boring style of football. 

So if it failed this season, why would anyone believe it could succeed next season?

We tried spending big, it failed.

We have tried relying on experienced pros playing a pragmatic style, it failed. 

Neither of those options will be available next year, so will need a different approach, we need Bruce gone. 

[El Zen]

I’ll give him credit for steadying the ship and for building a team that looked like it might just be good enough to go up. 

However, he has failed to do what he was supposed to do. What he was supposed to be the best in the business at. Getting promotion. 

Which I might have forgiven, were he not also so tactically limited and reactionary in his approach. 

We won’t be able to rely on experienced players on high wages next year. We need to implement systems that let us control games and we need to find players with the right set of skills. I strongly believe this is possible in the Championship, even without spending loads of cash in fees and wages, but I’m equally sure Steve Bruce isn’t the man to do it. 

That, and I’ve really had enough of the ‘play all the strikers’ move when chasing a game. It arguably cost us a chance for automatic promotion, and it certainly didn’t help us today. 

[Dr_Pangloss]

8 minutes ago, jacketspuds said:

I am grateful that Bruce has come in, steadied the ship and helped sort out the dressing room. But, I would also say that Terry will have played a huge part in the helping with that as well

The other thing to consider is that, really, managing a dressing room is one of the basic expectations of a good manager. We should be able to take what Bruce has put in place and build on it now.

I'm just not sure if Bruce is going to have the skills to rebuild a team without Terry, Snodgrass, Johnstone, Grealish (probably), Grabban and potentially Hourihane or Chester. He would need a lot of money to put together a team that he can work with, and we just don't have that sort of money available now due to FFP.

If the ship needs such a massive rebuild I'm not sure he has actually steadied it?

[jacketspuds]

3 minutes ago, Dr_Pangloss said:

If the ship needs such a massive rebuild I'm not sure he has actually steadied it?

He has steadied it whilst being here. It will need a rebuild because of the amount of first team players either returning to parent clubs, out of contract, or likely to be sold. Can't link that to Bruce not steadying the ship this season.

Edited May 26, 2018 by jacketspuds

[El Zen]

2 minutes ago, Dr_Pangloss said:

If the ship needs such a massive rebuild I'm not sure he has actually steadied it?

Ship was sinking, he steadied it and got it to an emergency port. Now it needs a massive rebuild, and he’s not the man to do it properly. 

[dounavilla]

I had recently warmed to Bruce and prior to this match was of the opinion that he should remain even if we did not go up.

However, looking ahead I just cannot see how he will be able to do better with what will most likely be a weaker side.

I really think it's  time for a change, not just the manager but manergerial styles.  A tactical manager that can utilise the youth and remaining experienced players.

The question is who ?

[villaglint]

I hate the world. I hate this website and I especially hate you (post on post?!). 

 

But for me I am all in on Mr Bruce. Let's keep him and keep building on this. Fulham lost in playoffs last year. He's got the players together again and with a savvy summer (Jack please stay!) and a few more canny loans and I'm pretty flipping certain we'll be automatic next year. 

Edited May 26, 2018 by villaglint

[Guest av1]

1 minute ago, dounavilla said:

 

The question is who ?

Wenger 

I saw the suggestion of Lampard/Terry laughed at earlier, but given we will have no money someone with 'pull' and contacts at a big club could prove useful in the loan market. 

[TheStagMan]

2 hours ago, briny_ear said:

Well, you asked for my take on the match.

I referred you to my comments in the post match thread. Since you clearly haven’t read them, here is a summary: I had long feared our lack of cutting edge in front of goal would prove our undoing in the playoffs andso it proved. Waiting to see what Xia does next and pissed off to be spending a further season in the shitty Championship.

I faIl to see how such comments should provoke such a personalised tirade from you.

Maybe go and take a walk round the block to calm down?

I didn't ask for your take on the match, no idea where you got that from.... I asked you to back up the statement where you said my explanation of why I was concerned with "Bruce ball" was "rewriting history" and full of "wild speculation". Perhaps you would like to give it a go?

My comments were aimed at the content of your posts, not you as a person, I'm sure that in real life you are a lovely person, its just that some of your posts.... well.... they could be a little better thought through..... less of the sneering when we win games, and a bit less of the insulting people who are concerned about our future.

[terrytini]

7 minutes ago, Michelsen said:

Ship was sinking, he steadied it and got it to an emergency port. Now it needs a massive rebuild, and he’s not the man to do it properly. 

Not sure I agree there is a massive rebuild needed.

Bree, Chester, Adomah, Lansbury, Hourihane, Jedi, Birkir, Whelan, Kodja,  Taylor, Davies, Green, O Hare, Grealish...all likely to be here in my view....we will need 4 or 5 players plus another two youngsters ( Rhm should be one).....but it’s not a complete overhaul.

It couldn’t be financially, and shouldn’t be either, we’d lose JT and Snodgrass who have been influential but other than that the teams got within a few points of automatic promotion.

So whether Bruce stays or not I don’t see it as a huge a task as some do.

[penguin]

3 minutes ago, villaglint said:

I hate the world. I hate this website and I especially hate you (post on post?!). 

 

But for me I am all in on Mr Bruce. Let's keep him and keep building on this. Fulham lost in playoffs last year. He's got the players together again and with a savvy summer (Jack please stay!) and a few more canny loans and I'm pretty flipping certain we'll be automatic next year. 

Our players/squad were good enough for automatic promotion this year though. I don’t see why he deserves more time especially as we are just going to see more of the same next year as Bruce has shown no sign of deviating from his underdog frustrate the opponent formula.

[jacketspuds]

1 minute ago, villaglint said:

I hate the world. I hate this website and I especially hate you (post on post?!). 

 

But it for me I am all in on Mr Bruce. Let's keep him and keep building on this. Fulham lost in playoffs last year. He's got the players together again and with a savvy summer (Jack please stay!) and a few more canny loans and I'm pretty flipping certain we'll be automatic next year. 

I think the job that the Villa manager has this summer is bigger than what Jokanovic had to deal with last summer. Apart from Grealish (at the moment), a lot of our best players are leaving this summer, whereas Jokanovic had Cairney and Sessegnon to build on before he even started.

If we can get a manager who can convince Grealish to stay, make him the focal point of the team, and help him realise his potential, we might have a chance next season. However, I just don't think Bruce is capable of doing this.

[TheStagMan]

2 hours ago, TRO said:

Lets take stock of the difference in this game.

Sessegnon plays a treaded ball through the middle of our defenders and Cairney reads it and responds by running on to it and scores.

The most fundamental movement you can possibly think of....basically embarrassing for experienced players.

so why would i blame the manager for that.....its shite play.

Sb has already explained why he has gone for experience, to sanitise the club of toxic attitude, that has worked, bur perhaps we are not quite ready for the intensity of promotion.

I am not so unconvinced of the brand of football as unconvinced of the ability of the players.

Too many inabililities of individual play existed in that game for me......I am not convinced a better manager, would have got a different result.

as an example and not a conclusive problem.......Elmohamady was so passive and indecisive it was untrue.....no assertion or any sign of confidence in his play....he may still be injured, that i have no idea.....but its piss poor.

 

I agree, our defence switched off for that move, which if your whole strategy is to play to the defence is catastrophic. Hence the reason why I have been saying for ages that our one tactic approach of keep it tight and nick a goal is dangerous, and not sustainable, that is the risk our manager has chosen to take, hence I do blame him for it. We have proven that we DO have the players to go out and play - look at the Wolves performance.

That movement between Sessgnon and Cairney was not a fluke, it is something they have worked on and trained for, they have been doing stuff like that all season. That's what decent coaching and possession football gives you. 

If Elmo is still injured - why on earth play him?

[AshVilla]

Hoping to hear he's been sacked tomorrow.

[TRO]

42 minutes ago, sheepyvillian said:

I tell you what's Bruce's fault, setting us up so defensively to begin with.

I didn't see us string 3 passes together in that first half. Nothing short of embarrassing.

I agree with your comment of embarrassing.

Lets get another manager and set what happens.

Adomah and snodgrass our 2 biggest attacking threats were anonymous......John Terry played sweeper.

Too many players for me anonymous.

[Sam3773]

4 minutes ago, jacketspuds said:

I think the job that the Villa manager has this summer is bigger than what Jokanovic had to deal with last summer. Apart from Grealish (at the moment), a lot of our best players are leaving this summer, whereas Jokanovic had Cairney and Sessegnon to build on before he even started.

If we can get a manager who can convince Grealish to stay, make him the focal point of the team, and help him realise his potential, we might have a chance next season. However, I just don't think Bruce is capable of doing this.

[Farlz]

This isn't me changing my mind or anything because we've lost.

My opinion for quite a while now has been if we went up he should go and if we stay down he should go. He seems like a great bloke but we have to be honest and say he's failed. If we really are in as much financial trouble that's reported and we basically have to start a fresh, I personally don't think he's the man to take us forward.