Steve Bruce

[terrytini]

For years I’ve  heard Managers getting knocked, when they get beat,  for not changing players around.

For years I’ve heard Managers getting knocked, when they get beat, for changing players around.

This is the first time I’ve heard a Manager get knocked for changing a team around, when he Wins. 

On that basis alone we must conclude that with some fans, Bruce has no chance.

[Taxahunter]

38 minutes ago, terrytini said:

For years I’ve  heard Managers getting knocked, when they get beat,  for not changing players around.

For years I’ve heard Managers getting knocked, when they get beat, for changing players around.

This is the first time I’ve heard a Manager get knocked for changing a team around, when he Wins. 

On that basis alone we must conclude that with some fans, Bruce has no chance.

It wasnt a great win, but a win nonetheless. We didnt play them of the field, it was a lucky win. We needed the help of an own goal and a goal in the dying minutes, when we were loosing to a newly promoted team. I cant remember that many chances bar from a header over the bar from Kodija and a header after a set piece from Jedinak. If we had played some fantastic football, created chance by chance, and just not scored due to us being unlucky, then fair play, but for parts of the game we were dominated by Wigan at home and that has happened ar to often that we have allowed the opposition to get back in the game because we have sat back and waited. All I ask for is we play to our strenght instead of setting up to counter the opponents strenght and letting the opposition dictate play...at least at home.

Fair play to Bruce for the 6 points from 2 games, but arent we allowed to criticise, just because we have won? 

[Stevo985]

56 minutes ago, terrytini said:

On that basis alone we must conclude that with some fans, Bruce has no chance.

Now you're getting it.

If we won the league this season there would still be the same handful of posters complaining about playing style and moaning about how he'll fail in the prem and we should have sacked him anyway.

One poster even admitted it  

 

I'm quietly confident this season. 6 weeks ago I was expecting a firesale and that we'd be left with barely a squad, Bruce would be gone to great elation on here until we replaced him with Gary Megson because nobody else would take the job and we'd be struggling to stay in the league.

But now that the new owners have come in, we've held onto most of our players AND we've won our first 2 games scoring 6 goals in the process, I'm feeling pretty good. An absolute world away from where I was before.
Things do need to improve. The entire back 5 (including GK) needs to settle into whoever the preferred 5 will be, I think that's the main priority. Everything in front of that seems to be decent enough, apart possibly for the lack of an on form centre forward. I'm hoping Kodjia recovers or RHM/Davis come of age to take that spot.

If our defence can turn itself into somethign resembling last season's defence then I think we might just be challenging after all.

Edited August 14, 2018 by Stevo985

[terrytini]

@Stevo985I agree, I’ve read your concerns about this season and totally understood them, though I didn’t quite share them. Prior to the new owners I thought we’d mount a good challenge as long as we kept Chester ( and, ideally, but not crucially, Grealish).

Since the change in ownership and the transfer stability that’s brought Ive been as convinced as I can be that we will finish in the Top 2. I actually think we will win it.

And I think that will be down to Bruce. For me, his style, his approach, his man management, whatever else makes up a Manager ( ie not just telling players whether to pass or press) has now - evidently - been working for nearly a year. Our results since Game 8 last year stack up very very well.

I also recall fairly early on last season you were enjoying some/ a fair bit of the football.....that kicked in a little later for me but I agree, I’ve actually enjoyed most of our games for many months now.....in fact the only time I haven’t has been if we’ve lost.......which is really how I like football to be. 

In the pre- internet days I guess you’d hear the odd guy moaning about aspects of the Manager, but, by and large, if you Won, and played ok, you went home happy. For me it’s much the same now, except there’s a few of those guys and they are all stood within earshot !

[terrytini]

40 minutes ago, Taxahunter said:

It wasnt a great win, but a win nonetheless. We didnt play them of the field, it was a lucky win. We needed the help of an own goal and a goal in the dying minutes, when we were loosing to a newly promoted team. I cant remember that many chances bar from a header over the bar from Kodija and a header after a set piece from Jedinak. If we had played some fantastic football, created chance by chance, and just not scored due to us being unlucky, then fair play, but for parts of the game we were dominated by Wigan at home and that has happened ar to often that we have allowed the opposition to get back in the game because we have sat back and waited. All I ask for is we play to our strenght instead of setting up to counter the opponents strenght and letting the opposition dictate play...at least at home.

Fair play to Bruce for the 6 points from 2 games, but arent we allowed to criticise, just because we have won? 

You are allowed to do anything as long as it is within the Site guidelines. 

And I’m allowed to as well. 

Good isn’t it ?

[Demitri_C]

12 hours ago, AvfcRigo82 said:

 

Did we try and go for Henry as manager last season aswell? I didn't realise.   

Meh!

Just to clarify getting frustrated is not the same as wanting your manager out.  

[Zatman]

I am no Bruce fan but played 2 won 2 scored 6 conceded 3

If anything to complain is we are too open at back these days

[Stevo985]

15 minutes ago, terrytini said:

@Stevo985I agree, I’ve read your concerns about this season and totally understood them, though I didn’t quite share them. Prior to the new owners I thought we’d mount a good challenge as long as we kept Chester ( and, ideally, but not crucially, Grealish).

Since the change in ownership and the transfer stability that’s brought Ive been as convinced as I can be that we will finish in the Top 2. I actually think we will win it.

And I think that will be down to Bruce. For me, his style, his approach, his man management, whatever else makes up a Manager ( ie not just telling players whether to pass or press) has now - evidently - been working for nearly a year. Our results since Game 8 last year stack up very very well.

I also recall fairly early on last season you were enjoying some/ a fair bit of the football.....that kicked in a little later for me but I agree, I’ve actually enjoyed most of our games for many months now.....in fact the only time I haven’t has been if we’ve lost.......which is really how I like football to be. 

In the pre- internet days I guess you’d hear the odd guy moaning about aspects of the Manager, but, by and large, if you Won, and played ok, you went home happy. For me it’s much the same now, except there’s a few of those guys and they are all stood within earshot !

Like I always say, good football is winning football.

I went to VP last season and every game I knew we could win it, and we usually did. And we scored loads of goals.

It's not always pretty, but at this level our football is fine. Not "Scintillating" as some people so desire, but it's perfectly good enough. Like I said last season I'd wager there were probably 18 or 19 teams in the Championship last season who would have loved to play football like us.

That's not to say it couldn't be better. And had it been better last season then we may have gone up automatically.
But the exaggeration of "Bruce-ball" on Villa Talk is tiresome.

 

And I agree about the improvement in the team. I think last season we were let down by two things. The slow start, and the slump after the Wolves game.
We seem to have addressed the slow start, by winning games that we weren't that impressive in.

I'm hoping, and I admit I might be being optimistic, that the experimenting with formations in pre-season may help us in overcoming that post wolves slump from last season. It might just give us more of a plan B than we've had before.

[TRO]

2 hours ago, AvfcRigo82 said:

Very - he retired from playing years ago and we have enough goalkeepers anyway!  

 

Oops Chris Wood ( Burnley)

[AntrimBlack]

7 hours ago, TheAuthority said:

Bruce Bashers: What about the posession stats?

I think the aim was to get promoted, not to have the joint most points at home.

[TRO]

2 hours ago, Taxahunter said:

Off course you have to make your team aware of the opposition threats, key players, set pieces and so on, but to change your style of play or change half a team to accomodate an opponent like Wigan just doesnt make sense and just show that his fear of loosing is bigger than his desire to win, but thats just my oppinion. 

How often do you see the likes of Juventus, Roma, Real, Barcelona, PSG and just to name a few teams from Denmark - FC Copenhagen or Brøndby change their style of play? Almost never because they know they are a force to reckoned with, they know their opponents is changing their style of play, whenever they play the big teams. I know we cant compare ourselves to the likes of Real or Barcelona or any of the other teams I have mentioned bar the 2 teams from Denmark, but comparing us to the teams in the Championship, we should be a force that other teams are "scared" of" and a comparison we can use.

but 2 of our biggest players have lost form....Adomah and Kodjia are a complete shadow of themselves.....That has a major affect on everything we do.

At present, we haven't really got anyone else to come in to challenge them.....Green is still recovering from a long Layoff and all our other strikers are injured.

Losing big players for one reason or another creates a big change in the way we play.....we haven't got the strength of squad to compensate.

[TRO]

2 hours ago, terrytini said:

For years I’ve  heard Managers getting knocked, when they get beat,  for not changing players around.

For years I’ve heard Managers getting knocked, when they get beat, for changing players around.

This is the first time I’ve heard a Manager get knocked for changing a team around, when he Wins. 

On that basis alone we must conclude that with some fans, Bruce has no chance.

errrrrrr....correct.

[TRO]

1 hour ago, Taxahunter said:

It wasnt a great win, but a win nonetheless. We didnt play them of the field, it was a lucky win. We needed the help of an own goal and a goal in the dying minutes, when we were loosing to a newly promoted team. I cant remember that many chances bar from a header over the bar from Kodija and a header after a set piece from Jedinak. If we had played some fantastic football, created chance by chance, and just not scored due to us being unlucky, then fair play, but for parts of the game we were dominated by Wigan at home and that has happened ar to often that we have allowed the opposition to get back in the game because we have sat back and waited. All I ask for is we play to our strenght instead of setting up to counter the opponents strenght and letting the opposition dictate play...at least at home.

Fair play to Bruce for the 6 points from 2 games, but arent we allowed to criticise, just because we have won? 

I think we struggle when physical players get in our faces.....blimey even Blues usually give us a game in that respect.....it becomes a leveller.

because our team is incomplete in terms of square pegs in square holes and all the players functioning normally, we are finding it difficult with this type of opposition.

but It might be worth remembering the last 2 games we have conceded 2 freak goals early on.....up until Wigans goal, we were in control, we went on a wobble after that and they dominated us physically.

We need players in.....in crucial positions to the team.

[bannedfromHandV]

We're also the joint highest scorers in the entire EFL for 2018 (to date).

 

But seriously, Bruce is a dinosaur, the football is crap and nobody enjoys it, and don't let anyone else tell you otherwise okay folks, 6 points out of 6 and 6 goals - pathetic, we should be winning every game 7-0 and even then we reserve the right to complain that we didn't win 8-0.

[Taxahunter]

3 minutes ago, bannedfromHandV said:

We're also the joint highest scorers in the entire EFL for 2018 (to date).

 

But seriously, Bruce is a dinosaur, the football is crap and nobody enjoys it, and don't let anyone else tell you otherwise okay folks, 6 points out of 6 and 6 goals - pathetic, we should be winning every game 7-0 and even then we reserve the right to complain that we didn't win 8-0.

Who has ever said that? Again, you are an expert in twisting words and sentences. We have also given away two easy goals and in total 3 goals scored against us.

At the moment we are relying on our defenders to get the goals for us, because out strikers doesnt even look close to scoring. How long will that hold water?

In not a Bruce fan, but Im not a loud Brouter either. I will quietly support him as long as we win, but I will criticise him whenever I feel the need to do so. Staying content with how things are will never improve us, so you have to voice your concerns and areas where improvement is needed.

[TRO]

34 minutes ago, Stevo985 said:

Like I always say, good football is winning football.

I went to VP last season and every game I knew we could win it, and we usually did. And we scored loads of goals.

It's not always pretty, but at this level our football is fine. Not "Scintillating" as some people so desire, but it's perfectly good enough. Like I said last season I'd wager there were probably 18 or 19 teams in the Championship last season who would have loved to play football like us.

That's not to say it couldn't be better. And had it been better last season then we may have gone up automatically.
But the exaggeration of "Bruce-ball" on Villa Talk is tiresome.

 

And I agree about the improvement in the team. I think last season we were let down by two things. The slow start, and the slump after the Wolves game.
We seem to have addressed the slow start, by winning games that we weren't that impressive in.

I'm hoping, and I admit I might be being optimistic, that the experimenting with formations in pre-season may help us in overcoming that post wolves slump from last season. It might just give us more of a plan B than we've had before.

I agree.

If SB can bring in the right Reinforcements , it will transform us.

fingers crossed.

[Vive_La_Villa]

17 minutes ago, TRO said:

I think we struggle when physical players get in our faces.....blimey even Blues usually give us a game in that respect.....it becomes a leveller.

Agree with this. We need more strength in the team. I think Mcginn will add more steel in the middle of the park.

[bannedfromHandV]

1 minute ago, Taxahunter said:

Who has ever said that? Again, you are an expert in twisting words and sentences. We have also given away two easy goals and in total 3 goals scored against us.

At the moment we are relying on our defenders to get the goals for us, because out strikers doesnt even look close to scoring. How long will that hold water?

In not a Bruce fan, but Im not a loud Brouter either. I will quietly support him as long as we win, but I will criticise him whenever I feel the need to do so. Staying content with how things are will never improve us, so you have to voice your concerns and areas where improvement is needed.

So what you mean is you won't give him any credit when we win but low and behold, as soon as we dare to lose a game it's all 'sack the manager', 'he's a dinosaur' blah blah blah.

 

And herein lies the problem.

[TRO]

8 minutes ago, Vive_La_Villa said:

Agree with this. We need more strength in the team. I think Mcginn will add more steel in the middle of the park.

I was literally ecstatic, when I seen the aggression from him....its been a long time since I saw a midfielder for us like that.

We need it at Number 9 now.

I really like Kodj.....but physically woeful.....He is simply not a leader of the line.

Fix that....and another Centre half with Muscle , maybe a tricky winger, with a rocket up his arse and we will be away.

If we can get these problem area's solved.....Jack will be even better than what he is now

ps If I am being honest, I think the teams that went up dealt with the physical side better than us....hence we finished where we did.

Edited August 14, 2018 by TRO

[Taxahunter]

Just now, bannedfromHandV said:

So what you mean is you won't give him any credit when we win but low and behold, as soon as we dare to lose a game it's all 'sack the manager', 'he's a dinosaur' blah blah blah.

 

And herein lies the problem.

Of course I would give him credit when its deserved and I should have mentioned that in my post. 

If you would bother to go back and read some on my previous post, you will see that I have given plenty of credit when winning and when he has had the gut to go out and play football, instead of setting us up not to loose. But to give him credit for a scraped win against Wigan, I wont do that.

 

Fair play to him for getting us 6 points, not so much in the way we got them.