Dean Smith

[Mjvilla]

38 minutes ago, TRO said:

Its not the modern way, the modern way has just been pants for us, but we still go with it, because its vogue......we need to wake up.

when you think how much Laursen and McGrath cost it would make you cry.

I think it is harder now because, every man and his dog are after players and there are fewer clubs in financial difficulty, due to TV money, so not desperate to sell players....but i think we could do much better than we are.

Its funny, you mention those 2 ......thats what Ron saunders did in the main, raided clubs whose players could not make the first team .i.e Swain,Cropley & Rimmer.

I think we should get as best a manager we can get and the recruitment, reports to him, they are his team of scouts and they get the feel for what he wants.....our managers Authority is too minimised, hence he is a head coach.....it needs a restructure imo.

 

I think the last manager we gave this proper freedom too, with money, was MON. The long-term implications of what he was doing would've killed this club. Average players - big, long term contracts. 

He did well to a point, but the limitations of what you're suggesting exist aswell. 

Like another poster suggested, the top clubs have the structure we do, they just found a way to make it work for them. We need to find a way to make it work for us. We will have the right people in place and it'll work eventually. I'm pretty confident of that. Have we got the right people now? That's not my decision to make. 

 

[TRO]

52 minutes ago, Mjvilla said:

Funny you didn't talk about a lack of discipline when it came to Bruce (see quote 3).

Yes @TRO, absolutely absobloodylutely. So, why can we use it as an excuse for Bruce but not for Smith? What's good for the goose?

Seems like you didn't want Smith from back when Bruce was in charge. Smith got us promoted, Bruce didn't. 

And back to my original point. You make different points for Bruce to what you do for Smith. All of a sudden its basic for an amateur footballer? Bruce wouldn't need to tell them? Why didnt you talk of a lack of discipline here?

You treat these manager so different because of your perspective of them. You think Dean is soft so not doing the basics is a lack of discipline. You didn't think Bruce is soft so it's all on the players. I don't understand how one man can change their tune so much from one manager to the other, when the other did more for our club. 

you seem to be spending more time writing about me and my posts, going back to August 2018, than making your own points about our current plight.

You might have a point, I do think Bruce has more about him in terms of steel and presence, yes.....He was captain of a title winning team in United, I guess that opens a few doors......do I want him back? No, Before you allude to that.

and yes I do think closing down and getting your foot in should be intrinsic, if you buy the right players to do it and then coach the team as a grroup to do it.....one renegade player closing down is no good, it has to be a pack....but that takes more then one thing, the right players and then the right coaching

I talked of a lack of discipline, because we wasn't losing EVERY game under Bruce at the rate we do now.....it was just after the summer crisis it went pear shaped for him....we are talking results here by the way not performances....The same errors every game, the same dropping off of intensity, the same losing results....yes it spells discipline, respect, belief call it what you will....but it smacks of a manager out of his depth.

I guess thats a fair comment of how I feel about both yes, but we are talking about small margins in my thinking....if you ask me do I feel the discipline with Bruce was perfect, No, I saw him at odds with players not doing what he asked during games...not in the way Wilder and Dyche, give me the impression.

You are asking me to have the same view from August 2018 to now, on a different manager.....we are all entitled to alter our view......I guess if I had the inclination to go back through all your posts, I could find a similar picture.....it doesn't interest me, more interested in what you say now......The media, do it with politicians, in time most folks views alter somewhat, not sure of your motive.

I reserve the right like anyone else, to alter my opinion and in nearly 2 years with the water thats gone under the bridge, i feel thats understandable.

Sometimes in life you make a judgment, without a long drawn out explanation, yes I think Dean is of an easy going demeanor and I think it reflects in the team.....I think Bruce had a different Demeanor, where I didn't get the same feeling....but hey this is one distinction amongst many, they are much different characters on many things.

What I also find strange, is you posted earlier that you stood with me on Bruce, during the period of vitriol he received from some fans and you are now baulking, that I don't do the same for Smith.....so are you saying ( I think) despite different circumstances you blindly stick rigid to just defending the manager, because thats what you always do......I see differences between Smith and Bruce, hence my comments, reflect that.....but before you get too precious about the validity of my comments, I readily accept, that over time i may change my mind on certain issues and I may get things wrong....I would say most posters if they are honest and went back over time, they would find anomalies in their posts, i guess they wouldn't be bothered.

I already posted on here, i got my earlier judgment on Des Bremner, completely wrong......I though Luiz was pants before lockdown, now he is much,much better......it happens folk change their minds, its no big deal

Dean Smith said "The team mirrors me" and "I am not really a results man".....I guess he might regret that too.

I change my tune, because I see different things with both managers.

If you feel that I am unfair to one and fair to another, I am not going to change your mind, thats what you feel......for my part, I have not set out to do that, even if you think I have.

PS my advice is just write something positive about Dean Smith, that might influence me, and might persuade me to change my mind ( unlikely ,because results influence me) as opposed to telling me I am  biased.

PPS Go back through my posts from the start of the 10 game run to the end of the season and see if I wrote anything derogatory about Dean Smith, (it should be easy, you know where they all are now)...it should show that i respond more to results and his presiding over them, than to him himself.....I have already admitted, he seems a really nice guy.

 

[TRO]

1 hour ago, VillaCas said:

This is plain wrong and a slur to the strength and conditioning team who do an excellent and conscientious job. They are well respected and professional and work above and beyond to deliver

Nakamba, Luis, Samatta and Wesley we’re not as fit as required when they arrived and took time to catch up. The rest of the squad are as fit as any squad in the PL 

your opinion, like I have mine.

[TRO]

43 minutes ago, VillaCas said:

Constantly hankering for the past is pointless.  Football is a multi-billion pound game and it will never go back to one man calling all the shots

We have to find a way to make this system work for us. 

I am not hankering for the past, thats your interpretation.

What I was doing is highlighting we have made a success of these things before......We can all learn from History and what things work and what don't.....some folk call it going back to basics.

That is an exaggerated claim to defuse my point.....I don't expect for one man to call the shots, because the level of detail involved now as exponentially risen....but to dismiss, the things we have done right in the past as redundant is foolhardy.

Your last line is what I expect to happen, best of luck, we will see.

[Stevo985]

49 minutes ago, Mjvilla said:

And yet they play regularly in a midtable prem league team. How we wish we could be one of those.

Not just play. Westwood was their player of the season last season and sounds like he’s in with a shout again this season. 

[AvfcRigo82]

47 minutes ago, Mjvilla said:

Like another poster suggested, the top clubs have the structure we do, they just found a way to make it work for them. We need to find a way to make it work for us. We will have the right people in place and it'll work eventually. I'm pretty confident of that. Have we got the right people now? That's not my decision to make. 

 

I'm going to say No.

[hippo]

1 hour ago, VillaCas said:

Antithetical I know, but I wouldn’t change at the moment. I think that 90% of our problems are squad-related

I rate Dyche above Hughton but think his ceiling is mid-table.  I’m not claiming that Smith is better than Dyche but I don’t see that there is enough difference to change

I think Smith could become a decent PL manager and will benefit enormously from this season

If you feel the squad we have should be mid-table then I would understand your point of view. 

I think we need a fresh start. Is Smith still the manager who tries to win every game whilst playing on the front foot ? - he seems to have done a Lambert and is more concerned with goals against.

Should a defence with Heaton, Mings , Target be amongst the worst in the prem ?

I think at the moment Smith is a broken man - he needs a rest and perhaps take a lower pressure job...

I don't feel the summer break will be long enough to get over the relegation hangover - stick with Smith - lose our better players - throw in a couple of early defeats - and the doubts in Smith will resurface - players as well as supporters.

We need a change. Even if the n xt incumbent is only a marginal upgrade on DS.

[DCJonah]

1 hour ago, Mjvilla said:

Dyche is a interesting point too...

The fanbase hounded Westwood out, a regular starter there. Lowton, another regular starter there. Regularly called shit on here. Players not given a chance by this fanbase, flourishing at other clubs. 

But they weren't good enough when with us. 

A part of our terrible recruitment over the past few years is that we've signed players with potential but who weren't ready. For a team spiralling the relegation drain pipe it was far too risky. 

We've either signed young kids not ready or experienced players who are shit. Recruitment over the last decade has been poor. Only a few real hits in amongst all the misses. 

[DCJonah]

14 minutes ago, hippo said:

I think we need a fresh start. Is Smith still the manager who tries to win every game whilst playing on the front foot ? - he seems to have done a Lambert and is more concerned with goals against.

Should a defence with Heaton, Mings , Target be amongst the worst in the prem ?

I think at the moment Smith is a broken man - he needs a rest and perhaps take a lower pressure job...

I don't feel the summer break will be long enough to get over the relegation hangover - stick with Smith - lose our better players - throw in a couple of early defeats - and the doubts in Smith will resurface - players as well as supporters.

We need a change. Even if the n xt incumbent is only a marginal upgrade on DS.

I think you make some good points except for the one in bold. 

I think its a valid concern with smith. The negativity of everything could carry over quickly if we don't start the championship in good form. 

[DaveAV1]

Dean Smith’s well documented intention to try and win every game is commendable and possibly even essential. It’s how he’s gone about it that’s flawed. To try to go toe to toe with the likes of Man City will get you beaten 9/10 times. So with the quality of players we currently have available it just isn’t the right thing to do. Against those type of teams you have to make it difficult for them to play, match or exceed their effort and hope you earn a bit of luck to sneak a result. Ok you may still lose but then perhaps only 8/10 occasions. 

Against less accomplished teams that approach of matching them for effort still is essential, but as they’re not quite so good you will get more chances to hurt them. You don’t have to go hung ho and try to win games 5-4. In every game you must earn the right to play. We don’t have good enough players to dictate how the game is going to be played from the onset. Only once we get to the point where we’re buying 2 or 3 players for £140m instead of half a squad can we expect to dictate the play. Even then even the very best teams work hard and know that the hard work needs to be done before the fun begins. 

A more pragmatic approach is what we’ve tried to do after the restart, but it’s too late, we’re in the relegation zone with games rapidly running out. If we’d done this from the start of the season we may well have got that extra handful of points which would now be so valuable now. We need to know where we are in terms of development both on and off the pitch before we can go toe to toe with anyone. A more balanced pragmatic approach may not be immediately exciting, but it’s ultimately more fun than being beaten every week. 

[hippo]

I remember a tale a Brentford told me even before Smith took over at Villa.

Basically he saw DS walking his dogs in the local park. He was amazed the lack of control Smith had over his dogs - they didn't come when called, wouldn't sit when asked...

He felt this lack of respect was indicative of how he managed Brentford.  

[PussEKatt]

I think the comments Smith made after our last game sum up his attitude in a nutshell.

He was blaming our loss on the penalty that should not have been.

The way I see it is, he should have been concentrating on why we lost.I mean.ok they got a penalty BUT the bottom line is we went 1 goal down.Now that could have been through a penalty,from a goal scored from open play,from a free kick or from a corner.The point is that any one of these could have led to going a goal down.Smith should of been having a go at our lack of reaction to going a goal down.I mean any team can go a goal down.So does Smith think that because we went a goal down because of a bad penalty decision, its ok to lose?

By concentrating on the penalty and not the players response all he is doing is giving the players an excuse.The players ( all of them ) can now feel that it was not their fault we lost,its because of the penalty.

Smith always comes up with an excuse why we lost ( bad penalty decision,VAR,reffs decision,injuries,etc etc etc.He should be telling the players that these things happen and they have to try harder,be more determined,If the opposition go 1 up,we have to try to score 2.Not just give up and go into the dressing room and say " we would have won.if it hadent been for.........

FFS Smith,instead of demanding more he is giving them an excuse for losing. 

Edited July 11, 2020 by PussEKatt

[Reivax_Villa]

Smith cannot keep his players motivated.

I would like to see a manager who is either top tier in Europe that would be considered a coup or a British manager like a Dyche.

There are plenty top quality players in the lower leagues that we are missing out on. I would like us to have a director who can identify those players .

If you can keep your players motivated you will get a better production from them.

I want Villa Park to be a nightmare for away teams.  Our identity has always been about pace and power, when was the last time we have had that?

im looking forward to the change.

Honestly, after this season I really just want to see a more disciplined, organised team with pace and power offensively.

Edited July 11, 2020 by Reivax_Villa

[AvfcRigo82]

18 minutes ago, Reivax_Villa said:

There are plenty top quality players in the lower leagues that we are missing out on. I would like us to have a director who can identify those players .

Calling @Villan4Life 

[Demitri_C]

This is why you change your manager. Watford west ham did and we stuck with the out of his depth smith and get relegated.

Cheers deano

[holteend1982]

2 minutes ago, Demitri_C said:

This is why you change your manager. Watford west ham did and we stuck with the out of his depth smith and get relegated.

Cheers deano

Should have gone in January, dunno why he didn't tbf but it's cost us massivley. 

[rodders0223]

Walk. Now.

[penguin]

I hope we have a shortlist already drawn up. Should have pulled the trigger a long time ago and it's too late now.

Let him relegate us and then time for a new start.

[Condimentalist]

Watford and West Ham have significantly better players. Imagine us having a striker that scores 4 goals in a game. Or how many more points we'd have with Deeney up front instead of Wesley/Samatta/Davis. 

Recruitment was wrong in the summer. It was a tough job, done badly. Suso has to go. Smith ain't the issue here. 

[thejoker]

Smith said after the Liverpool and Man Utd games that realistically we didn’t expect to get anything. And that is the problem, and probably explains our terrible record against the top 10. He seems to have the same mentality that he had at Walsall. We’re not plucky Villa punching above our weight. We SHOULD be competing with the top 10 teams, we spent £140m this season. That is probably the reason that I want him to be replaced because we’ll be back in this position again IF Smith manages to get us promoted again.