Dean Smith

[Demitri_C]

2 hours ago, DCJonah said:

If that was the only time people complained I'd listen to you. 

This thread went into meltdown when we beat Southampton. So sorry, I'm not buying it. 

Did it ? I wasnt one of them people. I was very happy with that win personally 

[foreveryoung]

2 hours ago, Zatman said:

They all played yesterday, its hardly on Smith they didnt contribute much

Who's fault is it then. Barkley has quality, Traore can play, Trez has looked better. It's the managers job to get the best out of them, that was not there best.

[Zatman]

16 minutes ago, foreveryoung said:

Who's fault is it then. Barkley has quality, Traore can play, Trez has looked better. It's the managers job to get the best out of them, that was not there best.

The manager can only do so much before the game. When the game starts he cant really do more, unless they have amazing benches. 

[nick76]

2 hours ago, foreveryoung said:

Who's fault is it then. Barkley has quality, Traore can play, Trez has looked better. It's the managers job to get the best out of them, that was not there best.

Barkley got loaned out by Chelsea and barely got a game for them, we know the very mixed reports from fans at Traore’s former French club and fans on here have been moaning on and off about Trez.

We can all play this game.

We can say negative things either way for the argument if we want.

It’s not helpful.  

Smith has some responsibility but once the players are on the pitch they have a large responsibility themselves and there isn’t much Smith can do then.  Players need to be held accountable for how they play, you can give them all the tools and then it’s up to them to execute it.

Smith is responsible for the team, tactics and motivation of course but the players have to take responsibility how they play then.

Edited March 7, 2021 by nick76

[briny_ear]

7 hours ago, DCJonah said:

If that was the only time people complained I'd listen to you. 

This thread went into meltdown when we beat Southampton. So sorry, I'm not buying it. 

79% rated his performance as manager in that game as average or better, so to describe the board as going into meltdown is perhaps OTT.

Also quite a long way back to have to trawl to back up the argument. 

[nick76]

7 minutes ago, briny_ear said:

79% rated his performance as manager in that game as average or better, so to describe the board as going into meltdown is perhaps OTT.

Also quite a long way back to have to trawl to back up the argument. 

To be fair, not everybody comments so while the stats at the top said that the comments and discussions were going into a meltdown somewhat.  I know I was involved in that discussion and it was bizarre...

[nick76]

5 minutes ago, nick76 said:

To be fair, not everybody comments so while the stats at the top said that the comments and discussions were going into a meltdown somewhat.  I know I was involved in that discussion and it was bizarre...

I’ve even decided to drop away from post match commenting apart from an initial post match comment because recently it’s been OTT negative, finding fault and more.  Constructive criticism is vital, over negativity isn’t and while there is a fine line this board post games has gone way over the line hence why yesterday I kept away.  I will be back to post match at some point but best to avoid at the moment because it’s not based on reality.

 

edit: I accidentally quoted myself instead of editing

Edited March 7, 2021 by nick76

[Sulberto21]

This season has been a vast improvement on last season. Even if we lose every game until the end of the season we've still improved by 4 points. 

However I don't understand why some people get absolutely triggered when someone criticises Dean Smith. On the flip side I don't understand why some people constantly find fault with him when we do well.

I wouldn't have been against him being given the boot before lockdown last season as it was looking touch and go. However post lockdown the improvement cannot be denied.

For me Dean Smith has enough credit in the bank now for at least 3 more summer windows. Dean himself (as I've said many times before) has said he needs at least 3 more windows to get the squad as he wants it.

I believe after the improvements post lockdown and following into this season he can improve us enough over the next 2/3 seasons to take us to the league title or at least a sustained challenge.

I also said Jack Grealish will be one of the best 5 in the World a few seasons back. 

Edited March 7, 2021 by Sulberto21

[Vive_La_Villa]

1 minute ago, Sulberto21 said:

This season has been a vast improvement on last season. Even if we lose every game until the end of the season we've still improved by 4 points. 

However I don't understand why some people get absolutely triggered when someone criticises Dean Smith. On the flip side I don't understand why some people constantly find fault with him when we do well.

I wouldn't have been against him being given the boot before lockdown last season as it was looking touch and go. However post lockdown the improvement cannot be denied.

For me Dean Smith has enough credit in the bank now for at least 3 more summer windows. Dean himself (as I've said many times before) has said this.  

I believe after the improvements post lockdown and following into this season he can improve us enough over the next 2/3 seasons to take us to the league title or at least a sustained challenge.

I also said Jack Grealish will be one of the best 5 in the World a few seasons back. 

It’s the manner of criticism. If you’re not happy with his team selection, tactics or subs then fair enough.  If you going to say he is a sorry sight without Jack Grealish then I’m going to lose my shit!

[Sulberto21]

Just now, Vive_La_Villa said:

It’s the manner of criticism. If you’re not happy with his team selection, tactics or subs then fair enough.  If you going to say he is a sorry sight without Jack Grealish then I’m going to lose my shit!

If someone spouts nonsense it doesn't even warrant a response. @TRO is someone who makes valid observations. 

[Vive_La_Villa]

Just now, Sulberto21 said:

If someone spouts nonsense it doesn't even warrant a response. @TRO is someone who makes valid observations. 

I know. I keep falling for it.

[DCJonah]

9 hours ago, briny_ear said:

79% rated his performance as manager in that game as average or better, so to describe the board as going into meltdown is perhaps OTT.

Also quite a long way back to have to trawl to back up the argument. 

I said this thread, not the board. 

My point was the same people moaned when we win, so it's not as if they just make valid criticisms every so often. It's been a constant theme for some. 

[sharkyvilla]

7 hours ago, DCJonah said:

I said this thread, not the board. 

My point was the same people moaned when we win, so it's not as if they just make valid criticisms every so often. It's been a constant theme for some. 

Does that not indicate that they might actually be on the wind up and worth putting on ignore?  The same people making the same comments and then the same people biting makes this thread a whole lot more negative than the actual fan's perspective of Dean actually is.

[TRO]

8 hours ago, DCJonah said:

I said this thread, not the board. 

My point was the same people moaned when we win, so it's not as if they just make valid criticisms every so often. It's been a constant theme for some. 

If the issue is something that a poster always see's, ...for one instance giving the ball away cheaply.....is it any surprise, that they mention it often, when we do it often, despite the results.

If you disagree, you have an opportunity to present your case to the contrary.....If you just moan, about other moaners, you become a moaner yourself.

sometimes issues are there when we win and Lose....but even folk who pinpoint our shortfalls have to have time off, when we win.

deal with the issues, not the posters.....and don't keep refering to the season....the season has been stupendous, what with 40 points and 14 clean sheets, its beyond expectations of most fans.......but some of our games warrant analytical debate, in order for us to improve even more than we have.

Personally, some fan moaning about Villa, does not affect me, or some fan going OTT doesn't either.....I make my own mind up....but I confess,I do enjoy the variety of opinions.....I feel thats the way I learn to be a better fan.

 

[John]

The excellent interview below between Jonathan Northcroft and Dean, is from yesterday's "Sunday Times" and it concerns our progress over the past 12 months: 

Soaked and hungry, on a bleak hillside, Dean Smith had no choice but to keep grappling with his adversary. It was a tent. Putting it up almost defeated him, but Smith persevered and was able to join Tyrone Mings and the rest round the fire for dinner. “I was just one of the boys that day,” he says, “rather than the actual leader.” In August, Aston Villa’s manager took his squad out into the Brecon Beacons, challenging them to a night on the Welsh mountains where they had to navigate, lug their own gear, erect their own shelter, and work in groups — himself included. The trip was a surprise, sprung on players during a pre-season training camp in Cardiff. When they trudged back to civilisation, Smith pointed out that the four-star hotel where they were based — something as Premier League footballers they could take for granted — seemed a luxury now. He talked about the importance of connecting with colleagues and not just others within the playing group but ordinary staff at the club.

“One of my biggest things in any workplace is you have to build a culture,” Smith says. “My players are young men and those who had been in Premier League academies a long time have had a lot of things done for them. And sometimes it is good to see them in another walk of life, just having to think and cope in a different environment. “A lot you could see thinking, ‘What are we doing?’ but as it went on were thinking, ‘This is all right. Actually, better than running round a field in pre-season.’ They certainly got a lot out of it — you saw new relationships form. Though it did tip down with rain. My group was one of the last ones and I could see them sitting round the campfire, eating and I’m having to stick my own tent up.”

There are many things, behind the amiability that can cause him to be underestimated, that make Smith a star of his profession, the top-placed English manager in England, and one of the biggest success stories of football’s strangest year. One is an approach to leadership based on understanding people and the kind of humility shown by putting aside boss’s privileges to struggle among the rank and file. Another is the inclination to think deeply about the details. The past 12 months have demonstrated those qualities to the full. When you think of how coronavirus has challenged their sport, it is hard not to think of Smith and his club. Before the Premier League shut down a year ago this week, its final game was Leicester 4 Aston Villa 0, a result that left Villa 19th and to spend three months knowing they would be relegated if 2019-20 was curtailed. When the season restarted, they were tasked with playing in the first game (v Sheffield United) and taking that step into the unknown on behalf of all 20 clubs. This season, headaches include closure of their training ground after an outbreak there in January. On the human side, Smith had to get the balance of discipline and empathy right when dealing with a breach of lockdown rules by his captain, Jack Grealish. And, most of all, he had to keep leading while grieving for his father, Ron, who died last May at the age of 79 after contracting Covid-19. Out of all of this, he has emerged with a stronger club and a team markedly improved, who are competing for Europe rather than trying to avoid the drop.

In shutdown, Smith watched in entirety every game Villa had played in 2019-20, looking particularly at the defending. “We’d conceded too many goals [the most in the league] and too many big chances. I got the analysts to give us the stats. Since my Brentford days I’ve looked at big chances for and against because ultimately they decide results. I went into the Premier League wanting not to ‘not lose’ but wanting to win. There’s a big difference. We lost our first game to Tottenham and people were impressed with our performance but Spurs had 24 chances on the day, and I was like, ‘Woah, that’s too many.’ “So it was always in the back of my mind, but I suppose at some stage my ego had got into it and it was, ‘I don’t want to play the likes of Liverpool and just defend.’ But against better teams you have to learn quickly and we had to become more pragmatic.” Smith identified Liverpool, Manchester City — and Napoli — as “best practice of defending. With the analysts we clipped up their best [examples] and sent them to players and held small group meetings.” Why those sides? “They weren’t just defending as a back four and goalkeeper, but as a whole team. We’ve always wanted to be a team who counterpresses quickly. You watch Liverpool and City and it’s difficult to get past their front three, then it’s difficult to get past the next three before you even get to the back five.” Improved defending, when they returned, helped Villa survive and this season only City have more clean sheets. Smith prepared intently for that “Project Restart” game v Sheffield United. With the Bundesliga already back under way, he spoke at length with Uwe Rösler, manager of Fortuna Dusseldorf, about playing in empty stadiums. “I moved my coaching position because there were no fans and I was able to go up higher,” he says. “I could see the whole picture and knew the players would still hear me.”

He pondered how games might be from referees’ perspectives, and to get their squads sharp, he and Brendan Rodgers organised for Villa and Leicester to play each other twice in one day, once at King Power Stadium, once at Villa Park. Then there has been training. Initially restricted to small groups, since the restart there have been too many fixtures to follow normal practice and recovery schedules. It has called for staffs to be flexible — second nature to someone who began coaching at just 30 with an under-13 team in east London and began managing at Walsall. “It has helped, having that backdrop,” he reflects. “Improvising is what lower league coaches have to do. “Teams normally train at 10.30am or 11am but we were training at different times when we came back and now we train at 12pm. That came to me from the improvisation of training at different times.” The reason is fascinating. “I thought players, young men, now, they’re different. They don’t go to bed like we used to at 11pm. They go to bed at two in the morning. They’ve all got an Xbox, a PS4 and they’re up later. I thought OK if they’re getting to bed later, let’s get them up later. Because sleep is such an important part of recovery. We stayed with 12pm training and I feel we get a little bit more from them as players.”

Meticulous recruitment was also learnt in the lower leagues. Smith has a strong relationship with sporting director Johan Lange and together they have fuelled Villa’s improvement through “value” signings such as Ollie Watkins, Emiliano Martínez and Matty Cash. “Profiling players is something I’ve done since Walsall and players have to fit your style of play and for me the biggest thing is their character and potential. That learning ability.” Grealish is learning under Smith. Their bond is close. “You have an idea of what somebody is going to be like before you meet them but the reality was totally different,” he says. “I came into the club [in 2018] and found a player who wanted to get better, to learn, who was one of the last out. Certainly wasn’t one of the first in, though. Was probably one of the night owls as well. I challenged him to improve his goals and assists and he grasped that importance straight away. He has a really good memory for football. I’ll talk about an incident where he could have got in the box and he’ll say, ‘Yeah, that was in the 71st minute . . .’ ” When Grealish crashed his car after a party during lockdown last March, “it was that conversation with him, reminding him of his responsibilities. People make mistakes and I think he has learnt some big lessons very quickly, and like any young person that’s how they mature. That’s how I matured and you probably matured as well — but fortunately for us we weren’t in the public eye.”

When Smith’s father died he was deeply touched by the support he received from supporters and within football, including from Pep Guardiola, who lost his mother to Covid. “My dad had been in a care home with dementia, so wasn’t in the best of health, but it was really tough for the family because we couldn’t go and see him. Fortunately, we could be by his side when he passed,” says Smith. “I can sympathise with anybody who has lost a loved one during Covid, and dementia as well is a terrible illness.”

 

 

[nick76]

33 minutes ago, TRO said:

If the issue is something that a poster always see's, ...for one instance giving the ball away cheaply.....is it any surprise, that they mention it often, when we do it often, despite the results.

If you disagree, you have an opportunity to present your case to the contrary.....If you just moan, about other moaners, you become a moaner yourself.

sometimes issues are there when we win and Lose....but even folk who pinpoint our shortfalls have to have time off, when we win.

deal with the issues, not the posters.....and don't keep refering to the season....the season has been stupendous, what with 40 points and 14 clean sheets, its beyond expectations of most fans.......but some of our games warrant analytical debate, in order for us to improve even more than we have.

Personally, some fan moaning about Villa, does not affect me, or some fan going OTT doesn't either.....I make my own mind up....but I confess,I do enjoy the variety of opinions.....I feel thats the way I learn to be a better fan.

 

I think the sharkeyvilla comment above yours is the more accurate response than yours, no disrespect....I think you are off base slightly in your analysis of what DC was talking about.

[Mjvilla]

On 03/03/2021 at 20:28, villalad21 said:

Clearly isn't a top tier manager and will most likely never be.

As of now he is fine though. He is building the right foundations for a better manager to take us to the next level in a few years.

Posts saying 'we give the ball away too much' are absolutely fine tro. I'd agree, we can be very careless at times. These sorts of posts aren't the issue, not in the slightest. Areas which we can improve.

It's this kind of one that gets people's goats. And it's from multiple sources across multiple threads. The ratings and reactions thread, the match thread, the Dean Smith thread, virtually any thread it remotely links in too. Absolutely baseless rubbish. Not when you consider the base was a game in isolation against Sheffield United. This happens alot. It didn't take me long to find the kind of post I thought about when I read your post.

[TRO]

38 minutes ago, John said:

The excellent interview below between Jonathan Northcroft and Dean, is from yesterday's "Sunday Times" and it concerns our progress over the past 12 months: 

Soaked and hungry, on a bleak hillside, Dean Smith had no choice but to keep grappling with his adversary. It was a tent. Putting it up almost defeated him, but Smith persevered and was able to join Tyrone Mings and the rest round the fire for dinner. “I was just one of the boys that day,” he says, “rather than the actual leader.” In August, Aston Villa’s manager took his squad out into the Brecon Beacons, challenging them to a night on the Welsh mountains where they had to navigate, lug their own gear, erect their own shelter, and work in groups — himself included. The trip was a surprise, sprung on players during a pre-season training camp in Cardiff. When they trudged back to civilisation, Smith pointed out that the four-star hotel where they were based — something as Premier League footballers they could take for granted — seemed a luxury now. He talked about the importance of connecting with colleagues and not just others within the playing group but ordinary staff at the club.

“One of my biggest things in any workplace is you have to build a culture,” Smith says. “My players are young men and those who had been in Premier League academies a long time have had a lot of things done for them. And sometimes it is good to see them in another walk of life, just having to think and cope in a different environment. “A lot you could see thinking, ‘What are we doing?’ but as it went on were thinking, ‘This is all right. Actually, better than running round a field in pre-season.’ They certainly got a lot out of it — you saw new relationships form. Though it did tip down with rain. My group was one of the last ones and I could see them sitting round the campfire, eating and I’m having to stick my own tent up.”

There are many things, behind the amiability that can cause him to be underestimated, that make Smith a star of his profession, the top-placed English manager in England, and one of the biggest success stories of football’s strangest year. One is an approach to leadership based on understanding people and the kind of humility shown by putting aside boss’s privileges to struggle among the rank and file. Another is the inclination to think deeply about the details. The past 12 months have demonstrated those qualities to the full. When you think of how coronavirus has challenged their sport, it is hard not to think of Smith and his club. Before the Premier League shut down a year ago this week, its final game was Leicester 4 Aston Villa 0, a result that left Villa 19th and to spend three months knowing they would be relegated if 2019-20 was curtailed. When the season restarted, they were tasked with playing in the first game (v Sheffield United) and taking that step into the unknown on behalf of all 20 clubs. This season, headaches include closure of their training ground after an outbreak there in January. On the human side, Smith had to get the balance of discipline and empathy right when dealing with a breach of lockdown rules by his captain, Jack Grealish. And, most of all, he had to keep leading while grieving for his father, Ron, who died last May at the age of 79 after contracting Covid-19. Out of all of this, he has emerged with a stronger club and a team markedly improved, who are competing for Europe rather than trying to avoid the drop.

In shutdown, Smith watched in entirety every game Villa had played in 2019-20, looking particularly at the defending. “We’d conceded too many goals [the most in the league] and too many big chances. I got the analysts to give us the stats. Since my Brentford days I’ve looked at big chances for and against because ultimately they decide results. I went into the Premier League wanting not to ‘not lose’ but wanting to win. There’s a big difference. We lost our first game to Tottenham and people were impressed with our performance but Spurs had 24 chances on the day, and I was like, ‘Woah, that’s too many.’ “So it was always in the back of my mind, but I suppose at some stage my ego had got into it and it was, ‘I don’t want to play the likes of Liverpool and just defend.’ But against better teams you have to learn quickly and we had to become more pragmatic.” Smith identified Liverpool, Manchester City — and Napoli — as “best practice of defending. With the analysts we clipped up their best [examples] and sent them to players and held small group meetings.” Why those sides? “They weren’t just defending as a back four and goalkeeper, but as a whole team. We’ve always wanted to be a team who counterpresses quickly. You watch Liverpool and City and it’s difficult to get past their front three, then it’s difficult to get past the next three before you even get to the back five.” Improved defending, when they returned, helped Villa survive and this season only City have more clean sheets. Smith prepared intently for that “Project Restart” game v Sheffield United. With the Bundesliga already back under way, he spoke at length with Uwe Rösler, manager of Fortuna Dusseldorf, about playing in empty stadiums. “I moved my coaching position because there were no fans and I was able to go up higher,” he says. “I could see the whole picture and knew the players would still hear me.”

He pondered how games might be from referees’ perspectives, and to get their squads sharp, he and Brendan Rodgers organised for Villa and Leicester to play each other twice in one day, once at King Power Stadium, once at Villa Park. Then there has been training. Initially restricted to small groups, since the restart there have been too many fixtures to follow normal practice and recovery schedules. It has called for staffs to be flexible — second nature to someone who began coaching at just 30 with an under-13 team in east London and began managing at Walsall. “It has helped, having that backdrop,” he reflects. “Improvising is what lower league coaches have to do. “Teams normally train at 10.30am or 11am but we were training at different times when we came back and now we train at 12pm. That came to me from the improvisation of training at different times.” The reason is fascinating. “I thought players, young men, now, they’re different. They don’t go to bed like we used to at 11pm. They go to bed at two in the morning. They’ve all got an Xbox, a PS4 and they’re up later. I thought OK if they’re getting to bed later, let’s get them up later. Because sleep is such an important part of recovery. We stayed with 12pm training and I feel we get a little bit more from them as players.”

Meticulous recruitment was also learnt in the lower leagues. Smith has a strong relationship with sporting director Johan Lange and together they have fuelled Villa’s improvement through “value” signings such as Ollie Watkins, Emiliano Martínez and Matty Cash. “Profiling players is something I’ve done since Walsall and players have to fit your style of play and for me the biggest thing is their character and potential. That learning ability.” Grealish is learning under Smith. Their bond is close. “You have an idea of what somebody is going to be like before you meet them but the reality was totally different,” he says. “I came into the club [in 2018] and found a player who wanted to get better, to learn, who was one of the last out. Certainly wasn’t one of the first in, though. Was probably one of the night owls as well. I challenged him to improve his goals and assists and he grasped that importance straight away. He has a really good memory for football. I’ll talk about an incident where he could have got in the box and he’ll say, ‘Yeah, that was in the 71st minute . . .’ ” When Grealish crashed his car after a party during lockdown last March, “it was that conversation with him, reminding him of his responsibilities. People make mistakes and I think he has learnt some big lessons very quickly, and like any young person that’s how they mature. That’s how I matured and you probably matured as well — but fortunately for us we weren’t in the public eye.”

When Smith’s father died he was deeply touched by the support he received from supporters and within football, including from Pep Guardiola, who lost his mother to Covid. “My dad had been in a care home with dementia, so wasn’t in the best of health, but it was really tough for the family because we couldn’t go and see him. Fortunately, we could be by his side when he passed,” says Smith. “I can sympathise with anybody who has lost a loved one during Covid, and dementia as well is a terrible illness.”

 

 

Thanks John....very enlightening, things we don't get to hear.

I am sure we are in good hands.

[TheStagMan]

43 minutes ago, John said:

The excellent interview below between Jonathan Northcroft and Dean, is from yesterday's "Sunday Times" and it concerns our progress over the past 12 months: 

Soaked and hungry, on a bleak hillside, Dean Smith had no choice but to keep grappling with his adversary. It was a tent. Putting it up almost defeated him, but Smith persevered and was able to join Tyrone Mings and the rest round the fire for dinner. “I was just one of the boys that day,” he says, “rather than the actual leader.” In August, Aston Villa’s manager took his squad out into the Brecon Beacons, challenging them to a night on the Welsh mountains where they had to navigate, lug their own gear, erect their own shelter, and work in groups — himself included. The trip was a surprise, sprung on players during a pre-season training camp in Cardiff. When they trudged back to civilisation, Smith pointed out that the four-star hotel where they were based — something as Premier League footballers they could take for granted — seemed a luxury now. He talked about the importance of connecting with colleagues and not just others within the playing group but ordinary staff at the club.

“One of my biggest things in any workplace is you have to build a culture,” Smith says. “My players are young men and those who had been in Premier League academies a long time have had a lot of things done for them. And sometimes it is good to see them in another walk of life, just having to think and cope in a different environment. “A lot you could see thinking, ‘What are we doing?’ but as it went on were thinking, ‘This is all right. Actually, better than running round a field in pre-season.’ They certainly got a lot out of it — you saw new relationships form. Though it did tip down with rain. My group was one of the last ones and I could see them sitting round the campfire, eating and I’m having to stick my own tent up.”

There are many things, behind the amiability that can cause him to be underestimated, that make Smith a star of his profession, the top-placed English manager in England, and one of the biggest success stories of football’s strangest year. One is an approach to leadership based on understanding people and the kind of humility shown by putting aside boss’s privileges to struggle among the rank and file. Another is the inclination to think deeply about the details. The past 12 months have demonstrated those qualities to the full. When you think of how coronavirus has challenged their sport, it is hard not to think of Smith and his club. Before the Premier League shut down a year ago this week, its final game was Leicester 4 Aston Villa 0, a result that left Villa 19th and to spend three months knowing they would be relegated if 2019-20 was curtailed. When the season restarted, they were tasked with playing in the first game (v Sheffield United) and taking that step into the unknown on behalf of all 20 clubs. This season, headaches include closure of their training ground after an outbreak there in January. On the human side, Smith had to get the balance of discipline and empathy right when dealing with a breach of lockdown rules by his captain, Jack Grealish. And, most of all, he had to keep leading while grieving for his father, Ron, who died last May at the age of 79 after contracting Covid-19. Out of all of this, he has emerged with a stronger club and a team markedly improved, who are competing for Europe rather than trying to avoid the drop.

In shutdown, Smith watched in entirety every game Villa had played in 2019-20, looking particularly at the defending. “We’d conceded too many goals [the most in the league] and too many big chances. I got the analysts to give us the stats. Since my Brentford days I’ve looked at big chances for and against because ultimately they decide results. I went into the Premier League wanting not to ‘not lose’ but wanting to win. There’s a big difference. We lost our first game to Tottenham and people were impressed with our performance but Spurs had 24 chances on the day, and I was like, ‘Woah, that’s too many.’ “So it was always in the back of my mind, but I suppose at some stage my ego had got into it and it was, ‘I don’t want to play the likes of Liverpool and just defend.’ But against better teams you have to learn quickly and we had to become more pragmatic.” Smith identified Liverpool, Manchester City — and Napoli — as “best practice of defending. With the analysts we clipped up their best [examples] and sent them to players and held small group meetings.” Why those sides? “They weren’t just defending as a back four and goalkeeper, but as a whole team. We’ve always wanted to be a team who counterpresses quickly. You watch Liverpool and City and it’s difficult to get past their front three, then it’s difficult to get past the next three before you even get to the back five.” Improved defending, when they returned, helped Villa survive and this season only City have more clean sheets. Smith prepared intently for that “Project Restart” game v Sheffield United. With the Bundesliga already back under way, he spoke at length with Uwe Rösler, manager of Fortuna Dusseldorf, about playing in empty stadiums. “I moved my coaching position because there were no fans and I was able to go up higher,” he says. “I could see the whole picture and knew the players would still hear me.”

He pondered how games might be from referees’ perspectives, and to get their squads sharp, he and Brendan Rodgers organised for Villa and Leicester to play each other twice in one day, once at King Power Stadium, once at Villa Park. Then there has been training. Initially restricted to small groups, since the restart there have been too many fixtures to follow normal practice and recovery schedules. It has called for staffs to be flexible — second nature to someone who began coaching at just 30 with an under-13 team in east London and began managing at Walsall. “It has helped, having that backdrop,” he reflects. “Improvising is what lower league coaches have to do. “Teams normally train at 10.30am or 11am but we were training at different times when we came back and now we train at 12pm. That came to me from the improvisation of training at different times.” The reason is fascinating. “I thought players, young men, now, they’re different. They don’t go to bed like we used to at 11pm. They go to bed at two in the morning. They’ve all got an Xbox, a PS4 and they’re up later. I thought OK if they’re getting to bed later, let’s get them up later. Because sleep is such an important part of recovery. We stayed with 12pm training and I feel we get a little bit more from them as players.”

Meticulous recruitment was also learnt in the lower leagues. Smith has a strong relationship with sporting director Johan Lange and together they have fuelled Villa’s improvement through “value” signings such as Ollie Watkins, Emiliano Martínez and Matty Cash. “Profiling players is something I’ve done since Walsall and players have to fit your style of play and for me the biggest thing is their character and potential. That learning ability.” Grealish is learning under Smith. Their bond is close. “You have an idea of what somebody is going to be like before you meet them but the reality was totally different,” he says. “I came into the club [in 2018] and found a player who wanted to get better, to learn, who was one of the last out. Certainly wasn’t one of the first in, though. Was probably one of the night owls as well. I challenged him to improve his goals and assists and he grasped that importance straight away. He has a really good memory for football. I’ll talk about an incident where he could have got in the box and he’ll say, ‘Yeah, that was in the 71st minute . . .’ ” When Grealish crashed his car after a party during lockdown last March, “it was that conversation with him, reminding him of his responsibilities. People make mistakes and I think he has learnt some big lessons very quickly, and like any young person that’s how they mature. That’s how I matured and you probably matured as well — but fortunately for us we weren’t in the public eye.”

When Smith’s father died he was deeply touched by the support he received from supporters and within football, including from Pep Guardiola, who lost his mother to Covid. “My dad had been in a care home with dementia, so wasn’t in the best of health, but it was really tough for the family because we couldn’t go and see him. Fortunately, we could be by his side when he passed,” says Smith. “I can sympathise with anybody who has lost a loved one during Covid, and dementia as well is a terrible illness.”

 

 

Fantastic stuff. Thanks for that.

[Mjvilla]

45 minutes ago, John said:

The excellent interview below between Jonathan Northcroft and Dean, is from yesterday's "Sunday Times" and it concerns our progress over the past 12 months: 

Soaked and hungry, on a bleak hillside, Dean Smith had no choice but to keep grappling with his adversary. It was a tent. Putting it up almost defeated him, but Smith persevered and was able to join Tyrone Mings and the rest round the fire for dinner. “I was just one of the boys that day,” he says, “rather than the actual leader.” In August, Aston Villa’s manager took his squad out into the Brecon Beacons, challenging them to a night on the Welsh mountains where they had to navigate, lug their own gear, erect their own shelter, and work in groups — himself included. The trip was a surprise, sprung on players during a pre-season training camp in Cardiff. When they trudged back to civilisation, Smith pointed out that the four-star hotel where they were based — something as Premier League footballers they could take for granted — seemed a luxury now. He talked about the importance of connecting with colleagues and not just others within the playing group but ordinary staff at the club.

“One of my biggest things in any workplace is you have to build a culture,” Smith says. “My players are young men and those who had been in Premier League academies a long time have had a lot of things done for them. And sometimes it is good to see them in another walk of life, just having to think and cope in a different environment. “A lot you could see thinking, ‘What are we doing?’ but as it went on were thinking, ‘This is all right. Actually, better than running round a field in pre-season.’ They certainly got a lot out of it — you saw new relationships form. Though it did tip down with rain. My group was one of the last ones and I could see them sitting round the campfire, eating and I’m having to stick my own tent up.”

There are many things, behind the amiability that can cause him to be underestimated, that make Smith a star of his profession, the top-placed English manager in England, and one of the biggest success stories of football’s strangest year. One is an approach to leadership based on understanding people and the kind of humility shown by putting aside boss’s privileges to struggle among the rank and file. Another is the inclination to think deeply about the details. The past 12 months have demonstrated those qualities to the full. When you think of how coronavirus has challenged their sport, it is hard not to think of Smith and his club. Before the Premier League shut down a year ago this week, its final game was Leicester 4 Aston Villa 0, a result that left Villa 19th and to spend three months knowing they would be relegated if 2019-20 was curtailed. When the season restarted, they were tasked with playing in the first game (v Sheffield United) and taking that step into the unknown on behalf of all 20 clubs. This season, headaches include closure of their training ground after an outbreak there in January. On the human side, Smith had to get the balance of discipline and empathy right when dealing with a breach of lockdown rules by his captain, Jack Grealish. And, most of all, he had to keep leading while grieving for his father, Ron, who died last May at the age of 79 after contracting Covid-19. Out of all of this, he has emerged with a stronger club and a team markedly improved, who are competing for Europe rather than trying to avoid the drop.

In shutdown, Smith watched in entirety every game Villa had played in 2019-20, looking particularly at the defending. “We’d conceded too many goals [the most in the league] and too many big chances. I got the analysts to give us the stats. Since my Brentford days I’ve looked at big chances for and against because ultimately they decide results. I went into the Premier League wanting not to ‘not lose’ but wanting to win. There’s a big difference. We lost our first game to Tottenham and people were impressed with our performance but Spurs had 24 chances on the day, and I was like, ‘Woah, that’s too many.’ “So it was always in the back of my mind, but I suppose at some stage my ego had got into it and it was, ‘I don’t want to play the likes of Liverpool and just defend.’ But against better teams you have to learn quickly and we had to become more pragmatic.” Smith identified Liverpool, Manchester City — and Napoli — as “best practice of defending. With the analysts we clipped up their best [examples] and sent them to players and held small group meetings.” Why those sides? “They weren’t just defending as a back four and goalkeeper, but as a whole team. We’ve always wanted to be a team who counterpresses quickly. You watch Liverpool and City and it’s difficult to get past their front three, then it’s difficult to get past the next three before you even get to the back five.” Improved defending, when they returned, helped Villa survive and this season only City have more clean sheets. Smith prepared intently for that “Project Restart” game v Sheffield United. With the Bundesliga already back under way, he spoke at length with Uwe Rösler, manager of Fortuna Dusseldorf, about playing in empty stadiums. “I moved my coaching position because there were no fans and I was able to go up higher,” he says. “I could see the whole picture and knew the players would still hear me.”

He pondered how games might be from referees’ perspectives, and to get their squads sharp, he and Brendan Rodgers organised for Villa and Leicester to play each other twice in one day, once at King Power Stadium, once at Villa Park. Then there has been training. Initially restricted to small groups, since the restart there have been too many fixtures to follow normal practice and recovery schedules. It has called for staffs to be flexible — second nature to someone who began coaching at just 30 with an under-13 team in east London and began managing at Walsall. “It has helped, having that backdrop,” he reflects. “Improvising is what lower league coaches have to do. “Teams normally train at 10.30am or 11am but we were training at different times when we came back and now we train at 12pm. That came to me from the improvisation of training at different times.” The reason is fascinating. “I thought players, young men, now, they’re different. They don’t go to bed like we used to at 11pm. They go to bed at two in the morning. They’ve all got an Xbox, a PS4 and they’re up later. I thought OK if they’re getting to bed later, let’s get them up later. Because sleep is such an important part of recovery. We stayed with 12pm training and I feel we get a little bit more from them as players.”

Meticulous recruitment was also learnt in the lower leagues. Smith has a strong relationship with sporting director Johan Lange and together they have fuelled Villa’s improvement through “value” signings such as Ollie Watkins, Emiliano Martínez and Matty Cash. “Profiling players is something I’ve done since Walsall and players have to fit your style of play and for me the biggest thing is their character and potential. That learning ability.” Grealish is learning under Smith. Their bond is close. “You have an idea of what somebody is going to be like before you meet them but the reality was totally different,” he says. “I came into the club [in 2018] and found a player who wanted to get better, to learn, who was one of the last out. Certainly wasn’t one of the first in, though. Was probably one of the night owls as well. I challenged him to improve his goals and assists and he grasped that importance straight away. He has a really good memory for football. I’ll talk about an incident where he could have got in the box and he’ll say, ‘Yeah, that was in the 71st minute . . .’ ” When Grealish crashed his car after a party during lockdown last March, “it was that conversation with him, reminding him of his responsibilities. People make mistakes and I think he has learnt some big lessons very quickly, and like any young person that’s how they mature. That’s how I matured and you probably matured as well — but fortunately for us we weren’t in the public eye.”

When Smith’s father died he was deeply touched by the support he received from supporters and within football, including from Pep Guardiola, who lost his mother to Covid. “My dad had been in a care home with dementia, so wasn’t in the best of health, but it was really tough for the family because we couldn’t go and see him. Fortunately, we could be by his side when he passed,” says Smith. “I can sympathise with anybody who has lost a loved one during Covid, and dementia as well is a terrible illness.”

 

 

Thanks John. If I remember rightly, the weather was pretty wet when they went on that trip? The beacons can be brutal, I live about a half hour drive away.

They are an amazing place. Would've been a real eye opener for them. A great idea for a bonding trip. Love to hear little snippets about this kind of thing.