Dean Smith

[hippo]

9 hours ago, Sam3773 said:

Instead of what we want to happen, I'm very interested in what we think will happen. 

I think Smith will get time and while I know the owners are very much an unknown entity, Purslow certainly seemed to want to give Bruce as much time as possible which suggests they'd like longevity and see this as a long term project. 

That being said, something has to be said about our calibre of owner. Sawiris is the majority shareholder in Adidas which I would imagine makes him a very decisive businessman. Edens sacked the Bucks coach last January and they are now 1st in the Eastern Conference. These are men who want success. For all the talk of 'they will give them time' and 'it doesn't matter if we get promoted this season', we are the 3rd richest club in England with two very ambitious owners. They won't want to be 30th in the English standings for long.

Honestly, this is their Di Matteo. Their Houllier. For one reason or another, the first rarely lasts long. I think they'll give hWim time, but I honestly can't predict it. They could pull the trigger tomorrow, they could keep him for years. I don't think either would surprise me. 

What I think will happen.

He will get 1 more good result - maybe today.

with top six looking like being settled early - he will win a few meaningless end of season games.

he will overhaul the squad in the summer - but start next season poorly - and will be sacked before xmas.

[Sam3773]

1 hour ago, sharkyvilla said:

Just to be pedantic, Sawiris isn't the majority shareholder in Adidas, he's the biggest shareholder with about 8%, a long way from having the majority.  I get the sense that he and Edens aren't hugely involved in running the club.

Quote right, my apologies. 

I can't imagine they're involved in the day-to-day running of the club, but they would take great interest in what their asset is doing, particularly Edens who is used to owning sports teams. While they wouldn't hire and fire themselves, they will put Purslow under pressure if they felt a change is needed. 

[M_Afro]

2 minutes ago, hippo said:

What I think will happen.

He will get 1 more good result - maybe today.

with top six looking like being settled early - he will win a few meaningless end of season games.

he will overhaul the squad in the summer - but start next season poorly - and will be sacked before xmas.

This is where I am too. For this reason, if we do stumble along to the end of the season, I would get rid then. It’s a big call but every one of our seasons in this league has been messed up with an awful start. I would get a new manager and let him rebuild the team. 

[Sam3773]

20 minutes ago, Sam3773 said:

Quote right, my apologies. 

I can't imagine they're involved in the day-to-day running of the club, but they would take great interest in what their asset is doing, particularly Edens who is used to owning sports teams. While they wouldn't hire and fire themselves, they will put Purslow under pressure if they felt a change is needed.

Just to add to this, I've been reading more on the Bucks under Edens' ownership and there are a lot of similarities. 

When he and Lasry bought the Bucks they had a squad of aging players and weren't doing great. They had just had a club record worst season. A full rebuild was needed so they brought in a young coach and gave him time to complete the rebuild with young talent. 

What helped Kidd keep his coaching job for so long under this rebuild, though, is a surprising first season and good run of results. Arguably that's something Smith doesn't have to prop him up at the moment. Either way, it feels like Edens and Purslow are fans of giving someone time to turn things around. Sawiris is the unknown. 

All we can hope for is a good performance today. I'm at a stage where the season is probably over, so I'm not fussed about the result (lie), but what I want to see is a performance, and a dominating one. I want Smith to be able to play his style of football and I hope the players will oblige. 

[TRO]

Bristol city fans must be scratching their heads looking at us.

We have 2 of their most prolific strikers of recent times and still can't get a win.

[TRO]

Managers do need time.....but if even modest improvement is not identified in some way, for months on end.....It could be an indication that it isn't going to happen at all.

 I Am talking about BMH work in the main.....Folk who know what they are doing will be able to identify with progress, there.....even if results on matchday are not ideal.

[Thug]

Our wingers will continue to be useless until we can get someone on the pitch that can provide them with a decent ball to run on to.

A gung-ho approach will not work until we can get someone on the pitch that can hold the ball for a bit to allow the ‘gungs to ho’

if the above two steps can not be implemented, then the opposition will repeatedly turn the ball over to come back at us, and we will be forced to defend.

if we’re defending more than attacking, then we will be better off using the right personnel to implement that tactic.

this grealish injury has been worse for smith than the Koeman incident was for Taylor.

[TRO]

34 minutes ago, Thug said:

Our wingers will continue to be useless until we can get someone on the pitch that can provide them with a decent ball to run on to.

A gung-ho approach will not work until we can get someone on the pitch that can hold the ball for a bit to allow the ‘gungs to ho’

if the above two steps can not be implemented, then the opposition will repeatedly turn the ball over to come back at us, and we will be forced to defend.

if we’re defending more than attacking, then we will be better off using the right personnel to implement that tactic.

this grealish injury has been worse for smith than the Koeman incident was for Taylor.

Not saying you're wrong.....but that can be used for every dep't on the pitch.

The ball providers equally have to win it or somebody has to win the ball.

IMV......We simply have too many players coming second against their opposite number, they have to dominate their position in order to play their natural game.....They don't ,they ALLOW themselves to be out fought and subsequently their natural game is negated to the point they become passengers.....so everything becomes, scrappy, and untidy and a free flow is just an aspiration as opposed to a reality.

[villabromsgrove]

This is only my own opinion but I look at the players that Dean Smith has available for selection today and I can't see a lot of options.

Whatever team sheet he decides on it will lack pace, be weak defensively on the flanks, and will not have the collective energy to play a high pressing game for more than a few minutes at a time.

We know the way DS likes to play, but he's realised that this squad is not able to. I'm going to wait patiently until the summer and watch the DS rebuild really begin. Guilbert has to be a template for our new signings. We need strong, young, energetic, pacy players with character, attitude and ambition. It's not going to be easy, but with Sawiris and Eden's backing it's going to happen a bit at a time.

[Nigel]

Apparently ds bought in 18 new players in his first summer with Brentford. I'm guessing it will be similar with us.

Should be an exciting time at least.

Wish the season ended now tbh.

[Delphinho123]

4 hours ago, Sam3773 said:

Just to add to this, I've been reading more on the Bucks under Edens' ownership and there are a lot of similarities. 

When he and Lasry bought the Bucks they had a squad of aging players and weren't doing great. They had just had a club record worst season. A full rebuild was needed so they brought in a young coach and gave him time to complete the rebuild with young talent. 

What helped Kidd keep his coaching job for so long under this rebuild, though, is a surprising first season and good run of results. Arguably that's something Smith doesn't have to prop him up at the moment. Either way, it feels like Edens and Purslow are fans of giving someone time to turn things around. Sawiris is the unknown. 

All we can hope for is a good performance today. I'm at a stage where the season is probably over, so I'm not fussed about the result (lie), but what I want to see is a performance, and a dominating one. I want Smith to be able to play his style of football and I hope the players will oblige. 

I agree up until the point where you want Smith to play his style of football with the players he has. This just isn’t going to happen. Either they’re not good enough, or they’re not the type of players that can play the way he wants.

He needs time to bring in a whole host of new faces next season and instill his philosophy onto them. He just isn’t able to play decent footballers with the shit players we have. We don’t have one decent full back/winger for Christ’s sake. 

[Dr_Pangloss]

The squad is pretty shite but there's more 'options' than the same old 4-5-1 that isn't delivering. 

[Delphinho123]

52 minutes ago, villabromsgrove said:

This is only my own opinion but I look at the players that Dean Smith has available for selection today and I can't see a lot of options.

Whatever team sheet he decides on it will lack pace, be weak defensively on the flanks, and will not have the collective energy to play a high pressing game for more than a few minutes at a time.

We know the way DS likes to play, but he's realised that this squad is not able to. I'm going to wait patiently until the summer and watch the DS rebuild really begin. Guilbert has to be a template for our new signings. We need strong, young, energetic, pacy players with character, attitude and ambition. It's not going to be easy, but with Sawiris and Eden's backing it's going to happen a bit at a time.

Good post.

Honestly, it’s embarrassing the amount of people on here who post ‘oh he should have done this’, or ‘he should have dropped Taylor’, or ‘Why isn’t he playing 4-4-2’.

Every option available to him is a poor one. We want to drop Hutton, we need to bring in AEM - he costs us points every week. We want to drop Taylor, we need to bring in a Hause who hasn’t exactly had the best start to his time here. We want to drop Hourihane, we need to bring in Jedinak or Bjarnasson, who are both utter tripe. We want to drop Adoman, we need to bring in Green who I’m just not convinced is very good at all. We want to play 4-4-2, we have to bring Kodjia in who doesn’t even want to play football. We want to play Davis up front, we can’t, he’s injured all the time. We want to play Lansbury, we can’t, he’s injured all the time.

We have no options because our entire squad is dross. Smith has no options to him as every one of them is worse than what we’re currently playing.

The only option to him to improve things is by throwing Grealish onto the pitch, even in a wheelchair if he has to. He’s the only player that could make a difference.

Sack Smith by all means, but there ain’t a manager in the world that’s getting this bunch of players to play the pretty football we all want to see. A manager like Allardyce might get us winning a few games but what’s the point? Where’s the long term thinking in that? We might finish 8th this season, whoop de f****** do.

Id rather finish 19th this season and lose another 10 games and allow Smith to do the job he was brought here to do.

We need to think long term. Forget this season, that clown Xia and Steve Bruce made sure it was always going to be a write off.

[villalad21]

We tried the youth thing during the Lambert era. I believe we had the youngest Prem squad at one point.

Some of them worked. Westwood and Lowton are okish players, i still rate them to a certain extent. But most of them were simply not good enough. Weimann, Lichaj, Bennett, Okore, Clark.

Just to remind you that young and "hungry" players doesn't automatically make them better than experienced players. 

Edited February 16, 2019 by villalad21

[screwdriver]

smith has 11 options in the youth team.

[sne]

16 minutes ago, Delphinho123 said:

Good post.

Honestly, it’s embarrassing the amount of people on here who post ‘oh he should have done this’, or ‘he should have dropped Taylor’, or ‘Why isn’t he playing 4-4-2’.

Every option available to him is a poor one. We want to drop Hutton, we need to bring in AEM - he costs us points every week. We want to drop Taylor, we need to bring in a Hause who hasn’t exactly had the best start to his time here. We want to drop Hourihane, we need to bring in Jedinak or Bjarnasson, who are both utter tripe. We want to drop Adoman, we need to bring in Green who I’m just not convinced is very good at all. We want to play 4-4-2, we have to bring Kodjia in who doesn’t even want to play football. We want to play Davis up front, we can’t, he’s injured all the time. We want to play Lansbury, we can’t, he’s injured all the time.

We have no options because our entire squad is dross. Smith has no options to him as every one of them is worse than what we’re currently playing.

The only option to him to improve things is by throwing Grealish onto the pitch, even in a wheelchair if he has to. He’s the only player that could make a difference.

Sack Smith by all means, but there ain’t a manager in the world that’s getting this bunch of players to play the pretty football we all want to see. A manager like Allardyce might get us winning a few games but what’s the point? Where’s the long term thinking in that? We might finish 8th this season, whoop de f****** do.

Id rather finish 19th this season and lose another 10 games and allow Smith to do the job he was brought here to do.

We need to think long term. Forget this season, that clown Xia and Steve Bruce made sure it was always going to be a write off.

I agree with your overall point, I think, but there is a lot in this post I don't agree with.

If we are going to lose another 10 games or whatever then use the players who will be here next season so that the likes of Green, Bree, (O'Hare, Clark) and others can use those games to develop. The can get better. Elmo, Adomah, Whelan, Jedi, Taylor... wont.

Giving more time to the old heads who wont be here next season doesn't help us now or for next season.

The job he was brought in to do wont get done using these players as they simply wont be here.

No doubt he was handed a shitty hand, but it's not that bad (full back situation aside). Obviously we should not trow in all the youngsters all at once. But I don't agree that 4-5-1 with the usual suspects is the only option he has.

I'd even be tempted to try a back 3 despite our issues on the flanks. At least with that set up we'd only have 2 players being terrible on the flanks compared to the 4 we have now. And we actually have a bunch of CB's now.

[New_Hope]

46 minutes ago, screwdriver said:

smith has 11 options in the youth team.

So he plays said 11 and gets beaten and you say, "Wtf Dean! Why didn't you play x, y, z?  You're a complete cockwomble! Smith out!"

[New_Hope]

1 hour ago, Dr_Pangloss said:

The squad is pretty shite but there's more 'options' than the same old 4-5-1 that isn't delivering. 

So we play 442 long ball that still doesn't deliver! Then what?

[brummybloke]

23 minutes ago, New_Hope said:

So we play 442 long ball that still doesn't deliver! Then what?

 

I cant believe you're moaning  about a tactic saying it wont work before it's been tried by Smith in the squad,  not that I see people clamouring for that particular tactic.

Are you saying the way we are playing is successful on the pitch and on the points table ? It isn't. But you don't want any other tactics other than what is failing week in week out ? 

 

Oh dear

[holteend1982]

39 minutes ago, New_Hope said:

So we play 442 long ball that still doesn't deliver! Then what?

You still have to try new things if something clearly isn't working! 

This formation we currently play requires jack grealish or a similar player, we don't have that available to us. We need to try something new.