Dean Smith

[Fairy In Boots]

I personally think it’s too early to call for his head, the initial start was good and the football was a breath of fresh air. I want to get back to that and Grealish & Axel hopefully help us turn a corner. 

Hes has 2 key injuries and we lost momentum after dropping points late against the baggies & Leeds. 

Where I think you can question Smith is,  he’s not managed that loss of momentum well, rumours of him falling out with senior players in January over required work rate in training suggests there’s problems again. He’s got to manage that situation, if true to get the best out of them and he’s not doing that correctly at present. 

[cbr600rr]

its never to early to call for his head,its a results game & performance etc.

its clear that under ds its not working,i personally think its because hes come from a lower club & the players are not buying into it .

villa need big sam, said it pre ds & i stick by it,

dont be fickle..big sam knows his stuff & would clear the woods,his a big manager & the players would buy into his plan.

sticking with ds will be a mistake,hes a rookie,villa need a big manager.

[AvfcRigo82]

17 minutes ago, Fairy In Boots said:

I personally think it’s too early to call for his head, the initial start was good and the football was a breath of fresh air. I want to get back to that and Grealish & Axel hopefully help us turn a corner. 

Hes has 2 key injuries and we lost momentum after dropping points late against the baggies & Leeds. 

Where I think you can question Smith is,  he’s not managed that loss of momentum well, rumours of him falling out with senior players in January over required work rate in training suggests there’s problems again. He’s got to manage that situation, if true to get the best out of them and he’s not doing that correctly at present. 

So based on this how do you expect us to turn a corner even if Jack and Tuanzebe return?

I fail to ser how these 2 magicians are going to make everything suddenly all better.

[M_Afro]

43 minutes ago, DCJonah said:

You are really going to say that Grealish was not a key part of the success last year?

I didn’t say that but Bruce found (stumbled upon) a way to win without him. He bought big Kienan in and used him as a focal point for the team. It enabled us to bypass the midfield and really got players like Albert and Connor into dangerous positions where they could make an impact despite not being very good. 

Smith is trying to play in a certain way that does not seem to work with the available players. Good coaches look at what they have, look at their opponents and then find a way. They don’t do the same thing over and over again in the hope that it will start working all of a sudden!

[Sam3773]

They said something on Soccer Saturday yesterday that resonated. I can't remember which team they were discussing now but it wasn't us. 

They were describing the tough turn around of results under a new manager and said 'When you've got players who have been so used to playing route 1 football for years, it's underestimated how hard it is to change that mentality'. And when you think about it, a lot of the squad have been playing a certain way for a couple of years now. 

This puts Smith in an awkward position in my mind. He will be well aware that the fans wanted him because of his trademark style of football. He will be well aware if this group of players can or can't play to that style. If they can't, what does he do? Stick with it and lose games as the players make mistakes, poor touches, poor awareness etc. Or change to one the players are more used to until summer: Bruce Ball. Either way, it's going to be a tough few months on the fans. 

With that in mind, I think there's a way this squad goes on a winning run. That way is getting in a good route 1 manager. But no one wants that. I honestly feel that any manager who plays this expansive football is doomed to fail unless they're given that preseason and summer window. 

It's a tough one mentally on the fans though. We just want performances and results. At the moment I think we have a manager incapable of managing the way the team plays, and a team incapable of playing the way the manager wants.

[Demitri_C]

The key for me is obviously this group of players cannot play the way Smith wants them to. However he should use our existing players and play to their strengths until the end of the season which sadly he is failing to do and miserably. I don't mind a loss buts it's the manner in these defeats and performances. 

The Wigan game the Sheffield United the brentford game and the pathetic loss yesterday in the home Derby. 

We have some real tough fixtures coming up and the sty is the big one. We are going to lose that one it looks like and I think the fans will turn after that if this shit form continues. 

Good managers and coaches can adapt with the squad they have. Smith hasn't he has just got worse as the season has got on. 

 

Edited February 17, 2019 by Demitri_C

[hippo]

23 minutes ago, Sam3773 said:

They said something on Soccer Saturday yesterday that resonated. I can't remember which team they were discussing now but it wasn't us. 

They were describing the tough turn around of results under a new manager and said 'When you've got players who have been so used to playing route 1 football for years, it's underestimated how hard it is to change that mentality'. And when you think about it, a lot of the squad have been playing a certain way for a couple of years now. 

This puts Smith in an awkward position in my mind. He will be well aware that the fans wanted him because of his trademark style of football. He will be well aware if this group of players can or can't play to that style. If they can't, what does he do? Stick with it and lose games as the players make mistakes, poor touches, poor awareness etc. Or change to one the players are more used to until summer: Bruce Ball. Either way, it's going to be a tough few months on the fans. 

With that in mind, I think there's a way this squad goes on a winning run. That way is getting in a good route 1 manager. But no one wants that. I honestly feel that any manager who plays this expansive football is doomed to fail unless they're given that preseason and summer window. 

It's a tough one mentally on the fans though. We just want performances and results. At the moment I think we have a manager incapable of managing the way the team plays, and a team incapable of playing the way the manager wants.

Really not sure. The defence is all his players now...bar hutton.

the weakness has always been the defence. Even when were playing well we were still leaking goals at the back. predictably that undermined the confidence in the team and I think the players confidence in smith.

Let Smith bring in his own players next season ???...I still think we will leak goals - his inability to keep a tight defence meant he never kicked on at Brentford (despite the hype) - and it is and will continue to cost him here.

[Dr_Pangloss]

It's the lack of ideas that gets me, his reluctance to try anything new, it's the same approach week in week out and the same poor results. I really hope yesterday was the true wake up call for him and we see a lot of changes going forward.

[Blasterpocket68]

36 minutes ago, M_Afro said:

I didn’t say that but Bruce found (stumbled upon) a way to win without him. He bought big Kienan in and used him as a focal point for the team. It enabled us to bypass the midfield and really got players like Albert and Connor into dangerous positions where they could make an impact despite not being very good. 

Smith is trying to play in a certain way that does not seem to work with the available players. Good coaches look at what they have, look at their opponents and then find a way. They don’t do the same thing over and over again in the hope that it will start working all of a sudden!

Yeh you said it “good coaches”

[jim]

11 hours ago, Delphinho123 said:

I fully trust him. 

I think he’ll do a great job.

Based on what exactly? 

[foreveryoung]

7 hours ago, MikeMcKenna said:

Appalling comments here about Smith. The man needs to be given a chance. He inherited a totally s**t squad and very few options. Some Villa fans need to wise up. 

That's funny, cause when he signed he said we had one of the best if not the best team in the Championship, an we will definitely be in the mix for promotion. 

Yes Bruce left us in the shit, but after the first 5 games we were heading for top 3 never mind the play offs. Grealish an Tuanzabe cannot be the whole problem for such regression, Smith's got no plan B, an the way it stands he is no better, even some may say worse than Bruce.

I can think of many younger managers who could bring a whole new team of young an hungry plays in an start winning a bit, it don't prove quality coaching, an it don't make Smith anything special.

[S-Platt]

You have to go through rough patches to learn.  I am of the opinion that we stick and get behind him however hard that is.  We have had highs and lows in his time here he needs to be given the summer to clear the decks.   A young hungry team that plays on the front foot from the whistle will emerge next season.

 

[PieFacE]

I'm absolutely sick of us bouncing from one manager to the next looking for some kind of instant magic formula. That short sighted approach gets you absolutely no where and it's partly why we're in the position we are in. Being in this league is the perfect opportunity for us to have a complete re-think and rebuild, and integrate and actual football philosophy and recruit a certain set of players to fit into that like so many other teams have (Leicester, Southampton, Watford etc...)

It's absolutely obvious that the current squad we have are just incapable of playing the way Smith wants to play. This puts Smith in a tricky position, does he...

A) revert back to the style of football that the players were brought in for to see if it can get some momentum going?

B ) persist with trying to change the style with players who clearly aren't comfortable playing it?

C ) try again do a kind of hybrid approach which to me, looks like he's trying to do but it isn't working.

We need Tuanzebe back, we need Jack back. Just having 2 players comfortable on the ball will make a huge difference, afterall it's 20% of the outfield players. It's no shock we've looked worse since they have been out. 

I said when DS was appointed that it needed to get worse before it gets better, and was very shocked at how well he started. But I still maintain that, things do need to be shit for a while before we can start looking like an actual team and with so many players out of contact this summer, it's the perfect opportunity for a rebuild.

I'm kinda rambling now so... It's going to be shit, this season is a write off, I've accepted that now and look forward to seeing what happens over the summer/pre-season. I think we will be in a much better position best year. 

 

 

Edited February 17, 2019 by PieFacE

[Delphinho123]

13 minutes ago, jim said:

Based on what exactly? 

The players he brought in at Brentford and the football he had them playing.

I think with a bigger budget, the lure of AV and the ability to keep hold of the players he signs, he could build something solid here.

I’ll give him time, I’m a big fan.

[Dr_Pangloss]

5 minutes ago, PieFacE said:

I'm absolutely sick of us bouncing from one manager to the next looking for some kind of instant magic formula. That short sighted approach gets you absolutely no where and it's partly why we're in the position we are in. Being in this league is the perfect opportunity for us to have a complete re-think and rebuild, and integrate and actual football philosophy and recruit a certain set of players to fit into that like so many other teams have (Leicester, Southampton, Watford etc...)

It's absolutely obvious that the current squad we have are just incapable of playing the way Smith wants to play. This puts Smith in a tricky position, does he...

A) revert back to the style of football that the players were brought in for to see if it can get some momentum going?

B ) persist with trying to change the style with players who clearly aren't comfortable playing it?

C ) try again do a kind of hybrid approach which to me, looks like he's trying to do but it isn't working.

We need Tuanzebe back, we need Jack back. Just having 2 players comfortable on the ball will make a huge difference, afterall it's 20% of the outfield players. It's no shock we've looked worse since they have been out. 

I said when DS was appointed that it needed to get worse before it gets better, and was very shocked at how well he started. But I still maintain that, things do need to be shit for a while before we can start looking like an actual team and with so many players out of contact this summer, it's the perfect opportunity for a rebuild.

I'm kinda rambling now so... It's going to be shit, this season is a write off, I've accepted that now and look forward to seeing what happens over the summer/pre-season. I think we will be in a much better position best year. 

 

 

Write the season off and do more to benefit next season is what he needs to do. Bringing 2-3 young players through (like Ramsay) and changing the style/ tactics. Smith has been caught in the halfway house of knowing we need to build for next season but seeing that a playoff finish is still on, as a result he has been more conservative and put too much faith in under performers. 

It really should be about building for next season from now on, if we finish bottom half, but between now and May see a better kind of football emerge, with some of our better younger player getting more experience, and the older shit houses frozen out entirely, then that for me would be decent progress.  

[Eastie]

1 minute ago, Dr_Pangloss said:

Write the season off and do more to benefit next season is what he needs to do. Bringing 2-3 young players through (like Ramsay) and changing the style/ tactics. Smith has been caught in the halfway house of knowing we need to build for next season but seeing that a playoff finish is still on, as a result he has been more conservative and put too much faith in under performers. 

It really should be about building for next season from now on, if we finish bottom half, but between now and May see a better kind of football emerge, with some of our better younger player getting more experience, and the older shit houses frozen out entirely, then that for me would be decent progress.  

I agree but most of the young players that have shone in the u23 are out on loan so we are stuck with this bunch of losers till May 

[praisedmambo]

Was his Brentford team better than this current Villa team?

What's the difference?

Oh, that he had time there and the opportunity to make loads of signings.

The ceiling is twenty times higher with Villa than Brentford. He gets time.

We obviously need an overhaul of the squad no matter who the manager is. We need a real long-term vision—we've been hamstrung by short-term thinking and the current debacle is more about that than anything else imo.

[ismail-villa]

1 hour ago, cbr600rr said:

its never to early to call for his head,its a results game & performance etc.

its clear that under ds its not working,i personally think its because hes come from a lower club & the players are not buying into it .

villa need big sam, said it pre ds & i stick by it,

dont be fickle..big sam knows his stuff & would clear the woods,his a big manager & the players would buy into his plan.

sticking with ds will be a mistake,hes a rookie,villa need a big manager.

And what's the long term picture with big Sam in charge?

[PompeyVillan]

To be fair to Smith, we are also suffering an injury crisis.

We're desperately poor and short in midfield, it doesn't help that his options are limited by injury. Obviously Grealish is a massive miss. 

But I think Carroll and Lansbury would also get some game time.

Tuenzebe and Chester are big misses too.  

I don't think the squad is particularly good, and it certainly doesn't help that we have so many injuries. 

I am still confident that Smith is the right manager for us, because I see him as important in evolving our style of play. And whilst we've had several 'transitional' periods, I think the current transition is probably the most difficult to navigate and the really important to get right.

This season however is now a write off, which isn't much fun. 

[Blasterpocket68]

27 minutes ago, Delphinho123 said:

The players he brought in at Brentford and the football he had them playing.

I think with a bigger budget, the lure of AV and the ability to keep hold of the players he signs, he could build something solid here.

I’ll give him time, I’m a big fan.

Brentford mid table pretty team - is this what our expectations have come to