Dean Smith

[foreveryoung]

10 minutes ago, ramshackler said:

Forgetting the Wesley debate. Which btw I agree he has to be dropped.

However today was the first time I was genuinely disappointed in Smith's tactics, team selection and game management.

1. guilbert had to start, he is a better defender and his pace would have helped massively against the vardy threat.

 

2. Hourihane has to play our home games (I thought we had finally settled on that) playing luiz and nakamba today set us up to try and get a point in a shut out. But our strength is attacking, we were imho very unlikely to keep it goalless with Leicester so should have had more attacking option on pitch in CH.

 

3. The Ming's injury was pure amateur hour. He had pulled his hamstring. You get him off immediately and hope we get to play him in some of the Xmas fixtures if lucky. You don't send him back on to try it out FFS. He was immobile, unable to run and get into position. It cost us the goal and most likely has made the injury worse.

It is moments like this the manager has to intervene and get him off there and then. 

I was sat a row from where Ming's went down and even Ming's was shaking his head and telling the medics he needed to come off. Putting him back on the pitch was absolute idiocy

I actually saw him shaking his head, which is why I believe he should have been taken off. The physios would have asked him questions about the pain and known if it was cramp or hamstring, so for Smith to say it may have been cramp was rubbish.

[terrytini]

3 hours ago, OutByEaster? said:

I think we'll finish above Sheffield United this season.

 

So do I.

Sheffield are doing what many Automatically Promoted Clubs do ( and well done to them) and starting well. One out of the 2 was bound to. 
And they will do what virtually all of the Clubs that do that, do, which is drop off.

There are still 12 Clubs fighting the drop and they are one.

[terrytini]

1 hour ago, Zhan_Zhuang said:

Pre-match interview Smith tells us we are getting to be an experienced PL team.

After the match he says our naivety cost us goals!

And both statements are true.

[terrytini]

4 hours ago, Tumblerseven said:

I dont understand people who dont understand that we just got through our worse part of the season (game wise).

1.Few games we can climb up masively.

2.Look at our next oponents !!!

 

To be honest most people DO understand it. The internet is a powerful megaphone though.

[KenjiOgiwara]

2 minutes ago, terrytini said:

And both statements are true.

Yep. And to be honest, je needs to work on their confidence right now. It's important we don't enter the new run of games head down. 

[terrytini]

3 hours ago, foreveryoung said:

Sheffield United say hi. Why should we so far away from them, an Wolves have they a much better squad or manager??

Do a bit of research into the history of those Clubs that goes back before the date of Smiths appointment.

[TRO]

9 hours ago, jim said:

Our biggest problem under Smith is we are too passive as @TRO has already said we lack aggression and it was the same problem last season. We stand off far too much allowing teams to come at us, we don’t fight for the ball like other teams do. We almost look complacent at times.

Smith needs to sort this out, but as nothing has changed since he’s been here I can’t see it happening any time soon. This will ultimately be his and our undoing.

Jim, It saddens me to say...I think you are right.

I was thinking watching the game how Ron Saunders would have had us not giving the ball away so cheaply.....our opponents don't need a ball winner or enforcer, we just give it them.....we don't win second balls, its criminal.

Where I do agree with Dean is.....everyone is clambering for a goal scorer, when its the defence that's pants, sure Wes is a liability, but its the back that has holes.....we can't win a header and Leicester are not a big team.

we could have won 1-0.....had we been able to defend.

[the_eristic]

Couldn't help but feel this result had been coming. We've been so open but have gotten through it without being embarrassed by a combination of effort and profligate finishing from our opposition. Today, neither of those were present. Rotation issues starting to emerge, too. Fortunately, we have an "easier" run now where some of our quality players may be better able to impose themselves on proceedings, but tightening up vs crosses/set pieces is going to be absolutely critical.

[terrytini]

4 minutes ago, KenjiOgiwara said:

Yep. And to be honest, je needs to work on their confidence right now. It's important we don't enter the new run of games head down. 

Yes he does. ( as do many Managers throughout the Season).

He has proven he is capable of doing that. Personally I’ve no worries over our character, or the abilities of the Manager, anymore than I had after Stoke Away when  I suggested Promotion was realistic.

We put together a record breaking run with a Team / Club whose recent history had been one of terminal decline. Dean Smith doesnt have to prove himself to me

Edited December 8, 2019 by terrytini

[alexvilla4]

My real gripes today were:

1. Elmo starting instead of Guilbert. I was so disappointed to see this. Yes Elmo is fairly solid a player and can put in the odd good cross but there is no dynamism to his play which affects the whole team. Guilbert has been fantastic so far and his speed was definitely needed today, plus he would have been a fresh pair of legs compared to Elmo

2. Konsa over Engles. I like the look of Konsa but Engles bar a couple of errors in his last game has been brilliant and Mings and Engels have looked like a much more solid partnership than Mings and Konsa

3. McGinn position. I dont understand what sort of midfielder he is being asked to be. The game has missed him by for about a month now, he neither seems involved defensively or attacking wise. I don't think it is just fatigue, I think he is confused and the position isn't working for him. I think his strengths lie much better as a deeper midfielder where he can tackle other midfielders and drive forward with the ball. 

4. Douglas and Nakamba together. Doesnt work. They dont seem to have any understanding, never pass to each other or seem to communicate much. Stop playing them together, one or the other in the deepest midfielder position. 

4. Unwillingness to change formation. Leicester have won 7 in a row playing pretty much the same team and formation. Yet even after that success they changed their formation today and still looked very good. Why cant we change it up for different teams to make us be more solid when we need to be? I would have liked a 5-3-2 today

5. Set piece basics. This seems to have disappeared from our game, we cant defend set pieces anymore. What is JT doing with them in training?

[TRO]

I think a lot of poppy cock is spoken about the top teams and lower teams......Our issues are our issues and who we are playing is irrelevant in one sense.

We can't win headers anywhere near enough....our passes go astray too often....First touch in some of our players is poor....Positional play from many players is questionable....we lost too many second balls....our shots are scuffed or closed down....we have so many unforced errors.

Teams like Leicester and Liverpool will exploit that.....Lesser teams may not, and we may win.....but the problems still exist, the wins just paper over the cracks.

We may stay up and I sincerely  hope we do.....but these issues cannot go on unattended....we have to fix them to progress.

On the teams today...

I think Grealish is every bit as good as Maddison, I think he is better, infact....but we have had no one like Vardy, since Dean Saunders & Dwight Yorke....Tielmans and Ndidi is better than anything we have too.... and their back line trumps ours all day long.

I would have been surprised if we had of won.....but a competent Villa could of got a draw at 1-2......We have got to look long and hard at ourselves, be honest and fix the issues.

That's the Challenge to Dean Smith.

Edited December 8, 2019 by TRO

[KentVillan]

13 minutes ago, ramshackler said:

Forgetting the Wesley debate. Which btw I agree he has to be dropped.

However today was the first time I was genuinely disappointed in Smith's tactics, team selection and game management.

1. guilbert had to start, he is a better defender and his pace would have helped massively against the vardy threat.

 

2. Hourihane has to play our home games (I thought we had finally settled on that) playing luiz and nakamba today set us up to try and get a point in a shut out. But our strength is attacking, we were imho very unlikely to keep it goalless with Leicester so should have had more attacking option on pitch in CH.

 

3. The Ming's injury was pure amateur hour. He had pulled his hamstring. You get him off immediately and hope we get to play him in some of the Xmas fixtures if lucky. You don't send him back on to try it out FFS. He was immobile, unable to run and get into position. It cost us the goal and most likely has made the injury worse.

It is moments like this the manager has to intervene and get him off there and then. 

I was sat a row from where Ming's went down and even Ming's was shaking his head and telling the medics he needed to come off. Putting him back on the pitch was absolute idiocy

1. Guilbert is a better player than Elmo, but I think we want DS to rotate the squad, and Elmo is probably one of our better backup players. After the Chelsea game, you could argue he deserved to start again. It was a marginal call really.
2. Is it Hourihane plays at home we all agreed, or Hourihane plays against weaker opposition? My sense is that Hourihane has been earmarked for the weaker teams who give us a bit more time and space (and more set piece opportunities). I think Conor would have really struggled today against Leicester - they were so compact and they were pressing and hustling at a pace none of our players (including Jack) could really handle.
3. If your account is correct, that is a huge **** up. But the story Smith told was that Mings wasn't sure if it was cramp or a pull, so was given a chance to run it off. Can anyone clarify?

I'm 100% in agreement with @terrytini on the Smith situation. We have to give him time, especially as he has achieved roughly what we hoped he would achieve at the start of the season. And he has reliably delivered in the "must win" games.

[KentVillan]

1 minute ago, TRO said:

I think a lot of poppy cock is spoken about the top teams and lower teams......Our issues are our issues and who we are playing is irrelevant in one sense.

This is poppy cock

Edited December 8, 2019 by KentVillan

[villalad21]

19 minutes ago, TRO said:

Jim, It saddens me to say...I think you are right.

I was thinking watching the game how Ron Saunders would have had us not giving the ball away so cheaply.....our opponents don't need a ball winner or enforcer, we just give it them.....we don't win second balls, its criminal.

Where I do agree with Dean is.....everyone is clambering for a goal scorer, when its the defence that's pants, sure Wes is a liability, but its the back that has holes.....we can't win a header and Leicester are not a big team.

we could have won 1-0.....had we been able to defend.

After watching the Everton game I realized what you were talking about TRO.

The fight for every single ball and pure passion they showed really got them the result that day.

Can't see it in our team. We're in a real dogfight and the players needs to start acting like it.

[TRO]

4 minutes ago, alexvilla4 said:

My real gripes today were:

1. Elmo starting instead of Guilbert. I was so disappointed to see this. Yes Elmo is fairly solid a player and can put in the odd good cross but there is no dynamism to his play which affects the whole team. Guilbert has been fantastic so far and his speed was definitely needed today, plus he would have been a fresh pair of legs compared to Elmo

2. Konsa over Engles. I like the look of Konsa but Engles bar a couple of errors in his last game has been brilliant and Mings and Engels have looked like a much more solid partnership than Mings and Konsa

3. McGinn position. I dont understand what sort of midfielder he is being asked to be. The game has missed him by for about a month now, he neither seems involved defensively or attacking wise. I don't think it is just fatigue, I think he is confused and the position isn't working for him. I think his strengths lie much better as a deeper midfielder where he can tackle other midfielders and drive forward with the ball. 

4. Douglas and Nakamba together. Doesnt work. They dont seem to have any understanding, never pass to each other or seem to communicate much. Stop playing them together, one or the other in the deepest midfielder position. 

4. Unwillingness to change formation. Leicester have won 7 in a row playing pretty much the same team and formation. Yet even after that success they changed their formation today and still looked very good. Why cant we change it up for different teams to make us be more solid when we need to be? I would have liked a 5-3-2 today

5. Set piece basics. This seems to have disappeared from our game, we cant defend set pieces anymore. What is JT doing with them in training?

Good questions....I would have played  3-1-4-2.....and based on my limited knowledge behind the scenes, I would play Hause in the 3.....mainly for his aerial ability, but I don't think he is that bad on the deck....1 to check Vardy's runs.

 

[Villarocker]

Something happened with Grealish today. He aimed a "f*** off" towards the bench. Not sure who at but it definitely seem to go that way. There was an instance not much before that where Deano was shouting at Jack to come towards the left wing.

Thr discipline of the players seemed off today and we were lucky to finish that game with 11 players on the pitch. McGinn, Grealish and Targett all seemed to lose their discipline. 

Smith has to drop Wesley otherwise it could really come back to haunt him. We look like we've got 10 players per game right now. I don't know how he gets around it but he has to drop him and put someone else - El Ghazi? - down the middle. 

[TRO]

4 minutes ago, villalad21 said:

After watching the Everton game I realized what you were talking about TRO.

The fight for every single ball and pure passion they showed really got them the result that day.

Can't see it in our team. We're in a real dogfight and the players needs to start acting like it.

Thanks....Some sadly can't.

Man U did the same thing at the Etihad......and SB did his snuffing out of the Blades in mid week.

We are far,far too open and it frustrates me some can't see it.

bang on.

[TRO]

2 minutes ago, Villarocker said:

Something happened with Grealish today. He aimed a "f*** off" towards the bench. Not sure who at but it definitely seem to go that way. There was an instance not much before that where Deano was shouting at Jack to come towards the left wing.

Thr discipline of the players seemed off today and we were lucky to finish that game with 11 players on the pitch. McGinn, Grealish and Targett all seemed to lose their discipline. 

Smith has to drop Wesley otherwise it could really come back to haunt him. We look like we've got 10 players per game right now. I don't know how he gets around it but he has to drop him and put someone else - El Ghazi? - down the middle. 

I don't want to overreact but......

If we continue to lose games the pressure will build and Players like Jack will be aware, he doesn't have to put up will carrying the team week in week out, plenty of clubs want him and he will go where he will get support on the pitch......and yes he does carry us.

John McGinns performances have dived, when all around have dubbed him a £50 mill player......These are players who can do something about it.....hope they don't of course.

gaps start to appear in relationships and the togetherness evaporates.....scapegoats appear from nowhere and cliques form.

Dean will now be called upon to earn his salt and get the best out of these players......plodding along awaiting for easier games to arrive is no strategy.

 

[New_Hope]

17 minutes ago, Villarocker said:

Something happened with Grealish today. He aimed a "f*** off" towards the bench.

No!! It was aimed at the Leicester bench so stop trying to sensationalise!

[KentVillan]

1 minute ago, TRO said:

I don't want to overreact but......

If we continue to lose games the pressure will build and Players like Jack will be aware, he doesn't have to put up will carrying the team week in week out, plenty of clubs want him and he will go where he will get support on the pitch......and yes he does carry us.

John McGinns performances have dived, when all around have dubbed him a £50 mill player......These are players who can do something about it.....hope they don't of course.

gaps start to appear in relationships and the togetherness evaporates.....scapegoats appear from nowhere and cliques form.

Dean will now be called upon to earn his salt and get the best out of these players......plodding along awaiting for easier games to arrive is no strategy.

 

Nobody's suggesting for a moment that that's what DS is doing or should be doing. A week ago we picked up a well-fought point away at Old Trafford.

But our season will be largely defined by the six pointers against our relegation rivals.