Dean Smith

[Skruff]

That post match interview just didn't feel right. He seemed lost of words. Getting the impression that things are slipping.

[Tomaszk]

Eyes peeled on that sign on the end of the north stand.

[KentVillan]

1 minute ago, Skruff said:

That post match interview just didn't feel right. He seemed lost of words. Getting the impression that things are slipping.

I imagine as a manager what must be an absolute killer is when you give your team a dressing down at halftime, and they don't react with a performance in the second half.

Too early to say he's lost the dressing room, but he needs a few of his players to step up. Mings needed back in the squad urgently.

[Brumstopdogs]

12 minutes ago, villalad21 said:

2/1 to get sacked. Top on the list.

https://www.thesackrace.com/next-premier-league-manager-to-leave

West Ham's managerial search might impact us - we'll have to get in quick to nab Danny Dyer (500-1!)

[MarkLillis]

13 minutes ago, JAMAICAN-VILLAN said:

After our last few games, fans of other teams have been saying we are the worst team they have played this season. Says it all. Embarrassing.

To be fair this is an accurate description of Villa since the start of December.

However I prefer to hold on to the hope that pre December we were better.

Its very hard to see right now but with Mings back and the right signings (whoever makes them!) then performances will improve.

Talk to Southampton and Watford fans about fluctuations in form....

[Davkaus]

52 minutes ago, JAMAICAN-VILLAN said:

How is everybody feeling today then?

I'm back on the precipice of not being "Dean Out", but not sure if I would particularly be against him going.

The having a "fan" for manager is a blessing and a curse ffs.

The high will be extreme highs but the lows will end in terrible heart break all round imo.

I really like him and want him to succeed but wtf is going on?

Liking him as a bloke is the only reason I've not got a dirty bedsheet and the shoe polish out  

As much as I like him, we've looked clueless for a while and things aren't improving, quite the contrary. Even in our better games this season, we've created very little, relied on wonder goals out of nothing, have given the ball away poorly and we let our opponents have an obscene number of chances every game.

I just don't see what positives there are to hold on to.

Edited December 29, 2019 by Davkaus

[LxYoungAVFC]

I just can't believe how bad we are at keeping posession.

Numerous times after we won the ball in our half or around the half way line, players would just casually jog away from the player on the ball thus offering zero passing options. Basically they just hide behind opposition players.

This needs to be discussed at BMH.

[foreveryoung]

53 minutes ago, MarkLillis said:

To be fair this is an accurate description of Villa since the start of December.

However I prefer to hold on to the hope that pre December we were better.

Its very hard to see right now but with Mings back and the right signings (whoever makes them!) then performances will improve.

Talk to Southampton and Watford fans about fluctuations in form....

Fluctuations in form yeah. A total mess on the football field, no reaction after a rolocking at half time, an continues to blame the players, tells me with a heavy heart, his time is up. 

[terrytini]

I don’t agree with much of the criticism aimed at Deano, and am of the view things may well improve.

But....

” I’d like to think in a similar situation our players would put the ball out” concerns me.

I prefer the Troy Deeney approach - ( sorry, I know he’s a knob ) it’s an important game get on with it.

More of the Deeney and we’d be a crucial few points better off.

I wonder if JT shares Deanos view on this ?

 

[holteend1982]

1 minute ago, terrytini said:

I don’t agree with much of the criticism aimed at Deano, and am of the view things may well improve.

But....

” I’d like to think in a similar situation our players would put the ball out” concerns me.

I prefer the Troy Deeney approach - ( sorry, I know he’s a knob ) it’s an important game get on with it.

More of the Deeney and we’d be a crucial few points better off.

I wonder if JT shares Deanos view on this ?

 

Funny cuz targett went down and we gave the ball away after trying go carry on with an attack, We also did the same last year when a sheff u player went down we played on and scored the equaliser. Watford had every right to play on and it's just a really poor excuse from Smith. 

[Brumstopdogs]

Looking at the stats surprisingly (to me anyway) we're 3rd in the league for the number of crosses we have put in the box this season.

If we actually recruit people that can make the most of those crosses coming in perhaps we can sneak a few more points.  Over to you Dean!

 

 

Edited December 29, 2019 by Brumstopdogs

[sne]

3 minutes ago, Brumstopdogs said:

Looking at the stats surprisingly (to me anyway) we're 3rd in the league for the number of crosses we have put in the box this season.

If we actually recruit people that can make the most of those crosses coming in perhaps we can sneak a few more points.  Over to you Dean!

 

 

We were right at the top of that list last season in the Championship as well if I remember correctly.

Tammy vs Wes is a huge difference, while obviously the standard of CB's does as well.

[Nabby]

47 minutes ago, LxYoungAVFC said:

I just can't believe how bad we are at keeping posession.

Numerous times after we won the ball in our half or around the half way line, players would just casually jog away from the player on the ball thus offering zero passing options. Basically they just hide behind opposition players.

This needs to be discussed at BMH.

Was a point yesterday Lansbury had ball wide left he stopped let Jack catch up with him , left the ball there for Jack and jogged off ..

[Pimlico_Villa]

I caveat this with an acknowledgement that I have been very critical of Smith in the past, but having had chance to calm down after yesterday’s abject drumming, I do think he should stay. 
 

Firstly, beyond that core of Heaton, Mings, McG and Grealish, the rest of the squad is nowhere near the requisite level of technical quality or physicality to play PL. Those players that are developing - Engels, for example - are twice the player playing alongside that full core and half the player with out it. As such, the injuries to Mings and McG have a huge knock on effect throughout the squad as there is no one like for like that can come into compensate. 
 

Secondly, I do think we need to see the bigger picture. It’s often mentioned on here - and is pretty much consensus - that we have suffered from instability and inconsistency for almost 10 years. Under this regime and Smith, I don’t think I’ve ever seen such a strong and natural cohesion between fans, players and owners and I really do think Smith’s background and approach is key to that. It’s things like this that get ignored in the heat of the moment when we get spanked so adjectively by relegation rivals, but in the long term I do think we’ve landed on a good thing here and should preserve it. It’s is the right structure for us to finally start developing as a Club.  
 

Even if we get relegated this year - which, with the injuries, is almost certain - that unity between the fans and the club will be essential in keeping us alive. So, we have to think longer term here. Imagine going down without Grealish, a mercenary Manager like Allardyce and think about where that would leave us as a Club for a moment. I don’t think we’d come back from that. 

It was always an impossible ask to take a squad that finished 5th in the Championship and assemble, pretty much from scratch, a squad capable of staying in the PL. We signed some absolute dross - Wes, Targett, Jota - and need to learn lessons from that, but it would have been entirely unprecedented for such an enormous challenge to have worked. 
 

Let’s stick together, take relegation on the chin, and come back stronger. We’re well capitalised and run professionally, so we need to use this experience and learn from it. 

[LakotaDakota]

19 minutes ago, terrytini said:

I don’t agree with much of the criticism aimed at Deano, and am of the view things may well improve.

But....

” I’d like to think in a similar situation our players would put the ball out” concerns me.

I prefer the Troy Deeney approach - ( sorry, I know he’s a knob ) it’s an important game get on with it.

More of the Deeney and we’d be a crucial few points better off.

I wonder if JT shares Deanos view on this ?

 

Guess he missed the bit where our players actually had the ball & didn't bother putting it out when targett was down. The only reason Watford even had the ball was us giving it away yet again

[MaVilla]

Honestly think a 5-3-2 would suit our current batch of players better.

Play Davis up top once fit, and then wesley can do his deep forward role without leaving us short up top.

Would also make us more compact and allow our forwats thinking full backs to get forward without leaving us so exposed.

Not sure if nakamba or Luiz but something like:

                     Heaton

         Konsa Engels Mings

Gilbert             Luiz            Targett

              McGinn Grealish

                 Wesley Davis 

 

With the current injuries could be nakamba DM, the luiz and grealish CM, Hause LCB if Mings comes back in the centre soon.

Edited December 29, 2019 by MaVilla

[sne]

Difficult schedule, sure. But our form over the last 11 games is:

2 wins, 1 draw and 8 losses = 7 points out of 33 with 10 goals scored and 23 goals conceded.

In the last 5 we have kept 1 clean sheet and still shipped 12 goals.

Sadly I don't see a single sign we are moving in the right direction, quite the opposite. We seem to be bottling it.

Edited December 29, 2019 by sne

[Jimmyg]

2 hours ago, jim said:

Just rewatched his post match interview and right at the beginning he says “ First time I’ve really had to read the riot act at half time” Jesus wept Dean, no wonder we are in the shit if other performances have been acceptable enough not to warrant a bollocking.

Or is it that he is just too soft, the players know this and don’t give a shit?

Exactly what I thought!! 
 

I remember his earlier post match interviews when he used to say things like “we didnt set the traps we talked about” .... “they played between our lines to easily” .... “we didn’t move the ball quick enough”.... or words to that effect. It’s worrying that he is using officiating for excuses for conceding. I don’t think the ref was at fault for the final two goals personally. 
 

I have said elsewhere...I don’t want smith to be sacked, but I really don’t know what to say anymore. Throwing more money at this team in January is not going to make any difference without a change of direction and tactics. We are too reliant on Jack (which I believe is stopping us playing). No threat upfront, we don’t move the ball quick enough and at the moment we are certain to go down there is no doubt about it. The board have to ask the question if they are happy to go down and rebuild? which I doubt. Or do we want to maintain premier league football?! If so some serious changes and questions need to be asked. The last few games (Norwich included) have shown no promise, we haven’t been unlucky, we have been poor....period! Even with Mings and Mcginn I believe they would have had no influence on the results. I don’t want to say getting rid of smith is the answer as I so badly want him to succeed as do most Villa fans I’m sure.... But I’m starting to wonder if thanking Deano for a great year or so and getting us back to where we belong and moving forward without him is the right thing to do. I’m not saying we should.... but I have never been so torn with a manager.

[Dr_Pangloss]

Well he reads the riot act and then we go and play worse, including against 10 men. Not only am I not convinced about him as a coach and his tactics/ game management but it doesn't appear as though he can motivate this lot either.

[Nabby]

16 minutes ago, Jimmyg said:

Exactly what I thought!! 
 

I remember his earlier post match interviews when he used to say things like “we didnt set the traps we talked about” .... “they played between our lines to easily” .... “we didn’t move the ball quick enough”.... or words to that effect. It’s worrying that he is using officiating for excuses for conceding. I don’t think the ref was at fault for the final two goals personally. 
 

I have said elsewhere...I don’t want smith to be sacked, but I really don’t know what to say anymore. Throwing more money at this team in January is not going to make any difference without a change of direction and tactics. We are too reliant on Jack (which I believe is stopping us playing). No threat upfront, we don’t move the ball quick enough and at the moment we are certain to go down there is no doubt about it. The board have to ask the question if they are happy to go down and rebuild? which I doubt. Or do we want to maintain premier league football?! If so some serious changes and questions need to be asked. The last few games (Norwich included) have shown no promise, we haven’t been unlucky, we have been poor....period! Even with Mings and Mcginn I believe they would have had no influence on the results. I don’t want to say getting rid of smith is the answer as I so badly want him to succeed as do most Villa fans I’m sure.... But I’m starting to wonder if thanking Deano for a great year or so and getting us back to where we belong and moving forward without him is the right thing to do. I’m not saying we should.... but I have never been so torn with a manager.

When he first came in , what I liked about his post match interviews is he would say what the issues where not the usual ''we need to work harder'' '' go again '' ''poor ref '' like we had to endure under Lambert and Bruce but he has reverted to being like them now.I didn't care for his ''we lost the game in the fh '' comment either , there was still a half to go we could of made changes , then even went down to 10 men if he had already given  up then its no wonder the players came out and showed nothing.