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Team Spirit/Likeability


bobzy

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On 29/12/2020 at 07:45, bobzy said:

Don't think this sits elsewhere but, mods, feel free to move if so.

Obviously we're having a great season so far and that naturally helps everyone feel buoyant.  However, it's struck me recently...

...have we ever had a team spirit that seems as good as it is now and/or a bunch of players who are as likeable?  All of the interviews, the way players discuss each other, the fans, etc.  I suppose I've been drawn to thinking this with interviews from our new players (Martinez, Watkins and Cash certainly coming across well and like decent blokes), the various Insta dressing room shots which are pretty inclusive, Mings' comments around the abuse El Ghazi received with Bolasie responding "what a dressing room" (or whatever he said), McGinn's interview tonight and just generally the way the players are on the pitch too.  They just all seem like a nice bunch who enjoy playing together and for each other.

Has the dressing room camaraderie ever been this good?

You know the league's in trouble when an ensemble of talented athletes in their prime rally up to give their best for a leader whom they place their trust in, a leader who's shown time and again that he's up to the challenge. Smith's determined to learn and adapt his focus, strategy and planning in order to get his men to where they want to be.

They would trust Smith with their emotions, with their skill and tactical development, with their ambitions, with their careers..

Personally I think Edens would have had a huge role in team ethos, but Smith is no doubt a gem of a human too, and in charge on the daily. He'd inspire the confidence to play.

We're on to a very good thing here.

 

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On 28/12/2020 at 23:16, Zatman said:

I think its a credit to the management and scouts as well that they have not just scouted good players but good characters as well

Drinkwater was a blip

More a desperation move

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  • 4 weeks later...

I love most of them!   What also feels strange is that we seem to have:

- The best goalkeeper in the PL.

- a defensive back 4 on par with any in the top 6.

- a DM who is class and Man City might want back

- the best attacking midfielder in the country.

- a striker who is averaging 1 goal in every 2 games.

 

We surely can't be that far off being a top 4-6 team!  Just need the consistency, cut out silly mistakes, and learn how to grind out a result against lower teams who are playing for a 0-0. 

 

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6 hours ago, ender4 said:

I love most of them!   What also feels strange is that we seem to have:

- The best goalkeeper in the PL.

- a defensive back 4 on par with any in the top 6.

- a DM who is class and Man City might want back

- the best attacking midfielder in the country.

- a striker who is averaging 1 goal in every 2 games.

 

We surely can't be that far off being a top 4-6 team!  Just need the consistency, cut out silly mistakes, and learn how to grind out a result against lower teams who are playing for a 0-0. 

 


Good start to that learning today.

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7 hours ago, ender4 said:

I love most of them!   What also feels strange is that we seem to have:

- The best goalkeeper in the PL.

- a defensive back 4 on par with any in the top 6.

- a DM who is class and Man City might want back

- the best attacking midfielder in the country.

- a striker who is averaging 1 goal in every 2 games.

 

We surely can't be that far off being a top 4-6 team!  Just need the consistency, cut out silly mistakes, and learn how to grind out a result against lower teams who are playing for a 0-0. 

 

Wednesday against Burnley will give us a good opportunity to have a go at that. 

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We have come a long way, and a lot of that has been driven by Dean Smith. The culture he has talked about since his arrival is really coming to fruition. 

The personality of this squad is great. I’m sure there are a lot of envious fans and clubs out there, who will look at what we’ve done and try and replicate it. There’s not a single player I dislike. 

The Villa Engine is really purring now... :trollface:

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2 hours ago, maqroll said:

It'll be interesting to see how Sanson integrates into the team, from the playing side to the team spirit/chemistry side.

I'm really looking forward to sanson and mcginn terrier-ing around together on the pitch, we now have the mcginn and the french mcginn, gonna be fun to watch.

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On 28/12/2020 at 20:50, JAMAICAN-VILLAN said:

Cant tell when the last time was we ad a team were I genuinely liked pretty much every player so much, as blokes.

95/96 - but I was 10/11 then so I think I automatically liked all of them anyway. Funny how team spirit correlates with a winning side! :) 

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It's felt like a long time since we've had this much camaraderie after years of toxic dressing rooms and influences. These players give each other everything on the pitch, and I think having someoe with the drive, passion, and ability as Jack as captain sets the right example when in the dressing room and on the pitch. We have other leaders and cool heads too like Emi. Everytime I see team selfies after games or their banter, it just makes me so happy.

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Doug poking at Grealish over his "tantrum" on the bench is so freaking cute. As a father of multiple sons I can get misty eyed at times when I see the younger generation engaging in the same shenigans I used to on the pitch. 

Playing on a team where chemistry is sky high and everyone clicks is right up there with winning in my books. 

I've played on teams where chemistry was awful and you wanted to win purely to avoid the fights and drama postmatch. Teams like that, if you aren't winning, even a small losing streak everything can go right to shit. 

This team plays for each other and I love every second of it. Dean has built such a cohesive unit that he could probably take a couple week vacation and the players would still be getting along when he returns. 

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14 hours ago, ender4 said:

I love most of them!   What also feels strange is that we seem to have:

- The best goalkeeper in the PL.

- a defensive back 4 on par with any in the top 6.

- a DM who is class and Man City might want back

- the best attacking midfielder in the country.

- a striker who is averaging 1 goal in every 2 games.

 

We surely can't be that far off being a top 4-6 team!  Just need the consistency, cut out silly mistakes, and learn how to grind out a result against lower teams who are playing for a 0-0. 

 

IMHO take out VAR and we are a top 4/6 team.

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On 29/12/2020 at 20:56, MrSmirch said:

Dean did a talk at a Uni speaking about developing a culture in a business.

More effective than Tony Xia giving presentations.

 

Highly recommend watching this, totally explains why we are seeing the improvement this season and what is coming in the future. Letting players/coaches move on to better themselves. Looking for personalities and not just talent, always trying to improve them as players and coaches and people. And it sounds like that is coming from the owners too, they want the same as Deano does. 

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I also credit Dean for being the father figure, it's clear from Jack to Ollie, how much that means, how he puts his arm around them and makes them feel world-class, and, unlike managers of old, has the management style and tactics and staff around them to bring out the best.

It also demonstrates what having a strong philosophy in terms of transfers and team identity does.

Mings was a prime example of that, a leader and fantastic presence on and off of the pitch, something that we lacked post-relegation as quick gambles on returning quickly failed.

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I felt the same way back in the Championship with Mings, Hause, Tuanzebe, Tammy, et al all really getting on and seeming like top blokes. Really shows how quickly DS got to work when recruiting those loan singings.

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We are living in tough times for everyone, dark times, and having a fun environment to work in is going to produce better performances from players than an intense and joyless one.

The team spirit and environment Smith and his coaches have cultivated is incredibly important right now, and I think a big factor in how well we are doing this season. I remember reading an article on how Smith keeps things interesting for the players on the training pitch, mixing things up, trying different things, it's quite clear the recruitment has been a part of this as well, getting the right characters in. We are seeing the benefits of all that work.

If you look at the bottom half of the table and consider the personality of the managers, they are in the main quite serious in some cases intense people, it's easy to imagine their coaching styles may be similar, and I don't think that style is going to resonate quite as well at the moment.

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