Popular Post Xela Posted February 28, 2022 Popular Post Share Posted February 28, 2022 I've seen plenty of criticisms of Gerrard along the lines of "He should be doing better with the squad / players / etc" but its just said in isolation and not looking at other teams. Yes, this is the best squad we've had in a while but the league is very strong as well. A lot of teams have very good squads. We finished 11th last year. We're 12th now after a bit of a messy season with the manager change and injuries. We're 10th in the league since Gerrard arrived. If we were to rank squad strengths in this league, i'd wager most people would have us around 10th. Some maybe a couple places higher, some lower. I'd say we are doing exactly what we should be doing! The next step is to get in the top 7 or so. That'll be the test of Gerrard next season. Hopefully we get the right calibre of player in 10 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zatman Posted March 1, 2022 Share Posted March 1, 2022 7 hours ago, CVByrne said: We always seem to catch teams just as they've new managers appointed so they have the new manager bounce. Now we've Leeds in just over a week after they've appointed Marsch Thats not really true thought. In the last 2 seasons has been about 15 appointments and we played 6 new managers including caretakers in the first month and won 5. Only manager we lost to in the first month was Hodgson 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRO Posted March 1, 2022 Share Posted March 1, 2022 (edited) On 27/02/2022 at 22:50, Davkaus said: This just isn't true, a crap manager doesn't become a good manager just because you keep the faith. I'm not suggesting Gerrard is an example of one, but patience for patience's sake is how you waste years on a failed tenure. Why didn't we just stick with Smith for a few more years if patience is invariably rewarded? Its a good point...and you are right. But I think sheepy was alluding to, if things at the training ground are good, but not being transfered to match day,yet.......a bit of patience is required. Time is an abstract, and in its isolation, accounts for nothing......but when idea's and systems are being worked on, it takes time, to implement. It maybe used out of context at times.....but we all know that, don't we? Edited March 1, 2022 by TRO 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRO Posted March 1, 2022 Share Posted March 1, 2022 On 28/02/2022 at 07:43, thunderball said: We should start by becoming hard to beat. Still very open at the back, if we turn a hand full of our narrow defeats into draws or hold on to some winning positions and we are 8th. Gerrard still has that attitude Smith and most new managers to the division have when they arrive. This league is a grind and any errors get punished, and every team needs a bit of fairy dust. We have plenty of fairy dust, we just need a better mentality and discipline. Bang on the Money. I think one of the features of watching the modern game, is less tolerance for the virtues of defending.....Now that is not condoning "parking the bus" but it is promoting, taking the sting out of the opposition advances and nullifying their initiative. We all see the perfect example, being presented by Leeds, where the pursuit of ideology has cost the manager his job.....In most sports you have to have a defence. In snooker, it cost Jimmy White titles, there are examples a plenty. Becoming hard to beat, is the essence of progress, imo.....The fairy dust can be added later and gradually the spectacle is born. Leeds IMO have done it arse about face.......and the fairy story has died.....some of them, would be happy to drop a division, just to keep the ill written myth alive. I still say we need a certain type of player, to help us be hard to beat.....I do think in time Timmy, could be such a player, but sadly we can't wait that long, we need to act. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRO Posted March 1, 2022 Share Posted March 1, 2022 (edited) 21 hours ago, Xela said: I've seen plenty of criticisms of Gerrard along the lines of "He should be doing better with the squad / players / etc" but its just said in isolation and not looking at other teams. Yes, this is the best squad we've had in a while but the league is very strong as well. A lot of teams have very good squads. We finished 11th last year. We're 12th now after a bit of a messy season with the manager change and injuries. We're 10th in the league since Gerrard arrived. If we were to rank squad strengths in this league, i'd wager most people would have us around 10th. Some maybe a couple places higher, some lower. I'd say we are doing exactly what we should be doing! The next step is to get in the top 7 or so. That'll be the test of Gerrard next season. Hopefully we get the right calibre of player in The way I see it.....some of the squad, is very, very good.......and some of it is equally, not so good. So its imbalanced, some are carrying others.....In the full ness of time SG will fix this, I think he is acutely aware. Our squad irrespective of their playing positions are not of equal quaility.......We are getting there, but its a slow burn....as our ambitions rise the pool of players to select from gets smaller and the fee's get bigger...hence the time to improve gets slower. Edited March 1, 2022 by TRO 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheepyvillian Posted March 1, 2022 Share Posted March 1, 2022 1 hour ago, TRO said: Its a good point...and you are right. But I think sheepy was alluding to, if things at the training ground are good, but not being transfered to match day,yet.......a bit of patience is required. Time is an abstract, and in its isolation, accounts for nothing......but when idea's and systems are being worked on, it takes time, to implement. It maybe used out of context at times.....but we all know that, don't we? I swear some people are hell - bent on this manager failing. The fact is, since SG arrived our league position has improved, that speaks for itself. Obviously if a manager is not making progress and looks out of his depth then "patience " would be an exercise in futility but SG doesn't strike me as a manager who is out of his depth. I'm confident he will soon have a team that is purring consistently. But, the fact is, any successful project requires "patience " and that is the point I was making. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
picicata Posted March 1, 2022 Share Posted March 1, 2022 On 28/02/2022 at 17:06, CVByrne said: We always seem to catch teams just as they've new managers appointed so they have the new manager bounce. Now we've Leeds in just over a week after they've appointed Marsch I feel this might be slightly different, I mean, whatever your thoughts on Bielsa there is no doubt all his players were still working incredibly hard for him. Leeds problem has been that they have about four PL standard players and two of those have been out injured pretty much all season. The new manager still has a squad of pretty much Championship players to match against so I would hope that Gerrard can find a way to beat them this time round. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Keyblade Posted March 1, 2022 Popular Post Share Posted March 1, 2022 On 28/02/2022 at 12:43, Xela said: I've seen plenty of criticisms of Gerrard along the lines of "He should be doing better with the squad / players / etc" but its just said in isolation and not looking at other teams. Yes, this is the best squad we've had in a while but the league is very strong as well. A lot of teams have very good squads. We finished 11th last year. We're 12th now after a bit of a messy season with the manager change and injuries. We're 10th in the league since Gerrard arrived. If we were to rank squad strengths in this league, i'd wager most people would have us around 10th. Some maybe a couple places higher, some lower. I'd say we are doing exactly what we should be doing! The next step is to get in the top 7 or so. That'll be the test of Gerrard next season. Hopefully we get the right calibre of player in The fact that we weren't challenging for Europe this season was a big issue for many while Smith was still here. I don't think it's sunken in how competitive this league is. People see us splashing the cash in isolation and think we should be up there. Everybody else has been too! Most of them have a 3 year head start on us not to mention! 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
briny_ear Posted March 2, 2022 Share Posted March 2, 2022 On 28/02/2022 at 11:47, Tomaszk said: Surely not. Imagine not having enjoyed the best years in about 20 as a Villa fan because you didn't like the manager. Nobody disliked Dean Smith. Everybody loved him to bits. A really cuddlesome guy. And, according to many, a "Villa fan" to boot. Just some could see he couldn't get us to where the NSWE board wanted, and he couldn't get his squad to play anything like effective football without Mr Jack Grealish. As the NSWE board finally came to realise, probably about 10-15 matches too late. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tomaszk Posted March 2, 2022 Share Posted March 2, 2022 41 minutes ago, briny_ear said: Just some could see he couldn't get us to where the NSWE board wanted, and he couldn't get his squad to play anything like effective football without Mr Jack Grealish. As the NSWE board finally came to realise, probably about 10-15 matches too late. You could be right on this to be honest. No evidence yet of course Gerrard can either. Getting £25m+ players in for positions he thinks we're lacking should hurry him along nicely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
briny_ear Posted March 2, 2022 Share Posted March 2, 2022 10 hours ago, Tomaszk said: You could be right on this to be honest. No evidence yet of course Gerrard can either. Getting £25m+ players in for positions he thinks we're lacking should hurry him along nicely. Yes, they took a punt with Gerrard and we will see if it succeeds in the medium and long term. To be fair, any managerial appointment is a bit of a gamble. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRO Posted March 2, 2022 Share Posted March 2, 2022 23 hours ago, sheepyvillian said: I swear some people are hell - bent on this manager failing. The fact is, since SG arrived our league position has improved, that speaks for itself. Obviously if a manager is not making progress and looks out of his depth then "patience " would be an exercise in futility but SG doesn't strike me as a manager who is out of his depth. I'm confident he will soon have a team that is purring consistently. But, the fact is, any successful project requires "patience " and that is the point I was making. sheepy, I think you are dead right.....but hey, it all comes down to, those that wanted him, and those that didn't. I have been pro Gerrard from the start and find no reason to change. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRO Posted March 2, 2022 Share Posted March 2, 2022 12 hours ago, Tomaszk said: You could be right on this to be honest. No evidence yet of course Gerrard can either. Getting £25m+ players in for positions he thinks we're lacking should hurry him along nicely. 3 years vs 3 Months. and a more likelyhood of getting those players in under his stewardship. To be fair, the periods are different too.....Dean handed over to Steve, to improve on what he had already improved on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tomaszk Posted March 2, 2022 Share Posted March 2, 2022 1 hour ago, TRO said: 3 years vs 3 Months. and a more likelyhood of getting those players in under his stewardship. To be fair, the periods are different too.....Dean handed over to Steve, to improve on what he had already improved on. Yeah, it's very difficult to compare the two for the levels of resource available. Both largely fortunate to have funds there, but Smith was building, Gerrard should be thriving as we move forward. Smith barely even got going with a lot of the new players but the performances were very very bad and I wasn't totally against replacing him. I want players who want to play for Aston Villa as much as Steven Gerrard. Not much good if they want to leave as soon as he does. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRO Posted March 2, 2022 Share Posted March 2, 2022 26 minutes ago, Tomaszk said: Yeah, it's very difficult to compare the two for the levels of resource available. Both largely fortunate to have funds there, but Smith was building, Gerrard should be thriving as we move forward. Smith barely even got going with a lot of the new players but the performances were very very bad and I wasn't totally against replacing him. I want players who want to play for Aston Villa as much as Steven Gerrard. Not much good if they want to leave as soon as he does. I think all managers recently within reason have added something.....our demise was catastrophic with Lambert, Garde and Di Matteo and it needed many tenures to fix it, not to mention owners. SG is just embarking on another period of pursuing betterment. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tinker Posted March 2, 2022 VT Supporter Share Posted March 2, 2022 Smith improved us, season on season more than any other manager in recent history. Gerrard has a hard act to follow but he has the foundation to do it, add the backing of the owners to that and he has a good shot at it. He knows how to back a winner that's for sure, he just needs to prove himself now and I think he has a very good chance of doing just that. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheepyvillian Posted March 2, 2022 Share Posted March 2, 2022 (edited) 6 hours ago, TRO said: sheepy, I think you are dead right.....but hey, it all comes down to, those that wanted him, and those that didn't. I have been pro Gerrard from the start and find no reason to change. I get people not wanting him in the first place, but willing him to fail, that just beggars belief. As Villa supporters we all surely want a team that is consistently successful. Any manager attempting to fulfil that hope surely deserves the backing of the club's supporters. Some of the vitriol being aimed at SG is, for me, pathetic. How does him being a legend in the eyes of Liverpool fans preclude him from becoming a legend with the fans of Aston Villa ? I really don't get that kind of hatred. It's embarrassing, it really is. I honestly feel we're heading in the right direction and in SG, I firmly believe we have a manager who will leave no stone unturned in his determination to make this club a force once more in English football. You said it yourself, he's a winner and that attribute is an infectious part of his nature, hence players like Jacobs, McGinn, Luiz and many others relishing working with this manager. The whole set - up behind the scenes looks healthy. Everyone seems to know their role. The body language of the players against Brighton was one of togetherness and belief and it was a joy to see. The way Ings reacted to Watkins scoring. I really don't get the pessimism. It's exactly what Gerrard called it, "noise". Edited March 2, 2022 by sheepyvillian 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheepyvillian Posted March 2, 2022 Share Posted March 2, 2022 (edited) 19 hours ago, briny_ear said: Yes, they took a punt with Gerrard and we will see if it succeeds in the medium and long term. To be fair, any managerial appointment is a bit of a gamble. The least we can do is wish him the best. Edited March 3, 2022 by sheepyvillian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VillaChris Posted March 3, 2022 Share Posted March 3, 2022 On 01/03/2022 at 18:47, Keyblade said: The fact that we weren't challenging for Europe this season was a big issue for many while Smith was still here. I don't think it's sunken in how competitive this league is. People see us splashing the cash in isolation and think we should be up there. Everybody else has been too! Most of them have a 3 year head start on us not to mention! I don't think we're ready for europe tbh. We should be ready for 10th or 9th though. That's generally a realistic metric once teams come up and stay up and one I'll be judging Gerrard on for rest of the season. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Demitri_C Posted March 3, 2022 Share Posted March 3, 2022 Gerrard needs time, no pre season, injuries and coming when the squad is inbalanced in cm. He deserves until next season. We will finish mid table which for me is still continuous progression as we need to stabilise ourselves as a PL club and i think we would have done this after this season. Leeds being a perfect example, and sheff utd another. Although we have been up a season longer than leeds its still good to see there is no immediate concern of relegation 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts