Popular Post mallett Posted October 21, 2022 Popular Post Share Posted October 21, 2022 Team shape and tactics - Gerrard is right down there with some of the worst of our managers in terms of consistently getting the team shape and tactics wrong. It's all a long way from when he first came in and he immediately talked about changing the distances between the lines. There was a clear and immediate improvement in the team shape compared to the end of the Smith regime and the results came with it. He also recognised the need for a ball winning midfielder and utilised the previously ignored Nakamba finding a system in which the effect of his limited skills in possession were minimised. However, it was not Gerrard ball - it was not how he wanted his team to play. At Rangers his team had player with two 10s, dominated possession and had overlapping full backs providing the width. Once we got to the mid season break and the winter transfer window he set about changing the personnel (swapping Digne for Targett and bringing in Courtinho) and coaching the team into how he wanted them to play. For Villa this never worked, never good enough in possession to cause premier league clubs real problems by dominating the ball, the high pushing full backs left us open at the back to be punished time after time. The loss of Nakamba to injury meant the midfield was constantly overrun. The double ten front line meant the team had no real pace going forward allowing teams to play a higher line and more easily dominate midfield. Gradually as these tactics failed, Buendia was dropped, Courtinho and the rest of the forwards lost their confidence. But the result was a loss of identity. Then at the start of this season, the defence suddenly appeared to be completely confused as to what their roles were. This has improved in recent matches but while the defence is now more organised there is still no overall identity and the team carries virtually no attacking threat which seriously troubles a premier league team. This team has very poor running statistics and I don't think it is because they have down tools so much as nobody knows exactly what they should be doing (or else if they do know what the plan is they don't believe in it as a tactic).Today we Villa fans don't really understand what the game plan is, what sort of team we are. Damningly, the players didn't seem to know how Villa were trying to play either. Midfield - Nakamba's injury and subsequent return to the wilderness meant the bite in midfield disappeared. Gerrard identified the lack of presence as we were frequently bullied in the middle of the park (and elsewhere). Gerrard appeared to believe that McGinn could provide this muscularity (not effectively) and we then brought in Kamara (whose injury hasn't helped) but the balance of the midfield hasn't looked right all of this season. The players don't work in the combination and positions Gerrard has been playing them in. Increasing the age profile of the team - we haven't bought a load of old pros looking for their last pay day. But the gamble to buy expensive short term assets whose value can only go down (e.g. Digne, Courtinho and Carlos) in return for on field success has not paid off in anyway whatsoever. Now the three players I have just mentioned have the ring of quality to them which meant we as fans could go along with it but Bednerak and Dendonker just smell mediocre. 'Young and hungry' might have been Lambert's phrase but under Smith we looked bring in and develop players. Smith believed he could coach players and make them better and as fans you often could see that on the pitch. For Gerrard, who wanted success now, he didn't see the benefits for him in this long term progress and right now the club is going to be poorer in many different ways as as result. I would also argue that we as fans connected to the team better when they were a group of relatively young players getting better rather than the current group of players some of whom are clearly past their peak. It doesn't look like continual progress. Favourites in selection - Time and again Gerrard picked his favourites e.g. Courtinho and McGinn when their performances meant they should have been dropped. Buendia kept coming on as sub and outperforming Courtnho only to start on the bench again. It undermines players' confidence and motivation. It winds up the fans. It makes he team weaker. Giving the captaincy to McGinn, given his form was poor judgement. Loss of Beale I can't see that the team looked amazingly well coached last season before Beale left so it is not that I think he was irreplaceable. However, Beale leaving and Critchley not being able to go on the Preseason tour was an issue. I think it is the reason the team looked so unorganised defensively at the start of the season. That missing passport has probably contributed to Villa's issues. Gerrard has probably been a bit too frank with the media about his reliance on his coaching staff. At Man Utd, Ferguson survived for so long because he was very reliant on coaching staff to do the day to day coaching for him. But nobody thought of it as an issue to use against him. He needs to portray this better in his next job. Where else did Gerrard go wrong? 11 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Kiwivillan Posted October 21, 2022 Popular Post Share Posted October 21, 2022 Leaving Rangers 5 12 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a m ole Posted October 21, 2022 Share Posted October 21, 2022 entering football management 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bannedfromHandV Posted October 21, 2022 Share Posted October 21, 2022 In before the 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mister_a Posted October 21, 2022 Share Posted October 21, 2022 He's been a managerial disaster. I don't think his ego will allow him to go to a small club and learn the trade, so expect to see him as a pundit anytime soon. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sidcow Posted October 21, 2022 VT Supporter Share Posted October 21, 2022 4 minutes ago, a m ole said: entering football management Beat me to it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rodders0223 Posted October 21, 2022 Share Posted October 21, 2022 He wasn't qualified for the job he will never be qualified for the job. There's not a single thing he did right at this football club. Even Bruce got stuff right. Tactics abysmal. Coaching non existent. In game subs horrendous. Intelligence none of it. Man management crap. Treating of squad members shit. Creating an environment of competition within the squad zero. Signing players utter utter shit. Releasing of players utter utter shit. Squad building worse I've ever seen. He's the worst manager this club has had. And it's not even close. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Talldarkandransome Posted October 21, 2022 Share Posted October 21, 2022 Noooooo not another thread about him and his failings Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jareth Posted October 21, 2022 Share Posted October 21, 2022 inserting his penis into the wrong hole (purslow's) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delphinho123 Posted October 21, 2022 Share Posted October 21, 2022 Who’s this Courtinho chap? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
villa4europe Posted October 21, 2022 Share Posted October 21, 2022 formation that none of our players were suited to this narrow midfield push the full backs up to provide width which our full backs weren't good enough to do, our CBs weren't good enough to be that exposed, our midfield weren't good enough to cover, our 10s weren't good enough to link it all together and our strikers weren't good enough to play that isolated maybe rangers were that good, or their league that poor, i can guess at which it is... and that was just at the start, it descended in to something worse but his whole set up seemed to me to be based around having a huge quality advantage over the opposition that meant you could get away with how poor the set up actually was, maybe he should be the man city manager instead 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post QldVilla Posted October 21, 2022 VT Supporter Popular Post Share Posted October 21, 2022 Gerrard’s ego was ultimately the problem. He was a champion player, however coaching is different from being a player, the ability to communicate your tactics clearly, to break information down to educate and teach your players, the psychology of performance and ultimately man management. Theres a reason most elite athletes are not not elite coaches, sometimes the ones who have to work hard to be good learn more from developing the skills, rather than those who are naturally gifted. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
villanmac Posted October 21, 2022 Share Posted October 21, 2022 Losing Beale. Loving McGinn. Being one of those strange people who are unable to see that Ollie Watkins is a **** woeful footballer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VillanousOne Posted October 21, 2022 Share Posted October 21, 2022 Removing any width we had in the team, believing Cash or Digne could provide this. You have one of the most natural finishers in Ings but no one who could supply a cross to him or even Watkins. Making McGinn captain over Mings and continuing to play McGinn when he was in dire form. And in general making sure our midfield was unbalanced and useless. Players like Sanson and Nakamba deserved a chance and got nothing this season. Kamara is a great player but to me he wasn't the player we needed, he was more like Luiz 2.0 than a real defensive midfielder. Carlos made sense I guess. Trying to shoe horn Coutinho in to team despite having Buendia already, both players that you need to have attacking movement and momentum to really have any impact from, something he managed to coach out of the players Making us play at a snails pace so any attacking momentum was lost before it started. Playing hoofball when he lost faith in possession football. When plan A failed which it did every game, he had no plan B at all. He got players working hard and at times we had decent defensive shape, but we seemed to lose the ability to defend set pieces and win headers which was baffling, again why we aren't getting rid of that twonk MacPhee i have no idea. he managed to make every half decent player we have look like the were pub team standard 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zatman Posted October 21, 2022 Share Posted October 21, 2022 Where did Gerrard go Right? Disgraceful excuse for a manager 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Exeter Fan Too Posted October 21, 2022 Visiting Supporter Share Posted October 21, 2022 to add to the extensive list of SG failures in the OP,... ...failure to build relationships with the Villa fans, local press and playing staff... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
briny_ear Posted October 21, 2022 Share Posted October 21, 2022 Since he has now parted company with the club, I wonder just how many new threads about him are really necessary? Should this not now be in Other Football? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRO Posted October 21, 2022 Share Posted October 21, 2022 4 hours ago, mallett said: Team shape and tactics - Gerrard is right down there with some of the worst of our managers in terms of consistently getting the team shape and tactics wrong. It's all a long way from when he first came in and he immediately talked about changing the distances between the lines. There was a clear and immediate improvement in the team shape compared to the end of the Smith regime and the results came with it. He also recognised the need for a ball winning midfielder and utilised the previously ignored Nakamba finding a system in which the effect of his limited skills in possession were minimised. However, it was not Gerrard ball - it was not how he wanted his team to play. At Rangers his team had player with two 10s, dominated possession and had overlapping full backs providing the width. Once we got to the mid season break and the winter transfer window he set about changing the personnel (swapping Digne for Targett and bringing in Courtinho) and coaching the team into how he wanted them to play. For Villa this never worked, never good enough in possession to cause premier league clubs real problems by dominating the ball, the high pushing full backs left us open at the back to be punished time after time. The loss of Nakamba to injury meant the midfield was constantly overrun. The double ten front line meant the team had no real pace going forward allowing teams to play a higher line and more easily dominate midfield. Gradually as these tactics failed, Buendia was dropped, Courtinho and the rest of the forwards lost their confidence. But the result was a loss of identity. Then at the start of this season, the defence suddenly appeared to be completely confused as to what their roles were. This has improved in recent matches but while the defence is now more organised there is still no overall identity and the team carries virtually no attacking threat which seriously troubles a premier league team. This team has very poor running statistics and I don't think it is because they have down tools so much as nobody knows exactly what they should be doing (or else if they do know what the plan is they don't believe in it as a tactic).Today we Villa fans don't really understand what the game plan is, what sort of team we are. Damningly, the players didn't seem to know how Villa were trying to play either. Midfield - Nakamba's injury and subsequent return to the wilderness meant the bite in midfield disappeared. Gerrard identified the lack of presence as we were frequently bullied in the middle of the park (and elsewhere). Gerrard appeared to believe that McGinn could provide this muscularity (not effectively) and we then brought in Kamara (whose injury hasn't helped) but the balance of the midfield hasn't looked right all of this season. The players don't work in the combination and positions Gerrard has been playing them in. Increasing the age profile of the team - we haven't bought a load of old pros looking for their last pay day. But the gamble to buy expensive short term assets whose value can only go down (e.g. Digne, Courtinho and Carlos) in return for on field success has not paid off in anyway whatsoever. Now the three players I have just mentioned have the ring of quality to them which meant we as fans could go along with it but Bednerak and Dendonker just smell mediocre. 'Young and hungry' might have been Lambert's phrase but under Smith we looked bring in and develop players. Smith believed he could coach players and make them better and as fans you often could see that on the pitch. For Gerrard, who wanted success now, he didn't see the benefits for him in this long term progress and right now the club is going to be poorer in many different ways as as result. I would also argue that we as fans connected to the team better when they were a group of relatively young players getting better rather than the current group of players some of whom are clearly past their peak. It doesn't look like continual progress. Favourites in selection - Time and again Gerrard picked his favourites e.g. Courtinho and McGinn when their performances meant they should have been dropped. Buendia kept coming on as sub and outperforming Courtnho only to start on the bench again. It undermines players' confidence and motivation. It winds up the fans. It makes he team weaker. Giving the captaincy to McGinn, given his form was poor judgement. Loss of Beale I can't see that the team looked amazingly well coached last season before Beale left so it is not that I think he was irreplaceable. However, Beale leaving and Critchley not being able to go on the Preseason tour was an issue. I think it is the reason the team looked so unorganised defensively at the start of the season. That missing passport has probably contributed to Villa's issues. Gerrard has probably been a bit too frank with the media about his reliance on his coaching staff. At Man Utd, Ferguson survived for so long because he was very reliant on coaching staff to do the day to day coaching for him. But nobody thought of it as an issue to use against him. He needs to portray this better in his next job. Where else did Gerrard go wrong? I think that is a very fair view.....I too thought his reference to Beale, was too generous, and possibly naive...when many managers, have degree's of reliance on their first team coach. warts 'n all are not always wise to share with the public, no matter how honest, it appears. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRO Posted October 21, 2022 Share Posted October 21, 2022 3 hours ago, villa4europe said: formation that none of our players were suited to this narrow midfield push the full backs up to provide width which our full backs weren't good enough to do, our CBs weren't good enough to be that exposed, our midfield weren't good enough to cover, our 10s weren't good enough to link it all together and our strikers weren't good enough to play that isolated maybe rangers were that good, or their league that poor, i can guess at which it is... and that was just at the start, it descended in to something worse but his whole set up seemed to me to be based around having a huge quality advantage over the opposition that meant you could get away with how poor the set up actually was, maybe he should be the man city manager instead I guess many suspicions about many things, will all come out in the wash. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChesterDad Posted October 21, 2022 Share Posted October 21, 2022 4 hours ago, rodders0223 said: He wasn't qualified for the job he will never be qualified for the job. There's not a single thing he did right at this football club. Even Bruce got stuff right. Tactics abysmal. Coaching non existent. In game subs horrendous. Intelligence none of it. Man management crap. Treating of squad members shit. Creating an environment of competition within the squad zero. Signing players utter utter shit. Releasing of players utter utter shit. Squad building worse I've ever seen. He's the worst manager this club has had. And it's not even close. I don’t think he is the worst - I’d save that accolade for McNeil although it’s a rizla paper between them imo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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