Dean Smith - Confirmed

[john e]

It wouldn’t have been so bad if Tommy was taken off for a forward as we were only a goal behind at that time.

yep I don’t know what happened to the fearless attacking manager that we thought we had got

a Brentford friend of mine who goes to marches said his worst fault is he just keeps on attacking and doesn’t know any different
I thought I’d take that

he’s turned into a man that brings on Glen Whelan and a not fit centre back in a crisis
thats what Villa can do for you, scrambles the brain

[Toronto Villa]

As much as it is his ability Grealish sets the tone for how Smith wants to play. That there is such a gap there when he’s absent is as much to do with the quality of the players in the squad as the types of players Bruce bought to suit his system. What we’ve seen in this league is teams don’t need players as good as Grealish to succeed. What they do have is players who are closer to each other in quality and all comfortable playing a certain way. You add a Grealish to that you are that much better.

We are a mish mash of parts and pieces. We all complained Bruce didn’t have an identifiable style of play because the players we have don’t fit any one system. That’s going to take time and money to fix to get them comfortable playing the way Dean wants them to.

To be fair, all of our players looked of a very similar quality yesterday.

It’s amazing and quite revealing that one player can elevate a team so much and when he’s not there how much the quality drops off. If you’re an NFL fan it’s like watching the Green Bay Packers who are a really good team with a fit Aaron Rodgers at QB and absolutely useless when he’s not playing.

[Drummond]

Nothing wrong with his team selection today - I'd have gone with the same 11.

It is clear that the players at his disposal cannot fit into & play in the way Smith likes to play.

I think the fundamental issue is that Smith should be designing a system that best suits best the players at his disposal rather than enforcing one that clearly isn't working. Plan B can't be to bring in Hause and Whelan when 2-0 down, can it....

No, you're absolutely wrong. He must change the system, he has to develop his own because we can't carry on with the old style of play.

The players we have should have the competence. The players should be able to adapt. The coaches need to get them to adapt and I think they will.

The new manager bounce thing worked, however, to change the whole footballing style and ethos takes time. You can't unlearn what you know. The players just have to get the new style and understand and embrace it, be confident they can do it and then it will click into place. We're only 5 points off the play-offs and therefore anything can happen.

[stuart445]

It wouldn’t have been so bad if Tommy was taken off for a forward as we were only a goal behind at that time.

yep I don’t know what happened to the fearless attacking manager that we thought we had got

a Brentford friend of mine who goes to marches said his worst fault is he just keeps on attacking and doesn’t know any different
I thought I’d take that

he’s turned into a man that brings on Glen Whelan and a not fit centre back in a crisis
thats what Villa can do for you, scrambles the brain

It's what i was saying when people were calling for him last season,  it's easy to perform like Smith did at Brentford in front of a crowd that is happy to be where they were because it's the best they've ever known.  It's a whole different ball game coming to Villa with a crowd that isn't happy where we are and are demanding promotion. 

I think people are underestimating how difficult it is to manage with Aston Villas expectations.  Remember Paul Lambert came to us with the same reputation as Dean Smith and look what's happened to him.

[Toronto Villa]

I agree with that and he will need to adjust and show he can rise to the challenge. Dean Smith like Lambert comes to us with a very good reputation but Villa is a very different beast. Maybe we needed a big character like Bielsa at Leeds or maybe Smith can become that guy. We all hope it's the latter.

Edit: to clarify - I agree with the bit manager expectations moving to a much bigger stage. I think he’ll do just fine because he has grown up supporting a massive club. There is still a period of adjustment as there would be for anyone starting a new position. He’s discovering the bottom and it’s not fun.

[Ads]

I don't buy it. There's no evidence to support that. You get more in the Holte End than was up Wigan yesterday, yet we've had 40k plus against Swnasea and the Noses and been fine. Taken good followings to Derby and Boro and battered them.

Injuries to our best players, plus woeful recruitment from Bruce has left us bare. We don't have a great deal of choice but to play garbage like Whelan, Hourihan and the like in midfield.

[stuart445]

I don't buy it. There's no evidence to support that. You get more in the Holte End than was up Wigan yesterday, yet we've had 40k plus against Swnasea and the Noses and been fine. Taken good followings to Derby and Boro and battered them.

Injuries to our best players, plus woeful recruitment from Bruce has left us bare. We don't have a great deal of choice but to play garbage like Whelan, Hourihan and the like in midfield.

Blues, Derby and Boro came in the new manager bounce,  now things have settled down we have only won 1 game and performances have been getting worse with every passing week.

Grealish is good but is he the type to pick a whole team up and get them performing,  I'd suspect not because so far in his career when the team isn't performing Grealish isn't either.  I hope he does but I think we are expecting Grealish to perform a miracle.

[Villa75]

The fact that the manager was unable to get better than yesterday's debacle, after the Swansea 'performance', worries me greatly.

A week's managing and motivating the players garnered nothing. Yesterday's half time team talk had absolutely no positive effect. It's as if the early performances were down to the new manager bounce and all round optimism after the departure of Steve Bruce.

A couple of disappointing results seems to have knocked the confidence and new found optimism of the players. That's where a manager earns his corn.

This is a sticky patch for sure. We'll soon see what type of manager we have.

[brian green]

You are becoming very prescient and balanced in your observations Ads.  Your second sentence there is right on the money.  Doffs cap.

[john e]

The new manager bounce was 1 win and 2 losses, hardly a bounce

we weren’t concerned because we played a lot better in the ones we lost than we are playing now
it was the difference in style, the attacking intent, the ball possession, it was there it was all there the new path ahead

we’ve gone back to Bruce football now even the one we won,
that’s the most worrying thing for me

[Allan C]

I don't buy it. There's no evidence to support that. You get more in the Holte End than was up Wigan yesterday, yet we've had 40k plus against Swnasea and the Noses and been fine. Taken good followings to Derby and Boro and battered them.

Injuries to our best players, plus woeful recruitment from Bruce has left us bare. We don't have a great deal of choice but to play garbage like Whelan, Hourihan and the like in midfield.

Correct Ads 100%

[themossman]

Goalkeepers. They all look the same to me.

Some of my best friends are goalkeepers.

[TopDeck113]

"Goalkeepers!" snorted Bob. "I could buy ’em and sell ’em."
From one of my favourite books as a kid.

[villa `cross the mersey]

Goalkeepers. They all look the same to me.

Some of my best friends are goalkeepers.

There was a goalkeeper in my class at school - he was just like one of us

[hilts_coolerking]

Goalkeepers. They all look the same to me.

Some of my best friends are goalkeepers.

There was a goalkeeper in my class at school - he was just like one of us

My next door neighbour's a goalkeeper.  But he's alright.