Heroes & Villains, the Aston Villa fanzine
Heroes & Villains => Heroes Discussion => Topic started by: Rip Van We Go Again on March 25, 2012, 11:34:46 AM
-
sportinglife.com
Alex McLeish has told Aston Villa's players he can't "spoon feed" them during games.
The Villa chief was reacting to his side's 3-0 defeat at Arsenal with some poor defending for the Gunners' first two goals rightly leaving him frustrated.
"At some stage you can't spoon feed them every minute of the game with tactics," he said.
"You've got to let them play and at times express themselves.
"I didn't feel that the Emirates was a place to express ourselves in terms of passing about at the back because that's not a strength of ours.
"That's no disrespect to our players as they have other qualities."
McLeish wants Villa to be more dynamic and insists that is his focus rather than the frustrations for the club's fans.
"That's not in my control," he said when asked about the club's supporters.
"I have to try and get a team that can win football matches.
"We had a very good game against Fulham a couple of weeks ago with a dynamic performance and that's the type of performances we'll need.
"Today we played everything in front of Arsenal in the first half and that's tailor-made for a team with their speed and guile.
"We never asked the players to do that. We asked them to try and play in Arsenal's half and when they've done that in the second half we had a wee bit more joy."
-
"We never asked the players to do that. We asked them to try and play in Arsenal's half and when they've done that in the second half we had a wee bit more joy."
He's got a point, we only lost 1-0 in the second half. And we had a shot.
That's almost like getting a draw, and what more can you ask for in football than that?
-
He hasn't got a clue.
-
I've had enough of trying to make articulate and salient points about the manager and his ability.
Fuck off you clown.
Thats better.
-
sportinglife.com
"We had a very good game against Fulham a couple of weeks ago with a dynamic performance and that's the type of performances we'll need.
did we ? lucky i think
-
Why can't we express ourselves, why can't we impose ourselves on the game? Why can't we get in their faces and knock them out of their stride?
I just don't buy it. He is distancing himself purely out of self protection - he is an embarrassment to a great club.
-
Every time he opens his mouth I dislike him a little bit more.
We accept that Arsenal are the better team but the management should have had the players fired up to be in their faces from the start - Arsenal are the one top team who crumble under physical pressure - yet we stood off them. That is a tactical choice, not an individual player choice.
Plus playing Heskey upfront immediately signals that you have no real interest in scoring and I suspect the rest of the players on the pitch must feel the same way when they looked at the team sheet.
-
sportinglife.com
Alex McLeish has told Aston Villa's players he can't "spoon feed" them during games.
Well Alex it's your job to get results from those who work for you. That is why you get paid £2.5M a year. If you can not to that than please go.
-
Why can't we express ourselves, why can't we impose ourselves on the game? Why can't we get in their faces and knock them out of their stride?
I just don't buy it. He is distancing himself purely out of self protection - he is an embarrassment to a great club.
We couldn't express milk from a woman who has just had triplets.
-
"I can't spoon feed players"
"I can't believe I got this job"
" I can't motivate"
"I can't organise a team"
" I can't keep a team up"
" I can't blame myself"
" I can't be sacked it will be too costly"
" I can't understand why the fans react the way they do"
" I can't resign, who else will pay these wages?"
" I can't see us beating an ELITE team"
" I can't tie my own laces"
Just what can I do?? Oh yeah Heskey you're on son. Keep it tight boys! We are only 2 -0 down.
-
Just leave you muppet.
-
Go on Alex, give em a good spooning. What's the harm?
-
Did I really just read that? I mean, seriously! That is so disheartening.
He really is a very limited manager. Would he even succeed in the Championship?
-
Plus playing Heskey upfront immediately signals that you have no real interest in scoring and I suspect the rest of the players on the pitch must feel the same way when they looked at the team sheet.
Good point. We played from the start with the expectation of losing. Playing Heskey must surely have at least added to that mindset.
-
May as well change the club badge to a white flag with this clown in charge.
-
I caught myself actually shaking my head when reading those comments ,oh he does make it hard work
-
Well, he's just expressed his main flaw better than I ever could. The Emirates is 'not the place' for passing it about at the back? Well, guess what, that's how Swansea beat Arsenal, and that's generally how to stop them scoring - HAVE THE FUCKING BALL.
It's maddening. Play in their half? Sometimes you can't, so you keep the ball where you can, play the situation, and get into their half when you can. It's called patience. He really doesn't understand football. He's just another idiot, jobbing, British manager from the past, still clinging on to old cliches, methods and mantras which have been disproved, outmoded or shown to have never worked anyway. I wish he would just f'Eck' off.
-
Why didn't Randy just go after somebody like Felix McGath after MON left? We could have got somebody big like that if we offered him decent wages and the prospect of developing a side that was at a crossroads. Back then we had finished sixth three seasons in a row, had been to a Cup final and had quality throughout the side.
With a quality appointment then (and lets remember we were an attractice prospect in 2010!), I think we would have held onto some of the bigger players and cleared out the deadwood that were on ridiculous wages. We could be in the CL now.
Randy how have yo turned us to shit so quickly? Fighting relegation with McLeish? The man who relegated our rivals twice??? I mean, when you stand back and think about it, it is just a bizarre situation! When you are living it every day as a fan you forget just how stupid the appointment was and justhow grotesque the management of the club has been since summer 2010.
-
"I can't spoon feed players"
"I can't believe I got this job"
" I can't motivate"
"I can't organise a team"
" I can't keep a team up"
" I can't blame myself"
" I can't be sacked it will be too costly"
" I can't understand why the fans react the way they do"
" I can't resign, who else will pay these wages?"
" I can't see us beating an ELITE team"
" I can't tie my own laces"
Just what can I do?? Oh yeah Heskey you're on son. Keep it tight boys! We are only 2 -0 down.
This is what I keep thinking - so what is your actual role at AVFC Mr McLeish? Apart from fall-guy...
-
With that statement he should of dug his own grave!
Randy will give him a pay rise instead.
-
Think he makes some decent points. The players at the back can't pass so it would be daft to try it. Houllier tried, and it got us nowhere. also if the players are incapable of following his instructions as he claims happened in the first half then any manager is buggered. again this happened in Houllier's time and Mcdonalds. End of the day we've had 3 managers in 2 years and sooner or later people must start to wonder whether its not the manager thats the problem but the players. Whatever mug rolls up next is gonna hit the same brick wall - technically bad players with iffy attitudes and no money to shift them. Can't say that's going to appeal to many candidates
-
feck off now McLeish .
you need to score goals to beat teams , you start with Heskey . Have you not learned your lesson.
You are clueless. Blame anyone but yourself.
-
What's boiling my piss is that I cannot recall an interview where has has taken accountability for his selection, tactics, philosophy etc. I don't disagree with everything he says in the article, but every week it is a variation of the same thing. It's never his fault. It's always the players.
Look in the fucking mirror Alex. It ain't so pretty.
-
Think he makes some decent points. The players at the back can't pass so it would be daft to try it. Houllier tried, and it got us nowhere. also if the players are incapable of following his instructions as he claims happened in the first half then any manager is buggered. again this happened in Houllier's time and Mcdonalds. End of the day we've had 3 managers in 2 years and sooner or later people must start to wonder whether its not the manager thats the problem but the players. Whatever mug rolls up next is gonna hit the same brick wall - technically bad players with iffy attitudes and no money to shift them. Can't say that's going to appeal to many candidates
Agree, crap average, in some cases below average players. Proffesional footballers do not need to be spoon fed tactics, they should know what to do, it's called instinct. We have unfortunately managed to build a team of average mediocrity, and it's cost us a fortune. It's shameful what has transpired at Villa, bad management and bad leadership. As much as I don't like Mcleish a lot of this is not his doing, it's down to a group of players who are making the most of it while they can.
-
What's boiling my piss is that I cannot recall an interview where has has taken accountability for his selection, tactics, philosophy etc. I don't disagree with everything he says in the article, but every week it is a variation of the same thing. It's never his fault. It's always the players.
Look in the fucking mirror Alex. It ain't so pretty.
That is just it. Every week he spoon feeds the media his piss poor excuses.
He has to take accountability for the team that he puts out.
-
sportinglife.com
Alex McLeish has told Aston Villa's players he can't "spoon feed" them during games.
McLeish couldn't spoon feed a baby - he'd poke the spoon in the poor little wretch's ear. :'(
-
Think he makes some decent points. The players at the back can't pass so it would be daft to try it. Houllier tried, and it got us nowhere. also if the players are incapable of following his instructions as he claims happened in the first half then any manager is buggered. again this happened in Houllier's time and Mcdonalds. End of the day we've had 3 managers in 2 years and sooner or later people must start to wonder whether its not the manager thats the problem but the players. Whatever mug rolls up next is gonna hit the same brick wall - technically bad players with iffy attitudes and no money to shift them. Can't say that's going to appeal to many candidates
Agree, crap average, in some cases below average players. Proffesional footballers do not need to be spoon fed tactics, they should know what to do, it's called instinct. We have unfortunately managed to build a team of average mediocrity, and it's cost us a fortune. It's shameful what has transpired at Villa, bad management and bad leadership. As much as I don't like Mcleish a lot of this is not his doing, it's down to a group of players who are making the most of it while they can.
I can't agree with this. Players spend 5 days a week in training working towards a game plan. If that game plan is to defend the box then that's how they're going to play on a saturday. If our training was around keeping the ball and playing in triangles then that's what we'd see. Some of the players wouldn't be as good as others but we'd see better standards from them all if training was about passing under pressure making space for each other. Our movement off the ball is terrible, it's not been great since MoN was here but it's much worse now.
The coaching and management are terrible. Now given we know that Cowans and Mcdonald can coach a team to play good football (based on the performances of the youth and reserves over a number of seasons) the finger has to be pointed at the person who is organising the training, which is McLeish (or possibly Grant).
I don't disagree that some of the players need improve or leave but the reality is, if you were offered a job on 3m a year to turn around a department do you think you'd still have the job if, after 9months, you turned around and said you'd tried but the staff didn't listen and there was nothing you could do until you replaced most of the staff.
-
TRANSLATION.
"I didn't feel that the Emirates was a place to express ourselves in terms of passing about at the back because that's not a strength of ours.
* Collectively we are not very good.
"That's no disrespect to our players as they have other qualities."
*Individually we are not very good.
"Today we played everything in front of Arsenal in the first half and that's tailor-made for a team with their speed and guile.
*Individually and collectively we are slow and lack any creativity and imagination.
"We never asked the players to do that.
*Individually and collectively, players dont listen to me. I have lost the dressing room
-
TRANSLATION.
"I didn't feel that the Emirates was a place to express ourselves in terms of passing about at the back because that's not a strength of ours.
* Collectively we are not very good.
"That's no disrespect to our players as they have other qualities."
*Individually we are not very good.
"Today we played everything in front of Arsenal in the first half and that's tailor-made for a team with their speed and guile.
*Individually and collectively we are slow and lack any creativity and imagination.
"We never asked the players to do that.
*Individually and collectively, players dont listen to me. I have lost the dressing room
that's how it looks to me
-
TRANSLATION.
"I didn't feel that the Emirates was a place to express ourselves in terms of passing about at the back because that's not a strength of ours.
* Collectively we are not very good.
"That's no disrespect to our players as they have other qualities."
*Individually we are not very good.
"Today we played everything in front of Arsenal in the first half and that's tailor-made for a team with their speed and guile.
*Individually and collectively we are slow and lack any creativity and imagination.
"We never asked the players to do that.
*Individually and collectively, players dont listen to me. I have lost the dressing room
I think - between you and Greg - you've summed it up.
McL is of limited ability, has not managed to "play each game as it comes" (i.e. read the tactics required for each game and set up accordingly) and is additionally hamstrung by having limited players - particularly at the back.
Yesterday, on the match thread, I mentioned a couple of times how poor we were at pressing and closing-down - a tactic that other clubs have used successfully at the Emirates - and that we needed to have played a midfield three instead of wingers. As it happens, Gabby was a passenger and Albie just wasn't very good; whilst Arteta - and later, Ramsey - had the run of the park.
The biggest indictment of his season is the fact that we are yet to score from a corner (so who's responsible for training and practice?) in c.170 attempts and the fact that our games-won is so low relative to those in the drop-zone.
He's morphed into O'Dreary, who was similarly out of his depth and disparaging about our expectations.
-
Every time he opens his mouth I dislike him a little bit more.
We accept that Arsenal are the better team but the management should have had the players fired up to be in their faces from the start - Arsenal are the one top team who crumble under physical pressure - yet we stood off them. That is a tactical choice, not an individual player choice.
Plus playing Heskey upfront immediately signals that you have no real interest in scoring and I suspect the rest of the players on the pitch must feel the same way when they looked at the team sheet.
Stoke can do it against any opposition, why cant we?.
-
The sucker trap we fell into or, more correctly that Lerner fell into and dragged the club with him is the notion that if you are scottish and if you played for Ferguson you are automatically a good manager. There is a fashion for scottish managers and too many of them, including our own are simply not good enough.
If McLeish had been black or muslim or chinese or anything other than a scotsman who had played for Ferguson his actual credentials would have been much more forensically scrutinized and he would not have got the job.
I would bet a year's wages that given the same fixtures the same squad, the same games, the same set up in every detail, K Mac's team would finish higher in the Premiership than McLeish's and would not generate such discontent and misery in the fans.
-
"I didn't feel that the Emirates was a place to express ourselves in terms of passing about at the back because that's not a strength of ours.
"That's no disrespect to our players as they have other qualities."
Why shouldn't they express themselves?
why can't they pass along the back ? it is fundamental at any level of football you keep the ball
what other qualities to these poor sods have if you have just told the world they can not pass ?
oh and Alex I think Arsenal are one of the few so called elite teams ( doff my cap ) that will let you play if you have balls
see Norwich Swansea and stoke for details
-
Well if it is not a strength and you think it should be - do something about it!
I mean their strength is not defending corners is it. So what is it, their strength at the back. What?
Are we strong, creative, in midfield then? Is that our strength or perhaps our forward wing play as opposed to tracking back or our crossing from wide? No it's certainly not that we never see a byeline cross. And not many accurate or potentially dangerous ones. I know - it's the way our forwards score with their heads! Uh no not that either can't remember one this season. Oh of course, how silly it's the way we score from corners. errm no. Not one. Incisive through balls, movement off the ball, brilliant bespoke tactical plans for each game, passion, fight, pride,
err no not those either.
Tell you what Alex - why don't you tell US exactly WHAT our competitive strength is. It is your job. FFS.
-
The sucker trap we fell into or, more correctly that Lerner fell into and dragged the club with him is the notion that if you are scottish and if you played for Ferguson you are automatically a good manager. There is a fashion for scottish managers and too many of them, including our own are simply not good enough.
If McLeish had been black or muslim or chinese or anything other than a scotsman who had played for Ferguson his actual credentials would have been much more forensically scrutinized and he would not have got the job.
I would bet a year's wages that given the same fixtures the same squad, the same games, the same set up in every detail, K Mac's team would finish higher in the Premiership than McLeish's and would not generate such discontent and misery in the fans.
KMac, the Scotsman you mean? :-)
I actually agree that KMac probably would have been a better choice ... although after the last debacle (wherein he was let down by a shocking defensive display at Newcastle; ring a bell, anyone?!) I doubt it'd have happened.
-
The sucker trap we fell into or, more correctly that Lerner fell into and dragged the club with him is the notion that if you are scottish and if you played for Ferguson you are automatically a good manager. There is a fashion for scottish managers and too many of them, including our own are simply not good enough.
My theory is that Randy really, really wanted Moyes, but Moyes turned us down twice, so he went out and got a Moyes copy (at least in his mind).
-
Our CEO must read comments like that and think oh crap we fucked up getting this clown in, time to give him the push.... he must?! Surely?
-
I can't agree with this. Players spend 5 days a week in training working towards a game plan. If that game plan is to defend the box then that's how they're going to play on a saturday. If our training was around keeping the ball and playing in triangles then that's what we'd see. Some of the players wouldn't be as good as others but we'd see better standards from them all if training was about passing under pressure making space for each other. Our movement off the ball is terrible, it's not been great since MoN was here but it's much worse now.
The coaching and management are terrible. Now given we know that Cowans and Mcdonald can coach a team to play good football (based on the performances of the youth and reserves over a number of seasons) the finger has to be pointed at the person who is organising the training, which is McLeish (or possibly Grant).
I don't disagree that some of the players need improve or leave but the reality is, if you were offered a job on 3m a year to turn around a department do you think you'd still have the job if, after 9months, you turned around and said you'd tried but the staff didn't listen and there was nothing you could do until you replaced most of the staff.
That's the sound of a nail being hit on the head. Many of these players were, in fact, playing the ball around at the back towards the end of last season as Houllier's training started to pay off (even though the plan may well have been to replace them in the summer). If the same players are that bad at doing something this basic that he, as a manager, considers it wrong to even attempt it, then it's his fault.
-
Proud History, Shite Future indeed. Is there any thruth to the rumour that Villa's new club motto for next season is "Ill-prepared", although I quite like the other one, "it's never, ever my fault" (McLeish, A. 2012).
-
its never your fault
its never your fault
you big ginger scotsman
its never your fault
-
feck off now McLeish .
you need to score goals to beat teams , you start with Heskey . Have you not learned your lesson.
You are clueless. Blame anyone but yourself.
Nothing more to say than that
-
Do the right thing and resign you fool!!!!
-
This is probably the single most frustrating interview I've seen from AM.
What exactly was his game plan then? At times yesterday they closed the ball down in packs. This was effective - see the chance Weimann had not long after coming on where 3/4 of our players put Arsenal under pressure collectively and even a team with a different agenda to ourselves gave the ball away.
Too often 1/2 players pressed but as the team didn't we made it very easy for Arsenal to pass through us.
AM has effectively said that the team didn't follow his game plan - I'm sure most of them weren't aware of what it was. Not to single out Heskey but he's not a player now that is going to close players down - he's just not quick or mobile enough.
If AM after 30 odd games is unable to impress on his players how he wants them to play it speaks volumes about him. For the all upheaval last season with MON leaving, Kevin Mac wanting/not wanting the job, GH coming in then having to take a backstep due to his health, it was clear that towards the end of last season the team where starting to pass the ball and play to the style that was being asked.
GH and GMac had clearly sussed our defence was not up to their task - I would guess that the reason for the fallout between Dunne/Collins and GMac was him politely pointing this out.
-
Do the right thing and resign you fool!!!!
Not a chance.
He'll want to be sacked and get the pay off.
-
Our CEO must read comments like that and think oh crap we fucked up getting this clown in, time to give him the push.... he must?! Surely?
I don't think they will read this - why should they read some (in their opinion) forum for whinging fans who don't know the first thing about football?
It is their club and they will do what they want - they don't give two hoots about the fans or the opinion of the fans as they will still turn up come what may (because they LOVE the club).
-
It sounds like "I'm a great manager, the players are just shit"
Clown.
-
This is probably the single most frustrating interview I've seen from AM.
What exactly was his game plan then? At times yesterday they closed the ball down in packs. This was effective - see the chance Weimann had not long after coming on where 3/4 of our players put Arsenal under pressure collectively and even a team with a different agenda to ourselves gave the ball away.
Too often 1/2 players pressed but as the team didn't we made it very easy for Arsenal to pass through us.
AM has effectively said that the team didn't follow his game plan - I'm sure most of them weren't aware of what it was. Not to single out Heskey but he's not a player now that is going to close players down - he's just not quick or mobile enough.
If AM after 30 odd games is unable to impress on his players how he wants them to play it speaks volumes about him. For the all upheaval last season with MON leaving, Kevin Mac wanting/not wanting the job, GH coming in then having to take a backstep due to his health, it was clear that towards the end of last season the team where starting to pass the ball and play to the style that was being asked.
GH and GMac had clearly sussed our defence was not up to their task - I would guess that the reason for the fallout between Dunne/Collins and GMac was him politely pointing this out.
Aside from twat it down the wing for Albrighton to chase there was none.
-
He's right in essence, once on the pitch the player are accountable for their actions, BUT we're thirty games into the season there should be no confusion about such things now and importantly/worryingly it could be seen as a sign that he is starting to get defensive and avoid the blame.
I doubt his relationship with the squad is good enough to throwing blame around after all he has has largely inherited someone else's squad so they not really his players.
-
Well, he's just expressed his main flaw better than I ever could. The Emirates is 'not the place' for passing it about at the back? Well, guess what, that's how Swansea beat Arsenal, and that's generally how to stop them scoring - HAVE THE FUCKING BALL.
It's maddening. Play in their half? Sometimes you can't, so you keep the ball where you can, play the situation, and get into their half when you can. It's called patience. He really doesn't understand football. He's just another idiot, jobbing, British manager from the past, still clinging on to old cliches, methods and mantras which have been disproved, outmoded or shown to have never worked anyway. I wish he would just f'Eck' off.
That`s the most sensible post i have read on this forum. Well said.
-
Well, he's just expressed his main flaw better than I ever could. The Emirates is 'not the place' for passing it about at the back? Well, guess what, that's how Swansea beat Arsenal, and that's generally how to stop them scoring - HAVE THE FUCKING BALL.
It's maddening. Play in their half? Sometimes you can't, so you keep the ball where you can, play the situation, and get into their half when you can. It's called patience. He really doesn't understand football. He's just another idiot, jobbing, British manager from the past, still clinging on to old cliches, methods and mantras which have been disproved, outmoded or shown to have never worked anyway. I wish he would just f'Eck' off.
That`s the most sensible post i have read on this forum. Well said.
Quite agree.
-
Well, he's just expressed his main flaw better than I ever could. The Emirates is 'not the place' for passing it about at the back? Well, guess what, that's how Swansea beat Arsenal, and that's generally how to stop them scoring - HAVE THE FUCKING BALL.
It's maddening. Play in their half? Sometimes you can't, so you keep the ball where you can, play the situation, and get into their half when you can. It's called patience. He really doesn't understand football. He's just another idiot, jobbing, British manager from the past, still clinging on to old cliches, methods and mantras which have been disproved, outmoded or shown to have never worked anyway. I wish he would just f'Eck' off.
That`s the most sensible post i have read on this forum. Well said.
Quite agree.
After the Fulham game somebody posted that AM was shouting to the players about holding onto the ball even if a pass was not on so what the hell happened to that? I saw a figure of under 30% posession at Arsenal - is that correct? If so then we really are in a world of pain.
-
Our CEO must read comments like that and think oh crap we fucked up getting this clown in, time to give him the push.... he must?! Surely?
I don't think they will read this - why should they read some (in their opinion) forum for whinging fans who don't know the first thing about football?
It is their club and they will do what they want - they don't give two hoots about the fans or the opinion of the fans as they will still turn up come what may (because they LOVE the club).
Preston, I clearly mean the quotes, not our forum.
-
Well, he's just expressed his main flaw better than I ever could. The Emirates is 'not the place' for passing it about at the back? Well, guess what, that's how Swansea beat Arsenal, and that's generally how to stop them scoring - HAVE THE FUCKING BALL.
It's maddening. Play in their half? Sometimes you can't, so you keep the ball where you can, play the situation, and get into their half when you can. It's called patience. He really doesn't understand football. He's just another idiot, jobbing, British manager from the past, still clinging on to old cliches, methods and mantras which have been disproved, outmoded or shown to have never worked anyway. I wish he would just f'Eck' off.
That`s the most sensible post i have read on this forum. Well said.
Quite agree.
After the Fulham game somebody posted that AM was shouting to the players about holding onto the ball even if a pass was not on so what the hell happened to that? I saw a figure of under 30% posession at Arsenal - is that correct? If so then we really are in a world of pain.
he has to be talking himself out of a job with these coments
cant do it wont try
-
Cant spoon feed players, cant bloody manage a team more like. We are in the shite, and may well go down, and spoon man will succeed in his aim of breaking relegation records and being passed by the scum on the way down. Whether the powers that be read or not I cannot tell, but these are very poor times and if we do go down it may take a long time to return. One hopes that someone has the ear of Randy or whoever decides these days and can persuade the case for dismissal on the grounds of poor performance, inept management, useless team selection or whatever.
-
Have tried to tolerate the man, but it is not good at the club right now
-
I used to think he was a terrible appointment, but quite like the bloke.
I now am more convinced than ever that it was a terrible appointment, and every time he opens his mouth and comes out with shite like this (and it seems to happen quite a lot these days), I like him a little bit less.
-
You can barely feed yourself you incompetent fucking idiot. Fuck off.
-
I used to think he was a terrible appointment, but quite like the bloke.
I now am more convinced than ever that it was a terrible appointment, and every time he opens his mouth and comes out with shite like this (and it seems to happen quite a lot these days), I like him a little bit less.
Summed my feelings up too there. I thought it was an appointment that looked doomed from the start, but I liked him and wanted him to succeed. At this point however, the man disgusts me. His comments are baffling, and he clearly is waiting to be sacked so he doesn't lose out on a pay off. The more I think about it, the more I think this had a bearing on him accepting the job. He knew there was going to be supporter unrest, so I think he took it on thinking that there is a good chance he will be sacked before his contract is up, so he will be paid regardless of whether he succeeds or not. No motivation for the role at all.
-
I have an image in my head of him actually attempting to spoon feed the players, saying "Here comes the train..." and along comes an *actual* train.
-
mind you, spoon feeding is difficult if its my daughter and her current "I aint eating nuthin off no spoon fool" mood. Has he tried the airplane or trying to talk to the team in a Dalek voice, that seems to do the trick
-
Come on Dave, just one more...
-
He hasn’t got a clue and with statements like that he is doing himself no favors. The problem is he can’t spoon feed the players tactics because he has only got one, lump it from the back and just hope!
I’ve not been one to call for his head but enough is enough he has got to go.
-
What I've noticed so far this morning is that, even here in Ireland, football fans with no interest in Aston Villa (remember , are casually talking about us getting sucked in. It's going beyond my as a villa supporter because I'm hearing it second hand from people who know I'm a villa fan.
My boss, an arsenal fan, didn't even rib me about the match. He just said 'that genius who manages you guys has turned you into yellow bellies who roll over and die at the first sign of trouble'. It's all getting too grave even for people to slag us off. We are pitied.