Poll: Are you going to give Alex McLeish a chance to prove himself?

[Monty]

Why would McLeish change his style to free flowing football anymore than Martinez would come here and start playing the long ball game? furthermore why would the board hire a bloke who plays one way expecting him to play in a completely different style?

We are going to be playing in the style of his SHA teams and I can fully understand why we have people feeling more than a bit aprehensive about it.

Did his Rangers side play the same way as the Blues?

From memory they were not disimilar

Like Blues but with more of the ball. So essentially there was no point in having a midfield, the ball would just go sailing over their heads for most of the game.

[Chris Smith]

I suspect that you're both guessing and like me don't really know. Time will tell as to whether the way Blues paid was down to pragmatism or dogma.

[Clampy]

This thread should be viewed again in 12 months time. Either 263 people know something the rest of us don't from his record or it will go down as the biggest case of mass delusion ever.

The key phrase is "give him a chance."

I'm sure the one's who get off their arse and go to the games will Dave.

[Monty]

I suspect that you're both guessing and like me don't really know. Time will tell as to whether the way Blues paid was down to pragmatism or dogma.

Why must I be guessing? Because someone following something you don't is such an unfathomable thought? I've followed Scottish football pretty closely for years and the Alex McLeish era at Rangers produced some of the ugliest football either of the Old Firm have ever produced, even by the dwindling standards of the last decade.

[cdbearsfan]

As I've said before, Graham Taylor came to us with a reputation for being a long-ball merchant but we rarely saw evidence of that at Villa Park. I hope Eck can change too. I certainly won't assume we are the new Stoke before watching us play a few times.

[Big Dick Edwards]

I wonder how many of the 'fans' who voted for the first option actually attend games on a regular basis...

[Chris Smith]

I suspect that you're both guessing and like me don't really know. Time will tell as to whether the way Blues paid was down to pragmatism or dogma.

Why must I be guessing? Because someone following something you don't is such an unfathomable thought? I've followed Scottish football pretty closely for years and the Alex McLeish era at Rangers produced some of the ugliest football either of the Old Firm have ever produced, even by the dwindling standards of the last decade.

How did you manage to watch it? It's only relatively recently that they've shown games down here and even then it is usually only the Old Firm matches.

[Monty]

I suspect that you're both guessing and like me don't really know. Time will tell as to whether the way Blues paid was down to pragmatism or dogma.

Why must I be guessing? Because someone following something you don't is such an unfathomable thought? I've followed Scottish football pretty closely for years and the Alex McLeish era at Rangers produced some of the ugliest football either of the Old Firm have ever produced, even by the dwindling standards of the last decade.

How did you manage to watch it? It's only relatively recently that they've shown games down here and even then it is usually only the Old Firm matches.

I live in Edinburgh.

[Chris Smith]

I suspect that you're both guessing and like me don't really know. Time will tell as to whether the way Blues paid was down to pragmatism or dogma.

Why must I be guessing? Because someone following something you don't is such an unfathomable thought? I've followed Scottish football pretty closely for years and the Alex McLeish era at Rangers produced some of the ugliest football either of the Old Firm have ever produced, even by the dwindling standards of the last decade.

How did you manage to watch it? It's only relatively recently that they've shown games down here and even then it is usually only the Old Firm matches.

I live in Edinburgh.

Yes, that would explain it!

I apologise for my doubts.

As I've said elsewhere time will tell whether that style of play is down to dogma or pragmatism. I hope it's the latter.

[CorkVilla]

Wasn't that why so many Villa fans turned against Martin O'Neill, because of the negative football? Now we have an even greater exponant of the long ball game. We may as well bring Jack Charlton in all together.

[brian green]

BDE why do you put 'fans' that way in your comment?   Because we have minds of our own and we don't want a manager we perceive as rubbish?

Norwich will be my shortest journey to see Villa play next season and my average distance to see the team I love play is 200-400 miles round trip.   I expect to attend 30 Villa games next season.

I do not want Alex McLeish as the manager of Aston Villa Football Club.   The fact that I have to endure it is bad enough without being described as a 'fan'.

[hilts_coolerking]

Has he, what's he said?

Seriously?  You haven't read the club's statement?  Faulkner may have been the mouthpiece but do you actually believe Lerner's view is any different to this?  Or maybe you think Faulkner is using the Royal 'we'.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/13770519.stm

"We believe we have appointed the right man for the job.  Unquestionably, Alex meets the criteria we set out at the beginning of our search which was based on proven Premier League experience, leadership, a hard-working ethic and, most importantly, a shared vision for Aston Villa.  Alex is someone with whom we will work closely and work well together.  With our strong squad combining the necessary virtues of experience and the exciting potential of our young players, our objective is to compete as strongly as we possibly can. Alex's vast experience and proven abilities demonstrate clearly that he is a strong leader and an ambitious man and we are looking forward very much to the exciting new season about to start."

You seem to be on a one-man mission to bury your head in the sand.  On the one hand you're disputing the claim that McLeish's teams play terrible football, and on the other you appear to be challenging the claim that Lerner thinks McLeish is the man to take us forward.

[Big Dick Edwards]

BDE why do you put 'fans' that way in your comment?   Because we have minds of our own and we don't want a manager we perceive as rubbish?

Norwich will be my shortest journey to see Villa play next season and my average distance to see the team I love play is 200-400 miles round trip.   I expect to attend 30 Villa games next season.

I do not want Alex McLeish as the manager of Aston Villa Football Club.   The fact that I have to endure it is bad enough without being described as a 'fan'.

You've always come across as Villa through and through, someone who would back Villa signings regardless of whether you agreed with them or not. That is a fundamental part of being a fan. You support your club. We all think we can pick better players or managers but we have to accept the owner has the final say. For any fan to honestly say they won't give our new manager a chance when he's just signed a three year contract is beyond my comprehension and I'd be particularly surprised if you voted for that option.

[jibba81]

Has he, what's he said?

Seriously?  You haven't read the club's statement?  Faulkner may have been the mouthpiece but do you actually believe Lerner's view is any different to this?  Or maybe you think Lerner is using the Royal 'we'.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/13770519.stm

"We believe we have appointed the right man for the job.  Unquestionably, Alex meets the criteria we set out at the beginning of our search which was based on proven Premier League experience, leadership, a hard-working ethic and, most importantly, a shared vision for Aston Villa.  Alex is someone with whom we will work closely and work well together.  With our strong squad combining the necessary virtues of experience and the exciting potential of our young players, our objective is to compete as strongly as we possibly can. Alex's vast experience and proven abilities demonstrate clearly that he is a strong leader and an ambitious man and we are looking forward very much to the exciting new season about to start."

You seem to be on a one-man mission to bury your head in the sand.  On the one hand you're disputing the claim that McLeish's teams play terrible football, and on the other you appear to be challenging the claim that Lerner thinks McLeish is the man to take us forward.

Don't bring up the statement. I got called weird for having read it properly

[Klaus Katt]

The board see this as a rational appointment, while more than a few fans (me included) look at it as a gamble. How much of a chance can you honestly say you give him? We really need the good start, don't we?