Remi Garde - Departs Aston Villa

[PeterWithesShin]

He's basically saying the club have been fucking up for years, it's hardly some PR spin that everything is fine and we're staying up and isn't everything down B6 ace.

[brontebilly]

I think the majority on here, myself included, believed we'd surprise people and have a good season this year (by that I mean solid, mid-table). I felt that we'd spent the money from Benteke and Delph fairly well. Whilst we didn't buy a striker that made me rip the front of my trousers in excitement, I felt Gestede having scored 22 goals last season and Ayew having a fair record the previous year in Lique 1, that the two combined would cover the loss of Tekkers, whilst I expected good things from Veretout and Gana. Whilst we didn't know much about most of our signings, there was some excitement about these gambles at prices ranging between 7-10ish mill, as opposed to 1-3mill like we seemed to do in previous years with many of our unknown foreign jobs.

I thought the midfield options actually looked impressive for a change. I thought we'd see very little of Westwood and Bacuna this season having bought in more options (yes, injuries haven't helped). I thought perhaps Gabby might come back fit and raring to go and try and push for Bentekes old berth as opposed to the wing spot (and accordingly up his effort).

Many of us, albeit with villa specs and perhaps suffering from some mass villa delusion, felt, dare I say a quiet sense of smugness that with everyone outside the club having us as a great bet for the drop, that we'd shove it in their faces. We'd finally hacked a load of dead weight from our squad list. Luna, Sylla, Tonev etc.

Sadly what has transpired is, that almost every non-Villa fan thought we looked fucked after losing Delph and Benteke and they've been proven right. Deep down we probably all knew, underneath those claret tinted villa specs that we were going to struggle again. That said I don't think even the most miserable miserablist on this site, or any other corner of Villa fandom could have foreseen just how fucking atrocious we've been. We're not going to get past 25 points this season. That's pretty much nailed on. Dire. Shocking, appalling.

I'm in that boat too. Was expecting a lot from Grealish and Traore too particularly after his cameo against Palace. Gestede changed the game at Bournemouth. Amavi and Gueye had very bright starts, yet we look now as if we won't get another point. Staggering

The worries for me were Sherwood primarily but also his decision to bring in Micah Richards particularly on a four year deal to play centre half. Richards for me embodied the kind of "big character" we desperately didn't need. A guy who had flopped at Fiorentina and was last seen at City whinging about not being given a medal for something like 4 or 5 league appearances. He started ok too but it was clear Clark had no idea how to play with him. Lescott too I thought was finished and so it proved.

Sherwood's misgivings on Guzan and Sinclair both were well founded. Gabby has given up the premise of being a professional footballer and we are back with Hutton, Cissokho, Bacuna, Westwood, Bunn in the starting line up. That's the worst team in the league unsurprisingly.

[ciggiesnbeer]

Every time I see garde do something I dont like at match day I see him afterwards in an interview like that just remind me why I like him. He is just a sane man, plain and simple. I like that a lot. I am still pretty confident he will be off come summer but it would be nice if he stayed. I just have this ember of hope , not yet crushed, that we could be sat here in three years time mid table premier league after promotion with Garde in charge and us all patting ourselves and the club on the back for finally getting it right. Its nice to have something positive I can plausibily hope for.

[Toronto Villa]

I am sorry, I read this and I think PR bollocks.The clubs probably shitting themselves about a fall off in attendances.

I have no idea how anyone can come to the conclusion that this is PR bollocks. It's hardly as if Garde has been singing from the same hymn sheet as his bosses since January now is it? He is saying it as it is. Not like a Lambert who told us how ace it was and how everything was fine until the moment his arse got kicked through the door.

[DaveD]

I think the majority on here, myself included, believed we'd surprise people and have a good season this year (by that I mean solid, mid-table). I felt that we'd spent the money from Benteke and Delph fairly well. Whilst we didn't buy a striker that made me rip the front of my trousers in excitement, I felt Gestede having scored 22 goals last season and Ayew having a fair record the previous year in Lique 1, that the two combined would cover the loss of Tekkers, whilst I expected good things from Veretout and Gana. Whilst we didn't know much about most of our signings, there was some excitement about these gambles at prices ranging between 7-10ish mill, as opposed to 1-3mill like we seemed to do in previous years with many of our unknown foreign jobs.

I thought the midfield options actually looked impressive for a change. I thought we'd see very little of Westwood and Bacuna this season having bought in more options (yes, injuries haven't helped). I thought perhaps Gabby might come back fit and raring to go and try and push for Bentekes old berth as opposed to the wing spot (and accordingly up his effort).

Many of us, albeit with villa specs and perhaps suffering from some mass villa delusion, felt, dare I say a quiet sense of smugness that with everyone outside the club having us as a great bet for the drop, that we'd shove it in their faces. We'd finally hacked a load of dead weight from our squad list. Luna, Sylla, Tonev etc.

Sadly what has transpired is, that almost every non-Villa fan thought we looked fucked after losing Delph and Benteke and they've been proven right. Deep down we probably all knew, underneath those claret tinted villa specs that we were going to struggle again. That said I don't think even the most miserable miserablist on this site, or any other corner of Villa fandom could have foreseen just how fucking atrocious we've been. We're not going to get past 25 points this season. That's pretty much nailed on. Dire. Shocking, appalling.

I hate to swim against the tide (except on the Politics threads) but I thought it was a huge gamble. We had barely survived relegation  (again) and we had lost our only two quality players in Benteke and Delph, and two other starters in Vlaar and Cleverley. We had a squad that only had mediocrity remaining, and what we needed was to spend the money on two or three players who could be guaranteed to raise the standard. Instead we paid over the odds for a stack of players who may or may not adapt to PL football. At best we were looking at a rough first few months while they gelled and then an improvement. At worst it would be a repeat of recent seasons past. Even I never dreamed it would be this bad though.

[ROBBO]

This is what amazes me we lost Delph and Benteke two good players with a lot of prem experience and instead of spending the money on three or four top players those in charge chose to spunk the money on a virtual new eleven most of whom had never played in the premiership. Those that made that decision are still in charge, any other business they would be out the door.

[PeterWithesShin]

If we'd only signed 3 or 4 players in the summer the vast majority would have shit a brick and slaughtered them for that as well. Weimann, Cleverley, Vlaar, Delph, Benteke all left in the summer who were regular first teamers. Plus squad (non)players like Sylla, Given, Bent and Lowton. We needed more than 3 or 4 players in.

[DaveD]

After years of neglect we needed both quantity and quality, but in my eyes the quality was more critical for that window.

[alftitimus]

Every time I see garde do something I dont like at match day I see him afterwards in an interview like that just remind me why I like him. He is just a sane man, plain and simple. I like that a lot. I am still pretty confident he will be off come summer but it would be nice if he stayed. I just have this ember of hope , not yet crushed, that we could be sat here in three years time mid table premier league after promotion with Garde in charge and us all patting ourselves and the club on the back for finally getting it right. Its nice to have something positive I can plausibily hope for.

 

Agree 101%

"Tactics Tim" through his media supporters, let it be known that he didn't pick ANY summer transfer players.
Fox claimed that "Tactics" had a veto on the "Search-for-the-NEW-Fabregas-Henry-Mission" that the incompetants pursued.
Remi's non-existant, 'media mates' ~~ can see and report what happened in the Transfer Window. More Fox PR Spin.

NO BLOODY HELP.

NO BLOODY SUPPORT

I think he is going to be good manager.
Hopefully with us. Really.
He seems very honest when you consider Lambert and Sherwood ! !

He has got us moving at least. We can do halves almost comptentanly, we just don't have the thrust nor ability up top.
I think he picks Gaby for a kind of dynamism that he shows, but Gaby becomes prone ~~ like a post-30 year old Shearer did.

But it's all he's got.

Our "Recruitment Committee" denied Remi in the transfer window.

We don't have any "Rashfords" in our Academy.

We have pretty little there ~ for those who call for the inclusion of our kids in the first team.
If we had, Remi would have run them, like Arsene, his mentor.

It is seriously, a grounds-up renovation.
The way they have treated Remi - {I truly hope his redundancy payment is worth the Villa STAIN } ~ is hardly a seduction for a future boss ??

Remi is actually Good.
Turned a "Tactics" team...into a feasible project.
JUST ~~ NO killer recruitment.

THANK YOU FOX

[pbavfckuwait]

Garde’s values? “Collective values. Respect. Respect of yourself, first. When you have talent, you have to respect your talent and work hard, every day, to extract it. You have to respect your teammates. Everybody. And that’s difficult to instill. Maybe these are old values, but when players feel them they can perform. Where there’s no respect, it’s a mess. And in a mess you cannot win. For me, a good football player is not about five or 10 games, it is about 10 seasons.

He states the above and importantly "Where there's no respect, it's a mess and in a mess you cannot win", but that is exactly where we find ourselves and he stills plays the like of Westwood (he is just shit, not so much trouble), Bacuna and Gabby add in the influence of Richards and there's the "No respect" part.
Yes he talks very truthfully but I am sorry to say his continual picking of certain individuals shows his actions do not reflect his words.

[Dante Lavelli]

I am sorry, I read this and I think PR bollocks.The clubs probably shitting themselves about a fall off in attendances.

I have no idea how anyone can come to the conclusion that this is PR bollocks. It's hardly as if Garde has been singing from the same hymn sheet as his bosses since January now is it? He is saying it as it is. Not like a Lambert who told us how ace it was and how everything was fine until the moment his arse got kicked through the door.

Yep - he basically give Lerner a kicking.  However he also says that 'hopefully' he will be here next season (and has the opportunity for a pre-season with Grealish) but it is clear that will only take place if the club make a series of changes.  I guess that means backing him financially however the tone of the article suggests he has bigger ideas too.

[brian green]

The big crunch is going to come when Remi meets Hollis in the summer and presents his list of demands if he is to stay.  That meeting will define the future of the club for years to come.  It is absolutely essential that the insane budgetary constraints of last January are not repeated but I have serious doubts about the reason why Lerner has put Hollis in place.  I fear that Hollis will serve his master and Remi will leave us.

A lesser manager may well kick and claw a way back via the play offs I have no doubt but without Garde the concept of long term planning and secure reestablishment in the Premiership will go with him.  Our ambition will be to be like West Bromwich Albion.

[Steve67]

Interesting that you mention West Brom Brian because I think their Manager will be available in the summer.

Clearly Garde wants to do the right things, wants backing to cleanse this squad. Hollis also might want to clear the decks in terms of superfluous spend, for example, why bother with Paddy Reilly if the Manager can do it? But, Garde simply has to stop selecting the numpties who he is talking about.

[Richard E]

Our ambition will be to be like West Bromwich Albion.

I fear this already is our ambition. 

[Chico Hamilton III]

I think he should go at the end of the season - don't really care whether he jumps or gets pushed. He's had no money, works for a board which seems to be comprised of genuine lunatics and a squad of really shit footballers who come across as a bunch of thin skinned cliquey schoolkids who need some real discipline and constant reminding of their responsibilities. I don't think any manager could have saved us and Garde can't do anything about the twat of an owner he works for but I'd expect any half decent manager to be able to squeeze a drop of extra blood out of the team. They're clearly not motivated and that's the manager's responsibility. I'm really worried that we'll struggle under him in the 2nd division. I'm sure he's a nice bloke, etc......