Bruce Sacked at last (now official)

[Tayls_7]

To be fair to Bruce (God it hurts to write that), this is a problem we have had for many years, our pedestrian approach to games, mind you, take that being fair to Bruce back, as he has done naff all about it.

And he won’t.

Because he isn't capable.

It is his mindset.

Word association; Steve Bruce and set = hair.

[pauliewalnuts]

Bruce is doing what he does. This is how all his teams have played. He is not going to suddenly undergo a Damascene conversion and become Pep Guardiola.

The reason he is in the job is because he has shown several times that what he does is actually quite effective in getting promoted. He can point at his past record as evidence of that.

No, I don't think it really works in the Premier League, either. I can point at his record in that league as evidence of that. We are not in the Premier League, though, so that is not something we have the luxury of worrying about.

Let's see how close he gets us this year, and if it doesn't work, we'll have to reconsider, but we took him on knowing what he does, knowing how his teams play, and we did so on the basis that it seems to work in this league.

I don't buy the over optimistic beliefs of some, but I can't help think that being in a play off position isn't really too much to be complaining about at this point. There's no point moaning about us not playing like Wolves, that is not going to happen, and all that "OMG! This is beneath Aston Villa to be playing like this!" nonsense looks pretty empty when you think that being in this league in the first place is not 'Aston Villa'.

If it doesn't work, then at the end of the season, I am sure there will be tough decisions made, but it's close enough to looking like it might work to put up with the grim anti-football.

[Clampy]

To be fair to Bruce (God it hurts to write that), this is a problem we have had for many years, our pedestrian approach to games, mind you, take that being fair to Bruce back, as he has done naff all about it.

And he won’t.

Besides, we really shouldn't have gone back to play Small Heath with an ex-blues manager, isn't that right?

[brian green]

Steve Bruce is not the answer to our decline.  It really is as simple as that. In my opinion.

[dave shelley]

Steve Bruce is not the answer to our decline.  It really is as simple as that. In my opinion.

Correct Brian.  I'm sure you will remember just how bad we were in the mid to late sixties when we really were in decline.  The difference then was whichever manager we had had always sent the players out to at least try and win. 

I'll be very surprised if Bruce's ultra negative football and lack of tactical nous gains promotion.  Paulie stated the other day after the Milwall game that he thinks we are in this division for a long spell; which is what I said to a few friends the minute he was appointed.  I sincerely hope I am wrong.

[Clampy]

I'm staggered that people think that Bruce doesn't send his teams out to win. Every manager does. It's absolute nonsense, in my opinion of course.

[Abbeyfealeavfc]

In my view Bruce is a limited, negative and defensive manager who tactically is clueless. He's certainly not helped by calderwood (another defender) and Clemence (I'm not sure what he brings to the club other than his name). Agnew may make a difference, particularly if he is creative and forward thinking, but I must admit, I don't know very much about him. I can't remember who Bruce had as part of his backroom team(s), when he was successful at getting promotion in the past. I think he tried to bring some coaches he had previously worked with to Villa Park, but they were already in employment, if memory serves me correctly. As a manager he needs people to counter his limitations. Agnew might be Bruce's way of finally admitting this, but for me it's too little too late re auto promotion.

[andrew08]

I watched Bristol City beat Man U the other day. Yes they were lucky, but at every opportunity they were on the front foot attacking and that’s what got them the last kick winner. Had that been us we would have had 10 men behind the ball hoping for a breakaway goal or to keep the score down. I wouldn’t think any of Bristol’s players are better than ours... maybe their Icelandic one is better that ours though.

[manic-road]

In my view Bruce is a limited, negative and defensive manager who tactically is clueless. He's certainly not helped by calderwood (another defender) and Clemence (I'm not sure what he brings to the club other than his name). Agnew may make a difference, particularly if he is creative and forward thinking, but I must admit, I don't know very much about him. I can't remember who Bruce had as part of his backroom team(s), when he was successful at getting promotion in the past. I think he tried to bring some coaches he had previously worked with to Villa Park, but they were already in employment, if memory serves me correctly. As a manager he needs people to counter his limitations. Agnew might be Bruce's way of finally admitting this, but for me it's too little too late re auto promotion.

I'm curious to know how Bruce is not helped by Clemence and Calderwood by the way? I take it you spend a lot of time at BH watching training?

[paul_e]

In my view Bruce is a limited, negative and defensive manager who tactically is clueless. He's certainly not helped by calderwood (another defender) and Clemence (I'm not sure what he brings to the club other than his name). Agnew may make a difference, particularly if he is creative and forward thinking, but I must admit, I don't know very much about him. I can't remember who Bruce had as part of his backroom team(s), when he was successful at getting promotion in the past. I think he tried to bring some coaches he had previously worked with to Villa Park, but they were already in employment, if memory serves me correctly. As a manager he needs people to counter his limitations. Agnew might be Bruce's way of finally admitting this, but for me it's too little too late re auto promotion.

I'm curious to know how Bruce is not helped by Clemence and Calderwood by the way? I take it you spend a lot of time at BH watching training?

because he's naturally very defensive and so are they, so they're not bringing anything different.  We look organised in defence, no one questions that, but we look like a team coached by people who don't know how to build attacks, so all our attacking play is either set pieces or individual moments of quality.  A coach who understands the attacking side of the game better might bring some of that to the club and maybe Agnew is that but 14 months to realise that you need a coach for such a significant part of the game and can't rely on winging it is a great tagline for why I don't think Bruce was the right appointment.

[manic-road]

In my view Bruce is a limited, negative and defensive manager who tactically is clueless. He's certainly not helped by calderwood (another defender) and Clemence (I'm not sure what he brings to the club other than his name). Agnew may make a difference, particularly if he is creative and forward thinking, but I must admit, I don't know very much about him. I can't remember who Bruce had as part of his backroom team(s), when he was successful at getting promotion in the past. I think he tried to bring some coaches he had previously worked with to Villa Park, but they were already in employment, if memory serves me correctly. As a manager he needs people to counter his limitations. Agnew might be Bruce's way of finally admitting this, but for me it's too little too late re auto promotion.

I'm curious to know how Bruce is not helped by Clemence and Calderwood by the way? I take it you spend a lot of time at BH watching training?

because he's naturally very defensive and so are they, so they're not bringing anything different.  We look organised in defence, no one questions that, but we look like a team coached by people who don't know how to build attacks, so all our attacking play is either set pieces or individual moments of quality.  A coach who understands the attacking side of the game better might bring some of that to the club and maybe Agnew is that but 14 months to realise that you need a coach for such a significant part of the game and can't rely on winging it is a great tagline for why I don't think Bruce was the right appointment.

After the past six seasons of having a shambolic defence, we definitely needed a solid foundation to start with. Apart from Wolves this season I can't think of many if any teams that have got promoted from the Championship playing flowing attacking football. The Championship is a season of battle after battle to grind out wins. The football isn't pretty and it was never going to be under Bruce but for years the shambles of a team needed a start point in improving the defence and it isn't going to be completed overnight.

[ChicagoLion]

To be fair to Bruce (God it hurts to write that), this is a problem we have had for many years, our pedestrian approach to games, mind you, take that being fair to Bruce back, as he has done naff all about it.

And he won’t.

Besides, we really shouldn't have gone back to play Small Heath with an ex-blues manager, isn't that right?

To try to make out that my problem with Bruce has anything to do with the fact he managed them is childish in the extreme.
My problem is that Blues and Hull is his level and our level should be better than Bruce.
Sadly it isn’t and you seem to be happy with that.

[ChicagoLion]

I'm staggered that people think that Bruce doesn't send his teams out to win. Every manager does. It's absolute nonsense, in my opinion of course.

Wynesss said that Bruce is scared of losing.
You do not have to be a Personal Development Guru to work out that focusing on what you don’t want rarely gets you what you do want.

[Clampy]

To be fair to Bruce (God it hurts to write that), this is a problem we have had for many years, our pedestrian approach to games, mind you, take that being fair to Bruce back, as he has done naff all about it.

And he won’t.

Besides, we really shouldn't have gone back to play Small Heath with an ex-blues manager, isn't that right?

To try to make out that my problem with Bruce has anything to do with the fact he managed them is childish in the extreme.

It was you who originally said it, not me so unless you were implying something else, I took it to mean like it sounded.

Regardless of who he managed before, he's our manager now and i've chosen to get behind him until a time I no longer think he deserves it.

[Clampy]

I'm staggered that people think that Bruce doesn't send his teams out to win. Every manager does. It's absolute nonsense, in my opinion of course.

Wynesss said that Bruce is scared of losing.
You do not have to be a Personal Development Guru to work out that focusing on what you don’t want rarely gets you what you do want.

No manager wants to lose but they all want to win. You don't need to be anything special to understand that. As for rarely getting what it wants, four promotions suggests otherwise.