Bruce Sacked at last (now official)

[old man villa fan]

I'm just fed up with Villa being boring, to be honest. This season was an improvement on boring and terrible, which had been the norm for years, but we're still boring. I hate seeing all these other clubs - Southampton, Bournemouth, Fulham - gain success by being stylish, by being modern, getting themselves together as clubs, while we muddle along appointing the same old-school 'proper football men' who learned what they know about the game during the era when England's footballing ideology was set by Charles sodding Taylor.

I'm with you.

[PaulWinch again]

I'm just fed up with Villa being boring, to be honest. This season was an improvement on boring and terrible, which had been the norm for years, but we're still boring. I hate seeing all these other clubs - Southampton, Bournemouth, Fulham - gain success by being stylish, by being modern, getting themselves together as clubs, while we muddle along appointing the same old-school 'proper football men' who learned what they know about the game during the era when England's footballing ideology was set by Charles sodding Taylor.

I agree completely. I’d really like us to try and play with style.

[mattjpa]

Bold prediction - If we keep Bruce and sell Grealish, Bruce will be gone by November and the season will be a write off. That period when he was missing we were shit - really shit.
Keeping it tight and relying on your top player or two to win you matches works when your top players are individual match winners. Last season we had Jack who ran games, really ran them - controling the flow, tempo, taking 3 opponents out with the natural ability to go past a man, delay a pass and then put the perfect weight on it. We had Snodgrass and his wand of a left foot who made goals regularly, We had Albert who had a hot streak but went off badly at the end. Add in the Kodjia from the season before and we had 4 potentially.

Next season Snoddy is gone. We dont know if Kodjia will be here or even if that pre-injury Kodjia even exists still. If Jack is gone, That leaves Albert. We cannot rely on this seasons tactics - we need to rip up the playbook.

[curiousorange]

That's it for me as well. It's almost as if you need to have no money whatsoever before a club gets the message that it's how you play that's more important than who plays it. That's why Leeds have been down here for so long - they still think they're a big club and so try and take shortcuts instead of embedding a long term strategy.

Well, that's the position we're in now. I for one don't want to spend a humbling season in League One before we work out we're too far gone to be proud. Let's start the rebuild now and take our medicine.

[ktvillan]

I'm just fed up with Villa being boring, to be honest. This season was an improvement on boring and terrible, which had been the norm for years, but we're still boring. I hate seeing all these other clubs - Southampton, Bournemouth, Fulham - gain success by being stylish, by being modern, getting themselves together as clubs, while we muddle along appointing the same old-school 'proper football men' who learned what they know about the game during the era when England's footballing ideology was set by Charles sodding Taylor.

Spot on.  It's long overdue.  We kind of started down that path with Houllier, but were unlucky with that.   Since then it's been tactical fuckwit after tactical fuckwit, with the possible exception of Garde who never had a chance.   Not sure I agree with Footyskillz on Lampard though.  Talk is one thing, delivering it is another thing altogether.  As Gary Neville discovered at Valencia, despite being a very good analyst of the game.

[DB]

Bruce has had never much money to spend though. I think that was an issue at the start of the season, we had too many players bought in and took a while before we had a settled team. By which time we were playing catch-up. Maybe it will work out better for him with a trimmed down squad.

He had more than most, especially when you takes wages into consideration.

He bought Hogan - total waste.
He swapped Ayew for Taylor - total waste.
He bought Lansbury - total waste.

Sorry Risso, I meant at other clubs.

[chrisw1]

OK, I think we've waited a suitable amount of time now to let the dust settle.  Come on Tone, get the p45s out.

[GarTomas]

Leeds sacked their coach; wasn’t Bruce linked there this week?

[Richard E]

We need a manager who is not burdened by experience and tradition.

Cherie Lunghi.

[Des Little]

I think whilst we've got the old boys network of Round, Wyness etc in charge we are going to see bread & butter British managers here - the last thing they need is some young thruster coming in with new ideas that possibly threaten the 'Villa Engine'

[Toronto Villa]

I’m tired of Villa being subservient and accepting of mediocrity. It’s one thing when it was in the PL in steep decline but quite another to accept it while the biggest club in the league below. And it’s made worse by the fact that we’ve seen what we can achieve in games vs Bristol City or Wolves with a bit of ambition and aggression.

Keeping Bruce not only continues the boring football but establishes us a club that has accepted boring grind out football.

[ChicagoLion]

I’m tired of Villa being subservient and accepting of mediocrity. It’s one thing when it was in the PL in steep decline but quite another to accept it while the biggest club in the league below. And it’s made worse by the fact that we’ve seen what we can achieve in games vs Bristol City or Wolves with a bit of ambition and aggression.

Keeping Bruce not only continues the boring football but establishes us a club that has accepted boring grind out football.

And why he should have been let go once it became clear he was not getting us any where near the play offs in his  first season.

[mr underhill]

I'm actually amazed he is still here, I really am. Get your finger out Tony.

[brian green]

I agree with you 100% Monty.  I cannot be the only one who finds it harder and harder to do the mileage, pay the money and endure the exhaustion to seek boring, negative football.  My sole motivation for following Villa home and away in the McLeish, Lambert, Sherwood, Garde, Black, KMac, RDM, Bruce era has been because I always have.

Bruce putting out old sweats to park the bus then try to nick a goal next season will be the straw that breaks this old camel's back.

[sirlordbaltimore]

If we're so fucking boring, how come only two sides outscored us last season ? the two best footballing teams at that.

It's such a load of baloney.

I honestly think some folks have lost all sense of reason.