Dean Smith - Confirmed

[rougegorge]

I've barely missed a match this season and given that we are in the 'second' division, this is some of the worst football I have seen since I started going and I have seen a lot.

I am getting tired of the "Steve Bruce's fault" and  "Bruceball" mantras in order to justify why we are doing so badly; also the excuse that Dean Smith has been dealt such an awful hand. We were good last season and now we are rubbish. The manager needs to play his hand far better than this.

We got rid of Bruce because both the club and many fans thought it was bad, and the message was clear enough at the time. We needed a change as we wanted things to improve and go up.

Neither have materialised and what's being served up now in terms of formation and tactics doesn't currently give me confidence that things will get better.

I get the argument about needing time and we can point at Farke and Wagner, but the expectations at those clubs are way less and that's important.

Also Wagner took Huddersfield up playing very functional defensive football with a negative goal difference,  and continued it after promotion. I'm sure we'd all be happy with that.

[Brassneck]

One of the problems is that we keep seeing certain players who have not delivered starting week after week.

Hourihane has been having a nightmare for months and Whelan is past it but there they are, every week.

I know we are not over endowed with midfield options but we do have them - he used one when he yanked Hourihane today.

But what is the betting Hourihane and Whelan start next week?

That's what I don't get. The repeated use of players who just don't deliver, in largely the same system.

I just don't see how that ever magically starts working beyond the odd scrappy point.

Not over endowed?

3 are injured, 1 is suspended next week, leaving Jedi, Whelan, BB, Hourihane & Ramsey.

What 3 would you pick?

[villa `cross the mersey]

Smith is a passenger until the summer. Then he hits the driving seat with his own squad. Guardiola spoke last week about how hard it is to change a style of play. Stick with him, support him and see what happens next season.

The issue with that ozzjim is he is looking increasingly hapless and hopeless.

As a Villa fan it might be hitting him even harder, I don't know. But much more of this over the remainder of the season might break him. 

He's unlikely to be able to sign 11+ new players this summer, so there will have to be some pragmatism and aptitude to make the new signings he does make mesh with at least some of the existing team.

I could see like someone like Brendan Rodgers doing that (not saying he'd be interested in the job).

I'm not sure I can see the current incumbent do that. 

good points KG - especially about the numbers coming in - I read somewhere that he brought in 18 New faces in his first season at Brentford - that is extraordinary - whilst something similar would create an exciting pre season it's a big ask to get them gelled as a team in such a short space   of time - I wonder if he and the club have a clear plan and strategy of who is going and who is coming in ?

[Lastfootstamper]

Short of drafting in the U23s en masse, what can he do? If he did that, from what I've seen of those that have played, including today, they'd get ripped to bits every week. And then what? Cries of why does he let these kids get destroyed when we've got experienced pros on the bench?

Change the system? Why? We might as well have kept Bruce in that case. I'm assuming he was hired for a reason, and I bet it wasn't something as short term as seeing what he can get out of this rabble. If that was the case, we should've gone all out to get Pulis.

What we're seeing now isn't our future, it's the death throes of this sorry, inglorious decade. I'm certain of that.

[SteveN]

I pin my hopes on that we will "do a Norwich".  Many fans wanted Farke out in his first season but the board stuck with him, he made wholesale changes in the close season, and look at them now.

[LukeJames]

Short of drafting in the U23s en masse, what can he do? If he did that, from what I've seen of those that have played, including today, they'd get ripped to bits every week. And then what? Cries of why does he let these kids get destroyed when we've got experienced pros on the bench?

Change the system? Why? We might as well have kept Bruce in that case. I'm assuming he was hired for a reason, and I bet it wasn't something as short term as seeing what he can get out of this rabble. If that was the case, we should've gone all out to get Pulis.

What we're seeing now isn't our future, it's the death throes of this sorry, inglorious decade. I'm certain of that.

I agree with every word.

[Ads]

Well that doesn't work for me...the team last season was much stronger with the likes of Johnstone, Terry and Snodgrass. We all know that there wasn't much of a "system" or style of play under Bruce...it was all very much as clueless as what we're seeing now, expect we have a weaker squad and have suffered major long term injuries to 3 of our best players. What is left is a very average team that is just about where it belongs. If you want to point the finger of blame then the players need to take more responsibility for their incompetence in doing the basics rather than Smith.

So we have to endure this shite until such time as Smith decides he's got a squad of his own?  How long is that going to take?  How much is it going to cost?  For me he's got to demonstrate that he can work in testing circumstances as well as at times when he feels everything is in his favour.

Endure? You forgot we'd played the other day!

[brian green]

Without JMG, Grealish, Chester and Tuanzebe for the immediate future we should do a Wimbledon and play Route 1 until  we have our team back together.

[myf]

by my calcs it's 1.4 points per game which is same as Bruce

[PaulWinch again]

Dean has to try something different, he needs to think about it and adjust. I get the limitations of the squad, but even accounting for that it’s piss poor. He won’t make the summer if this continues.

[AlexAlexCropley]

He's a coach well respected. I see no evidence. At the meet and greet night he said we'd get in the playoffs. He was wrong
Don't want it but he's toast.

[PaulWinch again]

He doesn’t need to make the play-offs to make the summer, but he needs to show signs of positive progress. At the moment it’s far far too poor.

[brian green]

He has donned the mantle of Dead Man Walking very early in his Villa career.

[mr underhill]

Sadly,  three performances of note since arriving apart , there is nothing substantive to suggest that Smith is going to turn this round. I honestly don't think he's going to be here after May unless he wins three quarters of our remaining games.

[PaulWinch again]

Indeed, and it’s recoverable but he needs to adapt his system.