Dean Smith - Confirmed

[Nii Lamptey]

We've played all but 3 of the teams in this league now and we're hanging on just outside the bottom 3 on goal difference.

We've spent a small fortune in comparison to pretty much EVERY team in this league (yes, I know we needed it to pack the squad out), and yet we're ranked 20th in points gained from teams in the top half of the league, having taken just ONE POINT from them all season. And to top it all, that one point should have been three, as we basically gave it away against an abysmal Man Utd team.

I'm thinking back to last season, and Smith appears to be showing the same frailties now as he did then. The team still has a mistake in them and his game management is shockingly bad when it comes to starting lineups and substitutions. Starting to wonder if it was the grit and determination of Jack and his return that got us up, rather than inspired management from Smith and Co.

This season, we are making the same mistakes as we have since day 1. Smith is showing no signs of learning/improving as a Premier League manager... if anything, all he's showing is stubbornness and lack of tactical nous.

At this present moment, I'm done with him. We are seeing no glimmers of hope, and if they continue to persevere with him, we are only going one place. If we don't get 9 points out of the next 3 league games, I'd say thankyou very much, but on your bike son (*but even this could be a risk, because losing to any of those will drop us right in the shit!).

[Risso]

Absolutely brainless from Dean today. Terrible decisions from start to finish.

[SoccerHQ]

We've played all but 3 of the teams in this league now and we're hanging on just outside the bottom 3 on goal difference.

We've spent a small fortune in comparison to pretty much EVERY team in this league (yes, I know we needed it to pack the squad out), and yet we're ranked 20th in points gained from teams in the top half of the league, having taken just ONE POINT from them all season. And to top it all, that one point should have been three, as we basically gave it away against an abysmal Man Utd team.

I'm thinking back to last season, and Smith appears to be showing the same frailties now as he did then. The team still has a mistake in them and his game management is shockingly bad when it comes to starting lineups and substitutions. Starting to wonder if it was the grit and determination of Jack and his return that got us up, rather than inspired management from Smith and Co.

This season, we are making the same mistakes as we have since day 1. Smith is showing no signs of learning/improving as a Premier League manager... if anything, all he's showing is stubbornness and lack of tactical nous.

At this present moment, I'm done with him. We are seeing no glimmers of hope, and if they continue to persevere with him, we are only going one place. If we don't get 9 points out of the next 3 league games, I'd say thankyou very much, but on your bike son (*but even this could be a risk, because losing to any of those will drop us right in the shit!).

We haven't really.

I was having this debate with my dad in the pub a few weeks ago when West Ham-Spurs game was on. He's one of those lapsed and negative Villa fans who simply can't believe team is now behind likes of Bournemouth and Burnley in the table. (like a fair few on this forum!)

He was saying to me how could Villa be behind West Ham when we'd spend so much in the summer and they were so poor. I quickly had to show him on my phone they signed Haller for 45m, Felipe Anderson for 38m so in reality their forward line cost as much as our summer spending.

Bournemouth signed Jordan Ibe and Dominic Solanke for a combined 34m and both have been flops. Let's not even start on Everton. Even Leicester signed Ichenacho for 25m and he's been largely a flop for them, think today was his first league start of the season.

100m over a summer is about par spending these days, just the way the game has gone. You could say we should be doing what Sheffield are doing who spent little but I could flip it by saying we are at least comfortably above Norwich. Considering they walked the league and beat us home and away last season that's not too bad.

We spent 100m pretty much on potential. There's some good players in there I'm convinced but equally every week Wesley is looking more out of his depth as a starter in the prem which isn't surprising as he was in the Polish league just two years ago.

Now in January we need to learn from this and try to sign a proven player or two even if it's just on one of those dreaded loan deals.

[Sexual Ealing]

We've played all but 3 of the teams in this league now and we're hanging on just outside the bottom 3 on goal difference.

We've spent a small fortune in comparison to pretty much EVERY team in this league (yes, I know we needed it to pack the squad out), and yet we're ranked 20th in points gained from teams in the top half of the league, having taken just ONE POINT from them all season. And to top it all, that one point should have been three, as we basically gave it away against an abysmal Man Utd team.

I'm thinking back to last season, and Smith appears to be showing the same frailties now as he did then. The team still has a mistake in them and his game management is shockingly bad when it comes to starting lineups and substitutions. Starting to wonder if it was the grit and determination of Jack and his return that got us up, rather than inspired management from Smith and Co.

This season, we are making the same mistakes as we have since day 1. Smith is showing no signs of learning/improving as a Premier League manager... if anything, all he's showing is stubbornness and lack of tactical nous.

At this present moment, I'm done with him. We are seeing no glimmers of hope, and if they continue to persevere with him, we are only going one place. If we don't get 9 points out of the next 3 league games, I'd say thankyou very much, but on your bike son (*but even this could be a risk, because losing to any of those will drop us right in the shit!).

Take a breath. Dean Smith has done a great job so far.

[Nii Lamptey]

More importantly, SMITH needs to learn from this. He’s going to be the making of his own downfall if he doesn’t wake up soon.

[Toronto Villa]

He's did a great job last season. There is no arguing that. He hasn't done a great job this season. Of the promoted sides only Chris Wilder has done a great job.

[Flin5tone]

We gave him a FOUR year deal? Why? Where was he going?

Same old stubborn management today. If he wasn't villa he'd be getting slaughtered

[Sexual Ealing]

We gave him a FOUR year deal? Why? Where was he going?

Same old stubborn management today. If he wasn't villa he'd be getting slaughtered

He arrived not much more than a year ago when we were in the bottom half of the Championship. He got us promoted and now everyone is losing their shit because we got done by the side 14 pints clear of Spurs.

[hilts_coolerking]

... everyone is losing their shit because we got done by the side 14 pints clear of Spurs.

No, some people are - rightly - losing their shit because we were abject, regardless of how good Leicester are.  We could easily have conceded 6 or 7.  We gave the ball away a lot, looked disorganised at the back, toothless up front, and a bit helpless on the bench.

[Demitri_C]

Some real cock ups by smith today. Elmo for starters at rb. Dreadful. Keeping faith with a terrible wesley who adds very little to us.

Then the decision to keep mings on jesus. Playing too open and should ahve made it tougher fir leicester yet we gave perirea and vardy far tok much space. Pathetic stuff today.

[Sexual Ealing]

... everyone is losing their shit because we got done by the side 14 pints clear of Spurs.

No, some people are - rightly - losing their shit because we were abject, regardless of how good Leicester are.  We could easily have conceded 6 or 7.  We gave the ball away a lot, looked disorganised at the back, toothless up front, and a bit helpless on the bench.

I know, I saw it. As I said in another thread, good teams will do that to you.

[hilts_coolerking]

I know, I saw it. As I said in another thread, good teams will do that to you.

I think that's letting us off too lightly.  We made life difficult for ourselves.

[curiousorange]

Despite the glory of last season's run-in, my big worry about Smith is the lack of a plan B. If you can't win on your own merits, at least give the opposition something else to worry about. Against Chelsea they put two blokes on Grealish and nullified him, doesn't take a genius to work out you should be trying something new. And three up front when quicker teams are cutting through the midfield? Just start with Kodjia and Wes, take the burden off and be harder to beat. When it's going well, Smith looks great. When it's not, you wonder if he's watching the same game we are.

[Rudy Can't Fail]

Was Dean at the match today? His post-match comments sound like he wasn't.

[Sexual Ealing]

I know, I saw it. As I said in another thread, good teams will do that to you.

I think that's letting us off too lightly.  We made life difficult for ourselves.

We did. Our passing was appalling and the players let their inferiority get to them. I'd have started Guilbert over Elmo, and I'd have brought Hourihane on when it became obvious that we were going to get fuck all from open play. That doesn't mean the manager ought to be sacked.