Dean Smith - Confirmed

[Drummond]

Agree with you john e. It's like putting up with a member of the family who has been less than good recently. Can you imagine the vitriol if we were in this situation with Bruce?

In a alternative time line where we beat Fulham in the play off  , we go up and spend 140 mil with Bruce and play and have the results we have had zero people would be backing him and zero people would be saying if we go down stick with him as he knows the championship and will get us back up.

Exactly.  It's entirely because he's a Villa fan that he gets any leeway at all.  Doesn't wash with me I'm afraid.

Yet that's one of the main characteristics that made people clamour for him before he was appointed.

Personally I'd give him the first couple of months of next season, regardless of which division we're in.

[Risso]

Why would you do that?  He's shown he's not up to the level of the Premier League really, really clearly.  Surely a better route would be to get a more progressive manager who'd be capable of improving?

[Mister E]

...  Smith is just the latest in a long line of dismal flops...

I said in another thread (or was it this one? Can't remember!) that the manager is the most important appointment a club makes, and Everton saw this, luring a proven winner into their club despite not looking particularly attractive to said manager.
As soon as he was available (4-5 weeks' ago) we should have got Poch in.
My guess is that we would have won a couple of games out of the 4 we've played and be well-set to stay up, with the prospect of a proper close-season with a good manager to lift next season's performances.

Instead, we'll be re-finding our feet in the Chumpionship and unable to attract the very best managers.

Whatever, I don't think Smith and his coaching team should be allowed to stay: we have to find a winning manager for next season and several future seasons.

[Ian.]

When Southampton did the same a few years back replacing Adkins with Poch, there was a few eyebrows raised but it was one very smart move.

[mr underhill]

Indeed - and we have to do the same.

[olaftab]

Why would you do that?  He's shown he's not up to the level of the Premier League really, really clearly.  Surely a better route would be to get a more progressive manager who'd be capable of improving?

Yes agreed why would/should we do that. To be truthful I am not that impressed with our owners. If they are as ambitious as we are led to believe why did we keep Bruce at the time of the takeover? This  2 months/October thing is bung. Just wastes time and money.
 And why did we appoint Smith who was doing ok at Brentford but hardly setting the world on fire as a coach? Stop messing about Messrs Sawiris/Eden. Show us how brilliant and focussed you are.

[Nastylee]

If the top dogs are true to their word in wanting Villa tonretyrn to the top table then they need to appoint a manager and a squad to do that. Taking Championship managers and players and praying it works is a gamble that rarely pays off. You can take players to develop and profit on once you have an established set up. Trying to put that together in a couple of months was doomed to fail. The january signings were fucking pitiful. To think we were linked with Giroud an co in December. Look at who we got.

[wince]

Coach wise we need a progressive coach. We have never looked like Premier League quality this year being slow to get into games or falling into the Lambert trap of a good 15 minutes then chasing the game. Had the same squad that got promoted stayed together who knows but our need to purchase so many replacements coupled with no striker who could score hasn’t helped. We might still stay up and if we do, by god we will be lucky. Head down a league we can’t be fucking about for 3 seasons. It’s got to be get up, dominate the league and start getting players showing some fucking pride. At moment we are again the big pay day for a lot of mediocre has beens. The moment we got Danny drinkwater in, you could see where we were heading......

[ROBBO]

Seems like another poll is iminent.

[brian green]

Agree.  Anybody who thinks Drinkwater is an answer to anything does not know what the question was.

[VinnieChase84]

We either do it now and get a new man or we give him the chance of getting us back up.

Given how short this summer is going to be and how we are going to lose some players, to then add into the mix a new manager/the needed recruitment/no proper pre season. A LOT to do. Therefore Smith stays for continuity

[brian green]

Continuity of what? Failure?

[PaulWinch again]

Why would you do that?  He's shown he's not up to the level of the Premier League really, really clearly.  Surely a better route would be to get a more progressive manager who'd be capable of improving?

Agree completely. I really can’t see any argument for more time.

[Footy-Vill]

We either do it now and get a new man or we give him the chance of getting us back up.

Given how short this summer is going to be and how we are going to lose some players, to then add into the mix a new manager/the needed recruitment/no proper pre season. A LOT to do. Therefore Smith stays for continuity

100% agree whichever league Villa are on next season .
Smith given the time can steer us in the right direction

[hilts_coolerking]

Keeping him on, and binning him if we don't start well, is the worst thing we could possibly do.  Imagine him and the club spending time and money signing players and setting up for the new season only to undo it two months later and start again.  You either think he's going to get us promoted and be better next time we're in the PL, or you bin him as soon as possible and bring in someone you think can.*

*Assuming we're relegated.  Or perhaps even if we stay up.