Dean Smith - Confirmed

[The Edge]

They were the only team this season to rip us a new one at Villa Park. At Elland Road we strangled the life out of the game and left them confused and with 3 points.

Surely this can't be true as Bielsa is the best thing since sliced bread and a master tactician so he can't have been outwitted by Dean Smith?

[paul_e]

Well Bielsa overachieves with his method, whereas Smith arguably achieves par. Which is pretty impressive given the ludicrous competitiveness of the top flight, and there are plenty of managers who'll achieve less and find continuous employment.

Which is a fairer assessment, Smith isn't a worse manager than Bielsa, Klopp or Guardiola because he has a system he likes to stick to and he doesn't experiment enough. He doesn't have their experience and isn't as creative in how he sets up a system which is why they're all world class managers and he's not. That doesn't mean he can't still take us forward, we've all seen how this team can play at their best and it's the best football I've seen from a villa team in years (probably since Atkinson).

The performances against Liverpool and Arsenal set a benchmark, we can either be disappointed that we haven't matched that consistently enough since (it's been flashes here and there during games) or we can be optimistic that as the squad improves that consistency will come and we'll be better next year.

The question is - to what extent is he coaching the best out of his players, and is it enough? I saw an interview with that flavour-of-the-month RB Leipzig defender (I'm starting to be completely hopeless with names) and he said that Nagelsmann can improve players in a single conversation. Now, that's obviously an exaggeration, but only to some extent, and we have to ask ourselves what Smith does to improve players in training.

Because he undoubtedly does improve players. We could all pick examples and doubtless some could think of counters (e.g. Konsa, who maybe just had that talent all along), but to my mind the obvious one is Matt Targett, who has gone from a shaky contributor to a player who really knows his role and executes it consistently. Against this, to my mind, is Douglas Luiz, who seems to have gone backwards this year. Perhaps this is just down to himself, but it could also be that Smith doesn't coach the positional play well enough that is so vital in modern top-level midfields.

These are questions we can't really answer perfectly. Everything in football is a gamble - there's a reason we keep referring to this as 'stick or twist' - and we just have to ask ourselves if the improvement we've got really is enough. Because we all remember how MON improved us to a certain level, before his flaws had us bumping our heads against a ceiling that we've never yet reached again.

Absolutely. On Luiz I think it's that the balance in midfield just isn't working because however we've been setup for the last 3-4 months it's been him, McGinn and someone who is struggling in as a 3rd and that has led to both of them under-performing for most of that time.

[sickbeggar]

I don't think its fair to compare Smith to Bielsa, Klopp and Guardiola. I think most people would probably rather have any of those 3 than Smith just in relation to their experience and the stage of their career they're in. Klopp had got Mainz promoted and relegated from the Bundesliga in the length of time Smith has been managing. Guardiola got parachuted into arguably the biggest club in spain in a 2 horse league which probably helps you. Bielsa was winning things almost straight away but even he had 10 years as a coach first. I suppose Bielsa would fit the bill as a "name" manager but whether he'd leave Leeds, or whether bigger clubs than us are eyeing him now is another matter.

[Chris Smith]

Well Bielsa overachieves with his method, whereas Smith arguably achieves par. Which is pretty impressive given the ludicrous competitiveness of the top flight, and there are plenty of managers who'll achieve less and find continuous employment.

It will be interesting to see how, or if, Leeds progress. Will they be able to attract better players to move them on or does the Bielsa style have a ceiling in how far it can go in this country? I feel that players need to absolutely buy into his methods and that might be a barrier as much as it is an incentive.

[DB]

Who would you take right now then, Smith or Bielsa?

[ChicagoLion]

I would take Potter over Smith tomorrow. I think Deano is great, I think he has done really well to get us to safety, and then kick on, but if we are as ambitious as claimed, then he needs to be replaced with someone tactically more astute sooner rather than later. Leeds are the prime example of a manager making the difference, they have a decent championship squad with 3-4 good players on top, and Bielsa has extracted every last ounce of ability from them. No way any other manager with that squad gets close to 55 points. Spurs should be offering him the earth on a stick to go there. Problem we have is every manager in the land knows how we will line up every week, the way we will play, the time we will make subs etc. We have no variation, no ability to change things. If Smith is going to kick us on to the top 6 as per the will of the owners, he is going to have to adapt and improve too.

The saddest bit of this post which makes my heart sink when I read it is the part where are you say every manager in the land knows how we will lineup,knows how we will play and knows when we will make our subs
Dean Smith is no way near as bad as Lambert McLeish and Bruce but that is exactly what They did week after week
There’s a big problem right there

I often see people say Dean is learning on the job and if he is I’ve got no problem but I’d like to see it manifested in tactics and playing formations on the pitch every so often

The inability to respond to circumstances or  pose tactical challenges is a huge problem and not sure how this gets addressed. Does Smith even accept that he has a problem ?

[ChicagoLion]

Who would you take right now then, Smith or Bielsa?

Bielsa.

[sickbeggar]

If the club shunted Smith off now and unveiled Bielsa, i'd feel sorry for Smith because he's done what I've expected realistically so far in terms of League position, and arguably ahead of time, but i'd be a liar if I said I wouldn't be looking forward to next season with more expectation.

[Drummond]

Smith. Absolutely.

He's improving us and there's no need to twist. And even then, I wouldn't have Bielsa; I know he's done some good things but the reality is that he's had 7 clubs in 10 years. Leeds is the longest he's had in that time and most of it has been in the Championship.

When we change, we of course we will, I'd hope it's for someone with a better pedigree.

[Monty]

Bielsa's biggest strength and weakness is that he's a maniac, and generally speaking the higher the expectations the worse he does. As Chris says he needs total buy-in from the players, because if even one part of the system isn't going hell-for-leather all the time then it all falls apart, and it gets harder to expect that from players at the top of the game, especially as it does involve losing 5-2 every now and again.

The thing with replacing Smith is that this isn't Football Manager,  you can't just replace a set of stats with another set of stats and watch your expected league position go up. Teams have atmospheres and cultures and vibes, and when you shake that up you often have no idea how all the pieces will land afterwards. That's why the elite managers these days - Klopp, Pep, Allegri, Conte etc - are the ones considered the safest bets rather than necessarily the most inventive or imaginative (though clearly in Pep's case he combines it all). Replacing Smith with Bielsa, which by the way I think is incredibly unlikely for all sorts of reason, would for me represent an unacceptable risk, no matter how exciting it would be on paper.

[Hockley Lion]

Well Bielsa overachieves with his method, whereas Smith arguably achieves par. Which is pretty impressive given the ludicrous competitiveness of the top flight, and there are plenty of managers who'll achieve less and find continuous employment.

Which is a fairer assessment, Smith isn't a worse manager than Bielsa, Klopp or Guardiola because he has a system he likes to stick to and he doesn't experiment enough. He doesn't have their experience and isn't as creative in how he sets up a system which is why they're all world class managers and he's not. That doesn't mean he can't still take us forward, we've all seen how this team can play at their best and it's the best football I've seen from a villa team in years (probably since Atkinson).

The performances against Liverpool and Arsenal set a benchmark, we can either be disappointed that we haven't matched that consistently enough since (it's been flashes here and there during games) or we can be optimistic that as the squad improves that consistency will come and we'll be better next year.

I absolutely agree with this. My pint for one is half full, not half empty.
Utv

[sickbeggar]

Bielsa's biggest strength and weakness is that he's a maniac, and generally speaking the higher the expectations the worse he does. As Chris says he needs total buy-in from the players, because if even one part of the system isn't going hell-for-leather all the time then it all falls apart, and it gets harder to expect that from players at the top of the game, especially as it does involve losing 5-2 every now and again.

The thing with replacing Smith is that this isn't Football Manager,  you can't just replace a set of stats with another set of stats and watch your expected league position go up. Teams have atmospheres and cultures and vibes, and when you shake that up you often have no idea how all the pieces will land afterwards. That's why the elite managers these days - Klopp, Pep, Allegri, Conte etc - are the ones considered the safest bets rather than necessarily the most inventive or imaginative (though clearly in Pep's case he combines it all). Replacing Smith with Bielsa, which by the way I think is incredibly unlikely for all sorts of reason, would for me represent an unacceptable risk, no matter how exciting it would be on paper.

That's pretty much spot on. Careful what you wish for...…. Still, it wouldn't be dull.

[Risso]

Bielsa has turned a no-mark, journeyman striker like Bamford into one of the Premier League's top scorers, with 16 goals and 7 assists.  I think give him some money to spend and top talent to work with and Leeds will be a real force.

[Monty]

Lack of dullness would be absolutely guaranteed, and I'm not saying he'd fail or anything, I've been a fan of Bielsa for years and years. I'm just saying that a) I don't think he'd leave Leeds to come here, and b) he does have something of a reputation for chaos that may not suit us, especially if you've done something as disruptive as firing Dean Smith after three seasons of consistent improvement.

[Hockley Lion]

Smith. League position doesn't lie and with Jack injured so long I think it's a good position.