Austin MacPhee

[Somniloquism]

Never got the impression that Unai warmed to him particularly.

So Emery, who totally changed all the backroom apart fom MacPhee, kept him for 3.5 years and used to allow him to take over the technical area with no fuss during set-pieces, didn't warm to him?

[Somniloquism]

I often wondered if he worked on that side, because as good as we have been offensively we always look vulnerable defensively.

We derfinitely improved defending them, but whether that was better players defending them or improvements from Austin is always up in the air. Although similar can be said from scoring them, there is the odd one or two which have definitely been coached in (the final for example), but most are down to the quality of the ball in and the finishing of the player.  Sometimes we were not even clearing the first man. Was that down to a poor ball or because a player didn't do his job at the routine to draw that player out.

[Behind Bluenose Lines]

Prog rock wanker.

It's a key area these days, I hope we don't Rush the appointment of his successor.

Yes!!

His departure is going down like a Led Zeppelin with some people.

[Eckybloke]

Had a feeling earlier in the summer that this was going to come sooner rather than later.
He left Scotland to go to Portugal and I’d like to think he had more affinity for his country than a club.  Even this club! 🤣

[brontebilly]

Hopefully the PL over the summer kick back hard against those set piece brawls that favour the Stokes/Wimbledons/Arsenals and goals from open play are prioritised again. Austy was great though we had quite a small team so had to be innovative at set piece time. The Tielemans goal in the final as a case in point.

[mrfuse]

We scored 18 Premier League goals from set-pieces last season — only the joint-10th most in the Premier League.

We conceded 16 set-piece goals, with seven teams conceding fewer set-piece goals than Villa.

I think we will be ok.

[Ian.]

That’s quite interesting. Nowhere near as good as I thought and pretty much where I thought defensively.

[caster troy]

We scored 18 Premier League goals from set-pieces last season — only the joint-10th most in the Premier League.

We conceded 16 set-piece goals, with seven teams conceding fewer set-piece goals than Villa.

I think we will be ok.

Doesn’t that include penalties though, of which we had none so our free kick / corner stats are more impressive.

[wince]

Prog rock wanker.

Oi!

[maidstonevillain]

We scored 18 Premier League goals from set-pieces last season — only the joint-10th most in the Premier League.

We conceded 16 set-piece goals, with seven teams conceding fewer set-piece goals than Villa.

I think we will be ok.

I might be wrong, But could that be because we were awarded for fewer set pieces than most teams.

[eye digress]

Never got the impression that Unai warmed to him particularly.

So Emery, who totally changed all the backroom apart fom MacPhee, kept him for 3.5 years and used to allow him to take over the technical area with no fuss during set-pieces, didn't warm to him?

It's my view that he didn't warm to him, yes.

I take it from the tone of your post (rather than the content) that it is not yours.

[Skipper_The_Eyechild]

Never got the impression that Unai warmed to him particularly.

So Emery, who totally changed all the backroom apart fom MacPhee, kept him for 3.5 years and used to allow him to take over the technical area with no fuss during set-pieces, didn't warm to him?

It's my view that he didn't warm to him, yes.

I take it from the tone of your post (rather than the content) that it is not yours.

It does feel like a weird impression to have, what are you basing it on?

[eye digress]

Never got the impression that Unai warmed to him particularly.

So Emery, who totally changed all the backroom apart fom MacPhee, kept him for 3.5 years and used to allow him to take over the technical area with no fuss during set-pieces, didn't warm to him?

It's my view that he didn't warm to him, yes.

I take it from the tone of your post (rather than the content) that it is not yours.

It does feel like a weird impression to have, what are you basing it on?

It's just an impression formed from listening to post-match interviews and pre-match press conferences, after games where we've scored set pieces, in response to leading questions inviting Unai to praise MacPhee – which he sort of does, but not before pointing out that he (Unai) decides the approach, with the coaches (MacPhee), that he then expects the coaches to execute. The subject seems to make him bristle slightly, in my view.

I heard him answer once along these lines and thought nothing of it, but then a second time and given that (a) it would be so much easier to respond by saying "Yeah, Austin's great", and (b) Unai is unfailingly polite in public, it occurred to me that it might not be a coincidence.

Hence my impression is that Unai didn't warm to him.

[eamonn]

No further questions your honour.

[dave.woodhall]

It's possible that Unai didn't like McPhee personally but kept him around because he worked well with the players. It might also be true that Unai's squad 2.0 will need a different set-piece coach.