Dean Smith - reflection & appreciation

[gpbarr]

A very sad day for me. Thoroughly decent man which counts for me, I don't want a charlatan managing our great club. Gave us back our pride at supporting our club and tried to play in the right way. My 2 sons and myself have been very lucky to witness most of the matches shown in the tribute video put out by the club. I wish him all the best for his future in football, the game needs more Dean Smith's to project a decent image and encourage more young fans to want to attend games. Farewell Dean and thanks for nearly all that you achieved.

Well said sir.

[martin o`who??]

 

I see Deano is now bookies fav to be the next England manager…

After the way the gutter press treated Sir Graham I hope not.

[BC Villain]

Be shocked I'd he went to Norwich.  I suspect he may take some time out and pop up somewhere in the Summer - it's been three very demanding years for Dean with the pressure of the job and in his personal life, so some time to recharge will do him good.  It's never nice for anyone when they lose their job, but losing THIS job will have hurt him.

[cdbearsfan]

The longer you're out, the more you get forgotten. If he has a chance of the Norwich job, I doubt he would dismiss it out of hand.

[SoccerHQ]

He'd be a great fit for Norwich I think.

Yes they'll still go down but proven at bouncing straight back up and they promote young players and make signings who can develop and those are two things he's good at.

Just depends on timing I think and whenever he'd want to uproot his family as it's a long old commute.

[BC Villain]

I know I posted this last year, but this says so much about Dean Smith the man

https://twitter.com/AVFCOfficial/status/1309810195124514818?t=iwEARETVngLZ8erqKygldg&s=19

[Scratchins]

I'm in my sixth decade of supporting this great club and I've not been so genuinely sad to see a manger leaving us. He's up there with SGT for what he inherited compared to what he left us.

Had it not been for DS, and promotion not happened when it did, who knows where we would be today, but I'd highly doubt it would be as an established PL club with the base we have to build on that we do.

Thanks for everything Deano, for the ten straight, beating SHA and the Albion, for Wembley, for that incredible survival season (which never gets enough credit), for last season's progress but most of all for being that typical understated Brummie who managed his boyhood team with success, integrity and calm. 3 years is a decent stint at a top level football club and although I wished it could've been longer I think it was probably time - for now. It really wouldn't surprise me if we saw him again some day.

Spot on, I didn't think that after 64 years I would feel tearful at a manager leaving. As SE said, he didn't need to play the Villa card, he was and is one of us. Good luck for the future Deano, you have given us some of the best memories ever.

[danno]

I'll be interested to see where he goes next. I thought he probably was close to the end but at the same time I thought he might be given another game or so.

It will be a sore point for some time, but in a few years I think he can look back at a job largely well done, and with some pretty big highs along the way.

Cheers Dean.

[simon ward 50]

One of our own!

Thanks Deano

[boutrosboutrosgnarly]

Seemed inevitable I suppose given the results and performances from January but still gutted when I heard.Under Dean I actually looked forward to games for the most part, instead of dreading them under the numerous clusterfucks that came before him.Thanks for everything and all the best for the future.

[dave shelley]

I have to admit that I was of the opinion that Deano had gone as far as he could, I'll never know but, today it feels like I've lost a long-loved family pet, one of those scenarios where everyone knows what should be done but no one wants to do it.  Melodramatic perhaps but it's the way I feel.

[jwarry]

I have to admit that I was of the opinion that Deano had gone as far as he could, I'll never know but, today it feels like I've lost a long-loved family pet, one of those scenarios where everyone knows what should be done but no one wants to do it.  Melodramatic perhaps but it's the way I feel.

Same here.  I was prepared to cut him so much slack because he understood our great club and knew what we expected - and just as importantly he wanted to share it with us.  Oh and he came from Great Barr where I grew up

 But, and here is the thing, I always felt Dean was learning on the job and though there is nothing wrong with that, we have gone up several levels ironically thanks to Dean, but we now need a proven world class coach to capitalise and I’m afraid that isn’t Dean.

So yes I am very sad about this but the owners don’t have the same sentimentality we have and so we prepared to fix it before it got worse, and in doing so have probably preserved Dean’s cult status

[jwarry]

Can’t help feeling Jack really did fuck him over royally, and for what? He’s already a benchwarmer and Dean has lost his job

[Monty]

Dean's issued a statement through the LMA and I don't mind saying it brought a lump to my throat. Genuinely one of us.

[ChicagoLion]

Can’t help feeling Jack really did fuck him over royally, and for what? He’s already a benchwarmer and Dean has lost his job

Exactly. His tweet was pathetic.