Past Managers, Love or Hate?

[brontebilly]

Without wanting to rake over too many coals, MON did elevate us to a position where we were playing in Europe, challenging for silverware in cups, challenging for CL football and attracting good players at the top of their game (Milner, Young, Delph). There were some decent games in there too.
It wasn't all bad.
Don't hate him, don't love him either, in the middle for me.

Exactly where I am, got us regularly in the top 6 and had some cracking games with him in charge regardless of the crap way it all ended.

He got blamed for far too much for years after. Pulis left Palace in similar circumstances but they didn't collapse. Handing him free reign over the budget was where Lerner went wrong and he was ultimately accountable for the financial stability of the club. MON I think would have kept the show on the road for another season anyway if given the budget Houllier got. His career petered out quickly after us too, flopping at Sunderland, so maybe we got some of the best out of him.

MON is an ego maniac and prickly beyond belief to any hint of criticism. His antics at the end of his gig with Ireland were pathetic. But his results with us were pretty solid in the main and the squad he left us was far superior to the one he inherited.

[FatSam]

MON I think would have kept the show on the road for another season anyway if given the budget Houllier got.

I disagree with this. I have more confidence that Houllier would have identified what the squad needed, and acted decisively to improve it. After all, he signed Bent in his first transfer window. O’Neill would probably have signed another four centre halves to play across the back given the opportunity.

… his results with us were pretty solid in the main and the squad he left us was far superior to the one he inherited.

I disagree with this. Whilst the squad was better than the one O’Neill inherited, it should have been a lot better for the money he spent, and still wasn’t balanced.

[PeterWithesShin]

He left a squad that had a few gems and a load of overpriced and overpaid milk bottle players.

[kippaxvilla2]

McNeil was comically bad.  It’s not that I disliked him.  It’s just that his stint was so appalling those of a certain age wouldn’t appreciate it unless you were there to witness it.  He started off with two successive 2-0 home wins v Newcastle and Leicester if memory serves and all seemed bright then we went on a monumentally terrible run after that. 

The players who contained bright lights such as Keown and Paul Elliot took the piss out of him because in training when they got something right he would shout out ‘bingo’.  Hence the nickname Billy McBingo. The S*n also named  him Billy McBungle for taking us and Citeh down in the same season.

[VILLA MOLE]

There is a podcast under the Kosh?  where James Collins discusses him
and Richard Dunn joining Villa just before the blues game .  They met the night before
and i think the consensus was with O’neil was to chuck them in  for all set pieces. ,  you are big lumps you will do some damage

[Monty]

MON had his last shot with us, really rather a lot of money, and it was the last time that kind of 'old school' (read: lazy bloke bullshit) management style worked or would ever work. We squandered our last chance at getting to the top table on a hoof-and-run merchant, going backwards while everyone else was modernising. In a league increasingly of chic bistros, we stayed a Toby Carvery.

[Sexual Ealing]

MON had his last shot with us, really rather a lot of money, and it was the last time that kind of 'old school' (read: lazy bloke bullshit) management style worked or would ever work. We squandered our last chance at getting to the top table on a hoof-and-run merchant, going backwards while everyone else was modernising. In a league increasingly of chic bistros, we stayed a Toby Carvery.

Can he play right-back etc.

[Deano's Mullet]

Loved - Taylor, BFR, Little, Gregory, Smith, Emery
Respected - O Neill, Bruce, O'Leary (1st year and half)
Meh - McLeish, Lambert, Gerrard

[Clampy]

From memory, the one manager I couldnt really warm to at the time other than Gerrard was Houiller. I'm not sure why because you could see what he was trying to do and I think and I stand correct, he had awful issues with injuries. Lambert stayed far too long, O'Leary towards the end seemed to think he was too good for us and Mcleish was just a really poor choice albeit a seemingly decent bloke.

[Risso]

MON I think would have kept the show on the road for another season anyway if given the budget Houllier got.

I disagree with this. I have more confidence that Houllier would have identified what the squad needed, and acted decisively to improve it. After all, he signed Bent in his first transfer window. O’Neill would probably have signed another four centre halves to play across the back given the opportunity.

… his results with us were pretty solid in the main and the squad he left us was far superior to the one he inherited.

I disagree with this. Whilst the squad was better than the one O’Neill inherited, it should have been a lot better for the money he spent, and still wasn’t balanced.

People at the time suggested Houllier for some sort of director of football position, but perhaps overlook the fact that his later signings at Liverpool were nearly all absolutely dreadful. It's not like Darren Bent was a great signing really. He cost an awful lot of money for the time, and while he scored a few goals in that first half a season, he didn't add a lot else in terms of performance and was injured a fair amount. I guess most of us on here would have pointed at somebody banging them in for Sunderland, but in reality it all went a bit 'Danny Ings'.

[PeterWithesShin]

In fairness to Bent he was 18 in 38 before Wigan. After that he was never the same, another Villa player done by injury. Although as said apart from scoring goals he didn't offer much else so the game was leaving players like him behind at the top level, unless a freak like Haaland.

[VillaTim]

Garde was that inconsequential one night stand when you were at a low ebb that's best left buried deep in your own mind.

Just read  up on him, sacked by a MLS team in 2019, not managed since.

Villa Park is a managerial graveyard! It finished many upward trending careers. Sherwood never managed again bar twatting out cliches on SSN every other week. Gerrard couldn't even get a championship gig. RDM?

Didn't Sherwood manage Swindon after us .

[RichardBatchelor]

Love unconditionally: Saunders, Taylor, Emery

Really Like: Little, Barton, Smith

Really like but with caveats: BFR, Gregory

Quite like: O’Neill

Meh: Turner, Lambert, Di Matteo

Seemed alright people but shit managers: McLeish, Garde, Venglos

Disliked them at Villa but had a lot of respect for what they’d done before they got here: Houllier, Gerrard

Got on my nerves: McNeill, Bruce, Sherwood

Disliked a lot: O’Leary, Black

No hate as yet. Hope it stays that way.

[john e]

Worst manager for me was Bruce

Hated every single minute of his tenure knew it was never going to work The bloke was useless
He had the best and most expensive squad in the championship and managed to finish 13
Honestly I’d back myself to have done better

The following season when we should’ve pissed the league by 10 clear points we get to the play-off final and as usual play Bruceball and deservedly lose

Football was rubbish. The tactics were rubbish. Bruce was rubbish

His tactics were Neanderthal, he got a few results because we in general we had better players than anybody else, but he still managed to turn that squad into a total box standard mid table championship team, now that he was the king of

He never started anything he never steadied any ship, he never stopped any rot He just continued it in the most boring fashion imaginable, supporting Villa during his time was absolutely dire

The day he left was a great day for me and Villa and we never looked back
Everywhere he’s gone since he’s stunk the place out

He was absolutely rubbish



( he was a very good player mind but it don’t count because it wasn’t for us)

[kippaxvilla2]

But apart from that he was okay?