The Official Dean Smith Thread | Page 243 | Vital Football

The Official Dean Smith Thread

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I'd concede our defence looks stronger since the re-start, but that is countered by the reduced lack of goal threat.
Our attacking play lacks any speed whatsoever. Players want far too many touches and often when we are hitting teams on the counter we turn inside and play a square or backwards pass, enabling the opposition to get men behind the ball and get their shape back. We have pace in attack, we just don't seem to know how to use it.
 
We've conceded in 3 of our 4 matches since the return.
Think the problem with "strengthening the defence" is that if the players are prone to the odd mistake in the match they're still prone to making the odd mistake. Which is one reason I think that being more defensive and not putting the priority on sharpening the attack is a big mistake.
 
It could work but only if the bad blood between Purslow and Rafa has been sorted out? I somehow get the feeling Rafa isn't a man to forget being treated like the way he was moved out of Liverpool?


Rafael Benítez blames Christian Purslow for Liverpool exit
• Benítez says managing director wanted him out of Anfield
• 'It was a surprise – Purslow decided to do it this way'


"Rafael Benítez has blamed Liverpool's managing director, Christian Purslow, for his departure from Anfield and the club's financial problems for last season's dramatic downturn on the pitch. "

"It was really sad," Benítez said when discussing his departure in an interview with Radio City today. "I was on holiday so it was a surprise that everything was going on in this way, but at the end of the day it has to be like this because Christian Purslow is now in charge and he decided to do it in this way. That is it".

Full Article https://www.theguardian.com/football/2010/jun/25/rafael-benitez-christain-purslow-liverpool-exit

there’s no doubt in my mind that purslow has to go. He’s failed. Hope the owners see this too.
That will make way for Rafa nicely
 
I'm glad we're sticking with Smith. We need stability at the club. Constantly sacking managers every couple of years isn't getting us anywhere. If the worst comes to the worst this season he has already proven he can get us out of the championship. Pitarch has to go though. Player recruitment has been terrible.

Sticking with a bad manager is as bad as constantly changing. Can’t remember the last time we’ve had a good manager. It only ends when we get someone quality in charge.

Stick with Smith and even if he gets out of the championship, we will be back in this very position .... ie in the premier league with a championship manager and team bound for relegation.
 
there’s no doubt in my mind that purslow has to go. He’s failed. Hope the owners see this too.
That will make way for Rafa nicely

Rafa's football is as boring as anyone out there. I'd give it 6 months before we were all calling for his head.
Even Potato Head is managing to outperform him as Newcastle manager
 
Eh? No one said that. You’ve introduced the supporting the manager bit by yourself.

You said: “the team was improving” (based on cherry picking of individual players).

That is illogical because -
1. Individual players do not constitute the team and their values are irrelevant anyway

2. The team is not improving, it’s getting worse

Keep up 😚
The team hasnt improved under Smith? As bad as it is, if we put this team against the one that Smith inherited managed by Bruce a few months ago, the current team would absolutely hammer it. So the team has improved.

It's worse than the premier league teams around it, but its better than any aston villa team we have seen in about six years.
 
Yeah, two points from four tough games is acceptable so he is getting results.

Jack Grealish has gone from being famous for ditching Ireland for England to being an 80m rated player. Mings has gone from being out on loan from Bournemouth in the championship to playing for England. McGinn has gone from being a 1.5m championship player to being a 40m rated midfielder. So yes, the team is improving.

A few players increasing in value is not the team improving.
Jack Grealish has been improving over the years with age, he improved under Bruce, not because of Bruce, but due to talent and increasing experience.
Has mings really improved as a player? Maybe a little solely down to increased experience and game time.
Mcginn has been great from the beginning, wasn’t he a Bruce signing?
Can’t say I can give smith much credit for improving individual players, he certainly hasn’t improved us as a team, if he has it’s been by a negligible amount.
 
The team hasnt improved under Smith? As bad as it is, if we put this team against the one that Smith inherited managed by Bruce a few months ago, the current team would absolutely hammer it. So the team has improved.

It's worse than the premier league teams around it, but its better than any aston villa team we have seen in about six years.

Bruce got us to the playoffs, as did Smith. So they are much of a muchness.
Smith benefited from work Bruce did.
If Bruce remained I think he would have gained us promotion in a similar fashion to smith and too would have struggled in the prem.
Although I admit Bruce plays hideous football, in terms of results I think he is just as good if not better then smith.
I was only in favour of sacking Bruce if he was replaced with someone of the likes of Rafa or Poch. Bruce to Smith was a sideways step imo.

Under smith did we not rely on winning a penalty shootout during playoffs to gain promotion?
Once in the playoffs, there’s a lot of luck involved in winning that 3rd place.
Bruce could have just as easily gained promotion by beating Fulham had we had a little luck.
 
The team hasnt improved under Smith? As bad as it is, if we put this team against the one that Smith inherited managed by Bruce a few months ago, the current team would absolutely hammer it. So the team has improved.

It's worse than the premier league teams around it, but its better than any aston villa team we have seen in about six years.

I'm struggling to see the 'team' part.

I don't feel as strongly as many on here regarding how poor our players are as individuals and think many of them are better than they appear. The problem for me is the way we don't play as a team, have plan A, B & C, look lethargic, disorganised, sometimes disinterested.

I put a lot of that at the feet of the manager. I really do struggle to see quite what Smith is doing and even more worryingly, what he is trying to do.

We've had similar over the years and he's probably no worse than many others but I always feel like we do the square pegs / round holes thing too much. We buy players in with 'potential' that either never really was or once here seemingly have it knocked out of them.

And just as frustrating is the number of 'crap' and 'mediocre' players that leave us and go on to perform in teams that are above us in position and ability.

There's just something not working at the Club. I don't know what it is but with the owner, manager and player turnover we have I'd have hoped it would have stopped by now.

For me, I'd get someone lined up to replace Smith now because I'm not sure he's going to be as lucky in the Championship next year as he was last season.
 
smith isnt a prem manager and terry isnt a coach they say results dont lie and its proof we just arnt good enough it starts with the buying of players how there coached and how there managed and the system we try and play and we have failed on all fronts . the owners need to address this and bring in propper football people to bring in players and why have we let so many of our younger talent leave i can see another gary cahill happening
 
The team hasnt improved under Smith? As bad as it is, if we put this team against the one that Smith inherited managed by Bruce a few months ago, the current team would absolutely hammer it. So the team has improved.

Not convinced they would. 'Absolutely hammered'? I'll treat that like your predictions in every match thread - hopeful but ultimately way off the mark!

I've watched every single game this season and from a standpoint of coherency as a team, effort and workrate, attacking intent, overall performance, IMHO they have deteriorated in a consistent and linear way from August to now. YMMV.

The other thing that has changed is Dean Smith's increasing bizarre and excuse ridden explanations post match - they've also got much much worse!

The best display I've seen from Villa was the first 60 mins against Spurs waaaay back on Aug 10th. They've not shown anything like the fight, pressing or instinct to attack since then. It's been a steady mismanaged decline.
 
Sticking with a bad manager is as bad as constantly changing. Can’t remember the last time we’ve had a good manager. It only ends when we get someone quality in charge.

Stick with Smith and even if he gets out of the championship, we will be back in this very position .... ie in the premier league with a championship manager and team bound for relegation.
Who'd you like to see in charge then?
 
Not convinced they would. 'Absolutely hammered'? I'll treat that like your predictions in every match thread - hopeful but ultimately way off the mark!

I've watched every single game this season and from a standpoint of coherency as a team, effort and workrate, attacking intent, overall performance, IMHO they have deteriorated in a consistent and linear way from August to now. YMMV.

The other thing that has changed is Dean Smith's increasing bizarre and excuse ridden explanations post match - they've also got much much worse!

The best display I've seen from Villa was the first 60 mins against Spurs waaaay back on Aug 10th. They've not shown anything like the fight, pressing or instinct to attack since then. It's been a steady mismanaged decline.

I didnt think much of that performance to be honest. Grealish faffing about at the edge of our box and giving the ball away for the equaliser was the first of many, many individual errors that have cost us 10, 20, 25 points this season.

The next glaring one that comes to mind after you reminding me of that game is the Engels mistake costing us a point against Spurs at home. That point would have us 17th right now.

A team of donkeys is a team of donkeys regardless of who's name is written on the head coaches door.
 
I didnt think much of that performance to be honest. Grealish faffing about at the edge of our box and giving the ball away for the equaliser was the first of many, many individual errors that have cost us 10, 20, 25 points this season.

The next glaring one that comes to mind after you reminding me of that game is the Engels mistake costing us a point against Spurs at home. That point would have us 17th right now.

A team of donkeys is a team of donkeys regardless of who's name is written on the head coaches door.
Yep. These players aren't Smith signings. Sack Suso, give Smith another year in charge with players that he wants and then judge him.
 
At least at the start of the season the team was probably playing with the style we expected. What worries me of late is that there isn't a style. DS seems willing to almost try anything; consistency has gone out of the window, and performances don't hang together like they should. Given Wes's views on developing a team approach, that alone means, I think, that he won't be staying. He doesn't fit with what the owners are looking for, or with what they thought they were getting when they appointed him.

To be fair we've had the odd good period; January comes to mind when we played a lot of matches, W3 D2 L2 including the cup matches. Also, I think most players have improved; the experience of playing in the PL has been positive. However, we need more.
 
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