The next Villa Manager

I'd be on the phone to BSA tomorrow. He'd turn us around asap.

There must be more than the usual suspects out there. When Southampton got rid of Atkins and brought in Pochetino I thought they were mad. I'm not just saying get an exotic foreigner, but surely if we have the right football men at the club now, we can spread the net wider.

I can't stand potato head and his brand of football won't work with the players we have.

Round is connected, right? Is sure he can suggest some ideas that can work with our current set up and that have some actual football nous to take us forward. Bruce might be a promotion specialist but if we ever get back to the top flight, I don't want him spending Xia's money.

No to him. No to Big Fat Sam.

The 3 point gap to the relegation spots is now 2.

On the plus side, we're only 7 points off a play-off spot.

If you take Norwich, who were shameful last season and haven't spent anywhere near what we've spent have played more games in total due to their cup run (but less in the league) and compare our results:

Villa.......WDDLDDDDD
Norwich..LDWDLWWWW

Now, Norwich had a shaky start like us (Welcome to the Championship!) but they've kicked on since with not only 3 wins on the bounce in the league but wins in the cup against Premier League opposition. They've learnt, they've adapted, they have a winning mentality. On paper, they're nowhere close to us. Yet they're performing much much better.

But Norwich's early season struggles were against teams that we've also faced and got points off. The teams they've most recently beat in the league are mid-table/lower-table sides who we've yet to face and could well beat. Those points will see us looking a LOT healthier. Possible Norwich-like healthy!

So there's a solid argument to keep RDM on when comparing us to the Canaries if we've a run of games against mid table teams coming up....WHICH WE DO!

So does Xia wait until we see what kind of results come back from those games before he makes a decision on RDM's future? That run of games started yesterday...

Barnsley (a) - 10th place
Preston (a) - 19th place
Wolves (h) - 11th place
Reading (a) - 8th place
Fulham (h) - 12th place
Blues (a) - 6th place
Blackburn (h) - 22nd place
Brighton (a) - 3rd place
Cardiff (h) - 23rd place

Whilst we've no McGrath-given right to expect to be the best in the league, we SHOULD have an expectation of at least 14 points from that lot (win at home, draw a couple, lose a few) especially when you look at the money Xia has released. And we really shouldn't be having a discussion around only being able to beat teams from 7th place down.

Our bench would walk in to most starting XI's in this league. Our frontline is scary. Our defence is pretty solid. Our midfield isn't bad. It's not the best in the league but with the premier league experience of Westwood and Jedinak plus Gardner who has had rave reviews everywhere he's been on loan, it's enough to at least be considered average. At least!

So should Xia give him the above run of results to prove himself? That'll take us up to December and give Xia a few weeks to get a manager in prior to the next transfer window opening.

Spoke to someone who was at the game last night who has only missed one game live this season and he said our performances are going backwards and we need to get rid of RDM.

One replacement being touted is Dean Smith at Brentford? Ex Walsall and a Villa fan apparently.

Dean Smith seems to be getting an increasing number of mentions.

DelboyVilla wrote:Spoke to someone who was at the game last night who has only missed one game live this season and he said our performances are going backwards and we need to get rid of RDM.

One replacement being touted is Dean Smith at Brentford? Ex Walsall and a Villa fan apparently.

Yep he's from Great Barr.
Would do a good job IMHO
Still think it's too early to roll the dice though.

I've said Rowett for about 12 months now. Wonder when the club will listen.

A lot of his name being mentioned on Twittererer.

Ultimately though, I think a big part of the say will come down to the new Tech Director. If he can see things moving in the right direction on the training ground and on his iPad, if he feels that RDM still has the backing of the players, then RDM will stay.

But I think he'll also have a Plan B to offer Xia if we keep on like we are.

Joppe84 wrote:I've said Rowett for about 12 months now. Wonder when the club will listen.

I don't think he'd come purely based on personal safety! He'd have to wear a kevlar vest to go to Tesco.

Did Round work with Giggs at United?

Trotters wrote:

Joppe84 wrote:I've said Rowett for about 12 months now. Wonder when the club will listen.

I don't think he'd come purely based on personal safety! He'd have to wear a kevlar vest to go to Tesco.

I'd love him, and it wouldn't take much to get the Villa fans onside. All he'd had to do would be avoid noses, and unless he likes shopping in somewhere akin to Beirut that wouldn't be too difficult!!

The absolutely only positive I'm getting from RDM's reign is the fact that we aren't losing all that much. Technically we're on our way to get rid of the losing mentality.

I'll add another point, I kinda do like the players we've signed. I think players like Gollini, Chester, Elphick, Adomah, Kodjia, McCormack are a step in the right direction. We just need to get the tactics sorted and some confidence instilled in them. And the these are RDM's responsibility hands down.

I know Gollini is taking flack because of the goal yesterday, but in my eyes he's saved us plenty the last few matches. Especially against Newcastle. It's inevitable that we concede at some point when we are fucking incapable of scoring goals. Especially when you have one functioning midfielder and you insist of taking him off and replacing him with a Westwood.

avfcjoe wrote:Did Round work with Giggs at United?

Don't even mention another ex-United or ex-player with a SAF letter of approval on here. Don't you dare.

I say this with all the respect I can muster, but get the fuck out.

There isn't a winning formula to guarantee success - it's a perfect storm of lots of little things falling into place & many of those things (like key players happy in their personal life, or a succession of dodgy refereeing, injuries) aren't under the manager's control. This means that sometimes good managers fail at a club. The problem is when a losing mentality starts creeping in you end up having to have dramatic clear-out. So far, so familiar.

We're hard to beat at the moment & in time, there's every chance that the near misses will start going in & we start winning again, but I've got a feeling that Dr X is investing too much money in this project (players & overseas networks) to not act sooner rather than later. I also think that he'll still plump for a 'name' manager, waving big wages & promises of the empire to come.

Gary Rowett, Gary Monk, or maybe show some ambition and go for a sanchez-florez's, at the moment I'd even welcome potato head,

SHA are doing okay at the moment but up until a few games ago they'd only won twice in seventeen games, they play an absolutely dire brand of football. I saw it mentioned elsewhere that they have the second worst possession stats in the division.

On top of all that, the whole thing of Rowett performing miracles on a budget is a myth, they're no worse of than most teams in this division and have a squad that should be aiming for mid-table at the very least.

Rowett's benefited big time from the fact that he followed Lee Clark. I'd honestly rather keep Di Matteo. Nothing to do with where he's at either because I wouldn't be totally against Bruce or Hughton.

If Di Matteo were to leave, I have a feeling that Round would want to show off his credentials as a Sporting Director with a deep knowledge of the game, and go for a relativity unknown name, an attempt at finding the next Pochettinio.

I am going to whack 100 Euros on Big Sam being our next manager. Just a sneaky feeling for some reason.

deadbuzzardalive wrote:SHA are doing okay at the moment but up until  a few games ago they'd only won twice in seventeen games, they play an absolutely dire brand of football. I saw it mentioned elsewhere that they have the second worst possession stats in the division.

On top of all that, the whole thing of Rowett performing miracles on a budget is a myth, they're no worse of than most teams in this division and have a squad that should be aiming for mid-table at the very least.

Rowett's benefited big time from the fact that he followed Lee Clark. I'd honestly rather keep Di Matteo. Nothing to do with where he's at either because I wouldn't be totally against Bruce or Hughton.

Mate of mine is a season ticket holder at the Sty and says the Villa hating, slum-dwelling, 12-toed, inbred freaks who complain about his footy are idiots - he works with what he has. He reckons if they lose him they'll be relegated.

Against Preston he bowed to the fan pressure and played an attacking line up - and they were losing. He reverted to a counter-attacking set-up from previous games and saved them a point. And the fans still booed his subs when he made them!

He's also been given £4.6m to spend across his entire tenure.

Agree with villa_Dan on Gary Rowett villa man in charge, just need some SAS boys to look after him.
Another villa man Dean Smith at least you would think they would get the team playing for the shirt.
Both are doing well at the moment.

One thing I will say, is that whoever is managing the team would be at a serious disadvantage with our central midfield. So whilst I'd expect an improvement, I wouldn't be anticipating too much until the January transfer window.

If we beat Preston, I think Di Matteo will be given more time. I wonder how things might have turned out if he'd have gotten Eddie Newton and Holland to join him.

NARLA24 wrote:I am going to whack 100 Euros on Big Sam being our next manager. Just a sneaky feeling for some reason.

I don't think Dr X will have someone clouded in the merest wisp of dishonourable suspicion.

BTW I think Dr X's silence on Twitter is the sort to make grown managers tremble.

Allardyce I think will be taking a break from the game. I don't think we'd go for him, and I have my doubts he'd come to the Championship. If he does make a return to football soon, Sunderland would perhaps be the most likely destination.