By Owen Moring.
Dean Smith was at the heart of Aston Villa’s successful promotion campaign from the Championship to the Premier League in the 2018/19 season, and being a Villa fan himself, he quickly received support and backing from the fans.
After a difficult start to life as Villa boss, Smith led the side to a club-record ten-match winning streak, with help from fellow Villa fan and captain Jack Grealish.
A successful playoff campaign, involving a penalty shootout victory against local rivals West Bromwich Albion, and a final win against Derby County, meant that Smith and Aston Villa had a busy summer to prepare for life back in the big time.
With thirteen new signings and £140m spent, Villa fans felt optimistic about the return to the Premier League.
However, life in the top flight has been far from perfect, with statistically the worst defence in the league and relegation just around the corner, questions are being asked about Smith and his coaching team.
looks like this. #AVFC pic.twitter.com/LGcnDNX1ES
— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) July 1, 2020
Many believe his time as Aston Villa head coach is up, with the uncertainty around Sean Dyche’s future at Burnley exciting many fans.
Smith’s record at Aston Villa is far from perfect, with a win ratio of just 41%. Many fans believe that the biggest problem is that he doesn’t know what his best eleven is. A big issue is that he has failed to build a reliable defence, having tried fifteen different combinations of defence and goalkeeper in the league.
Another issue for Smith is having to play starman Grealish out of position. With wingers Anwar El Ghazi, Trezeguet and Jota underperforming, Grealish has been pushed out of his preferred role of central midfield to play on the left, leaving a lack of creativity in the midfield, resulting in a lack of service for the strikers.
With just five games to go, it is inevitable that Smith will manage his boyhood club until the end of the season, but having lost the support of the Villa faithful, fans are likely to call for his head regardless of whether the club can maintain their hard-fought Premier League status or not.
COMMENTS
With Watford winning tonight I fear another nail is in our coffin , and it’s only my opinion but I haven’t been impressed with DS as a manager for a long time now I believe he should have gone before lockdown.
Rubbish recruitment rubber stamped by Smith and absolutely no goal threat all season. All this and our position is of our own making, we will be relegated and loose most of our best players not a prospect I am looking forward to especially with DS in charge. We’re going down so might as well clear the lot out and start again ,and as for favourites to come straight back up ,well does anyone know any more good jokes. It’s sad and unacceptable given the money spent on very poor quality players with no PL experience. I say again things should have changed a long time ago, so now we pay the price.
Lose most of our best players…………………….seems like we’ll keep most of the wasters then!
100%. Right. 130m. On junk. Dean_o. Not up for the job. Nice guy but. Out of is dep.
Yes colin. 100%right. Sad to say. 130m on junk.
Smith’s level was at Brentford he is at best a mid table Championship manager.I understand why Villa felt obliged to keep him after being promoted but he should have got the chop at Christmas.
What a well written article! This Owen Moring has a future in this
David Ornstein who?
Superb article thoroughly enjoyed reading keep them coming lad
Terrible mistakes made this season and not all down to Smith. We have a head of recruitment in Pitarch who couldn’t find his a**e with both hands. No forward capable of scoring in fact the three main strikers haven’t hit double figures between them.
Smith has been out of his depth and his two assistants have been have been as well.
Have to say though Grealish has definitely had his head turned and its interesting to see the remarks made by Solskaer to the Bournemouth centre half after Man Us victory the weekend. He needs to be taken to task by the league for tapping up opposition players outside the transfer window. Him and Woodward are the Worlds worst and it ought to be stamped on.
Yes paul spot on.
We need leaders in the club, I don’t see any.
Smiths time is up should hav gone when we game up and the burnlry man we dont want big club big name
If villa do go down and jack goes plus afew more it will be along long long time befor the club gets back up again could even go down from there look at leeds time to act now