Is Smithy Up To The Job?

Five league matches against London clubs have produced 15 goals against! I don't think I want to see another London club in quite a while!

Well, was today's result more to do with hard luck? Ramsey had to go off early and then the red card matter just after half-time, after all, which both interfered with matters. Added to the bad decision in allowing the follow-up score in last week's injury-time penalty and it could be said that hard luck is the cause.

But no. I am a believer in making your own luck, and Villa's play last week in the first half was nowhere near good enough. Then the collapse the previous week has to be considered. As to today, Young was perhaps a satisfactory replacement for Ramsey, I thought, and for the red card incident, I thought that Hause was the one that should have gone off moments earlier for his crazy swipe at the West Ham player. But maybe it could have been two red cards in one breath - it was certainly such a situation with Konsa being the last line of defence.

But let's get back to basics. Having failed to dismantle 5-3-2 before last week, Dean Smith then decides to drop Captain Mings in a week when he plays a totally new midfield and attack. Too much change in one go, I'm afraid, Smithy! Particularly with Sanson, Luiz and Ings all non-available for sickness reasons, I believe.

Is Hause a better player than Mings? No.

Do Villa have a player better suited as captain than Mings? In my opinion, no again.

In today's match - no matter what gaff or two he's committed of late - Mings should have been out there from the first as both defence and leadership was obviously something that Villa would have to rely on against a confident Hammers. Hause for Mings did nothing other than make Mings feel punished for his misdemeanours at the detriment of the team as a whole. Hause is a very useful player who sometimes rises above himself, but he, also, shows the odd deficiency.

So. what do I say is the root cause of Villa's problem? Unfortunately, the manager. His stubbornness in holding on to 5-3-2 for one week too many has cost the Villa a lot of confidence. And today's debacle puts us too close to the bottom three, partly as a result of Smith's stubbornness. In my opinion, of course.

From the time of relying so much on Jack to raise the Villa's performances, to these latest gaffs in team organisation, I'm afraid he now gives me doubts as to his suitability as a Premiership manager. If Graham Potter can do so well with a Brighton team with such little resources at hand, why cannot Smithy do equally well? Look at West Ham, as well. Why did Villa start to play better today when they were down to 10 men?

I have wanted Smith to succeed, but I am feeling - particularly after today - that his tenure must end if Villa is not to be relegated or at least finishing in the bottom half again. I'm sure the owners are thinking the same thing. 

Villa have a good enough squad to be in the top-8, and we should be showing that level by now, player absences or not. If you want success then you have to have the right manager to take you there.

Sorry, Dean. And I mean that - you're a decent feller and you have tried.

UTV!