If anyone wants two reasons why Gary McAllister should never be in charge of a football team again, let alone Aston Villa, it came today. Whilst the game was far from safe at the point where Reo-Coker and Petrov came off, it was certainly a lot unsafer following the substitutions. Of course there is absolutely no chance that the man would get the Aston Villa job, but if he wants another reason to add to the list, he certainly has one there.
To me there were far too many poor performances in the attacking play for Villa. Gabby Agbonlahor was shocking with his first touch as per usual and didn’t deserve a place in the starting XI. Ashley Young was out of sorts with a free kick that was way off target, and a lack of a cutting edge. As for Robert Pires, there is absolutely nothing that he adds to the team, and there will be groups of fans who will argue that his introduction contributed to our downfall. I would struggle to argue otherwise. The defensive play was hardly solid by any chance either, and we were lucky not to gift more chances to the opposition.
There’s literally no defending the indefensible with tactics like that. I was literally blood boiling angry when we pulled Petrov and Reo-Coker off. Who in their right mind thinks we will keep a solid hold on the park with essentially four wingers, two strikers, and no central midfield? Sure you have to win the game, but with no central midfield? Did anyone learn anything after the midfield crisis earlier this year? Teams worse than Albion cut straight through the middle without a care in the world when we had players missing in the middle. Giving Albion the chance to win that game was unbelievable naive on every level of football management. Still, the game is over so there is no point stressing too much.
As an optimist, I will always try to find positives and there were some. Downing threatened when he had chances, and we were solid in the middle of the park. “Were” is certainly the operative word there as we lost that game tactically down to managerial misfortune. If Gerard Houllier wanted something to make him feel better, I can’t imagine that performance was going to be it.
Must win? Never a truer word spoken
So what next after what can only be described as an abject performance? The term “must win” is bandied about far too often, but this is certainly a time where it is applicable. We have a game against Wigan where we quite literally have to win to keep ourselves safe. Yes, we could either a) get points from the Arsenal or Liverpool matches or b) find that there are teams that are actually playing worse than us (imagine that) to keep us up.
However, one has to look at it from a pragmatic position and see that trying to look at games against a title challenger, and a team with a strike force worth £60m as winnable compared to a team that could, in all probability, be one of the three that are going down. If we can’t beat Wigan, and have to rely on other teams to stay up then it really does illustrate the downfall of Aston Villa.
This isn’t an overnight problem
Make no mistake of it though, the blame doesn’t lie with just the current managerial setup, or of existing players. This is a problem that has been brewing under the paper thin “success” of recent years. Finishing 6th, and getting to Wembley last year (twice if you want to count a semi “appearance”) gave an impression of success which made fans think we were actually doing ok. The reality though is a lot bleaker, and it falls squarely on a whole host of people involved with the club.
The current managerial setup expected far too much change far too quickly, and were arrogant in their persistence up until a point almost at the point of no return. We’re still not mathematically safe yet, and any fool who wants to postulate that we are until that point is really tempting fate.
Several players have acted in an absolutely disgusting manner when it has come to adhering to club disciplinary policy. If you really are as spoiled and arrogant as to have a problem when a manager tells you to train a different way, or shut your mobile off, then the morally bankrupt game really does deserve to end up financially bankrupt. As for reprobates like Stephen Ireland – well the sooner we get rid of him, the better.
The board acted in a terribly poor manner when it came to resolving the managerial situation. We have absolutely no doubt that losing your manager so close to the start of the season will cause a lot of issues, but both the recruitment process was sloppy, as well as really taking a massive gamble on the future of the club with the bungled hiring of a “manager” who isn’t really fit enough to be in charge of a top club.
The board need a football specialist amongst their members. Whether this is a future role occupied by Gerard, or someone else brought in, we need this person up at the top table. Sorry guys, but Paul Faulkner and a whole host of PR from Charles Krulak just won’t cut it anymore. This is a football club and, whilst it has to operate under financial constraints like any other firm, it also needs to be done with a solid foundation of footballing knowledge.
The future plan needs to be explained now
All in all, the club will need to realise that come the end of the season, there will be massive questions being asked. Where and what is the future of this club? Where are we aiming? Is there actually a plan of action at all? We may not own the club anymore, but we sure as hell pay the bills with ticket sales, the other merchandise we buy (£45 for half a season’s shirt – anyone else feeling ripped off?), and every other hard earned penny we funnel into the club through any other manner. The club will soon wake up from their introverted view if we stop renewing season tickets after this year. Cheap compared to other clubs’ tickets? Sure. Good value? Not in the slightest.
The fact of the manner is this: Aston Villa – you were not good enough today. Not even close. Improve next game, or we really will be staring down the barrel.
As a final statement – one thing I am wholeheartedly glad of for the sake of Gerard’s health is that he won’t be in the dugout for the Liverpool match, as I honestly think given his current condition the guy could have keeled over and died on the touchline. I think this season’s football has not been good enough, but I don’t want to see the manager have another heart issue again. Gerard – get well soon, but please just stay at home and rest now. Forget about the club. You need to be fit and well, and looking after the club really isn’t going to be good for your heart at this point in time.
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