My first contribution to this site was an assessment of the squad last summer. With the season just ended, now is a perfect time to do so again. Whoever the new manager is—I’d be happy with Lambert, Ole (I’ll learn how to spell last his name if we actually appoint him), Rodgers, or Martinez—he will have a lot of work on his hands.

This week will be Part I focusing on the goalkeepers and defense. Next week will be midfield and strikers.

Goalkeepers
Shay Given: Gave the club everything they could have asked for and proved his skills didn’t diminish after being on the shelf for a year.

Brad Guzan: It is a shame he was never given a chance before Given was signed. Martin O’Neill, who signed Guzan, probably would’ve given him a crack at the #1 shirt, but for some reason Gerard Houllier didn’t rate him. As good as Given has been, with money being tight the club might have been able to spend his fee elsewhere if they’d known Guzan was as good as he is. As it is, he will be looking to go somewhere he can be the #1 to give himself the best chance to go to Brazil in 2014.

Andy Marshall: I am too lazy to copy and paste what I wrote last year.

Benjamin Siegrist: The young Swiss keeper is quite the prospect and featured in the Next-Gen and with the reserves. He should be given a chance to play with the first team in the preseason to see if he is ready to be Given’s backup. Ideally he could serve as Given’s understudy and be ready to assume the #1 shirt as Given’s contract and career wind down.

Defenders
Stephen Warnock: He had his moments where it almost looked like he was a competent LB, but by and large was awful in every way. He needs to be sold.

James Collins: Villa fans have suffered enough. I don’t want to see Collins aimlessly punt the ball up the pitch in a Villa shirt ever again. He is young enough the club might get a half-decent fee for him.

Richard Dunne: Before breaking his collarbone he was having a fine season. With Dunne you know you’re going to get awkward challenges and own goals, but the pluses outweigh the minuses. I like the idea of keeping him so the defense has at least one veteran presence.

Alan Hutton: The worst player on the club last season. He did improve somewhat as the season went on, which is easy to do when it’s impossible to get worse. He needs to go.

Eric Lichaj: He was a revelation after regaining fitness late in the season and was the club’s best fullback by a mile. He figures to man one of the FB slots next season.

Ciaran Clark: Had a bit of an up-and-down season as McLeish didn’t play him nearly enough in the early going. He needs a run at his natural CB position. His versatility in playing midfield and LB is valuable, but at 22 he is not going to get any quicker, making his pace more of an issue as he gets older.

Nathan Baker: The club’s injury crisis was a blessing for him. After being at least partially responsible for three goals in his debut, injuries forced him to be given another chance and he made the most of it. Baker should at least be in the mix next year at CB. His passing ability will be key, especially if the new manager wants to build up play from the back.

Carlos Cuellar: Solid at everything, great at nothing—he is the type of player who is frequently overlooked. It will be sad to see King Carlos go. Assuming the club spend a decent amount of money to replace Collins, Cuellar should be replaced by a cheap veteran to provide emergency cover (and who won’t block Clark and Baker).

Part II will run next week. On my relaunched website 98 On The Black, I share my thoughts on the sacking of Kenny Dalglish.

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