Nigel Pearson has signed on for Derby then and that’s disappointing on my part as I was convinced he was the man that was needed for our current situation.
We all know there seems to have been a massive lack of discipline down the Villa for a while and my thinking is very much in line of lots of comments I’ve read in that we need a strict disciplinarian who will sort out the wasters.
Which is exactly the reason I don’t understand why it seems we’re going to run with Di Matteo.
He seems far too nice to me.
I’m also in agreement with the views that he’s never really rebuilt a team in the same way that we need rebuilding, whereas Pearson has.
So what can we take from things, if indeed we do appoint Di Matteo?
Well, it totally convinces me that Holis’ and Brian Little’s choice have been ignored.
Which can be taken as a plus point as surely it means that all parties involved on the Villa side must be convinced that Dr Xia will pass the required tests, no problem?
It also shows that Xia will be the one who firmly calls the shots. Or has this decision come from his advisors?
Either way, whether that’s a good thing, I’m not so sure.
It’s always struck me that if a club appoint a manager that’s frankly not wanted by the fans, it doesn’t bode well further down the line, just as we saw with McLeish.
While I love the things Xia is coming out with, so I also have to question how realistic they are.
Of course, anything’s realistic if you continually pump enough resources in and have enough patience.
But I wonder what the owner’s viewpoint will be if we fail to get promoted straight away?
Xia has admitted that buying the Villa is mostly business, something I have to confess worried me, but if it’s true that he’s already in the process of buying another club, it gives me hope that he’ll stand some loss in the earlier year(s).
And it would also convince me that he’s deadly serious, regardless of if the money’s his or China’s.
If, as he’s said, we’ll be the main club in any Manchester City type network (let’s face it, the Premier League is the big one, money-wise and will be for a while yet), then so much the better.
It’s all about Xia backing up the rhetoric now.
And while I think many of us fans think he will have made his first mistake in appointing Di Matteo, equally, massive investment might retrieve the situation in the winter window.
I predict a roller-coaster ride this season.
Gutted about not getting pearson 🙁
All this ‘network’ talk would be fine if we’d already made a year or two’s real progress, but it seems a bit premature. Either this guy is a genius or he’s going to fall flat on his face pretty quickly when reality sets in!
I’m also disappointed that we didn’t get Pearson; DI Matteo may not be as hopeless as we all fear, but Pearson would have been a force at the training ground and in the dressing room.
Of course, the new manager’s task might be made a lot easier if the club act quickly to get rid of the rubbish [Gaby/N’Zog/Lescott/Richards/etc] before he arrives – and then give him the funds to build his own team.
The waiting for things to happen [or be announced] is so frustrating!!
Bottom line is we can forget promotion next season we will be mid table at best.
I’m with you Oohah, but only because you’re never wrong. 🙂
Thanks Stubbs though I would like to be proved wrong for once 🙂
That’s the problem for me Ardent.
If Xia is looking to appoint DM because he’s a “name”, does that mean he might ignore any advice that says he should get rid of our troublemakers?
Biggest question for me is just who’s ‘advice’ is Xia taking?
Is he arrogant enough to believe that he knows enough about football – English football, Championship football, himself?
The other names being bandied-about as his advisors [Wyness, etc] could well have their own reasons for nominating potential managers…
Mind you, we only have the media version of ‘Hollis wanted Pearson’ – and we know how much media speculation is worth! As for Brian Little, who knows what he’s been advising anyone connected with the Board?
He’s taking it from the same person as Lerner probably off Fergie!!
I think it all comes down too, was Pearson ever in the race? I know a lot of speculation was around him, but I’ve only ever read (not claiming the media’s right because as I’ve said, they’ve yet to be right about Xia) about Moyes and Di Matteo actually being talked too. Plus who knows how many more the media’s missed. It’s down to one, Di Matteo, according to the media. We’ve been close to signing him for how many weeks now?
Always funny how Di Matteo’s supposedly going to look at some of his former WBA promoted players, like Moyes was going to look at Everton’s old guard and Pearson to Leicester’s fringe players. I should really get on this blog/media stuff because it almost seems easy. Too be fair I’d take Dorrans and Mulumbu.
I still think/hope it’ll be an obscure signing of a manager.
Where did Di potato crop up from though he’s someone none of us would of thought of
I agree with that Badger, wrong move for me, it now smacks at a new owner playing I make the rules and not going with advice, footballers today will get away with assessing the competition in a team and play at half pace, example Nzog, Abonglahor, and many more, we needed a manager to knock players into shape.as Oohah saying now I fear the worst, why did DI Matteo get the push from his last club? Not good enough is the answer and now we are labled with the worries.
Morning Bill – I thought he resigned at Schalke but maybe he was pushed. Fact is he’s never managed more than one complete season with any club – troubling.
I’m also concerned that Dr. T is not taking account of football being a game where you can’t dictate to the opposition by merely steam rollering it with money which is possible in business. Businesses tend to go for ‘winners’ hence Di Matteo but I fear that OohAh might be right – again!
http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/european/how-is-roberto-di-matteo-performing-in-the-bundesliga-with-schalke-10045772.html
i found this about roberto di matteo, i know little about his time in germany, this is a write up about that time and its no different to his time at chelsea dons and baggies hes a typical italian coach defensive. that’s great if we win 1 nil all the time but not if we draw 70%
we all want to see entertaining football but watching the villa defend over the a last few years has been embarrassing. one thing for sure is you don’t win many games conceding all the time.
I have been hoping for a while that either Laursen or mellberg could be brought in to our coaching staff.
Forget entertaining football it wins you nothing especially at the business end of the season. In the championship you have to earn the right to play football anyway. The first half hour or so is all about winning the battles in midfield etc then we can worry about playing decent football.
Nothing wrong in winning 1.0 ask Leicester. Better than having to score 4 goals to get a draw which we had to do some games last season. Though like you say you have get at least one goal or it will be bore draw after bore draw which will just keep our heads above water
http://bundesligafanatic.com/roberto-di-matteo-a-good-manager-a-great-man/
maybe i have got it all wrong and hes what villa need. god knows we have been weak minded and weak defensibly as far as i can recall. reading these 2 pieces as given me a insight to where hes been and how hes done. most of this was at a higher level then we are at moment. just hope hes got the hunger to return to the top cause we do
Thanks for posting Nath – interesting article which suggests there is far more to DM than meets the eye. Interesting how popular he was with the fans of the clubs he’s managed and also the ability to rebuild morale as at Chelsea. Villa need the ‘bad eggs’ to be sold or paid off quickly and then it’s about rebuilding confidence. Pearson punching N’Zog (albeit both tempting and funny) would not be the solution to our dressing room problems.
You’d have to say that on that basis plus DM’s a winner you can see why Dr T is interested.
I also go back to an earlier comment that Pearson was Hollis’ choice – so the media say but how they know that is beyond me – and I haven’t read any public comment by Little on his managerial views.
i was just digging around this morning. admittedly knowing little about his time in germany. i found these articles i realized how little i knew him and his abilities. one thing that’s undisputed, is as you said hes a winner. he also had to deal with lots of top footballer personalities at chelsea.
so iam looking forwards to the coming season. knowing the manager has ambitions, just cause he is joining a championship side now, doesn’t mean he is happy to remain at this level.
now its down to DM to demand the players we need, that can see us regaining our rightful place in premiership.
A winner? Won 2 of his last 10 games at Schalke, losing out on CL football by 15 points after being 2nd. He’s not a winner.
his CV begs to differ. player and manager he has more winning medals than you and i and most professionals in his field
Winning 2 out of 10 games is classed as successful for us at the moment though!!
his current form at the end of the Schalke era counts for nothing. you could easy counter that, by claiming championship isn’t the german top league.
what does count is getting wba promoted from the championship. so he managed the task in hand with baggies once, so he is capable of repeating this again. we aren’t asking for anything more for the upcoming season than a simple promotion
Andrew – that’s not your best post. Being selective with facts is hardly objective. How many managers have won the European Cup and FA Cup in the same season?
It’s right to question his long term consistency but his success to games ratio is pretty impressive,
Fair enough Hitchens, however he took over in early March the season Chelsea won the CL and FA Cup. How much can you claim of that success is down to him?
I prefer someone who can be a long term success and not a flash in the pan. He’s been sacked or resigned from 3 of his last 4. I get needing a manager to get promoted, but unless he’s solely getting a season long contract, then he’d be getting paid off when he fails in the EPL.
I still don’t think RDM is nailed on. all week he has been going to be our manager within 48 hours and now it is early next week.
this weekend is the play offs and it would not surprise me if Bruce is in with a shout.
on Pearson he pulled off probably the greatest escape of all time in the premier and gets sacked WHY. his backroom staff who were with him through all of his successes were not sacked and have just signed new deals with Leicester.
pearso has just brought Chris Powell has is no 2 who by all accounts was very unpopular and sacked at relegated Charlton.
truth is we as a club are not as attractive a proposition as we once were and it will be pot luck whoever we can bring in.
We don’t even know if he was really in running though and if he was offered job.
If Bruce resigns over the weekend watch his odds on becoming our new boss.
I am starting to think like you giddy. This Italian appointment is running to long. Its all media bullshit if Bruce goes within the next two days he is our man.
Dave please never think like me mate you’ll need a detox 😀
Ha Ha I will need a detox on Monday hitting the beer all day tomorrow.
Great get it down yer mate have a good un
If Bruce wins today would be drop down a division though
Agree wouldn’t surprise me tbh
whoever the new manager is he can be an instant success if he can do what none of our recent managers have been able to do – get shot of gabby
Just to throw it out there Flores still hasn’t signed for anyone yet although he’s been ‘linked’ with Espanyol whatever that means.
If the owner wants a name here’s an ex-Real player and Valencia manager who also has experience of the Championship.
It would work for me.
I think the only reason a manager hasn’t been appointed is the fit and proper issue. I would imagine the contract to buy the club is signed ready to complete as soon as Xia gets clearance. The ownership of the club hasn’t been changed at Companies House yet so I believe Lerner still owns the club. Either that or they are slow to update their records.
It would make sense for Xia to not complete the acquisition ahead of FPP clearance.
Co’s House records can take weeks to update after the forms have been submitted.
But you may be right about the legal status of share ownership anyway – it’s a sort of limbo-time until the final approval for change of ownership is received.
I’ve just read the club statement again. It’s clear that the sale hasn’t taken place, and is subject to Xia passing the fit and proper test.
Their is two ways looking at this if Pearson was appointed you would like to think he was going to have to work with the crap that let us down,me personally I don’t ever want to see guzan Hutton Richardson Richards lescott wastewood bacuna Gabby zog ever again
De Matteo will have watched 4/5 managers fail with the above and say complete new team needed if that’s the story well I am happy to back it
It’s there not their lol
Had some time to process it and with regard to Pearson –
– Unknown quantity without backroom staff
– Bit of a nutter
– Would have to hide behind settee during press conferences
– Eventually had a good run with Leicester but don’t forget that he had a terrible run before that
If you think that all this is all sour grapes I have to say you’re absolutely right. I really liked the idea of having Pearson’s boot applied to several under-performing arses at VP.
Oh well.
Actually makes me laugh people claim this was Pearson’s team that won the league. That must be why Fuchs, Huth, Okazaki, Kante, Inler, Dyer and Benalouane were Ranieri’s signings. The first 4 being incredibly important to winning the league. Who knows if Pearson would’ve bought these same players to win them the league or not. That’s 4 starters they didn’t have, which is almost rare to see so many come in and do so well.
Have to agree with both Pat and Andrew [above]; more than anything else about Pearson it was the belief that he might actually do some proper cleaning-up of the wasters – physically if necessary – that made the prospect of him at VP so attractive.
But looked at more objectively, yes, he’s a loose canon, and his reputation at Leicester really centres around just two months or so at the end of what had been a pretty awful season for them up to that point. He may be good at getting teams out of the lower divisions, but whether he can do that without his previous coaching assistants is something we’ll find out at Derby.
Problem is he is another obstacle to us getting promotion now I think he will do well at Derby
I remember an interview with Sir Ron who was known to be a hard task master where he said it’s not just about discipline but understanding the nature of each player. Some need an arm around the shoulder but if I didn’t ‘kick Tony Morley up the bum once a week’ he thought I didn’t love him anymore. Now it might have been ‘tongue in cheek’ but that interview has always stayed with me as an example of top class man management.
Hitch, that was Tony Morley, met him many years ago at a wedding , we had a long conversation over his time at Villa, he loved every minute of his time there, I asked him did you request your pictures over the whole of the back wall in the North stand?, what me, he couldn’t Get over how well liked he was. Good days.
No GREAT days!
Let’s hope we see some more before we all peg it 🙂
FPP could be a stumbling block for Xia. I think he will fail it first time based on the evidence he has released when the deal was announced, and he will need to come back with a lot more detail about where the money is coming from. We will see.
I like your optimism OLL 🙂
Well hull have done it, 4th time Bruce has done it, well done Hull.
So he won’t be coming after all. As little Hull are in the prem and we are not!
Plus a comment from the commentator, Bruce will be locking horns with the big boys in the premiership now.