Having looked around a few of the Villa forums, it seems to me that there are quite a few Villa fans who are still a bit dubious and even doubtful about what exactly Tim Sherwood has to offer the Villa.
No doubt this question was already asked upon his appointment, but I feel the Albion game has put a slightly different slant on things.
Sherwood quite rightly, in my opinion, said that our performances have improved game on game in all of the three that he’s managed and there’s no doubt that the Albion game was one of our best home performances for at least as long as I can remember in recent history.
Which just goes to show how poor we were under Lambert’s way of playing the game and his lack of enthusiasm that seemed to course through the veins of the club. Absolutely good riddance there then in my opinion, but that’s me and I’m digressing.
The question that now has to be asked is; can Sherwood sustain the seeming new enthusiasm amongst the players?
We can all speculate about how Sherwood works, but it really does seem he’s Marmite, as he apparently made a few enemies at Spurs and some of the playing staff quite simply detested him, while others liked him.
No problems there, as that’s what managers are supposed to do: ie, get rid of the rubbish and encourage the willing. It’s not a manager’s job to be liked.
But when you’re in a role as high-profile as that, you have to be totally ruthless, in that you can’t be friends with the people below you. Well, you can to an extent, but it’s an incredibly tricky line to walk when you want them to be 100% all the time.
It’s hard to be mates, if they haven’t performed at their best, is my point.
There’s a good example here, where Christian Benteke talks about Sherwood and note the specific comment “He speaks with a lot of confidence”.
But then, in the next breath, “He’s a very cool guy”.
And that’s the part that concerns me; a manager just shouldn’t be cool.
It might work at the likes of Google, where there’s little pressure and the money just flows in.
But in a high pressure situation, where you’re fighting for survival and the difference is a serious percentage of your turnover?
I have my doubts, because I’ve seen it before, where a gaffer comes in nice as pie, gees the lads up, but then has to get nasty, when things start going wrong.
Then he becomes the biggest (insert your own swear word here) and the attitude changes, where he’s almost the enemy.
Don’t get me wrong, Sherwood’s appointment was exactly what was needed and perhaps I’m reading it wrong, but Benteke’s further comments said a lot for me;
“The new manager understands my situation, that I have to be given more chances and then maybe I will start scoring more goals,” he said.
And then followed it up with;
“But I am grateful to Paul Lambert for what he did for me. He brought me over here from Belgium and I had a successful time under him”.
While the first sentence says exactly what we were all thinking, the second sentence is the minimum you’d expect him to say about Lambert.
If that’s not an indictment of what Benteke really thought, I don’t know what is.
I suspect many of the other players are probably glad to be rid of him too.
Back to Sherwood then and it seems like he’s a brilliant appointment at first glance, certainly one that I was glad about, given the choices.
And while I don’t want to put a dampener on what’s been a decent start to Sherwood’s reign, where the team seem re-invigorated, I do have a nagging doubt about if he’ll be able to keep it up for the rest of the season.
Hopefully, he will and he’ll prove the doubters wrong. But if not and we were to go down, I think he’d be just the man to bring us back up.
Comments
120 responses to “So what exactly is it that Sherwood has to offer the Villa and can he keep it up??”
Correct BWS big question that, no not saying that I value your opinions BWS it was how I conceived the game, Hitch no mate , I’ve got a lot on my lad wanted me to go with him but declined, agm allotments, plus meeting but their in front of TV boots blacked scarf on can in hand, rooting for the lads, right off to the allotment digging to be done. Ttfn.
Bill I see TS little club jibe has got under their skin, Brown Ideye said in the Mail ‘I think it’s not the right thing to say,’ and added ‘But I guess if he sees us as a small club and Villa as a big club’.
Well yes it is, yes he does and yes we are! But he’s a bit slow on the up take it’s took about a week, mind you news takes a long time to reach the out post of West Bromwich.
🙂
Yo ar right yo ar me mucker yo like tay mate….
just as an aside and hypothetical if we reach the final would Mr Lerner be there to bask in the glory when he cant be arsed to attend the so called bread and butter games if not “can i have your ticket”
Then you could take the opportunity to have a word with Mr Fox about getting the combination to Lerner’s safe. Grab some cash to buy new players.
i don’t think we need any more investment in the club, the poor bloke has put in to much already, at this stage he should be getting back everything he has invested .(if that doesn’t get me his ticket nothing will work)
on the title of the blog what Tim Sherwood has brought to the club? for the first time in 4 years i feel pride in that there lion whether he can keep it going is not really down to him its everybody connected to the club from chairmen down to us fans it becomes infectious and hopefully it will get to the stage where players will ask their agents to get them a berth down there. instead of our players letting there contracts run down, for a big payday we’ve got the beginnings of a great movement as someone famous said “its not the end, its not the beginning of the end, its the end of the beginning.
Badger, a few weeks ago – in that short period when the management position was apparently ‘open’ – you commented that in some ways Sherwood reminded you of Cloughie.
I agreed with you then, and the more I see and hear of what Sherwood is saying & doing, the more the comparison seems to stand up -although it’s quite difficult to explain exactly ‘why’! And as OLL says above, it’s so refreshing to hear a Villa manager saying things in the open that we can actually understand…
The addition of Petrov to the first-team coaching group is another move that I’m sure will have a very positive impact on the players – and won’t do any harm in relations with the fans either.
I think it’s the arrogance and brashness, combined with an air of confidence, Ardent.
There’s also the thing where Clough didn’t go down too well at Leeds (a la Spurs and Sherwood?).
As for Petrov, yes, good move. Most likely down to Fox, imo
A sympathy job imo but who cares as long as he can add something then good on him.
Oooh, sorry mate but that’s a tad harsh imo.
Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning, Billy Boots his most famous speech, we need that spirit my friend.
You’ve lost me Bill.
I think it’s a song by Cole Porter Giddy.
Cheers MATE problem is I’m still none the wiser.
it was part of churchills speech after the defeat of Rommel in the desert war after many defeats and the turning of Britains fortune
They are to young Billy Boots, don’t even know who Churchill was, Giddy he played football for England , best attacker this country ever had.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/31756575
Good old Benjy!!!
Saw him on mids today wm he’s supposed to be a poet couldn’t get his poetry didn’t rhyme.fairplay for supporting the VILLA instead of the yam yams.UTV
Poetry doesn’t have to rhyme Giddy…!
Interesting article, albeit coming from a Villa fan footy shrink, with a pyschological viewpoint about Sherwood;
http://www.birminghammail.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/aston-villa-sports-shrink-analyses-8781000
Pretty much explains what Sherwood offers the Villa.
Interesting read Badger and very much part of modern day thinking at senior management level whatever business u are in. Much simpler in the old days. – ‘do it son or you’re out the door’ and that probably from an inept manager as well! Nothing like the good old days 🙂
Sorry, meant to add – very interesting observation of Lambert ‘critical and aggressive’ make if that what you will.
Yes, I found the comment about Lambert a bit confusing.
I don’t recall Lambert having that attitude in interviews and it seems to suggest to me that he knows something we don’t, going on behind the scenes????
That said, it makes perfect sense. As I said previously, I think many players will be glad he’s gone.
Players have been poor and unreliable.Lamberts tactics let him down.Have you ever wondered why he suddenly changed to a possession style of football just after Fox arrived?Im glad Lambert has gone because he didn’t do very well and was going to take us down IMPO but the players have been way off the pace.Lambert had to take the responsibility but always defended the players even when they didn’t deserve it.Sherwood has not been proven yet we just beat the baggies we didn’t outplay them by any means.In the 2nd half they looked like the better side that was going to win it.Saying that we should of killed em off 1st half anyways the amount of chances created which is a big tick sign going into these last games.I really hope Sherwood does well but I hoped that for Lambert to.It was a big ask of him from Lerner onto a hiding to nothing with nothing to play with.
But in the end JD he completely lost his way and the Lerner restrictions became the excuse for everything rather than a challenge to be overcome. It’s almost as if his desire died with the failure of his young and hungry vision of creating a team from willing young yet untried players.
Personally I am very skeptical and if he does keep us up he is already setting himself up in the press for his more than likely sack (assuming the club is sold avoiding relegation).
Marvin,
That really wouldn’t surprise me in the slightest.
Troubleshoot and move on?
That’s exactly how the Americans look at business.
Sherwood will settle somewhere though.
Well I wouldn’t go so far – if Lerner stays, Sherwood stays.
At the moment, I would say Sherwood is just an opportunist who is willing to take the credit where ever and whenever he can. As long as he can turn it around for us in the process I am fine with him show boating, because survival will likely mean a new owner. I just don’t buy into his recent comments about not being a journeyman. He understands what supporters want to hear and the press love him, but up to now all he has done is talk a big game and fitting round pegs in round holes will only go so far.
When your as brash and confident as Sherwood you better have the results to back it up or you will get slaughtered by fans and press. Actions speaks louder than words
JD,
Lambert had lost the ability to motivate the players; it’s as simple as that for me.
Same as he couldn’t motivate the fans or probably even the hierarchy that did everything they could to keep him at the club, by the sounds of it!
I’d even go so far as to say It really wouldn’t surprise me if Lambert was going through some kind of stress related kind of mental trauma and the club gave him every chance.
Which would certainly explain why our torture went on so long.
I genuinely hope that wasn’t the case.
But if what you suggest is true, surely Lambert should have said “Bollocks, I play it my way, or you sack me”?
And which makes me wonder as to who was picking the team?
No, I don’t buy it.
Agreed, Sherwood has proved little tactically up to now, on the face of it.
Except that he’s way more willing to go for it, as opposed to Lambert’s approach of try and nick one.
And we were still way the better side overall in that game, imo.
One thing I’m pretty confident in saying;
There’s not a hope in hell we’d have won the Albion game under Lambert.
Why?
Because Gabby would never have got those chances in the first half.
Gabby or Benteke wouldn’t have been in the box for that last min pen either, let alone Lowton (another player that Lambert couldn’t handle!), as they’d have been to worried about the counter, which under any Pulis team, is a worry.
In short, we wouldn’t have scored a goal, let alone two, with Lambert in charge.
Pure facts on our goals scored probably backs me up here.
The point is, nothing ventured, nothing gained.
My opinion says it was Lambert’s approach that was dragging the whole club down.
Hence, bloody good riddance.
As for a hiding to nothing, that’s a poor point too.
At least Lambert had a chance to get some players in before the end of the season.
It’s nothing short of scandalous that Sherwood has had to come in a few weeks after the window has closed and he should have been appointed beforehand.
Which takes me back to the hierarchy.
Even if we survive this shambles of a season, I won’t forget who was in charge of it all.
If TS does keep us up then he deserves a crack at a full season with Villa.
He wasn’t altogether my first choice but I love his passion and the way he’s changing the culture of the team (no easy thing to do in any organisation) to a more positive approach.
All I can say is ‘so far so good’ and I now have hope. I had none whatsoever when PL was in charge.
I just can’t see TS as a long term solution unless of course he gets a brilliant number 2
Steven Hawkins?
Can we have a baggies preview please lads,well up for it today I’ll throw my pennies worth in now 4-1 the VILLANS.get in there Wembley here we come,starting on the piss 9am 😀 UTV SOTB VTID
Morning my very optimistic friend. One of the drivers down to Villa Park today so no vino until celebration time tonight (well maybe a couple in the Holte End!) would love to see us score 4 but I’m sticking with 2-1. In the lower Holte with kids and grand kids; my daughter got the tickets woo hoo! UTV
Morning Giddy , yes big day and no review, a lot to talk about on todays game. bit strong that Giddy 4-1 I’ll go for 3-1 but hey a win will do. We are one game away to be at Wembley twice in a year.
Morning Bill. Giddy, Bill a thought just occurred to me (well it happens occasionally 🙂 ). WhenTS came everyone focussed on him getting Benteke playing again but what if, just if, his prime target is to get Gabby playing consistently at the top of his game. Now that would scare a few defences!
Pitty that Hitch could have met up in the Villa taven pub, grandkids are welcome but 15 minutes walk or a taxi to the ground, by the way parking free.
Well saying that Hitch we did see that on Tuesday, just shows how isolated our centre forwards was Bent included, different game now with wing play back in our game, Gabby is geared up but fitness is showing ,not his fault its the way we was playing.
Another time Bill – would enjoy that
Got a feeling this could be a good game for Benteke but I almost wish it wasn’t on the telly. I’ll definitely be watching from behind the sofa.
I know this has been described as a bonus game but I think Villa’s confidence might still be a bit fragile (really hope I’m wrong here). A loss might reflect on the next game against Sunderland which is a much more important game in my book.
Win or lose it’s down the pub afterwards but, having looked in my crystal ball, I can predict a 2-0 win to Villa with Benteke getting a brace.
UTV
Sherwood did wonders for Kane, reportedly impressed by 4 of our youngsters, maybe, just maybe he can do something with them? Definitely knows what he’s talking about as he’s completely right about Townsend. 1 in 10 of his crosses/free kicks, are going to be game winners. Great ball in. Just hope he can do wonders with our kids.
Gardner scores again for Forest.