Aston Villa journalist James Rushton has been sharing his thoughts on Villa manager Dean Smith and his future at the club.
This comes after Rushton recently made an appearance on the Birmingham Mail’s Claret & Blue Podcast to reflect on Villa’s 4-3 defeat to Southampton at the weekend.
On the topic of Smith and whether or not he is the right man for the job at Villa, Rushton had this to say on the matter.
He said: “Villa have been on an upward incline in terms of progress [in] that they have got better every single season. That is a flat-out truth. This season is still to be finished, but as we can see from the first six games, largely, [with] the four wins, Villa have gotten better – so look, we need to see where this season goes before we make all these kind of decisions and we come out here saying ‘Dean Smith out’, ‘Dean Smith in’. Look, you’ve got to sit on the fence and see where the land lies, and the land is lying firmly on his side right now.
“The progress we’ve made, the [EFL Cup] final, play-off wins, surviving in the Premier League, kicking on after lockdown – all these things. And it’s an upward incline for Aston Villa, especially under Dean Smith and again the ownership, director of football. Villa should be going places so again, it’s a question for way, way down the line.”
Smith was appointed as Villa manager back in October 2018 with John Terry as his assistant coach after Steve Bruce was sacked from the Midlands club.
Since then, Smith has taken charge of 93 matches for Villa in which they have won 40, drawn 19 and lost 34 along the way (per Transfermarkt).
As well as the achievements Smith has had at Villa that Rushton mentioned in the podcast, the manager has taken his side to seventh in the Premier League table after winning four of their first six league games so far this season.
However, Villa’s previous two league games saw them lose 3-0 to Leeds United and go down 4-3 to Southampton, both at Villa Park.
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TIF Thoughts on James Rushton’s comments on Smith…
Even though Villa have suffered a couple of disappointing league defeats in recent weeks, it’s good to hear that Rushton recognises the good things that Villa have done under Smith’s guidance since he arrived at the club.
Hopefully, Villa can get their league form back on track and put an end to any speculation surrounding Smith’s future as Villa boss.