Aston Villa: Bruce’s stubbornness halting any momentum from being built

A sequence of 3 wins, 5 draws and 2 defeats from the first 10 games represents a disappointing start to the season for Aston Villa.

It’s clear to see that the squad is underachieving massively at this stage, and although just 6 points off 1st-position, the fixture list has been very kind to Villa. Expected bottom-half and/or relegation battlers like Ipswich, Rotherham, Blackburn, Wigan and Hull have all been played. Add in the fact that no top-6 team from last season has yet appeared in the fixture list further illustrates the point that a big opportunity to gain more points has been missed.

A lot has been spoken about the manager, Steve Bruce, and whether or not he should be the man to lead the team going forward. At the time of writing, he is still sticking around despite intense calls for him to do the opposite. The team very much looks in a rut – that it’s struggling to power through. Since the Ipswich draw in August, the only win came against Rotherham. Yes, new players need time to settle in and get used to their surroundings, but I believe Bruce’s refusal to fix, or attempt a solution to the team’s deficiency’s is preventing any momentum.

Take the example of Mile Jedinak at centre-back. Despite being a midfielder and part of a defense that has conceded 15 goals in 10 games, Bruce continues to select him. Though he’s looked better of late, he’s a clear downgrade to Axel Tuanzebe. Moreover, Villa miss Jedinak’s presence at defensive midfield, too.

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Alan Hutton, a right-back, continues to struggle this season at left-back. This is puzzling when Neil Taylor (an actual left back) is allowed to rot on the bench. Though he too struggles, his preferred left foot would bring more balance to the side. Tuanzebe was presumably brought in to play centre-back, and Bruce has said publicly that he will become a great centre-half, but his game time is coming at right-back to mixed results.

Moving on from the defense and on to the wide areas: Despite bringing in 2 wingers in with Yannick Bolasie and Anwar El-Ghazi, Bruce doesn’t seem to trust them to start matches when Jack Grealish, John McGinn, and Conor Hourihane are all in the starting XI at the same time.

Their natural flair and energy down the sides would surely help the team to create more chances, thus improving the probability of better results. It just seems strange that Bruce is reluctant to try something different to improve Villa’s points total.

The longer this rut goes on, the further and further away Villa will slip from the leaders, but can Bruce arrest the slide?

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