Aston Villa must get rid of Alex McLeish now if they are to avoid being dragged into a relegation scrap this season.
Blackburn’s win against Sunderland last night saw them move within five points of Villa and although the Villains have a game in hand, we all know that a game in hand means nothing until it is won.
Rovers have collected ten points from their last five games, nicking a point against McLeish’s men at the beginning of the month and are much the in-form team at the bottom of the table.
It has recently been reported that winger Charles N’Zogbia has again fallen out with manager Alex McLeish and if Villa are to start pulling away from the wrong end of the table, they’re going to need their best players to start performing and this can only be done if these players are happy – N’Zogbia is clearly not.
Losing Darren Bent for the rest of the season came as a massive blow for the second city club and after Robbie Keane returned to America after his loan from LA Galaxy, the club was left with a serious lack of fire power up front.
This is something that McLeish can most definitely be blamed for as he should have signed a permanent striker as back-up to Bent in January, instead of just loaning Keane.
There are also worries for Villa at the back as defender Richard Dunne is set to be out of action until May with a broken collarbone and has flown out to the United States for further treatment.
Dunne is a key figure in Villa’s line-up and someone they’ll want to get back onto the pitch ASAP as he not only prevents goals against them but comes up with a few the other end from time to time (I won’t mention his own-goal record).
With only seven Premier League wins this season, Alex McLeish has previous. As well as getting arch-rivals Birmingham relegated last season, he led Rangers to finish THIRD in the SPL in 05-06 behind Hearts and lost seven consecutive games to Old Firm rivals Celtic during his time there.
Aston Villa fans have already shown their dislike of the man in charge and this can be proven by ticket sales being well down on last season and by a group of fans who have launched a protest against the Scot.
Eleven points above the dreaded relegation zone may seem a comfortable enough gap for now but with their game in hand being against fellow strugglers Bolton Wanderers, defeat could see them heading towards trouble.
That’s not to say they won’t already be in some danger by then as their next three fixtures see them take on Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool, teams all battling for fourth.
These games are followed by a tricky home game against Stoke and then who? Only Champions Man Utd at the Theatre of Dreams…no biggy.
Sandwiched between the game at Old Trafford and a West Midlands derby away to West Brom is a visit from former manager Martin O’Neill’s Sunderland.
The penultimate day of the season sees Villa host Champions League chasing Spurs, followed lastly by a trip to what will be a buzzing Carrow Road to take on Deliah Smith’s…sorry, Paul Lambert’s Norwich.
Worried now Villa fans? If you don’t get rid of Alex McLeish, you should be…
image: © ell brown
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