The first Eurostar service from London to Paris leaves at 05:40am and after Spurs’s opening goal after only two minutes, as a result of Ciaran Clark’s woeful defending and the ball going through Brad Guzan’s legs, Garde would have realised the task inherited from Tim Sherwood and frantically started to search for the nearest timetable for a single back to Paris.
Remi Garde was unveiled as the second French manager to take charge of Aston Villa Football Club on Monday morning, after the first Frenchman to take charge, Gerard Houllier, incidentally Garde’mentor at Olympique Lyonnais, advocated him to try release the chains of the relegation threatened club. I believe this is entirely possible with the squad Villa have and the opportunity to again strengthen in January, hopefully in goalkeeping and striking departments.
American number one Brad Guzan has looked staved off confidence this season that has resulted in a number of goalkeeping errors leading to goals being conceded, alongside a 15-20 goal season striker to replace Christian Benteke. More recruits from Ligue One (particularly Lyon) wouldn’t be a surprise to the Villa Park faithful.
Managing Lyon between 2011 and 2014 will feel like a quiet scroll walk through Bois de Boulogne to Garde compared with the task now staring the former Arsenal defender straight in the face. A tactically astute attitude, proven track-record for youth development, Alexandre Lacazette the distinguishable proof of that and an endorsement from Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger will now, hopefully, diminish the pessimistic attitude that Villa fans are now accustomed too having.
An influx of French imports from Ligue One over the summer (Jordan Ayew, Jordan Amavi, Jordan Veretout and Idrissa Gueye) were reported to have been brought in by Director of Recruitment Paddy Reilly and Sporting Director Hendrick Almstadt, under former manager Tim Sherwood’s nose will continue the terrace talk that Garde’s appointment was in the works even during Sherwood’s tenure.
The array of emotions, from head shaking to being completely unmoved by Jordan Ayew’s goal, were demonstrated from the stands by Garde during Villa’s 3-1 defeat to Spurs at White Hart Lane on Monday evening, but this week those reactions, or lack of, were replaced by a buoyant and confident attitude of being able to survive relegation that will lead to Garde’s first game in charge at Villa Park against Manchester City on Sunday afternoon.
The second city club sit bottom of the Premier League, four points off safety, facing the realistic possibility of their ever-present status since the inception of the Premier League becoming a stark existence. The thought of one of the most decorated clubs in English football plying its trade in the lower leagues wouldn’t be out of place after what fans have had to experience, on and off the pitch, over the last four seasons.
The former Les Goners player brings with him the reputation from the Rhone-Alp es region of France of being able to cope under immense pressure after witnessing an exodus of talent during his spell as Lyon manager when, due to financial difficulties, Miralem Pjanic, Jeremy Toulalan, Dejan Lovren, Lisandro Lopez and the most expensive teenager in world football Anthony Martial left the club. With Garde’s guidance Lyon managed to win the Coupe de France and finish third in Ligue One (qualifying for the UEFA Champions League) in his first season in charge. The following season (2012/13) the equivalent of the Community Shield (Supercup) was won.
During his playing career at Arsenal Garde was considered by many at the club to be Wenger’s apprentice and a protégé in the making after learning under the wing of the current longest serving manager in the Premier League. One particular forte it seems Garde picked up whilst at Highbury was the talent to nurture youth players into the daunting heights and challenges of the first-team squad, similar to what Wenger did with the likes of Ashley Cole, Jack Wilshere and Cesc Fabregas etc. at the Hale End Training Centre.
A number of youth players were integrated into the first-team at Lyon by Garde, in particular Alexandre Lacazette. The coveted French international is currently one of the most highly-regarded players in Europe after scoring 27 goals in Ligue One last season and contributing an additional eight assists in 33 appearances.
Lacazette wasn’t the only player to be nurtured into the Lyon first-team, with current Lyon captain Maxime Gonalons also a member of the stellar group of talent that Garde had at his disposal, who were allowed to flourish and develop, during his time at Lyon.
Jack Grealish, in recent weeks, since Sherwood’s removal as manager, has looked out-of-sorts and will need to forgot about the past and concentrate on the task in hand of trying to avoid relegation and work alongside his new manager. Via his official Twitter account Grealish expressed his sadness of Sherwood’s dismissal tweeting “Gutted, thank you for everything” with an image of himself and Sherwood embracing a past memory together via a hug. At only 20 years of age he has already touted interest from Chelsea and Manchester City and will need to prove himself to his new boss like he did under Sherwood.
Highly-sought after youngsters Adama Traore and Liverpool loanee Thiago Ilori, who both fell-out of favour under Sherwood, will be relishing working under Garde, with the reputation the new man at the helm will bring day in day out at Bodymoor Heath; BR>
Defeats against Leicester City (after leading 2-0 with 20 minutes remaining) and to local rivals West Brom and Stoke City have condemned Villa to the foot of the Premier League table, but questionable tactical decisions, formations and substitutes could have seen this easily avoided.
At Lyon, Garde made a certain formation his own and it is likely to be seen again at Villa. A three-man midfield will presumably utilise Ashley Westwood as the defensive midfielder with Idrissa Gueye and Jordan Veretout (two of Villa’s summer signings from Ligue One) providing an attacking box-to-box threat (via Gueye) and accompaniment of goals via Veretout. Attack minded full-backs were a focal point of Garde’s three-year long project at Lyon and Jordan Amavi (establishing himself as a threat going forward on the left wing) and Alan Hutton, both recognised as more conformable wing-backs than full-backs, will find themselves under strict instructions from their new no-nonsense manager.
Employing a two-man front-line could prove hard for Villa with a lack of options up top with Scott Sinclair, Libor Kozak, Rudy Gestede, Jordan Ayew and Gabriel Agbonlahor the club’s current attacking options. Czech Republic international Kozak, unknown to Villa fans why, hasn’t played since impressing in pre-season, Agbonlahor looks a distant figure to the player who once showed a clean pair of orange boots to opposition defenders on a weekly basis (ultimately summed up against Spurs with eight touches in the first half, two from kick-off, the lowest in the league this season) and Sinclair, a player who seems to shine one week then not the next.
Lyon’s return to the fold and rewards of the Champions League can somewhat be considered down to the work Garde did at the club in his three years as manager but the challenge he now finds himself stepping into is very different one to across the Channel.
Despite not having any managerial experience in England, critics and certain sectors of the Aston Villa supporters need to simply look at the job Quique Flores is doing at Watford. The charismatic Spaniard has guided the newly promoted club to 11th in the league, losing only three games so far this season.
Villa fans will be hoping Garde can take inspiration from walking down one of the many canals in the city (more than in Venice) for ideas how to save the club from the greatest threat of relegation to date.
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