Dean Smith at Aston Villa

Two months ago, Dean Smith walked through the doors of Aston Villa hoping to transform the club’s promotion-chasing fortunes as they struggled to shake off a damaging summer.

A play-off final defeat to Fulham in May, near financial capitulation and key players lost, were only some of the things the supporters had to endure over a strenuous period.

However, since the sacking of Steve Bruce in October, Villa have gone from a defensive-minded unit to a free-scoring outfit under Smith.

Here, we analyse why Villa are scoring more goals under their new forward-thinking manager:

Starting the engine…

If you have a quick glance over Bruce’s record in the Championship this season and compare it with his successor then that in itself will tell you an alarming story. In 11 games under Bruce, Villa scored 19 goals, secured three wins and recorded 15 points in the process. By contrast, in nine encounters under Smith, his side have scored 21 goals, secured five wins and picked up 17 points.

In the image above, you can see one of the more favoured formations Bruce utilised this season as he struggled to find the balance and consistency within his team. The formation above was used during Villa’s 2-2 draw at home to Brentford in August when Smith was still in charge of the London club.

In the next illustration, you can see the formation Smith has installed since making the switch from the capital to the second city. The formation above was used during Villa’s dramatic draw at West Brom last Friday. One distinct change is how high the wingers operate in Smith’s system and how deep Bruce instructs his wide men to play. Added with that, under the latter his midfield was more compact, whilst Smith allows his players to express themselves more in the middle of the park.

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