There are reports that Villa Park regulars want a lot of changes at the club, after a very disappointing season in the last campaign.
They urge current manager Roberto Di Matteo to return the club to the top flight league after the Italian agreed to lead the coaching crew. Di Matteo was recently confirmed as the club’s fourth permanent boss in about 16 months. He signed a deal for two years worth £35,000-a-week with a handsome £2m promotion bonus at the end of the season.
The former manager at Stamford Bridge would have to make a lot of changes at the club, with one of the biggest tasks being winning back the fans. The fans reckon that Micah Richards was one of the biggest underachievers at the club and want him out in the coming season. Di Matteo would have to make a tough decision about who remains at the club and also deal with restoring discipline to a squad in which too many individuals failed to take responsibility for their actions.
Richards joined the club last summer from Manchester City with the hopes that he would help prop the team’s defence but he has failed to live up to expectations. Despite being bred at Man City, he was on loan to Italy where he played for Fiorentina in 2014. Last season he played for Villa in 24 Premier League games, three FA Cup games and made one League Cup appearance.
The fans who want to bounce back after a first relegation in almost 30 years want Di Matteo to sack French midfielder Charles N’Zogbia and Spaniard Carles Gil along with Richards. Villa made huge investments last summer where they spent £60m on 13 players but failed to stay afloat. Di Matteo succeeds Frenchman Remi Garde who was sacked in March after a disastrous five-month reign. Di Matteo has one huge task ahead of him after ending 12 months in the managerial wilderness.
