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LONDON. — Sacked Aston Villa manager Dean Smith believes he could have led the club to a top-10 Premier League finish had he remained in the job.
Smith, 50, was dismissed on Sunday after a run of five successive league defeats, with Villa 16th in the table.
Appointed in October 2018, Smith guided Villa to 11th place in the top-flight last season, two years after taking them up from the Championship.
He brought Zimbabwe international midfielder, Marvelous Nakamba, to the Birmingham club from Belgian side Club Brugge.
“Thank you for everything gaffer. It was a pleasure working with you,” said Nakamba.
Smith lured Nakamba from Club Brugge in 2019 and the club paid a fee in the region of £10.8 million.
Nakamba is part of the Zimbabwe team to play South Africa and Ethiopia in the last two FIFA 2022 World Cup qualifiers.
Belgium coach, Roberto Martinez, is due to arrive in the UK, with the race to replace Dean Smith as Villa head coach hotting up.
Club chief executive Christian Purslow and sporting director Johan Lange are now searching for a new head coach and a number of candidates have emerged.
Rangers boss Steven Gerrard, who is well known to Purslow from their time at Liverpool, is the favourite with the bookmakers but he faces lots of competition.
Portuguese coach Paulo Fonseca is again in the running, while Ralph Hasenhuttl and Thomas Frank — both of whom are in Premier League jobs already — are said to be among Villa’s targets.
Vice captain John McGinn said on Twitter: “Hard to find the right words to sum up what the gaffer has done for the club and me personally the last few years. A top coach and an even better guy. Thanks gaffer and good luck”
Forward Ollie Watkins, who worked under Smith at Brentford prior to joining Villa before the start of last season, also posted a message.
“Thank you gaffer for always believing in me and bringing me to this club, Not just a manager but a friend as well. I owe you a lot for that. I’m gutted us boys couldn’t pull through in recent weeks.
“Good luck for the future.”
Smith said he felt Villa were on the right path.
“My belief was that we would continue our progression this season,” he said.
Villa were 14th in the Championship when Smith arrived, and after he guided them to promotion, he then kept them in the Premier League on the final day of the season in 2020. Smith also guided Villa to the 2020 Carabao Cup final, which they lost 2-1 to Manchester City at Wembley.
“To be appointed the head coach of Aston Villa, the club I supported throughout my childhood, was and remains something I am extremely proud of,” said Smith in a statement released by the League Managers Association.
“I understand the football industry and of course, I respect the owners’ decision, but I felt that with important players soon returning to full fitness, we would achieve a top-half finish.” Villa were involved in significant transfer activity over the summer, buying midfielder Emi Buendia from Norwich in a club record deal that could be worth up to £38m, Jamaica winger Leon Bailey from Bayer Leverkusen for £30m and England striker Danny Ings from Southampton for £25m.
Those signings were funded by the sale of captain Jack Grealish to Manchester City for a British record fee of £100m.
But results have failed to match expectations, with Villa having not collected a Premier League point since beating Manchester United on 25 September.
“One of my roles as head coach at Aston Villa was to improve individual players to enhance on-field performance for the team,” Smith added.
“Playing a part in developing a player who would be transferred for a British record transfer fee, along with creating a pathway for a thriving academy, are all areas in which I feel I’ve more than contributed.” — Sports Reporter/BBC Sport/Birmingham Live
Online Reporter