I feel very sorry for Graham Taylor - and I already have a certain amount of sympathy for the brave man who steps into the Villa Park hot seat to replace him! The club has got problems, from top to bottom, and events in the past have shown time and time again that the changing of the manager is not always the best solution.
Taylor, to his credit, did his best (as he always has done in every job he has undertaken, even as England manager) but he inherited a squad in disarray and stepped back into the breach with a chairman who, seemingly, didn't agree with the changes one of the most experienced managers in the game deemed necessary to, first steady the ship, and then set a new course towards calmer waters.
Taylor wanted chairman Doug Ellis to cut his losses on £30million worth of under-achieving stars and bring down the axe on the Villa careers of the seven players, including Alpay, Balaban and Angel, but when Ellis refused and the manager resigned, claiming it was time for a clear-out from the top at Villa Park - presumably, starting with Deadly Doug.
Taylor, who took his fair share of the blame for the club's poor performances on the field and a disappointing 16th place finish, walked out of Villa Park for the second and last time and warned: "The structure has to be looked at on and off the field. People have to be able to look at themselves and say it's time for a change. If you get anything right at the top there is a good chance it flows down."
The former England boss is not the only Villa manager to become embroiled in a powers struggle with Ellis, and lose, and the suggestions from Taylor are that the Villa Park chairman needs to mend his ways sooner rather than later if the club is to flourish once more - for the first time since Taylor himself took them to the brink of the title during his initial spell in charge.
When asked if more changes were necessary, said: "I believe so. Certain aspects of the club had to show an improvement and had to change if I were to remain as manager. I didn't come back for us to finish 16th and that's where I failed, I failed to deliver a team that satisfied the supporters. When I came back I took a lot of pressure off the board but that's not why I came back, I came back to deliver a successful team and I failed to do that."Once news of Taylor's departure was made public, the names of potential replacements were, inevitably, being thrown around like the proverbial confetti with Leicester's successful boss Micky Adams quickly emerging as the bookies' favourite. The name of Sam Allardyce has also been thrown into the mix and, as ever when a top job becomes available, Alan Curbishley has his hat thrown into the ring also.
The big question is, who will want the job? For example, would Adams, Allardyce and Curbishley want to leave the relative security of their current positions in favour of sampling the swinging door Ellis had installed close to the manager's office many moons ago? I don't think so. But perhaps those out of work, like George Graham and David O'Leary, might see it as a good opportunity to get back into management at the top level.
Former Villa boss Brian Little has not ruled out the possibility of a return to his old club and said: "It's a fantastic club and there will be loads of people wanting that job. I'm available too, although I don't think I'll get it. I resigned because I felt I needed a breather and it wasn't a case of being unhappy with the chairman or the club. But I know Mr Ellis will be very disappointed by this. He gets close to his managers and we were certainly very close during my time there."
Villa plan to start interviews for Taylor's old job next month so that his successor can be in charge for the start of pre-season training in July, so expect a few more weeks of speculation, rumour-mongering and electioneering.
