Aston Villa manager Steven Gerrard
Aston Villa manager Steven Gerrard will be under huge pressure if his team were to lose to Nottingham Forest tonight, according to transfer insider Dean Jones.
The Lowdown: Huge game for Villa
The Villans make the trip to the City Ground, with both teams near the bottom of the Premier League table and badly in need of points.
For Gerrard, it is a vital game – less so than for Steve Cooper, who he has just signed a new deal – and the ex-Liverpool captain will surely be aware of reports that the club are already looking at possible successors.
Many Villa fans have been losing patience with the results and football on show, and another defeat against out-of-sorts Forest could spell real trouble for him.
The Latest: Gerrard under pressure
That’s certainly the opinion of Jones, who told GiveMeSport that a defeat on Monday night would really crank up the pressure on Gerrard.
The journalist said:
“The only way he’s going to win over these sections of fans is with results and certainly with wins over teams like Forest, who they would expect to be beating in this division. If they did lose to Forest, I think that Gerrard would be under pressure.”
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The Verdict: Must not lose
This certainly feels like a must-not-lose game for Villa, considering that they are up against another struggling team who have shipped five consecutive defeats to slump to the foot of the table.
After failing to get the better of 10-man Leeds in their last outing, more dropped points here would likely lead to even more Villa supporters calling for Gerrard’s head.
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A win would be just what the doctor ordered, giving the 42-year-old a little more breathing space and suggesting that he might still be the right man to take the team forward this season.
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