It represents the joint worst start in Premier League history. It threatens to be the poorest run Aston Villa have ever endured. It could be a wretched reunion. Remi Garde faces his former club Arsenal Sunday, with Villa having procured just six points from 15 games. They have not triumphed in 14, and a failure to defeat his mentor Arsene Wenger would equal Villa's 66-year-old club record of 15 winless league games. No one has ever stayed up in the division after beginning the season so dismally. If Villa are to change that, these are Garde's key tasks:
Revive the home form
A problem that predates Garde, or even his predecessors Tim Sherwood or Paul Lambert. Struggling sides often rely on their home games to pick up the points to survive. Yet over four years, Villa have won just 17 of 77 league matches on their own turf. It is little wonder the atmosphere at Villa Park has long been poor and as their next opponents are Arsenal and the counter-attacking specialists of West Ham, Crystal Palace and Leicester, teams with four of the division’s five best away records, their home record may get worse before it gets better. It means Villa risk being cut still further adrift and it is worth noting that Burnley, with 19, took the fewest points at home last season. Villa have only mustered two so far.
Identify a style of play
What sort of a team are Villa? The glib answer would be to simply say they are a bad one. Yet beyond that, there are questions about their identity and intentions. Are they a counter-attacking side, as Garde’s use of the quick Jordan Ayew in attack suggests? Or a team who play to the aerial strength of Rudy Gestede? Because if so, it helps to select out-and-out wingers who specialise in crossing the ball, rather than inside forwards. After one clean sheet in 14 matches, is their emphasis on keeping opponents out or, after failing to score four times in eight, is the priority to find the net themselves?
Find his strongest side
Garde could be forgiven for feeling confused. Villa had the spine of a side last season but the departures of Ron Vlaar, Fabian Delph and Christian Benteke removed three automatic choices. Now there are perhaps just two: captain Micah Richards and Brad Guzan, and only due to a lack of competition for the goalkeeper. Villa made 13 summer signings, but it is more a case of quantity than quality, of differing players in similar positions. They have at least nine possible options on the wings but while it is understandable if a new manager experiments, he has to alight on the best formula as soon as possible. Left-back, meanwhile, is a particular problem after Jordan Amavi was ruled out for the season and Kieran Richardson endured a traumatic time at Everton. Garde is eyeing a move for the out-of-contract Ashley Cole.
Rehabilitate Grealish
Villa’s most gifted player has sat out their last two games. Jack Grealish was banished to train with the youth team as punishment for visiting a nightclub. Garde has shown he can be a disciplinarian. Now he has to coax the best from the midfielder, who was a catalyst when Villa stayed up last season. Perhaps Grealish could drift in from the left. Perhaps he could be used as a No 10. Whichever, if they are to stand any chance of staying up, he has to excel.
Reverse the tide of history
It has not escaped attention in the Midlands that when Villa went down in 1967, it followed four previous flirtations with relegation. Now after finishing 16th, 15th, 15th and 17th, history threatens to repeat itself. The sense is that Villa are wearied by past battles and that annual mediocrity has taken its toll. That is an impression they have to confound if they are to surge to safety.
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