Smith set to add a piece to his jigsaw
DEAN Smith is considering whether to hire a set-piece specialist at Villa after hinting his backroom team is not yet fully complete.
The head coach (pictured) created a similar role at former club Brentford, which helped to significantly boost the Bees’ goal tally and also led to national recognition.
Before this summer’s World Cup in Russia, England assistant Steve Holland visited the Championship innovators to see how they worked on set-plays and their unpredictable routines.
And Smith admits it is something he is considering introducing at Villa.
“They (set-pieces) are important,” he said.
“(Hiring a set-piece coach) is something I will discuss with Suso (sporting director Jesus Garcia Pitarch) and Christian Purslow (CEO) further down the road.”
At Brentford, specialist set-piece coach Gianni Vio was the man to first take on the role before he moved to Leeds.
Nicolas Jover then stepped up from a performance analyst position in France.
“It is quite a rarity in football,” Smith added.
“Steve Holland came in to Brentford to watch how we did on set-pieces before England went to the World Cup.
“I’m not taking any credit at all for the set-pieces! They were just interested to see how that worked.”