Although I agree with most of this post, I'd also say Villa tend to often buy players that don't seem to live up to the heights they set at other clubs, not just under Bruce. I often wonder what goes on behind the scenes and also, of course, why do they buy a player in to play them out of position. Bruce isn't the only manager to do this. Scouts and coaches surely are maybe part of the problem, either not judging players ability well, or players not fulfilling their best football at Villa after doing it in other clubs. In the most long winded way, I don't think this is just about Bruce and I can't see another manager really affecting it much as I think it runs deeper.