Remi Garde: I could send Villa players to see a shrink
Remi Garde has admitted he could be forced to abandon long-held principles and turn to sports psychologists to dig Aston Villa out of the relegation mire.
Garde has refused to employ sports psychology so far in his managerial career, but accepted he may be forced into a rethink if Villa's awful run continues.
Villa remain winless in 16 matches after Saturday's 1-1 FA Cup third-round draw at League Two side Wycombe, with Garde accountable for 10 games in that stint.
Villa have not won in the Premier League since a 1-0 victory at Bournemouth on the season's opening day, leaving Garde to accept he cannot discount any changes of method. Asked if now was the time for the help of psychologists, Garde replied: "No, not for the moment. I've never used that in my teams, and that's it. But I'm very open-minded and if the solution could be from there, then I could do that."
Villa's team bus was besieged by angry supporters on leaving the ground, though Garde remained unfazed and fully accepted the fans' ire. Garde's side host Crystal Palace at Villa Park in tomorrow night's Premier League clash, with the former Arsenal defender warning his players no one will gift them a confidence boost. "As a manager, I've never been involved in this kind of situation," said Garde.
"But in 35 years in football, I've been through this kind of situation as a player.
"Every week I'm speaking about confidence but we have to try to have more confidence. I'm not waiting on a parcel in the post that will be full of confidence. We have to be professional and generate it."
