The winds of change are sweeping through Villa Park, leaving just one major question hanging.
Have they blown themselves out, or is a further gale on its way?
The latest signs that a major upheaval is taking place concerns the re-shaping of the recruitment department.
Seven members of staff, including head of European operations Ian Atkins, have been churned up and tossed out
Since the takeover by new owners Nassef Sawaris and Wes Edens the pace has been brutal.
Former chief executive Keith Wyness and director of football Steve Round were axed prior to the sale by Tony Xia.
However, behind-the-scenes, several scouts had been culled. And now this.
A new head honcho – ex-Liverpool managing director Christian Purslow – and now a sporting director is on his way.
There are a few names are in the frame for the job vacated by Round.
Purslow is understood to favour Leicester City’s Eduardo Macia – the pair have a relationship dating back to the time they spent together at Anfield.
But super-agent Jorge Mendes also has forwarded candidates for the position and no decision has yet been communicated.
Which leaves a sub-plot as to who made the decision to re-organise the recruitment department?
Was it the manager, Steve Bruce? Or Purslow? The owners? Mendes?
Certainly it would seem strange if the club’s boss had taken the decision to dispense with colleagues he had worked with for a couple of years.
On the face of it, there’s no need for him to take any action.
And it certainly does appear bizarre, most obviously in Atkins’ case, a well-travelled and respected figure on the European scene who has collected over a decade of experience and contacts, most notably with Everton.
Why throw out that knowledge, particularly given the prospect of a close liaison with Portuguese middle-men who have access to some of the continent’s top players?
At this juncture, it is worth pointing out too that most of Bruce’s signings have been domestic. Birkir Bjarnason can count himself unfortunate not to have started more matches under Villa’s boss.
Anwar El Ghazi, signed from Lille, has made a bright start.
Atkins appears a scapegoat for somebody.
What is also interesting is how the decision has been reached.
For instance, how would Purslow, installed in the position only late last month, know the good, bad and indifferent in Villa’s recruitment team, particularly as the last window has only just closed?
The intrigue thickens still further given the identity of the new sporting director.
If one of Mendes’s candidates is not appointed, how will that work, given the fact that the owners are known to favour the kind of approach that has seen Wolves prosper in the past 12 months?
All of which leaves Bruce, as the figurehead, wondering what might be around the corner.
The owner who rubber-stamped his appointment has been replaced. The chief executive who made the recommendation has left. The sporting director who initially made the approach to the Geordie has been relieved of his duties.
Now, the recruitment team – presumably the one who helped him during the window last month – has also been dismantled.
The manager cuts an increasingly isolated figure, with only his coaching staff providing any real support.
The 57-year-old is experienced enough to know that new owners normally bring in their own people. Including the main man.
Yes, the winds of change have been sweeping through Villa Park, all right and whether they have blown themselves out really depends on results.
But then, that’s really not telling Bruce anything he doesn’t already know – although his margin for error now appears smaller than it has ever been.
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