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Reply | End of Term 23/24 – Attack
at 13:08 28 May 2024
Messi's an interesting one.
His work rate as a younger player was always excellent, and then as he got older, as you say, he was/is a master at conserving energy and bursting into life when he needs to (those famous stats at the last World Cup about how much he was walking about, are a good example). Zidane was very similar in that regard - no wasted motion (that film of him put to Mogwai's music demoinstrates that so beautifully).
However, when you're winning games on your own most weeks, you're allowed to maybe not run as much and do the hard graft. Sincs is not there yet :) |
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Reply | Pre season fixtures
at 12:59 28 May 2024
not sure what you're talking about?
Oxford was an incredibly stern test.
In which we failed abjectly by getting our asses handed to us! ;) |
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Reply | Leicester’s Maresca to Chelsea
at 12:57 28 May 2024
I think he's just not very trendy. English. In his 50s. Done a great job there, but is he the kind of manager who makes a sort of instant impact? Cov sacked him once, then went back to him didn't they? He's been tremendous for them, but clubs aren't that smart are they? |
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Reply | End of Term 23/24 – Attack
at 10:51 28 May 2024
Armstrong does sometimes run too much. I know fans love a trier, but as a striker you have to learn when and when not to chase. You need to make sure that when you really need it, you have the ability to put the after burners on. I'm sure half the reason he used to get so many cramps was related to that. He needs to be smarter.
Chair was one of the few whose work rate remained the same under Critchley. |
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Reply | Leicester’s Maresca to Chelsea
at 10:10 28 May 2024
Totally baffling appointment. I have no idea what Chelsea are playing at to be honest. Maybe in 3-5 years they'll have the greatest team in the world and I'll look silly, but their decisions baffle me. Maresca would be about my 6th choice out of all Champ managers from last season, let alone having a choice from across the world.
Could see Corberan going there. WBA have no money and he must be getting fed up. I don't care, as long as it's not Marti. |
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Reply | End of Term 23/24 – Attack
at 23:28 25 May 2024
Echoes my thoughts but with much more eloquence about Chair.
When he goes, people will notice it. I feel like some of our fans adored effing niko krancjar more than Illy, when, really, if you were to design a footballer for your fans to love, he'd be about as close as you could get: came to us young (not quite 'one of our own', but jesus christ, not far off - and he loves this club as much as any fan); skilful, scores amazing goals, doesn't hide, works his balls off, rarely lets us down, great injury record. Seriously, what more do you want? |
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Reply | Rumour Plymouth manager gone
at 21:15 25 May 2024
I would be raging if we had made this appointment. Only saving grace would be that you know you've only got to ride it out for about 4-5 months and then they get to have another go at picking someone. |
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Thread | Textor - Palace
at 20:42 24 May 2024
Apparently Textor is getting out of Palace and is looking at investing in either Everton or a Championship club.
Given Richard Reilly is on the board, I wonder if he's looking at us. |
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Reply | End of Term Report 23/24 – Midfield (plus part two of the Patreon pod)
at 16:07 24 May 2024
Agree, but disagree.
As a fanbase, I think we're individually allowed to set our standards wherever we like. Some have ridiculous expectations, others er, under... expect.
I honestly don't blame the players for the beginning of the season, nor do i think there was any lack of effort. Others will disagree, but to me it was obvious they had no direction, there was no real plan. I find it hard to blame (most of) them for that.
But to pull themselves out of that hole was remarkable. We looked dead in October. October. *October*. From that point to essentially be a mid-table team, curving towards a team trending towards top 6, is remarkable. It's a bit unfair to dismiss that as a 'failure' and also unfair to say 'had we gone down...' well, we didn't, and neither did we deserve to. Weekends where results went our way means very little. Many weekends no results went our way. It took us months to get out of the bottom three partly for that reason. But once we were out, we never went back.
Having said all that, I agree with pretty much all your ratings there. Is that Clive's from the report, or yours? I felt like you gave almost everyone a D or an E ;) |
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Reply | Marti Contract??
at 14:41 24 May 2024
agree, i'll be pleasantly surprised if he's still here in a year, and shocked if he's still here for the start of 25/26. |
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Reply | These Manager Appointments are Mad
at 14:25 24 May 2024
well, i really hope people look at it like that and leave him alone.
Most people probably don't look at Colback and Hayden as PL players, and as for Dykes, come on mate. People aren't that dim, even in football. |
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Reply | End of Term Report 23/24 – Midfield (plus part two of the Patreon pod)
at 14:20 24 May 2024
All teams have luck, but f me, if Marti's absolute transformation of that team is down to 'fortune', if I were him I'd be spending a lot more time playing slots in vegas. 'He was a bit fortunate having less players to choose from' is certainly a new one!
Other posts and comments about having big (as in tall) players in and that making a difference are also fine, but it's so reductive to say 'oh in desperation he put Dunne to RB and luckily it worked'. We had lots of big players in under Ainsworth and still conceded from every set piece. It completely ignores the incredibly hard work that went in to that training ground every week so that the players understood their roles: something that was totally lacking under Ainsworth.
The turnaround was far less to do with team selection and far more to do with patterns of play, mentality, and players knowing their jobs. That is coaching. |
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Reply | These Manager Appointments are Mad
at 11:31 24 May 2024
I disagree on McKenna.
I know everyone is in a rush these days and it's always 'these jobs don't come up often' (I mean, they definitely do).
If I was McKenna I would be being very, very careful. He has not managed at Prem level. At Ipswich, he is in a no lose situation. If he keeps them up, which he may very well do, his stock rises more and he's got a year, maybe two, of Prem experience under his belt at a place that will have infinite patience with him. That sort of thing would be invaluable. United sack a manager every 2 years. I'd wait for the next cycle. |
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Reply | These Manager Appointments are Mad
at 09:32 24 May 2024
I'm delighted with all these mad appointments. Means owners are still idiots and no one is looking in west London and thinking 'ooh that marti looks quite fly' |
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Reply | End of Term Report 23/24 – Midfield (plus part two of the Patreon pod)
at 09:27 24 May 2024
Really enjoyed the pod thanks Clive. Might help to establish exactly what each mark represents. We had a bad first third, an ok second third and a very good third third, but Simmo seemed to give almost everyone a D. Very harsh stuff from him I felt, although agreed with all his analysis! |
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Reply | The Final: Attack on Wembley - Netflix
at 17:39 23 May 2024
yeah some of that might change now when Netflix get sued for baby reindeer, which clearly no lawyer took more than a cursory glance at. |
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Reply | Transfer rumours 2024
at 15:56 23 May 2024
<US Accent> I'm hearing the London Superhoods have thrown their baseball cap into the diamond in the hunt for US soccer kicker Duncan Mcguire. McGuire was due to put his John Hancock on a contract from the Blackburn Bobbysox earlier this year, but that was kicked into touch by the UK Football Feds and the soccer sorcerer is now looking for other opportunities across the pond in little olde England. The Bobbysox' local rivals the Superhoods are in the market for someone who can take PKs and is not afraid when faced with the opposing goal tender, but they could face competition from the Sheffield Owls, the Plymouth Pilgrims and the Chelsea Sh!tbirds.</US Accent> |
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