Defoe to Rangers..... Wow! Gerrard.… They are pushing Celtic all the way. Unless Celtic respond with some signings. That signing could give Rangers the edge. So impressed with that move. In that pub league, Defoe could rule.
What a move if true! He will probably triple his wages. Juve get another free world class player. Arsenal have another important, world class player walk away on a free to a better side and club than them. Such a strange way to operate for Arsenal. You are happy to let players leave on a free, but bigger and better clubs are desperate to sign them? Have things actually changed? Or is it the same old Arsenal?
Some wrist slashing from an ITFC fan, but it does include this :- (Try substituting the word Delia) https://www.twtd.co.uk/blogs/21761/marcus-thanks-for-the-cash-but-you-need-to-speak
Thanks for that Cromer and a really heartfelt plea by a true fan – reminds me of the Moxey PR exercise of a couple of seasons ago. I hope the ITFC fans get their wish, but I’m ‘not holding my breath’ on that one. I guess the one big difference is that we were still getting crowds in excess of 23,000 even in League 1. Luckily for us NCFC fans, getting nephew Tom on the board is the best thing that’s happened, as, without him, D&M would have resorted to a cheap version of Big Sam/Pullis etc in an attempt to at the very least keep us in the Championship. Instead, we have SW/DF and that combination has achieved the impossible when compared to last season. We have unity at the club once more and IMO, it is now even better than when DMcN/PL were in charge. The noise in the ground (even when we are losing) is incredible and there is no haranguing of players when they make a mistake, as they all give their utmost week in, week out.
Heavy duty stat-attack here, (if the tweets load successfully - if not click on the table below and it will take you to the full set on @SwissRamble's timeline.) Anyway, it ends:- Swiss Ramble@SwissRamble This analysis does come with a health warning: (a) not all clubs produced cash flow statements over the period; (b) some clubs spent some of the period covered in the Premier League or League One; (c) the cash flow format is different for different clubs. Nevertheless, the main conclusion is clear, namely the Championship is a division where most clubs require significant financing from their owners, largely to cover operating losses and fund player purchases, as they strive to reach the (wealthier) heights of the Premier League.
They've also not paid Christian Doidge, on loan from Forest Green Rovers, with the Rover's chairman suing Bolton for breach of contract
Isn't it odd how a manager just seems to fit one team but is unable to replicate it elsewhere? Not just rowett lambert went the same way and walker before him. Others seem to be able to be successful wherever they go. . Like pulis... Eeek
I'm not sure it's that odd, those that seem to be able to transfer or replicate success often have a very simple game plan based on stout defending and basic predominantly route one football. Any more complicated game plans often take time and evolution of playing staff to implement. Lambert had the stars align for him with a good squad for lge 1 and perfect for his game plan. that almost never happens and looks now kinda lucky because even with multiple clubs and transfer windows he has never even begun to replicate that succes. (I still suspect it is the absence of Culverhouse and Karsa) There is so much pressure in the game these days that even if an owner thinks he has a candidate for a long term strategy they will sack them before they have a realistic shot at change and success. The reality is that in most roles you must start well and maintain form during the building process or you simply won't get the time. Look at the binners, they were supposedly trying to change direction, build with a promising young coach who knew good lower division players who he in theory could develop into a team to play his brand of relatively attractive football. I know he presided over a catastrophic start, but Lamberts results have actually got worse! you have to try to consider the hand he was dealt. No money, Lge 1 players, all his goal scorers/best players sold and with a squad put together primarily to play hoofball. Compare him to Farke. Farke started with a veritable embarassment of riches by comparison and struggled right up to and including that last derby. more glimmers along the way but had farke been ME appointment at the biginning of this season, I seriously doubt he would have faired significantly better or still be in a job. That actually goes for much of the division. Next to no club will tolerate a poor season, followed by a bad start. Looking at us now, perhaps a few more need to, but there have to be some glimmers. Is Lambert providing enough of those glimmers? how long and after how many more defeats can ME hold his nerve? Will he for the first time in ages back his manager with at least semi-competitive funding? With the current squad, any manager would be dead in the water and I think nailed on for relegation. ME will have to ask himself. who does he want to rebuild in Lge 1? Others of course have had vary degrees of success, Steve Bruce. Still keeps getting jobs, has had some successes and some failures and some relative failures. His successes have not in my umble been as underdogs, usually as a big spending favourite. his season last year was not terrible, Villa were a basket case, even though a well funded one. Getting to the playoff final constituted the nearest you can be to success with actually failing, so its hard to say he performed poorly. But I just don't see a lot there to advertise him as a manager who can get the most out of a squad. Bah!
Oh dear, so unless the stars happen to align for you, any prospective manager who wants to succeed would be well advised to attend the Pulis/Allardyce "simple game" training course....
That's one take on it, another would be that football has become too complicated to allow a manager to have complete control of how a club plays. From Swansea's rise up the leagues, to England under Southgate, to the distinct brands of football developed at La Masia, and to hopefully our own revolution at Colney, longer term planning for on the pitch is becoming increasingly necessary. It's why Graham Potter at Swansea is going to be an interesting example. Their fans seem to see some positives in what he's doing, even if the results don't match. But do the club give him the time, like Farke had, to continue to develop those positives? I don't watch enough of Ipswich to say whether Lambert is trying to build something there, or just fight fires. Given their position, they need a firefighter to stay in the league, which he isn't going to manage without rapid improvement.
An absolutely outstanding post GM. You’ve hit SOOOO many ‘nails on the head’ that I lost count. Of all the relegated clubs, the one that has been the biggest surprise has been Stoke. They’ve managed to hold onto most of their squad and it has several seasoned international players in it, though I’d be surprised if Butland makes the next Engerland squad. As you rightly point out, far too many clubs are looking for instant success and if it doesn’t appear within a few months, they press the ‘change manager button’ at whatever cost and most PL and Championship clubs have wealthy backers/owners, so can easily afford to do it. Yes, it was often said that it Culverhouse was ‘the brains’ behind PL’s success and I’ve lost track of how many clubs he’s managed since leaving NCFC, but it matters not a jot and he really seems to have hit rock bottom with 1p5wich and I PRAY that we get a decent referee for their visit in just over a month’s time. I could see glimmers of what DF and co were trying to achieve towards the end of last season – hence my decision to see if I could get a season ticket this year and am I glad I did. I couldn’t believe the apparent ease with which we were carving Derby apart in the first 30 minutes and I’ve no idea why it all fell apart after they scored. IF we can amass 5 or more points from the next 4 games, I’m certain that we’ll be in or around the automatic promotion places come May, as all the other teams still have to play each other and there are some MASSIVE games coming up in Feb, so I’ll update the https://www.not606.com/threads/lies-damned-lies-and-statistics.367638/page-2 after the weekend to include the Feb fixtures
