Reading all the populist comments, how about a good old Graham.
Back, sack and crack - should Ralph stay in post
- Thread starter ihatemyselfandwanttodie
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So I just amended the title, yes if he should stay in post, no if he should go, or 31st Dec to make decision then.
Just what we need - another referendum.
Not another bash on my hopeless pension?
Oh no I don't think my heart would be able to stand the strain
But who would you get to replace him? If we do so sack Hassnehutl, I think the best bet in our position is Rafa Benetiz. He got Championship level players playing Premier League football at Newcastle, and he stuck with the club when they dropped down into the Championship, and got them back into the Prem.
To be frank, I'm pretty sure that the rot lies far deeper than with the current manager, and unless we get the defensive players in the transfer season (y'know, the ones that the team has needed for the past couple of seasons) we're doomed to return to the Championship.
To be frank, I'm pretty sure that the rot lies far deeper than with the current manager, and unless we get the defensive players in the transfer season (y'know, the ones that the team has needed for the past couple of seasons) we're doomed to return to the Championship.
Do you not think though a lot of it is where the manager is not letting the players play their natural Game?
I do, I think he played to their strengths last year, but tried to change it up and it hasnt worked...
Firstly the club need to BACK him in January with a SACK of money to spend on quality then hopefully we can CRACK on with saving our season.
If results are still bad after January then he will have to go but i've a feeling that he will bale out if he doesn't get the financial support from the club that he needs in the transfer window.
If results are still bad after January then he will have to go but i've a feeling that he will bale out if he doesn't get the financial support from the club that he needs in the transfer window.
Yep, id tend to agree SA. I think we will get 2 or 3 in Jan and hopefully that will support Ralph.
I think they are playing their natural game.
Cedric's natural game is to be caught out of position a lot, and when he gets forward, aim his crosses at the big screen.
Jack Stephen's natural game is to shank one at the opposing CF. This doesn't make him any worse than the rest of our CBs.
The natural game of our entire midfield is to pass a football like I used to pass pubs.
Shane's natural game is to take shots that go out for throw-ins.
etc etc.
So, how was it Ralph got a better tune of of the same old **** last season? Our average points per game was about 50% more than it is now.
So, if that was down to Ralph being a better manager, then great - but why cant he do the same again,if not better as he had pre season and got a better version of Ings plus Djeneppo? What is it that Ralph is doing different now than last season?
Cos the same **** is going on behind the scenes now as it was then, so I dont totally buy that as the only reason.
Or is he he isnt actually as good as we thought, he got lucky or had better support last season?
This season for me he has:
1. tried different formation and it hasn't really worked.
2. tried weird players in unnatural positions
3. lost Danny Rohl
4. not set out well at the start of games
Im sure there are more but im not sure i can be arsed to carry on.
I dont know if changing him is right, or if anyone else can do better, but I suppose I am getting tired of the Ralph love-in, blaming the hierarchy of the club etc when people must surely recognise he has to shoulder a large chunk of whats going on.
Personally, i hope he turns it around, I hope we back him in the transfer window, but my gut feeling is if this carries on too far as it currently is, we will be down.
For those of us saying that he can re-group, get different players then in the Championship, absolute bollocks - I dont believe he would stay, regardless to what he said, and if he wants to attract the right footballer to play his system it is far easier in the EPL than the one below. Also, if that happens, there is major work to ro boot at that level and come up, and I am not convinced our finances could take that.
People mention Sunderland - that might just be a wish for how far we could fall.
It would be interesting to find out if rumours that certain senior players were not happy with his management are true because all it takes is 5% off of a performance for it to not be good enough. I was optimistic about our chances this season mainly because of the second half of last season plus a fit Danny and better attacking options. In retrospect though the non signing of a dominant central defensive leader and and not sufficiently replacing Matty Targett has outweighed this plus the whole team's apparent timidity in front of the fans at SMS. When was our last clean sheet at home FFS?, we never get the easy home points that other clubs get and it is dragging the whole club down.
I like Ralph but results are everything, he has bought a bit of time and patience with me because of last season mainly and his ongoing problems in defence.
I like Ralph but results are everything, he has bought a bit of time and patience with me because of last season mainly and his ongoing problems in defence.
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Yes, but that doesn’t mean he is doing a great job. More that I think all the other **** is having a big influence too.
It is clear that RH is not the best thing since sliced bread as initially thought, but I think he has had a lot to deal with at the club. And who do we get in...apart from being a PL club we have little going for us at the moment that would attract a better manager...and can we afford to sack another manager? That's a costly business and we could find ourselves no better off than before. The league is still close and we are not adrift (apart from an unpleasant GD), so I think we should stick rather than twist at the moment.
I've said it a few times before, including before we even kicked a ball last season: we still had some poor results last season under Ralph. Two defeats to Cardiff, a thumping away to Newcastle, a draw at home to Huddersfield, a home defeat to West Ham, a draw at home to Bmouth.
Our results against the top eight, particularly at home, were generally very positive. Wins vs Spurs, Arsenal, Everton, Wolves and Leicester. A draw away to Chelsea. But below those sides? I can only think of Fulham at home, and Huddersfield and Brighton away, as wins. And lets be honest, basically everyone beat Fulham and Huddersfield - it's nothing to shout about (see Watford and Norwich this season).
Too many people though seemed to easily brush off those defeats, in favour of the bigger wins. Which for me was a whole lot of rose tinted spectacles. Surely it's most important to focus on what we did in the games where we would be expecting to get something, rather than the games where we pulled off somewhat surprise results. Replicating surprise results year-on-year is hardly something to be banking on. It's kind of in the name.
So I don't particularly see that we are any worse this year, as compared to last.
What I would say though is that our success in those wins last season is that, in most if not all of them, I imagine that we had 40% possession or less. We re awful in possession. We're not good enough to create much and, worse, we invariably lose the ball at some point and duly get caught horribly out of position. I think it was Jose, during his time at Madrid (when he was constantly being compared to Pep), who said that sides are at their most vulnerable when they have the ball. One misplaced pass, and you could find yourself kicking off just seconds later. So why, this season, does it feel like we've returned back to being a team who looks to have possession? Maybe the stats will prove me wrong - and to be fair, Villa this weekend will be the first away game I've been to this season, so I can only really judge from home games - but it does feel like the sideways passing, backwards passing, and errors on the ball are very much up as compared to last year under Ralph.
I hate to say it (and whilst I still support Ralph, it's why I said yesterday that Sam could currently get more out of this team), but becoming a side who looks to try and keep a solid defensive shape, whilst trying to hit our opponents on the counter attack as our only form of attack, could be a way to go. It certainly suits someone like Palace, for example. Sure, it will lead to horrendously dull games against the likes of Burnley, Newcastle and Palace themselves. But it might also be our best chance of getting points against the likes of Arsenal, Everton and Wolves. And Villa this weekend, whose crowd will be expecting them to take the game to us.