I don't think it's right that people are saying Steve Bruce is under pressure. They lost to their local rivals early, which has hampered the mood of the supporters, but I'm not sure what they want. Sunderland are a middle-of-the-table team and maybe if they were to get relegated - like Newcastle did - they would lower their expectations. Sunderland are one of 10 teams that could go down this season, so their main aim should simply be to stay in the Premier League. They're definitely not a bottom three club, but I wonder if the expectations on the manager are too high..... rest of his opinion http://www.skysports.com/opinion/story/0,,15205_7195415,00.html?
Dear Mr Merson - to call you an "Expert" in that piece is a little (lot) of an overstatement. You must be right about us needing to get relegated from the premier league as we haven't had that feeling of relegation before have we - difference is you twat that we don't need to get relegated to lower expectation - most of our fans understand that we are a mid table side with aspirations and a bit of hope that over time we will improve to that top 8/6 spot - but we also realise that this is very difficult financially and due to our location to attract the players, long term, to achieve this. Bruce isn't under pressure because of the loss to Newcastle - he's under pressure because of the 2 home wins this year and the disastrous run we went on you pleb.! I, personally, am on the fence about Bruce but believe he will be able to turn it around (and hope that the BoB will turn their faith around if he does) - don't want Bruce to go but am still thinking he has decision to make - although his selections and tactics at the weekend against Stoke were spot on!!
Well this is a guy that has to have his mortgage paid directly from Sky to his bank because he cannot be trusted not to spend it in the bookies, I will take no notice.....
Can't see us being at the bottom at any stage at all, but I do think he has a bit of a point about the expectations of the fans..
I think its hard to take for the fans, in 2010 we got beat twice at home, Man U at the back end of the 2009/10 season, and then Blackpool near the New Year even though we had them all over. 2011 has been diabolicle at home, it went from a fortress to a dolls house, and we need to get it back to being a fortress. This season we havnt played that well (apart from Stoke) but we also havnt been turned over by 4 or more goals, OK we havnt played Man U or Man City yet, so there is still time, but Brown has been a revelation, and O`Shea looks the same but needs a couple more games, its a new team trying to gel, so hopefully we have now and we can push on, but Norwich wont be easy, but its our Home games we need to win, get the fans singing again, and make it a fortress again.
Done more in the game than any of us, so his opinion should be looked at rather than dismiss it just because it's not what you want to hear.
He was ****e at football, ****e at trying to be a football manager & a ****ing smack head. Some ****ing expert. cockney twat
You obviously don't watch football then lol. I'm not saying he's the best pundit but he was a cracking player
Merson has never liked us. Saying that he said nothing there that is completely wrong. We may not agree with him but I bet you it's what most neutrals view is on SAFC. Come on Brucey, prove them all wrong
Well the only bit I dont agree with is the getting relegted may be good for us line. It worked for Newcastle because they had been in the PL for 16 years or so, had overpriced/overpaid prima donnas that just couldnt give a crap, or were injured all the time, they went down, kept the nucleus of the squad, but got rid of those players, came straight back up, but it probably helped them. If we went down, we dont have any prima donnas, weel Gyan but looks like he will be off anyway, keeping the nucleus of the squad may be harder for us, so getting back up at the first attempt may be impossible, also Skort wont be happy so he may do a runner, Quinn will feel like crap so he might, and Bruce will surely get sacked, so who can we bring in, that will get us up, it may just kill the club, not just teach us a lesson.
Sounds like he's back on the piss. Which incedently, he blames Quinny for while they were both at Arsenal. Niall said that in his autobiography. Merson was a cracking player but I care not one jot for his alky, drug fulled opinions.
I do agree with some of the points he made about some expectations but I think, if you look at the post on here yesterday, that our expectations are, as I stated before, upper mid table - the bit I disagree with is him saying we need to get relegated to lower expectation - since the 1980's I can't remember more than one occasion (other than current) where we've stayed in the top flight for more than a season (or maybe 2) - we've been a yoyo club so saying we need to get relegated to lower expectations is bollocks
I like Merson, he's dopey, but he is entertaining, and he DOES know the game, even if he does contradict himself a bit (lot). He's right, we're not a bottom 3 side, he's right, we are a mid-table side. To say being relegated may help is way wide of the mark, but then i guess he's looking at our fans, who have been VENEMOUS recently, and thinking 'really?'. Problem is, all that people outside the club look at, and to be fair some of our own, is 'we finished 10th'. We can surely all admit that that was anti-climatic and failure really, but then people not associated with the club don't care about 'we should have...'. We'd take 10th again this season, but would we take it if we were 5th at Christmas and collapsed again? No. We're a club that's gone through massive transition, still ongoing, it's right that the fans expectations should rise, and we should be making no apologies to anyone for it.
Yeah I suppose watching it on the tele and playing it on the playstation will make you know the game? Was that a serious comment you just said there? Lol
