Not exactly the same no. I was getting at the fact we ONLY have 7 games to trial KWP. For better or worse Valery will be here next season - so we don't have the limit of 7 games before we decide to buy/sell/renew contract etc
I think that just one additional key player would make a massive difference to the team and its' organisation. An experienced leader at CB to marshall the defence and provide the base of the spine would galvanise everything and make us a lot harder to score against.
Trouble is we will need to replace Hojbjerg as well as 100% needing a right back. But I do agree, in the same way VVD did for us & indeed Liverpool, a top CB that leads and organises a defence can completely transform a team. Look at Man City without Kompany - leaders at the back are so much more than "just" 1 player.
Losing Fonte and VvD in the same season without replacing either with the same technical or leadership qualities was a catastrophe we have never really recovered from.
Completely agree with this. Interesting when you look at why we lost Fonte. If I recall correctly he wanted a longer/bigger contract than we were prepared to offer - so got it elsewhere. But looking back now, if he would have stayed, I dare say that money would have been recuperated (and then some!) by finishing higher in the league and not having to panic buy players like Carrillo. The benefit of hindsight!!
Hindsight is a wonderful thing. Ron went to Everton and signed a deal that made him in the top five of highest paid managers in the worlds list. We couldn't compete with that, and it would have been foolish to try. And I'm a big fan of his time here.
That has always been my view too and it is borne out by the stats. We have conceded 56, 65 and 54 (with 7 games left) after they left preceded by 33, 41 and 48 respectively. If you are averaging over 1.5 goals a game conceded then you will struggle to win games and gain points over a season. More frightening is the thought of a defensive injury crisis which we are only 2 or 3 regular players from. What if 2 or all of from Ryan, Jack and Bedders are unavailable, who plays then?
We must not forget that Jose was a pile of poo at West Ham. There were no guarantees he would have played well for us. His leadership would have been of value though.
Not sure how it would have gone as time went on (he was already 34/35 I think) but I'm almost certain we would have doubled our major honours total.
Any volunteers for the Watford thread. If I end up doing it the world will end, we violated the laws of nature with this one.
Yes, that was quite amusing though wasn't it? No guarantees but he hadn't shown any decline yet and as you say was a leader at the club. I guess having to adapt to a new environment, way of playing and team mates accelerated his decline?
I don't think Clade Puel's dropping Fonte from European matches did much to help him want to stay either. Of the new signings in that position, I would suggest that only Bednarek was of a decent standard. I am on the fence about Stephens and haven't given up with him. as far as Vester and Hoedt are concerned, neither is really much better than Championship level , the latter probably struggling at that level. You wonder about Danso's ability if he can only get a game in cup ties and even then, playing out of position. It is in intriguing situation because I think the poor defence really tarnishes Ralph's reputation. If and when we get that sorted, I feel that the levels of confidence within the squad will improve. I must be difficult playing either in midfield or attack knowing that the defence is always going to make an error at some point in the game. We need 2 new CBS and a new full back before next season. I am not worried about recruiting in other positions and would not be fussed if additions are not made elsewhere. Just get the defence sorted.
