If I'd managed hundreds of high profile games and done so to some significant degree of success, I'd also have an almost religious belief in my ability to judge which players suit my system best. Certainly more so than a couple of blokes who've never managed a game in their lives. It's like some suit and tie OFSTED inspector telling a successful, popular teacher how to do his job. There's a limit how much can be dictated before falling on deaf ears.
I get managers make mistakes but surely not having a manager to have a say on this summers ins and outs is a huge and very avoidable mistake...which is what my original point was. I honestly fail to see how we sacked JM without having anyone lined up. We knew in February that he was going to have to go...we won 3 out of our previous 13 prem matches from December 7th to mid February. To still be scrabbling around for a new manager, more than 7 weeks after sacking JM having failed to get any of our top 4 candidates is genuinely inept. Unless Hag, Conte or PSG change their mind the person coming in will be the FIFTH CHOICE CANDIDATE... there are not enough s to do this farce justice.
Your last example demonstrates that you've missed my point. Recruitment and coaching are very different skills. I don't want the Head of Recruitment telling the Head Coach how to coach any more than the other way around. I do want the Coach to identify weaknesses in the squad that the Head of Recruitment should prioritise though. But he should trust the Head of Recruitment to do his job and not try to second guess him.
This is maybe why the head coach/manager appointment is taking so long. It makes sense for the DoF to have a big say in who the manager/head coach is. Their relationship will be one of the most important at the club.
From 2016 onwards recruitment has been awful and he has to take a lot of the blame for it. I think it was around 2015 or 2016 where that mega TV deal came into play and I think once "smaller" clubs started getting more clout, Levy's struggled to maintain the "Levying" he was so often praised for. He can't get the Lennon's for £1m these days, nor fob off dross like Tommy Forecast in a deal to get Bale for just £7m, in fact he somewhat tried that with £3m and Onomah for Grealish and got given the middle finger. Because of this, he's then had to step into the big boy market and just about every signing he's parted money with has been poor (I actually can't understand just how badly we've gotten it), the few non-flops haven't even had the greatest of impacts, despite our squad being in decline for about three or four years now. Hopefully Paratici can begin mending things but I guess it'll depend on just how much control he'll truly have, ideally Levy says to him "here's £Xm, sell who you and the manager want too to raise further funds and make **** happen". Whether he's willing to part with that much control though will remain to be seen. I don't know too much about Paratici as I do other DoFs but he seems relatively well respected and more importantly connected, and we'll need those connections.
A D.o.F or "head of recruitment" should be the guy that decides the way a club/team should play, this then means that when a manger leaves a new one can be recruited that suits the players at his disposal making the transition as easy as possible with little disruption or constant re-building. The hardest part of this job is walking into a club and deciding if the players/manager there are capable of fulfilling the requirements, if not then a painful few years could follow until the harmony is reached. After that the DoF and manager can discuss future sales and recruitment and be on the same lines even though they might prefer different players the"type" would be the same and with a list of 3 or 4 for one position a compromise can be met with very little difference in outcome. This then gives the club a chance for the future because if the manager leaves they only need to find a replacement with similar outlook and style instead of having to change both manager and half the team. Fantastic idea if you get an astute DoF, disaster if you get a poor one.
Generally agree but in my mind the DoF is on the Board and the Coach, Head or Recruitment and Head of Academy are all in his team. I'm not fond of hierarchies so I would see him more as a coordinator than a boss. Having poor people in any key job usually causes problems.
Most sizable businesses have Production Managers, Research and Development Managers, Recruitment Managers, etc., etc. There is no difficulty in creating an appropriate and effective management structure and running a football club (or any business) successfully within that structure....BUT the owners/senior managers of the business have to want to do it. That's been our problem up to now, Levy hasn't wanted to cede real levels of control and responsbility to others. Will that change? We shall see...... ...but given his track record, I don't trust him to do it. Not one bit.
To be fair its a bit more like asking someone to come into your ailing company to turn around the team. Whenever i see senior management change because of failing performances (such is why the last two managers were sacked rather than then walking) they normally have a few key members who they want to bring in whom they trust
Well yes and no. Ali Gold and others have reported that the DOF position only became priority once it became clear that PSG weren't letting go of Poch, who is loath to work with one. In other words, there hasn't been a single-minded clarity on either position since Maureen was sacked. That's the simple reality of it
I don't know, but fully expect that to be 'on the money'. It fits in perfectly with our history under ENIC (read Levy). Levy's managerial style is almost entirely opportunistic. There's little (probably, no) philosophy underlying his actions. As a club, we swing this way and that according to his whim. There are very few geniuses in the world. Levy isn't amongst them. Acting as if he is in their number, really isn't helping our football club. It's well beyond time to run it like a proper business and set up proper structures to take us from a 'nearly' club to one that that can win something meaningful again. Nothing comes with a guarantee but it's beyond time to be trusting to Levy and Lady Luck to change our fortunes.
I think they intended to go with a DoF but then the Poch possibility came up and they were willing to give him more of a say to get him back. Anyone else will have to work with a DoF. That could show flexibility on ENIC’s behalf or it could show that they don’t really know what they’re doing. Depends how you view them I guess.
Levy will get it right mate, not to worry. don’t you know the highest paid chairman in the PL is a footballing man? He watched Spurs in the terraces, just goes to show you can still be a clueless ****…apologies I digress…what I mean is…the guy has a plan…the Levystas on here tell me all the time.
our options were already limited, but it’s reducing further quite quickly. I know Nuno was never a favourite, but he’s gone to palace too. it’s looking more and pore like it’ll be Ten Hag unless something drastically changes with Conte or Poch. I don’t see it being Martinez to be honest.
There's been scuttlebutt regarding us bringing in a DoF for months, which is why Luis Campos has been linked since he left Lille last December
potentially just RCL’d myself here. Rumours that Nuno to Palace has fallen through, so can’t officially write that one off just yet!
