Apparently I've heard that after yesterdays debacle some players had a fall out with Pulis after the game over how we keep playing and there is unrest in the camp. Coates is to have a meeting with the players tomorrow so that they can air their views. Hopefully he will have one with Pulis right after and hand him his P45!
There is clearly unrest in the camp. Etherington, Pennant and Jerome are 3 clear examples of players that aren't happy with Pulis. It was reported in the press I think last week that Pulis had taken the players' passports so they wouldn't have a week or so away with their family abroad, which by the sounds of it has really pissed off the players and rightly so. This says to the players that Pulis doesn't trust them.
Good news. Maybe it will clear the air and get the team's minds back onto football. I don't believe a lot of what the media prints about the internal goings-on in a club, but having a frank exchange of views, and involving the players in the process, can't do any harm.
Unless Coates goes in there and tells them to stop picking and poor little Tony. I'm sorry, if a chairman has to have a meeting with players the damage is done!
I personally hope that Pennant is sorted out. The ball he put back in the first half to Shawcross was simply awful. Looked like a sulking kid because he did not win the penalty. Then in the second half he was upset that he was being subbed. Who else did we think would come off with Fuller coming on. Also when he came off TP would not either acknowledege him or say one word to him! That for me beggars belief. However, I would question how TP could play Fuller so soon in the team when Palacios is left out more or less all the time. I have to say it looked to me as if Higgy was off the pace with the 1st goal. He was simply admiring the cross rather than go to clear the ball! Also I think for the 2nd and 3rd goal Higgy should have performed better. Anyway let us hope Coates will sort them out.
That's pretty much what he should do. Football seems to be the only job where it's seemingly acceptable for supposed professionals to throw a wobbly and refuse to do their job the way their boss tells them. I'm an engineer. If I don't like the way my boss tells me to do something, I have words with him about what I'd do differently and hope he takes it on board. If he still tells me to do it his way, I fecking well do it. Because that's what I'm paid for. If players aren't bothered playing TP's style of football, and are going to sulk around negatively affecting Stoke City's results, they're under no obligation to keep picking up five figure weekly paycheques, and I hope PC reminds them of that fact.
I agree, modern day players are a law unto themselves and they ultimatley should implement what the manager instructs, however it is delivered. What has to be taken into account (and I excuse no player for any form of discent) is that respect is a two way road. Managers have to have faith in the abilty and accountabilty of the players, and inturn, the players have to have belief in the way they play and approach a game tactically. These players (even though some show unbelievable traits of behavioural issues) are no mugs and have a solid understanding about how they should play with what is within the team - TP himself was fully qualified at about 21 and hence it is not beyond the bounds of reality that these players maybe able to now whats best for them and the team, or certainly have something to offer. My point is that RESULTS and STATS (both player and team) prove in the long run whether or not the manner in which a team plays is productive, proffessional and maximises what is available. I personally dont believe that the respect is offered in both directions a 100% of the time, and that is bomb waiting to implode. We have had Kitsongate (collecting the balls at half time and puting the kettle on), Beattiegate (naked flying head butt), Lawrencegate (opps I fell over my dog), Fayegate (I'll warm up in flip flops and twat Whelan), Tunnygate (TP didn't even know he was at the club and TP would shake his head whenever the crowd sang his name), Fullergate (slapping the captain in the middle of the pitch and then guess which one gets sold?) and then we have players bought for their abiltygate (Wilson who cost us indirectly the best part of 9 million and Palcious at 8 million) who have not been played or played out of position - to name but 2! Does anybody else consider that maybe, just maybe, the players dont understand why talent is wasted at the expence of certain tactics that are deployed to either prove a point (*) or accomodate certain players or types? Its very difficult to defend the continued inability to control some kind of harmony within the "tight nit group" of "ard working" and "smashin lads" that offer the make up of our club and it appears from the outside that TP refuses to be apart of this on an equal basis. There have been many greats of the past that have fallen on their mighty sharp sword (Cloughy etc...) and there have been many greats of the modern era (The special one etc..) that have fallen based on their own ingnorance to the fact that the are just but a tiny cog in a very big wheel - and to be fair TP falls nowhere near either of those catagories. Anyway rant over and in retort to your point Pedar1987, TP is their boss not Coates. I'm sure that if your managers manager had to talk with you direct because your direct line manager could not motivate, control, develope or manage you - certain questions would be asked? (*) TP has proved to the establishment of English football, the general public and the over glorified modern day footballer, that it is possible to play at the highest level using the very basic of talent by setting up to play a game in a particular way. He has fundementally destroyed the notion that you need twinkle toe flare of supposed high skill (and might I add - very expensive) footballers from pedigree background with mouth watering transfer fees to compete it what is fundamentally a basic game. To that I offer respect, but not at the expence of running the club we all love into the ground. Pride before a mighty multi million pound fall!
Peadar Good points raised by you but, what puzzles me is this. WHY is it that Beattie,Kitson, Tuncay and now it seem's Pennant and Ether's are not happy? ALL of those on their day a fantastic player's for us.. Funny how we don't hear that Delap, Whitehead and Co ain't too worried or are they? T.P. simply can not handle player's like Tuncay etc as proved previously. I agree with Smither's in a way. It's BAD when our Chairman has to "step in" to try and sort things out. WHY can't T.P. be man enough to do it. Just say FOR ONCE "Sorry lads it's not working and we'll pull through this together" because we all know that T.P. is a stubborn son of a gun. I hope to God, that this is sorted one way or the other because the S*** will hit the fan eventually.
That would be the concern for me Potter, Coates choosing or having to step in signals a crisis in the making. If things were this bad, or were simmering in the way to boiling point, why didnt TP take them away for 4/5 days to team build and train, which hopefully would have diffused the situation?
Peadar, Very good points that you raise, and well put. Eventually, the workforce that does not carry out the manager's instructions are either coerced out of the business, or leave out of their own free will .If a fairly large number of employees leave, eventually the manager's methods come under scrutiny.
