It is reaching that stage where you are compelled to wonder what is motivating Levy to delay the inevitable and keep him haging around the place? Does he seriously believe that Ange's position is recoverable this/next season? I've heard it suggested that it might be to show the next chump that he will be allowed time to implement his methods and not cast aside within 17 months? Is it an issue of lessening yet another compo settlement? Is he happy to see Ange start to take the heat, allowing him to hide behind that, sacking him in the summer when there's no games for people to demand he goes himself? Is he genuinely trying to sell up and the new owners don't want him to **** things up further? Maybe he goes on Friday? Who knows? I'd got to a point where I scarcely cared, but I'm angry again, now. It's another ****ing **** show, to follow all of the others ..
If we lose on Thursday Mason will be in charge on Sunday just in time for the league cup final by coincidence
Maybe it's a Ramos thing? This bloke may be ****ing useless, but the only trophy I've overseen us win was with a coach who had to be sacked pretty soon after. "Maybe that's the trick?" He'd be better off with some lucky heather and an unfortunate bunny's foot, IMHO...that's what we're down to. Hoping that it's our 'turn' for 'Lady Luck' to grace us with her charms...because as a football team, we'll be lucky to win a toss up in the rest of this season.
If I see Mason in charge again any time soon I'll lose it. Either get the right replacement lined up, or keep and back Ange. Don't completely take the piss. No disrespect to Mason but this interim, supply teacher, nonsense will fully give opposing teams the confidence, beyond even what they have now, to come, bully and beat us. For goodness sake, learn a lesson Levy.
Mason's sole benefits are: - that he knows the club and playing staff; - wouldn't cost much; - isn't Ange. The last point makes him an option for me. If we'd acted in January, we could have got in a temporary option. Maybe we still can? I know what happens if we go with Ange until the end of the season. Get in someone who will break up the pissing about with the ball at the back and play it longer occasionally, tell the full backs to overlap, allowing the wide forwards to play narrower and get some structure to the ****ing midfield. We have some decent players, just not in Ange's system. It might just work. At this point, have we got anything to lose? I can't see anything.
Naturally, none of us know for certain but there are suggestions out there that there’s a break clause in Ange’s contract where if we fail to qualify for Europe, no compensation will be paid to Ange. Perhaps there’s some truth in this as there are no other logical reasons why he’s still our coach.
Lack of structure in the midfield is a personnel issue. Conte trusted Højbjerg and/or Sklipp over Bentancur and/or Bissouma for guile and muscle. With those players gone and not replaced with improvements we are left witnessing the downside of relying on the latter for the structure. Bissouma flatters to deceive as a 6. Both are 8's really. It's been the Tottenham problem throughout different squads. No balanced pair in the middle. Modric needed Parker. Huddlestone needed Palacios. Dembele needed Wanyama, or even Dier. You could argue that Sissoko and Winks is a more robust pair than what we have now. Heaven forbid. Bentancur needs reliable strength alongside him, Højbjerg was almost it but wasn't reliable enough. Gray may be the missing link. Hopefully we see this sooner rather than later, or it could be another body all together. Until that issue is fixed, no manager is improving things in major ways in that part of the park.
If Ange does go before the end of the season, I’d be amazed if the next manager comes in straight away as surely they have to be looking at the likes of Frank or Iraola who aren’t going to leave their clubs at this time so we would be stuck with Mason. Only one I can think of unemployed that we have previously heard about is Terzic. if we go out of the Europa though then really is nothing to play for so doesn’t matter who’s in charge. Mayne wait till the summer and Amorim may be available as I think a number of the players we already have are ready made for his system. I think given time at United he would turn it round but are they going to be able to give him the funds to buy the numerous players for his system?
I really hope that isn’t the reason. Saving on compensation if they’ve already decided the manager is going is an awful way to run a top level football club. Also the money saved on compensation would be lost due to league positions anyway.
26 points off first 10 league games 40 from the last 28 games last season 34 from 28 games so far this season. He lost 12 league games last season and already lost 14 this season. He really has only survived because of the first few months hasn’t he.
He achieved another mini-record yesterday too as for the first time since 2011 we'll be unable to win 10 league games at home. It's just who we are, mate.
It makes a deal of sense, in a situation where not much else does. Chucking away a chance of success, so that we can save money to pay off the next chump, when he needs to be got rid of? It's about what we've come to...
Mason's benefit may well be he isn't beholden to a specific system, as being beholden to a specific system is ultimately the root of Ange, Conte et al being found out When he replaced Conte he maintained Conte's 3421 for a few games before morphing into a trad 343 (with us playing 442 in our final game), while when he replaced the Ubermensh he used a straightforward 4231 On paper at least that grants us 3-4 games where teams won't have us figured out before a ball is kicked
sounds like a very Levy thing though? my proof is the sacking of Mourinho before a cup final I know my hope of us winning the Europa is going to kill me but your hope that Levy doesn’t put money first might kill you bro
After the last few games, even the hope that we might do something different is enough for me. We're not getting relegated. How much worse can it be?
Sometimes, just stagnation in the middle of the table for all eternity is enough to send one over the edge...
I don’t care that he puts money first but if he has already decided to axe Ange then getting rid of him sooner could have resulted in a better league position which might have covered the compensation amount. Admittedly I don’t know the amount Ange will get if he’s sacked now or at the end of the season. But the second the chairman wants the manager gone, he has to do it as leaving him to manage until the end of the season is ridiculous.
If Levy sacked Ange now he would actually be making the mistake he is usually accused of ie interfering in football decisions. The data doesn't support any particular conclusion so far. In so far there is a pattern, Ange does well when he has a full squad and not at all well when a third or more of the squad is missing due to injury. Since there isn't enough data to warrant a sacking then the DoF should take the decision rather than Levy.
