Your thoughts Norwich fans- Bristol City fan here how you feeling about Manning-he was a manager that divided the Bristol City fan base. Huge amounts of fans did not like his sideways and backwards football.It was so frustrating to watch. A large majority were very happy when he left us for the Canaries. Struber has changed our play we are now playing a much more attacking game which the majority of us fans prefer. Good luck this season it will be interesting to see which side finishes higher come the end.
4 games in with a massive player turnover it's a bit early to judge personally. Early signs are mixed with 2 home losses & 2 away wins all by 2-1 . Probably flattered by Sargent scoring in all of them one of the leagues best players who scored freely under the last 4 coaches. After about 12 games we will see what's happening
There's a few on here that would get rid of him tomorrow. To be fair I don't think any of them wanted him in the first place. The more reasonable posters are like me happy to give him a chance, even though for many of us he wouldn't have been our first choice. Far too early and too many variables at the moment to judge if his contribution will be a positive one.
I am one of those in the ' probably no ' camp mainly because he seems to have a very negative attitude to the game. I am one of those strange supporters who would rather see my team draw 4-4 than win 1-0 with their only shot of the game. In 2 of the 3 games so far, we have played quite well in the first half and gone in 2-0 up and in the second half have just pulled up the drawbridge. To be fair we have just about - and it was just about - got away with it but I do not agree with that mentality. As others have said it is too early to draw definite opinions but I will not be surprised if we finish nearer last than first and we go back to the managerial roundabout again within 18 months.
Your comments are not surprising i recognise them from our fan boards. Managers have a way they set up and Manning is so set in his ways-does he bring his subs on at 60 minutes? it was the same every game at Bristol City.
Manning has been sold to us as the very opposite of "set in his ways". We're still trying to figure out what exactly the ways are that he isn't set in!
How trusting was Manning when it came to selecting young players? I read that he used a squad of just 18 players throughout the 2024--2025 season. Is that right, and how many of the regular starters were youngsters (i.e. 22 or younger)?
He never brought the youngsters through-where Nigel Pearson before him did. Manning was like marmite at Ashton Gate -he was very set in his way-subs at 60 min every game. Watching Stuberball over Manningball is so much better-it was like a record under Manning same pre match speech-same formations breath f fresh air when he left Bristol City for Norwich.
Thanks, Red Robin. Below shows a graphic difference between our two clubs last season. Going by our transfers this summer, we are destined to look much more like you did last season when Ben Mayhew produces his end-of-season profiles next May. Season 2024--2025. Age distribution of starting elevens, Bristol City (mostly Manning), Norwich City (mostly Thorup). Graphic courtesy of Ben Mayhew's Experimental 361 The graphics "summarise the share of minutes given to players of each age" (where "age" is the exact age of the player on the day of the match). Each age from 35 or above, down to 18 or below, is represented.
Also from Experimental 361, for anyone interested, Championship Scatter Graphics (attacking and defensive performance) for the 2024--2025 season
Shows what an incredibly tough job Thorup had. Trying to play complex football with barely anyone in their prime. Quite a few not even close to years outside that 26-31 spot I'd happily swap Manning for Thorup, Thorup was genuinely trying to build something special. Manning is really interested in average and safe. I really do not like where he is taking us, just seems so limited and outdated from the 90's.
The input from Red Robin is helpful because despite all the bluster from Carrow Road what we have seen to date indicates the same mindset as Manning displayed at Bristol City. I had hoped that with the demise of the Smith and Wagner boredom a lesson had been learnt but I fear that we have fallen into the same trap again.
English managers.....can't stand them. Tbh I think he was employed to do exactly what he is. I am really struggling to think of anything I like about the team, Darling, Sargent, Kvistgaarden, Fisher, Mahovo......That's about it. Its not even just that the football is bad, its that the intention is bad. Mattson and Topic both love a long ball, hes told Cordoba to be more direct. It's depressing compared to the ambition last year with so much less with those youngsters.
Mirko Topić has his own view of Manning: "In addition to the fact that he is, of course, an expert as far as tactical ideas are concerned, I think what distinguishes him most is his relationship with the players, for example with psychology. He knows how to deal with each player, which in my opinion is very important, given that at this level all coaches have knowledge, because they wouldn't be here if they didn't have it. The difference is that here I do an individual match analysis directly with the head coach, which is totally atypical in the world of football at this level. They are mostly some video analysts or assistant coaches who let you know what you should pay attention to. It's just another proof of how dedicated he is as a coach and how important every detail is to him."
