Courtesy of Halo on SaintsWeb - do try and read it, as I think it is a great post and I feel he's pretty much bang on in what he says..... ....would be interested to hear what you think on his point. Naturally, this is a game of opinions, and we do not have all the facts to hand, so all we can do is to offer our thoughts, as best we can; and some of that, in the absence of the complete knowledge that would only come from being involved at the Club, will clearly be at least partly based upon supposition, conjecture, and trying to read between the ("blue") lines. Ok, where to start? Makes sense to begin by stating that as per my vote, our Nigel has my support. So, as I can perfectly understand why my stance may appear a strange one to many, given the situation we are in, here's why I feel this way: Let's start with stability. It has long been an often shared opinion on here, that after the Lowe era of managerial merry-go-rounds, "revolutionary coaching set-ups" that often end abruptly in "mutual consent" compensation packages and non-disclosure agreements, that what we really needed, was the long term stability, of finding a good guy, the 'right' man for our Club, and then when we've found him - sticking with him, and standing by him - even when the "going gets tough". And like Morpheus in The Matrix, upon finding "The One" - I say what I say, because "I believe that search is over". I remember back in the early days of Sir Alex' glorious reign at Old Trafford, that there was a time when things were not going well, that he was under a lot of pressure, and rumours grew that his tenure was on very dodgy ground, amid calls from sections of the club's support and the media for him to be sacked. His board backed him however, and the rest is a fine history indeed. Not that our Nigel is as yet fit to tie Fergie's metaphorical shoe laces of course, but nevertheless, here we have a young and talented manager, who has done us proud over the last two seasons, and has the potential to become a very fine manager indeed. He is currently struggling. That much is abundantly clear. And the growing pressure he must be feeling, is clearly not helping his cause. But, do we really cast him aside, eight games into his fledgling Premier League management career? Do we hang him out to dry, for struggling to tread water, while if recent rumour his to be believed, he has at least one hand tied behind his back? "Thanks for everything Nige, but you can do one now mate". Loyalty. It is a two way street. We (as football club supporters in general) complain about the seeming lack of this noble quality in our game these days when it suits us, against a backdrop of multi-billion television contracts, in which the almighty pound sign is king; and yet, after two years of unmitigated success and good times, and a ridiculously difficult run of starting fixtures by way of a "welcome" to the Premier League, - it's "sorry Nige, it was nice knowing you. Thanks for the back to back promotions and feel-good factor, now **** off". That is a stance that I am personally unable to endorse. And I'm unsure as whether to be happy or disappointed, that at the time of writing, it seems that 64.75% agree with me. But knowing what a reactionary bunch some can be at times on here... I do already wonder, how many might just wish that they could change their vote, when they wake up in the morning, and reflect. Ok, so, let's back it up a minute, and take a closer look at the situation we currently find ourselves in. If what we are "led to believe" from various "sources" is true, Nigel has his hands tied to some degree, with how much room to manoeuvre that he has. Nigel made it abundantly clear, very early on in pre-season, that it was one of his main priorities, to bring in "a couple" of quality Centre Backs to the Club, and was also keen to add a Premier League quality Left Back to the squad. We all know about the Alexander Buttner situation for starters. Given that he stated this often as such a priority, and all that materialised was a deadline day deal for Maya Yoshida, I do wonder how much control he had over the players he has been able to bring in. Then we have his carefully worded responses pertaining to the "Southampton Way", and this seemingly 'dogged' persistence with sticking to the new "4-3-3" formation, that is implemented across all levels at the Club. I don't "know", of course. All I can do, is take the many little 'snippets' Nigel has dropped in some of his interviews, try to connect a few dots, read between a few lines, and hope that when I add two and two together, I come up with figure that closely resembles the number four. But if you listen to his Solent interview today, he is very careful in what he "takes responsibility" for. Pretty much everything, with notable exception of our formation. "It's my responsibility alone. The way we perform, the results that we get; the team selection, the substitutions - there's only one person to look at and that's me". Adam Blackmore then asks: "Did you consider, putting someone up front with Lambert, at any stage?" And Nigel, in a patently downcast tone of resignation, simply responds: "We're gonna play 4-3-3". I really feel for him. Nigel is a clever guy, and within the limits of what he can say, I do believe that he is trying to send us a message, and ask us to read between the lines. So if, and I do mean if - the speculations and rumours are true, that our current system and formation is being forced upon him, to the extent that he is unable to change things around when he can see they are not working, then whoever is responsible for that decision, must also bear at least a part of the responsibility for what happens when that system is failing. It is all very well to hold the manager to account when results are going against us, but if he is effectively being told how we are expected to play, and he is unable to alter this if he feels he needs to, then he is having to manage the best he can, with his hands effectively tied. We know from many of Nigel's previous interviews last season, and from simply watching our team play, that he likes to be pretty fluid, and have a few working formations, to change things up when need be, and ensure our flexibility and ability to adapt to situations. We've seen many times, that he will often switch between a few formations, during one game. And yet this season, when subtly asked why he didn't change our shape? "(sigh) .... we're gonna play 4-3-3". Anyway, I'm conscious that this is already a long post, so I'll tie things up. You could tell Nigel's frustration in his interview today (here if you've not seen it), that lapses in concentration are costing us at the back, time and again. Unfortunately, "****ing concentrate you useless ****s!!!" isn't really something you can "coach". We have what we have, until the January window at least. It is clearly not good enough at this level, and we just have to make the best of it until then. We already know how much Nigel wanted to strengthen at the back in the summer. For 'whatever reasons', that did not happen. Who is to say, ultimately, that with the tools we currently have at our disposal, that another manager would do any better? It's not like Jose Mourinho or Arsene Wenger are going to be queuing up to take the job, afterall. Either way, if it is true that Nigel is "under orders" in some way, however great or small, the one thing that I really feel is 'unfair', is that the Club continue to remain silent on this, and allow pressure to build on our manager, if there are things beyond his control, that we do not know about. I know Nicola Cortese likes to conduct his business behind the scenes, and I do respect that. Yet, under current circumstances, now would be a very good time for another of those "rare interviews" of his. Communication is such an important tool, particularly during difficult times. It is amazing how much more support and understanding can be generated, if we are kept 'in the loop' now and then, and allowed the opportunity to come to a more informed opinion for ourselves as to what is happening at our club. Even just a little comment along the lines of "we are trying to implement a new philosophy throughout our Football Club, and we understand that this can take some time to get things right. Everyone at the club is in full support of Nigel as he does his best to work within the framework we have set in place, and we ask for your continued support as we look to take Southampton FC to the next level", - would be nice. Now, I certainly do not have the temerity to "tell you what to think", or the arrogance to believe that my opinion is in anyway "better" than yours. But I for one, do want to be 'on the record', - whether I be "right" or "wrong" - as stating that (for me) Nigel deserves our support during these testing times, and the chance to bring in the players he feels will put right our problems at the back, in the next window. I know. If things continue as they are, it could well all be too late by then. But, the Premier League is not the "be all and end all" for me. Supporting Southampton Football Club is. And whilst it is great to be in the top flight, where we feel we 'belong'; I for one, would rather go back down (if it comes to that) and continue to enjoy my football in the Championship, with the breath of fresh air that is the honourable and amiable Nigel Adkins, than attempt to cling onto the coattails of Premier League survival, with the likes of a corrupt, miserable, saggy-faced **** in charge of the Club that I love. Call it Loyalty, or call it madness. Either way, that's my colours nailed to the mast.
I agree with the vast majority of what he says, a good post to read and thank you for bringing it to our attention DTLW as after a few fleeting visits to SaintsWeb I decided it was not a place worth hanging round for the most part. I've been avoiding the topic of all this talk of Cortese forcing Adkins into certain things in the transfer market, in the formation and in the line-up, as despite the fact that so much of what we do as fans with only an outside view of the happenings of our football club is speculation and assumption, there's just too much of it in these situations for me to be able to make any solid opinions on them. That being said, I think too much is being made into the *Sigh* "We're going to play 4-3-3." ending of Nigel's interview. I think that response was more borne out of annnoyance after a very disappointing day, and a down-beat Nigel not wanting to answer another question on formations, rather than a frustrated manager, being watched over by a pupper-master chairman, trying to make a subtle statement that he isn't happy about having his strings pulled and having a "I'm a real boy!" moment.
I do think we read too much into the end of Nigel's interview. Probably just fed up. However, there is no doubt that there is a certain ethos about the Southampton way which was introduced with considerable success by Cortese. This may tie Nigel's hands a bit. However, if NC is like me he would never be able to follow any formation changes during the match, though the Director of football development (or whatever he's called) would point it out to him as he sits right next to Cortese.
I have just edited the original post to allow the swear filter to work, but I decided to leave all the commas! It's a great post. WRT Nigel's interview, I am inclined to agree with Sam from the film Casablanca; you must remember this, a kiss is just a kiss, a sigh is just a sigh. Anyway, my five-penneth. I remember an interview with AP where he said that he kept getting asked why his team committed so many fouls by NC. The Southampton Way is part of the mission statement and the manner of our winning is as important as the established Premiership side bit of the equation. Does that mean that NC is dictating the formation? I don't believe so, but if Nigel's mission is play fast attacking football then he may feel that he cannot park the bus away from home to grind out a few results. I have no doubt that we will add to the squad in January and I really hope that NC is prepared to back the man he chose and give him the time he needs. Nigel has been asked before about his substitutions and tactics and he has always said that managers are paid to make those decisions. Our attack is good. Our defence will be improved. Then there will be no hiding place. I think that if Nigel is sending us a subliminal message, it is that even he finds it difficult to remain upbeat when his players let him down so badly as they did yesterday.
But, the Premier League is not the "be all and end all" for me. Supporting Southampton Football Club is. Well said, that man! Totally agree. Also we have to continue to support NA for the reasons stated. People point to Sir Alex, and understandably so. A better example, given the size of the club, might be Bolton's loyalty towards Allardyce. He yo-yo'd with the team before establishing them in the Prem and the board stuck with him. Closer to home, but further away in history, Lawrie Mac took us down in his first season and failed to get promotion back for 4 years. Winning the FA Cup helped his cause, but ultimately the Board decided to stick with their appointee and we had the best years ever at SFC as a result. I do worry about how well NA is coping with the stress. It is new to him, after all. But I hope that Cortese will have the courage of his convictions, realise that Rome wasn't built in a day and let Nigel get on with it - wherever that leads us this season.
Our Nige would walk over broken glass to get the Liverpool job , yes its a two way street..............................
It is a well written, well thought out post. Except I too am really struggling with this idea that Cortese somehow influences formation. If I were cast in the role of controlling, villainous, Machiavellian chairman, sitting in my office surrounded by horses heads and pictures of "Don's that I admire", and was considering how I'd like to best extend my grip of power, the last thing I'd do is think - "I KNOW.........I'll enforce a FORMATION"...... Buying players, yes. Choosing my favourite players, yes (although I ABSOLUTELY believe he isn't doing this). Formation? No.......
I don't know if this is being suggested or not but I think it would be a mistake to say that Nigel has, or would expect to have, 100% control over all aspects of a transfer. This isn't Football Manager, in fact no professional manager would do this, it would be silly. I'm sure it's fairly well known that Nigel works with Les Reed and some others who I forget on transfers. This isn't Nicola controlling or dictating, it's how normal people work (by talking to each other). Does Nicola tell Nigel to play 4-3-3, well that is definitely nonsense.
The OP couldn't sum up my feelings any better. There is such a long way to go, once we get a win or two and build confidence back up, we will be fine.
I don't know, nor do you and the job isn't vacant. Yet you use it to suggest Nige will be disloyal. Hence, you are an utter tool.
Yes. How can you take "we're gonna play 4-3-3" and get "the chairman has told me we're gonna play 4-3-3"? Total nonsense.
Its a hyperthetical question but also a rhetorical one , of course he would , football bar a few people is completely disloyal , Mr Bell .
