Spot on! This season is a learning curve for all (admittedly a steep one) but there are two things to remember: we're well ahead in the 5 year plan and - form is temporary, class is permanent. Continuity is the key - NC knows this & he also knows that NA hasn't suddenly become a bad manager. Even if we do go down, it wont be the end of the world. What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger ..... (Sorry about all the cliches!)
Did you mean he is an exceptional man or exceptional man manager? I am sure he may be both, but only Mrs Adkins can claim to to know the former, whereas we can all see the evidence of the latter. The garbage that he has lost the dressing room is just that. I have no idea what he said at half time against Spurs, but it was good. Sadly he can't actually get on and score the goals himself, and our players are making heavy weather of both this skill and stopping the opposition. He is the best thing to have happened to Saints since ...(complete as appropriate!).
Oh, ok then. Oh...wait! Were you being ironic? Actually, I think you are allowed to have your opinion just in the same way that others are allowed to disagree with that opinion. For what it's worth, we have many young players who are improving all the time, and we have a young manager who is doing the same. Look up SAF first seasons with Man U. We have the right man, IMO
Cliches are always acceptable in Adkins World. I think we need to restart the bus...does anyone remember where we parked it?
Nope...managed a couple more hours. Glad your new job still lets you post early on here. Hope it went well.
But you have to stop the simple assumption that those who say he should say are supporting the man and those who say he should go are supporting the club. It's nothing to do with that. Yes he happens to be one of the best managers we have had in terms of personality and likability however I'm sure you don't believe that anyone on here is saying 'he's too nice, please let him stay for the ful 5 years and waste 2 years of the clubs time, or do you think we are saying that? We are saying he has got us here, he IS a good manager, Stability is very important for the future of the club on and off the pitch. Stability is key to achieving the mission statement and above all we think there is no-one better to achieve that mission statement than Adkins. We aren't blindingly saying we want the man. We are assessing the available options that fit in with all the targets. Other than Guardiola (whose agent has said he may be open to a move to the Prem next season) and Ferguson who is not going to do anything other than retire in the next couple of years (or maybe the former option will tie in with that) All the other managers in the world, the 'acclaimed' the respected. If you drew up a top 20 managers list and then took Pep and Fergie out of it you would be left with 18 managers who achieve by spending millions and millions without bringing through hardly any from their academies. Therefore they do not fit the plan. Benitez will not fit that plan. Redknapp will not fit that plan. Ranieri will not fit that plan. And out of those 3 I would suggest Ranieri is the best manager. And what you say above confuses me. How can you chant someone's name whilst openly saying if he loses the next 2 games you will be first in the queue calling for his head? I think that's as fickle as you can get. By all means say that you are behind him and call his name or that if we lose the next 2 games then you want him out but you cannot do both. That's like telling your wife how much you love her whilst plotting her murder. One or the other. I hope you will be at the next game and LISTEN to those who chant Adkins name because you should not be singing it. So you need to stop the 'Adkin love in' slant. We are all Saints fans, not Adkins fans. It just happens that we think Adkins should stay, not that he has become more important than Saints themselves. Can't wait to hear the crowd on Saturday. I hope they are chanting from the moment he comes out at a few minutes to 3. I hope they sing it all the way through. I wonder if you will be one of them. Probably the one singing with a scowl on his face.
Fran thanks all well so far. Only downside is the IT won't let me reply on here with a quote or post links. Very irritating Grrr!
Even if we ignore belief in Nigel, even if we ignore the fact he has earnt a decent chance, who can we get as a suitable replacement at this moment? Nigel was a masterstroke for a club who needed to get promotion from the lower leagues and play attractive football, but our requirements are different now (IF Adkins fails)...we need a top class manager in the long term, not a fire-fighter.
Agree with Imps and Fran. Nigel has to stay for me but if he goes we need some-one long term not just to try to keep us up!
Wow i gotta say i got bored half way through and you say i go on. Ok simple terminology for you We got promoted from league 1 by spending lots of money (basically bought promotion) We got promoted from the championship because we had an amazing start due in part to momentum.(we nearly blew it with a poor end to season) Palace are now top of the championship so maybe that league wasn't as strong as we thought. We are now doing poorly in the premiership and over a 1/4 of the way through it. This month we play our main rivals so yes if we lose against swansea and qpr that will be disatarous and 4 points from 12 games is unacceptable and if adkins doesn't walk himself i expect NC to sack him before the fans turn against him. Sorry if thats fickle.
SK just don't agree. Palace are dong well because they have done what we aspire to do and blood their youngsters and keep the majority together. I thought they would do well this year. THe teams who we beat off last year, Cardiff, Boro Hull are all up there at the expense of a couple of relegated sides. Nothing wrong with the Chmpionship in my view. Clubs have tried and failed to buy there way out. Lok at Leicester!
I didn't say it was an exact science but it demonstrates the size of the gulf between the premiership and championship, and at the end of the day we scraped promotion after looking dead certs to be champions.
Great post Imps, agree with all of that. The club is the most important thing, and Nigel is the best thing for the club, for all the reasons you state. History shows that stability pays dividends, Lawrie Mac and Fergie being two examples, although there are probably many others, including Shankly/Paisley at Liverpool. In fact I wouldn't be surprised if Nicola Cortese's vision didn't include some form of succession planning for the manager's post, an extension of the "50% home-grown talent" concept. The Liverpool boot-room idea where the next manager was always waiting in the wings certainly wouldn't have escaped Nigel Adkins' notice either. What price Rickie being sent on a coaching course when he hangs up his boots?
There is always a point where Cortese would be derelict in not stepping in, but I don't think it is now. There is also no guarantee that another manager could do better with the present team...a few additions may be needed in January (which Nigel knows anyway). The only advantage a new manager might have is contact with experienced players that might do us a turn. And as I said, which brilliant manager is available and could be attracted here.
Looking back on it we were no where near ready for the premiership and neither was nigel. Norwich managed to adapt we haven't. We have also proved to me we are very much a confidence and momentum team and at the moment we are miles away from having either. This is the reason i think if we get relegated then we will struggle big time and i can see us being a midtable championship side.
If palace were serious contenders would dougie have left, they are well above where they should be, i remember saints fans posting that exact statement about us last year
Firstly, a minor point. I like Ranieri enormously but his managerial record pales in comparison to Benitez. Benitez has won big trophies, Ranieri has not. But onto Adkins. For the record, I don't have any great love for Nigel Adkins - I actually find him rather annoying at times - but I certainly appreciate the success we've had and what he's done for the club, I don't (yet) think he should be sacked and I think he and the team can turn it around. However, if we're still bottom of the table, losing games and leaking goals in early-mid December then I may change my mind so I'm going to play devil's advocate here. You seem to be assuming that we have to immediately bring through youngsters and a manager has to fit "the plan" immediately. Okay, the long-term plan is to be playing in Europe with 50% of the players having come through the Academy. Personally I think the second half of that aim is unlikely to ever happen (how many teams in the recent past have achieved that consistently, or even come close?) but, even assuming it can happen, the first part is FAR more important and it's a long-term plan. There's nothing wrong with a season or two of short-termism while the club establishes itself in the Premier League. If appointing Benitez or a Ranieri was possible and would guarantee Premier League football next season then we should appoint them ASAP because establishing ourselves in the Premier League is probably the hardest step along the road to that final aim. Of course appointing them wouldn't guarantee that but I think Benitez in particular would improve the defence and make signing better players in January easier. You can also talk about other managers only achieving success by spending money but here's a thought: Adkins has spent (relatively) big money and he is currently failing to achieve success. A manager who achieves success by spending money is better than a manager who spends money and doesn't achieve success.
