Alan Pardew, Excellent man management skills.

In our recent slump of performances and showings of horrendous Football a moderately wise man might think the manager, will be better served trying to install confidence in the very players his job partly relies on.

But contrary to common sense, Alan Pardew has said in the media recently that "Ben Arfa isn't everything to Newcastle" and the next day states that "Marveaux is only getting a sniff because we are down to our bare bones".

I find it very difficult to believe a man who's arrogance and narrow minded demeanor as well as obsessive long ball tactics which rips the confidence from the players, stands some sort of distinct chance in turning things round.

His career seems to produce the same pattern, starts with a few highs and then drags his club down to the murkiest, darkest pits they can imagine. I don't like the man and can't stand the way he has us play Football, he has had chances in the summer to provide a little strength in depth and wasn't smart enough to capitalize and has burned the players out to the point we are already collecting injury's and the fatigue levels of the players are already low.

I ultimately believe this man should never be allowed to be allowed nowhere near managing a respectable team.

There are competent alternatives.

 

To be fair, the lack of transfer activity isn't really down to pardew, it's the money men.

 

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If this form continues when we have a full strength xi then i'd understand but i think you need to calm down! We are playing dire barely watchable soccer atm though

 

Not Pardews fault for the lack of depth. He gets to pick from a list and then the board decide who they want.
Not Pardews fault for the amount of injuries at the moment, we have just been unlucky.
Not Pardews fault for the fatigue issue either, we have had people off on international duty all summer and at every international break so far plus Europe.

What Pardew is to blame for is the utter **** I have to watch every few days at the moment. Needs to sort it out quick although he must feel NO pressure having just been handed an 8 year contract.

 

Surely the above things which he is not to blame for, directly affect his ability to stop the poor form. I'm not suggesting he is powerless, this is when him and the coaching staff earn their corn. I just think we have to be patient. I do question him for our set pieces, just as I question Woodman for Krul's footwork and launching of the ball. However for those suggesting a change is required, its just knee jerk and fickle.

 

We aren't down to our bare bones at all. Defensively we've never been so healthy. He's supposed to have boosted our midfield options in the summer, Marv + Amouthful, we've got youth coming through etc. HBA has only just got injured, Jonas isn't our best player, nor is Perch, so where is this the real foundation of the myth we're struggling personnel wise? We've had it much worse before, and done better with it.

I think it's fair crack to have a go at Pardew for serving up crap for 12 games with his tactics. We've still got loads of players who play for their country, can do wonderful things with a football, and the fact he's bypassing them with **** tactics deserves to be criticized if you are so inclined. I'd rather we went down attempting passing football, but Pardew seemingly hasn't even tried that tact, so we'll never know if the player's aren't good enough!

 

I put the form down to 3 things: 1. No confidence 2. Awful tactics 3. Williamson... he's not at professional level and can't mark a lamp post if you cuffed him to one.

 

No problem with criticism but wanting him out is just sheer stupidity. We'll never get anywhere until we get some stability.

We have 13 players out, 14 if the Xisco is indeed injured. That is bare bones for any squad of 30 players. Your options are seriously limited. 4 of those 13 would start (Benni, Colo, Jonas, Cabaye) Not that they've all been out all season, and are the sole reason for our form. Nor have we been poor in all 12 games as suggested. We played well against Spurs, played as well as can be expected at Liverpool and Chelsea, and ok in some others like Norwich. No where near our best level but way to early to be jumping off the deepend.

We also have to accept the league is strong and the margins small.

Sometimes you have bad patches. We have seen it before from clubs who are similar level to us like Everton. Look back say 3 seasons they had an injury crisis were near the foot end after 14 games or so and still finished 8th.

We just have got to grit our teeth and grind out results.

 

I personally think that's a fairly accurate summary. West Brom are running on confidence like we did last year, hence when we go a goal down it's as good as over.

I don't think Pardew will stick with the long-ball game, I think he's just so fixated with playing it when we're 1 first-teamer short, he's essentially giving up on us playing good football until we can field our best 11. "Oh no... Jonas is off... Right, Shola on, long ball time". "Oh no, Colo got himself a red last game. Right, punt the ball long Willo until I realise Cisse isn't that type of player. Then take him off for Shola. Lovely sexy Shola". "Oh no, we have the smallest midfield in the league now... I know! LONG FREAKING BALL?!?!?! Now... Where did I put that stud-muffin Shola...".

I have seen distinct evidence of us trying to play for periods, mostly for direct 4-4-2 "wing-play"...but he gives up as quickly as humanly possible, yet keeps the same "failing" personnel on the pitch. Fergie was having joy down the left vs West Ham, just couldn't put in a decent ball... So, the obvious answer was to put on a couple of equally short midfielders, and play long ball to Shola

 

Long ball isn't solely down to Pardew. Would anyone drop Krul? I wouldn't but he is responsible for many of the long balls along with the inept Willo (who we have no choice but to pick). Some of it is Pardew but Willo can't play any other way and unfortunately Krul has a weakness. Its noticeable how quick the oppo close him, they're not daft. Obviously Pards and Woodman must work with him, but it ain't gonna be corrected overnight.

 

Stability is a term almost exclusively offered by people eventually steer the conversation down the line that every manager has the potential to turn into Sir Alex after the bad patch . Everton, with a pittance to spend, have frequently played better football through bad patches than most. Take their current one as example. That, I think you'd agree, would be a lot more tolerable for people. Playing well, but being unlucky. That's not us right now, so I can understand people questioning Pardew. Good football is not beyond this team, and we don't pay our money to watch the equivalent of Pardiola walking onto the pitch, shaking hands with the opposition, forfeiting 3 points in a quick discussion, then, watching them leave the pitch bemused, pulling down his pants and doing a steamy katmandu on the turf.

I think it's reasonably fair to want him out at present if you don't see anything more in him, but I would prefer to see how he copes with the pressure and expectation over the longer sample. If he doesn't make it out of what is turning into a bit of a mess this season, he deserves to be sacked to be honest. If he can't get out of the bad spell, he's got no chance of turning into a Fergie, or anything resembling a level of what we want from him, so he should go. Chris was sacked for less, let's not forget.

I'm not jumping on a Pardew out bandwagon and won't be anytime soon, but I'd love to see him try and inspire something beyond the insipid cack we have to watch, and I'll be willing to criticize and moan on here to epic degrees him until he does!

 

Long-balls by keepers is not the problem, as I see it. I don't think I'd give too many tosses if he never kicks it short from a goal kick ever again. Most goalkeepers punt it long the vast majority of the time (just they're usually better at it than Krul). Throw-outs to people in space are more important from set-piece catches, but short-kicks are not a problem. The main problem is the options when a defender has the ball. Irrespective of space, the midfield get further away from the defence when a defender has it, thus it's long-ball time. That's a tactical thing, and evidently is the fallout of Pardew's system of direct 4-4-2.

Another problem is playing the system when the opposition have some variant on five midfielders, outnumbering options when we do go long. What's the point in Ba bothering to jump if there's only a 4ft midget running around in between 6ft giants to try and get a knock back? None. 4-4-2 needs to change, and everybody has said that for a while, but if we aren't going to change the shoddy set-piece play, what hope is there of the general style changing?

 

I don't really like the nickname Pardiola, Pepe Guardiola doesn't remind me of this man.

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Sacking Chris was utterly pathetic and is the exact reason we don't want to repeat the same mistake. We got away with it last time as Pardew came in and got off to a great start. Not everyone can be a Sir Alex but there is simply no argument with regards giving managers time. Wenger, Moyes, Ferguson, Pulis are the 4 managers who have all been given extended periods. The end result with all 4 is consistent performance relative to their clubs respective ambitions. Only Arsenal could you argue have under achieved but Wenger is a bit weird because he thinks its his money. Still they are CL every year.

Everton fans were depressed in the season I'm talking about. Exact same problem, their football was dire. Some fans were on the turn, the chairman ignored them. Pardew made a rod for his own back by getting us to where he did last season. The problem is fans expect that to continue and indeed improve. They ignore that you are fixed in a certain bracket because of budgets and ignore how much injuries impact on our performances. Obviously even with our injuries this season we have not played the brand of football we'd all like. However 8-12 months ago we were playing some great football under the very same manager so we know he is capable.

Personally I expect him, the staff and players will turn it around. Then all comments about wanting him out will look a little silly. It won't change though if he starts badly the next season. Football is depressingly short term now and fans just flit from one standpoint to the next.

 

Parderoeder?

I think Roeder did a decent job for us under very difficult circumstances. He didn't really want the role in the first place, he was coaching the kids and happy with his job, if I recall correctly. Probably a very similar style to what we have now, but Roeder hadn't just come off the back of a great season and changed our play to dross.

 

When you see Krul in the pre match warm up, he finds his man everytime.

 

Have to add that Pulis is actually hated by a decent proportion of their fans, and they've actually spent huge amounts at that club, and yet their football is the same. And I don't think Pardew was making us play great football last season at all, I think that's a tinge of convenient memory! We undoubtedly had a couple of great games last year, but by god we were awful in a lot, but we just seemed to nick the result. That's the real difference this season, not injuries or anything else.

Against Stoke (A), Man Utd (A), Fulham (A+ a lot of the second half at H), Swansea (H & A- Cisse's breakaway magnificence and poor defending the only reason we won), Liverpool (A), Sunderland (A) etc etc etc... We were pretty ****e footballing style wise. We just nicked the win or a draw. We aren't doing that now, it's going the other way, which is why people now give a **** about us playing ****.

 

Krul kicks the ball long more than most. You have to play out from the back if you want carpet football. The other night was a prime example. First choice centre half pairing on the pitch, both showing for short balls, Krul ignored them and launched it whether free kick, open play, ball in hand or goal kick. Not good enough and contributing massively to us not playing the way we can. Colo looked bewildered with him at times.

Willo doesn't have the confidence or touch to play football out from the back. Until we have two from Saylor, Colo, Perch available there is not much we can do. Colo is obviously the biggest miss in this regard. The other guy who missed nearly all season (and been ****e when he has played) which kills us is Tiote. He is the guy who goes and shows deep and gets us ticking. Bigi is a fine prospect, Anita will be fine in a year but neither can do this job. Perch can to a certain extent.

Set pieces are pathetic and I wouldn't excuse the coaching staff in any way.

Whether you play 442, 433, 451, 424 or whatever you choose, you can still play football. Man U play all of those and are never long ball.

 

That is for his style of play though. Pardew is not a long ball manager. It is completely unrealistic to expect a club at our level to play carpet football in all the games. We never did under Bobby and he had better resources. We never even did under Keegan and he had vastly better resources. I certainly don't want us doing a Rodgers with Swansea and passing for passing sake!