"I suppose everybody dislikes a loudmouth, but you have to have, at least, a grudging respect for those who live up to their boasts" With Modric gone, and VDV allegedly going anyway to try to save his marriage, I was thankful of Arry being gone. I couldn't have taken more of the "punching above our weight" or 'he who must not be blamed' s-h-i-t-e while the season panned out like 2011 or 2013.
Some interesting debate on this. Here's my two-penn'orth. [Sorry - it's not in rhyme or set to music this time!] Watching the state of Sherwood's face when he was making his comments, and in particular when he was blaming the players for letting him down, I came to the conclusion that he had been told when appointed that he would stay in the job beyond the summer on condition he got us into the top 4. It looked as if the pressure of this deal was really getting to him. I think he (understandably) took the view that the loss to Chelsea was probably the nail in the coffin of those ambitions/dreams, and he was therefore feeling very upset that the whole project (as people like to call such situations these days) had gone pear-shaped. I think he has a very high opinion of his own skills, and was totally frustrated by the capitulation at Stamford Bridge. The suggestion that he was putting out some kind of a marker for any potential future employer seems a good one to me. I think he desperately wanted (wants?) to remain in this job (who wouldn't, on the money he gets? I'd do it, even if my incompetence meant I lasted only one game!) and the outburst was at least partly petulance on his part. Unfortunately for him, I think that the episode has revealed his lack of experience and professionalism. After all, it was an admission in effect that he had failed to inspire them sufficiantly. And anyway, as manager he should be aiming for a public image of unity and shared commitment, even if in private he is obliged to read the riot act, and drop specific players whom he blames for failure. In that regard, it will be interesting to see his line-ups for these two crucial matches. Anyone left out might be regarded as one of his targeted under-performers; on the other hand, it doesn't mean that those in the team(s) tonight and Sunday will have been exonerated - he may take the view that those who got us into the mess now ought to get us out of it! Finally, I agree with those who see his pronouncements in terms of his personal ambitions: I'm not sure he actually does tell it like it is: I think he tells it like he guesses he needs to in order to manoeuvre things to his own advantage, and he (mis)calculated that making the players his target would enable him to dodge the column. PS - by the way, (a) I wouldn't want to be a player who got on his wrong side; (b) some of the football he has got the team to play has been entertaining; and (c) I'm reserving my overall judgment on his performance until the end of the season, when there'll be a proper perspective. Whatever happens, COYS!
Yes, as Spurf said, I liked his football - although the way he treated some of the squad who were not his favourites I didn't agree with. Nor the way he always played his favourites, even if in a position completely unsuited to them. But his gob always got the better of him. Plus the blatant touting for the England job was bordering on insulting to the club and the fans.
England job, meh. I fully expected Arry to be England manager. Chosen by ending the season by driving Spurs to a CL slot. Additionally finishing in the PL above three of the Sky 4 (who have far greater finances) , managing a team that played great football, to boot.
Keeping the fans onside after the debacle of a season we've had is probably one of Levy's better ideas recently...
I agree with just about everything here. It was interesting to note how different a tone Sandro struck. The truth is that the frustrations of many if not most fans (not to mention more than a few managers) make them want to be crumby bosses. The problem is that both people and performance as a general rule benefit more from a quiet discussion of faults and a little encouragement than a kick in the pants. I've always noticed how people in better jobs and better organizations tend to get more gentle criticism and more praise. One can argue it's because they're better employees. I'd argue it's partly because they have better supervisors, who know that praise is a better motivator in the long and even medium (and often enough in the short) run than criticism. Most fans don't want to see players gently encouraged after a bad loss, though, which is understandable. COYS!
I'm not sure where we go from here. What Levy was thinking of in sacking AVB when the only replacement was Sherwood is completely beyond me. My only theory is that Levy didn't approve of the fall out between AVB and Adebayor and Sherwood told him he would sort it out. Well Ade is on the pitch and playing quite well but everything else is shambles. I can't see that changing the manager again can make anything good happen - so I suppose we just have to keep our fingers crossed and give the team the most support we can
"I'm not sure where we go from here." Get to the end of season. Playing for nothing more than ensuring the pts gap between Spurs and the CL slots is as small as possible at the final tally.
Nice but Dim certainly talks the talk, but I'm afraid he cannot walk the walk. He is simply out of his depth, appears to have "lost" the dressing room, and tactically inept. Sound like AVB in disguise! Watching tonight's game, I just couldn't see any passion from the players, nor from Nice but Dim and to my untrained eye, it did look as if everyone has accepted the inevitable, written the season off already and simply don't want to be there! I like to see fire in the player's belly, strong leadership, passion, commitment, comradeship and so on…there is none of that on the bench or the pitch!
Levy doesn't make these decisions without assistance, just we never fully know who Levy talks to for advice. Could be his son but in all seriousness, too much panic over our season being over as it's been over for a while now if our target was top four, that was a unrealistic task and only made to look a long shot due to the revival under Sherwood. To sack Sherwood would bring embarrassment on the club and send out a message to managers like Van Gaal that we have zero patience and the chairman is a maniac so I agree, let's just get behind the team and reassess in the summer as this club has to stop creating drama, we act like a poor man's Chelsea and it's laughable how we run the football aspect of this club.
Now, I wonder who might have been responsible for hiring "Mourinho" Mk2 and then compounding that **** up by appointing, not so nice, but dim?
