I didn't see the game on the weekend, but I've been assured it was another dull encounter by the team. To be brutally honest, watching us play live, on a regular basis, just doesn't appeal to me that much anymore. Leaving aside several other factors, my decision ultimately boils down to the fact that we've reverted to the ultra-conservative, long-ball club (a style, it's worth noting, that has arguably been found out at this level) and, more pertinently for me, the cost following our club is not financially feasible right now.
I know I'm probably viewed as 'pro-McCarthy', and that's a wise assumption. I'll make no excuses for his erratic team selection, narrow-minded stubbornness, and his reversal to a negative style of football, yet I believe he is our best manager since Joe Royle. This is a man who stabilised the club and got us punching well above our weight last season. His transfer record has, on the whole, been relatively good. I don't think you can make an effective argument that McCarthy has been 'bad' for the club, so I find some of the more extreme criticism on here a little reactionary.
However, the question seems to be "has McCarthy taken the club as far as he can?" and, as every week goes by, I'm starting to believe that he has. His team selection is, generally, overly loyal at best and misguided at worst. Key players are not performing in the squad, and while McCarthy cannot be held entirely responsible for this; the buck, ultimately, stops at the manager. But it's the style that bugs me most of all about McCarthy. He's too cautious and while that worked last season, I feel clubs are beginning to suss us out. Many clubs have invested heavily and wisely over the summer (something Westy pointed out with regards to Sheffield Wednesday, but there are several other clubs as well), and I think that's generally improved the league as a whole and has thus made it more difficult to 'overachieve'.
My main concern with booting McCarthy, rightly regarded as a somewhat safe pair of hands, is the uncertainty of the future. Some people seem to think bringing in a younger, more 'progressive' manager with a different style will magically transform the team and get us competing for the play-offs again. It probably won't. The issue here, for me, is a lack of investment. That's what this club needs. I know some posters, such as Weighty, would disagree with me, but I really think that if we do get rid of McCarthy and bring in a new manager, the new man will have to be supported by a strong transfer/wage budget to implement the changes he'd like and, most crucially, to improve and bolster this squad into realistic promotion contenders.
