Premier League Thread 2015-16

It would be a very big shame indeed. I like Monk. He has been with that club from the very bottom of the pyramid to the top. He is having a sticky period but to press the panic button would be nuts. They won't go down and if they have a season in the lower reaches then that may strengthen them.

 

Yeah, not seen them much this year, but surely peaks and troughs are part of any young managers growing pains. Much as we may harbour some ill will (although I have to say I don't really) to Poch, he had that difficult spell which ended with him leaving Espanyol, but nobody can deny he's a bloody good coach. If we keep discarding young managers at the first sign of a hiccup it's not going to help bring people on at all.

 

Don't lay it on too thick - we've got Man City at the Etihad immediately after them!

 

I watched those nasty Spuds yesterday and thought what a good job he's doing there. Good coach.

*spits and reaches for soap*

 

Much as so much of it is stupid, though, I understand that clubs need to avert bad form before it sets in properly. And Swansea's form is setting in like rot. He's not that good a manager for them to hold on to longer than they have - they gave him all of last season for a start, and he dipped badly then too, as in both these seasons they have started seriously strong. Maybe they've identified a pattern that he comes out of the traps extremely well, but can't maintain player motivation. He's playing the same players and can barely buy a point. Time is limited, and though they're unlikely to go down, Swansea I'm sure have aspirations to finish in a top six berth - they are losing a lot to teams they definitely shouldn't be losing to. The guy will get another job, and will get a more varied experience by doing so - and become better. Being brought on as a decent manager in the process. No reason it needs to be with the same club.

 

You may very well be right, absolutely.

 

Apparently Huw Jenkins would like Monk to have more experienced staff around him but Monk is hostile to this. The chairman's idea that such experience would help Gary in times like this, or as mentioned the dip at the end of last season.

 

Likely to only be one winner in that argument.

I just look at people like Fergie who were about a game away from the sack at MU. Didn't end up too bad for them. Not that I think Monk is of that potential, but we'll never know if they keep getting chucked on the scrapheap. It's not so much that he won't get another job, it's the rebuilding of reputation that is hard - can you imagine Moyes getting another major opportunity (okay, he probably might if Sociedad suddenly win the league) or, closer to home, Chris Houghton is working miracles with Brighton, but PL chairmen will always more likely take a punt on a foreign coach with a groovy name (or winning smile), which is detrimental to the development of good coaches from these shores.

 

Didn't see all the match, but what I did I thought the same. Part of the reason I switched to something else was that I didn't like the feeling.

Pass that soap when you're finished.

 

Now Chris Hughton is indeed someone who's been harshly treated imo.

The thing with that Fergie story is it is very likely to be 1 in 100 that someone turns out to be that good and end up holding that much influence over a club. How do you balance the risk of giving a poor performing manager two or three seasons against the possibility that he may be completely amazing in years to come (not to add that if he did, he would be poached almost immediately; and align to that that no matter how good he is with one team, he is likely to lose most of those players too, a situation Man U weren't troubled with)? Man U had the resources to support him, plus the knowledge that here was a man with clout and a proven winner who would walk into another job easily, making their loss potentially a competitor's gain. The potential endgame there was also that if he could turn things around - and as a proven winner in situations of very difficult odds they knew he had some special managerial skills - they would be winning the league, cups, European competitions etc. So very high stake/high reward situation. Not many managers out there could achieve that goal. Swansea's realistic endgame at absolute best is the same as ours: a top six league place and Europa, and a good cup run. A job a number of decent managers in their price range could hope to achieve.

Just my reflections on it, really - not aimed at disagreeing with your points, which are all true.

 

Spurs weren't too hot against Anderlecht with their first XI (mind you the opposition were decent). I would prefer to play Spurs away, their possession at home (barring v M City) doesn't always yield the goals, as we Pochetchin-knows

 

All good points Pelletron. I still feel though it is a little sad that they may boot him. If they had been bottom like Villa, then fair enough. If they had been seriously in risk of relegation in March, then maybe. I just think they could roll with him a little longer. It's not a case of having to act now before it is too late. Sometime before that place gets close. There is a big list of teams trying to raise themselves for top 6 and not everyone can do it.

 

Mirror saying that Mourinho will be given more time as he is confident he can turn things round by shifting underperforming players in January. Yes, it is really easy to shift underperforming and very expensive players in a one month window. Surely of even greater importance is getting in good players to replace them...oh wait, even harder to get good players in in January.

 

Police investigating damage at Arsenal in the away section. I don't like Liverpool and Spurs, but wouldn't consider smashing a toilet as the best way to show it.

 

Yes, I read that earlier myself. There are many and varied sound reasons for keeping Mourinho on at Chelsea that I won't go into [tfft, I hear you say], but Abramovich makes the decisions and often he goes with the short to medium term solution when the longer term might be less expensive and longer lasting. I read Diego Simeone's name in connection to Chelsea. Now there's one to conjure with.

 

I would love to see Diego Simeone on Premier League touchlines.

 

Anyone can manage a good side, surely the proof of a good manager is how you do with an average side....and Chelsea are very far from that.

 

You saying Ron is average?

 

Whilst I have a lot of sympathy with that view, the truth is often different. There are plenty of managers of good sides who have been appointed then made them far worse. However, I would have liked to have seen Alex Ferguson, Mourinho, Wenger, etc.., manage small clubs in danger of relegation, to see how they got on. There are some managers who can do the trophy winning and there are the equally capable managers who are best at the relegation avoidance. It's a shame they don't get a trophy. Saints would have a cupboard full from the 1990's

 

Oops.!