This is usually described as St. Cuthbert. It's a wall painting in the Galilee Chapel at Durham Cathedral, This morning, however, some people are suggesting that, in fact, it is St. Sam looking north over the Tyne. I mean, just look at the hand gesture. http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=St. Cuthbert&view=detailv2&qpvt=St. Cuthbert&id=B086A8562697F7816F7BBE44C39EE946D088652D&selectedIndex=2&ccid=NSWhHBJz&simid=608034762995338534&thid=OIP.M3525a11c12735b7fc957211f609e4460o0&ajaxhist=0 What do you think?
With the possible exception of making three good signings in one go, Allardyce has done nothing that Paolo di Canio, Gus Poyet, and Dick Advocaat haven't done...............yet. I think we should wait a little while before sanctifying him or we could wind up doing a Jack C.
Ive never hid the fact i never wanted him to be manager. He pulled it off in the end. So fair play to him. But to be worshipped for just escaping relegation is cringeworthy imo.
Ffs lads, it was meant as a joke. Sam/ St. Sam/ Whoever was giving that hand signal to them north of the Tyne. And why not, the night we put them down? Lighten up.
You're not giving him enough credit, nowhere near. As Fifemackem pointed out if we'd had Sam from the start of the season we'd have finished eighth. That's a bit better than escaping relegation. He did a lot more than adding a few players in the window and hoping for the best. He turned a load of overpaid, underperforming players into eleven well drilled and confident team members who score goals and don't concede many. It's the difference between night and day and to imply he did very little is bullshit to be honest.
Yeah, fair enough I was mainly responding to what I perceived to be a general over-reaction across the board
Yeah, but we've given Paolo di Canio, Gus Poyet, and Dick Advocaat credit for doing similar in the past. Then 6 months later we're back to square one. We've survived relegation with one game to spare. While he deserves some credit for (yet another) survival, I, personally, won't be stating he's the right man for the job until he proves that he can do something that those 3 couldn't
Look at the players those managers signed and look at who Sam signed. You've got the likes of Bridcutt and Toivonen compared to Khazri and Kone. The guy saved our bacon, he knows what he's doing in the transfer market and I'm sure he'll build on it. And that's just transfers. Consider how much players like PVA and Yedlin have improved under Sam. That's all down to his management. I was never convinced by those other managers but I am by Sam. I think time will prove me right.
Since nobody else has mentioned it, how about a film on our survival. Leics, WHU reckon they deserve one, so why not us. Just as daft.
Give Big Sam 5 year contract....and let him build the club. Poyet, DiCanio didn't have the experience and nous of the premier league. Advocaat it turned out didn't have the fight....I actually wanted all three to stay as I wanted stability. Maybe with Byrne out the way this is easier to achieve....
Will Sam have any imput about this new CEO coming in? What if he suggests a DoF? Sam would walk imo so will Sam have a transfer budget sorted with Ellis and the new bloke stays out of that side of the business?
Maybe you weren't convinced by those managers but plenty were. Individual performances also improved under those managers and players like Defoe, Mannone, M'Vila, Borini (twice), Kaboul were all signed while they were in charge. There are plenty of articles knocking around lauding Allardyce's approach and he does have precedence for having done it before in this league. But there are far more variables involved. Will the players whose performances improved when he arrived maintain that level? Or will they think the job is done? Will the board and CEO make the right decisions to create the conditions for Allardyce to thrive? They didn't for Congerton. Will he backed financially to bring in the players he needs? Advocaat spoke of the recruitment job not being done. Will he be as successful in the transfer market as he was in January? We know he can sign a turkey- look at N'Doye. He might well be the best manager we've had in 20 years, and I hope he is. But until we're in to his second season and beyond the period when it all started falling apart for di Canio, Poyet, and Advocaat (all of whom I believe could have been successful under the right conditions) we just don't know if this is the real deal or yet another false dawn
Wheez this Norton Cat? He's rapidly becoming one of my favourites. A straight talking, shoot from the hip style. I like it.
Its a football forum, I didn't come here to play tea parties. And if it turns out in October that Nacho was right then he can call me a knob for not believing him! But seriously, if Mr Allardyce does turn out to be our best manager in 20yrs then I'll sing the fella's praises. I just think its too early to get carried away, after all we all know what wise men say...
