Evening all, Just thinking about tonight's "chat show" on London Callin tonight with TF and Mbia. I'm usually happy to sit there and listen to the normal garb and let others phone in to ask questions but thought that perhaps I would drop them a line. For a chairman, TF is very receptive to fans and seems to care what we think and in some cases has acted directly. BUT, just for once, I wish these successful businessmen would try something a little unusual. And by this I mean the following: Just for once I would love for a chairman to actually say what every single fan must be thinking: just announce that Mark Hughes is in deep water and must improve results or else a replacement will have to be found. Now, before you all freak out, just put it into context. Football is a business. TF is a very successful businessman with a variety of global ventures. There is no way that he has got to this level without being ruthless and in the process let rip with a few people. Surely in industry, if your boss gives you a stern warning about performance it will leave you with two options: 1) improve immediately OR2) leave. I know that MH would never jump ship on his accord as he would lose a big pay-off, but surely a big of a roasting wouldn't make things worse. Surely it's worse (at least for credibility) for them to do what they did with Warnock i.e tell everyone everything is hunky dory, then given him the chop the next day. Pointless!! Surely MH has to know where he stands. If a manager in one of TF's other businesses was producing poor results, he wouldn't get the barrage of kind comments, softly-softly approach etc. Cone on Tony, stun the football world and say what we wanna here. Just for the record, I'm very happy for MH to stay if he can sort it out.
anyone expecting MH to get the chop will be very disappointed, he is here to stay so can we end the" he's gone if we fail to win Sunday"
I get what you are saying, and this is certainly how it would happen in my industry - and I have had to deliver the message to staff myself on mercifully rare occasions. What makes you think, in the privacy of the boardroom in LR, this conversation hasn't been had? I've not (yet) been on the receiving end of this myself, but I know one thing - I'd sue the **** out of the company if my performance was discussed on the radio in a negative way -it's called constructive dismissal. OK, football is different, but I fail to see the upside of heaping on the pressure in public as well as private, might as well just sack him. Of course it's jut possible TF believes Hughes is doing a good job and has just been the victim of bad luck on and off the pitch.
For all those screaming that MH should go because of his signings... TF says "I don't regret any of the signings I've made". Guess that makes him #1 target for sacking too then!!! Good news for me is our management and board sound like a team! I'm on board! Come on you Rrrrrrssss!
As a supporter and having gone through what we went through with our previous Italian owners, I'd prefer my club to do everything behind closed doors and keep under the radar with the media. So I don't think that MH is untouchable, I think that he has limited time to make things right. But I don't want this to be a messy scenario, spread across the papers.
The problem with this is that without any information coming out of the club the press can have a field day just making stuff up and starting specualtion. We get enough already! This infects a certain proportion of fans who seem to believe anything that is written (or at least "there is no smoke without fire") and that doesn't help the club one little bit with the fans gradually being turned against players/managers/coaches etc. Notice how Alan "I'm so important and knowledgable" Green has come unstuck by pretending he has some sort of insider information. When tw@ts like Green - who has a huge following on 606, etc - are reduced to making things up ... there are a lot of people who believe him.
He certainly did CB! I've just finished watching it on ustream, and I have to say that with Mbia and Fernandes both in the studio, and some decent clips thrown in, London Call-in was excellent this week. Well worth a watch for those who missed it.
Just listened to it myself. Thought TF sounded very flat. Energy just wasn't there. But his support for the players and staff can only be a good thing.
A few really good points SB. Was unaware of the "constructive dismissal" situation, bit naive perhaps from a public sector worker. Anyhoo, it's gotta be common sense I guess for MH to read between the lines....he knows that football is a fickle business (altho, it would be justified if he got ther chop IMHO)
I'm not "screaming" for Hughes to be sacked. I am simply pleading with him to pick his best team in the correct formation ( as I see it ).
