Yeah, I read a similar quote from him earlier in the day. I find it pretty laughable, really. If you think back to the managers that have "gone in there and found it difficult", how many of them had the opportunity to work under a young, ambitious chairman/owner with seemingly bottomless pockets and how many of them found themselves working under owners that demanded both success on a relative shoestring and a significant uptick in the value of their investment? With the exception of Warnock - who I think sat more in the latter scenario and delivered, than in the former and squandered and failed - how could anyone possibly compare the situation Hughes found himself in at Loftus Road with the situation of the likes of Hart, Dowie, Magilton et al? [Incidentally, how many managerial appointments (including caretakerships) do you think the Rs have had since Ollie left? ****in' fifteen (sixteen if you count the Gallen/Bircham partnership as two). It doesn't seem possible.]
They do. They've been persuaded by the fact that unlike Pulis' teams Stoke will now spend time passing the ball to each other sideways instead of hoofing (or chucking it) up in the air and into the box at every opportunity. Apparently its sexy football. The decision was a symptom of the growing dissatisfaction by Stoke fans and owners with the up and at 'em attitude. The question on the lips of all sensible Stoke fans will be at what cost will the transformation be made? Loss of team spirit? The dismantling of a loyal squad? An inability or sheer unwillingness by some to learn new ways of playing? Can't wait to see their reactions when Stoke embark on a series of toothless performances and lose games by the odd goal because of a series of calamitous individual mistakes due to misunderstandings about their respective roles in an over-complicated defensive system set up by Hughes. Now that's what MOTD pundits will call progress.
There was no defensive system, they commented that players were old enough to know how to defend. Couple that with a massive turnover of players. Bad news for stoke is that they need a lot of new players who also won't be coached into a new system. Harry also doesn't do coaching which is why we didn't improve under him.
