Having spent yesterday afternoon out I was expecting to return home in the evening to hear we had at least got a point with another battling performance. To say I was pretty gutted at the outcome would be an understatement, not only did we surrender with another abject performance, our best striker has gone and got himself a four match ban which just about scuppers any chance we had of getting out of this mire. Add to that wins for Bolton and Wigan and it seems like we will be dancing with wolves on our way down. In fact a win for Wolves would've put the tin hat on the day, so it could have been worse, but not much. Is it not just typical of our season that we take a big step forward followed by several bigger steps backward? Had it been a battling narrow defeat you may find inspiration and hope, but it seems we are incapable of defending at this level. McClean absolutely ran Young ragged, Ferdinand and Onuoha looked like strangers and we were clearly second best all over the field. I could go on but the stuffing has really been knocked out of me, I've tried to look at the positives and come up with optimism but I'm now resigned to the inevitable. Worse still, I have a real feeling of foreboding that relegation will not be followed by a spectacular return but the sort of malaise that has seen sides like Coventry, Derby, Forest and others become...well...what QPR were after our last top-flight relegation. Rich owners were supposed to hold the key to our expectations, sadly, idiots with money are even worse than idiots without money...
It's not the fault of TF, he doesn't buy the players, he puts the money up and expects to get value back. I for one was slightly disappointed to see NW go but was glad to see MH arrive but my feelings today is I don't think we would be any worse if NW had stayed. Injuries apart we have not had the best of luck (see Bolton got another huge slice of it yesterday, stone wall penalty for Blackburn at 0-0 not given), but the old adage of "you make your own luck" is still valid. If we can't get something from Sunderland then we have no hope against the Manchester clubs or our London Rivals. So having been so positive I am living with "as long as it is mathematically impossible" there is still hope. My little burning light of hope is flickering rather alarmingly at the moment but at least it is still alight.
Sooperhoop, if you are referring to TF when you quote 'idiots with money' then I would like to ask you what you thought of TF when he rescued us from the Goons? I fear you may qualify for part of your article title.
How many of our signings would have been brought in if we were selecting in June of last year with the same budget? I know circumstances dictated what has happened but the summer signings were all that was left so to speak. Then Warnock was sacked and Hughes' signings are just as disappointing and massive amounts have been splashed out on fees and wages, far more than our club can afford. If we do go down who is going to want those expensive players on silly salaries? They won't set the Championship alight if they can't string two or three passes together. TF has spent what? £20 million so far and plenty more will be needed to subsidise us in the lower division. If he ran his airline like that it wouldn't last 5 minutes. I really fear for our club as rich men's playthings are often discarded without a second thought...
TF backed the managers and bought in the players they wanted which is exactly what everyone wanted. Or would you have preferred him to do a Flav and bring in the players he likes and the manager will have to lump it. The blame lies with Warnock, Hughes and the players, not TF.
Trouble is they were all bought at the worst time and we are paying top dollar for it. Yes, as supporters we wanted big name signings but the financial side of things is what will come home to roost at the end of the season. If TF is prepared to write off most of his player investment then fair play to him, but I have a feeling it won't be as simple as that. Time will tell...
Just on a similar subject, looking at the WBA v Newcastle game and what a side the Toon are looking now. Mike Ashley was vilified by the fans in his first couple of years, took them down brought them back up, sacked a popular manager and installed Pardew, against the fans' wishes. Then getting rid of Barton and one or two others and bringing in several unheard of players via their scouting system, they are now looking a bloody good side. He's turned a big profit as well, sometimes you have to be a hard-nosed businessman rather than popular to get the results...
I think the title of this thread is both incredibly ungrateful and mis-directed. We have been truly fortunate to have replaced one of the worst owners imaginable with one of the best owners imaginable. TF (and AB) have put their hands deep into their pockets, just like many fans repeatedly ask them to do, and entrusted the managers to spend it wisely. So maybe the managers are the "idiots with money"? No, I don't believe that either. I still think we have a decent squad and a decent manager. The real problem was the lack of a proper pre-season with that squad of players. The blame for that goes back to one of the worst owners imaginable.
I'm not being ungrateful, they've come in and thrown money at the problem and if we were on 35 points now we'd be saying how great they were, but we're not. They've spent multi-millions but how is it going to show on the balance sheet? This squad minus the loanees won't be good enough to come straight back up so players will be sold at a massive loss and replacements will have to be brought in at a cost, on gates of 12,000? Portsmouth lived the dream and won the FA Cup, we've won sod-all but could follow them to the knacker's yard if TF decides it's a bridge too far, THEY are the custodians of OUR club, we may have to pick up the pieces like we did in 2000...
Sooper, I share your concern about spending money prudently, something which Amit promised to do when we were in the Championship and he was in charge. I suppose the difference between us is that I believe our owners have a long term vision and a long term commitment.
The idiots with money are the players. Cisse must be as thick as ****!! The problem with an awful lot of players today is that they are so detached from reality and so well paid that they don't see any consequences for their actions. They don't have to look ahead and worry what their actions will result in. They are treated almost like Gods and haven't got the mental capacity to cope with it.
Sooperhoop, A very well written piece, like you I am so gutted at that prat Cisse and the lack of effort by the rest of the team yesterday.
