http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/25399567 Thoughts. I have many, but I only get an hour for lunch, and I don't want to spend that entire hour furiously writing and putting myself in a bad mood for the rest of the day.
Just read it and was about to post it. My response would be that as owner he, and he alone is responsible for the current position the club finds itself in. End of They've tried blaming managers, players and even us the fans, but the buck stops with Lansdown for me, and I suspect many others
Passing the blame, WHO hired these inept managers?? The board are to be blamed 110%, the buck stops with them and them alone.. I also have to question our so called scouting system, do they watch these players that we're buying?? Somehow I think we don't.
100% to blame and I am getting sick and tired of this rubbish coming from the top. He disappeared from the radar when he gave the reins over to his son and now he comes back with this total load of rubbish, just whom is he trying to impress? Any respect I had for him has now gone and how on earth he has the nerve to say it is not his fault is beyond belief and , for once, I really hope he is reading this site so he can see what we think of his nonsense. I totally agree with everything said by the responses to this thread because of all the inept managers out there we have a bad track record of hiring most of them. Lansdowns, wake up to the pulse and thoughts of Bristol City supporters and just in case you haven't noticed your statements today have taken you down the popularity ladder even further. You have wasted so much of your hard earned money taking the club nowhere by hiring ineffective managers who employ even worse players and you sat back and smiled and said everything will be O.K. Clearly nothing is O.K. at Bristol City and I can't see anyone capable of fixing the problems especially when you apparently won't even recognise that there is a problem. I will certainly take a lot of stick for my comments but when a lifetime of support is greeted by the kind of comments I read today I just worry about the future of the club. Last one out the door please remember to turn out the lights. SO sad!
'Passing the blame, WHO hired these inept managers?? The board are to be blamed 110%, the buck stops with them and them alone..' Spot On. Their judgement employing managers beggars belief. They interview pro's and because they haven't a clue about football and can't 'read' people they are collectively hoodwinked. They'd believe black was white if a Millen,McInnes,SOD of Cotterill told them. I still can't believe what Cotterill did Saturday. Killed it for me. Unless Cotterill has a Damascus moment BCFC are screwed.
Something else I've picked up in business in the last 30 odd years. When someone reverts to blaming others with a distinct undercurrent of 'threat' you know immediately they've lost the argument. That's exactly what SL did in Saturday's interview.
I for one feel it is about time SL came out and told us the real reason why Coppel walked. There was a manager who would have taken us up and helped us to grow like when he was at Reading. He signed 3 players in the few months here, Adomah and Cisse were excellent, and nobody has given us a believable explanation as to why he isnt still here. I certainly dont believe Coppel's explanation, but thats the only one we have
I don't think SL or any of his cronies are capable of telling the truth because it would put them in a bad light in front of the supporters. It has been blatantly obvious for many years that backroom meddling has led to our current state of affairs and until such time as the head of the organisation can admit to the problems we have no chance of putting this mess behind us. Many times I have mentioned my reading of Coppell's body language when he held his first on camera interview which showed me that he didn't believe a word of what he was saying. He stuck to the usual new manager positives but there was clearly something in the background of his manner that caused me concern as to whether he would stick around. History has proven my thoughts from that interview to, regrettably, come to pass and I know we can't turn back the clock and second guess that scenario again but it's clear since the day that Coppell walked out on City our fortunes have fallen way below the supporters expectations. We can all forget about turning back the clock but my biggest concern now is can we turn back the tide? My answer to that question, based on what I heard from SL, is a resounding NO!
Mike Fricker when he was City chairman back in the 1990's said he preferred City to be a big fish in a little pond. At the rate we are falling, we will be like a school of whales in a goldfish bowl when we hit Conference South at the start of season 2016-17! Wake up SL before Bristol City FC disappears from this planet.
I heard the interview on Radio Bristol and to be fair to Lansdown the article quotes him a bit out of context. Yes, he came across as being pissed off but he did not say the board are blameless. As for Coppell I believe he said that Coppell told him he was disillusioned with football and the amount of money that had to be paid for players
Sorry but I dont believe that for a second. After a short break straight after he left us Coppell has continued to work in football ever since, albeit at our level or below. Anyone who was that disillusioned with the game would have walked away and stayed away from it and I dare say he is still drawing a salary The austerity introduced by the board here was probably well intentioned in order to stabilise the crazy, and in his own words embarassing amount of money that SL has wasted on the club with absolutely no success to show for it, but no-one at the top including the man himself had the sense or vision to realise it might actually produce another relegation contending team. Business decisions made by arguably Bristols most successful ever businessman that again raise questions over their implemtation and rationale. I just dont get the logic that's been applied.
Lansdown is NOT a businessman, he is an accountant, and if my 30 years in business mean anything that is NOT the same. Accountants dont create or run businesses they account for other people's. This means they are supposedly good with figures but not as adept at managing people or speculating their own money. Incidentally I hope the people on here are good with figures (and have a spare 50 million) because the road we are on now leads to a parting of the ways with Mr Lansdown Do the maths
OK so SL and the board must shoulder a great deal of the blame but don't forget he did nearly take us into the premier league and I have had some of my best nights/days at the gate whilst he has been chairman. (may have had some of my worst as well) Getting the right manager and players is not that easy see Chelsea, Tottenham etc. (OK so much higher league) I think SLs heart is in BCFC and he wants what we all want, so he has made mistakes? where would we have been without him and his money? better off or not? I don't know. and I'm not sure what I would have done in his situation. Just as an aside I thought I saw D. Mckinnis in the betting for the WBA job? what the hell is all that about?
Ok, for what it's worth...In my opinion..Yes the board are to blame for the Managers that they have employed over the last five years and maybe a bit short sighted regarding football. But; I think we must be very careful of what we wish for. I do believe that Steve Lansdown wanted for Bristol City, the same as the rest of us supporters and that's, top flight football living in a nice new stadium. But with the mess made regarding the stadium (not in his control) and the bad luck not winning the playoffs and bad decision making regarding managers etc, his project has become very stale. I think he needs to employ (I'm not sure I would call it Director of football) someone who knows the ins and outs of football, who would over look from the Academy, grass roots through to personnel within the club......He should have 100% knowledge of the game and know exactly the style we are looking to achieve. It could look as the title would be director of football, but I don't think he should have any influence on the players that come in. This should be down to the manager he recommends which will be his decision relating to the style he wants. Our current chairman or directors should have no involvement regarding the football itself, just the running and finance of the club. (including stadium matters) Unless a oil rich billionaire walks through Ashton Gate waving millions and wanting us to be the next Manchester City.....We should be grateful for the passion and money that SL has put into the club. But he now needs to change the philosophy in the way its run.
I'm sure I come across as ungrateful. I'm actually not, and I know that hindsight is a wonderful thing and I'm sure that SL wanted us to beat Hull at Wembley nearly as much as I did. But even back then massive mistakes were made. We could have bought a ticket to the Premiership when we were top of the Championship in March 2008. Instead we bought dross and paid the price and it's been Ski Sunday (downhill fast) ever since. Ask yourself this. Would we/could we be in a worse position now had SL not spent £50m on the club and made poor appointments ? I dont think we could be much worse off personally
I do think that the club had debt when he came in..(I don't have proof) but I think he did take the club on with good intentions and whose to know what state we would be in now had he not injected money into the club........It's always been a bit of a white elephant. He did however (when he came in) have ambition for the club, more than anyone else since Harry Doleman......So we have to give him that respect. I think we both agree that he has no idea how to run a FOOTBALL CLUB...and that was his big mistake. I have a horrible feeling that this toy he purchased seems to have gone to the bottom of the toy box and may not be no longer interested. I hope I'm wrong.
Citys turn over was around ten million pounds. The FC broke even, or made serviceable losses/nominal profit. The clubs real losses were created under Steve Lansdown, developed even to a level where the FC itself was in danger - check annual account summaries. BCFC is now dependent on, and in significant debt to Steve Lansdown.
Bloody hell, I'm agreeing with Onefor. See I told you months ago Onefor when I found out you was a rocker I could grow to like you
