I think everyone felt a bit frustrated by the performance at the weekend, fans, players and the management alike. Why were so wasteful ? This has been bugging me all day and I keep coming back the same conclusion. Roy Hodgson was arguable the most effective man manager the club has had in my time. He took a group of good players and exploited each one's talent and put it together to create a great team ethic and a ultimately a team capable of getting to a European final. Hughes came along and briefly attempted to put his stamp on the team but soon realised that it was no better that Hodgson's tactics so reverted to the proven system. Big Mo has employed Martin Jol and given him a bloody hard task to meet. Reduce the age of the squad and introduce new players into a very settled team. It is no surprise that there are going to be teething problems. Not only is Jol changing the faces a bit but also trying get us playing a new style. I keep hearing that we are trying to play total football and it seems apparent from our premiership performances that there is still work to be done. The players were all too common in positions that were either alien to them or where others did not expect them. I guess this is bound to happen for a while until the players get used to instinctively knowing where each other are. We have some extremely creative players attacking wise so total football could be a reality in the future, once that cohesion is found. The question is ho long will it take ? Who knows, hopefully fairly soon. In hindsight, I would suggest that Blackburn played some of the most negative tactics in the second half that I have seen since we played Shaktar Donesk, so hopefully when we get more space we will create more chances. Keep the faith COYW
Thoughtful post, Froggie It's quite a dilemma, following Hodgson. So much success with such a previously-mediocre team. I firmly believe that's why Hughes left. Given the team's limited budget, there was no where to go but down for Hughes. At best he'd have been considered a caretaker to Hodgson's genius (and he was right to think that), so why stay around? Where Jol goes from here is the question. If Sunday's first half is any gauge, we have a long and frustrating road ahead of us waiting for Jol's vision to crystallize into something that will win games. But you're right; we have talented and motivated player who can make this thing work.
D R,I may be wrong in attributing this quotation to you, but i think you said in a previous post that within a short time of watching someone, you could tell by his approach to the game if he was going to make it or not,and I tended to agree What worried me about our new acquisition, who was going to be a goalscoring hero,was yes I know he made need time to settle in but one must remember the fee paid,and the top wage paid,to me, showed nothing, in any department. I do so hope,this was a blip in his ability and we dont have another Marlet & Johnson on our hands
