Well, here we go again. Dawn of another era and yet another hair-raising trip on that infernal rollercoaster of ours! Brace yourselves for the Sparky revolution! Excited? Kind of but not in the way my heart wants me to be. When you stand back from all the media hype, not to mention some of the stuff on here, the signs are it'll be more of an evolution if Hughes' record is anything to go by. He's a suit job and thinks like one. Calm and methodical, the complete opposite to his passionate predecessor. With Warnock it was all about the individual: motivation and man management. When it worked, the motivation of one man clearly ignited the team but as that man's own agenda came to the fore, he became harder to access and the spirit faded. Then other lights gradually faded too until total darkness decended over a cup game against a lowly league one side. (Okay, so maybe not lowly - but then again... ) Meantime, Mr Motivated couldn't be arsed to even turn up! So, what are the chances of Sparky getting the power back on and igniting our premier league chances? His record suggests it'll be a slower build than perhaps we'd like but hopefully we'll start to pick up points in February and consolidate into a fairly formidable force as the season draws to a close. That and the natural desperation that comes with a last minute rush to cross the line, could see us take a scalp or two off the big boys in the final dash. As for the wealth of new talent we seem to be expecting, dare say we've declared our interest in a few with opening bids which will inevitably be rejected in the first instance, I won't be holding my breath. Unless the market bucks in our favour at the end of the month and several of our initial bids bear fruit at the same time, I know we're all in cloud cuckoo land right now but I reckon it'll be largely the same squad for the rest of the season. Question is, will the Hughes management team be able to improve the players we've already got? I think his authority alone will do that fairly quickly. I doubt he'll make the mistake of getting too chummy with individuals and select sides on the basis of current form. Thereafter, it'll be a matter of game plan and development - and having to ride the inevitable reverses along the way All in all, some frustrating times ahead for us fickle fans, puffing and blowing through endless numbers of threads on here I dare say, with verdicts flying this way one week and the other way the next. So, is this the spark that'll set our world on fire? I think it is - but just not as dramatically explosive as we're probably quietly hoping for atm - though possibly far more enduring. COURRRss! Your thoughts?
I was never emotionally attached to warnock like some fans, so I'm really excited about this change. Prefer MH over NW as a prem league manager any day of the week.
I just don't know if MH is a motivator, either. He appears so glum to me, and struggles to find the right words at interviews. But I sincerely do hope he proves me wrong and wrangles the boys up the table.
His interviews sound fine to me. Which words are you looking for? He does sound glum, I'll give you that but this is the premier league, the sh*ts and giggles can stay in the lower leagues. Do you think arsenal and man utd fans wish their respective managers were a little more jovial?
It all hinges on the players he brings in and how quickly they establish a pattern of play that suits. We're now in the bottom three for the first time since the opening week of the season and that is a significant factor in potential new signings not fancying the battle ahead. Alex, for instance has a choice of us and a relegation dog-fight or PSG, top of the French League and nailed on for the Champions League next season, whereas the next season in the Championship is not such an enticing prospect. Many other quality potential signings will be of the same mindset, Defoe being an example (though I never believed Cerny's bullsh*t). I think we are going to have several disappointments in the next two weeks, a frantic last day scramble which will probably result in one or two loan deals and one or two surprises. I still have a feeling a big name will materialise that no-one has suspected either here or in the press and that the next four months are going to be a heart-stopping rollercoaster. In other words, just another typical season at Loftus Road...
Yappy, you seem to have calmed down and added a little perspective to your outlook, nice one. This will be a very different experience than with NW, can see us being in the mix at the wrong end of the table right til the end. But I have a little more confidence that we will get something from the difficult run in under Hughes. Judging by what I have been reading in other threads, if we do stay up (I'm sure we will.... At least that's what I keep muttering to myself) things could get very exciting indeed with the Mittals emerging into the limelight. U Rsss!!!!
Nice post Brix. I think you're right in that it may take a while for things to improve and that we may not see too many new faces this month. However, I don't see us surviving without strengthening the squad, I really don't. Lastly, can you explain the part I've highlighted? Who's Mr Motivator who didn't turn up where? Bit confused about that bit!!
Mr Motivated. Taarabt got the lion's share of NW's attention last year, yet kicked against the club during the summer (despite still being captain). It's said he wasn't due to travel to the ACoN until the day after the MKD farce and could've (perhaps should've) made himself available as moral support if not as part of the team. Hardly part of a bonded unit. Still got visions of the despondency you described as the team got off the bus. I wonder if things would've been different had we caned MKD? Still think the result caused a kneejerk reaction among the Malaysian shareholders after the game. NW received the text message at 8am our time (4pm in Kuala Lumpar). Just think it's ironic that Taarabt wasn't there for NW in his hour of need. **** happens though. It's been an emotional week... Time to move on.
Interesting what you're saying about taking points from the big guys at the end of the season, Brix. You're right, they're showing they're not invulnerable. If Hughes can get the right players in over the next two weeks, we can indeed have a pop at the ManU's, ManC's and Chelsea's away from home during April and May. Nothing is impossible.
Im confident this will work in the long term Track record in PL Hughes 1.43 points per game - lowest position 15th, never relegated Warnock 0.95 points per game - lowest position bottom, Relegated once Say no more
Oh I see....another chance to have a dig at Taarabt!! I thought I'd read somewhere that he and Traore weren't allowed to play by their countries? (Traore could have shown support also, by your reasoning!!). I think you're right that, had we beaten MK, NW may still be here, but I'm not sure his methods were going to keep us up. On Adel....I'm prepeared for QPR life without him, as MH may well not want to be bothered with him, but **** me, we need a decent replacement for him. He's our best player by a long, long way!!
If opportunities to have a 'dig' at Taarabt was my purpose, there'd be nothing to stop me OP-ing 'Taarabt's a ****er' threads on a regular basis. Facts are facts - and whilst it's also a fact that Taarabt is potentially our best player, he's clearly going to have to shape up (in every sense of the word) under Hughes. It'll be the make or break of him.
Yeah...just pisses me off that people need to keep on regurgitating the same old tired arguments about Adel, when the thread is nothing to do with him. For example...you hint that he's unfit. He's looked as fit as I've seen him recently...another example of a tired, out of date argument!
Not at all - extremely topical as I'm sure you'll come to see in the next couple of months. Sure he's been as fit as we've seen him lately but the Hughes team demands super fitness throughout. The OP is about the Hughes evolution and the transition from NW's focus on the individual to Hughes' emphasis on team. A major transformation in anyone's language. Taarabt, being the flagship of the Warnock era beginning and end, was used not as a target for vilification but as a yardstick to measure the changes to come. Col, take a chill pill mate. No one's attacking you or your's.
You are very adept at writing down your argument Brix and you often make some very good and astute points.....BUT...that doesn't make you right all the time.
What's the point in forming and expressing an opinion you (the author) thinks is wrong? Wouldn't (and don't) speak if that was the case. However, in a speculative opener such as this, I'm looking forward to reading alternative points of view e.g. why Sparky will win every game from here on in; or why he's likely to fail miserably - not misrepresentations of my case as put.
I merely pointed out that, as I understand it, Traore and Taarabt were told they couldn't play against MK. A big part of what you were saying, was to be critical of Taarabt ( no mention of Traore ) not turning up. No misrepresentation there....just helping you out with some facts!
