Brunt > Xavi. About 5 years ago I used to use that as a weapon against anyone pointing out things via comparative stats. Brunt had more goals and more assists in less games in a worse team, when compared to one of the best players in the world. I like him and I think that his importance for West Brom is often overlooked, but I think that stats can be very misleading at times. They're a handy guide for some things and a total waste of time for others.
PNP please don't talk sense regarding stats comparison when I'm trying to praise a Tony Pulis team and the impact he has on certain players!
Stats are misleading unless placed in context. There are plenty of other Barca players, who will be credited with assists as well as Xavi whereas Blunt is more likely to be at the heart of creating chances for WBA.
Pulis is very good at what he does. I think he's proved that over the past couple of seasons, if there were any doubts. He'll have a rather Allardyce-esque career though, in my opinion. Clubs will continually think that they can do better, due to his style of play.
And he does not have the glamour of a Latin name. If he was Pulisimo he might carry more weight, in fact he might have a greater pull.
Glowing reference from the best manager in English football. 'It's simple. If I own an English club, which I don't and which I'd never do, I'd sign Tony Pulis. It's as simple as that,' Mourinho said in his pre-match press conference. 'It's a guarantee to achieve what the club wants. He never managed a club that wants to be champions. He never managed a club that wants a top four place. He's always managed clubs who want to survive and who want stability, and he's mathetmatic: what the club wants, he gives,' added Mourinho. 'His record is absolutely amazing, and he does what some people don't understand – but I do – and what other people sometimes don't rate, but I do. Which is the relation between what the manager wants and what the team is.
And there is no better bullshitter than Mouriniho Ho Ho! It is worth wondering though how well Pullis would do at a bigger club.
Mourinho's exceptionally pragmatic and Pulis shares that approach. It'd be interesting to see how they'd do with identical sides. One of them's far better at the whole media game, though. It's a big deal now. It's sad to say, but I'm surprised that more managers aren't attempting to alter their images. They probably view it as a waste of time, but getting the press on your side can be incredibly helpful, for a wide variety of reasons. Simply looking and acting professionally when representing the club can do wonders, too.
That depends on Pulis and what he achieves at West Brom but his chance of managing a bigger club depend on a bigger club being in a desperate situation, with them requiring an experienced manager to lead them to safety and then take them on an exciting journey, whether that chance will happen, just depends on good timing, or when West Brom sell, if their new owners hand him a big budget so he can build a champions league version of a team with the strength of stoke and the flair of palace.
Sadly you're right and it's not very difficult, the press love someone like Redknapp or Mourinho who always give them a story. Remembering how many characters we used to have in the game, there was far less coverage, but ironically we probably had more managers who were worth talking to. From memory Mercer, Allison, Clough, Shankly, McMenemy, all characters who make our set of managers look very dour. please log in to view this image
Chelsea have appealed Courtois' red card. Why? They've also agreed a fee for the left-back that everyone knew that they were after. £15m for Rose? Please.
Pre Match interviews West Brom head coach Tony Pulis: "I've always worked with the material I am given and that's always been my philosophy, to try to squeeze everything out of everybody. The club has a good structure and we haven't made too many changes but most things are in place."
I don't! It didn't read very well, but I meant it dismissively. It would be a derisory bid from a very rich club that we're pretty hostile to. We wouldn't want to sell him, we certainly wouldn't want to sell him to them and they wouldn't be silly enough to start of like that if they wanted him. It was a media bullshit story from the start and a pretty transparent one at that.
2 nil City, I will take that as I put Yaya Toure in my fantasy football team (only 4.9% picked him), he is going to have a cracking season. West brom are unlucky in that their first two home games are agaisnt City and Chelsea, once they are out the way, they can start working as a team as sometimes you just have to accept you're being outclassed.
