Many on here seem to think Del is the golden boy,fair enough we all have our views,but what if Del had been doing a fantastic job and a premiership side came calling for him what would he do stay or go. I think one answer he would be off. Now people say SL has invested in Del for the long term, fabulous if it was working out,but what do you do when the first team,who we pay our money to watch is not performing for the manager,what do you do. Surly it can go on for so long,but to back him as SL did yesterday is mind boggling. Bottom line fans will dictate what goes on down the gate,as without the fan base the club will struggle. over to you.
I don't think you can blame managers/players for having ambitions to reach the highest level, for instance McInnes was born in Paisley and never played for City, so why would he feel a desire to stay or 'pay a debt' if a Premiership team came knocking? 'Because we gave him his shot in England and he owes us'? Not a good enough reason - if he had done a good job then he could've rightfully said that he did a good job and we should be grateful for that. I have similar feelings regarding Nicky Maynard. Loyalty is a word thrown about in football, but it's a two-way street and ultimately players and staff are brought in from all over the country, and indeed the World to do a job. Sure, players will develop attachments to clubs if they enjoy their time there, but for that to trump their ambition to make the most of their short careers by reaching as high a level as possible is expecting too much. ...But this is all hypothetical talk, because McInnes isn't likely to be offered a Premiership job any time soon and the question should be 'is it right to stick by him now, or is it in the clubs best interest to cut their losses now and try again'? I'm on the fence, but trust that SL is in a better position to judge than I. In McInnes' favour I'd suggest he has been unlucky with injuries, particularly in defence which is our weakest area right now and until recently there's been an attacking threat that hasn't been seen at Ashton Gate for years. Also, it's generally accepted that constantly chopping and changing managers isn't usually the blueprint for success, and as people have pointed out, Gary Johnson also suffered a seven game losing streak before winning promotion and taking us to the playoff final. ...Of course on the other hand, the difference between DM's losing streak and GJ's is that GJ's came early into his tenure when he was still working with the wreckage of the Tinnion reign, whereas DM's has come after a season and a half and has started to mould the team as he sees fit. Standing by a manager during tough times to allow him to rebuild for the future is one thing, but backing a manager who isn't going to deliver won't do anyone any favours (case in point, Steve Kean at Blackburn). One of the key things I'd like to know which could make me land on one side of the argument is what happened over the summer concerning signing a new centre back. We were linked with Keogh, Gerrard and Monk amongst others yet missed out on everyone, with Keogh moving to Derby a particular surprise given he was supposedly favouring a move back to Bristol. Was it a case of McInnes blowing too much of his agreed budget on forwards or was it a case of SL not providing enough support? It feels wrong to question SL given his love of the club and the large amounts of his own money he's pumped into it, however if DM was given the mandate 'you can only sign once you've sold', that was probably short-sightedness on his part, given the competitiveness of the transfer market and the few suitable targets available - any money saved on transfer fee/wages could easily be cancelled out by relegation which could be decided by said recruits. It's all pure speculation of course. I'd say DM should maybe have three games to save his job, with a minimum of four points in return; if he achieves that then the deadline extends until the club's out of the relegation zone. Of course, there will be a pressure for the issue to be resolved before Christmas, so any prospective new manager would have a chance to plan ahead of the January transfer window...
Nick, Your posts are a great read,I remember on OTIB reading them ,always thought highly of them,shame you don't get over here more often. I really can not see Steve L being able to allow the saga to continue much longer,the dreaded vote of confidence comes to mind. A tanking Saturday and the next two away games at Brighton and Boro could be it. The scarey thing Nick we could be 12 to 15 points adrift by then.
