Ian Hollowpants

[camberwell fox]

What's all this talk of competing with other teams in the Premier League ?

Is this the loony forum, or what

We are in a shitty horrible league, with a load of pretty average teams, and we are just about holding our position in the top six - but it's a bloody struggle and we are a mere seventeen points away from that crappy, less-than-average Newcastle side we watched a week or so ago

We play whatever shite style of football is necessary to keep ourselves in the hunt for a play off place, and we then play whatever shite style of football may be necessary to win those three games.

All that is a pretty feckin' slim chance, but I don't give a toss how we get there - long ball, defensive football, cheating diving and punching if we have to. Anything else is just completely and utterly irrelevant, and this insane conversation can just go merrily along with the loonies wishing away their lives in a complete fantasy world of lovely total passing football that simply will not happen right here, right now, where the real people live :icon_roll

And that m'laud is where we differ.

 

[lazzer]

What's all this talk of competing with other teams in the Premier League ?

Is this the loony forum, or what

We are in a shitty horrible league, with a load of pretty average teams, and we are just about holding our position in the top six - but it's a bloody struggle and we are a mere seventeen points away from that crappy, less-than-average Newcastle side we watched a week or so ago

We play whatever shite style of football is necessary to keep ourselves in the hunt for a play off place, and we then play whatever shite style of football may be necessary to win those three games.

All that is a pretty feckin' slim chance, but I don't give a toss how we get there - long ball, defensive football, cheating diving and punching if we have to. Anything else is just completely and utterly irrelevant, and this insane conversation can just go merrily along with the loonies wishing away their lives in a complete fantasy world of lovely total passing football that simply will not happen right here, right now, where the real people live :icon_roll

You go girl

 

[homer]

And that m'laud is where we differ.

 

[camberwell fox]

:icon_wink:icon_bigg

 

[Profondo Rosso]

Tbh, patient short passing football is one thing, but I for one thoroughly enojoyed our quick paced ultra-pressing style of play against Newcastle, even if we were playing quite direct football.

 

[David Gwilliam]

What?



?

My point which I did not put very coherently was that Shilton, Weller and Worthington would want to test themselves against Barcelona and Real Madrid and the best in the world. They really were that good and in fact I would say that at one point Shilton probably was the best goalkeeper in the world.

Like Homer I would be willing to see us play hoofball or whatever to get promoted. I would not want to see us diving or deliberately handballing.
That to me is simple cheating.
I will happily see us go the O'Neill or Allardyce route, However, if you lose all scruples you end up like Don Revie who offered Bob Stokoe a bribe when Leeds were in Division 2 and allegedly tried to bribe Wolves players.

 

[Miles Away]

What's all this talk of competing with other teams in the Premier League ?

Is this the loony forum, or what

We are in a shitty horrible league, with a load of pretty average teams, and we are just about holding our position in the top six - but it's a bloody struggle and we are a mere seventeen points away from that crappy, less-than-average Newcastle side we watched a week or so ago

We play whatever shite style of football is necessary to keep ourselves in the hunt for a play off place, and we then play whatever shite style of football may be necessary to win those three games.

All that is a pretty feckin' slim chance, but I don't give a toss how we get there - long ball, defensive football, cheating diving and punching if we have to. Anything else is just completely and utterly irrelevant, and this insane conversation can just go merrily along with the loonies wishing away their lives in a complete fantasy world of lovely total passing football that simply will not happen right here, right now, where the real people live :icon_roll

Top Banana! Spot on Homer. You are a titan amongst mere mortals.

 

[Chuck T Masala]

Fact is winning matters most in this division. If you don't win enough you get in real trouble. We know that don't we? We need to win, win and win again. We may well beable to play some attractive football along the way but our resources dictate that we will have to work very hard for any reward.

 

[Macky]

Homer. You are a tit amongst mere mortals.

Harsh, but fair

 

[From Gradel to Grave]

Harsh, but fair

 

[consty]

Back to Holloway. I believe he bears a heavy responsibility.
He had more than above average resources for the championship. He had an above average defence. He could and should have sorted out the midfield and attack to at least mid-table standard. I believe another manager would have done a better job. The man had a decent budget to spend on players and wages by championship standards. The problems of the past should have excused a failure to challenge for the play offs and being consigned to mid-table mediocrity for a season - not the almost inconceivable result of relegation to the 3rd tier.

Holloway failed to get the best out of what he had got. He blew the resources. He managed to screw up team selection. No manager gets it right every game (NP being a recent example) but clueless ones get it wrong more often than right. Scoring goals was the main weakness - and he put the only guy who could score on the wing, not for 2 or 3 games as an experiment but for most of them.

Holloway was out of his depth and his clownish persona did not help when you were up against it and needed the respect of the players and the chairman the most. Just before the start of this season MM was ruefully quoted as saying that his 'previous manager' had said " 'give me money for 3 or 4 signings, and I'll get you out of this division'. I never knew he meant down a divison!" About sums it up.

A decent manager with above average resources should ALWAYS avoid relegation (unless he takes over when you are more or less already dead and buried of course). It's promotion that is somewhat more elusive and where resources and good management don't always get you one of the 3 coveted places. But a good manager with good resources should get you close at least.

 

[Steven]

Holloway failed to get the best out of what he had got.

Exactly. :icon_sad: