Match Thread RC Lens v Leicester PSF

[Cambridge_fox]

I’m loving this discussion guys. Nice and insightful.

Yes, I’m really wishing for our club to be something where the fans are considered a little more than they currently are.

I get the need to modernise - remember how pissed everyone was when Apple removed the DVD player from their Macs? Sometimes you need for force change. Like with mobile ticketing. But there needs to be a little bit of thought around the fan experience. That’s all. It shouldn’t be a huge ask.

 

[SilverFox]

What about this then @SilverFox - what do you think the club's current 5 year strategy is? We knew what it was when KP took over because Vichai told us he wanted to be playing Champions League football in 5/6 years (and we laughed) - but it set a direction for the club and we could build towards it.

Can I also request that you point me to some references, because as far as I'm aware, they don't exist. Our only plan/hope at the moment is to survive this season and not slip into the points deduction based oblivion that awaits in the championship.

I can only provide you with what they have published on Companies House with the last filed set of accounts.

 

[Fox Fan]

I can only provide you with what they have published on Companies House with the last filed set of accounts.

View attachment 18867

And in your opinion, does that represent either:
1. A clear plan of what we're trying to achieve or
2. An acceptable level of communication between the club and the fanbase?

By contrast, when we appointed Ranieri, Rudkin and Wheelan were both present and in that press conference, it was clear why they had brought CR in ("... to lead us into the next chapter of the Club’s history...") and what they hoped to achieve that season (“My goal is make one point more next season – this is our goal – improve season after season”).

Huge Turnout For Ranieri's First Press Conference

The local, national and international media were introduced to new Leicester City manager Claudio Ranieri on Monday afternoon as he hosted a busy press conference at King Power Stadium.

www.lcfc.com

 

[Blue Maniac]

Liberace could’ve done a lap of honour and it wouldn’t have made a lot of difference to me.

Would to me, he’s been dead nearly 40 years

 

[popillius]

What about this then @SilverFox - what do you think the club's current 5 year strategy is? We knew what it was when KP took over because Vichai told us he wanted to be playing Champions League football in 5/6 years (and we laughed) - but it set a direction for the club and we could build towards it.

Can I also request that you point me to some references, because as far as I'm aware, they don't exist. Our only plan/hope at the moment is to survive this season and not slip into the points deduction based oblivion that awaits in the championship.

So you think it has changed? The strategy is always and will always be to play CL football. Why on earth you think this may have changed is beyond me.

GUAW has it spot on; we can either go back to being a little club in L1 or 2 with a wholesome family but comparatively potless owner or you can want PL football, bigger grounds and exciting signings under a business which is owned not by a group of supporters but by a business. You can't have it both ways I'm afraid.

KP are absolutely no worse than any other owners and all this nonsense about Vichai 'spinning in his grave' is both crass and nonsensical. He was a businessman first. Yes, he was more of a present one than his son but then they were both at the helm then.

 

[Brown Nose]

So you think it has changed? The strategy is always and will always be to play CL football. Why on earth you think this may have changed is beyond me.

GUAW has it spot on; we can either go back to being a little club in L1 or 2 with a wholesome family but comparatively potless owner or you can want PL football, bigger grounds and exciting signings under a business which is owned not by a group of supporters but by a business. You can't have it both ways I'm afraid.

KP are absolutely no worse than any other owners and all this nonsense about Vichai 'spinning in his grave' is both crass and nonsensical. He was a businessman first. Yes, he was more of a present one than his son but then they were both at the helm then.

I think the point is that, for a few years, we thought we did have both ways.

Realising that it isn't true is deflating and is taking a lot of fans a long time to accept.

 

[popillius]

I think the point is that, for a few years, we thought we did have both ways.

Realising that it isn't true is deflating and is taking a lot of fans a long time to accept.

I reality, we didn't. Ever.

 

[SilverFox]

And in your opinion, does that represent either:
1. A clear plan of what we're trying to achieve or
2. An acceptable level of communication between the club and the fanbase?

By contrast, when we appointed Ranieri, Rudkin and Wheelan were both present and in that press conference, it was clear why they had brought CR in ("... to lead us into the next chapter of the Club’s history...") and what they hoped to achieve that season (“My goal is make one point more next season – this is our goal – improve season after season”).

Huge Turnout For Ranieri's First Press Conference

The local, national and international media were introduced to new Leicester City manager Claudio Ranieri on Monday afternoon as he hosted a busy press conference at King Power Stadium.

www.lcfc.com

If we have a clear plan, I wouldn’t expect us to publish that. I don’t start a game of chess by telling my opponent what I plan to do.

I really don’t understand what people are expecting by way of communication for the reasons I have already set out. There will undoubtedly be things in the passage of time that the club can better communicate, but we have to also accept that a lot of information is confidential or would be strategically foolish to share.

We don’t need fanfare or a press conference to say what we intend to do in my view. We know what the ambition of the club is. I don’t see that it suddenly changed.

 

[SilverFox]

I will say this. Buckle up. This season will be horrible. We will most likely be relegated. That won’t be because we don’t have a plan or aspiration, it is because we bet big and lost. Now until it is sorted (which will be a painful process and probably not a short one), we will have to play the game with our arms shackled behind our backs. That is unfortunate, but it’s where we are.

No amount of announcements by a pilot who is dealing with turbulence will make the turbulence any less. The club just has to get its head down and do its best in very difficult circumstances. The board are culpable for the problems, but so is the snake oil salesman they put their trust in.

 

[Micky]

I will say this. Buckle up. This season will be horrible. We will most likely be relegated. That won’t be because we don’t have a plan or aspiration, it is because we bet big and lost. Now until it is sorted (which will be a painful process and probably not a short one), we will have to play the game with our arms shackled behind our backs. That is unfortunate, but it’s where we are.

No amount of announcements by a pilot who is dealing with turbulence will make the turbulence any less. The club just has to get its head down and do its best in very difficult circumstances. The board are culpable for the problems, but so is the snake oil salesman they put their trust in.

Yep, spot on.

I expect relegation. Anything else would be an incredible achievement.

Also, I hope to god we keep Cooper regardless. Even if we are rock bottom.

 

[popillius]

Yep, spot on.

I expect relegation. Anything else would be an incredible achievement.

Also, I hope to god we keep Cooper regardless. Even if we are rock bottom.

So just to clarify, if we are rock bottom come Christmas with one win and a minus 25 GD, you'd want us not to change the manager? I'm not saying we definitely should but we'd need to assess why we were in that position and make an informed decision. If Forest had held on to him come what may they'd have been relegated.

I'm all for not jumping the gun but we need to learn from the past.

Like SF has said, it's going to be a hard and somewhat difficult season ahead but if there are clear deficiencies that we can do something about then we should.

 

[Miles Away]

I can only provide you with what they have published on Companies House with the last filed set of accounts.

View attachment 18867

Not exactly a fan friendly document.

You can say they don’t have a responsibility to the fans, and that’s true. But you also can’t deny that their overall relationship with fans is strained, in large part down to a lack of a thought for them.

 

[popillius]

Not exactly a fan friendly document.

You can say they don’t have a responsibility to the fans, and that’s true. But you also can’t deny that their overall relationship with fans is strained, in large part down to a lack of a relationship with them.

I still don't know what else you'd want them to do. There are a few, not many, but a few that may feel this way but they don't seem to offer any ideas of what they think the club should be doing.

 

[Micky]

So just to clarify, if we are rock bottom come Christmas with one win and a minus 25 GD, you'd want us not to change the manager? I'm not saying we definitely should but we'd need to assess why we were in that position and make an informed decision. If Forest had held on to him come what may they'd have been relegated.

I'm all for not jumping the gun but we need to learn from the past.

Like SF has said, it's going to be a hard and somewhat difficult season ahead but if there are clear deficiencies that we can do something about then we should.

Yep, that's how I feel. I expect nothing this season other than a few good scraps and then failure due to a huge gulf in class.

 

[popillius]

Yep, that's how I feel. I expect nothing this season other than a few good scraps and then failure due to a huge gulf in class.

Okay. I can see why, I'm not criticising. Stability is important. I just think we need to assess the season critically and think about what we could do to make things better. If we're rock bottom and playing dreadful, disorganised football, that's all on Cooper. If we're rock bottom but there's evidence of a plan, flashes of decent stuff, points deductions then I could see a case for sticking with the management team.

 

[Miles Away]

I still don't know what else you'd want them to do. There are a few, not many, but a few that may feel this way but they don't seem to offer any ideas of what they think the club should be doing.

We haven’t had a single press conference or public facing announcement from the board or leadership in years.

They don’t answer questions, they don’t communicate a vision, they have a marketing and ticketing department that is one of the worst in the business. Their social media is boilerplate at best and they appear to have no fan outreach programs worthy of the name. The last 3 managers have all raised serious concern about communication with the board - the most recent one before a ball is kicked.

I’ve worked in Sport for over 20 years. I know when a league or club is competent and when it isn’t. I know dysfunction when I see it, trust me. There’s a way to keep your fans onside - the club simply isn’t.

Modern football is shit, and we are symptomatic of that - but it’s difficult to watch the club treat the fans at best with indifference and at worst with disdain.

 

[City Fan]

If Forest had held on to him come what may they'd have been relegated.

How do you know that?

 

[Fox Fan]

So you think it has changed? The strategy is always and will always be to play CL football. Why on earth you think this may have changed is beyond me.

GUAW has it spot on; we can either go back to being a little club in L1 or 2 with a wholesome family but comparatively potless owner or you can want PL football, bigger grounds and exciting signings under a business which is owned not by a group of supporters but by a business. You can't have it both ways I'm afraid.

KP are absolutely no worse than any other owners and all this nonsense about Vichai 'spinning in his grave' is both crass and nonsensical. He was a businessman first. Yes, he was more of a present one than his son but then they were both at the helm then.

Villa are having it both ways right now. So are Brentford and Brighton - continued Premier League football and pushing for Europe.

I don't know why you think our only option would be to sell to someone penniless. Premier League football clubs are regularly being valued in the billions.

 

[popillius]

We haven’t had a single press conference or public facing announcement from the board or leadership in years.

They don’t answer questions, they don’t communicate a vision, they have a marketing and ticketing department that is one of the worst in the business. Their social media is boilerplate at best and they appear to have no fan outreach programs worthy of the name. The last 3 managers have all raised serious concern about communication with the board - the most recent one before a ball is kicked.

I’ve worked in Sport for over 20 years. I know when a league or club is competent and when it isn’t. I know dysfunction when I see it, trust me.

Modern football is shit, and we are symptomatic of that - but it’s difficult to watch the club treat the fans at best with indifference and at worst with disdain.

Well, it's a comprehensive answer. I disagree that the club is any different to any other and in lots of ways it's better but I think you raise some definite improvements that could be made. I guess I just see them for what they are; a business offering a product. I don't therefore need that antiquainted 'fan' connection, or at least not the one that used to exist at football clubs. I get that others want that though.

 

[popillius]

How do you know that?

I watched them play.