I Never wanted him in the first place but absolutely 100% want him to thrive and for us to work as a club unit.
That said, I’ve spoken to some associates who are For3st fans and they all say the same thing. That he sets up every match to not lose, seems to have some aversion to attacking and has no plan b. Every match is a dogfight aimed at not losing, rather than winning. I get that if you don’t concede, that’s half the job, but we have one of the weaker squads in the league and our forward players are probably the strongest part of the squad, except for perhaps Ricardo.
They also say that he became so loved there because he brought them back up after 22 years away. The love, togetherness and energy from fans to any manager in that situation was bound to be nothing short of infatuation.
More so, given the way he did it with them languishing at the bottom when he first came in. He brings them up after decades away, then that momentum just about kept them up in their first season back. The fuel of keeping them up was indeed that momentum, recent history and camaraderie of the previous season’s success.
But he doesn’t have any of that with us. In fact, it was a lukewarm response from our lot with many being underwhelmed. We get the Cooper of his third season with Fore$t minus the affection and togetherness.
Finally, I have to be honest, the bond he built with their fans is unnerving for me. And if a lot of you dig a little deeper, you might admit that him being such a modern legend there, might give you some feeling of unease, or something to that affect.
I don’t like that he’s loved by them so much. I don’t like that we went down the same season they stayed up and he was their manager. Moreover, nothing in his time in Nottingham has at all convinced me that he was the right manager, or had the right style to keep us up this season, especially in a season with potential points deduction, one of the weaker squads in the division, and with us being in a fragile position overall.
That being said, in Steve Cooper we trust. I back him until he’s gone. You gotta give a guy some time, and hope he has it to keep us up. I can’t help but think, though, that his time is up soon. Something doesn’t feel right.