The Manager | Vital Football

The Manager

The Owl

The Owl

Vital 1st Team Regular
We all know Rafa's cv is top class at least until recent years.
We also know the current demise is mainly down to Ashley and. His running of the club.
We started this season negatively with constant moaning from Rafa about lack of funs and the tough early fixture list.
Does anyone think that if these facts had been accepted and they had got on with the job in hand, a better fist could have been made of it.
Some say Rafa should not be void of criticism because of the deal he was handed and accepted.
His tactics have on the whole been negative and some of his purchases and sales questionable even with the lack of money available. His substitutions puzzling.
How long before a change is inevitable and who would be the best possible candidates if it happens.
Just interested in your thoughts
 
It's hard to see how he could have done any better under the circumstances. One of the keys is the timing of the transfers that did come in, strikers being pretty much last minute. It doesn't help that the club sorted a couple of signings on loan, it's hardly a commitment to them. It also meant that some of pre-season was wasted.

Yes, negative tactics but the fixture list is a fair comment but the goal difference is only minus 8. It was always going to be after the tough fixtures that the system could develop into something more adventurous, without too much of a crisis of confidence at the back.

From past history, Hughton was sacked in December (failing to be supported over the appointment of an assistant), theoretically giving a new manager a chance to utilise the Jan window. However, Ashley can screw up his timing any old way. My money would be on when/if relegation is certain.

Last part, who?

Any self respecting manager would have to drive a hard bargain over transfer funds and would be right to question how much Ashley can be trusted. Even if we stay up, the main striker is only on loan, as is Kenedy and it would need more that the McLaren spree to produce a decent team.

You could look at one for the future, such as Eddie Howe but why leave a club that supports him? It could be any of the usual suspects, Pulis if not promoted, Fat Sam, Pards, Martin O'Neill, Coleman, even though it should be a top foreign coach.

In practice, we might be better off relegated. That could bring a raft of different managers into the fray, Mark Warburton maybe? Some other dark horses cold include Michael O'Neill or Ketsbaia.
 
MickMartin said:
He should have walked when the fat **** started fucking him around. No doubt he is a good manager but some of his decisions are bizarre the fact he signed Joselu and Rondon and binned of Mitrovic is madness to me.
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Agree. Maybe he did those on purpose to send a message? Either way, we are stuffed.
 
officemonkey said:
Rafa said he was happy with the squad and so did the captain. They can’t grumble now when they had the perfect opportunity to tell it like it is.
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Absolutely. I wonder what was promised to persuade them to announce that they were happy? They will look like fools if they were to moan and bitch now. MA has them over the barrel of a gun. Lousy fat fuck turd
 
MickMartin said:
He should have walked when the fat **** started fucking him around.
Spot on!
Regarding a replacement any decent manager with an ounce of integrity wouldn't touch sports direct united with a barge pole until fatty sells.
So expect the usual suspects when Benitez is sacked or walks.
Gary Monk or someone similar would fit the bill perfectly.
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If it were Pardew/McLaren would they have been given the same loyalty by the fans or would they have been slated for this woeful start to the season. They also had to deal with fatties greed regarding transfer funds. Benitez simply won't resign and I don't blame him because he'd owe fatty money.
 
There are some differences. The liked managers, Hughton and Benitez did what they did with a transfer surplus. McClaren was backed with a chunk of cash. Pardew may not have had that much but was not considered to be too honest with supporters.
 
Benitez is the second most negative boring manager we've had in recent years. Secondonly to Souness. I fail to accept any other manager would not have picked up even 1 win by now but his mentality of going into games trying to avoid defeat has backfired constantly. I don't think our squad is very good but I don't think it's it in the bottom 3 either but that's where we are. I would also go as far as to say he has weakened the squad since last year, and while thst is mostly down to Ashley he has to accept responsibility for sanctioning mitrovic etc
 
He persists through stubbornness to play the same lot week after week and they can't hit the back of a bus.
He could have tried some youngsters like Roberts, they could not have done any worse but plays his favourites like Perez and Diame who create nothing and score even less.
Do I think another Manager could have done better. Yes I do.
Rafa is negative, keeps saying week after week we are close to winning, we'll eventually we will but will it be too late.
 
I wonder if the #ifrafagoeswego brigade will be true to their word. Given the lack of spine by everyone in the ground, it’s looking highly likely that they’ll just trot out another convenient excuse.
 
Was out at the weekend with some decent blokes at a wedding, and this little snippet came up, involving Ashley, Charnley and Rafa.

A "well known", past sporting personality, had accepted a lift in "the" helicopter, as he was doing work that linked up locally with sponsorship from SD, and he lives locally.

Once the helicopter was on the move, and the headphones were on, Charnley and Ashley started discussing Rafa, and the "high maintenance" he was becoming, and the protests ongoing.

The conversation moved to his £3m contract, with the pair wishing he would walk, and they could then appoint someone like, wait for it, Curbishley or Nigel Pearson, and save £2m a year!!!!

Two things came to mind, this was heard by the other passenger, and the other 2 showed their colours, trying to cut corners, they also mentioned relegation, as a way to clear the decks, and start again.

Believe any of this if you want, the other party, listening, has since left the SD sponsorship program, and this aint no story.
 
What's not to believe. When you think of this Leicester owner who loved the club, the city, put money into local hospitals and won them the league, a sad end, but what a wonderful legacy to leave behind. Sir John Hall has a lot to answer for selling to this lowlife, as for Charnley, what a pathetic sycophant.
There's also no fucking way we'll come back up straight away next time and this time the club will nosedive towards the lower leagues, then we'll see how much the two pricks are laughing and joking in the stands.
 
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Aye, the two are incomparable.
That one of them stuck two fingers up at a protester when asked where the money had gone & then has the fkn audacity to attend the next 4 games stenches how desperate & ill advised he is.

The dream of fatty & his cohorts sat in an empty arena with a few thousand snarling Wolves supporters in front of a worldwide audience would at least fluster the fucker,just don't go,it's only 1 game.
Stand outside,bring the effigies,kids & dogs,then watch the game in a bar,maybe it's the last chance or another decade of this leech.
 
People say Rafa is a brilliant coach but I see precious little evidence of it. Can anyone see any improvement in any of our players since we acquired them?
 
crooktownmags said:
People say Rafa is a brilliant coach but I see precious little evidence of it. Can anyone see any improvement in any of our players since we acquired them?
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Yes, in all honesty and fairness I have to say I can . Without question Lascelles has improved , as has Yedlin, Dummett, Diame and Hayden. You could also say Shelvey's temperament is improved although his performances are still frustratingly inconsistent. I don't think it's a coincidence that 5 of the players I've mentioned are predominantly defensive based.
 
To be fair, they get enough fuckin practice

Also begs the question that how much is down to natural development as well

I noticed Lascelles was the played on the right of the back three (when we weren't a back 5) and didn't look comfortable at all
 
keggy_keagal said:
Yes, in all honesty and fairness I have to say I can . Without question Lascelles has improved , as has Yedlin, Dummett, Diame and Hayden. You could also say Shelvey's temperament is improved although his performances are still frustratingly inconsistent. I don't think it's a coincidence that 5 of the players I've mentioned are predominantly defensive based.
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I see your point mate, and you may be right that he mainly develops defensive players. When you look at the "development" of Aarons, Murphy, Ritchie, Joselu, Atsu (I could go on) it looks like they are going backwards. In fact there was a time when we would have described them as having been "pardewed".
 
How can you Pardew shite like Joselu and Atsu, they were born Pardewed. It's also difficult for players to improve when they're surrounded by shite, better players coming in always improves the others.
 
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