MON - Performance not good enough to keep me at the club

[blackpoolred]

Or most of the players - we need a big turnover of personnel

Honest words from MON in the after-match interview

[maninasuitcase]

The thread title is only thing hes got right in recent weeks.

[terrorofturfmoor]

Sounds like he's literally asking the club to put him out of his misery!!!

[iglugluk]

Honest assessment and I can't help but like O'Neill but he sounds lost and he's responsible for the training of this particular group of players and they're worse than the team we had last year which is rather worrying.
He seems like a man out of ideas and the team he's built are playing like it too.

[matelot1996]

I’ve suspected for weeks he is trying to get himself sacked for a pay off. Nothing else can explain his abject failure to deliver half decent performances and results with this group
of players. Except maybe he is genuinely a Useless Footballing Manager?

[stokesaint1]

Mar 16, 2022 23:32:11 GMT blackpoolred said:

Or most of the players - we need a big turnover of personnel

Honest words from MON in the after-match interview

Was this from the man who has brought in 26 players and not improved us as a team one iota, in fact probably made us worse?
Totally and utterly out of his depth. Knowing our financial position, he should do the honorable thing and resign. If I was Coates, I would use the opening statement as being a resignation speech

[tinofspam]

Mar 17, 2022 0:35:19 GMT stokesaint1 said:

Mar 16, 2022 23:32:11 GMT blackpoolred said:

Or most of the players - we need a big turnover of personnel

Honest words from MON in the after-match interview

Was this from the man who has brought in 26 players and not improved us as a team one iota, in fact probably made us worse?
Totally and utterly out of his depth. Knowing our financial position, he should do the honorable thing and resign. If I was Coates, I would use the opening statement as being a resignation speech

I understand where you’re coming from pal but he’s definitely improved us from mad Nath’s reign, even if we are fizzling out

[dirtclod]

It's almost like...the players themselves are wanting a change.
Sick of being confused with all the chopping/changing, different systems etc.
Probably some feuding & whatnot.
Sick of the season.
And now, sick of MON.

On the flip side of the coin, we are sick of them!
So I'm not sure where I'm going here...

[hotpot]

For the remaining games, MON should only be fielding players that he wants to retain for next season. Those players that he does not want should be told immediately, and allowed to leave anytime, or until their contracts end. Half this squad do not deserve to be at this club.

[potterpaul]

Mar 18, 2022 0:47:42 GMT hotpot said:

For the remaining games, MON should only be fielding players that he wants to retain for next season. Those players that he does not want should be told immediately, and allowed to leave anytime, or until their contracts end. Half this squad do not deserve to be at this club.

Well personally speaking, I don't want to see Allen or Chester for the rest of season.

[wakeypotter]

Mar 18, 2022 4:55:16 GMT potterpaul said:

Mar 18, 2022 0:47:42 GMT hotpot said:

For the remaining games, MON should only be fielding players that he wants to retain for next season. Those players that he does not want should be told immediately, and allowed to leave anytime, or until their contracts end. Half this squad do not deserve to be at this club.

Well personally speaking, I don't want to see Allen or Chester for the rest of season.

I’m not a massive fan of Allen but come on he’s been one of the better players

[knype]

Mar 18, 2022 4:55:16 GMT potterpaul said:

Mar 18, 2022 0:47:42 GMT hotpot said:

For the remaining games, MON should only be fielding players that he wants to retain for next season. Those players that he does not want should be told immediately, and allowed to leave anytime, or until their contracts end. Half this squad do not deserve to be at this club.

Well personally speaking, I don't want to see Allen or Chester for the rest of season.

We look even worse without Allen in the side, like him or not he's one of our better midfielders and is mobile!

[Fred Ferret]

Mar 18, 2022 7:50:14 GMT knype said:

Mar 18, 2022 4:55:16 GMT potterpaul said:

Well personally speaking, I don't want to see Allen or Chester for the rest of season.

We look even worse without Allen in the side, like him or not he's one of our better midfielders and is mobile!

Yes, he’s certainly mobile. He would do well in a pantomime featuring headless chickens. We could even recruit the cast from the rest of the squad - and have MON appointed the Producer.

[nonameface]

Mar 16, 2022 23:32:11 GMT blackpoolred said:

Or most of the players - we need a big turnover of personnel

Honest words from MON in the after-match interview

Was this on radio stoke or the official stoke website?

[franklin]

Mar 18, 2022 7:57:34 GMT nonameface said:

Mar 16, 2022 23:32:11 GMT blackpoolred said:

Or most of the players - we need a big turnover of personnel

Honest words from MON in the after-match interview

Was this on radio stoke or the official stoke website?

SCFC Interview

[questionable]

The blokes an idiot as on occasions we’re a match for 99% of the teams in this league, he’s just a pathetic weak manager.

Constantly swapping and changes players, playing absolutely shit players, playing players out of position, adopting shit formations and more importantly totally devoid on how to adopt to other teams.

He’s got the squad but not the no how I’m afraid.

[ohbottom]

I really don't know what to make of the last few weeks.

When the transfer window shut, it looked like we'd made a couple of key signings (most notably Baker) which might just take us up to challenging for play-offs. A couple of excellent performances had a lot of chatter on here about getting in to the top 6. Against Forest, particularly, we played some excellent stuff at times, getting the ball forward quickly and pressing high.  It genuinely looked like MoN might have found the last couple of building blocks to turn us in to a side capable of challenging anyone in the division.

Since then we've slid back and got progressively worse. Why? I don't get it.

[potterpaul]

Mar 18, 2022 7:45:51 GMT wakeypotter said:

Mar 18, 2022 4:55:16 GMT potterpaul said:

Well personally speaking, I don't want to see Allen or Chester for the rest of season.

I’m not a massive fan of Allen but come on he’s been one of the better players

Both Allen and Chester have had the occasional good games but I don't want them here next season. If MON has any say on the matter you can rest assure he'll bend over backwards to keep them.

[svengaliinplatforms]

I can see him back with NI in 18 months time.

[LL Cool Dave]

Mar 18, 2022 9:12:33 GMT ohbottom said:

I really don't know what to make of the last few weeks.

When the transfer window shut, it looked like we'd made a couple of key signings (most notably Baker) which might just take us up to challenging for play-offs. A couple of excellent performances had a lot of chatter on here about getting in to the top 6. Against Forest, particularly, we played some excellent stuff at times, getting the ball forward quickly and pressing high.  It genuinely looked like MoN might have found the last couple of building blocks to turn us in to a side capable of challenging anyone in the division.

Since then we've slid back and got progressively worse. Why? I don't get it.

I'm the same. Went to the Wigan cup game which was the first game with the new signings, I was convinced we'd be top 6.

Poor and ever changing team selection and lack of tactical awareness have done him.

I've bored my mates to death with this analogy but to paraphrase, it's like Morecambe and Wise's Andre Previn sketch - He's playing all the right notes, but not necessarily in the right order. As in he's got the players but doesn't know what to do with them.

[CBUFAWKIPWH]

In a sense he's been a victim of the need to rapidly offload and rebuild in order to satisfy the constraints of FFP. We had a huge (and successful) turnover of players in the summer and another big turnover in January. Coupled with a number of injuries that has completely killed any momentum we had built from the start of the season - it's like the rest of the league are battle hardened and we are still in preseason friendly mode. Injuries and player turnover are not O'Neill's fault but he has compounded the problem by flip flopping formations and constantly changing personnel in the search for his best 11 - he'd have been better off sticking to one formation and playing a more consistent starting 11. The thing is those underlying problems aren't going to go away - changing the manager is just papering over the cracks. Ask Leeds, Forest, Derby and and a dozen or more other clubs whether changing the manager is the panacea for solving the problems of adjusting to life in the Championship. Same room, different wallpaper.

[melbournepotter]

Mar 18, 2022 9:52:25 GMT CBUFAWKIPWH said:

In a sense he's been a victim of the need to rapidly offload and rebuild in order to satisfy the constraints of FFP. We had a huge (and successful) turnover of players in the summer and another big turnover in January. Coupled with a number of injuries that has completely killed any momentum we had built from the start of the season - it's like the rest of the league are battle hardened and we are still in preseason friendly mode. Injuries and player turnover are not O'Neill's fault but he has compounded the problem by flip flopping formations and constantly changing personnel in the search for his best 11 - he'd have been better off sticking to one formation and playing a more consistent starting 11. The thing is those underlying problems aren't going to go away - changing the manager is just papering over the cracks. Ask Leeds, Forest, Derby and and a dozen or more other clubs whether changing the manager is the panacea for solving the problems of adjusting to life in the Championship. Same room, different wallpaper.

This sums it up for me. MON has sacrificed himself in many ways by putting the club before himself, in many of his decisions. He has had to get rid of a lot of underperforming players on overpaid salaries and hasnt been able to replace them with quality players due to financial constraints. Any manager would have had to do the same thing. To his credit, in my opinion, he has put the club first.

However, i believe we are almost done re the clearout, at the end of this season. I dont know the financial technicalities, but hopefully it means that due to many high wage earners contracts coming to an end, we can then attract better players due to less financial constraints. If that is the case, and MON is still the manager, then next season is the make or break for him.

That doesnt excuse some of the iin-game decisions lately that just seem to be 'throw as many forwards on as I can and hope something happens'. type tactics.

If MON does stay, things need to change behind the scenes, and we need more support in off field positions. Maybe Webber in as a Sporting Director/recruitment officer ?

Either way, there will ba a lot of changes coming.

[cvillestokie]

The things I will miss about MON are that he gives a better holistic insight into the goings on of the club on a daily basis and that he says things like this, which make him appear a lot more honest than the average manager. I’m sure he lies/misleads us all the time, but it still feels like you get more of the truth than we’ve had in the past.

[Deleted]

Mar 18, 2022 9:52:25 GMT CBUFAWKIPWH said:

In a sense he's been a victim of the need to rapidly offload and rebuild in order to satisfy the constraints of FFP. We had a huge (and successful) turnover of players in the summer and another big turnover in January. Coupled with a number of injuries that has completely killed any momentum we had built from the start of the season - it's like the rest of the league are battle hardened and we are still in preseason friendly mode. Injuries and player turnover are not O'Neill's fault but he has compounded the problem by flip flopping formations and constantly changing personnel in the search for his best 11 - he'd have been better off sticking to one formation and playing a more consistent starting 11. The thing is those underlying problems aren't going to go away - changing the manager is just papering over the cracks. Ask Leeds, Forest, Derby and and a dozen or more other clubs whether changing the manager is the panacea for solving the problems of adjusting to life in the Championship. Same room, different wallpaper.

Agree with most of that but for me the key is two good fullbacks. Why has this position been neglected for so long by so many different managers. I think the only reason O'Neill changed to 5 at the back is because he didn't trust Smith and Fox at FB (and rightly so). So why didn't he buy two in the summer. He previously stated his preferred system was 433 but he didn't recruit players for it. That has to be on him.