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Post by fishlovesoatcakes on Sept 12, 2023 7:35:23 GMT
I don't think anyone was expecting miracles, they just weren't expecting regression. He did manage to secure 5 PL loans as well as Celina which is over half of a Starting XI in itself. But our ppg after the January signings was actually worse than before. Last season we started with 2 wins, 1 draw, 3 losses in the league before Alex arrived. We're very close to potentially doing even worse this year. And I do agree that there is certainly a better quality of player this season compared to last. But it would be criminal if it wasn't better. According to transfer market we spent approximately 13.5 million in the 7 transfer windows from summer 2019 to summer 2022. This window we've spent 14.5 million excluding those with undisclosed fees. I think though as a minimum you hope to see players improve and become better players under the manager. And so far I can think of very few players who have played their best football under Alex Neil here. We shouldn't linger over this negativity too much and maybe just agree to disagree. They've had 2 weeks on the training pitch and have a big game on Saturday - a win there could be the difference between a bad start and a decent start. I think what adds to the frustration too is that we finished last season on a bad note with a run of 6 or 7 games without a win too. So in some ways it just feels like a continuation of the same problems. I agree though that realistically you'd hope to think the more familiar the players get with eachother that they should get better and results will come. But then I'd have expected that last season too so who knows. I don't think he should be sacked btw, should still be given time to see what he can do with these new players. I agree, you've got to see improvement, that's the name of the game, but you've got to afford a realistic bedding in period to draw a certain conclusion on the summers changes, big changes. You can't plant bulbs in a brand new planter, go to bed and then open the curtains in the morning and kick off because they havn't sprouted yet. Then go down the nursery to complain that your last attempt didn't work last year and these bulbs I planted yesterday havn't blossomed overnight. They'd look at you with a bemused look at explain you planted them just yesterday I'm hoping that your fantastic explanation of being patient will sink in with a few on here. |
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Post by stokie1947 on Sept 12, 2023 7:41:17 GMT
no matter what folk say on here HE IS GOING NOWHERE SOON
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Post by Pugsley on Sept 12, 2023 7:49:55 GMT
They couldn't have done much more to back a manager this pre season. Making subs after 30 mins and 4 at once is a sign of a manager who is already getting things terribly wrong with the players he has and not sure what to do. Is a great squad there for the right man , he simply isn't it. Makes more excuses than some on here Or it's a sign of a manager that's got a near completely new squad and he's still finding out how best to use it which is fair enough so early in the season, it would be a worry if we were half way through. Right, so he's signed a lorry load of footballers and he doesn't know what to do with them? |
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Post by Pugsley on Sept 12, 2023 7:52:18 GMT
I wonder how many of the current squad or those added in January will be here next season….a partial rebuild again? Too far ahead isn't it really, if we're fending off bids it's been a success hasn't it? By then Dublin is well into his search for good replacements, it won't half help with that if you're not chopping and changing managers every time you have a below average run of results Right, so you're expecting another rebuild next season... High level of BS on this thread (and others) |
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Post by The Toxic Avenger on Sept 12, 2023 7:54:33 GMT
Too far ahead isn't it really, if we're fending off bids it's been a success hasn't it? By then Dublin is well into his search for good replacements, it won't half help with that if you're not chopping and changing managers every time you have a below average run of results Right, so you're expecting another rebuild next season... High level of BS on this thread (and others) If Vidigal, Burger etc have stellar seasons there's a high chance they're going to be off, isn't there? That's how it works now, the successful clubs at this level already have the next cab off the rank good to go. |
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Post by Pugsley on Sept 12, 2023 7:58:02 GMT
Right, so you're expecting another rebuild next season... High level of BS on this thread (and others) If Vidigal, Burger etc have stellar seasons there's a high chance they're going to be off, isn't there? That's how it works now, the successful clubs at this level already have the next cab off the rank good to go. Correct. So this idea of building something for a promotion push next season or the season after is bullshit. Chances are you're going to have to replace your best players year on year, it's a revolving door of ins and outs. Not to mention loans going back to parent clubs. AN has to deliver a promotion push this season. "I'll be happy with a top half finish and a positive goal difference" is garbage and just letting him off the hook. |
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Post by vidigal7 on Sept 12, 2023 8:22:00 GMT
If Vidigal, Burger etc have stellar seasons there's a high chance they're going to be off, isn't there? That's how it works now, the successful clubs at this level already have the next cab off the rank good to go. Correct. So this idea of building something for a promotion push next season or the season after is bullshit. Chances are you're going to have to replace your best players year on year, it's a revolving door of ins and outs. Not to mention loans going back to parent clubs. AN has to deliver a promotion push this season. "I'll be happy with a top half finish and a positive goal difference" is garbage and just letting him off the hook. 18 new players, any manager coming in is going to have the same 18 new players that need to adjust and acclimatise. We've got a good average squad age now, a young squad. What did you want us to do buy a load of time served championship players with age not on their side and go for promotion, what if it fails? Why can't you just enjoy where we're at as a club and new direction, we'll lose some, win some and draw some, as long as there is progress what's the rush. It's quite funny, with the patience on offer you're not mentally equipped to be part of the also rans and the wrong side of coupon bankers on a weekly basis. One thing is highly likely the chances are if we did get promoted we'd be favourites to go down |
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Post by fishlovesoatcakes on Sept 12, 2023 8:48:22 GMT
If Vidigal, Burger etc have stellar seasons there's a high chance they're going to be off, isn't there? That's how it works now, the successful clubs at this level already have the next cab off the rank good to go. Correct. So this idea of building something for a promotion push next season or the season after is bullshit. Chances are you're going to have to replace your best players year on year, it's a revolving door of ins and outs. Not to mention loans going back to parent clubs. AN has to deliver a promotion push this season. "I'll be happy with a top half finish and a positive goal difference" is garbage and just letting him off the hook. It's hardly letting him of the hook mate. It's actually allowing him some time to get it right. It looks as though he's signed some great prospects, who will do well here. I'm not sure if you've ever managed people but it takes months to know who your best staff are, their strengths and weaknesses, and how they can work together effectively as a team. That's pretty standard in management to be honest. Anyone who is expecting immediate results is going to be very disappointed. As for sacking a manager, who has just bought a completely new team... it's quite possibly the most ridiculous thing we could do right now. Some on here need to get a grip quickly and enjoy the ride. We've got some great times coming. |
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Alex Neil
Sept 12, 2023 9:03:17 GMT
via mobile
Post by boskampsflaps on Sept 12, 2023 9:03:17 GMT
Or it's a sign of a manager that's got a near completely new squad and he's still finding out how best to use it which is fair enough so early in the season, it would be a worry if we were half way through. Right, so he's signed a lorry load of footballers and he doesn't know what to do with them? I'm sure you're switched on enough to know that some combinations will be better than others, some of them will create better partnerships etc etc. |
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Post by owdestokie2 on Sept 12, 2023 9:12:29 GMT
I wonder how many of the current squad or those added in January will be here next season….a partial rebuild again? Too far ahead isn't it really, if we're fending off bids it's been a success hasn't it? By then Dublin is well into his search for good replacements, it won't half help with that if you're not chopping and changing managers every time you have a below average run of results 1 year contracts and loan players possibly leaving. |
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Post by Gawa on Sept 12, 2023 9:16:53 GMT
I don't think anyone was expecting miracles, they just weren't expecting regression. He did manage to secure 5 PL loans as well as Celina which is over half of a Starting XI in itself. But our ppg after the January signings was actually worse than before. Last season we started with 2 wins, 1 draw, 3 losses in the league before Alex arrived. We're very close to potentially doing even worse this year. And I do agree that there is certainly a better quality of player this season compared to last. But it would be criminal if it wasn't better. According to transfer market we spent approximately 13.5 million in the 7 transfer windows from summer 2019 to summer 2022. This window we've spent 14.5 million excluding those with undisclosed fees. I think though as a minimum you hope to see players improve and become better players under the manager. And so far I can think of very few players who have played their best football under Alex Neil here. We shouldn't linger over this negativity too much and maybe just agree to disagree. They've had 2 weeks on the training pitch and have a big game on Saturday - a win there could be the difference between a bad start and a decent start. I think what adds to the frustration too is that we finished last season on a bad note with a run of 6 or 7 games without a win too. So in some ways it just feels like a continuation of the same problems. I agree though that realistically you'd hope to think the more familiar the players get with eachother that they should get better and results will come. But then I'd have expected that last season too so who knows. I don't think he should be sacked btw, should still be given time to see what he can do with these new players. I agree, you've got to see improvement, that's the name of the game, but you've got to afford a realistic bedding in period to draw a certain conclusion on the summers changes, big changes. You can't plant bulbs in a brand new planter, go to bed and then open the curtains in the morning and kick off because they havn't sprouted yet. Then go down the nursery to complain that your last attempt didn't work last year and these bulbs I planted yesterday havn't blossomed overnight. They'd look at you with a bemused look at explain you planted them just yesterday But that's the thing. A realistic bedding in period is 6 months, not 2 years. I don't think Middlesbrough, Sunderland, West Brom, Huddersfield or any other side made a change of manager last year expected to see no progress for 2 years. You don't hire a brand new gardener to clean up the mess of the last gardener by giving him the amount of money the last gardener had for the 4 years previous and then decide that the new gardener has no standards to uphold for 2 years. There's a massive difference between midtable mediocrity and being the side 4th from bottom since you took control. And you can't preach about waiting for bulbs to sprout while in the same conversation credited the manager that needs 2 years for his bulbs to sprout with promotions on bulbs which sprouted in 6 months. I don't think any other teams fans in the division would say relegation form is fine after spending the most in the division because the manager needs 2 years for his changes to bed in. Why didn't the bulbs sprout at Preston in 2 years? They were 11th when he took over and 16th when he left. Why did the Norwich bulbs go from championship playoffs to championship midtable after 2 years to sprout? |
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Alex Neil
Sept 12, 2023 9:25:07 GMT
via mobile
Post by vidigal7 on Sept 12, 2023 9:25:07 GMT
Too far ahead isn't it really, if we're fending off bids it's been a success hasn't it? By then Dublin is well into his search for good replacements, it won't half help with that if you're not chopping and changing managers every time you have a below average run of results 1 year contracts and loan players possibly leaving. Players leaving is standard procedure at any club though isn't it. At least now we have what on the face of it looks like an insurance policy in place where we can find other players worthy enough to replace them. We're playing a whole new ball game now in recruitment whereas before it was what looked like a tinpot pin the tail on the donkey type of approach, we actually look organised to react to change. On the plus side these 1 year deals are not all too bad, it's calculated risk. Wesley for instance, if he finds his form with regular football he might decide he likes it here and we get a free player that Aston Villa spent £22 million on, if not we arn't at a loss. Stevens, he looks decent so far I think but if his legs go in the second half of the season we're in a great position to make changes. Loans are loans, Mcnally might turn out to be the player Coventry wanted back, in that case we could get him for another season or there will be the next bright looking player we can loan in, in the meantime if we identify a player during his stay that we can get in on a permanent in the summer, win win. I've got to say I'm on board with the idea that we look organised in recruitment for the first time in a long time |
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Post by nottsover60 on Sept 12, 2023 9:45:33 GMT
The players to gel, a good proportion of the new players to look the part, play some good football, get some good results and show more consistency in the second half of the season as they know each others strengths and weaknesses. Our first Top half finish which takes us nicely into the summer to add the finishing touches for the end product, promotion push next season I wonder how many of the current squad or those added in January will be here next season….a partial rebuild again? Referencing the signings of Junior, Junho and Jokic the recruitment team have all said the same - they have tried this summer to buy players to develop into 'Stoke' players of the future so that they don't have continual rebuilds but just replacements and additions. If you look at adding Tezgel, Lowe, Sidibe and Simkin to those three, that gives you quite a large pool of players who you can expect to regularly be in the first team in the next 2+ years. I doubt if many of our foreign imports (possibly even including Bae if he is as good as he promised on debut) will still be here but hopefully we are now looking at having replacements for some of them already at the club. Of course a club will have to replace some players every season - even if they all wanted to stay you would want new players to prevent the team going stale. Can you imagine your reaction next July if, even if we have had a good season but miss out on promotion, Stoke said they wouldn't be signing anyone because the squad would stay the same? We need to be in a situation where we recycle rather than rebuild. Hopefully like Brighton we will have players who other clubs want to buy, but we have already got a replacement waiting in the wings or on Jared's list. My understanding is that Brighton don't worry about losing a player, coach or manager because they already have a short list of targets for everyone at the club. As I heard someone say the other day, Brighton's recruits are always the most interesting because they are unknowns who in 1 or 2 seasons will be the players the top clubs want. Wouldn't it be nice if that happened at Stoke? Every season you hear someone say Brighton could struggle this season having lost their best players but they just seem to carry on where they left off regardless. |
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Post by idle on Sept 12, 2023 9:47:41 GMT
I know what you're saying but I've read time and again on here, "oh Alex only got Sunderland and Norwich promoted because they had good players allready in place" but on the flip side you're expecting him to work miracles up at Stoke last season with a shit balanced squad allready in place. What if I put it to you that we have what look to be good players in place at Stoke 'this' season? I don't think anyone was expecting miracles, they just weren't expecting regression. He did manage to secure 5 PL loans as well as Celina which is over half of a Starting XI in itself. But our ppg after the January signings was actually worse than before. Last season we started with 2 wins, 1 draw, 3 losses in the league before Alex arrived. We're very close to potentially doing even worse this year. And I do agree that there is certainly a better quality of player this season compared to last. But it would be criminal if it wasn't better. According to transfer market we spent approximately 13.5 million in the 7 transfer windows from summer 2019 to summer 2022. This window we've spent 14.5 million excluding those with undisclosed fees. I think though as a minimum you hope to see players improve and become better players under the manager. And so far I can think of very few players who have played their best football under Alex Neil here. We shouldn't linger over this negativity too much and maybe just agree to disagree. They've had 2 weeks on the training pitch and have a big game on Saturday - a win there could be the difference between a bad start and a decent start. I think what adds to the frustration too is that we finished last season on a bad note with a run of 6 or 7 games without a win too. So in some ways it just feels like a continuation of the same problems. I agree though that realistically you'd hope to think the more familiar the players get with eachother that they should get better and results will come. But then I'd have expected that last season too so who knows. I don't think he should be sacked btw, should still be given time to see what he can do with these new players. WTF are you saying here? Of course we spent $14.5M on new players. We didn't have any at the start of the transfer window! That's like saying rebuilding your house after a fire shouldn't cost more than building a new shed. And none of us are happy with how the football has been, but it's been like that since 2016. This discussion isn't about that. It's about what's smart to do going forward. We have two choices. We either let AN try to build the team, being patient and accepting inconsistant results until at least christmas. The second option is we panic and sack him after 5, 10 or 15 games (according to some of the more critical posters in this thread). Or is it just negativity and blowing off steam? IDK. To me the first option is the only sane one. We won't win anything by getting a new manager in now. In early january should be the earliest, and only if we're deep in the relegation battle. Talk of sacking him if he doesn't give us a promotion push is ridiculous. But he'll be gone before the summer transfer window if we're lower than 10th and found no consistent form in the final 3 months. |
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Post by The Toxic Avenger on Sept 12, 2023 9:47:53 GMT
If Vidigal, Burger etc have stellar seasons there's a high chance they're going to be off, isn't there? That's how it works now, the successful clubs at this level already have the next cab off the rank good to go. Correct. So this idea of building something for a promotion push next season or the season after is bullshit. Chances are you're going to have to replace your best players year on year, it's a revolving door of ins and outs. Not to mention loans going back to parent clubs. AN has to deliver a promotion push this season. "I'll be happy with a top half finish and a positive goal difference" is garbage and just letting him off the hook. I don't see why a top 10 finish playing some good stuff wouldn't be a good season in the context of an entire new squad and five years of bottom half finishes? |
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Post by thornestein on Sept 12, 2023 9:51:03 GMT
I agree, you've got to see improvement, that's the name of the game, but you've got to afford a realistic bedding in period to draw a certain conclusion on the summers changes, big changes. You can't plant bulbs in a brand new planter, go to bed and then open the curtains in the morning and kick off because they havn't sprouted yet. Then go down the nursery to complain that your last attempt didn't work last year and these bulbs I planted yesterday havn't blossomed overnight. They'd look at you with a bemused look at explain you planted them just yesterday I'm hoping that your fantastic explanation of being patient will sink in with a few on here. or some of us saw enough last year to realise Neil isn’t particularly that good 👍 |
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Post by thornestein on Sept 12, 2023 9:52:47 GMT
Right, so you're expecting another rebuild next season... High level of BS on this thread (and others) If Vidigal, Burger etc have stellar seasons there's a high chance they're going to be off, isn't there? That's how it works now, the successful clubs at this level already have the next cab off the rank good to go. nothing wrong with that , it’s a good model to follow |
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Alex Neil
Sept 12, 2023 10:19:53 GMT
via mobile
Post by Absolution on Sept 12, 2023 10:19:53 GMT
I'm thinking the club's MO this season and maybe next is to try to build up the finances, with promotion being a happy bonus if it's achieved.
We need a couple out of Bae, Burger, Vidigal, Mmaee, Tchamadeu and maybe one or two others to quickly catch the eye and leave us for mega-bucks. The money can then be used to improve the team/squad year on year.
Not much fun potentially if your aim as a supporter is nothing less than promotion, but I'll take it for a top 8 finish this season and away ends that leave the Bet365 a lot more silent than has been the case for the past 6 years.
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Alex Neil
Sept 12, 2023 10:46:39 GMT
via mobile
Post by Staffsoatcake on Sept 12, 2023 10:46:39 GMT
AN is here for the long haul, if we don't go up this season, with the squad we have now, it will only need tweaking, so little money will need to be spent.
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Post by drippinggoatsnob on Sept 12, 2023 10:52:27 GMT
I remain supportive of Stoke but completely unconvinced by him.
There is still no style of play. I still don't know what we are.
No leadership on the pitch and a soft underbelly when things go against us.
CB, GK cover and Targetman positions were never addressed despite the huge overhaul. That is the spine of the team which for me is vital
Alas, the same could be said for Rowett, Jones and O'Neil though
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Post by shrewspotter on Sept 12, 2023 11:13:51 GMT
I think the time for excuses now needs to stop and we need to see results on the pitch
Other than the bright but too brief period in March we have been poor
Neil has been backed, he has bought in a fresh team of 18 new players, a new backroom team and been given the freedom to do what he pleases
He has been in charge for over 1 year and although a lot of last season wasn't down to him it was still pretty disappointing overall considering the team, wage bill etc
I think he will be given time but I fully expect us to be in the mix at Christmas and start winning some of these games like Norwich away that we have always struggled in, if we are still mid to lower league in January it will be a disaster
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Post by baconburger on Sept 12, 2023 14:24:55 GMT
Too far ahead isn't it really, if we're fending off bids it's been a success hasn't it? By then Dublin is well into his search for good replacements, it won't half help with that if you're not chopping and changing managers every time you have a below average run of results Right, so you're expecting another rebuild next season... High level of BS on this thread (and others) Yup the job is only partially done even if the players bought in achieve a better than average success rate. Still a few holes in the squad and plenty of short term sticking plasters. |
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Post by baconburger on Sept 12, 2023 14:34:37 GMT
AN is here for the long haul, if we don't go up this season, with the squad we have now, it will only need tweaking, so little money will need to be spent. Tweaking? 2XGK, 2XLB, RB, 2XCB, CF, 2XWide Forwards. Absolute minimum of 9 to stand still. |
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Alex Neil
Sept 12, 2023 14:43:25 GMT
via mobile
Post by boskampsflaps on Sept 12, 2023 14:43:25 GMT
AN is here for the long haul, if we don't go up this season, with the squad we have now, it will only need tweaking, so little money will need to be spent. Tweaking? 2XGK, 2XLB, RB, 2XCB, CF, 2XWide Forwards. Absolute minimum of 9 to stand still. RB shouldn't need touching, Jr and Gooch have that covered. |
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Post by Foster on Sept 12, 2023 14:43:40 GMT
I agree, you've got to see improvement, that's the name of the game, but you've got to afford a realistic bedding in period to draw a certain conclusion on the summers changes, big changes. You can't plant bulbs in a brand new planter, go to bed and then open the curtains in the morning and kick off because they havn't sprouted yet. Then go down the nursery to complain that your last attempt didn't work last year and these bulbs I planted yesterday havn't blossomed overnight. They'd look at you with a bemused look at explain you planted them just yesterday But that's the thing. A realistic bedding in period is 6 months, not 2 years. I don't think Middlesbrough, Sunderland, West Brom, Huddersfield or any other side made a change of manager last year expected to see no progress for 2 years. You don't hire a brand new gardener to clean up the mess of the last gardener by giving him the amount of money the last gardener had for the 4 years previous and then decide that the new gardener has no standards to uphold for 2 years. There's a massive difference between midtable mediocrity and being the side 4th from bottom since you took control. And you can't preach about waiting for bulbs to sprout while in the same conversation credited the manager that needs 2 years for his bulbs to sprout with promotions on bulbs which sprouted in 6 months. I don't think any other teams fans in the division would say relegation form is fine after spending the most in the division because the manager needs 2 years for his changes to bed in. Why didn't the bulbs sprout at Preston in 2 years? They were 11th when he took over and 16th when he left. Why did the Norwich bulbs go from championship playoffs to championship midtable after 2 years to sprout? Sorry mate, did you really use hiring a 'gardener' as an analogy? Can't say that I, or many on here have private gardeners. You snob 😀 Anyway, I'm off to mow the lawn, myself. |
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Alex Neil
Sept 12, 2023 14:53:59 GMT
via mobile
Post by jesusmcmuffin on Sept 12, 2023 14:53:59 GMT
Correct. So this idea of building something for a promotion push next season or the season after is bullshit. Chances are you're going to have to replace your best players year on year, it's a revolving door of ins and outs. Not to mention loans going back to parent clubs. AN has to deliver a promotion push this season. "I'll be happy with a top half finish and a positive goal difference" is garbage and just letting him off the hook. I don't see why a top 10 finish playing some good stuff wouldn't be a good season in the context of an entire new squad and five years of bottom half finishes? Would be success or failure for me but until it happens |
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Alex Neil
Sept 12, 2023 15:06:24 GMT
via mobile
Post by vidigal7 on Sept 12, 2023 15:06:24 GMT
I know what you're saying but I've read time and again on here, "oh Alex only got Sunderland and Norwich promoted because they had good players allready in place" but on the flip side you're expecting him to work miracles up at Stoke last season with a shit balanced squad allready in place. What if I put it to you that we have what look to be good players in place at Stoke 'this' season? I don't think anyone was expecting miracles, they just weren't expecting regression. He did manage to secure 5 PL loans as well as Celina which is over half of a Starting XI in itself. But our ppg after the January signings was actually worse than before. Last season we started with 2 wins, 1 draw, 3 losses in the league before Alex arrived. We're very close to potentially doing even worse this year. And I do agree that there is certainly a better quality of player this season compared to last. But it would be criminal if it wasn't better. According to transfer market we spent approximately 13.5 million in the 7 transfer windows from summer 2019 to summer 2022. This window we've spent 14.5 million excluding those with undisclosed fees. I think though as a minimum you hope to see players improve and become better players under the manager. And so far I can think of very few players who have played their best football under Alex Neil here. We shouldn't linger over this negativity too much and maybe just agree to disagree. They've had 2 weeks on the training pitch and have a big game on Saturday - a win there could be the difference between a bad start and a decent start. I think what adds to the frustration too is that we finished last season on a bad note with a run of 6 or 7 games without a win too. So in some ways it just feels like a continuation of the same problems. I agree though that realistically you'd hope to think the more familiar the players get with eachother that they should get better and results will come. But then I'd have expected that last season too so who knows. I don't think he should be sacked btw, should still be given time to see what he can do with these new players. The bulbs are not going to sprout overnight it's as simple as that. The last batch was a bad batch,the new gardener didn't supply them,it's as simple as that. Judge your gardener by the garden he has designed it's not his fault the previous gardnerer planted the plants in the wrong places |
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Post by pavel on Sept 12, 2023 15:13:21 GMT
Correct. So this idea of building something for a promotion push next season or the season after is bullshit. Chances are you're going to have to replace your best players year on year, it's a revolving door of ins and outs. Not to mention loans going back to parent clubs. AN has to deliver a promotion push this season. "I'll be happy with a top half finish and a positive goal difference" is garbage and just letting him off the hook. I don't see why a top 10 finish playing some good stuff wouldn't be a good season in the context of an entire new squad and five years of bottom half finishes? A top 10 finish playing some good stuff would be fairly decent but it shouldn't be what we are aiming for, we've seen what teams that have a decent manager and a few quality players can do in this division so we should be aiming for the plays offs at least. It may be an ambitious target given the turnover of players but we must be bold and go for it this year. If we finished tenth this year I would find it underwhelming but progress, 8th and above very decent, play offs great, automatic promotion fantastic and I would say nigh impossible. I've a feeling though that it will be non of those above and it may be a upper bottom half finish, progress of a sort but certainly not good enough for Neil to keep his job. I hope he and the team will surprise me and prove me wrong because I think we have the players and tools to put a strong challenge in this season but what I've seen the start of this season is the same old flaws in both management and team. Poor safety first set ups, tactical mistakes by Neil against teams that have a plan, a muddled midfield that gets overwhelmed, a defence that still gets caught napping, inconsistency and a failure to put any sort of run together. Saying all that it is early days but I think the next 5 or 6 games may define our season, do reasonably well in them and we may push on and it is crucial we do as we will be nearly a quarter of the way through the season by then. |
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Post by Gawa on Sept 12, 2023 15:16:24 GMT
I don't think anyone was expecting miracles, they just weren't expecting regression. He did manage to secure 5 PL loans as well as Celina which is over half of a Starting XI in itself. But our ppg after the January signings was actually worse than before. Last season we started with 2 wins, 1 draw, 3 losses in the league before Alex arrived. We're very close to potentially doing even worse this year. And I do agree that there is certainly a better quality of player this season compared to last. But it would be criminal if it wasn't better. According to transfer market we spent approximately 13.5 million in the 7 transfer windows from summer 2019 to summer 2022. This window we've spent 14.5 million excluding those with undisclosed fees. I think though as a minimum you hope to see players improve and become better players under the manager. And so far I can think of very few players who have played their best football under Alex Neil here. We shouldn't linger over this negativity too much and maybe just agree to disagree. They've had 2 weeks on the training pitch and have a big game on Saturday - a win there could be the difference between a bad start and a decent start. I think what adds to the frustration too is that we finished last season on a bad note with a run of 6 or 7 games without a win too. So in some ways it just feels like a continuation of the same problems. I agree though that realistically you'd hope to think the more familiar the players get with eachother that they should get better and results will come. But then I'd have expected that last season too so who knows. I don't think he should be sacked btw, should still be given time to see what he can do with these new players. The bulbs are not going to sprout overnight it's as simple as that. The last batch was a bad batch,the new gardener didn't supply them,it's as simple as that. Judge your gardener by the garden he has designed it's not his fault the previous gardnerer planted the plants in the wrong places Unless your gardener can sort me out with some cali imports in fat bags then I'm not too interested. |
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Post by baconburger on Sept 12, 2023 15:17:30 GMT
Tweaking? 2XGK, 2XLB, RB, 2XCB, CF, 2XWide Forwards. Absolute minimum of 9 to stand still. RB shouldn't need touching, Jr and Gooch have that covered. Yes quite possibly Jr has never played a game above L2 but if he can step up fair point. There will still be a lot of business to do just replacing loans out of contracts and those that won't make the grade. I don't see it being that much shy of what we've done this Summer. There are a lot of short term stop gaps in very costly positions. |
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