I really wanted to like Val but these last few weeks especially have been quite dire. The refusal to change the system despite it obviously not working and then only doing so when it’s too late was becoming more and more infuriating. The exclusion of Andrews and claiming he was “burnt out” and then changing the reasoning- was so obvious that there was more than meets the eye with that situation. I do like TDB as he works hard and the drop of the shoulder and turn to get away from the opposition is clever but playing him at right back for so long (when it was so clear he wasn’t comfortable playing there) was such a stupid decision. I am pleased that the club have trusted Cleverley to take the reins for a bit. Although his inexperience will shine through, at the very least he knows the majority of this group and will try and inject some stability. Leeds at home on Good Friday is a huge baptism of fire. Pubs after the game will be a laugh
Yep fair point. And also to what extent was Ismael acting like a puppet with the media in the foolish thought that it would buy him more time with his dreadful bosses, and these new players were phantoms. Of course if he was being a puppet the likes of the vile Duxbury can now use it against him. The problem is, it's hard to believe anything that comes out of the club whether it be Edwards/Ismael or Duxbury/Sporting Director. All we know is the combined performance is dreadful and incompetent.
I’m not going to name players as that would breaking my word - but they weren’t, to the best of my knowledge, associated with a particular agent. There a couple of PL youngsters in for instance.
Even if they weren't guaranteed starters, they'd have still been better than nothing as we are looking very leggy now...
When we see his team-sheet for the next match. No coach ever has 100% backing for his choices, they cannot please everyone.
I've only skim read Andrew French's article but I thought the suggestion was more the offered players could have helped in terms of depth, rotation and resting players in our small squad which doesnt necessarily equate to the quality of those players. Like we say without knowing which players were offered we will never know either way - and I dont expect AF to name players or burn sources, we will just have to speculate. It could well be that VI was stubborn but we are also talking about a 'recruitment team' that when Edwards asked them for a pacey striker, preferably home grown, then turned up with Bayo. I missed that AF replied to my previous post. I would still be inclined to take the managers judgement on players over that of those doing the recruitment based in their hit rate over the last few years.
Exactly and its further compounded by the fact that there appears to be no joined up thinking or conceivable mid/long term plan to anything we do. Every season there seems to be some new excuse/consideration in the way we recruit/retain players that never seems to have been an issue before or gets mentioned again such as the rule off 11 or whatever it was.
I might be wrong but wasn't it Edwards who actually wanted Bayo? That might of been what you meant and I just read your post wrong. Either way, he's not good enough for this level but if we did go down next season and kept hold of him, he could do pretty well. Of course, we all know Clev Ball is going to rip up the Championship next season so no worries in that department.
Strange appointments to assist Cleverley. An U18 coach who was with Watford Girls and Watford Women previously and the current Watford Women Head-coach as Cleverley's assistants. And Jimmy Gilligan as 'Technical Consultant'.
Very odd …. Pozzo is backing TC and has clearly said he can have anyone he wants in his backroom team to help him succeed, as long as they are already employed by the club - what a joke this club of ours is
Screams a handful of things. 1) We’ve got absolutely no money 2) Cleverley won’t be in charge long enough to warrant giving him proper staff 3) Gino thinks we can sleepwalk to safety
I think you're right and it's a massive gamble. Other than Birmingham away up next and Sunderland at home in GW45 I don't see any winnable games for the rest of the season. At the current PPG we need 49 points (1.065 PPG) to stay up and if some of those teams in the bottom three pick up unexpected wins in the last rounds we could possibly need 51-52 points. I'm not at all confident that we'll reach that.
In support of this argument, here's the chart I posted on the 23/24 season thread, comparing our current form, home and away, with that of our remaining opponents. I fear we will be going in to our last two games (our easiest on this analysis) needing at least 3 points to stay up.
There is nothing long term about this. I'd be surprised if they finish the season in charge unless the guys get results which seems unlikely. Anyone half decent or more experienced probaby turned us down.
What I do worry for Clevs is what happened to Oli S. from Manure. He started really well (battered Cardiff 5-0 in his first game) and then continued to get good results. We all know how that went down hill, and I expect that crushed most of his managerial chances since. I would hate Cleverly to go through a similar circumstance, we do surprisingly well under him and stay up by a canter and he's kept on into the new season, but treated like something on the bottom of Gino's shoe like most coaches in the backing department, morale drops and all his credit goes flat. Although to be fair, I think Tom is wise enough to know how this circus operates at the top level, and could see straight through any BS.
I'm sure he sees it that he's being given an unmissable opportunity to manage a Championship team well ahead of when he'd have otherwise had the chance. However it ends, whether it's 6pm on Saturday, in the summer or some other time in the future, he really has very little to lose from the whole situation. And whatever the thought behind it is, I'd put my house on the fact he hasn't been brought in to tell truth to power.
I'm hearing the guys who do the shirt printing and the tea lady turned him down so they had to go to plan B.
