McLeish meets fans - notes from MM...

[5ft811st2 Durham]

Ireland at his best would be ideal to feed the strikers with his passing skills- let's hope eck can get him back to his best.

I read an article by a Manchester City fan and from what he was saying this is the only position that Ireland excels in.  To me it is worth a go though.  Reo Coker (if her returns) protecting the defense, Makoun as a link player, Ireland in the hole and Downing or Albrighton out wide with Gabby and Bent up front.

I can't see Makoun featuring. The new Djemba for me, only a more costly mistake.

[hilts_coolerking]

It's what the manager wanted.

But is it also what the owner and CE wanted?

[charleeco7]

AM's not stupid, why come out and say I have X amount of money to spend and I'll also have all the Young cash to spend. The price for anyone else we wanted would just go through the roof.

[CBAV06]

I hope he has some money to spend, because we need it.

Saying Dann is too expensive worries me. We can't buy a Championship defender now?? The board are now operating a penny-pinching policy especially as AM isn't guaranteed all of the Young money. We're going backwards selling our best players and bringing in cheaper alternatives. Top-six?....No chance!

What makes you think he isn't getting the Young money?

AM stated in the B'ham Mail that there is ''no pot of gold'' for transfers and that he's not sure how much of the Young money will be at his disposal. Seems pretty poor to me that he's entering the transfer market (hopefully) and he's not sure how much he's got to spend - doh...great board policy and backing! What is the point of Paul Faulkner??? He and Lerner left AM on his own at the press conference - shit PR

Probably a better tactical move than saying "I have 49 mil to spend...okay, how much do you want for X??"

[ktvillan]

I don't think Alex McLeish will do well, but I hope he does.  I don't see any contradiction in that personally.

Nor me.

Why should we not be optimistic or pessimistic as to what will happen? It's not as if he's arrived here from a different planet (well, I suppose he has, in a way) and nobody had ever heard of him before.

He's got a managerial record to be seen, and people see that and either feel optimistic or pessimistic about the way it'll go. That doesn't mean they're not hoping for the very best, though.

It's like when we signed Harewood. There were plenty of people getting the hump at people moaning it was a shit signing, as if we weren't supposed to have any opinion of him based on his career to that point.

Agreed Paulie. I'm not choosing to be pessimistic, it's a gut feeling based on McLeish's record and the apparent toning down of the club's ambitions.  I was genuinely excited about the players we were being linked with under GH, because maybe GH had the status to attract them.  That excitement has turned to a feeling of "meh" with the more prosaic names being mentioned recently, but I still hope McLeish and the Board prove my instincts wrong.

And we were right about Harewood all along.

[Mr Diggles]

Wasn't overly enamoured with his appointment, but he is starting to grow on me, and he's said some of the right things so far. The true test will be on the pitch come September though, but I have more confidence in him than I did a week ago.

[london lion]

I'm quite happy to have Mr Woodall be my representative at this summit. I think of him as I would my local MP.

I'd be carefull if i were you,all that boot licking will give you cherry blossom poisoning

[olofmilosevic]

the same mystery man that was adamant that moyes was our new manager! i wouldnt believe a word that prat says!!

I was there if you want to believe me.

oh go on then!

[garyfouroaks]

Cheers for posting. I cant argue with any of that

I remain unhappy. Yet what is done is done. I wish success not failure for him, and therefore Villa.

[King of the Nørth]

 I wonder if A-Mac will come to the same conclusion as I have. The players we have dont fit with the system/s we want to play. Most notably are if Ireland plays it has to be in a 4-3-3 with 2 holding players, of which we dont have any height or 'bite' in midfield and Gabby doesnt play. If Gabby plays in a 4-4-2 Downing cant tackle and Albrighton has shown lack of defensive awareness. Therefore playing 2 holding/defensive midfielders ergo sacrificing a creative midfielder i.e Ireland. Hmmm...thoughts?

[King of the Nørth]

That's a bit lop sided with only one winger though?

Possibly.  I dunno, do you always have to go 2 or none when it comes to wingers?

 Dont even have to have 2 wingers - Ljungberg and Pires? As long as we've got a player who's prepared to play on the left/right side and not think he's just been stuck there to run down the line and deliver crosses. Dont think we really have that player though. Difference between 'foreign' players and British ones, they're more adaptable.

[Monty]

 I wonder if A-Mac will come to the same conclusion as I have. The players we have dont fit with the system/s we want to play. Most notably are if Ireland plays it has to be in a 4-3-3 with 2 holding players, of which we dont have any height or 'bite' in midfield and Gabby doesnt play. If Gabby plays in a 4-4-2 Downing cant tackle and Albrighton has shown lack of defensive awareness. Therefore playing 2 holding/defensive midfielders ergo sacrificing a creative midfielder i.e Ireland. Hmmm...thoughts?

Kind of what I feared. We got very used to overly wing-based, functional and predictable methods of attack under MON - and that was when we had Young, Milner and, for a while, Barry. The top 6 have become better, and that sort of football with players who aren't even as good as the previous will not cut it. The facts are that you cannot play Bent, Gabby, a central attacking midfielder and wingers in the same team and get away with it, we'd be far too open to the counter-attack (not to mention these overlapping full-backs he wants). Therefore I predict what you do there, V-T-M: basically a return to an inferior version of MON-ball. Ah well.

[KevinGage]

I hope he has some money to spend, because we need it.

Saying Dann is too expensive worries me. We can't buy a Championship defender now??

You could take it that way.

Or you could take it to mean he's too expensive at the moment.

The longer the summer drags on, I wouldn't bet against SHA having to get more realistic in their valuation.  If they value him at £12-15 million then good luck to them, but that price will put off most interested sides. Which is fine if they don't actually want to sell. But they do - and they eventually will.

Arsenal and Liverpool are rumoured to also be interested but they can probably attract far better.

Dann to us -or a club like us- towards the latter end of the window might be more realistic.

[russon]

McLeishOUT (aka NottingVilla).  You were banned for being an idiot last time, and I've banned you again.  Please don't bother signing up again.

Dave Cooper - whatever justification you feel you have, please do not abuse people, and do not post to deliberately avoid the word filter, or you'll be joining him.

Point taken, alcohol had been consumed, apologies to anyone I may have offended.

I have got a wank sock called Mabel though, that bit is true.

i feel you've taken a yellow for the team there Dave, good work, we should rename you Ciaran

[Damo70]

If he wants Foster and Dann I'm sure he's had a word with them and their agents and said don't do anything before you speak to me. If it's Arsenal or Liverpool they will go there but if it's someone like Stoke then AM will get the nod about transfer fee and wages and it's down to whether he wants to or can better it. It seems they want 15 million for Dann and 12 million each for Foster and Johnson. If Peter Pan pulls that off it will be better than single handedly bringing down the triads!