Lambert in or out? Poll reset with majority 'in', 7th May

[villan1975]

yep. my heart says they're shell-shocked after the last game, my head says we are the perfect team for them to play after a set-back. The usual 60 minutes of us fielding no discernable formation should do
If we take a hiding off them like Wolves last season will Lerner have another option open to him?

Terry Connor, now there is a replacement noone has mentioned.

Terry Connor...... Good example of how a dire situation can get worse! They sacked a guy who probably couldn't save them but would have made a better fist of getting them back up and are now a further 2 managers on. I am worried that if we keep losing Lambert will go and then what?  Cool heads needed.

Or is it an example of just picking an absolute dud who was totally out of his depth?

Which is something that Lerner is more than capable of doing. If he is going to act he needs to now either and

get rid or give him some money. Personally I think he deserves atleast a year but also think he is turning out to

be a very poor coach which is a shame as I thought we were getting the new breed of coach schooled on the

continent. Looking at the awful set up tactically he definetly is not.

[Archie]

I was the first fan of Paul Lambert that I knew very well since he was at Norwich, and obviously I have remained very disappointed for his signigns (apart from Benteke and Guzan), his approach to the game, his lack of authority and game plan, and his confused tactics (he should decide once for all if we have to play with 3, 4 or 5 defenders).
But I still think that he must be backed at least until the end of the season.

After the PL Norwich game I realised that we'd be relegated with this midfield, it was beyond me that we were actually so crap in this crucial department.
Lambert has done a lot of mistakes, but neither Jesus Christ could save a team with KEA, Holmes, Delph and Bannan in the midfield, and only KEA has been chosen by PL. 

So, Lambert deserves a second chance, if Randy backs him he could still be the right man for the job.

UTV.   

[Greg N'Ash]

half the problem is he was most people's choice. Most people don't like to admit they're as clueless as Lerner. But all this "who can we get who's better" stuff is just laughable. My memory may be playing tricks on me but it was hardly a trawl through the managerial greats last summer and for a long time it looked like it was going to be a guy who's main qualifaction seem to be he scored a lot goals for ManU!! Lambert's record is/was nothing special - Promotion to the PL and kept them there for a season. Its not really a high threshold of success and TSM did it and won a cup, Phil Brown, Steve Bruce, its a long list.......

[pauliewalnuts]

Agreed, Archie.

Re Holman,  he's a very limited player. Runs around a bit when he can be arsed, occasional decent shot.

He's like a moodier Craig Gardner.

There is not a single currently available permutation of midfielders at the club which is not shit.

That's the biggest problem.

[pauliewalnuts]

half the problem is he was most people's choice. Most people don't like to admit they're as clueless as Lerner. But all this "who can we get who's better" stuff is just laughable. My memory may be playing tricks on me but it was hardly a trawl through the managerial greats last summer and for a long time it looked like it was going to be a guy who's main qualifaction seem to be he scored a lot goals for ManU!! Lambert's record is/was nothing special - Promotion to the PL and kept them there for a season. Its not really a high threshold of success and TSM did it and won a cup, Phil Brown, Steve Bruce, its a long list.......

Go on, then.

Who could we get?

[Drummond]

Greg I've absolutely no idea what point you're making.

[Monty]

Agreed, Archie.

Re Holman,  he's a very limited player. Runs around a bit when he can be arsed, occasional decent shot.

He's like a moodier Craig Gardner.

There is not a single currently available permutation of midfielders at the club which is not shit.

That's the biggest problem.

That's presumably including attacking midfielders? Because Delph and Bannan were good yesterday, and Westwood alright, but N'Zogbia, Holman and Agbonlahor were varying degrees of rubbish.

[Greg N'Ash]

half the problem is he was most people's choice. Most people don't like to admit they're as clueless as Lerner. But all this "who can we get who's better" stuff is just laughable. My memory may be playing tricks on me but it was hardly a trawl through the managerial greats last summer and for a long time it looked like it was going to be a guy who's main qualifaction seem to be he scored a lot goals for ManU!! Lambert's record is/was nothing special - Promotion to the PL and kept them there for a season. Its not really a high threshold of success and TSM did it and won a cup, Phil Brown, Steve Bruce, its a long list.......

Go on, then.

Who could we get?

Anyone who got promoted to the PL and kept them up for a year is just as qualifed as lambert. Even TSM could organise a defence..

[old man villa fan]

Agreed, Archie.

Re Holman,  he's a very limited player. Runs around a bit when he can be arsed, occasional decent shot.

He's like a moodier Craig Gardner.

There is not a single currently available permutation of midfielders at the club which is not shit.

That's the biggest problem.

That's presumably including attacking midfielders? Because Delph and Bannan were good yesterday, and Westwood alright, but N'Zogbia, Holman and Agbonlahor were varying degrees of rubbish.

We talk about bringing in experience but they have to have the desire.  The 3 you have named are probably our three most experienced players but when you see them play, they do not look to have that desire.  Take Gabby at Bradford in the first half when he didn't win a couple of free-kicks/corners, he was laughing at the referee.  If that had been Bellamy, for instance, he would have been right over at the referee and getting up his nose.  Are we a soft touch for referees to give things against us without the fear of a verbal backlash.

[old man villa fan]

half the problem is he was most people's choice. Most people don't like to admit they're as clueless as Lerner. But all this "who can we get who's better" stuff is just laughable. My memory may be playing tricks on me but it was hardly a trawl through the managerial greats last summer and for a long time it looked like it was going to be a guy who's main qualifaction seem to be he scored a lot goals for ManU!! Lambert's record is/was nothing special - Promotion to the PL and kept them there for a season. Its not really a high threshold of success and TSM did it and won a cup, Phil Brown, Steve Bruce, its a long list.......

Go on, then.

Who could we get?

Anyone who got promoted to the PL and kept them up for a year is just as qualifed as lambert. Even TSM could organise a defence..

So you would take TSM over Lambert?

[Goldie.7]

Still out for me.

[Monty]

Agreed, Archie.

Re Holman,  he's a very limited player. Runs around a bit when he can be arsed, occasional decent shot.

He's like a moodier Craig Gardner.

There is not a single currently available permutation of midfielders at the club which is not shit.

That's the biggest problem.

That's presumably including attacking midfielders? Because Delph and Bannan were good yesterday, and Westwood alright, but N'Zogbia, Holman and Agbonlahor were varying degrees of rubbish.

We talk about bringing in experience but they have to have the desire.  The 3 you have named are probably our three most experienced players but when you see them play, they do not look to have that desire.  Take Gabby at Bradford in the first half when he didn't win a couple of free-kicks/corners, he was laughing at the referee.  If that had been Bellamy, for instance, he would have been right over at the referee and getting up his nose.  Are we a soft touch for referees to give things against us without the fear of a verbal backlash.

I agree to an extent, though I disagree on a small point: I don't think intimidating the refs would give us more off a chance in games. However, I do agree that it indicates a kind of woe-is-me, defeatist attitude among our senior (therefore most jaded) players.

It's like Wenger: give a penalty for an Arsenal player picking the ball up and machete-slicing an opponent's head off and he'd moan complain and protest against all the evidence - these days, the most debatable of decisions against his team is met with a shrug and a comment like 'I don't want to talk about referees, they call the game as they see it' etc. Now, the latter is obviously more within the spirit of the game, but the former indicates a fire in the belly, an aggressive bastard willing to be as immoral as he needs to be to win. It's the same with our players - they don't seem to have that fire, Weimann apart.

[Greg N'Ash]

half the problem is he was most people's choice. Most people don't like to admit they're as clueless as Lerner. But all this "who can we get who's better" stuff is just laughable. My memory may be playing tricks on me but it was hardly a trawl through the managerial greats last summer and for a long time it looked like it was going to be a guy who's main qualifaction seem to be he scored a lot goals for ManU!! Lambert's record is/was nothing special - Promotion to the PL and kept them there for a season. Its not really a high threshold of success and TSM did it and won a cup, Phil Brown, Steve Bruce, its a long list.......

Go on, then.

Who could we get?

Anyone who got promoted to the PL and kept them up for a year is just as qualifed as lambert. Even TSM could organise a defence..

So you would take TSM over Lambert?

At the moment with points at stake? probably. He'd make us harder to beat and going for draws is a lot less painful than seeing teams walk through us every week. I don't think TSM  would keep us up but he wouldn't break the goals against record on the way down. But I wasn't suggesting TSM anyway, just pointing out that Lambert's record is hardly top draw and there's loads of managers with the same or better record in the PL. Including TSM.

[ciggiesnbeer]

I have changed my mind. Lambert IN. I was angry as hell yesterday but loyalty goes both ways. I want to stick with him (assuming he can buy players which I think he has the money to do so).

Changing manager yet again will not serve us well, even less so given there are no good alternatives.

[JJ-AV]

The squad isn't good enough. If you're going to sack him you either need to appoint an impact manager (the likes of O'Neill or Redknapp) or someone who you think can get the best out of the players.

There's no obvious candidate. I say stick with him, if we stay up then I think he can still turn it round - he's just made an awful balls up of the Summer window. If we keep losing and he has to go before we get cut adrift then go for K-Mac and hope he can get something out of the academy graduates.