Randy Lerner

[SheffieldVillain]

I know some of you felt my criticism of Garde was OTT, but the fact is he was the wrong man at the wrong time.  We need a manager who knows the league and can deal with problem players. Garde might have been able to punish the likes of Grealish, but the seniors just ignored him and he clearly couldn't stand up to them.

Managers need to be able to dominate players, not the other way round.

No, your personal insults, constant references to nationality and gratuitous bile towards Garde were OTT, not your criticism.

As for the board appointments, I'm sceptical about Bernstein in particular.  He's talking about proper planning and looking at where we've gone wrong.  We don't need that.  We all know where the club has gone wrong. 

We don't need proper planning? I'm interested - what kind of planning do we need? Ad-hoc, none?

[LTA]

I know some of you felt my criticism of Garde was OTT, but the fact is he was the wrong man at the wrong time.  We need a manager who knows the league and can deal with problem players.

Not picking an argument here but I am genuinely curious, why is this a criteria?

Pep Gardiola for example certainly does not know this league but I think most most people regard his appointment as a good bit of business.

Surely we just want a good manager no? Regardless of where he comes from.

They Championship is arguably the toughest league and you generally find managers who have that depth of experience know how to deliver results.  We've just got rid of a manager who did not know the premier  league and also had no experience of a relegation battle.  End result?  We have a nightmare.

We need experience.  We don't need to risk yet another experience.

[LTA]

I know some of you felt my criticism of Garde was OTT, but the fact is he was the wrong man at the wrong time.  We need a manager who knows the league and can deal with problem players. Garde might have been able to punish the likes of Grealish, but the seniors just ignored him and he clearly couldn't stand up to them.

Managers need to be able to dominate players, not the other way round.

No, your personal insults, constant references to nationality and gratuitous bile towards Garde were OTT, not your criticism.

As for the board appointments, I'm sceptical about Bernstein in particular.  He's talking about proper planning and looking at where we've gone wrong.  We don't need that.  We all know where the club has gone wrong. 

We don't need proper planning? I'm interested - what kind of planning do we need? Ad-hoc, none?

So a new manager comes in.  He will report to Bernstein.  Who has to report to Hollis.  Who has to report to Lerner.  Sounds a bit of a dogs breakfast to me.

Too many chiefs.  Not enough Indians.

[SheffieldVillain]

I know some of you felt my criticism of Garde was OTT, but the fact is he was the wrong man at the wrong time.  We need a manager who knows the league and can deal with problem players. Garde might have been able to punish the likes of Grealish, but the seniors just ignored him and he clearly couldn't stand up to them.

Managers need to be able to dominate players, not the other way round.

No, your personal insults, constant references to nationality and gratuitous bile towards Garde were OTT, not your criticism.

As for the board appointments, I'm sceptical about Bernstein in particular.  He's talking about proper planning and looking at where we've gone wrong.  We don't need that.  We all know where the club has gone wrong. 

We don't need proper planning? I'm interested - what kind of planning do we need? Ad-hoc, none?

So a new manager comes in.  He will report to Bernstein.  Who has to report to Hollis.  Who has to report to Lerner.  Sounds a bit of a dogs breakfast to me.

Too many chiefs.  Not enough Indians.

That's nice, but I'll repeat my actual question. We don't need proper planning? What kind of planning do we need - since you said we don't need proper planning?

[SheffieldVillain]

I know some of you felt my criticism of Garde was OTT, but the fact is he was the wrong man at the wrong time.  We need a manager who knows the league and can deal with problem players. Garde might have been able to punish the likes of Grealish, but the seniors just ignored him and he clearly couldn't stand up to them.

Managers need to be able to dominate players, not the other way round.

No, your personal insults, constant references to nationality and gratuitous bile towards Garde were OTT, not your criticism.

As for the board appointments, I'm sceptical about Bernstein in particular.  He's talking about proper planning and looking at where we've gone wrong.  We don't need that.  We all know where the club has gone wrong. 

We don't need proper planning? I'm interested - what kind of planning do we need? Ad-hoc, none?

So a new manager comes in.  He will report to Bernstein.  Who has to report to Hollis.  Who has to report to Lerner.  Sounds a bit of a dogs breakfast to me.

Too many chiefs.  Not enough Indians.

Yes, it was much better when it was just Lambert reporting into Lerner.

Manager - Executive/DoF/Sporting Director - Chairman - Owner. So like 99% of clubs then.

Also, I'm curious as to how there are 'not enough Indians' - do you want an increased coaching team? A bigger squad? How does that work exactly? Or shall we agree that you're just using random phrases that don't mean anything?

[Clampy]

I know some of you felt my criticism of Garde was OTT, but the fact is he was the wrong man at the wrong time.  We need a manager who knows the league and can deal with problem players. Garde might have been able to punish the likes of Grealish, but the seniors just ignored him and he clearly couldn't stand up to them.

Managers need to be able to dominate players, not the other way round.

No, your personal insults, constant references to nationality and gratuitous bile towards Garde were OTT, not your criticism.

As for the board appointments, I'm sceptical about Bernstein in particular.  He's talking about proper planning and looking at where we've gone wrong.  We don't need that.  We all know where the club has gone wrong. 

We don't need proper planning? I'm interested - what kind of planning do we need? Ad-hoc, none?

So a new manager comes in.  He will report to Bernstein.  Who has to report to Hollis.  Who has to report to Lerner.  Sounds a bit of a dogs breakfast to me.

Too many chiefs.  Not enough Indians.

That's nice, but I'll repeat my actual question. We don't need proper planning? What kind of planning do we need - since you said we don't need proper planning?

It's just yet another LTA whinge.

[AV89]

I know some of you felt my criticism of Garde was OTT, but the fact is he was the wrong man at the wrong time.  We need a manager who knows the league and can deal with problem players. Garde might have been able to punish the likes of Grealish, but the seniors just ignored him and he clearly couldn't stand up to them.

Managers need to be able to dominate players, not the other way round.

No, your personal insults, constant references to nationality and gratuitous bile towards Garde were OTT, not your criticism.

As for the board appointments, I'm sceptical about Bernstein in particular.  He's talking about proper planning and looking at where we've gone wrong.  We don't need that.  We all know where the club has gone wrong. 

We don't need proper planning? I'm interested - what kind of planning do we need? Ad-hoc, none?

So a new manager comes in.  He will report to Bernstein.  Who has to report to Hollis.  Who has to report to Lerner.  Sounds a bit of a dogs breakfast to me.

Too many chiefs.  Not enough Indians.

What are you rambling on about?

[Villatillidie1982]

I don't doubt Randy Lerner is a good man but he clearly knows little about banking, American football and football as the results of MBNA, Cleveland Browns and Aston Villa have shown.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/35931220

[LTA]

I know some of you felt my criticism of Garde was OTT, but the fact is he was the wrong man at the wrong time.  We need a manager who knows the league and can deal with problem players. Garde might have been able to punish the likes of Grealish, but the seniors just ignored him and he clearly couldn't stand up to them.

Managers need to be able to dominate players, not the other way round.

No, your personal insults, constant references to nationality and gratuitous bile towards Garde were OTT, not your criticism.

As for the board appointments, I'm sceptical about Bernstein in particular.  He's talking about proper planning and looking at where we've gone wrong.  We don't need that.  We all know where the club has gone wrong. 

We don't need proper planning? I'm interested - what kind of planning do we need? Ad-hoc, none?

So a new manager comes in.  He will report to Bernstein.  Who has to report to Hollis.  Who has to report to Lerner.  Sounds a bit of a dogs breakfast to me.

Too many chiefs.  Not enough Indians.

That's nice, but I'll repeat my actual question. We don't need proper planning? What kind of planning do we need - since you said we don't need proper planning?

It's just yet another LTA whinge.

It's a genuine question.  Whether people like it or not, Lerner still has the final say as it's his club and has holds the purse strings.  It's not as if Hollis can help himself to the silver while his backs turned.

Yes we do need planning, but that has to include the manager.  We tried to shoehorn Garde into the job because his preferred style of committees was one he admitted himself he was comfortable in.  Surely you start making plans AFTER the manager is appointed?  Not building some grand plan and hoping the new manager will happily accept it.

This business of having two separate boards doesn't sit well with me at all.

[pauliewalnuts]

Surely you start making plans AFTER the manager is appointed? 

That's the exact opposite of what we should be doing.

One of our failings for years has been throwing it all away and starting again when we change manager. We have to be able to survive managerial change, and that means planning and organisation which stays in place regardless of the manager.

Looking over the last few posts, I am struggling to see what exactly it is that you don't like?

Other than "everything", of course.

[SheffieldVillain]

I know some of you felt my criticism of Garde was OTT, but the fact is he was the wrong man at the wrong time.  We need a manager who knows the league and can deal with problem players. Garde might have been able to punish the likes of Grealish, but the seniors just ignored him and he clearly couldn't stand up to them.

Managers need to be able to dominate players, not the other way round.

No, your personal insults, constant references to nationality and gratuitous bile towards Garde were OTT, not your criticism.

As for the board appointments, I'm sceptical about Bernstein in particular.  He's talking about proper planning and looking at where we've gone wrong.  We don't need that.  We all know where the club has gone wrong. 

We don't need proper planning? I'm interested - what kind of planning do we need? Ad-hoc, none?

So a new manager comes in.  He will report to Bernstein.  Who has to report to Hollis.  Who has to report to Lerner.  Sounds a bit of a dogs breakfast to me.

Too many chiefs.  Not enough Indians.

That's nice, but I'll repeat my actual question. We don't need proper planning? What kind of planning do we need - since you said we don't need proper planning?

It's just yet another LTA whinge.

It's a genuine question.  Whether people like it or not, Lerner still has the final say as it's his club and has holds the purse strings.  It's not as if Hollis can help himself to the silver while his backs turned.

Yes we do need planning, but that has to include the manager.  We tried to shoehorn Garde into the job because his preferred style of committees was one he admitted himself he was comfortable in.  Surely you start making plans AFTER the manager is appointed?  Not building some grand plan and hoping the new manager will happily accept it.

This business of having two separate boards doesn't sit well with me at all.

No, that's exactly what you do. You build the structure that will support the manager and then you pick the right manager to fit that strategy. Swansea have been doing for years, as have Southampton. That way when the manager leaves in the way O'Neill did, you're not completely screwed.

It's not two separate boards though, is it? Since everyone on the football board bar Sir Brian is on the main board.

So we're agreed that we do need planning and your comment of 'He's talking about proper planning and looking at where we've gone wrong. We don't need that.' is rubbish?

[Irish villain]

You can't blame fans for being sceptical. Look at all the false dawns over the past five seasons?

After 28 years in the top flight we sit bottom, cut adrift and on course to be one of the worst sides since 1992. It will take an awful, awful, lot more to restore faith than a few good board appointments.

Besides, for years people complained here and elsewhere that there wasn't enough football expertise on the board. Why didn't Lerner act when there was time to salvage the situation? Why wait until we hit the ice-berg and have started to be dragged to the ocean floor?

These changes should have been made three or four years ago when we got our first warning signs. I won't be patting him on the back just yet for doing the bleeding obvious.

[tomd2103]

I know some of you felt my criticism of Garde was OTT, but the fact is he was the wrong man at the wrong time.  We need a manager who knows the league and can deal with problem players. Garde might have been able to punish the likes of Grealish, but the seniors just ignored him and he clearly couldn't stand up to them.

Managers need to be able to dominate players, not the other way round.

No, your personal insults, constant references to nationality and gratuitous bile towards Garde were OTT, not your criticism.

As for the board appointments, I'm sceptical about Bernstein in particular.  He's talking about proper planning and looking at where we've gone wrong.  We don't need that.  We all know where the club has gone wrong. 

We don't need proper planning? I'm interested - what kind of planning do we need? Ad-hoc, none?

So a new manager comes in.  He will report to Bernstein.  Who has to report to Hollis.  Who has to report to Lerner.  Sounds a bit of a dogs breakfast to me.

Too many chiefs.  Not enough Indians.

Manager - Executive/DoF/Sporting Director - Chairman - Owner.

I think we will see a Sporting Director / DoF appointed over the next couple of weeks. 

[Bestmate]

I cant have it that the club formulates a structure and then finds the manager to fit that structure. The club has to be far more more flexible than that. For too long we have had substandard managers willing to take the job as yes men to the owner. In order to have the proper man in charge, he must be allowed to operate in his way using his methodology and with the necessary funds to back him.

Here lies the crux. You can have any structure you like but the owner has to now realise his tightarse policy of the last five years has only decimated the value of his investment even further. Hollis and co have to ram this point home to him. For a successful billionaire i cannot believe the total lack of intelligence he has shown over the last ten years.

[Dave]

I cant have it that the club formulates a structure and then finds the manager to fit that structure. The club has to be far more more flexible than that. For too long we have had substandard managers willing to take the job as yes men to the owner. In order to have the proper man in charge, he must be allowed to operate in his way using his methodology and with the necessary funds to back him.

We should reject the way that currently successful sides such as Leicester, Watford, West Ham, Spurs, Southampton operate (because that's too inflexible) and instead go with the same "if the one bloke with all the power fails then we rip everything up and start again from scratch" way that has given us the results of the last decade?

It's a no from me.