We can sign the best players in the world but as Adam rightly points out above, unless we play them in their best position don't expect them to deliver their best.
Whisper it quietly but it may take 2 more seasons. Next season to get the side better in terms of tempo and personnel, and then the 3rd season to rip the league up.
I agree, but we've signed so many that trying out formations and positions until we get the best out of them seems like a good idea. It's not as if they're bedding in to a settled team/squad.The other thing I'd say is that the purchases aren't just down to Bruce, they clearly have a strategy that has Round and Wyness involved too.My personal feeling is that going straight back up would have set us up to fail. Another season and the building of a squad and team ethic surely will help?
Quote from: Rudy Can't Fail on April 26, 2017, 02:45:41 PMWe can sign the best players in the world but as Adam rightly points out above, unless we play them in their best position don't expect them to deliver their best.That's my biggest criticism of Bruce this season, it's just a very vanilla, old school, transfer-window-by numbers approach. That lad from Brentford has scored a few goals, we'll have him, and the Irish lad from Barnsley has set a few up, let's have him as well. Very little thought seems to have gone in to it. Hogan and Kodjia are two extremely different types of player, but there doesn't seem to be a plan for is they play together, or if one replaces the other. Same with Hourihane, he should be absolutely setting the place alight, but the lack of a settled formation and style of play means that we're not seeing the best of many players.
Quote from: Risso on April 26, 2017, 03:20:25 PMQuote from: Rudy Can't Fail on April 26, 2017, 02:45:41 PMWe can sign the best players in the world but as Adam rightly points out above, unless we play them in their best position don't expect them to deliver their best.That's my biggest criticism of Bruce this season, it's just a very vanilla, old school, transfer-window-by numbers approach. That lad from Brentford has scored a few goals, we'll have him, and the Irish lad from Barnsley has set a few up, let's have him as well. Very little thought seems to have gone in to it. Hogan and Kodjia are two extremely different types of player, but there doesn't seem to be a plan for is they play together, or if one replaces the other. Same with Hourihane, he should be absolutely setting the place alight, but the lack of a settled formation and style of play means that we're not seeing the best of many players.As I understand it Bruce has the final say on transfers but it is but the scouting etc comes from elsewhere so any blame, or praise, is a collective rather than an individual issue. My view is that the work in January was done, to a large extent, with next season in mind. How they perform as a team, rather than as individuals, following a pre season together will be when they and Bruce can be fairly assessed.
Quote from: Chris Smith on April 26, 2017, 05:21:50 PMQuote from: Risso on April 26, 2017, 03:20:25 PMQuote from: Rudy Can't Fail on April 26, 2017, 02:45:41 PMWe can sign the best players in the world but as Adam rightly points out above, unless we play them in their best position don't expect them to deliver their best.That's my biggest criticism of Bruce this season, it's just a very vanilla, old school, transfer-window-by numbers approach. That lad from Brentford has scored a few goals, we'll have him, and the Irish lad from Barnsley has set a few up, let's have him as well. Very little thought seems to have gone in to it. Hogan and Kodjia are two extremely different types of player, but there doesn't seem to be a plan for is they play together, or if one replaces the other. Same with Hourihane, he should be absolutely setting the place alight, but the lack of a settled formation and style of play means that we're not seeing the best of many players.As I understand it Bruce has the final say on transfers but it is but the scouting etc comes from elsewhere so any blame, or praise, is a collective rather than an individual issue. My view is that the work in January was done, to a large extent, with next season in mind. How they perform as a team, rather than as individuals, following a pre season together will be when they and Bruce can be fairly assessed.I really dislike the "needs a pre-season" argument. Why are we showing very little in the way of improvement at the latter end of the season despite the 30 odd games Bruce has had in chjarge. Why is three weeks of training in July and a friendly against Walsall better preparation than training all season and playing actual league games? Some players will leave, and some new ones will arrive, so it's not even that we'll start next season with the same squad we finish this one with.
Quote from: Risso on April 26, 2017, 06:20:43 PMQuote from: Chris Smith on April 26, 2017, 05:21:50 PMQuote from: Risso on April 26, 2017, 03:20:25 PMQuote from: Rudy Can't Fail on April 26, 2017, 02:45:41 PMWe can sign the best players in the world but as Adam rightly points out above, unless we play them in their best position don't expect them to deliver their best.That's my biggest criticism of Bruce this season, it's just a very vanilla, old school, transfer-window-by numbers approach. That lad from Brentford has scored a few goals, we'll have him, and the Irish lad from Barnsley has set a few up, let's have him as well. Very little thought seems to have gone in to it. Hogan and Kodjia are two extremely different types of player, but there doesn't seem to be a plan for is they play together, or if one replaces the other. Same with Hourihane, he should be absolutely setting the place alight, but the lack of a settled formation and style of play means that we're not seeing the best of many players.As I understand it Bruce has the final say on transfers but it is but the scouting etc comes from elsewhere so any blame, or praise, is a collective rather than an individual issue. My view is that the work in January was done, to a large extent, with next season in mind. How they perform as a team, rather than as individuals, following a pre season together will be when they and Bruce can be fairly assessed.I really dislike the "needs a pre-season" argument. Why are we showing very little in the way of improvement at the latter end of the season despite the 30 odd games Bruce has had in chjarge. Why is three weeks of training in July and a friendly against Walsall better preparation than training all season and playing actual league games? Some players will leave, and some new ones will arrive, so it's not even that we'll start next season with the same squad we finish this one with.And yet clubs that are more settled going into the season appear to have a better chance than those that go through the type of churn we have over the last 12 months. It also seems to be the accepted wisdom amongst the professionals involved in the game. Of course we will change one or two but the core of the squad is now established, it is inconceivable that we will see anything approaching that level of change again.
Grasping at straws here a little but may be the pressure of getting results during the season in order to avoid a relegation fight has forced his hand some what in terms of the tried and tested tactics that Bruce has been using, and as a result, he has had to play certain players out of position in order to do that. In addition, if there are a few pieces to the jigsaw missing that doesn't allow Bruce to set up the team utilising the players in their correct positions and with a more attacking style of play then he's even more inclined to stick to the tried and tested formula. Personally I agree with (what appears to be) the majority that Bruce is an old school manager and what we've been seeing is the Bruce way, and that is unlikely to change...however, until Wyness and Xia roll the dice it is up to Bruce to prove us wrong...or prove us right.
Quote from: KRS on April 26, 2017, 07:31:35 PMGrasping at straws here a little but may be the pressure of getting results during the season in order to avoid a relegation fight has forced his hand some what in terms of the tried and tested tactics that Bruce has been using, and as a result, he has had to play certain players out of position in order to do that. In addition, if there are a few pieces to the jigsaw missing that doesn't allow Bruce to set up the team utilising the players in their correct positions and with a more attacking style of play then he's even more inclined to stick to the tried and tested formula. Personally I agree with (what appears to be) the majority that Bruce is an old school manager and what we've been seeing is the Bruce way, and that is unlikely to change...however, until Wyness and Xia roll the dice it is up to Bruce to prove us wrong...or prove us right. I don't think you're clutching at straws at all, I think you're bang on the money.I also think that that pragmatism is exactly what we get from employing him over a more adventurous coach, and would argue it was exactly what was required to stop us potentially free falling straight out of this division this season.