Anybody starting to get worried…… again?

[Richard E]

I’m not sure we can blame a poor squad for the piss poor way that we played our last 2 games ( plus a few earlier games)  Obviously not top 6 quality but I would expect a competent manager to organise things and get them punching above their weight.

It's two games though. Obviously he needs to turn it round and sharpish, but we've never had a manager in my lifetime who hasn't had a much worse run of form than that. In O'Neill's time, the last manager who gave us consistent top 6 finishes, we called it "March".

Wasn't there that time in the 90s when we scored 1 goal in something like 11 games?

Edit - it was 1 in 8 - and that was a 90th minute own goal by the opposition! 

[Damo70]

I’m not sure we can blame a poor squad for the piss poor way that we played our last 2 games ( plus a few earlier games)  Obviously not top 6 quality but I would expect a competent manager to organise things and get them punching above their weight.

It's two games though. Obviously he needs to turn it round and sharpish, but we've never had a manager in my lifetime who hasn't had a much worse run of form than that. In O'Neill's time, the last manager who gave us consistent top 6 finishes, we called it "March".

Wasn't there that time in the 90s when we scored 1 goal in something like 11 games?

Edit - it was 1 in 8 - and that was a 90th minute own goal by the opposition!

I remember us having a big goal drought at one point in the early days of BFR.

From Spurs in 8th to Everton in 16th the only team outside the top six that is currently in form is Newcastle.

[Jon Crofts]

The only thing I'm worried about is our inability to break free from this cycle of performance.

New dawn, new hope, turns to false hope and false dawn every 18 months or so for the last 15 years. How much has been spent/wasted on getting us from regular top 6 under MON to 12th in the Premier League via The Championship and 10 managers?

[LeonW]

And another thing hindsight is a wonderful thing for all of us.  Whilst I thought Deans time was up, it seemed to me that Purslow in particular was desperate to get a star through the door and he seems to have been literally starstruck instead of analysing who was available in the market that had the necessary experience to do the job.  Ours is one of the toughest jobs in football.  High fan expectation, starved of any real success over the years, an acceptance of mediocrity and worse over recent years.  That’s a hard ship to turn around.

People keep saying that Purslow was start struck, but where's the proof of this? I think they wanted a young and upcoming manager, and the fact that the Rangers set up quite closely mirrored what we're trying to do was probably a plus point. I think at the time my first choice was Potter, because he's done a brilliant job at Brighton, but having turned down Spurs I think he's more than happy to carry on with his project there. For people who think that Purslow was star struck, who else should he have considered?

As current performances and future transfer windows will likely demonstrate, we don’t currently have the players to play the way Gerrard wants and we may not even have the money to. There’s going to be major surgery required to change that. The squad he inherited was filled with natural wide players who will likely now need to be sold for more central attacking players. A new central midfield will be needed and possibly additional full backs. I thought the purpose of the DOF and strategic recruitment was to reduce the need for a higher turnover of players to suit each new manager. They would be appointed to work with a similar system. I don’t think that is going to be the case here which makes you wonder what the criteria was for appointing SG based on his work at Rangers. He was appointed extremely swiftly and it did not strike me at all as if anyone else had been seriously considered or sounded out. Maybe the sounding out had been done behind the scenes already whilst DS was still in post? Don’t know. I would have thought that one of the key roles of the DOF would be to draw up and appoint the next manager. Out of the two scenarios of Lange having an entire globe to look at and coming back with Gerrard as a top choice and Purslow deciding on Gerrard because of his affection for him from Liverpool (as per the link Beard82 shared) I know where I’d put my money if I was a betting man.

[dave.woodhall]

I don't think there's much doubt that Purslow wanted Gerrard and not much more doubt that he wanted him at the first possible opportunity.

[Risso]

I don't think it's fair to blame Gerrard (or Smith for that matter) for the deficiencies in the DoF role. They did a mostly shit job in the first year back, and haven't found the DM we've desperately needed for 3 years. The injuries to Traore and Bailey also can't be laid at Gerrard's door.  We've just got too many players who aren't good enough. Have a look again at some of the games we lost during Smith's last 5 games. The Arsenal match especially (with a full first team practically) was pathetic and we were fortunate not to be 7 or 8 down in the first half. Those players are still the backbone of our team, and half of them just aren't up to it.

[SoccerHQ]

I don't think there's much doubt that Purslow wanted Gerrard and not much more doubt that he wanted him at the first possible opportunity.

Some rumours that Purslow may step down in the summer. I'd consider it if I were him and leave the next CEO to take the flak next season as last few weeks are good evidence that Gerrard isn't going to take us to the heights that appointing him was supposed to herald.

[Chris Smith]

We are all, me included, assuming that Gerrard will make a good manager but what if we’re wrong?

His only experience to date is in a league where Alex McLeish won the treble.

[Risso]

I don't think there's much doubt that Purslow wanted Gerrard and not much more doubt that he wanted him at the first possible opportunity.

Well he obviously wanted him else he wouldn't be in a job. I just don't buy the starstruck fanboy claims. Other than Potter (who correct me if I'm wrong, you also wanted) and who almost certainly wouldn't have come, who else was a realistic choice? Even if Potter had come, there's no guarantee he'd be any more able to get a tune out of Luiz and co than Gerrard has, and then you have the added pain in the arse of him being a Villa fan, which I didn't think we needed two managers running.

[richtheholtender]

As someone said in the post match thread he needs to allow Ketchup again.  Seems too serious for me.  Relax a little bit.  The players might respond.  He’s not helped himself recently.  Rookie mistakes such as deciding Targett wasn’t good enough after two months, deciding to let him go to a direct rival.  Slumping in his chair and pretty much doing the ‘Glenn Hoddle why aren’t this lot as good as me?’ Body language.  Then undermining himself by promising changes and bottling it.  I think we will manage eight points but I worry about the longer term with him in charge.

You were worried yesterday now its "relax"

[LeonW]

I don't think it's fair to blame Gerrard (or Smith for that matter) for the deficiencies in the DoF role. They did a mostly shit job in the first year back, and haven't found the DM we've desperately needed for 3 years. The injuries to Traore and Bailey also can't be laid at Gerrard's door.  We've just got too many players who aren't good enough. Have a look again at some of the games we lost during Smith's last 5 games. The Arsenal match especially (with a full first team practically) was pathetic and we were fortunate not to be 7 or 8 down in the first half. Those players are still the backbone of our team, and half of them just aren't up to it.

If Lange has no influence then he is simply a shield or convenient scape goat for others. But how bad has the recruitment been since we came back up both under him and his predecessor? For the failures like Wesley, Samatta, etc, many of the current first team squad would be sold for profits tomorrow. These are the same players that have beaten some of the best sides in the land in the not too distant past and become internationals with their countries. If they were consistent, elite players, they probably wouldn’t have signed for us with where we currently are/have come from. Is SG getting enough out of those same players? Not for me. Is he going to get what Pep has at City (2 elite players per position)? No, so he needs to cut his cloth accordingly. This last week has been a disaster for his man management skills and the players know it’s easier for a club to replace the manager then a squad.

[Clampy]

As someone said in the post match thread he needs to allow Ketchup again.  Seems too serious for me.  Relax a little bit.  The players might respond.  He’s not helped himself recently.  Rookie mistakes such as deciding Targett wasn’t good enough after two months, deciding to let him go to a direct rival.  Slumping in his chair and pretty much doing the ‘Glenn Hoddle why aren’t this lot as good as me?’ Body language.  Then undermining himself by promising changes and bottling it.  I think we will manage eight points but I worry about the longer term with him in charge.

Regarding him taking two months to decide on Targett, he could have hardly have dropped him if he had no-one decent enough to put in.

[LeeB]

The only thing I'm worried about is our inability to break free from this cycle of performance.

New dawn, new hope, turns to false hope and false dawn every 18 months or so for the last 15 years. How much has been spent/wasted on getting us from regular top 6 under MON to 12th in the Premier League via The Championship and 10 managers?

My worry is the cycle gas accelerated, what used to take 2-3 years now seems to take 2-3 months

[LeonW]

I don't think there's much doubt that Purslow wanted Gerrard and not much more doubt that he wanted him at the first possible opportunity.

Some rumours that Purslow may step down in the summer. I'd consider it if I were him and leave the next CEO to take the flak next season as last few weeks are good evidence that Gerrard isn't going to take us to the heights that appointing him was supposed to herald.

If the SG appointment quickly goes wrong I suspect he won’t have a choice on when he leaves.

[Mister E]

If Lange has no influence then he is simply a shield or convenient scape goat for others. But how bad has the recruitment been since we came back up both under him and his predecessor? For the failures like Wesley, Samatta, etc, many of the current first team squad would be sold for profits tomorrow. These are the same players that have beaten some of the best sides in the land in the not too distant past and become internationals with their countries. If they were consistent, elite players, they probably wouldn’t have signed for us with where we currently are/have come from. Is SG getting enough out of those same players? Not for me. Is he going to get what Pep has at City (2 elite players per position)? No, so he needs to cut his cloth accordingly. This last week has been a disaster for his man management skills and the players know it’s easier for a club to replace the manager then a squad.

You make some good points, Leon.
Whether SG can get more out of the squad-mainstay players remains to be seen. I'm guessing that he will clear several out in the summer ... which will be a kill-or-cure approach; high risk but maybe necessary.
What I don't want is that he restocks the squad with MON-esque expensive replacements who fail to raise the overall quality significantly. And, I don't want the academy talent to be ignored.