Raymond

Completely agree with this. I have always been of the opinion players are by far the most important element of potential league position, but a manager has the ability to push the players to the edge of their potential. To put it rather simply, a given set of players has a range of potential finishing positions. A good manager pushes the players to the top of that range, while a poor manager pushes the squad to the bottom of the range. I think this squad has a range of about 14-20. Under that supposition, Lambert is doing a average to poor job. That being said, I think it would take a very good managerial performance to even get this set of players a lower mid-table finish.

Finally changed my vote to yes. Cannot see any other option now.

So we still have a manager and we have no new players? This is all going to end fantastically.

So in your fairy tale, third grade world the 17th best team ever year is exactly the same quality as the 17th place team all the years before? There is no chance the quality of the league improved, thus making a squad that was barely good enough to avoid relegation not good enough to avoid relegation?

I agree we are shit, and it might be time for Lambert to go simply because we need something to change. The real question, however, is how many more managers are we going to blame before we realize the players just are not good enough?

There are a lot of sticks to beat Lambert with, but Vlaar, Benteke, Lowton, and Westwood for 15 million seems like a good bit of business to me. The problem is we need a big time player in the middle of the park, and that player costs a lot in terms of wages.

MysteryMan is of the opinion he is out the door. Maybe that explains the presser?

The plan is clearly there. The stats, results and performances suggest the plan is not working.

We have reverted to being a long ball team, but this certainly was not PL's plan. Early in the season there was a match, sorry cannot remember which one, where Given did not hit a single goal kick long. We tried to pass the ball and play up from the back, but we quickly realized the midfield could not play that way. Now we are doing what teams with awful midfields do, bypass them.

To be honest, I wrote it while driving. Probably not the best of ideas. By the by, the horrific run on at the end of your last post Pac is amusing considering the conversation.