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Paul Lambert


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First post! Last night I would have voted to sack him now. Having calmed down and looked at the table I voted give him until January. If we beat Spurs (lol) we go ahead of them by 2 pts. Crazy as that seems.

 

What annoys me most about this team is our lack of any ability to do the things in football that make you realise why you love the game. I’m talking about the goals in the minute before halftime that changes everything, the 3 goal turnaround in the last 10 minutes. When have you ever seen us with a head of steam absolutely bulldozing  team? I can only think of Sunderland 2 years ago and Norwich last year and on both of those occasions it was our 1 man Belgian bulldozer doing the damage.

 

For all the flukey wins and scraped results this team looks incapable of creating “something out of nothing”. It’s encapsulated by us having all that possession last night, away from home and never looking like scoring. At no point did you think a little one-two would put someone in one and one with the goalkeeper. Have we even had a 1v1 with a goalkeeper this year!?

 

What baffles is me is that this isn’t Lambert’s “style”, you could forgive McLeish, I’d say he’d play with 2 holding players in a game of 2 vs 2 with jumpers for goals. Lambert was responsible for Norwich who were the originals of what Southampton have done, he was responsible for the free flowing play with brilliant goals and no defence of 2 years ago.

 

What’s wrong? At this point it’s impossible to point to something in particular. We’re just really terrible. I’ve no idea what to whinge about, including the manager. Maybe there’s just a malaise around the club that sucks morale and belief. Maybe it’s a simple tactical shift that’s required and it will all click. I’ve absolutely no idea.

Welcome to VT and all the wonderful things that are said on here. I hope your brain is finely tuned and that you are of sound mind and heart.  :)

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First post! Last night I would have voted to sack him now. Having calmed down and looked at the table I voted give him until January. If we beat Spurs (lol) we go ahead of them by 2 pts. Crazy as that seems.

 

What annoys me most about this team is our lack of any ability to do the things in football that make you realise why you love the game. I’m talking about the goals in the minute before halftime that changes everything, the 3 goal turnaround in the last 10 minutes. When have you ever seen us with a head of steam absolutely bulldozing  team? I can only think of Sunderland 2 years ago and Norwich last year and on both of those occasions it was our 1 man Belgian bulldozer doing the damage.

 

For all the flukey wins and scraped results this team looks incapable of creating “something out of nothing”. It’s encapsulated by us having all that possession last night, away from home and never looking like scoring. At no point did you think a little one-two would put someone in one and one with the goalkeeper. Have we even had a 1v1 with a goalkeeper this year!?

 

What baffles is me is that this isn’t Lambert’s “style”, you could forgive McLeish, I’d say he’d play with 2 holding players in a game of 2 vs 2 with jumpers for goals. Lambert was responsible for Norwich who were the originals of what Southampton have done, he was responsible for the free flowing play with brilliant goals and no defence of 2 years ago.

 

What’s wrong? At this point it’s impossible to point to something in particular. We’re just really terrible. I’ve no idea what to whinge about, including the manager. Maybe there’s just a malaise around the club that sucks morale and belief. Maybe it’s a simple tactical shift that’s required and it will all click. I’ve absolutely no idea.

 

Maybe that was because the majority of those players came up through the leagues with him and were enjoying the rollercoaster and would bust a gut for him etc. Whereas our lot just seem to be about as one-paced as a 12 year old gelding in a 5 furlong sprint for 3 year old colts!

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He should have gone after the 8-0 4-0 3-0 to Chelsea spurs and Wigan in his first season. 2 years since that run and we're now on an even worse one. No progress.

Agree. I said this at the time and still say it now.

 

We are going nowhere with Lambert except down.

 

I was going to the Leicester game, now I'll not bother.

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Any lingering, deluded, misplaced optimism I did have this season flickered away into nothing last night. It's been so long since we didn't have To live in fear for the last few months of the season that it's seems the norm now.

I'm glad I'm holiday from tomorrow and get to miss the inevitable Spurs hiding.

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I have not been a Lambert supporter since the end of last season when I got completely pissed off with gutless displays by the team and was one of the few who dissented when he was given a contract extension and took a lot of abuse and collected a few points off the mods in the process. In fact IIRC I said my feelings re Lambert getting a new contract was akin to someone posting a dog turd through my letterbox. Hey the bully boys ganged up and told me to look at the first 4 games?

 

I am not coming on to say I told you so but ask what are we as fans going to do to rid our club of this cancerous tumour called Lambert?

 

Lerner is a inbred knob and won't sack him because of disasterous results? What therefore can we do to get this situation to change? We go a goal down on Sunday and the atmosphere is going to be poisionous, is this going to get the message across to Lerner?

Of all the metaphors . Shocking .
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Yet he's good enough to be a premier league manager

 

But he's not and is just fortunate enough to work for the worst owner in the PL.

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Even when we were relegated in 1987 we never lost more than 3 on the bounce. That was a shitty season, one of our worst ever, but we still scored 40 odd goals. I doubt we'll do that this season.

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Cancer and Ebola jokes.

 

Stay classy, VT.

 

It's no worse that what I got from the pro-Lambert camp when I criticised his new contract extension.

 

Lambert obviously has no self esteem or he would have resigned by now instead of holding out for the pay off!

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I can guarantee if you put 100 knowledgeable football fans in a room and told them to pick a team to play against spurs, 95 of them at least would pick a similar team. 

And I can guarantee you that it wouldn’t be anything like what Lambert will start with.

He is to loyal and stubborn to make any major changes. Admitting players you start with week in week out aren’t working isn’t a sign of weakness but the actual opposite.

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What if I still have the opinion that I support the manager and that I do not think I am "wrong" to use your term .  Am I to believe that the converse of your post applies,  that there is shame in that and the only redemption I can get is bowing to a different opinion than I hold?

 

At this stage I still have support for the manager.  That is a stance I am entitled to hold ,  there is no shame in that either.

Indeed you are and I was merely challenging your stance, which is the basic purpose of a forum I believe.

As for 'being wrong', I was referring specifically to your claim that Lambert is the best manager we've had in the last 30 years. Do you still believe this? If yes, then may I ask your reasoning as to why?

 

I posted a long post some time back to justify that stance,  cant remember all of it but I'll try and do the same again.

 

The managerial appointments we have made in the last 30 years are

 

Turner

Mcneill

Taylor MK1

Venglos

Atkinson

Little

Gregory

Taylor Mk2

Oleary

Oneill

Houllier 

Mcleish

 

(I'm ignoring the interim and caretaker types like Aitken and Mcallister)

 

Each of those have operated in different circumstances and under differing strategies / philosophies and each have had unique circumstances and the changing football picture with which to contend as well so let me deal with them individually to show how I think Lamber stacks up.

 

Turner - Bought in in similar circumstances to Lambert to be honest.  A team that had been relatively successful but the owner wanting to cut back on costs and run it on the cheap brings in an up and coming manager with the spec of doing just that.  He reduced the wage bill and finally dismantled our champions and brought in largely up and coming players and then went on to sprinkle it with a bit odf experience.  He still actually went on a spending spree for the time he was operating in and outspent rivals.  Football at the time was not as cash rich or dominated by 3 or 4 clubs with the emphasis of trying to reach the top four so I would argue that he had easier circumstances within which to operate.  He failed and for me was not a person with the strength of character Lamber has.  Lamber is better than Turner IMO

 

Mcneill - Came in for a season and was woeful.  Lambert better than Mcneill

 

Taylor MK1 - The first real challenger to being one of our best appointments.  Graham came in after we had been relegated  but we were still a massive club.  Yes we were in a mess but far better than any team in the lower division IMO.  I do think he oversold our position at the time a little  and the reason for that was to play politics a bit with Ellis was was domineering and wanted to run things his way.  Graham's protestations over our position were exaggerated a little as a poke at Ellis.  He did bring us back,  not as champions.  And we did finish runners up as well as flirting with relegation,  but again the time was different and circumstances were easier for us.  He bought Cascarino when Sherringham would have won us the league!. 

 

Venglos - Foreign experiment number 1.  No contest Lambert wins for me.

 

Atkinson - Second real challenger.  Was flamboyant and so was his team.  Assembled a decent team on the back of the Platt money again at a time when it was not about money so much.  An aging manager though and so was his team.  It wasn't so much built for the future as for the immediate 3 years.  Won a trophy though and that doesearn him loads of brownie points.  He loses to Lambert in that Ron was more of a now manager and Lambert is more of a long term plan man,  IMO.  Close call here though

 

Little - Brought in as the game was changing,  won a trophy and we finished high in the league.  Spent huge amounts for us and at the time we were competing.  A definite build for the future man and for me the man who runs Lambert closest in the best managerial appointment stakes.  Its really close this and just a personal opinion for me on Lambo,  I could be persuaded though and Lambert could move down to second place.  His wastes on Collymore and Curcic do not help him.

 

Gregory - A bit wee a bit woo for me was JG.  Always just needed a couple more players.  Spent a fortune on the back of dwight yorke and although this will not be a popular opinion and those will disagree,  he did not spend it wisely.  he spent it on players for now,  more so than Ron did.  so 6M a piece for aging Merson and Dublin was basically sunk cost and never allowed us to recycle the cash.  Balaban,  Stone,  Kachloul,  Hadji. He was allowed to spend huge sums,  the kind of money Lambert would love to have I think.

 

Oleary - Not a nice man at all .  Never liked him crap manager Lambert is the better man by a mile and has a strategy which does not involve slagging the club off from top to bottom,  the letter to Ellis was more about Oleary than anything else,  we would not have that with Lambert.

 

Oneill - I loved the man and still do,  brilliant manager but was operating in a different world to Lambert.  Spent a huge amount of money,  but had to to play catch up.  One thing about Martin and I guess most successful people are the same,  he believed his own hype. Call it arrogance call it what you will  but I think you also have to be pragmatic enough to see your own faults and not believe you are always right.

 

Houllier - Failure. Just could not comprehend this appointment.  I think the word Dis was missing.

 

Mcleish - If I could not comprehend the appointment of Houllier then I am trying to block this one from my memory.  Not fit to lace the boots of Lambert IMO

 

Now I know some will come on and say about Mcleish and the results under him and show stats about them and how he may outscore Lambert etc etc,  but for me there's more to it than that.  He was a dreadful manager.  Other managers in this list will have better points total as well.

 

You know an opinion on the merits of a manager or how you rate them is largely subjective,  as is everything in football judgement really.   And i recognise my opinion on Lambert is in a minority of probably 1 on here.  But I still hold it.  Little and Taylor MK1 come close but I still think given the circumstances of the time,  where we were / are as a club at the time of appointment,  what strategy the managers were asked to work towards bearing all that and more in mind I rate Paul above the others.

 

Sure it may not work and sure he may leave the club in the near future I accept that.  But I truly believe given the circumstances some of the others had he would have out performed them and given where we were as a club and what was happening to us at the time he was appointed I am not sure any of the others could have done better or that there were other managers we could have got that could have done better

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