Steve Bruce

[TRO]

9 minutes ago, rodders0223 said:

...but why would you need a pre season?

If we were just needed a bit of tweaking here and there then fair enough, if we weren't getting the rub of the green and needed that bit extra...but we are way off. Not even capable of the very basics against dog shit opposition. If you can't do that now then pre season isn't going to help.

I still think when talking about the basics, that is a players responsibility......first touch etc is down to the player Imo.

i said in my post, I have my opinions, but he needs to reassure us as what we need to expect next season and why we think this turgid stuff can change.

[DaveAV1]

2 minutes ago, CosmicVillan said:

I think it's we've made decent progress under Bruce and it's easy to forget how utterly low we sank last season.

With only half the points of Norwich above us, a minus 49 goal difference and we only scoring every one and a half games with the leakiest defence in the division we were basically almost twice as bad as the teams that came down with us. 

Not only were we failing on the pitch , we were failing as an organisation from the Chairman down. Turning around any organisation of this size once the decline has kicked in whether it's a football club or in a different sector is notoriously difficult ( look up my local hospital in Stafford for a prime example ) and it isn't just a case of throwing money at the problem, there's a much bigger picture at play and takes a long time to turn around. I believe Dr Tony understands this and quickly realised RDM was not the right character for this bruised and battered club. Bruce is a very affable character regardless of playing style and a " good man " that players & staff can relate to which is why he's still here. Capable of getting us promoted with the right personality to help nurture the club back to health.  

That we are comfortably mid table after two massive wobbles is a big turnaround from last season, we are only 5 points off Norwich who came down in much better shape. We have been completely dysfunctional for 4 or 5 seasons .....getting back to where we want to be is a process, and we are part way through that process. That Bruce is on record even during our winning streaks that the football is no what we want is a only positive in my view.  Next season I expect us to be further down the road in the ongoing rehabilitation of our once great club. Expect the playoffs..hope for automatic promotion.

Sorry I didn't realise we need a nice bloke who gets on with everyone. Here was me thinking we need a football manager who can organise, motivate, understand tactics and buy players who compliment the style he implements. That puts a whole new light on the situation. 

[PompeyVillan]

He's not getting very good results. That's not good. 

I don't like it when we lose. We lose too many.

I'd like us to win more. 

[rodders0223]

1 minute ago, PompeyVillan said:

He's not getting very good results. That's not good. 

I don't like it when we lose. We lose too many.

I'd like us to win more. 

I would just like us to show the basics of being about to football. At least then I can try to convince myself it will all be okay.

[terrytini]

Absolute garbage yet again I'm afraid.

And, yet again, IMO, of his own making.

Unlike some I don't doubt his observational abilities, nor his coaching skills. But again- yes sorry if it's a stuck record- his Selections are woeful.

Of course we will struggle to play football if he won't allow more than two footballers on the pitch at a time.

Took off the only two who can play - Lansbury and Hourihane - and replaced them two others who can.

Admittedly none of those four played well, but at least they were bad at playing football - they were a disappointment - the two that stayed on, Gardner and Bacuna, simply met ( incredibly low) expectations.

Game after game after game after game he shows what is an almost pathological reluctance to play the best players. 

Four defenders, a keeper, a holding midfielder, and a converted full back is overkill of 'grit' over ability. Add in two strikers and it means the entire creativity - worth the name - has to come from two players.

The fact that he still does this in a game where nothing matters other than the performance is stunningly depressing.

I choose to think he will change this mindset over the Summer, it makes me feel better and I'm SO desperate for us to not need to change Manager again....but I can't help wondering if I'm fooling myself.

(We ended with 6 players who got us relegated BTW, which I found disturbing)

Edited April 29, 2017 by terrytini

[TRO]

We had this level of inept football that took us down to this division.....levels of football that the present relegated teams have not stooped to.

Different manager and different players......same turgid shocking stuff.

We need some respones from the club, why we are expected to watch this stuff.

If its a process of getting through it all, like some fans like me tend to believe.....I think some feasible reassurances would be welcome.

We know it takes time, but how long does it take to expect to get to watching reasonably convincing football?

It would be nice to hear their thoughts.

 

 

 

Edited April 29, 2017 by TRO

[villakram]

3 minutes ago, terrytini said:

(We ended with 6 players who got us relegated BTW, which I found disturbing)

[terrytini]

44 minutes ago, rodders0223 said:

One of the top scorers now cannot buy a goal and the top assister looks absolutely lost and the goalscoring midfielder we bought hasn't scored once, and is also hooked off. Coupled with this we have Bacuna and Gardner playing 90 minutes and all in all I would say that Bruce does not have A BLOODY CLUE.

So hard to argue with this.

All valid points, not just today, but in every game.

[jon_c]

1 minute ago, terrytini said:

 

I choose to think he will change this mindset over the Summer, it makes me feel better and I'm SO desperate for us to not need to change Manager again....but I can't help wondering if I'm fooling myself.

(We ended with 6 players who got us relegated BTW, which I found disturbing)

He has set the team up exactly as I expected him too before he came, as it's what he's done every where he's managed. He won't change this mindset over the summer because he hasn't changed it over his managerial career. 

[TRO]

24 minutes ago, CosmicVillan said:

I think it's we've made decent progress under Bruce and it's easy to forget how utterly low we sank last season.

With only half the points of Norwich above us, a minus 49 goal difference and we only scoring every one and a half games with the leakiest defence in the division we were basically almost twice as bad as the teams that came down with us. 

Not only were we failing on the pitch , we were failing as an organisation from the Chairman down. Turning around any organisation of this size once the decline has kicked in whether it's a football club or in a different sector is notoriously difficult ( look up my local hospital in Stafford for a prime example ) and it isn't just a case of throwing money at the problem, there's a much bigger picture at play and takes a long time to turn around. I believe Dr Tony understands this and quickly realised RDM was not the right character for this bruised and battered club. Bruce is a very affable character regardless of playing style and a " good man " that players & staff can relate to which is why he's still here. Capable of getting us promoted with the right personality to help nurture the club back to health.  

That we are comfortably mid table after two massive wobbles is a big turnaround from last season, we are only 5 points off Norwich who came down in much better shape. We have been completely dysfunctional for 4 or 5 seasons .....getting back to where we want to be is a process, and we are part way through that process. That Bruce is on record even during our winning streaks that the football is no what we want is a only positive in my view.  Next season I expect us to be further down the road in the ongoing rehabilitation of our once great club. Expect the playoffs..hope for automatic promotion.

I get the frustration from the fans, this stuff is woeful.

however,I get your post too and we did come down in a shocking state.....the difference, between us and Newcastle/ Norwich was colossal.

We was Div 1

Edited April 29, 2017 by TRO

[terrytini]

3 minutes ago, jon_c said:

He has set the team up exactly as I expected him too before he came, as it's what he's done every where he's managed. He won't change this mindset over the summer because he hasn't changed it over his managerial career. 

My brain tells me you are dead right, my heart says Noooooooooooooo !!!!!!

[DCJonah]

There's just nothing, absolutely nothing to suggest a pre season will turn this team into one of the 3 teams that go up next season. 

Another year will be spent here making it harder and harder to get out. I think having faith in Steve Bruce will do serious long term damage to us. 

I just hope Tony sticks with us after we become a team stuck in this league. 

[DaveAV1]

3 minutes ago, TRO said:

I get the frustration from the fans, this stuff is woeful.

however,I get your post too and we did come down in a shocking state.....the difference, between us and Newcastle/ Norwich was colossal.

We was Div 1

The difference between us and Newcastle is still colossal!

[MikeMcKenna]

Get used to the Championship folks. I have absolutely no faith that Bruce can take us up. He had two good runs of results which were almost solely achieved with dire football. Inevitably both times the wheels came off. He may be a "Nice" bloke, Xia may be a "Nice" bloke etc etc but I don't give a f*** about "Nice" anymore - I want someone to get us out of this shitty f***** league. 

With 3/4 exceptions we have a squad of dross and prima donnas who were billy big bollox at their previous clubs.

No teamwork, no tactics, no passion, no progress likely under Bruce IMHO.

AVFC have been dire for 6/7 seasons - we go again!

[terrytini]

Of course we were awful.

Way way worse than Newcastle and Norwich, but even Way way worse than that because of the cancerous last few years of indifference and negligence under Lerner.

Of course he inherited a catastrophic mess and of course he's done well to stop the rot.

I just pray that he had been SO determined to shore us up he'd overdone it, slowly realised it, and changes it.

In Adomah, Lansbury, Hourihane, Jogan and Kodja - at least - we simply have to look forwards not back.

He is SO sure we need Jedi - does it never cross his mind that many of the sides we play don't use up a spot for s holding Mf ? And that one of the key reasons Jedi is essential is because we are so cautious ?

I just don't get it . Hogan makes run after run but we've not found him once in three months. You can see Hourihane and Lansbury spotting the runs but they are thirty yards further back !!

 

I just don't get it.  Unless as I say he will change on purpose after seasons end. As some are saying though, he rarely has played any differently.

[terrytini]

1 minute ago, MikeMcKenna said:

Get used to the Championship folks. I have absolutely no faith that Bruce can take us up. He had two good runs of results which were almost solely achieved with dire football. Inevitably both times the wheels came off. He may be a "Nice" bloke, Xia may be a "Nice" bloke etc etc but I don't give a f*** about "Nice" anymore - I want someone to get us out of this shitty f***** league. 

With 3/4 exceptions we have a squad of dross and prima donnas who were billy big bollox at their previous clubs.

No teamwork, no tactics, no passion, no progress likely under Bruce IMHO.

AVFC have been dire for 6/7 seasons - we go again!

Don't agree with that. I ghink we've got 14/16 decent players.

I don't see Hourihane Lansbury or Hogan idling away for example their effort is there.

They are not being used properly IMO.

[TRO]

45 minutes ago, rodders0223 said:

Hollow words. Nothing has changed, nothing is changing, nothing will ever change.

Well that is simply not true.....things have changed marginally, we have securred some wins and staved off relegation......yes, it was that bad.

while the football is pants......thats a defeatist comment from a frustrated man.

[terrytini]

Agreed. We used to expect to lose now we expect to win, at least that is something.

[DCJonah]

I look at his first game at home to wolves and the game today. In terms of performances what's really changed? **** all. 

There's been no improvement under him, we've had a run where one bloke, the only bloke in the team who can score, scored some goals. 

There's no magic switch he's going to flick. He's clearly not capable of improving this team with his coaching and tactics and when I look at the form of the players he's signed, I'm not confident another window will make much difference either. 

I predict a midtable finish and a load of terrible football. I'm just hoping Xia has no patience with this shit if it's served up early next year. 

Edited April 29, 2017 by DCJonah

[AndyM3000]

Bruce will grind out a few 1-0 wins and we might sneak into the play offs next year but that will be the best of it. I can't see it being a very entertaining season no matter who we sign. Bruce doesn't know how to get a team to control the ball and we don't seem to have any plan of attack. Some of the decisions he has made have baffled me.

Id love to see what we do in training all week. Last week v Blues we didn't even have a clue what we were doing from throw ins!