briny_ear Posted February 13, 2019 Share Posted February 13, 2019 6 hours ago, TheStagMan said: And yet here you are, bringing him up yet again. Well done! Not at all. I just pop on from time to time to see what people are thinking about DS and find everyone is talking about SB. I don't think this one can be pinned on me, guv! I’ll bet some people are still trying to get MON sacked! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Talldarkandransome Posted February 13, 2019 Share Posted February 13, 2019 6 hours ago, LakotaDakota said: Seems to work out ok for some teams. Watford are on their 12th manager in 10 years, Are currently sat 8th in the premier league with the same amount of wins as us this season from 5 games less Good point, but Smith is trying to create a new style of play which we are not used to. We have been shocking for years with the odd good performance. That isn't fixable overnight. I'm prepared to take a few slaps if it means we get there in the end. It's tricky to prioritise at the moment, better overall play or getting out of this league. For me we need to get out of this league and then worry about performances Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobzy Posted February 13, 2019 Share Posted February 13, 2019 On 09/02/2019 at 07:57, bobzy said: If I'm being critical of Smith and the team at the moment - and I think a couple have mentioned it on here, plus either Davies or Andrews last night - it's that the intensity and pressing energy seems to have disappeared from our play. The teams we've struggled against notably (Sheff Utd, Leeds, Norwich) have all had really busy central midfielders who press the ball and harass their opponents. When we were doing this early days under Smith, the football looked much better and we seemed to be a team heading in the right direction. For whatever reason, this has completely changed. I actually think we'll get back to that when Grealish is back. He and McGinn both like to be busy - it seems that only Whelan of the others is in the same mould, but he's unfortunately past it (to an extent). As much as our defence is leaking goals, I honestly believe that our biggest hindrance right now is our midfield. We get overrun way too easily. This all over again today. We're going nowhere with Whelan and Hourihane in there I'm afraid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KentVillan Posted February 13, 2019 Share Posted February 13, 2019 5 hours ago, hippo said: I don't think any great number want smith out right now. I have 2 concerns 1.He has never had a good defence anywhere he has managed - leaking goals has meant his teams are anchored in mid table.- Scoring goals has never been an issues for Smiths teams. 2.Do we gamble on him next season with his own players doing something he has yet to do in his management career ? - If (as highly probable) he gets the benefit of the doubt - and start next season we run the risk of having to replace him mid season when the pool of managers to pick from will be very small. What I can't fathom is the reasoning that if we stick with Smith through thick and thin then ultimately he will come good - plenty of warning signs for me - if I were a betting man I would bet on us being in the market for a new manager in October/November. But I will admit to being fickle - if Smiths get us in the promotion placing early next season - then great everyone is happy (even me !) I don't think anyone is arguing that if we stick with Smith through thick and thin (e.g. 2 more seasons of mid-table mediocrity) that he will come good. We're just saying that he's done nothing so far to justify most of the criticism. A lot of people are jumping to huge conclusions based on a few games. We have no idea what's going on behind the scenes, what system he's trying to instil, who's listening to or ignoring his instructions, who's pissing him off but has to play anyway because of lack of options, etc. We can guess at a lot of these things and read between the lines from matchday performances, player history, news reports, and interviews, but from the limited number of games we've seen, it's mostly just guesswork. It's very hard to tell the difference between a badly coached player and a selfish idiot. It's also hard to tell the difference between a badly coached player and a well coached player who is still adapting to a system. Remember a lot of these lads are either a bit dim or very set in their ways (or both), and it can take months to retrain their instinctive movements and decision making. Imagine if you've spent your whole career pumping the ball down the line from full back, and you're now being asked to look first for the inside ball every time... and the player you're meant to be passing it to doesn't want it, because he only cares about his YouTube reels, and the only player who does want possession in the middle of the park is long-term injured? This isn't stuff that just suddenly clicks a few games into a manager's tenure. The way for a manager to get quick results is to keep things simple, familiar tactics, round pegs in round holes, work on a few setpiece routines. Let the players play their natural game. I thought we brought DS in for something more ambitious? Purslow has a plan to build a team around young players, affordable wages, and an attractive, possession football style. He identified DS as a good candidate for making that happen. None of that stuff is going to happen overnight. My sense is that DS's big dilemma at the moment is Hourihane: he offers real quality on set pieces and goals from midfield, but he also lacks quality defensively and in possession. These weaknesses are less of a problem when DS can pull McGinn and Grealish back into a central three, which is why our possession stats looked a lot better before Grealish got injured. Now McGinn is playing higher, and Hourihane is either holding by himself, or alongside Whelan / Jedinak. That's clearly going to affect the possession game that DS was trying to play, given the intrinsic qualities of those players. I don't see an easy solution to this problem. Same for the full back problem - you're not going to change Hutton and Taylor at this stage in their careers. As far as I can see, they've both always played the exact same way under every manager they've ever had. There's stuff like this happening right through the squad. None of it will be fixed until DS has had more time. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rodders0223 Posted February 13, 2019 Share Posted February 13, 2019 Abysmal. Bruce's in game management was better. No hyperbole. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StefanAVFC Posted February 13, 2019 Share Posted February 13, 2019 Absolutely dire tbh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rbcuk Posted February 13, 2019 Share Posted February 13, 2019 That was bloody awful to watch, these players are utter gash Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rodders0223 Posted February 13, 2019 Share Posted February 13, 2019 Just now, rbcuk said: That was bloody awful to watch, these players are utter gash Then change the system. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rodders Posted February 13, 2019 Share Posted February 13, 2019 fraud, fraud, fraud. **** off Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyh29 Posted February 13, 2019 Share Posted February 13, 2019 Only question for the board really is do we give him the summer or replace him now Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davkaus Posted February 13, 2019 Share Posted February 13, 2019 I'm firmly in the Smith Out camp. Shitter every week. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
villarule123 Posted February 13, 2019 VT Supporter Share Posted February 13, 2019 He's losing me rapidly and it hurts to say that because I wanted it to work so much. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mantis Posted February 13, 2019 Share Posted February 13, 2019 I've seen nothing to suggest he wants us to play this way, so why are we playing like it anyway? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rbcuk Posted February 13, 2019 Share Posted February 13, 2019 1 minute ago, rodders0223 said: Then change the system. Easier said than done, we don’t have a decent squad to replace players Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr_Pangloss Posted February 13, 2019 Share Posted February 13, 2019 Clueless, has brought absolutely nothing to the table so far, has not shown anything at all. I'm not seeing enough to suggest he's the man for the job, there's just no ideas from him, nothing new, stale football, stale tactics, no intensity, it's horrendous and week in and week out he serves up the same shite, just not proactive enough in making changes, suggests to me he's out of his depth to a point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobzy Posted February 13, 2019 Share Posted February 13, 2019 1 minute ago, rodders0223 said: Then change the system. Unfortunately, I don't know how we'd replace Elphick, Whelan and Hourihane at the moment. They're all **** garbage. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rodders0223 Posted February 13, 2019 Share Posted February 13, 2019 Just now, Mantis said: I've seen nothing to suggest he wants us to play this way, so why are we playing like it anyway? Like every manager before him he has shit the bed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr_Pangloss Posted February 13, 2019 Share Posted February 13, 2019 Just now, rbcuk said: Easier said than done, we don’t have a decent squad to replace players 4-4-2 or 3-5-2 is clearly an option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Albrighton Posted February 13, 2019 VT Supporter Share Posted February 13, 2019 (edited) 6 hours ago, hippo said: I don't think any great number want smith out right now. Suspect that may change in the very near future. Not me, not now. But like previously stated, if the form carries on as it has been, I expect the conversation to be had in the summer. Edited February 13, 2019 by Shropshire Lad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobzy Posted February 13, 2019 Share Posted February 13, 2019 (edited) 1 minute ago, Dr_Pangloss said: 4-4-2 or 3-5-2 is clearly an option. They aren't. We're **** terrible in the middle of the park - why overload it? Edit: Or, rather, they are options... but we're **** terrible in the middle of the park. Edited February 13, 2019 by bobzy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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