Silvio Dante

It’s a conversation me and @Steve Watts have had a few times - there is a real thing in both youth coaching and as a parent where you have to realise that going x way is not the best both long term and short term even if it’s the accepted route. In a way, not being approached is the best thing as it means the kids enjoy it - if they’re good enough they will make it eventually as everyone gets watched. Steve would probably agree though that we might take losing the one who could make it as he’s just so bloody annoying!

Have you got one for 3-3 as well or are you starting to run low on tenuous cultural references…

Great post. My lad is an excellent keeper but I’m also realistic enough to know that the chances of him making it are likely to be limited, and that if he did get into the academy system, he’d be more likely to be one of the “making up the numbers” than one of the sure things. Nothing wrong with that - they need 11 to play a game and 10 of those are unlikely to make it. Thats the game. But as a parent you weigh up the chance (which even if in the system is small) of making it as a pro, versus the damage that may be caused by being spit out by the system. Put it this way - knowing what I know, from speaking to parents and also posts like this, it would never be a straightforward decision.

Can’t see them asking him either of those but you’re more than welcome to submit to the pod.

Rolando Aarons?

Block G in the Dolman when I was young. With the upper Lansdown, I’ve only sat there once (lionesses game) and agree, it seemed that you were miles from the action. Great facilities up there as there is all over the ground now but I can’t think it’s conducive to kids really getting attached to the game as it’s so distant from the pitch.

I’m sure Stead was assistant there - can’t see from the statement whether he’s also gone. Duff would seem a good shout but the statement suggests Devaney is acting as interim - if he gets them up then it’d be as equally a brave call not to appoint him permanently

In 5th place in the division with a game to go…but lost four of the last five…

To clarify, my point was that “technically” as he’s being paid his current contractual wage until it expires (as is normal for football managers when sacked unless they get another job at a higher or equal salary), he’s still bound by the terms of his prior contract, so my use of NDA was more around he’s being paid as if he’s an employee - so as you say, he can’t speak negatively about the club. My gut is that in view of the time left on contract (c9 months) and Nige being in relatively poor health at the time (so unlikely to get a new job for a period), he’s likely to still be on the payroll as opposed to coming to any kind of severance in order to have the guaranteed income - and at the end of the contract, other than commercially sensitive information, all bets are off.

Taunton manager departs:

Interesting linked article re Bears and the club moving people from their seats:

Same as it ever is. I use a very simple rule to comment on a performance - I have to have seen the game. That means post Sunderland (by consensus poor) I didn’t comment on specifics, post Middlesbrough away (by consensus great first half, rubbish second) I didn’t comment on specifics and post Norwich (by consensus very good) I’m not commenting on specifics! The only aspect I’ll note from Norwich (and assuming the consensus is accurate) is the same point I made against Leicester - I’d have been happy to have a worse outcome if the performance level was as it was, as it’s totally about that (currently) for me.

I’d imagine the reasons for his departure and the relative standing of all parties are well known within football.

Probably a sensible reading of it overall. The biggest piece here is that he clearly had major reservations over the job. It’s forgotten sometimes that he left Man City after something like a month as well, and if he doesn’t think something is right, he doesn’t (or didn’t) stay. Top phrase!

My guess is that the NDA may run until the end of his contract as a minimum. Working this logically, managers if sacked still get paid until their contract cessation in football so I’d imagine if Nige says anything before June 30th (assuming that’s when his contract ends) there may be repercussions.

Coppell always struck me as a man who wasn’t necessarily in love with football, but when he was invested, he was all in. I think that was one of the issues here - as I understand it SL pursued him and pursued him to a point where even though SC had reservations he said yes. There were major red flags though - IIRC he was to take over in the summer but rather than watch his new team he instead took in a Reading game. It was a job he didn’t really want to do to start with, then when SL (and probably for the right reasons as he wanted to show us going for it) signed James over Coppells head it started getting even worse. We then have the horrible signings of Stewart and Hunt. It was an awful appointment - not because of the manager, but because the manager didn’t want to do it. A part of me also thinks this is what has led to SL appointing lesser “names” other than Pearson subsequently- he got his fingers burnt. Maybe he feels we’re just not big enough to “buy” success to an extent and that’s driven a part of the strategy since.

Well somebody’s already asked the obvious:

Yeah, probably where I’m sitting. As I said the other day though, desperate situations (Liam needing to save his job) can lead to good outcomes. We saw it under Nige when there was an adjustment post WBA. He’s earnt the chance to take us into next season but the first 10-12 are massive - if he reverts to “pre Easter” type then he’s gone. And that’s again, not in results but in “intent” which has been the key thing over the last month. Attacking the post not the poster, this post is mental. Pearson didn’t leave a basket case - whatever side you sit on the debate the view is that we had a decent platform and the main contention is whether Liam needed/should be given the time to reshape the squad. The board said he could progress this squad. I think that was nonsense based on his style as opposed to the squad, but that doesn’t make him a bad coach with a squad set up for him or Pearson a basket case. It means they talked shit. We know this. It’s now about how Liam manages the resources that he has.

Oh oh woh oh oh, oh oh woh oh oh, oh oh wow oh oh…

I did see a couple of reports linking McKenna with them in the summer. Obviously would rely on Ipswich not going up as you’d imagine he’d want to finish the job there, but in the clubs current state and better jobs like Bayern and Liverpool being available Man U aren’t attractive to a Zidane or similar at the moment. They’ve tried everything else and he (ahem) knows the club from recently - it’s not totally fanciful

With a towering header just to take the piss.

Mental scenario. The team finishing 5th gets a bye to the semi finals while the team finishing 4th has to play an additional game. Efl have turned down Gateshead potential membership due to lack of security of tenure at their ground for the next 10 years, but even that seems odd when other clubs have moved having been evicted from stadiums (Cov) and kept membership. How many EFL clubs lease their stadium (and how many have less than 10 years till a break clause?)

What would be really embarrassing if we’d agreed a clause saying he had to be in the squad or we’d be penalised financially, then also agreed a clause saying we’d have to make the deal permanent if he was in more than 10 squads….

Bit harsh. Hes not been great at times but giving him that nickname is OTT