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Viva Manningball, utter dross

Dickie, Knight, James, O’Leary, Tanner

53 minutes ago, Davefevs said:

I’d like to think that in half a season here he’s realised that the Championship is a whole different level to lg1 and that he doesn’t narrow his pool to players he’s coached previously.  This is no time for Redknapp / Krancjaer!

You and I both, Dave. But it looks like James and Williams will be gone, so it’ll be interesting to see what they have up their sleeve. I don’t see anything left-friend from Europe or further afield, sadly. 

12 hours ago, Dastardly and Muttley said:

Whilst having a discussion about Manning with George Elek on X, he pointed out that the recruitment team would be the same for Manning as any other manager, which is pretty obvious.

I’m certain that Adam Murphy and Max Bird were linked prior to Manning’s appointment and would have been brought in regardless of who’s in charge.

This just made me think. People are asking for a summer where Manning can bring in players who fit his style. These guys, and likely any other targets, were already predetermined. Do they fit Manning’s style? Are they players he’d have wanted? Or are we going to end up spending big on players with potential to grow and sell on, but don’t fit the way Manning wants to play?

I’d be surprised if Manning wasn’t responsible for the signings of Twine and Mebude, having worked with both of them before. I also wouldn’t be surprised if the likes of Conor Coventry or Marcus McGuane arrive in the summer due to Manning either. 

1 hour ago, MelksRed said:

Not sure I agree with you (although I do respect your viewpoint)....Max can only make saves based on what is played in front of him.

Vardy wasn't on his game but Max was more than equal to the 3 that should have been nailed on for him to score. (Max in the wrong position = Vardy Hat Trick)

Vardy doesn't dictate Max's starting position or broader positioning......hIS save across the goal was excellent. To pass it off as you would have expected is a little unfair / Dismissive.

I would have expected Vardy to score....he didn't...why?......out Keeper.

 

As I say...just my opinion....you are also entitled to yours.

All fair points. Football is all about opinions and I respect yours as much as most others.

You’re dead right to say he could only make saves based on what’s in front of him, but I disagree on your reasons why Vardy didn’t score. I thought Vardy looked like age is catching up with him yesterday; he’s usually razor sharp and I think Iheanacho probably buries those chances. 

For clarity, not once have I said Max didn’t play well. I said he did what I expect of him, which is to save shots that are pretty close him. He was a solid 7, but not an 8 like Roberts, James or Pring IMO.

Anyway,  City won so I don’t care if people agree or disagree. 

I don’t usually reply to BS bots like this chump, but Conway has way more potential than Bell IMO. I’ll be happy if this comes back to bite me on the arse, but I haven’t seen enough from Bell to say he’ll either make a prolific striker or consistent threat at this level. 

At the risk of being contrarian, I thought Max did what I would expect of him. All of his saves were good reactions to shots that were close to him. Peak-form Vardy probably scores a hat-trick today and he looked a shadow of himself. 

35 minutes ago, pillred said:

Do you mean the player who was voted man of the match by Sky?

There very same

35 minutes ago, A Horse With No Name said:

Thought Pring was outstanding. Max MOM and Roberts and James mentioned in despatches.

Exactly what I said in the matchday thread. Roberts, James and Pring were all excellent. 

I exclude O’Leary from that as his mistake led to a golden chance and his other saves were down to poor finishing from Vardy. 

Roberts, James and Pring - all excellent. Ironic that the poorest player on the pitch scored the winner! 

Not bad first half from us. Twine should’ve scored on the rebound from Conway’s shot IMO. Faes and Choudhury look weak. But I get the feeling Leicester are in second gear and they’ve still cut through us with ease at times. As ever, we need to score when we’re on top. 

Ah, that’s what Jon’s been up to for the last few months  

2 hours ago, Riaz said:

I could not disagree more.

League one we are a massive club. Championship is where we are tested. 

21st in the champ is better than any finish in league one. 
 

And we saw Cotts struggle in the championship. 
 

Even when things were bad under GJ we were still usually top half of the table 
 

 

I don’t buy that at all, but you’re entitled to your opinion and I respect that. 

That Cotts side was the best I’ve seen and had SL not pulled the plug on deals for Maguire and Gray, I would not have been at all surprised if we’d have matched or bettered GJ’s achievement. We’ll never know, sadly. 

I had some great times under GJ, not least Palace away in the play-off semi. But the club had outgrown him IMO and just like his boy, he allowed costs to spiral out of control. 

7 hours ago, Silvio Dante said:

Now you’ve gone and done it.

Well, it is an international break!

7 hours ago, Kid in the Riot said:

Can't agree that Gary was an "awful" man manager. You don't squeeze what he did out of a limited group of players, taking them to the top end of the Championship if your man management skills are poor.

His methods were old school and I agree had a ceiling, much in the same way someone like Cotterill did.

If we're looking at who maximised the potential of their careers, then let's not forget Gary made the most of his, but there's a reason Lee Trundle certainly didn't. 

Awful may have been harsh, but you know from back then I thought he should’ve gone long before he did. 

7 hours ago, Riaz said:

hmmm.... our most successful manager since dicks... maybe it wasnt his strong point. But he's did better than every other city manager in my time.

No doubt he did well, but most successful manager since Dicks?! How do you define that? 

For me, I judge it on silverware and Cotts gets that accolade for winning a league title and a cup. 

4 hours ago, Monkeh said:

GJ's team finished in it's highest position since the 70s and never finished out of the top 10 in the championship once we got here, so he couldn't of been a bad man manager as that just wouldn't of happened, we've not got back to that level since his sacking

Limited yes, poor absolutely not

Fair comment, Gumbo. 

I remember hearing the hat story around the time it happened and that summed up my opinion of GJ’s management style. It worked in the lower leagues, but he couldn’t manage the better players’ egos. His boy is cut from the same cloth. Both awful man managers. 

9 hours ago, Tinmans Love Child said:

It doesn't make any sense, somebody has made that up and thought it sounded good!  

Probably the same individual who redesigned the badge only to replace it on the away shirt with the robin splat 

There is absolutely nothing loosely related to high performance at the training ground.  

Like most things to do with BCFC, the website was done on the cheap and they won’t pay the going rate to get qualified people to make the website engaging. Gone downhill ever since Beanhead left IMO.

11 hours ago, Dolman Exile said:

(Hopefully someone with direct experience can shed some light here…?)

At professional levels of the game, it’s mandatory to hold a minimum level of UEFA Coaching License.

LM is one of a raft of new managers who are all linked by holding the top UEFA Pro License at a relatively young age. He’s not alone in struggling within this cohort. How many of us know what the license entails and could its influence explain some of his recent difficulties?

Is it pure coincidence that so many of the so called young, modern managers have similar possession heavy philosophies and playing styles? Is this solely down to growing up in the Guardiola era or are UEFA courses encouraging it?

Whether he has or he hasn’t or whether he’s capable of implementing it or not, LM certainly believes that he has a detailed blueprint in his head. Is this what the UEFA courses do, facilitate a manager to choose a formation and pattern of play and then validate it via assessment? Do they leave the programme with a fully assessed and approved Plan A which they are then scared to deviate from? Does it explain why so many supporters of so many clubs lament the lack of a Plan B?

I want to believe that LM has a coherent plan that he will quickly find a way to execute but I fear he might be one of a generation of Pep-ball Pro License academics when what we really need is a free thinker or maverick who happens to hold a license?

I don’t think so, no. Would you think Pep or Klopp tell their players to be emotionless? Absolutely no chance IMO. 

I suspect the licences teach the modern coaching methods, but on top of that you need to be able to motivate, man-manage and be tactically astute to be successful.

Klopp once said of his and Pep’s teams that they match their own personalities. Manning could say the same.

3 hours ago, Davefevs said:

My sentiments too.  Just give it away at a stupid low price.  He’s had 20 years of “fun”, it obviously isn’t fun to him anymore.

Why won’t he do that?

Because one of his major reasons for “investing” (clue there!!!) is to make money.  Yeah, yeah, I do think there is a bit of “doing good for Bristol”, but if it was all about that he’d have moved on by now.

Yeah, I sound ungrateful.

But imagine placing the club in a position where you’ve got them over a barrel!

Precisely right, Dave. Amazing to think some people genuinely believe SL is a City fan who stood on the terraces in his youth when nothing could be further from the truth than that. Sorry, but no genuine fan would put their club in that position. 

7 hours ago, Superjack said:

...with the "Steve Lansdown needs to come back and sort this out"?

He's THE BIGGEST ****ING PROBLEM OF ALL!!!

And also, if you haven't noticed, he washed his hands of it some while ago. 

SELL. UP. AND. ****. OFF.

Exactly. Just like a leopard who never changes his spots, he will never stray away from nepotistic appointments that promote an arse-licking culture. There’s no chance in hell he would admit he got it wrong, not after more than 20 years of mistakes. 

On 15/03/2024 at 22:18, frenchred said:

Cheltenham is certainly not what it was, crowds down and uncompetitive racing

I have my own ideas/reasons for the dwindling crowds, anybody else have any opinions?

Totally agree. Four or five of us used to go every year and don’t bother now. Tickets aren’t value, rip-off vendors, dreadful booze choices, and it increasingly attracts the arse end of Birmingham thinking they’re straight out of Peaky Blinders. 

I went to Leopardstown for the Dublin Racing Festival last year. €50 tickets for two days, easy access to most areas, no tossers, good food and drink etc. Basically, the opposite of what the Cheltenham experience has become. 

Passion is an emotion, and a strong one at that. I want to see a City side play with passion, fire in the belly, call it what you will. If you tell the players to control their emotions, you take away that edge IMO. That’s been a consistent in Manning’s time here and a polar opposite of the miserly side Pearson built. Manning out.

1 minute ago, Baldyman said:

Amazing window was January! We signed 5 players with not one of them getting any game time and two of which we loaned back despite clearly needing them ! 

Don’t worry. Brian was thrilled with our January business and there’s a £1m fee agreed to sign Mebude in the summer. 

Just now, Ciderhead433 said:

Who the **** is Andy Johnson

Bristol-born ex-Norwich and West Brom midfielder. Gas.