chinapig

You are starting from a mistaken assumption that Nigel was sacked for football reasons. When it comes to JL and BT logic does not apply.

Again, nobody expected Coventry levels of spending. Nigel wasn't keen on spending big money anyway but he talked of getting one more player and I'm sure any target would have been in the affordable range.

It's all very well taking time off Dave but surely you'll come back deconditioned? Better to spend your time on the grass. One way or another there's plenty of that in Devon.

Doesn't really wash for me. It wasn't that we couldn't spend a bit more of the money raised (nobody was demanding we spend loads, least of a!l Nigel). Rather we were told we were building a nest egg for some unspecified point in the future. Which was code for not wanting to give Nigel any more.

We can't compare with Coventry though because they sold players for big money. I thought we had done the same but Tinnion put us right on that. Our technical director certainly has his finger on the pulse.

Except those above don't want to be galvanised, they want a compliant head coach who'll defer to Tinnion.

A man of Weimann's admirable qualities has no place at a club run by a bunch of incompetent shysters. And I don't mean West Brom!

He's been a success for me. I felt little or no emotion after today's defeat. Trust the process people, you'll all feel nothing after games in due course. These things take time.

You mean their top end squad is top -ender than our top end squad?

Behaviours?

I've been a big fan of his since his Huddersfield days. I remember Nigel being very complimentary about him also. If I could take one coach from another club to take over here it would be him. No chance of course.

I agree up to a point. For many years, especially in relation to the England team, people would bang on about "passion", often claiming foreign teams couldn't match us for it or complaining that players didn't show enough. It was nonsense of course as coolness under pressure is important in winning games. But of course you need the right mix of both. So I wouldn't say Liam is wrong rather that he over emphasises one over the other. He compounds the problem by saying the same thing week after week, giving the impression that he has a very narrow range of ideas. It may be no big deal if it irritates fans but my concern is whether it reflects the way he talks to the players.

The shadow leader of the House, Lucy Powell, said Labour would make the introduction of a regulator “an election issue” in places with struggling clubs if the government did not act. “If the Conservatives want to make this an election issue in those places, I say bring it on,” Powell said. “Let us be really clear: if they do not want to regulate football governance, then we will.” https://www.theguardian.com/football/2024/mar/14/efl-looks-to-independent-regulator-to-break-premier-league-impasse

I'm sure Infantino is getting no personal benefit from this.

A Shakespeare reference*. You won't get that on Gaschat! *Not the pub

So far we have been told we should copy Brighton, then Brentford, then Luton and now Ipswich. At this rate we will eventually get through the remaining clubs in the pyramid in 88 years. Actually 87, we can't compare with Coventry because the sold players for big money.

Close but I think you may be 2 Southamptons short there.

To quote the Guardian: Southgate had been a factor in Phillips choosing to remain in the Premier League in January with a loan move to West Ham from Manchester City. But the midfielder has endured a torrid time at the London club, starting only three games, in which he has made a costly error against Bournemouth, received a red card at Nottingham Forest and been substituted at half-time against Burnley. He has come on as a substitute in four other matches. Seems the right decision to me. Southgate would have got stick for picking him in those circumstances so it's a no win situation as it always is with England managers.

A Georgian billionaire living in Kazakhstan is the source of the money according to Ben Fisher: https://www.theguardian.com/football/2024/mar/14/reading-owner-dai-yongge-training-ground-sale-wycombe As expected potential buyers for Reading have withdrawn because the training ground is not part of the deal.

Thanks, it's always interesting to get an alternative take. Which take I should choose I have no idea! Given what you say it seems odd for the club to say we are going to play the same way at all levels. Then again clarity of thought and words is not a feature of the club right now.

If Wycombe can afford it I assume they paid well below the potential market value. It may also make it harder to sell the club, which no longer owns a valuable asset. No doubt they can now pay their bills in the short term but it doesn't help in the long term.

Yes, Ajax and Total Football came to my mind too. Rinus Michels is usually credited with it though Austria in the 30s and Hungary in the 50s took a similar approach.

Indeed you did Dave. I wonder if our technical director has thought this through? Stupid question!

Some of you might be interested in today's Tifo Football podcast on developing young players: https://theathletic.com/podcast/197-the-tifo-football-podcast/ Lots of informative stuff but I was struck by the section where they discuss the problems with training young players in only one tactical system in the light of our aim to have all our teams playing the same way.

In my experience organisations come up with statements of values as bolierplating and rarely actually live by them. I wonder if the club ever reviews how it's doing against those alleged values. The discussion around integrity and honesty would be an interesting one for sure. As to innovative, I'm not sure "we should copy Brighton/Brentford/Luton..." qualifies. Nor does "ooh, look, that club over there has a fashionable, modern young coach, let's get one of those". Still, learning on the job and all that.