chinapig

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As expected potential buyers for Reading have withdrawn because the training ground is not part of the deal.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.

Be fair, they're all learning on the job. I'm sure in time they will learn not to lie to fans. These things take time.

I'm with you on Stockwood. He comes across well in his occasional columns for the Guardian. I can't imagine anybody from our club writing such intelligent and thought provoking stuff. What I like most about him though are the admirable values he has, a rare thing among football club owners. An important element for me to be proud of my club is its values. That was a key reason why I liked Gould, Pearson and his coaches and Rennie. I don't see positive values in the club now, which is deeply depressing.

And the Government is not impressed. https://www.theguardian.com/football/2024/mar/12/government-angry-premier-league-reject-efl-support-plan

He's like a politician who has their dogmatic policies and won't change them regardless of whether they work. OMG Liam Manning is our very own Liz Truss!

It's a welcome return for Squires' emo Mourinho.

Agreed but Tinnion has been learning about football for 30 years (my estimate as he doesn't like to talk about it) but I don't see much evidence that he has learned the skills for the job.

The question he should have asked after meeting JL and BT:

Not the first time he has been so unprofessional. In most businesses he'd be out in his ear for revealing confidential information. Anyway he should go through the proper channels and tell Ian Gay first.

One club sacks an experienced, respected and popular manager doing a good job under difficult circumstances because it wanted what it thought was a modern, progressive coach. Having realised their mistake they got rid. Another club sacks an experienced, respected and popular manager doing a good job under difficult circumstances because it wanted what it thought was a modern, progressive coach. But the people who run that club never admit to getting things wrong so keep him on to save face regardless of performances and results. Strong leaders are comfortable admitting mistakes. Weak ones aren't so they plough on regardless.

Perhaps he's had too much time on the grass?

"Ok lads, Swansea like to hog possession so on no account should you press them. There, I've given you the information so if it doesn't work it's your fault."

All very well but not what a modern, progressive coach like Manning does. Just not funky enough I'm afraid. We mortals can't possibly understand the subtlety of his tactical brain. Unfortunately neither can the players.

How else can Liam "give them the information"? The wrong information admittedly but it's a start.

Yep, and he turned down his old club Cardiff. We had no chance of getting him.

I thought Cardiff got far too emotional towards the end of the game. Not the right kind of behaviours.

To be fair to Tinnion, he said Cam was ready for the first team but was ignored in favour of sending him on yet another loan.

A case of "The operation was a great success but the patient died"?

Hardly seems worth him turning up on match days does it? Mind you the same could be said of the fans!