Everton show the way .

[Wrongagain]

3 hours ago, Major Isewater said:

Everton signalled their ambitions with the appointment of three-time Champions League-winning boss Ancelotti in December to replace Marco Silva, who was sacked after a string of poor results.

When the Italian took over, Everton were 15th in the table and staring the wrong way - just four points clear of the relegation zone - but their latest victory sees them looking in the opposite direction, four points behind seventh-placed Tottenham.

Get the best coach available and look what happens with the same squad of players.

Pity this forum is not required reading for our directors 

[Riaz]

2 minutes ago, headhunter said:

So what would satisfy you if, by this time next week, our chance of a play off place was all but evaporated?

Top half of the championship is extremely good for a club like ours.

[BrizzleRed]

4 minutes ago, glynriley said:

Can't see that happening with Mark Ashton here.

Although, as we're nearly out of players we can sell on for a profit, his job may come under more scrutiny.

I think a re-jig of roles are needed.  Mark Ashton is clearly a really skilled negotiator and he’s done some wicked deals for the club, particularly in some of the fees brought in.  

I just can’t get my hesd round the number of players he’s brought in who LJ appears not to want, so there seems to be a disconnect somewhare.

[Major Isewater]

8 minutes ago, Riaz said:

 

All sounds good in theory.

But in reality, anyone who is interested in Bristol City are likely to be a "proven failure" to some degree....

Unless of course, we take a punt on an upcoming manager, but i dont think that would satisfy either of you.

I am glad you are not charged with promoting the club .

 I would actually quite like Robins at the club , is he a top coach ?

I don’t know but he has experience and at least one promotion under his belt not to mention a playing career that no player can argue against.

Could we do better ? 
 

There is never ‘ Zero risk ‘ with an appointment but clubs like , Brentford, seem to get it right more often than not and they are not big world players in the sport . 
 

 

[Riaz]

1 minute ago, Major Isewater said:

I am glad you are not charged with promoting the club .

 I would actually quite like Robins at the club , is he a top coach ?

I don’t know but he has experience and at least one promotion under his belt not to mention a playing career that no player can argue against.

Could we do better ? 
 

There is never ‘ Zero risk ‘ with an appointment but clubs like , Brentford, seem to get it right more often than not and they are not big world players in the sport . 
 

 

Why because i am realistic?

Mark Robins? is that it? Thats the amazing coach you were thinking of

[pongo88]

12 minutes ago, Davefevs said:

I don’t think you can group Coppell in with that group. Two promotions to the PL, for starters. SL interfered and get walked on principle. 

 

Got to agree with you about Coppell’s record, but I don’t think he would have got the job if there had been a proper interview process. He never seemed interested, so I don’t think he would have applied. If he had applied  I can imagine the interview being a disaster with his “I can’t start at the moment because I’m a bit busy. Might be able to fit you in, in a few months time” attitude. 

[BrizzleRed]

7 minutes ago, Major Isewater said:

We thought we had . 

I don’t believe that Uncle Steve is entirely without blame in our current situation. 
 

He certainly had his fingers burnt with the Coppell fiasco but surely that is down to a) bad luck or b) lack of depth in the recruiting process. 
 

Does this mean that , unlike many dynamic clubs , we won’t hire a successful established coach at the club again ? 
 

I, increasingly, feel that SL is a big part of the problem. He evidently trusts the Johnson family and is very loyal to those who are loyal to him . It makes for a comfortable existence. 
 

However Bristol Cosy Football club will not survive with the sharks at the top table if certain risks are not taken. 

Sadly, there’s Bristol City in a nutshell “comfortable”.  Unless they can shake off that baggage, we’ll just be getting more of the same.

[Wrongagain]

Just seen that LJ is possible candidate for a move to the Prem!

if no others volunteer I’ll take him! He will have to go in the boot though - I’m shielding

[cidered abroad]

2 hours ago, Real Mad Red said:

Rarely post an opinion on here as snipers get on my nerves - opinions are just that not facts. However this says it all, Lee reminds me of Eric Morecambe that is - "I'm playing all of the right notes (players) but not necessarily in the right order (formation)" Back to my silent mode, stay safe people, and enjoy that first pint of cider at your local.

Brilliant!

[exAtyeoMax]

33 minutes ago, Major Isewater said:

We thought we had . 

I don’t believe that Uncle Steve is entirely without blame in our current situation. 
 

He certainly had his fingers burnt with the Coppell fiasco but surely that is down to a) bad luck or b) lack of depth in the recruiting process. 
 

Does this mean that , unlike many dynamic clubs , we won’t hire a successful established coach at the club again ? 
 

I, increasingly, feel that SL is a big part of the problem. He evidently trusts the Johnson family and is very loyal to those who are loyal to him . It makes for a comfortable existence. 
 

However Bristol Cosy Football club will not survive with the sharks at the top table if certain risks are not taken. 

It always seems to be the fact that the Coppell appointment 'failed' as being a reason to not appoint a top-class manager. Seems like a ridiculous excuse…Steve Coppell is not representative of top-class managers as a whole. 

[Nogbad the Bad]

1 hour ago, Super said:

Didnt we hire a top manager in Steve Coppell?

Yes, but it was spelt C O T T E R I L L. 

[Riaz]

1 minute ago, Nogbad the Bad said:

Yes, but it was spelt C O T T E R I L L. 

We are no longer in League One Nogbad

[Major Isewater]

Just now, Riaz said:

We are no longer in League One Nogbad

But could well have been as Cotts  shot himself in the foot.

 

[Major Isewater]

41 minutes ago, Riaz said:

Why because i am realistic?

Mark Robins? is that it? Thats the amazing coach you were thinking of

No because you are too negative , this is a dream job for many .Open your eyes.

I think Robins would do a better job than LJ but I am not ITK regarding ‘ top coaches ‘ or their availability .

 I would like the best coach available to our club , someone who can drive us forward and who could ‘ manage ‘ Uncle Steve.

[B1ackbird]

Evertonians still celebrate Ray Attiveld day on the day they managed to flog him to us.. 

Edited June 25, 2020 by B1ackbird

[Riaz]

4 minutes ago, Major Isewater said:

No because you are too negative , this is a dream job for many .Open your eyes.

I think Robins would do a better job than LJ but I am not ITK regarding ‘ top coaches ‘ or their availability .

 I would like the best coach available to our club , someone who can drive us forward and who could ‘ manage ‘ Uncle Steve.

Dont think i am negative.

I just dont think people realise what a small club we are seen as, outside of Bristol.

I also think LJ is doing a good job overall, when you take everything into account.

[petehinton]

2 hours ago, JBFC II said:

If he’s achieved so much more than LJ then why has no club above league one taken him on...

turned down Leeds tbf

[man in the middle]

The 1st time he brings in a top manager and look what happened, Think SL got his fingers burnt a little after the Coppell incident, 

[Major Isewater]

Just now, Riaz said:

Dont think i am negative.

I just dont think people realise what a small club we are seen as, outside of Bristol.

I also think LJ is doing a good job overall, when you take everything into account.

You say you’re not negative then in the next sentence say , we are perceived as being a small club , your opinion.

My , positive , opinion, is that we are poised to move up and have had our profile raised since our promotion back to the second division. That it just needs a boost to take us further.

 I appreciate the enormous amount of work that LJ has put in to getting us where we are now but we seem to lack something to make that final push to the top division.

It is very flat around the club at the moment and we don’t look like a play off team in waiting.That’s realistic and ever so slightly negative I’m afraid. 

[E.G.Red]

1 hour ago, dave36 said:

Just seen that LJ is possible candidate for a move to the Prem!

if no others volunteer I’ll take him! He will have to go in the boot though - I’m shielding

We could do a straight swap,. After all Sean Dyche has already achieved promotion with us

Edited June 25, 2020 by E.G.Red

[RedRock]

Given that Warnock is likely gone, Mick McCarthy is a realistic alternative. 

We’re a mess on the playing side. We need someone with experience and a bit of ‘presence’ to sort us out.

 

Can almost guarantee it’ll be Mark Robins though. He’s a typical SL appointment.  

[Riaz]

20 minutes ago, Major Isewater said:

You say you’re not negative then in the next sentence say , we are perceived as being a small club , your opinion.

My , positive , opinion, is that we are poised to move up and have had our profile raised since our promotion back to the second division. That it just needs a boost to take us further.

 I appreciate the enormous amount of work that LJ has put in to getting us where we are now but we seem to lack something to make that final push to the top division.

It is very flat around the club at the moment and we don’t look like a play off team in waiting.That’s realistic and ever so slightly negative I’m afraid. 

Most players who join us, who dont come from the south west, usually say "i didnt know much about Bristol City"

Vast majority of clubs in our division have been in the premier league, we havent - this is a huge reason for why we arent fancied. At lease other clubs can be viewed as a potential premier league club... because they have been!!

[JBFC II]

2 hours ago, Davefevs said:

I don’t think you can group Coppell in with that group. Two promotions to the PL, for starters. SL interfered and get walked on principle. 

Just the way it is. He did a bloody brilliant job at Rovers on the budget he had. If he was an ex-City player a lot on here would be touting him big time, or at least would’ve been a year or so ago.

LJ did not get the job here based on his performances as a head coach at Oldham and Barnsley did he?

I was more replying to Tisdale to be fair, although I guess it’s a similar sort of thing for Clarke. 
 

Did a brilliant job at rovers with the side he had, but sometimes managers find the side that is right for them, again he’s done an ok job at Walsall but has hardly torn up league two since moving there. I’d say he’s a manager who flourishes when under the cosh a bit, on a low budget with minimum expectations. However, if he did come here with the money that he’d be given I’m not sure he’d do such a good job, who knows though?

LJ was in a very good run of form at Barnsley before coming here if I remember correctly, and so although his past connections obviously were the main reason he joined that would have been a factor I’d imagine, even if it was an early indication of his regular ‘streaky’ runs

[JBFC II]

58 minutes ago, petehinton said:

turned down Leeds tbf

At a stage where pretty much any sane manager was whilst they were employing people for about 10 months. 
 

Before they obviously somehow got Bielsa

[BrizzleRed]

24 minutes ago, billywedlock said:

Since we have had our lovely new stadium, there has been a notable drop in atmosphere and match day excitement, it has become Ashton Morgue. The football displayed , at least at home, over 2 seasons has been the epitome of turgid. Low possession, long ball, clueless almost. With the continued investment in the side and wage bill, surely it is not too much to as to produce something worth watching. I really get frustrated with the view that we are doing well for little Bristol. Well could we buy Brentford and get them to play at AG then please. Sheffield United ran past us whilst we were treading water. Even Blackpool have been in the Prem whilst we were self congratulating ourselves on how clever we are. Some people at the club believe their own press. This losers mentality is what keeps us from making steps forward. Can we really not believe we cannot match a Palace for example ? 

With the way we play, we might as well have got Warnock in for 8 games. He would not have done worse and most likely have done better. Then hand the toy box back. 

We will end this season with a whole new bunch of excuses and no action to improve the one area where we have a black hole sized issue that SL does not want to confront. If his concept is turning to Alan Dicks as an example of how a long serving manager can get promotion, he should also consider that of the 30 clubs promoted to the Prem over the last 10 years, not one was managed by someone who had as long as LJ to get there, all achieved in less time. In fact the most common time period of times  2 seasons. It is abnormal , not normal. 

Anyway, if he carries on with LJ they might as well give you a cardboard cutout with your season ticket, so you can put it in your seat and we can all go to the bar and have a laugh with some mates to try and recover some match day enjoyment. 

 

Absolutely nail on the head, so well done sir!

This stadium is far better than it’s ever been and should be packing the fans in.  We’re actually doing well to keep the numbers as high as they are, but can’t see a lot of people sticking this dross much longer before attendance numbers fall off a cliff.

Complacency within the club is the biggest danger here, I think.

[JBFC II]

1 minute ago, BrizzleRed said:

Absolutely nail on the head, so well done sir!

This stadium is far better than it’s ever been and should be packing the fans in.  We’re actually doing well to keep the numbers as high as they are, but can’t see a lot of people sticking this dross much longer before attendance numbers fall off a cliff.

Complacency within the club is the biggest danger here, I think.

Numbers are already falling, the attendances the club puts out are nowhere near what they actually are as they include all season ticket holders even though thousands aren’t turning up. In reality I’d be surprised if we were averaging over 17k this season, never mind 20

[BUTOR]

Steve has been waiting for an excuse to hire Mark Robins for years

[BrizzleRed]

Just now, JBFC II said:

Numbers are already falling, the attendances the club puts out are nowhere near what they actually are as they include all season ticket holders even though thousands aren’t turning up. In reality I’d be surprised if we were averaging over 17k this season, never mind 20

Very true’ there were increasing numbers of empty seats around the SS which were clearly ST holders.

It’s difficult to gauge at the moment with all the virus shit going on, but I think the ST numbers could be well down on last season’s total, though fairly understandable under the circumstances I suppose.

Let’s just hope the club wake up before too much damage is done.

[Davefevs]

1 hour ago, JBFC II said:

I was more replying to Tisdale to be fair, although I guess it’s a similar sort of thing for Clarke. 
 

Did a brilliant job at rovers with the side he had, but sometimes managers find the side that is right for them, again he’s done an ok job at Walsall but has hardly torn up league two since moving there. I’d say he’s a manager who flourishes when under the cosh a bit, on a low budget with minimum expectations. However, if he did come here with the money that he’d be given I’m not sure he’d do such a good job, who knows though?

LJ was in a very good run of form at Barnsley before coming here if I remember correctly, and so although his past connections obviously were the main reason he joined that would have been a factor I’d imagine, even if it was an early indication of his regular ‘streaky’ runs

Yes, on a good run, having been on a bad run.  Definitely a SL appointment, Ashton wanted to bring in Appleton, as did most of the board (allegedly).

1 hour ago, BrizzleRed said:

Absolutely nail on the head, so well done sir!

This stadium is far better than it’s ever been and should be packing the fans in.  We’re actually doing well to keep the numbers as high as they are, but can’t see a lot of people sticking this dross much longer before attendance numbers fall off a cliff.

Complacency within the club is the biggest danger here, I think.

I think it’s starting to go stale under LJ.  His tactics have been sussed out by opposition managers so we see turgid (being generous I called them attritional earlier this season).  The window of exciting games came with a 5212 formation forced upon him by injury to Dasilva, the sale of Pack and the loan of Afobe meaning he had to go two up top.

If we correlate Saturday v Blackburn to Leeds opening day.  Both games cane after lay-offs, you could call the latest one a preseason.  A formation picked, a 3-1 defeat....and likelihood that system will be thrown in the bin.

It will be a “sledgehammer to crack a walnut” again.  Too many times this has happened.  I’d probably have more respect if he said “look, these players were the right ones for Blackburn, I’ve made a few tweaks, and I’m giving them a chance to put it right”.  The pressure on the starters on Sunday is now because of last weekend’s selection and performances.

1 hour ago, JBFC II said:

Numbers are already falling, the attendances the club puts out are nowhere near what they actually are as they include all season ticket holders even though thousands aren’t turning up. In reality I’d be surprised if we were averaging over 17k this season, never mind 20

Yes, think some of that is down to the attractive “free kid” offer.  As a parent you might as well but a “adult plus a kid” even if you rarely use it.  If a big game comes up, you can upgrade to another adult.  It’s a slight flaw in the model.

Its why 14k season tickets generates £3.6m (£257 pp) yet....the lowest season card (19/20 so slight misalignment) is £355.

It shows we have a young fan base, but probably means not everyone goes to the majority of games.  There has definitely been a feel of more empty seats this season than before.

[Bristol Oil Services]

3 hours ago, Riaz said:

Top half of the championship is extremely good for a club like ours.

It is. But we cannot go on forever saying: we're doing better than when we were shite; had a crumbling old ground; attendances of 147 to 16k; had very little income beyond season tickets and matchday tickets; were hopeless in the transfer market.

Comparing ourselves now to what we were before the ground was modernised is lazy, complacent and no longer of any merit. 

SL won't be thinking like this, nor LJ or MA; why would you or we think like this?