IAmNick

Dare I say it, I think we're playing decently enough now? Balls are moving up the pitch much more directly/quickly than they have been recently (apart from the last game).

I suspect someone gives the person a quick once over to make sure they're actually, you know, dying, rather than just having a bit of a laugh before they then stop the game

Lovely run and touch from Twine, unlucky

Wasn't he linked with Lazio in Jan? Tough choice for him between us if so!

As opposed to finding something that works and then... not doing it again, presumably in favour of something that doesn't work? Isn't that what we've been accusing Manning of? So finding a plan that works and trying it more than once is a negative. Bizarre.

Hey, that's my ear on the left

Why though? Are we good at buying the best lower league players? Genuine question, and maybe there's an obvious answer I'm missing... But who was the last lower league player we bought, developed, and who then turned out to be premiership quality? Brownhill? Ayling? That's not a great hit rate if so, so why should that be the way for us to go? Honestly, I don't think the slowly slowly, gradually develop a manager and team approach is the way to go. I think you have to build a bit of a head of steam, then just decide to go for it one year, splash some serious money, and have a proper crack at it. I think the idea of signing a few kids, spending £1m-4m each summer and hoping you get there actually means you end up exactly where we are EVERY YEAR - mid table.

I'm not sure either suit what Manning wants, so it depends on how the rest of the team would be set up. If it's the monotonous one paced Manning ball we've seen most of the time since he came in, neither of them.

Oh absolutely mate. They're better than we were on I expect almost every measurable metric and deserving of their place. The top few are away from the pack. It's just there can't be that many newly promoted teams top of the championship at this point, and it's bizarre to think we were one of them in the not too distant past.

Amazing to think we were basically in that same positions 16 years ago (well, last time we were top was after game 38 I think but whatever). I wouldn't actually care if they go up - the Ashton thing, yeah annoying, whatever. Good luck to them, hard to say they don't deserve it after their wobble and resurgence this season. Oh, and to see Leicester potentially fail would be worth it for me.

Never thought he'd be our long term number 1, happy to admit I was wrong as things stand. Keeper was one of the first positions imo to strengthen for some years now but Max is doing a great job at the moment. He's surpassed my expectations and good luck to him. I'd like to see some backup to challenge him, but he's absolutely deserving of his place at the moment. Good for him (and us).

Probably couldn't understand Tinnion's email

Do you think James will get offered a contract extension then? And Twine obviously isn't ours. If they're instrumental to how he wants to play he has a funny way of showing it!

Maybe you just liked it because you usually agreed with it before?

Yep good points. I think I'm one of the people you talk about, and it comes from just self-inserting... I know that although I love city, I wouldn't have the first clue how to run a football club so I'd surround myself with people who did, let them get on with it, and then hopefully bask in the success if I ever got the opportunity. So when I see someone else in that position also with zero knowledge, I assume they'd come to the same conclusion rather than just piss around and make a pigs ear of it. I guess when you're most likely brought up to believe that your shit doesn't stink though, maybe you have other ideas.

I'd really love to know what Jon actually wants to do regarding City himself. Maybe he loves being involved everywhere and has pushed for this from his dad for the last 20 years. If so he has a funny way of showing it and is really not doing a great job anywhere really. Maybe his passion is actually the Fever Pitch stuff, in which case as far as billionaire son's playthings go it's not the worst tbh. Just let him have his fun, it's not good but it's not that bad. If we were doing better on the pitch I don't think anyone would really care. The issue is (apart from the fact we're not doing well on the pitch) that when he's deciding what needs to be done, rather than just the raw execution imo (in most cases). As in, the videos, photos, all that isn't bad, but the designs and decisions (when do we/should we do the Zak Vyner clothes line) need someone at the club to push back. Maybe he can't be bothered with any of it, but he's there because of his dad and they're just in a holding pattern waiting for that outside investment, who would likely change stuff up regardless. I honestly have no idea?

It is part of Bristol sport.

I guess it depends whether you consider a player who doesn't make it at our level or with us but goes on to have a decent league career (Morell for example, or dare I say Wes Burns...) or not. It's about the vision/purpose of the academy. Is it to ultimately earn money, or to create good quality football players... And the money is a nice extra? Why do you reckon the coaches and staff get out of bed in the morning? I doubt they really care about how much city might earn in 8 years time from the lads they work with. With the Scott/Semenyo group we didn't get from 8 years old or whatever I think it's a balance. We still signed them (many others will have looked and passed on them) and developed them for a few years. They're not an A+ for the academy, but they deserve some kind of score surely? If another team took them after we passed up we'd be saying why don't we have those contacts, why aren't we scouting and finding those players etc... We can't have it both ways.

It can be both?

Eh? Our most expensive adult seat is £700, theirs is £519. The most you'll pay at Stoke as an over 65 is £399. Here it's £545. Our cheapest adult and theirs are only £20 different. So we have a similar starting price for adults, but then ours ramps up way more. Their kids tickets are £23 in every stand. If I want my 4 year old to sit with me that'll cost me £155 next season or I have to move - and then it's still 3x the price. Our under 22 are decent value in comparison to their U21 in fairness. Oh... and as a Stoke fan, you'll have got 10 seasons of Premiership football in that time, along with 2 FA cup quarter finals, an FA cup final, 3 League Cup quarter finals, a League Cup semi final, AND Europa League football. So what's the value for money there, really..?

If we criticise each other for being "knee jerk" by having the knives out after one bad loss, surely if we're being intellectually honest we should have the same view after one good win?

That's tackling the symptom, rather than the problem though right? I'd argue that so are parachute payments. The problem isn't that there isn't enough money in the Championship / Championship teams aren't spending enough. The problem is that there's too much money in the Premiership. Limit them, and that'll reduce the chasm.

I agree SL is a big problem and ideally would sell some or all of the club. I also think him getting pissed off is the greatest chance of change at the senior levels in the shorter term (Tinnion and Manning). We're looking poor enough that I'm slightly concerned about next season, so I want that to happen - ideally before the summer. I don't think those things are mutually exclusive. Hoping Steve steps in to avoid complete disaster isn't saying he's not part of the problem.

I think our best hope is that it's seen an a JL/BT mistake which SL then has to step in and sort out, like with Holden. Maybe he'll even get a little ego trip out of it, who knows.