chinapig Posted March 10, 2012 Report Share Posted March 10, 2012 The always interesting column by an unnamed player (and no it's not David James) in the Saturday Guardian is particularly interesting this week. http://www.guardian....cret-footballer What he has to say about appointing the No. 2 is what some of us said when Keith got the job and what he says about what players do when a new man comes in is likewise what some of us have said about the initial bounce when Del arrived and the inevitable back sliding. This guy's column is a fascinating insight into what footballers are really like. Suffice to say the claim that they always give 100% is something of a myth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 10, 2012 Report Share Posted March 10, 2012 If it isn't David James, who is it? Reads just the way I've always thought things work, at pretty much any level of football, so apart from JM how many No 2's have made a fist of being No 1? I'll give you the first one ....Alan Dicks, Bristol City's most successful manager, who was number 2 to Jimmy Hill, or are we only talking about promoting from within a club. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chinapig Posted March 10, 2012 Author Report Share Posted March 10, 2012 If it isn't David James, who is it? Reads just the way I've always thought things work, at pretty much any level of football, so apart from JM how many No 2's have made a fist of being No 1? I'll give you the first one ....Alan Dicks, Bristol City's most successful manager. Nobody has yet worked out who but is has been confirmed it s not DJ. Over the course of the columns he appears to be an outfiled player, probably in the Prem. As to AD, he was not of course number 2 at City and learned the trade from the underrated Jimmy Hill. So not the kind of Millen situation the column is talking about. But yes, even a great like Peter Taylor under Clough couldn't step up. On the other had Paisely and Fagin didn't do too badly at Liverpool! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john shaws hair Posted March 10, 2012 Report Share Posted March 10, 2012 Charlie Nicholas so ie been told Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedUn Posted March 10, 2012 Report Share Posted March 10, 2012 If it isn't David James, who is it? Reads just the way I've always thought things work, at pretty much any level of football, so apart from JM how many No 2's have made a fist of being No 1? I'll give you the first one ....Alan Dicks, Bristol City's most successful manager, who was number 2 to Jimmy Hill, or are we only talking about promoting from within a club. My little 10p bet has been on Danny Murphy ... and, yes it is about promoting the No 2 from within the same club, its also one of the reasons why player/manager doesn't work IMHO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red-Robbo Posted March 10, 2012 Report Share Posted March 10, 2012 TBH I find The Secret Footballer to be insufferably smug. Most of the columns I've read by him seem to boil down to: "The public think xxx, but they are utter mugs. Us super-fit, super-smart supermen laugh at them, while we operate on a higher plane of consciousness..." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Bard Posted March 10, 2012 Report Share Posted March 10, 2012 'but when I hear a pundit say something like "he's got them organised" in reference to a team's improved form, I cringe. Often it has little, if anything, to do with hours spent on the training pitch, and it is more down to the players trying that much harder and reverting to what they should have been doing anyway.' Interesting. the article Made some saliant points. The importance of a no. 2 who works well with a no. 1 being the most fundamental. Reason to be positive about our management team who know each other well and seem to have a rock solid working relationship. Liked what he had to say about a no. 2 having to be able to challenge the main man and how a particularly useless one had the ability of saying what the no. 1 wanted to hear. Sounds like any workplace in the world. I suspect that Tony Doc has a strong infuence in a lot of areas. Man U did best when they had first Brian Kidd, then Steve MacLaren and finally Carlos Quiroz. They appear to be on the wane a bit without a proper thinker as a no. 2. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
And Its Smith Posted March 10, 2012 Report Share Posted March 10, 2012 Charlie Nicholas so ie been told It's not. The secret footballer is still playing. Said earlier in the season that he had been getting stick from fans close to him every game which implies he is a full back or winger. Also clear that he is near the end of his career and an outfield player from other articles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedM Posted March 11, 2012 Report Share Posted March 11, 2012 Joey Barton? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heathy33 Posted March 11, 2012 Report Share Posted March 11, 2012 No, he has to have won a cup final with Celtic. It's Craig Bellamy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tins Posted March 11, 2012 Report Share Posted March 11, 2012 No, he has to have won a cup final with Celtic. It's Craig Bellamy. Its not Bellamy. The Secret Footballer quotes Bellamy. However he does say when he spoke to a manager the manager said "you are nowhere near as good as Scholes" So maybe its a CM? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Fat Controller Posted March 11, 2012 Report Share Posted March 11, 2012 Its not Bellamy. The Secret Footballer quotes Bellamy. Bellamy is exactly the type to quote himself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
And Its Smith Posted March 17, 2012 Report Share Posted March 17, 2012 Today's clue: He plays for a club where their most experienced player has won nearly everything there is to win in the game. I also assume that this player is no longer regularly involved in the first team as his physio asked if he would be interested in moving to Doncaster. Any ideas? My mind is blank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chinapig Posted March 17, 2012 Author Report Share Posted March 17, 2012 Today's clue: He plays for a club where their most experienced player has won nearly everything there is to win in the game. I also assume that this player is no longer regularly involved in the first team as his physio asked if he would be interested in moving to Doncaster. Any ideas? My mind is blank. Actually, he was talking about the other player: Recently our physio approached our most experienced player, a man who has won almost everything worth winning in the game and who has a few quid in his pocket, to inform him that he'd had a chat with his counterpart at a Championship club and learned that Doncaster were interested. "Great," replied our player. "What do they want me to do, buy the club?" So no clue there I'm afraid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jordan Tansley Posted March 17, 2012 Report Share Posted March 17, 2012 Everton have Phil Neville who's won everything. Liverpool have Gerrard and Carragher who has won every cup competition. Only two clubs I can think of outside the top 4 with that sort of player... Edit: Scrap that then... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperRed Posted March 17, 2012 Report Share Posted March 17, 2012 My guess for the experienced player he refers to is Salgado at Blackburn, he's close to triggering an extension in his contract so Blackburn aren't playing him and they were trying to send him out on loan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
And Its Smith Posted March 17, 2012 Report Share Posted March 17, 2012 Actually, he was talking about the other player: Recently our physio approached our most experienced player, a man who has won almost everything worth winning in the game and who has a few quid in his pocket, to inform him that he'd had a chat with his counterpart at a Championship club and learned that Doncaster were interested. "Great," replied our player. "What do they want me to do, buy the club?" So no clue there I'm afraid. Read what I wrote again, carefully. You will see I haven't made a mistake. This is still a clue to the team he plays for. Rules out nicky shorey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heathy33 Posted March 17, 2012 Report Share Posted March 17, 2012 A few weeks back he said he had lost his medal from the when he played in the Scottish cup final. (2005? Can't remember). I looked that team up and Bellamy was in it. Only one with the profile to be the sf I thought. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tins Posted March 18, 2012 Report Share Posted March 18, 2012 I really want us to crack it. I believe our combined knowledge will help. This is what is known apparently. He once successfully completed a transfer on deadline day. He has played for a newly promoted Premier League club. He has been involved in a last day relegation battle. He played with Paolo Di Canio has a daughter He played with a group of French players at one club is English. has a friend who plays for Liverpool. Played for one manager for a long time who was seen as a great before ‘losing it’ Premier League player last season at least. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveF Posted March 18, 2012 Report Share Posted March 18, 2012 Is it someone like Francis Jeffers? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miketh2nd Posted March 18, 2012 Report Share Posted March 18, 2012 I really want us to crack it. I believe our combined knowledge will help. This is what is known apparently. He once successfully completed a transfer on deadline day . He has played for a newly promoted Premier League club . He has been involved in a last day relegation battle. He played with Paolo Di Canio has a daughter He played with a group of French players at one club is English . has a friend who plays for Liverpool . Played for one manager for a long time who was seen as a great before ‘losing it’ Premier League player last season at least. One player who could fit into this category is joe Cole. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redtucks Posted March 18, 2012 Report Share Posted March 18, 2012 Promoting from within worked pretty well for Liverpool in the seventies and eighties though. Bob Paisley after Shankly, then Joe Fagan after Paisley. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glynriley Posted March 18, 2012 Report Share Posted March 18, 2012 A few weeks back he said he had lost his medal from the when he played in the Scottish cup final. (2005? Can't remember). I looked that team up and Bellamy was in it. Only one with the profile to be the sf I thought. Derek McInnes played in that cup final. If , as Tins says , he is English , the only English players in that game were Alan Thompson & Chris Sutton for Celtic and Tony Bullock(?) the Dundee keeper. The Scottish League cup final of that year featured Michael Ball for Rangers who is currently at Leicester , but he doesn't tie in with any of the clues Tins has given. In short , I aint got a clue ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jordan Tansley Posted March 18, 2012 Report Share Posted March 18, 2012 One player who could fit into this category is joe Cole. But cole is thick as pig shit! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Talk Of The Town Posted March 18, 2012 Report Share Posted March 18, 2012 Dean Ashton? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gillies Downs Leeds Posted March 18, 2012 Report Share Posted March 18, 2012 Yossi Benayoun? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glynriley Posted March 18, 2012 Report Share Posted March 18, 2012 After reading a couple of other articles , Im leaning towards Keiron Dyer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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