Why Johnson should be sacked

[Major Isewater]

10 hours ago, BS4 on Tour... said:

Out of responses....but have a “laughing emoji” and a “Like” on me....chief!

Pay a walloping 5 quid and you will never , ever be out of likes again, not only that but you help support this wonderful forum.

 

[RedM]

8 hours ago, Fordy62 said:

I thought the rumoured value was higher than 5m to be fair. 

My point being that they’re players that we got rid of who failed to flourish under LJ for whatever reason and have gone on to prove elsewhere that they weren’t good business for us. 

And let players go for nothing when we have paid decent money for them, that’s what gets me just as much. Accepted you are going to lose a few quid occasionally but when it rolls into millions and you see the costs to fans ever increasing and being squeezed further it doesn’t sit right. 

A friend of mine works in a bank, used to seeing high figures. After a while he was almost blinded by money and needs the occasional reality check. Maybe the club needs the same? 

As for LJ, he has been in more difficult times than he is now, we are coasting along making no real effort and therefore getting no real reward. He is going no where. After the SL interview on the last game of last season it was clear he was expecting more with less resources. So far LJ hasn’t managed that. I once saw a boss give some advice to a colleague ‘don’t issue threats that you aren’t prepared to carry out’, I can’t help but think about this advice here.

[ScottishRed]

9 hours ago, Fordy62 said:

I think we all get that Lansdown wants us to become self sufficient. 

Buy promising players, develop them and the flog them for millions. 

Only problem is that LJ has only ever sold other people’s signings for millions. 

He sold Freeman and Ayling for a combined 1.5m and if you were to sell the pair of them now you’d probably get the best part of 20m. 

Realistically which of Johnson’s signings would we now make a profit on? There aren’t many.

At the same time it’s his job to get the best out of the players. He is simply not doing that. And hasn’t done that for 12 months. 

And to add to this, we are starting to see the ‘results and outcome’ of an utterly flawed strategy.

There is no way that SL’s plan will ever see this club as more than a mid tier Championship club.

It is more likely that we will eventually end up relegated in the next few seasons.

I agree that this forum is not totally reflective on the fan base but one thing is for sure - home crowds are going to drop and SC card sales next year will be interesting - the football is dire, predictable and BORING. 

Times have changed there are plenty of other forms of ‘ entertainment ‘ available on a Saturday afternoon and over time people will start to drift away if the product on offer is sub - standard.

 

[Guest]

10 hours ago, Robbored said:

Of course he did. He knows it’s a tough ask to accomplish everything SL demands but accepted the challenge all the same.

He loves City and wants desperately to achieve promotion to the PL and all the while with one hand tied behind his back....like posted earlier - he has a tough and demanding boss with high expectations.

I think LJ should go to SL and say; look give me just another 20m so I can invest it wisely or I`m out of here just to see what happens

[AppyDAZE]

Shouldn't be sacked due to relatively good position in a tough league

However, must except plenty of stick if he continues to serve up the kind of crap we have seen in home games this season.

Play football again LJ, we've done it before so it's down to you to find a formula that works and gets the fans interested again.

You could start by being honest, and just admitting it when we have been crap like against Brentford, Millwall, Preston etc etc etc

LJ in though

 

 

[Robbored]

11 minutes ago, Bri Stool City said:

I think LJ should go to SL and say; look give me just another 20m so I can invest it wisely or I`m out of here just to see what happens

You’re another one who doesn’t understand what SLs strategy is.

You and BS4 should meet up for a pint..........

[Olé]

2 hours ago, Cowshed said:

 There is the odd similarity but Mr Johnson clearly is not trying to play Man City football with Bristol City players. 

When I saw you'd replied I knew that was the point you would pick up on! I meant only in relative terms of wanting to employ a style typical of teams blessed with world class forwards and midfielders, and less common with the talent levels he has to call on, rather than specifically that he wishes to employ Man City's prescribed pattern of play.

But nonetheless my point is he is aiming for an approach that mimics a higher level of football and that relies much on the individual qualities of the attacking players to move fluidly from 5 without the ball to 3 across the front with others supporting, and the ability of Pack and others to pick passes that exploit that. When of course there is little or no movement and certainly not that level of individual quality in the attacking players we have to call upon (Bobby Reid was an exception).

Away from home at least it means we can be compact without the ball and look effective on the break, but at home it is precisely what it looks like - asking average players to play through teams from deep without the pace, strength or talent to do so, resulting in quite cautious, tame fare to watch. Apologies, I don't doubt you will more accurately pick out the coaching methods used, I simply wanted a turn of phrase for LJ ascribing a higher purpose to his work than the situation allows.

[italian dave]

11 hours ago, Fordy62 said:

I think Johnson should leave because our squad is capable of more than it is displaying at present. LJ cannot get the best out of them. 

Who do you think a)would and b) would come? 

[old_eastender]

41 minutes ago, AppyDAZE said:

Shouldn't be sacked due to relatively good position in a tough league

However, must except plenty of stick if he continues to serve up the kind of crap we have seen in home games this season.

Play football again LJ, we've done it before so it's down to you to find a formula that works and gets the fans interested again.

You could start by being honest, and just admitting it when we have been crap like against Brentford, Millwall, Preston etc etc etc

LJ in though

... and there is the rub, it's as though LJ believes his own hype and doesn't see the problems when he comes out with bullshit like we played well and could have won 3-0 against Brentford.

As Ole and others have reasonably pointed out, playing 1 up front at home against sides that sit in, is evidently not working for us. Not specifically because of the formation but the lack of other players not making runs ahead of the 1, or getting close enough to offer support - yet he persists in doing so. Another repeating fault is leaving it too late to replace tiring players with subs or change things with subs. He just doesn't seem to see these problems then comes out with delusional statements after the game.

I expect more of the same dross Saturday.  

 

[italian dave]

12 hours ago, 1960maaan said:

He may be a decent man, and he may have the club at heart, but the football (at home) at the moment is awful . It may be those run of defeats have made him nervous and went a more pragmatic approach, if that's true I hope he lets them off the leash soon.  Along with the run of defeats, we had the Sheff U game, he set out to hold them for 45 (I think they had scored the most goals before. halftime in the league or something), then try and nick it. It worked , but it's like we play that way every time, don't concede and try and nick it. That's not good at home, acceptable away, but home fans expect more.  One reason for the negativity is below, we are just outside the relegation zone on home games. Against Brentford , I felt the crowd tried to get going, but the boring football gradually dragged the atmosphere down. 

Any chance of seeing the away table? For balance. And because, I assume, it looks good!

[Alan Dicks' Barmy Army]

13 hours ago, ForeverRes said:

But I've had enough.

Im so so bored of the negativity surrounding the club (misplaced negativity). 

Ashton gate is souless with no atmosphere.

Forum and social media platforms are pure poison.

 

Fans call him a yes man. Disagree. He's just willing to see the club through this journey because of the benefits it will yield in the future. 

 

Stop being so precious !!

3 wins at home all season, game after game is predictable and dull.

I can  tell you now (barring injuries) we'll see a double change on 70 minutes

He'll put an attacking sub on in the last 5 minutes

Patterson will be ineffective yet play the 90 minutes

 

We don't know anyone will come through "for the future". Signing 47 players in his tenure with the majority "for the future"

11 hours ago, Robbored said:

You repeatedly fail to have any understanding of what SLs strategy is........sadly you’re not alone with that shortcoming.

Its usually the anti LJ brigade that expose their ignorance of said strategy.

If that is his strategy why does Steve L constantly talk about us being a top six club? 

[Davefevs]

3 hours ago, Olé said:

I do get the point you're making but he could simply have said "Well first things first, we've got to get a team playing good football and competing at this level and then see where it takes us". Yes it's deflection, but it's the right tone most managers would set.

And this is what is frustrating about LJ. He is so precise and bold about his long-term prospects, and yet so vague and blustering about the present when put on the spot about inconsistencies or issues in his approach. We've all worked with people like this.

He is trying to offset his limitations in the present with massive self-confidence about the future. It's wonderful he's ambitious but we're at risk of being in bluffer territory. Trying to run before he's walked - trying to play Man City football with Bristol City players.

Brilliant....spot on.  Stop writing match reports and write more of these! 

Only joking.

Its a bit ironic, because Cotts is given stick about being too focussed on “now”.

1 hour ago, Bri Stool City said:

I think LJ should go to SL and say; look give me just another 20m so I can invest it wisely or I`m out of here just to see what happens

A good management team, SL > MA > LJ would be clear what the objectives / strategy is and how to measure, and what the rewards / penalties are for achieving them or not.

SL us saying top 6....do any of us think LJ will get the boot for finishing 12th?  

[Alan Dicks' Barmy Army]

12 hours ago, Hampshire Red said:

Gut feeling and large samples say 90% of City fans think Lj is doing a good job. 

Interesting opinion, but I would never have put it that high

[Numero Uno]

20 minutes ago, italian dave said:

Any chance of seeing the away table? For balance. And because, I assume, it looks good!

Daft argument tbh. People who are able to travel to away games are generally understanding and happy to watch us play behind the ball and hit teams on the counter away from home.

The vast majority of fans, however, only attend home games and whether you think Johnson is good, bad or indifferent what he has served up in home games this season is a pile of boring crap not to put too fine a point on it. As others have said actual (not official) attendances are dropping, that is obvious to anyone who isn’t so blind that they can’t see it.

[1960maaan]

26 minutes ago, italian dave said:

Any chance of seeing the away table? For balance. And because, I assume, it looks good!

Can’t do it just now, I’m in work. I think we are 6th. It’s the fact that a massive majority only see home games, so poor or negative football effects attitudes a lot more at home. 

[phantom]

52 minutes ago, italian dave said:

Any chance of seeing the away table? For balance. And because, I assume, it looks good!

 

21 minutes ago, 1960maaan said:

Can’t do it just now, I’m in work.

Here you go @italian dave  - @1960maaan one advantage of being on a dull teleconference at the moment

[phantom]

Interesting only us and Boro are better away from home

[BigAl&Toby]

I quite liked LJ as a player. I was excited when he was appointed and thought he might be the man for the job.

My thinking has changed but as many know I don’t blame him entirely. There are others higher up the tree who I think aren’t being honest with themselves or us. Or they’re just deluded.

See some say he has one arm tied behind his back. I question that. Which arm is it? Does LJ actually have any arms of his own? Are they connected to the rest of his body? Can they act independently?

I was watching some ITV “quiz” show over Christmas and saw Sooty on it. Or it might have been Pointless. 

I ended up with an image that I just can’t get out of my mind. Perhaps LJ is Sooty. And the other two are Sweep and Sue.

With the great man Lansdown as Harry Corbett. With his own hands well and truly calling the shots. Or missed shots. Or no shots. On target.

Maybe there’s a bit of Lansdown in many of us on here. Let’s face it. If his hands aren’t in our pants he’s certainly pulling them down.

Week in, week out.

Don’t just blame LJ. That’s a bit like blaming Santa for getting you the wrong size socks that your Mrs gave you for Christmas.

Anyway am I looking forward to tomorrow’s latest festive footballing feast.......

[Davefevs]

26 minutes ago, phantom said:

Interesting only us and Boro are better away from home

I haven’t updated the actual positions, but here’s our home form v away form.

We have 5 home games left against the bottom 6.  You could argue our home form is poor because we’ve played all the top teams.  In fact, we have played an average of 13th place at home (ignore the 14 in the above, I've added Rotherham’s position in already).  Preston and Hull push that average up, whilst stoke and Blackburn bring it back down.

All in all, 12 home games we’ve had a fair share of teams across the table, but those 5 games against Wigan, Rotherham (tomorrow), Reading, Bolton and Ipswich are a set where you’ve got to expect wins (I doubt it will be 5W’s though).

On the flip side, we’ve played all bar Millwall of the bottom 6 away, so I expect our home form to be better than our away form by the end of the season.

[phantom]

23 minutes ago, BigAlToby&Liam said:

I was watching some ITV “quiz” show over Christmas and saw Sooty on it. Or it might have been Pointless. 

I ended up with an image that I just can’t get out of my mind. Perhaps LJ is Sooty. And the other two are Sweep and Sue.

With the great man Lansdown as Harry Corbett. With his own hands well and truly calling the shots. Or missed shots. Or no shots. On target.

I blame you for putting this image in my head @BigAlToby&Liam 

[Davefevs]

7 minutes ago, phantom said:

I blame you for putting this image in my head @BigAlToby&Liam 

How many arms does Corbett have....or us he a clever dick 

[Cowshed]

1 hour ago, Olé said:

When I saw you'd replied I knew that was the point you would pick up on! I meant only in relative terms of wanting to employ a style typical of teams blessed with world class forwards and midfielders, and less common with the talent levels he has to call on, rather than specifically that he wishes to employ Man City's prescribed pattern of play.

But nonetheless my point is he is aiming for an approach that mimics a higher level of football and that relies much on the individual qualities of the attacking players to move fluidly from 5 without the ball to 3 across the front with others supporting, and the ability of Pack and others to pick passes that exploit that. When of course there is little or no movement and certainly not that level of individual quality in the attacking players we have to call upon (Bobby Reid was an exception).

Away from home at least it means we can be compact without the ball and look effective on the break, but at home it is precisely what it looks like - asking average players to play through teams from deep without the pace, strength or talent to do so, resulting in quite cautious, tame fare to watch. Apologies, I don't doubt you will more accurately pick out the coaching methods used, I simply wanted a turn of phrase for LJ ascribing a higher purpose to his work than the situation allows.

Shouldn't Coaches / Managers always be aspiring to that higher level of football?  I feel its a yes to the question and its a case of always aspiring and planning now in a constant cycle striving for that bigger picture.  

Average players can have above average qualities. Bobby Reid highlighted that average improves when focus is placed upon key skills and in team working in harmony with the players best qualities.. 

Playing 4-3-3 for instance can see players move easily into the defensive and offensive shapes you mention. Movement and new/improved ability can be coached in via use of recurring systems and associated training. At present  Bristol City do not do this because the team shape is not recurring and its preparation cannot follow consistently - It can be argued that average needs more repetition, more familiarity, more consistency in approach due to technical deficiency meaning logically average is less tactically flexible.

An interesting term is commitment culture - Bristol City's football lacks movement and cohesion because its average players have not been part of a consistent commitment culture that improves them, and builds on the key abilities all players have.   

 

 

[italian dave]

1 hour ago, Numero Uno said:

Daft argument tbh. People who are able to travel to away games are generally understanding and happy to watch us play behind the ball and hit teams on the counter away from home.

The vast majority of fans, however, only attend home games and whether you think Johnson is good, bad or indifferent what he has served up in home games this season is a pile of boring crap not to put too fine a point on it. As others have said actual (not official) attendances are dropping, that is obvious to anyone who isn’t so blind that they can’t see it.

I'm not trying to argue anything. Just like seeing a table with City near the top.

[Midlands Robin]

4 hours ago, Robert the bruce said:

Chief 'cook & bottle washer??....

Engineering Technician so just below cook and bottle washer.

[bcfcredandwhite]

I tend not to get involved in these LJ In/out debates because I find they inflame opinions and get us fighting each other. I have also been criticised for airing this opinion. However, I do feel compelled to on this occasion. 

This debate isn’t going to fade away - unless we suddenly find form and start to romp our way towards the playoffs - and even then it would only go ‘dormant’ for a while. It will never go completely. 

I believe that LJ is accepted by the majority of fans (not 90% as someone stated above, but more than 50%). However, there is no doubt that a significant minority of people for various reasons want him replaced - despite our comfortable league position and solid championship status. 

Whilst I do NOt believe this to warrant his sacking, I DO think that LJ should at least address some of the concerns that his critics have raised; boring games, tinkering, letting leads slip, playing defensively at home - all these are valid criticisms and he needs to improve his standing amongst his critics by explaining his reasons behind the decisions he makes.

To be fair, his post-match comments have been better of late - less of the text-book spin which he became known for, but it still does not address the main gripes that his critics have raised. He MUST do this in order to be seen to reconnect with those fans who dislike his tenure. 

Come on LJ - issue a statement acknowledging people’s criticisms and explain why you set up the team the way you do. People may still (will most probably) disagree with you, but will (probably) at least appreciate the recognition that those criticisms are valid and you respect the concerns of those fans - who pay good money to consume this Bristol Sport product. 

Like I said, I don’t want LJ sacked, but I do think he could do more to engage with his critics. 

[RedLionLad]

3 hours ago, Robbored said:

You’re another one who doesn’t understand what SLs strategy is.

You and BS4 should meet up for a pint..........

How ironic that you of all people should suggest meeting up with someone...

[Robbored]

6 minutes ago, RedLionLad said:

How ironic that you of all people should suggest meeting up with someone...

You should meet up and then you can talk about SLs long term strategy...............

[reddoh]

1 hour ago, Davefevs said:

How many arms does Corbett have....or us he a clever dick 

Have you seen how sad sweep looks?

[Bazooka Joe]

15 hours ago, Hampshire Red said:

Gut feeling and large samples say 90% of City fans think Lj is doing a good job. 

 

Ninety per cent !!!?  Never in a million years. Fake news !

I'd love to see these "large" samples. Have I missed something?  Anyone else seen them? Have they been shredded/deleted?

 

[McNasty Filth]

15 hours ago, BS4 on Tour... said:

Fair enough, that’s your opinion. I think the atmosphere at the Gate is consistently flat and quiet because the crowd is fed up of totally boring, inept performances....we haven’t won at home for over two months....I think your ‘agendas’ comment is a bit paranoid...people are just fed up of watching tepid, boring football with little threat of scoring.....that’s all....

Exactly this. People are reading way to much into all this forum and social media stuff.

Basically the quality of performances and standard of football over the last two or three months at home bar a couple of games has been nothing short of horrendous, and that's the simple reason why the atmosphere down the gate is so flat. It's the manager and teams responsibility to give the fans something to shout about and get behind them. If they offer us nothing, then what do you expect.

If I was a potd fan I'd feel right fooked off having spent 30-40 quid for a game only to be served up with turgid dross. Deffo wouldn't be returning any time soon!

Had a quick look back at the shots on target stats over the last couple of months and they report back two, maybe three on target a game, and that sir is woeful and relegation quality football after taking out our reasonably solid defence.