Conjo

Fucking Clarke in the team again. Wtf does he do in training to con these managers?

Not sure if I'm misinterpreting you, or you me, but the point I think you're trying to make is the same I was trying to; that Shelvey is most likely moving without any real purpose often to make it look like he puts in more effort than he does, and when the Steves have looked at the stats they think he puts enough effort in without much scrutiny on how effective his movement is.

I remember reading an article maybe 10-ish years ago by a secret footballer(?) saying that it was quite common for players to maximize the distance covered with minimal effort during matches as a lot of managers, at the time at least, used it as a big metric for whom to play. Wouldn't be surprised if the Steves sports scientific approach would fall under that category and being fooled by a number instead of recognizing what is happening on the pitch, thus continuing to play Shelvey at every given opportunity.

If Howe manages to implement a system where Shelvey gets time on the ball without being pressured, and he doesn't have to do a lot of running without it affecting the rest of the team negatively then sure, why not. I have my doubts though

I think it's supposed to be sarcasm based on what he thinks a lot of people on here thinks.

Aye, and £200,000 when negotiating with an assistant manager isn't exactly spare change. Not sure if it's wages or compensation they are talking about, but nevertheless a big sum for such a role, especially if it's a difference between what is offered and what is requested.

Bellamy - because he adds tremendous pace and work rate for a high pressing game HBA - Because i luv u hatam Speed - Because we need a box to box leader in central midfield

Of course if the right deal is there for the right player who can contribute not only for the next 6 months, but for the next 6 years then yeah it makes sense. I'd be careful getting players just because they are available and better than we have now if that means large, long contracts for players that will difficult to move on and be out of favor in a season or two.

Agreed. This season is only about survival and building the foundation to grow on. We desperately need a quality CM with some leadership ability. If we can get someone like that in January that would go a long way in reducing the risk of relegation. We got quite different types of CMs in Willock, Hayden, Longstaff, Shelvey and Hendricks so I'm sure Howe would be able to use them to the best of their abilities in any given match given that they are not bearing the main responsibility of controlling the game. Once we have a CM in place I would say we should look at possibilities of improving our full backs and a striker as cover for Wilson. If we can get 3 new players in that can go in and immediately improve the team (exception being the cover for striker) I would be very confident about staying up. I don't think we need CB's as long as Howe plays our best ones instead of Clarke and Krafth. ASM, Almiron, Fraser, Murphy, Ritchie is good enough in both quality and depth for wingers. Getting Dubs back between the goal posts with Darlow & Woodman as cover is good enough in both quality and depth for goal keepers.

This. There's a difference between negotiating deals and actively using unrealistic targets as an excuse to not spend money at all like Ashley. I don't want the club to pay whatever a club, player, manager or staff is asking for - it's fair to assume anyone our club approaches now will be opportunistic and ask for way more than they would normally expect from any other club.

Yeah...I guess...was just thinking with the current group of players, if there ever was a time for him to get the most out of his philosophy with our national team it would be now. The players suit his style and are still young and hungry which is not necessarily the case in 4 years time. It would be a step up from Glimt, and he could set himself up for an even better job in the future if he managed to qualify us for the next WC and get us out of the group stage...but yeah, boring and safe it will be, and we'll probably qualify for the next WC anyway purely due to more teams being included and we will call it a great achievement and pat ourselves on the back before we dump out of the actual cup in the same manner we didn't manage to qualify this time. Good thing Ashley is gone so I can start ignoring international football again. I had so much hope and expectations for this team but I've got no hope for them unless we can get someone that plays to their strenghts.

Eh..? You've got huge oil service businesses that manufacture and ships subsea umbilicals, flexible pipes and a ton of other subsea structures and minor components/services to all major oil companies around the world. I'm sure there's a lot of other stuff that I am not aware of as well.

You reckon Knutsen would entertain the idea of venturing into international management?

Same game plan at home against Latvia and away against Holland, both must win matches for the biggest tournament in these players lives. Solbakken is such a coward we might just as well have stuck with Lagerbäck.... Wish we'd just go for it and get a manager who wants to press and attack instead of these utter fossils always playing safety first just because we had some success with it 20+ years ago. We may not be more successful than we are now, but at least it would be more enjoyable to watch.

Not scoring and it's all over as well. They left it too late against Latvia on saturday. Doing the same now.

Watching Norway against Holland is like watching Newcastle against Brighton. Must win game, and set up for a draw or narrow loss. What a joke.

Only going by an online match report it seems to have been a back 4.

Fukcing agony watching that match. Left it too late to put the pressure on. Latvia happy with a draw and must have wasted like 20 minutes of the match on goal kicks, free kicks, throw ins and injuries. Assuming Holland wins against Montenegro this evening we'll need two miracles in the next round on Tuesday just to get to the play offs.

From a commercial point of view they'd be crazy to do that. The only reason Ashley did it was to guarantee predictable income and people in the stands without having to show any ambition.

Based on what exactly? Have I missed something key here besides a few clips of him smiling during Howe's first training session?

He'll be the Jordan Ibe Howe never got.

As a night owl I agree. Struggling to get up at the early hours isn't necessarily due to laziness. Give everyone the best chance possible to be on time, and judge them on actually being on time and putting in the effort on the training field.

Great news, will be interesting to learn how the day to day changes, and how he sets up the team. I can tolerate 1/4, maybe even 2/4, but if I see Krafth, Ritchie, Clarke & Shelvey all starting next match the claws will be out immediately, but I'm prepared to give him time regardless.

If they get him, I hope he is able to bring a few of the Glimt players with him so the team can more easily adapt to his philosophy. I love watching their left back Fredrik André Bjørkan play, and think he has the pace, strength and stamina combined with decent technique to really excel in this league. Just pray he doesn't do a Solskjær. Would be so fun to see a team in the PL play like Glimt.