LucaAltieri

Poyet was on a hiding to nothing taking that shower of shit over mid-season. I don't think he's the right man for the job anyway, I can't see him being motivated in a dump like that in the lower divisions. He didn't do his career any favours going there. I begrudgingly rate him. He'll have them somewhere near the top of the Championship next season. They'e not going to attract anyone better and no bigger clubs are about to take a risk on him. This is a good opportunity for all parties. I do feel Di Canio is partially vindicated, though. The players are to blame for the mackem's current plight. However, PDC is still a cunt who hasn't a clue on how deal with these sorts of players without resorting to being a nightmarish dictator. He made the situation worse rather than better.

Our squad was still thin last season. Cisse had stopped scoring (and Pardew should have fixed that). But we still didn't have a period like we have over the last few months where we were getting routinely tonked. Our form before selling Cabaye - while up and down - was still much better on the whole. There's a very obvious contrast. You completely disregard from the fact that our squad was in terms of quality still easily a top 8 side last year. I'm not disregarding that at all. We had some good players and should have done better in the league than we did. As a whole, we under-performed last season. The season before we performed well above expectation. I said at the end of last season that he'd had one good and one bad and he'd earned the benefit of the doubt for this season. Now this season is basically over, our league position is borderline acceptable but our performances are garbage. Patchy in 2013 and disgraceful in 2014. Had everything else been equal then Pardew should be walking. However, all else is not equal. We've sold without buying. Our squad is still way too thin on bodies and quality. Pardew deserves criticism but I don't feel like he deserves all, or even most, of the blame. The way I see it, there are 3 ways this goes: 1) We're already looking for a replacement, we get them in soon and re-build in the summer around them. 2) We decide Pardew is worthy of a little more time. We recruit in the summer and he's got the first 5-10 games to show he still deserves to be in the job. 3) We don't recruit in the summer and the manager is irrelevant. We're fucked whoever is in charge. Personally, I'd be going for option 1. I think option 2 is what will happen but I wouldn't be surprised by any of them.

Our squad was still thin last season. Cisse had stopped scoring (and Pardew should have fixed that). But we still didn't have a period like we have over the last few months where we were getting routinely tonked. Our form before selling Cabaye - while up and down - was still much better on the whole. There's a very obvious contrast.

While I'm not arguing that Pardew is a fantastic manager and deserves no criticism (the Cisse situation is still pissing me off), I think the lack of investment has done more to kill us this season. I don't think it's a coincidence that selling off Cabaye preceded our results turning to shit. The players are clearly demoralized. It's his job to get that sorted ASAP. He's entirely to blame for not fixing the problem but he didn't cause it, in my opinion. I don't think there's a manager in the league who do well under the current circumstances. However there are plenty who'd be able to stop us getting battered at home. He needs to get that shit sorted. If he can't then he needs to go. I view Ashley's board appointment as tentatively positive. I think him sacking JFK and getting more involved with the club is a sign that the last two transfer windows were not acceptable. If we see some investment in the summer then the onus is on Pardew to get the results. A slow start again next season and will mean he needs fucking off. If we don't get investment in the summer then we're screwed whoever is in charge of picking the team.

Glad he's playing for us. We need the goals. Lord knows our goalkeeper isn't keeping a clean sheet for the rest of the season, useless cunt.

I don't know why anyone is so confident about Pardew being unsackable. The one thing we know about Ashley is that he's very unpredictable with hiring and firing managers. Who saw the sacking of Hughton coming? The hiring of Kinnear? Pardew 8 year contract? They guy is anything but predictable. Even if results do get better between now and the end of the season I still wouldn't bet against Pardew being sacked. However, my personal opinion is that Ashley knows he fucked up appointing Kinnear and blames him for he lack of signings and therefore our shitty results.... at least in part. And that's why Pardew hasn't been sacked already. Still, I don't know how anyone can claim to be confident one way or the other.

Shit graph. Labeling is awful.

It's still pretty much impossible to stop He's obviously got some quick feet and he'll go down with even quantum-levels of contact, but fucking hell... every time! We know what's coming. You can defend against it.

How is that even possible in 2014? Have people still not noticed ROBBEN CUTS INSIDE EVERY TIME.

That thread's amazing They just ignore their £23m losses like a missed payment letter from Wonga. 'We'll sell 3 players for 5 million each and get £20m parachute so we've got £35m to spend derp derp' Mackems in not understanding paying bills shock. The next suggestion will be to move the club to another stadium and not tell the bank where they've gone.

So if he didn't eye gouge Tito Vilanova he'd be a worse manager? That's exactly what I'm saying, yes. Which is also why he chinned SAF and punched Leonardo in the nuts. Pretend you've got a little common sense for a minute, would you?

Pardew sits 9th with this team. We should all love him as well. Because he's doing a good job in terms of results come on, Flip. You're better than that. He really isn't.

His antics are part of what creates the winning mentality. If Mourinho stopped being Mourinho then he wouldn't be as good a manager.

"No more goals"

Deluded? The team selection got leaked! He was bang on! And given his journalist girlfriend, it was probably Casillas that fucking did it! Least he could do is take his bollocking like a grown up. Completely undermined his manager and his team.

Biggest cunt in that story is Casillas.

Long / direct ball, if it is working, isn't the crime so many people make out. The same in that Pep teams aren't boring for keeping the ball as a means of defending. Yeah, that irritates me. Long ball is only boring when it's plan A, B, and C.

Every manager working at the top end of Europe's top leagues is a strong personality. To a point. And some will use it to get performances out of their players, ie. Mourinho, SBR, SAF, etc. And others will alienate them ie. AVB, O'Neil, Souness, Dalglish, etc. Mourinho's players love him just as much as SBRs. The man is doing something right. Real Madrid's players absolutely hated his guts didn't they? Fell out with a couple of them, to my knowledge. Vast majority of players have had not a bad thing to say about him. Inter & Chelsea in particular.

Every manager working at the top end of Europe's top leagues is a strong personality. To a point. And some will use it to get performances out of their players, ie. Mourinho, SBR, SAF, etc. And others will alienate them ie. AVB, O'Neil, Souness, Dalglish, etc. Mourinho's players love him just as much as SBRs. The man is doing something right.

Managers need to be strong personalities. See SAF, SBR, etc. Whether you like his shtick or not, he gets it done. Aside from working together comparing him to SBR is garbage. Ferguson is nailed on though. Winning > all else. Massive difference in management style, obviously. But both are excellent at motivating their players. Both strong personalities.

Managers need to be strong personalities. See SAF, SBR, etc. Whether you like his shtick or not, he gets it done.

better than Pep? Not a hope in hell Easily. Had this one won before a ball had been kicked. Pep is a good manager but by far the most overrated manager around. Mourinho keeps proving himself again and again. If Guardiola can keep at it for another 5 years or so, and not pull a Wenger, he might be in the running. But not now.

better than Pep? Not a hope in hell Easily. Had this one won before a ball had been kicked. If he had it won before it kicked off, why did he have to resort to long balls and putting on three strikers to win it? this. It wasn't some "majestic tactical masterclass" it was fucking desperation and the same kind of thing any manager would bloody do in the same situation and hope it works. Hell Steve McClaren pulled the same trick getting Boro to the UEFA cup final Like I said, he won the game in the build up. You can't pull off stuff like this without belief.