Sean

Without touching on what negative effects the transfers, coaching, injuries, tactics or anything else might have had, we lost that intangible feeling of everyone being in it together over the summer. Staveley and Mehrdad leaving, tensions within the new setup, players apparently being offered to other clubs for PSR reasons - all of that upset whatever momentum was left after last season (not much admittedly). It feels like a completely different club, with a completely different feeling around the place, to the season we finished 4th. But the transfers, coaching, injuries and tactics can and should all rightly be questioned, even ridiculed at this point.

Aye, he might not be the fastest anyway but he just didn't bother trying. With effort like that we are fucked until Sven is back.

"The right boot of Fofana is his best chance" what the fuck else you gonna measure against man Get in anyway. Good build up.

What a pathetic start.

The summer transfer window is the gift that keeps on giving

Seems he did. He's clearly more of a Gattuso than a Pirlo, there's nothing at all controversial there, except for people who want him to be a Pirlo clone.

Gotta be finishing that.

Don’t think so, some people I know in the midlands say it too. Gets on my tits so much for no real reason though 😂

No ASM this lad, is he?

Schar's the only one willing to hit one from range.

You all asked for changes

We always seem to play shit here. With the way we have started the season performance-wise this is going to be a long, grim afternoon of football. We need everyone up for the game from the start. We also need to use possession better than we have thus far. Bruno leads by example in both of these areas tbh.

Hope Murphy scores a worldie in the 1st minute for the reaction

There is clearly some tension behind the scenes - people jostling for more power and/or control in their roles after the management upheaval. This can range from mild tension to civil war () depending on who you believe. Just out of interest (as I kinda zoned out over the summer), were Amanda and Mehrdad still here when Crystal Palace's DOF turned us down? And had they left before we approached Mitchell?

They are loving it. The thing is, it's pretty hard to create a narrative of division if everyone is united. I'm pretty relaxed about it all either way. To be the best we can be there are going to be disagreements and changes of personnel along the way. Everyone nodding along in agreement won't get us very far.

What is the latest we have heard from the club re: new training ground. Have we heard anything yet? I haven't exactly been checking every day so am probably not up to date on developments. When the takeover happened they mentioned this very early - I would have expected some movement in 3 years, bearing in mind timescales to actually build something better than just fit for purpose.

This has to be satire surely. What a fucking bell end https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-13822579/Lee-Carsley-sacked-FA-refusal-sing-national-anthem-Jeff-Powell.html

A lot of what he seems to be alluding to are things plenty on here have had reservations about (playing style, lack of diversity in scouting etc), so in that sense it can be seen as a positive that there will be more internal debate regarding these things. You don't ever want one person surrounded by yes men. I suppose the concern is just how Eddie views it. We know he was happy working with Amanda and Merhdad, and it seems they backed his judgement to the hilt. How he will adapt to having that questioned, and his influence reduced, we shall see in the coming months I guess. The transfer window won't have helped, and I doubt the interview will have either though.

Yeah, so pathetic - I'm sure Eddie was delighted to read Mitchell's quotes. There is clearly some tension behind the scenes. The question is just how much tension there is, and if they can act like adults and learn to work together effectively. I think that depends on how highly Mitchell actually rates Howe.

"Trust has to be developed" would tend to align with the doom mongering reports that he and Howe aren't on the same page totally.

We should put together a dossier to send to any chairman stupid enough to consider this clown for a job. But then again, anyone THAT fucking thick deserves all they get. Feel for the fans though. My what they have to look forward to

He's no ASM like.

That looks so easy

Horrible.

Wow. That's as good as a goal