Steve McClaren

[M4]

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[Yorkie]

haha nee-ownnn

[KaKa]

The teenager comes across as a player who already has his feet firmly on the ground and after playing 60 games for Northampton, scoring 13 times, he already has a taste for first-team action.

 

That is reflected when the striker is asked if seeing Steve McClaren in the stands at the reserve game was a good sign.

 

He added: “That is going to boost anybody to see him in the stands.

 

“Even if the manager is there or not you have to play your best.

 

“It will always get back to him if you play well, as it will if you play badly!

 

“So it can be neither here nor there if he is in the stands you just have to keep playing.”

 

Toney’s task will now be to give McClaren another headache when it comes to his selection plans.

 

However, he is yet to hold serious talks with the head coach and said his journey is only just beginning.

 

He said: “The Football League is different to Premier League.

 

“It is a fantastic standard here.

 

“People love getting on the ball, it is one or two touches and it is fast moving and high-tempo.

 

“I am looking forward to pushing on to the first team and hopefully I can squeeze my way in there.

 

“I have mostly spoken with Peter Beardsley at the minute because I am with the under-21s.

 

“I am sure the gaffer will speak to me soon and let me know what is going on.

 

“You just have to keep playing football and keep myself happy.”

 

McClaren at the games already. Good.

 

Also seems the style of play under Beardsley is decent. Good.

[Away Toon]

McClaren hasn't spoken to his new signing. Bad.

[KaKa]

Treat em mean. Keep em keen. Good.

[Away Toon]

Now that the fat man has actually decided to spend some serious money, McClaren will be under a huge amount of pressure if we are stuck down at the bottom 10-20 games in. The fact that either McClaren instigated or accepted Colo getting a new contract, hasn't signed or attempted to sign a LB as far as we know and thinks that the two slow physically challenged dwarves in central midfield are adequate will mean he has absolutely no excuses at all.

 

I can see this going tits up extremely rapidly.

[KaKa]

Don't think McClaren gets enough credit for the owner spending money.

 

The fact he turned us down a number of times, and seemed to seek assurances before coming was key. He alluded to it when he joined, when he mentioned that Ashley's message at the last game convinced him to get on board.

 

We have signed some good players, and we have a manager that is not destructive. I think he will do well just by virtue of those two points alone.

[TRon]

It's going to be a season of transition, we could have been a lot further forward if McClaren had come in January, but as it is, the early part of this season is going to be about establishing a playing style and McClaren learning that Obertan is a waste of time. At least we should start to look like a proper football team at some point, even if we are hovering around mid-table.

[AyeDubbleYoo]

Don't think McClaren gets enough credit for the owner spending money.

 

The fact he turned us down a number of times, and seemed to seek assurances before coming was key. He alluded to it when he joined, when he mentioned that Ashley's message at the last game convinced him to get on board.

 

We have signed some good players, and we have a manager that is not destructive. I think he will do well just by virtue of those two points alone.

 

Yeah, this is one of the reasons I respect him. Getting the coaches in was almost certainly partly his doing as well, maybe even more important.

 

Anyone who works for Ashley will have to just shoulder a lot of bad decisions, but he seems to at least have had some influence.

[Yorkie]

I've been cynical and downbeat for so long that I don't put too much weight into decisions made off the field - from a positive or negative standpoint. Cautious optimism is the most extreme emotion I can muster for that sort of thing atm. They've all got so, so far to go before they convince me that we're not a shit club. Even McClaren himself is tainted by his association with Ashley.

 

But the refreshing thing with McClaren is that I'm not absolutely certain we're going to achieve nothing. That's what he's got going for him, certainly from my point of view. The cast-iron certainty that we were going nowhere with Pardew is what had me desperate for us to actually lose, thus potentially prompting a change. And now, whilst I still don't celebrate the goals like I once did, I definitely want us to win.

[afar]

So in the 9 games McClaren has been in the job we've got a record of:

 

2 wins  2 draws and 5 defeats, the two wins being against non league Gateshead and the might of Sacremento Republic. Now I know that we shouldn't read too much into pre-season results but with two almost inevitable defeats coming up, I would have expected a little better in terms of results.

 

I think how we play in the next couple of games will be key to what kind of season we'll have, like I said I'm sure we'll lose them both, but if we go down fighting then perhaps we'll have a chance to finish mid table otherwise it going to be another season like last one I think.

[Mattoon]

This is it for me too Yorkie, I'm no longer actively willing us to lose, but I still find myself just shrugging at a goal either end of the pitch. There's a lot more mending to do than bringing in new coaches and throwing £50m at them. If you'd have offered me this at this time last season though I'd have snapped your arm off!

[Marmoset]

So in the 9 games McClaren has been in the job we've got a record of:

 

2 wins  2 draws and 5 defeats, the two wins being against non league Gateshead and the might of Sacremento Republic. Now I know that we shouldn't read too much into pre-season results but with two almost inevitable defeats coming up, I would have expected a little better in terms of results.

 

I think how we play in the next couple of games will be key to what kind of season we'll have, like I said I'm sure we'll lose them both, but if we go down fighting then perhaps we'll have a chance to finish mid table otherwise it going to be another season like last one I think.

[mrmojorisin75]

quite like the 'he loves a cuppa' thing that's going on on twitter

[Dr Venkman]

lack of defensive recruits is worrying. no way the fat man is going to sanction much more in the way of spending if we sign thauvin.

 

I appreciate you may not have said this personally, but I'm typing on my phone and I cba to check, but after Mbemba signed it was all over this board that we 'definitely weren't signing anyone else'.

[Cronky]

lack of defensive recruits is worrying. no way the fat man is going to sanction much more in the way of spending if we sign thauvin.

 

I appreciate you may not have said this personally, but I'm typing on my phone and I cba to check, but after Mbemba signed it was all over this board that we 'definitely weren't signing anyone else'.

 

At one point, it was all over the board that Carver would be given the permanent job and we'd spend nothing.

[Unbelievable]

Don't know about spending nothing but it should be clear as day that if Carver had managed to achieve reasonable results rather than setting us on course for the most unlikely of relegations the job would have been his, absolutely no doubt about it. Such is the idiocy of this regime.

[mrmojorisin75]

Don't know about spending nothing but it should be clear as day that if Carver had managed to achieve reasonable results rather than setting us on course for the most unlikely of relegations the job would have been his, absolutely no doubt about it. Such is the idiocy of this regime.

 

i'm not convinced of this anymore personally, i think the ashleyout thing and the protests that were starting to kick off woke them up and scared the shite out of them

 

in real terms they've only appointed a 'competent' manager, allowed him to staff the backroom with non-fuckwits, and spent some of what they need to start redressing the fuckups and squad stripping they spent 2 years or whatever overseeing

 

the walkout at spurs and targetting of ashley/SD changed it all, had that not have happened then aye carver and bullshit all the way

[Unbelievable]

By reasonable results I mean results that would have kept us safely in midtable rather than staring into the abyss. It's all they're interested in, as evidenced by the fact that they even thought they could get away with not appointing a proper manager for half a season in the first place.

[Interpolic]

lack of defensive recruits is worrying. no way the fat man is going to sanction much more in the way of spending if we sign thauvin.

 

I appreciate you may not have said this personally, but I'm typing on my phone and I cba to check, but after Mbemba signed it was all over this board that we 'definitely weren't signing anyone else'.

 

At one point, it was all over the board that Carver would be given the permanent job and we'd spend nothing.

 

At one point, certain individuals were telling every fucker else to calm down when they pointed out that Pardew was a shit manager and a horrible gobshite who was ruining our most talented players and any chance we had of success.

[Mick]

Don't think McClaren gets enough credit for the owner spending money.

 

The fact he turned us down a number of times, and seemed to seek assurances before coming was key. He alluded to it when he joined, when he mentioned that Ashley's message at the last game convinced him to get on board.

 

We have signed some good players, and we have a manager that is not destructive. I think he will do well just by virtue of those two points alone.

McClaren signed for us because Derby sacked him, he gets all of the praise he deserves for that from me.

[Ally]

Mcclaren still sounds like he's talking to foreign journalists in his press conferences. Short sentences, big pauses etc. very strange!

[Ikon]

Better than Pardew the sprinkler, 5 bar pressure full of s*** spraying out of his thick arrogant skull. But i see what you mean

[Ikon]

Personally i will give him around 15 games before i make my mind up about him. I will probably be frustrated as fuck at times, naturally! I was one of the very first ones who wanted Pardew sacked, along with Bimpy (where the hell is he?) and got alot of stick for it (probably well deserved at that early time) We'll probably have a bit of a up and down season i imagine, a couple of steps forward and a step back or two, but as long as our "curve" is slowly going in the right direction i will try to see it from a positive point of view. In the heat of the moment there will always be bad things said but that's football. It will be interesting to see if we can get more consistent after a few wins in a row whenever it happens, it will take time to create that confident winning mentality. First of all, hopefully the right players will start sooner rather than later. At least he seems like a likeable guy so far. I don't like the look of going in to season with our defence though Which will most likely make it very hard for us to perform the way we should.

[Guest]

Personally i will give him around 15 games before i make my mind up about him. I will probably be frustrated as f*** at times, naturally! I was one of the very first ones who wanted Pardew sacked, along with Bimpy (where the hell is he?) and got alot of stick for it (probably well deserved at that early time) We'll probably have a bit of a up and down season i imagine, a couple of steps forward and a step back or two, but as long as our "curve" is slowly going in the right direction i will try to see it from a positive point of view. In the heat of the moment there will always be bad things said but that's football. It will be interesting to see if we can get more consistent after a few wins in a row whenever it happens, it will take time to create that confident winning mentality. First of all, hopefully the right players will start sooner rather than later. At least he seems like a likeable guy so far. I don't like the look of going in to season with our defence though Which will most likely make it very hard for us to perform the way we should.

 

I just want to see a way of playing. As annoying as it is I can live with goals like Pelle's this season as that's down to personnel. As long as the attacking players play the way McClaren wants them too we'll be fine. Add the extra defender or two in January or the summer and as long as the system is good, they should in theory just slot straight in.