Alan Shearer contract latest: long gone

[Robster]

I'd drop the captain in a heartbeat if I think he's gonna be another Robbie Fowler.

Which I do.

I agree with you mate but its easy to say we can drop a player because he is playing shite but we arent dealing with the human element of things and dealing with that player and any influence they might have with their team mates and in the dressing room

[jimmymag]

Has anyone detected any sort of improvemnt at all under Shearer? From the moment he sneaked into the dugout v Chelsea it has been totally and utterley underwhelming

 

 

I can't see a single thing that is better than it was before. Tactics are shite. Confidence is shite. Shots on target are shite. Owen is shite. Shearer slates his own player in public, which is shite. The players will not like that one bit which means they play even more shite.

 

In fact , you could say its all still SHITE.

 

Yeah, I suggested something along these lines a few days ago, but was roundly criticised because it was "too early to judge him", apparently...

 

 

 

If Hughton had still been in charge I reckon we would have 2 points less than we have now and would be all but relegated.

[Rich]

Has anyone detected any sort of improvemnt at all under Shearer? From the moment he sneaked into the dugout v Chelsea it has been totally and utterley underwhelming

 

 

I can't see a single thing that is better than it was before. Tactics are shite. Confidence is shite. Shots on target are shite. Owen is shite. Shearer slates his own player in public, which is shite. The players will not like that one bit which means they play even more shite.

 

In fact , you could say its all still SHITE.

 

Yeah, I suggested something along these lines a few days ago, but was roundly criticised because it was "too early to judge him", apparently...

 

Would you like some pork scratchings with your bitter?

 

People have nowt left but hope, you have to allow them to cling onto something man! I don't think he's been given enough games, but he's certainly been a massive breath of fresh air. As I said yesterday, it took KK on a huge wave of initial optimism (more than Shearer had) 9 games to sort this lot out... it was always a huge ask.

[Dave]

It's perfectly fair to criticise him, but it's way too early to actually judge him. Fairly straightforward IMO.

[Liam Liam Liam O]

It's perfectly fair to criticise him, but it's way too early to actually judge him. Fairly straightforward IMO.

 

[BlueStar]

I am a bit disappointed to be honest, and I don't like saying that because it gives the impression I was expecting great shakes like some gurning mong on SSN.  Wasn't expecting Shearer to come in and turn water into wine, shit players into Messi, hit the ground running as a fully formed master tactician or anything, but I did expect to see the players more motivated than they were under our previous bunch and I can't say I've seen even the slightest improvement in that.  Didn't mind if he got the tactics or team selections wrong (Which I don't think he has) but just wanted the team to look like they had a bit of spark, a bit of belief, drive and desire, to look like they were enjoying playing football under a guy like Shearer. And they don't, they look just as disinterested as they did under the previous nobodies who were in the dug-out. But then maybe that says more about the players than it does about the manager.

[jimmymag]

I am a bit disappointed to be honest, and I don't like saying that because it gives the impression I was expecting great shakes like some gurning mong on SSN.  Wasn't expecting Shearer to come in and turn water into wine, shit players into Messi, hit the ground running as a fully formed master tactician or anything, but I did expect to see the players more motivated than they were under our previous bunch and I can't say I've seen even the slightest improvement in that.  Didn't mind if he got the tactics or team selections wrong (Which I don't think he has) but just wanted the team to look like they had a bit of spark, a bit of belief, drive and desire, to look like they were enjoying playing football under a guy like Shearer. And they don't, they look just as disinterested as they did under the previous nobodies who were in the dug-out. But then maybe that says more about the players than it does about the manager.

 

You got the point eventually. 

[Liam Liam Liam O]

I am a bit disappointed to be honest, and I don't like saying that because it gives the impression I was expecting great shakes like some gurning mong on SSN.  Wasn't expecting Shearer to come in and turn water into wine, shit players into Messi, hit the ground running as a fully formed master tactician or anything, but I did expect to see the players more motivated than they were under our previous bunch and I can't say I've seen even the slightest improvement in that.  Didn't mind if he got the tactics or team selections wrong (Which I don't think he has) but just wanted the team to look like they had a bit of spark, a bit of belief, drive and desire, to look like they were enjoying playing football under a guy like Shearer and they were erally wantign to keep us up. And they don't, they look just as disinterested as they did under the previous nobodies who were in the dug-out. But then maybe that says more about the players than it does about the manager.

 

The two opportunities following other teams' results they've had in the last 7-10 days confirm that.

[afar]

I would be lying if I said I wasn't disappointed with the performances and expected better since Shearer took on the reins. However I'm not prepared to write him off as a manager just yet as the situation he inherited and the playing staff would have the best managers in the world scratching their heads looking for a solution.

 

On the subject of Shearer long term, I thought a comment I heard from his post match interview on the beeb was interesting. When asked about Barton's future with the club, he said "That would be wrong for me to discuss NOW. But I'm not very happy". This is encouraging IMO, as this does not sound like a quote from a manager who will not have to worry about the long term future of the playing staff. He could easily have shrugged this tricky question off with a statement of the fact that he's only here till the end of the season. This and a few other bits and bobs have me a little more confident that JFK will not be reassuming the reins and Shearer is going to take on the job full time.

 

 

[SteveMc]

I agree Afar that he has said stuff that makes you think he's here long term.  The Barton comment though I feel he was just saying he wanted the dust to settle and to deal with things behind closed doors, rather than speaking out in the heaqt of the moment immediately after the match.

 

I've been disappointed with elements of what I've seen too.  You hope and expect a new manager surge.  It seems though that things had gone so far to seed that he has needed to sort out too many fundamentals for that to happen.  The comment about being able to criticise, but it being too early to judge is spot on.

[Dave]

Surely though that surge normally comes from the players suddenly upping their games to impress the new man rather than his actual decisions and influence? Roy Keane has won two out of two with Ipswich and I bet he's done fuck all yet.

 

If this lot haven't picked up in that way then fuck them.

[SteveMc]

Part of the problem might be that they don't think he's going to stay so there's no point in impressing him.....

[Dave]

Part of the problem might be that they don't think he's going to stay so there's no point in impressing him.....

 

More likely they know they've no intention of staying.

[SteveMc]

Or a combination of the 2

[GM]

It's perfectly fair to criticise him, but it's way too early to actually judge him. Fairly straightforward IMO.

 

That's just semantics, Dave - because in order to criticise him, you will inevitably have had to pass judgement on him at some level or other.

 

All I'm saying is the reality of Shearer in management is much starker and less romantic than the hype was at the beginning of April (hardly a surprise) - it is too early to judge his long-term prospects as a manager on the basis of what we've seen thus far, we all need to remember that he's in his apprenticeship phase, and he's been left a shit-heap of a team to manage.

 

Personally, I hope he stays and gets a proper shout at rebuilding the team in his own image. A squad of players with his talent, pride and determination would be dazzling and totally in contrast with the mercenary arses that parade themselves before us in the black and white at the moment.

[mrmojorisin75]

I am a bit disappointed to be honest, and I don't like saying that because it gives the impression I was expecting great shakes like some gurning mong on SSN.  Wasn't expecting Shearer to come in and turn water into wine, shit players into Messi, hit the ground running as a fully formed master tactician or anything, but I did expect to see the players more motivated than they were under our previous bunch and I can't say I've seen even the slightest improvement in that.  Didn't mind if he got the tactics or team selections wrong (Which I don't think he has) but just wanted the team to look like they had a bit of spark, a bit of belief, drive and desire, to look like they were enjoying playing football under a guy like Shearer. And they don't, they look just as disinterested as they did under the previous nobodies who were in the dug-out. But then maybe that says more about the players than it does about the manager.

 

can't agree with this, as examples since he arrived he's crow barred viduka off the treatment table and onto the pitch, plus duff and smith are both playing better than they have in their entire time with the club imo

 

it all comes back to pompey for me; we had tricky games prior to that and this was the one where a win would have turned it around and boosted confidence for the games to come - we went with the right tactics, made the opportunities to win the game but the players blew them

 

you can only take criticism of the manager so far, he can't put the ball in the net

[Guest Wally_McFool]

Brian Little made a good point  on Football Matters (on Setanta) last night. 

He said people need to stop judging managers after every game and he is right.

Shearer should be judged on his 8 game stint as boss and only judged on these 8 games after the final ball of the season is kicked and not before, if you get my drift,like!

 

 

 

[AyeDubbleYoo]

Even the rest of the season is too short a time to judge a manager.

 

Whether Al keeps us up or not really doesn't say much about his long-term potential as a top manager. 8 games is just too little time to know.

[TRon]

Managers are usually judged by their signings at the end of the day. Kinnear's recruitment of Nolan and Taylor spoke volumes of his stupidity, and eventually Shearer will be judged on the squad he puts together. Could he have done better during his 5 games in charge? Maybe but for me there's no evidence that players here are up to performing better in different formations, however we line up they look slow and ponderous. It's easy to use tactics as an excuse.

[mrmojorisin75]

Managers are usually judged by their signings at the end of the day. Kinnear's recruitment of Nolan and Taylor spoke volumes of his stupidity, and eventually Shearer will be judged on the squad he puts together. Could he have done better during his 5 games in charge? Maybe but for me there's no evidence that players here are up to performing better in different formations, however we line up they look slow and ponderous. It's easy to use tactics as an excuse.

 

that amused me after the liverpool game; what "tactics" could shearer possibly have employed to not lose the game, never mind win it with our wretched players?

 

only one i can think of would be lining all 10 outfield players up along the goal line to form a wall and letting harper roam the area to try and cover the bit between the players heads and the crossbar

[Rebellious]

Surely though that surge normally comes from the players suddenly upping their games to impress the new man rather than his actual decisions and influence? Roy Keane has won two out of two with Ipswich and I bet he's done fuck all yet.

 

If this lot haven't picked up in that way then fuck them.

 

The difference being Ipswich have a very good ( for the division ) squad. Plenty of similar qaulity depth too. They have cover in every position, good youth and experience too. They also werent shot of confidence in the relegation positions. You can`t really compare.

[Dave]

That's half my point though. Their squad is pretty good, so the manager's influence can be next to nothing and he'll still see them pick up because they want to impress.

 

Our squad is fucking crap, and I'm not convinced they give a shit about us going down.

[Guest Stephen927]

I agree, 8 games is no time frame to judge Alan Shearer the manager. Shearer could be saying all the right things at the training ground and in the dressing room, but as soon as they come out of the tunnel it's out of Shearer's hands. He's tried to change formations to try and find something that'll work, and I applaud him for that. It's far better than Kinnears tactics of picking 4-4-2 no matter what and lumping it up to the front men.

 

I agree with the rules he's supposedly set in the place for the players. If they have a problem with turning up to training on time, or not going out on the lash after or before games then they're in the wrong profession. They're in the public eye with fans worldwide pinning their hopes on them, earning millions of pounds for the privelege of playing the beautiful game.

 

The good thing about Shearer is he'll set these rules in place, but he has a good sense of humour too and knows when to have fun and when to work hard. I can't see how any player could have their noses bent out of shape by the rules he's put in. It's not asking too much for them to wear a club suit and turn up for games even if they haven't been selected, is it?

[Mr Logic]

Shearer would have had to be outperforming a certain gentleman from Nazereth to have got this lot going in the limited timeframe he had.

 

Never underestimate how much individual confidence and team spirit contribute to getting a result. Half this team had been slowly destroyed in both aspects way back to when Allardyce left under a cloud. New players arrived into an air of pessimism and despondency (an underlying current is just as effective in its outcome), not difficult to work out what happens next. Shearer is the only ray of hope to come along since then and, given time, I think he'll develop into a very useful manager with his own team.

 

Let's just wait until the end of the season, and I mean 2010, before we start throwing stones.

[La Parka]

8 games with this team is not even worth judging him on. I think we sold out best players, brought in crap, and now the board have realised how bad it has got. No manager could do much with this squad.

 

I hope Shearer stays, brings in the men he wants, and then we can see what kind of manager he is, not based on a squad which has been destroyed by successive managerial failures, and board stupidity.