The old Chris Hughton discussion thread

[EthiGeordie]

What are you ranting about Nostradamus? As far as I am concerned he is good enough no body can tell how he can fair with his own squad and everything. Thank God Ashley will give him time while lot of you guys can say whatever.

[Parky]

What are you ranting about Nostradamus? As far as I am concerned he is good enough no body can tell how he can fair with his own squad and everything. Thank God Ashley will give him time while lot of you guys can say whatever.

 

His own squad and everything? What will he get his own pencil case with Hughton etched on it as well?

[jdckelly]

should we promoted then yes he deserves a shot at next season as manager, what the hell is the point of changing it? Havent we learned by now the more managers you have the worse you do. No one can say how he will do next season in the prem (should we get there) after a year of putting his own ideas and philosophy's on the squad, besides it would be nice to have the same man in charge in july as was in the previous july just for once.

[EthiGeordie]

  It is really funny how people wants quick fix for everything they don't have any clue whom they might have but they wants to get rid what they have. I would give one full season for him  then i can say a thing or two about him than opening up my mouth like most of you guys. He is a proper gaffer we have I dunno since when.

[Jayson]

   It is really funny how people wants quick fix for everything they don't have any clue whom they might have but they wants to get rid what they have. I would give one full season for him  then i can say a thing or two about him than opening up my mouth like most of you guys. He is a proper gaffer we have I dunno since when.

 

You yourself were saying just yesterday that it was strange he hadnt played Lovenkrands upfront more.

 

Our two best central midfielders in the premiership Guthrie & Barton havent played in central midfield bar yesterday through Butts injury. On that note he's choosing Nicky Butt, a guy who himself admits this might be his last season of football entirely...(ie he's probably not playing at the greatest standard) over both. Yet we've also been playing long ball football for the majority of the season. So he's either acknowledging that the central midfield he's using isnt up to the task of getting around & passing it properly....or the team are flat out not playing the way he's asking them to. Or he just plainly prefers to play that way. How does he come out of it well?

 

He deserves credit yes, but i see quite a few reasons to be doubtful of his ability in the prem. Not harsh, just the way it looks. Ive wanted him to do well for a while.

[Ronaldo]

Well all want him to do well. But i don't think i'm the only one on this board who now goes into away games hoping that we don't take the lead early.

[EthiGeordie]

    Jayson.... Just because I said his move not to play Loven is wrong doesn't mean I want another manager. What we had every year was different managers ever since we sacked Sir Bobby. If this guy win the CC it is essential to build on instead of starting from the scratch again. Yes creative midfield play is a rare commodity right now but his top midfield pair Nolan and Smith have done real good this season and every team in CC swap for them for anything. Nolan is the team leading goal scorer and by far the league best player. Smith after dreadful couple of years is performing in a good way distracting most play and leading by example. Yes Butt is butt but you can not exchange Nolan and Smith for creative midfield for the sake of it since their performance this year had been great.

 

      Are we getting Guss Hidink or Hitzfeld this coming summer? the answer is no just for another English journey man (ie Fat Sam and Roeder.)  I would n't swap Houghton.

[Ronaldo]

I wouldn't be adverse to giving Hector Cuper a go, providing his english has improved in the last 6 years.

[Village Idiot]

I wouldn't be adverse to giving Hector Cuper a go, providing his english has improved in the last 6 years.

 

Oh my god, he was boring as hell. Guess he would work with what you have though. Plus maybe he gets you to lose a few finals.

[Ronaldo]

That would be incredible, yeah.

[TRon]

Not everyone is a Jose M or Wegner man!!! The likes of Gross, Santini, Dr Venglos, Zajec, Perrin were all f***ing s****.  Not that long ago Van Basten, Klinsmann, Le Guen were all the rage.

 

You have to get the right man not the bloke with the right passport & accent

 

 

 

 

While I agree with that in principle, it's depressing that we've had a succession of British managers who have failed to use Milner effectively. Milner who is as British as they come had to go to Villa to play football while our British managers were too busy making room in their squads for salt of the earth Nicky Butts and Ryan Taylors.

 

If we are going to appoint a British manager let's hope we can get one with a brain rather than some thick former centre half who would be better off running a pub.

[fredbob]

Not everyone is a Jose M or Wegner man!!! The likes of Gross, Santini, Dr Venglos, Zajec, Perrin were all f***ing s****. Not that long ago Van Basten, Klinsmann, Le Guen were all the rage.

 

You have to get the right man not the bloke with the right passport & accent

 

 

 

 

True but how many british manager are anyway near the likes Jose and Wenger? Alot of the failures you mention didnt have much pedigree, Perrin if i rememebr rightly started out as a P.E teacher (could be totally wrong there like), it was only Santini who had any major achievment about him (with the most gifted set of French players seen in a llong while), Le Guen was abit of a surprise although he was at Lyon where even Perrin suceeded (i think) and the transistion from National to Club is always a tricky one, in my opinion the examples you give dont really lend themselves to your point.

 

The big advantage we have is that a lot of managers who would love to manage in the premiership, its the most popular in the world and that for me acts as enough leverage to get a manager with pedigree at our club. I'd at least like to see us try and looking abroad, I may be wrong but Feruson aside there is only 2 maybe 3 british managers who have managed in the Champions League who are currently in management there are a hell of a lot more who will of tested themselves on a regular basis inthe Champions League and become better managers for it.

 

All Im saying is that theres more chance if getting a god foreign manager than there is getting a good british manager.

[Village Idiot]

Wonder where Hiddink will end up, although I don't think he'd come to you at this point.

 

Schuster I think is a very good manager, and has a very good record with promoted sides in Spain. He also gets his clubs to play nice enough football (which admittedly is easier to get away with in La Liga). However he seems to want to stay and live in Spain for now.

 

Frank Rijkaard I still rate immensely, stick a tough assistant manager to handle discipline (like Hen Ten Cate at Barça during his first years) and enjoy the show. Pretty sure he'll get sacked this season in Turkey if he doesn't win the league 

 

A bit of idle talk though, unless you falter massively in the coming months (god forbid), you are starting next season with Hughton.

[huss9]

give him his due, Freddie did make a real effort for O'Neill but he turned it down due family circumstances and geography. how different it could all have been.....

[Parky]

give him his due, Freddie did make a real effort for O'Neill but he turned it down due family circumstances and geography. how different it could all have been.....

 

Yup.

[Thespence]

Not everyone is a Jose M or Wegner man!!! The likes of Gross, Santini, Dr Venglos, Zajec, Perrin were all f***ing s****.  Not that long ago Van Basten, Klinsmann, Le Guen were all the rage.

 

You have to get the right man not the bloke with the right passport & accent

 

While I agree with that in principle, it's depressing that we've had a succession of British managers who have failed to use Milner effectively. Milner who is as British as they come had to go to Villa to play football while our British managers were too busy making room in their squads for salt of the earth Nicky Butts and Ryan Taylors.

 

If we are going to appoint a British manager let's hope we can get one with a brain rather than some thick former centre half who would be better off running a pub.

 

A few things:

I sort of think Milner was sold by a board that though it was good business rather than a manager.

O'Leary was centre half

O'Neill is British

 

M

[TRon]

Not everyone is a Jose M or Wegner man!!! The likes of Gross, Santini, Dr Venglos, Zajec, Perrin were all f***ing s****.  Not that long ago Van Basten, Klinsmann, Le Guen were all the rage.

 

You have to get the right man not the bloke with the right passport & accent

 

While I agree with that in principle, it's depressing that we've had a succession of British managers who have failed to use Milner effectively. Milner who is as British as they come had to go to Villa to play football while our British managers were too busy making room in their squads for salt of the earth Nicky Butts and Ryan Taylors.

 

If we are going to appoint a British manager let's hope we can get one with a brain rather than some thick former centre half who would be better off running a pub.

 

A few things:

I sort of think Milner was sold by a board that though it was good business rather than a manager.

O'Leary was centre half

O'Neill is British

 

M

 

your points:

 

Milner: I t was generally considered good business at the time, I don't think you were one of those objecting when we got £12m for him. I can't remember many objectors tbh.

 

O'leary was a centre half: I know. Your point?

 

O'Neill is British:

 

So are Allardyce and Souness. Hmmm...wonder why we got relegated?

 

 

 

 

[EthiGeordie]

Chris Hughton's revolution sets Newcastle players free

 

 

Photograph: Ian Horrocks/Newcastle Utd via Getty Images

Chris Hughton has encouraged his Newcastle players to voice their opinions to him, Steven Taylor says. Photograph: Ian Horrocks/Newcastle Utd via Getty Images

Louise Taylor

The Observer News Sun 17 Jan 2010 00:10 GMT

After years of turbulence, Newcastle are thriving under the radical dressing-room approach of Chris Hughton

 

Steven Taylor is not quite 24 but he has played under seven managers at Newcastle and experienced more turmoil than many footballers encounter during entire careers.

"I think we're on an even keel now though, we're stable," says the centre-half, resisting a temptation to cross his fingers before touching wood. "The club's turned round, Newcastle United's changed for the better."

Such optimism is born not only of the team's position at the top of the Championship but the modus operandi of his seventh boss, Chris Hughton.

At Taylor's age the then Tottenham full-back was involved with the Workers Revolutionary Party, an essentially Trotskyite group. Trotsky once preached "permanent revolution" but, three decades on Hughton – these days a committed Labour party member – swiftly realised Newcastle required an antidote to the constant upheaval of recent seasons.

His St James' Park revolution has duly been of the velvet variety. While there have been few radical tactical or training ground alterations, the former Spurs and Newcastle coach's approach to dressing-room politics differs markedly to that practised by many peers. First teamers are encouraged to voice their views on managerial decisions with a players' committee comprising Steve Harper, Kevin Nolan and Alan Smith, transmitting opinions to Hughton.

Not that Taylor and his colleagues are in any way isolated from a manager who appreciates the importance of frequent communication with every squad member. "Chris is always chatting to all of us, always explaining things – and you can talk to him about anything," says the ex England Under-21 international.

"His door is always open to everyone and the lads love him for it. He's a real players' manager who has had nowhere near the praise he deserves. You'll never, ever, hear anyone moaning about Chris around this place. It makes a big change at Newcastle United but we all respect him far too much for that."

West Bromwich Albion may prove less respectful than other visitors to St James' during tomorrow night's Championship summit meeting but Roberto Di Matteo's side will find themselves facing opponents "United" in more than name only.

"One of the reasons we're successful is that we're being honest with each other now," reflects Taylor, who turns 24 next Saturday. "In the past some lads got upset about things but kept their feelings back and then didn't perform on the pitch. It caused rivalries but this season, under Chris, it's been great because we've been encouraged to talk about things as a team, to get it all off our chests. We've learnt the best way is being honest with each other."

Similarly the dressing-room's old faultlines are a fading memory. "The lads here always sat around in three groups: foreign, young and older," says Taylor. "But that doesn't happen anymore, we all just mix in."

It helps that relegation purged Newcastle of individuals who joined the club primarily for the generous wages on offer and had little compunction about embroilment in assorted minor scandals.

"There were players in the past here who didn't give their all," says Taylor. "But but now we all definitely feel a sense of responsibility for what happened last season. We want to fight for each other, if someone gets tackled we'll help them out.

"In the past silly things were always going on but we don't have those problems anymore, probably because certain people aren't here. The newspapers are more interested in Big Brother than Newcastle United now. And we've got what this club always needed, players who really want to play for it."

 

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[EthiGeordie]

Yes he can the best manager we got since Sir Bobby

[OzzieMandias]

O'Neill isn't British. He's mostly played and managed in Britain, but he's Irish.

[Yorkie]

Yes he can the best manager we got since Sir Bobby

 

I daresay he's got arguably the best win percentage? In terms of quality of manager, he's a million miles away - but he's just about right for us at the moment. I suppose there's a strong argument to suggest - given the respective contexts - he has been the most effective manager since Bobby. He doesn't do crayzay shit from a tactical perspective, he maintains a stable/together dressing room, he doesn't get on the fans' back, he doesn't swear at the press, and with him it's not like walking on eggshells.

 

He does worry me with some things and if someone was to tell me we'd let it all slip come May - i wouldn't be astonished - but at the moment, he's unspectacularly doing the trick.

[Greg]

Yes he can the best manager we got since Sir Bobby

 

I daresay he's got arguably the best win percentage?

 

He's only lost 4 games since he's been permanent manager so of course he will have.

 

Sir Bobby had a win percentage of about 45%, Hughton will be on about 60% so far.

 

Keegan was about 55% in his first spell as manager.

 

 

[Shak]

We're getting by on a mixture of luck and simply having better players than everyone else in the league.

 

We're playing absolutely shite football despite our players being head and shoulders above the majority of the opposition they face.

 

We'd get absolutely fisted in the Premier League with this team, we'll need massive changes if we go up if we want to actually stay in the league.

[Yorkie]

The squad's still a ticking time-bomb like. Something could upset the rhythmn and harmony, and that'd be the season up shit creek. A worse manager than Hughton, one with an attitude (like Kinnear, for example, had we picked him*) will not have had us top. He's not a good manager but he works for us at the moment. It twists EthiGeordie's obvious wummage to a different sort of perspective, 'best' manager certainly isn't the case. But effective and i think we're somewhere closer.

 

From a footballing perspective he's pretty tosh but all i'm saying is that he works right now.

 

 

 

 

*Or, i'd even argue, any typical Premier League manager. Premiership manager, 'Premiership' players. If we lost a couple on the bounce there'd be hell on. Hughton's brought the players down a peg or two very well. I mean, a lot of managers are stubborn cunts and i daresay that players' committee would have been pissed on.

[Shak]

We won't be getting rid during the season like, would be foolish to do so for the reasons you've said.

 

I'd look to clear out the majority of that players committee in the summer as well, no way for a football team to be run.