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RIP Freddy Shepherd


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Souness was the worst decision, Bobby to Souness just baffles me everytime I think about it.

 

The managerial appointments were always polar opposites of the last guy. Robson was considered too soft and pally with the players...

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Souness was the worst decision, Bobby to Souness just baffles me everytime I think about it.

 

The managerial appointments were always polar opposites of the last guy. Robson was considered too soft and pally with the players...

 

#HitzfeldIn will forever be a shattered dream.

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Souness was the worst decision, Bobby to Souness just baffles me everytime I think about it.

 

I remember when it happened, to be honest Bobby should have been moved upstairs to a directors role in the summer, I know we finished 5th that previous season, but there were clear signs that he was losing the influence on the team. The overwhelming sentiment at the time from the ownership was that he couldn't control the likes of Dyer and Bellamy, so the simplistic response after they sacked him was to bring in a strong disciplinarian in Souness with the remit to sort out the dressing room, it was the wrong knee jerk reaction and totally the wrong appointment based on his awful track record, he was on the verge of being sacked at Blackburn, we just saved them a bundle in compensation and gave them some money too take rid themselves of the problem.

 

I don't think many of us could believe it at the time, perhaps the options were limited, but one of Shephard and the Halls biggest failings since the Keegan appointment (which was of course a master stroke) was they rarely went away and did a thorough job in terms of research on who to appoint, after KK you hire Dalgliesh as an out of work Manager with a recent league title on his CV, from boring football of Kenny to sexy football of Ruud. Bobby was then a great appointment but it was also their only real option at the time, after him I think they wanted Bruce, local lad, couldn't get him so went after Souness because he was a hard man and won a cup with little Blackburn. Compare that kind of approach to the one that Southampton have applied in their appointments since getting to the PL, or Arsenal's appointment of Wenger. 

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No doubt his love for Newcastle United was genuine and he helped to give us some amazing memories, but I still remember what he and Douglas Hall said in the Toongate scandal. It leaves a bitter taste in the mouth. He could also be a nasty prick, so am lead to believe.

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Guest Howaythetoon

Set us back years with the appointment of Souness and although he was clearly ambitious for the club and indeed a passionate supporter having invested good money into the club along with the Halls when no one else would, he was ultimately a disaster as Chairman and it it for himself as much as anything. Indeed lets not forget how him, his brother and son fleeced the club of millions by renting an empty warehouse to the club and linking up with dodgy agents (McKay anyone?) to sign dodgy players on silly money. Towards the end he become greedy, using the club as his own personal cash cow for him and his family. RIP, but he was still a cunt!

 

 

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RIP, the club had some great times under him. Like others I'll also remember the not so good things he did to in his own interests. His final years in charge were questionable to say the least, no doubt he got done like a kipper over the sale to Ashley while he was in hospital.

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Set us back years with the appointment of Souness and although he was clearly ambitious for the club and indeed a passionate supporter having invested good money into the club along with the Halls when no one else would, he was ultimately a disaster as Chairman and it it for himself as much as anything. Indeed lets not forget how him, his brother and son fleeced the club of millions by renting an empty warehouse to the club and linking up with dodgy agents (McKay anyone?) to sign dodgy players on silly money. Towards the end he become greedy, using the club as his own personal cash cow for him and his family. RIP, but he was still a cunt!

I doubt they invested much of their own money. But they took a fucking fortune out. They had ran the club into the ground by the time Ashley raised his ugly mug to give them tens of millions more.
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Guest Howaythetoon

Set us back years with the appointment of Souness and although he was clearly ambitious for the club and indeed a passionate supporter having invested good money into the club along with the Halls when no one else would, he was ultimately a disaster as Chairman and it it for himself as much as anything. Indeed lets not forget how him, his brother and son fleeced the club of millions by renting an empty warehouse to the club and linking up with dodgy agents (McKay anyone?) to sign dodgy players on silly money. Towards the end he become greedy, using the club as his own personal cash cow for him and his family. RIP, but he was still a c***!

I doubt they invested much of their own money. But they took a f***ing fortune out. They had ran the club into the ground by the time Ashley raised his ugly mug to give them tens of millions more.

 

In the Magpie Group days they did. Just under a million between them all IIRC. A lot of money back then given the club was 6m in debt and was worth fuck all. Agreed with your sentiments though and what he did with the warehouse thing is kind of like what Ashley has done with plastering SD all over SJP. Effectively denying the club money/taking money out of the club.

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Souness was the worst decision, Bobby to Souness just baffles me everytime I think about it.

 

The managerial appointments were always polar opposites of the last guy. Robson was considered too soft and pally with the players...

 

#HitzfeldIn will forever be a shattered dream.

 

I suggested Hitzfeld as next manager to him when sat alongside him in traffic back in the day.

 

He appointed Roeder iirc the following week.

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I've a lot of great memories during his time here but there was a lot of fucking shite as well. The press sting in the late 90s, sacking Robson for Souness, saying he'd carry Owen to Liverpool on his back and nearly folding the club with reckless spending. Having said that although he treated the fans like shit at times I believe he genuinely wanted the best for the club and wanted us to be one of the best in the world.

 

The massive NE5 arguments on here were some great times on the forum too although that might be nostalgia talking. :lol:

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Guest Howaythetoon

We can't really or shouldn't compare Ashley to Shepherd or rather the other way round. Ashley is the Pardew of ownership. Freddy Shepherd would be more akin to Dalglish. I'll give Shepherd one thing, he was very ambitious for the club, but didn't have the acumen to quite make it work and in the end he knew it. He gave up the day Abramovic bought Chelsea and then just started using the club as his own personal cash cow. For a spell under Sir Bobby though we really were making it work. Signing good young players, ambitious on and off the pitch and then for whatever reason we failed to build on it with only Bowyer coming in having finished 3rd probably the start of the downfall. After that he took offence at how the players were not performing and started getting himself personally involved in player recruitment which was ironically just about the same time his nephew started getting involved in being an agent. Sir Bobby wanted Miguel, we got Carr. He wanted Carrick, we got Butt. He wanted a combination of Beattie to be our Shearer short term and then Alan Smith long term (if rumours were to be believed) who at the time was tearing it up at Leeds. We got Kluivert, great player, but very much a Shepherd look at me type signing.

 

Then followed Souness and even more suspect signings.

 

I honestly think though with his appointment of Allardyce he was starting to grasp where we were now as a club back then and wanted to build a more solid foundation and I truly believe under Shepherd, Allardyce would have been semi-successful and gotten us back on the right track.

 

Looking back, we replaced Sir Bobby with Souness and Liverpool who were probably our main last CL place competitors replaced Houllier with Rafa who ironically we now have, under our worst ever owner...

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Shepherd made some poor choices in managers and sanctioned some poor signings. He was naive, that leaked conversation slagging off the fans for buying the shirt was something he stepped around but never recovered from.

 

He was never in a moral position to criticise Ashley, which was a shame because we could have used that a few years ago. The press always had time for him.

 

RIP though. Presided over some great times.

 

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