Eddie Howe

[sempuki]

4 minutes ago, St1pe said:

I’m at the point where I don’t think any manager would get a major upturn with the player base we have. 
 

The decline of players like Pope, Murphy, Tonali, Botman, Livramento, Joelinton, Gordon, Barnes has been really quite staggering. Add in completely failed transfers like Elanga and Wissa. Woltemade has struggled to work on Howe’s preferred play style. 
 

If you look at players who we can say have had decent seasons you’re looking at Bruno, maybe Hall. Miley and Ramsay get mentioned but they’ve basically been a 7/10 and looked good in comparison to how diabolical the rest have been. 
 

Not trying to trigger the Howe out lot (for once) as I think he’s also been shit this year. But we really need a massive massive clear out and restructure. 

Same here. He looks burned out and bereft of ideas. He's been amazing but I can't see how he can turn it around this time.

[AyeDubbleYoo]

The decline and improvement of players is also massively to do with confidence. That’s why momentum and positivity is so important in football.
 

We’ve seen Jacob Murphy go from shit to England fringe and back to total shit. That’s not because there’s something about 2026 that has suddenly led to terminal malfunction of Jacob Murphy’s feet - it’s because everyone is doubting and second guessing themselves and expecting things to go wrong. See Elanga for exhibit b. 
 

I’ve said it before, everything has snowballed this season and it’s almost a perfect storm of factors impacting our performance. I try not to take it as indicative of the permanent state of affairs just because it’s most recent. 

[Kimbo]

11 minutes ago, AyeDubbleYoo said:

I can’t see us signing a whole new front 3. Although will be interesting if Gordon goes for sure. 
 

Arguably we don’t need a starting CB either. 
 

Think the guaranteed starters we need are RB and GK, then it depends on what happens with outgoings etc. 

 

We might need to be realistic about the number of players a club can really turn over in one window. Especially given we’d be replacing him big money signings from last year. 

You wouldn’t get a striker or midfielder? If we kept the same squad and only added a RB and GK I would be expecting another bottom half finish, possibly a relegation battle.

[Chicken Dancer]

11 minutes ago, dcmk said:

I would say after this summer window.

 
Fair enough. I mean we have played over 60 games without him like. 

[Holmesy]

5 minutes ago, Chicken Dancer said:

 
Fair enough. I mean we have played over 60 games without him like. 

Come on man, be reasonable! You can’t use facts to back up a legitimate argument on here. Eddie won us the cup remember. 

 

 

Edited April 26 by Holmesy

[dcmk]

7 minutes ago, Chicken Dancer said:

 
Fair enough. I mean we have played over 60 games without him like. 

His replacements hasn't really worked out have they.  We didn't expect to have to replace him, and the more suitable players moved elsewhere.

 

We gambled on Woltemade. 

[Conjo]

I hope the coaching team get a little shake up this summer. Someone that can help/challenge Howe's game management. I don't think I'm exaggerating when I'm saying the collective we on here have been crying for pro-active changes in every game we've lost the lead in this season as we slowly lose control of the game. It looks so obvious to so many, yet he sticks to his pre-game plan until it's too late every time.

[The Prophet]

22 minutes ago, Chicken Dancer said:

This isn’t a passive aggressive question but a genuine one; at what point is Isak not going to be the reason we’re shit now?  Next season?

 

I'd say after the summer, when we've had an opportunity to take stock and repair the damage.

 

We lost out primary source of goal around three games into the season. One of replacements had no pre-season and almost immediately got injured (poor planning on our part), while the other is still learning the game and will require adjustments to the way we play.

 

Over the summer they'll have a transfer window and a pre-season to repair some of the damage. Other than us losing a very good player, it shouldn't really be a factor next season.

[The Prophet]

11 minutes ago, Holmesy said:

Come on man, be reasonable! You can’t use facts to back up a legitimate argument on here. Eddie won us the cup remember. 

 

 

 

 

You could also use the volume of games as an argument the other way. It's not really the "gotcha" that you think it is.

[AyeDubbleYoo]

13 minutes ago, Kimbo said:

You wouldn’t get a striker or midfielder? If we kept the same squad and only added a RB and GK I would be expecting another bottom half finish, possibly a relegation battle.

 

I would like them, I'm just saying the starters we definitely need. Tonali, Bruno and Ramsey/Joe/Miley is still a good midfield. Assuming we don't continue to play as badly as we've recently, obviously. 

[Mole]

11 minutes ago, Kimbo said:

You wouldn’t get a striker or midfielder? If we kept the same squad and only added a RB and GK I would be expecting another bottom half finish, possibly a relegation battle.

I have had this discussion with Ian before, he believes in the midfield options we have. I think on paper they SHOULD be good enough but the reality is they just haven't been, after a certain point you need to accept that the results are what they are and a different direction is required to improve.

[Holmesy]

8 minutes ago, dcmk said:

His replacements hasn't really worked out have they.  We didn't expect to have to replace him, and the more suitable players moved elsewhere.

 

We gambled on Woltemade. 

It’s literally his job to find a way to make it work. The reason it hasn’t is because he’s trying to do the same fucking thing that worked with Isak, but without Isak.

It’s an argument that is designed to excuse Eddie’s performance in this dogshit season but it does the opposite - it draws more attention to the fact that he cannot adapt. 

 

 

Edited April 26 by Holmesy

[Holmesy]

1 minute ago, The Prophet said:

 

You could also use the volume of games as an argument the other way. It's not really the "gotcha" that you think it is.

Totally agree. It’s fucking nonsense. 60 chances to get it right.

[Zero]

13 minutes ago, Conjo said:

I hope the coaching team get a little shake up this summer. Someone that can help/challenge Howe's game management. I don't think I'm exaggerating when I'm saying the collective we on here have been crying for pro-active changes in every game we've lost the lead in this season as we slowly lose control of the game. It looks so obvious to so many, yet he sticks to his pre-game plan until it's too late every time.

 

How about just change the manager himself?

 

I mean, think again, you are asking to hire a new coach that

1. Able to do the job you mentioned - challenge Howe current approach: AND

2. Got Howe’s trust to listen to him, instead of continue his own way

[The Prophet]

2 minutes ago, Holmesy said:

Totally agree. It’s fucking nonsense. 60 chances to get it right.

 

What's nonsense?

[Nucasol]

 

10 minutes ago, Holmesy said:

Totally agree. It’s fucking nonsense. 60 chances to get it right.

Let’s give him another 40 games on top of that to be sure. A round 100 sounds fair.

 

The Isak sale fucked our planning to be sure, but it’s going to end up being like Liverpool’s Coutinho money excuse, used into perpetuity.

[Mikky]

46 minutes ago, AyeDubbleYoo said:

I can’t see us signing a whole new front 3. Although will be interesting if Gordon goes for sure. 
 

Arguably we don’t need a starting CB either. 
 

Think the guaranteed starters we need are RB and GK, then it depends on what happens with outgoings etc. 

 

We might need to be realistic about the number of players a club can really turn over in one window. Especially given we’d be replacing him big money signings from last year. 

If the club after months of scouting, data analysis, performances on the pitch, player regression, non performances of new signings think we only need 3/4 players then we will struggle again next season. 
 

We HAVE to replace Ramsdale, Trippier, Schar, Targett, Willock and J Murphy as a minimum 

 

We have no LB cover 

 

That’s just a starting point - by all accounts Tino and Gordon are gone 

 

3 goalkeepers need disposing - Ruddy/Gillespie/Vlachadimos 

 

Thats a major rebuild imo 

 

We 100% need a first team CB - I don’t trust Botman and especially Burn

 

We have to be creative in the market - I.e the Trippier replacement being RB/CB hybrid etc 

[The Prophet]

I think the impact of losing Isak is impossible to quantify and is an interesting debate to be had. 

 

I'd argue given the timing and manner of his loss, along with what's subsequent happened with his replacements it's significant though. 

 

I'm not sure what's nonsense or straw man worthy in that respect.

[leffe186]

3 hours ago, Nine said:

We played the most games across the top five leagues in Europe this season until we exited the CL I believe, this makes for another conversation on how adaptable the current set up is during a busy schedule of course.. as it’s far from ideal. The flexibility isn’t there. 
 

There are definitely circumstances here, the Barca/Sunderland game is unfortunately where we went off a cliff but before that we were still

well within a European spot shout again. 

More than Man City or Arsenal?

[TheEntertainer]

We can’t possibly still be talking about Isak leaving at this point in the season. Players come and go, it’s up to the manager to manage that.

[r0cafella]

8 minutes ago, The Prophet said:

I think the impact of losing Isak is impossible to quantify and is an interesting debate to be had. 

 

I'd argue given the timing and manner of his loss, along with what's subsequent happened with his replacements it's significant though. 

 

I'm not sure what's nonsense or straw man worthy in that respect.

The issue I have with the isak defence is as follows. 

 

We knew he wanted to leave long before the window opened. 

 

He'd been phoning it in for months 

 

If the system is reliant on one player to an extent of champions league qualification - relegation candidates the system wasn't particularly good in the first place/ built on good foundations.

 

Without wanting to flog this dead horse, clubs with much smaller budgets lost key players and have managed. 

[Kimbo]

3 minutes ago, TheEntertainer said:

We can’t possibly still be talking about Isak leaving at this point in the season. Players come and go, it’s up to the manager to manage that.

Yeah I’ve never had much time for it. Brentford lost Mbeumo and Wissa, Bournemouth lost their back line and are even managing well without Semenyo.

 

We’re more than likely going to lose first team players this summer as well. 

 

 

Edited April 26 by Kimbo

[Mills and Boon]

29 minutes ago, Holmesy said:

Totally agree. It’s fucking nonsense. 60 chances to get it right.

 

Woltemade and Wissa will never get it right, it won't matter how many games they play. We signed two duds to replace Isak. We tried for better but couldn't get any and were left trying to fill the gap with those two. It hasn't worked out.

 

Same with the keeper situation. Pope has gone to shit, we couldn't get our first choice keeper in so tried to make do with Ramsdale on loan for a season. That's not worked either.

 

I think it'll be easier to sign a better striker and keeper than it will be to replace Howe with a better manager

[TRon]

1 hour ago, St1pe said:

I’m at the point where I don’t think any manager would get a major upturn with the player base we have. 
 

The decline of players like Pope, Murphy, Tonali, Botman, Livramento, Joelinton, Gordon, Barnes has been really quite staggering. Add in completely failed transfers like Elanga and Wissa. Woltemade has struggled to work on Howe’s preferred play style. 
 

If you look at players who we can say have had decent seasons you’re looking at Bruno, maybe Hall. Miley and Ramsay get mentioned but they’ve basically been a 7/10 and looked good in comparison to how diabolical the rest have been. 
 

Not trying to trigger the Howe out lot (for once) as I think he’s also been shit this year. But we really need a massive massive clear out and restructure. 

 

If you are Howe In then you better hope that's not the case, because the way SCR is set up we just won't have the money tor replace that many first team players in one window. Last summer's transfer window will have blown a big hole in our budget, and missing out on Europe and PL money due to lower rankings will make it worse.

 

At least with a new manager you could cling onto the hope that the players who don't fit Howe's system might look better under a different one. 

 

Although realistically the truth is probably they just aren't that good whoever the manager is. 

[Dokko]

59 minutes ago, AyeDubbleYoo said:

The decline and improvement of players is also massively to do with confidence. That’s why momentum and positivity is so important in football.
 

We’ve seen Jacob Murphy go from shit to England fringe and back to total shit. That’s not because there’s something about 2026 that has suddenly led to terminal malfunction of Jacob Murphy’s feet - it’s because everyone is doubting and second guessing themselves and expecting things to go wrong. See Elanga for exhibit b. 
 

I’ve said it before, everything has snowballed this season and it’s almost a perfect storm of factors impacting our performance. I try not to take it as indicative of the permanent state of affairs just because it’s most recent. 

 

Which lays the blame firmly at the managers feet. If he can't motivate or build their confidence, he can't do the job anymore. One or two players, understandable, pretty much the whole team. That's on him.