Simple Glenn Roeder poll

[Guest Morph]

Nope.  Never was and never will be.  He's proven it to me on more than one occasion with his lack of tactical knowledge.  His place is in the academy.

[BottledDog]

the good thing about roeder is its proberly in his contract that he just steps down back into his acadamy role....we wont have to sack him

 

No, just sack his possibly superior replacement, Joe Joyce.

[Slugsy]

Nope.  Never was and never will be.  He's proven it to me on more than one occasion with his lack of tactical knowledge.  His place is in the academy.

 

100% agree

[Guest BillyRay Valentine]

Liking this thread so far - some decent, measured points coming across without much in the way of the one-line garbage from the kiddies bunking off school.

 

For me, Roeder’s a bit of an enigma. On the one hand he's instilled a sense of stability, calm and professionalism that’s almost unprecedented in our recent history and the effect of this on the team should not be underestimated. You only have to look at our performances and league position with a tiny squad and almost an entire 1st team out injured for the best part of the season to date, to appreciate the benefits of this. It is fair to say the many of the youngsters that have featured will not make the grade, but despite mistakes that are part and parcel of such a steep learning curve, they have all contributed positively and more importantly have shown spirit, guts and desire. Add to this the unqualified success of dyer’s rehabilitation (touch wood!), a refreshingly controlled approached to transfers, with what money spent, spent well and (I can’t believe I’m actually saying this) fat fred keeping a relatively low profile, whisper it quietly but we seem to be building the sort of foundations on which success may eventually be based. It should not be ignored either, the sheer scale of the damage Souness’s wrecking ball did to our club, the pieces of which Roeder is still picking up to this day.

 

However, on the other hand as we have all seen, Roeder is not tactically there yet. His team selections, tactics and substitutions have been found wanting with many people attributing some of our better results this season to luck rather than design. Whether he has the ability to up his game remains to be seen. His track record is hardly distinguished, yet neither was Benitez’s before his success at Valencia (although interestingly they were both well respected youth team coaches), but from what I’ve read he appears to be forward thinking manager willing to embrace the technological advances in the game which can only see him, and us, in good stead.

 

Much like the manager, we are a team in transition and in football unless you have hundreds of millions to spend, this takes time. For me Newcastle United and Glen Roeder have come along at the perfect time for each other, and whether or not he has the nous to take us to the next level is largely a moot point at this stage. What should not be disputed is he deserves his chance, not only this season, but in my opinion next season too.

[black_n_white]

Would like to see roader back within the coaching staff in the summer and bring in a more established manager that can attract top players to the club. Not going to happen tho..its Roader till end of next season at the very least and good luck to him!

[skryp2nit3]

The game against Fulham was a real test for him as he had real decisions to make and he blew it. He'll do a job for us now but will struggle to lift us beyond mediocrity.

[Lloydie]

I'm with Billy Ray on this one. Roeder has done and is doing a good job in very difficult circumstances. Imagine if we'd been able to play a fit Ameobi alongside Martins instead of Sibierski, imagine if we hadn't had to employ a different back line every game. I'd guess that any four of our defenders playing together regularly would have got better results than the constantly changing lineups we've had to send out.

 

One thing often overlooked is the time it takes players to get back to their best after returning from injury. So it's not just the players who are out, it's the players who are on the pitch but still a couple of weeks away from their best. We've had two or three of those in the side most games this season. Against Fulham we had Duff, Carr, Bramble and Gooch (can't remember how to spell his surname) all lacking match practice / integration into the team.

 

[Dunedin]

Liking this thread so far - some decent, measured points coming across without much in the way of the one-line garbage from the kiddies bunking off school.

 

For me, Roeder’s a bit of an enigma. On the one hand he's instilled a sense of stability, calm and professionalism that’s almost unprecedented in our recent history and the effect of this on the team should not be underestimated. You only have to look at our performances and league position with a tiny squad and almost an entire 1st team out injured for the best part of the season to date, to appreciate the benefits of this. It is fair to say the many of the youngsters that have featured will not make the grade, but despite mistakes that are part and parcel of such a steep learning curve, they have all contributed positively and more importantly have shown spirit, guts and desire. Add to this the unqualified success of dyer’s rehabilitation (touch wood!), a refreshingly controlled approached to transfers, with what money spent, spent well and (I can’t believe I’m actually saying this) fat fred keeping a relatively low profile, whisper it quietly but we seem to be building the sort of foundations on which success may eventually be based. It should not be ignored either, the sheer scale of the damage Souness’s wrecking ball did to our club, the pieces of which Roeder is still picking up to this day.

 

However, on the other hand as we have all seen, Roeder is not tactically there yet. His team selections, tactics and substitutions have been found wanting with many people attributing some of our better results this season to luck rather than design. Whether he has the ability to up his game remains to be seen. His track record is hardly distinguished, yet neither was Benitez’s before his success at Valencia (although interestingly they were both well respected youth team coaches), but from what I’ve read he appears to be forward thinking manager willing to embrace the technological advances in the game which can only see him, and us, in good stead.

 

Much like the manager, we are a team in transition and in football unless you have hundreds of millions to spend, this takes time. For me Newcastle United and Glen Roeder have come along at the perfect time for each other, and whether or not he has the nous to take us to the next level is largely a moot point at this stage. What should not be disputed is he deserves his chance, not only this season, but in my opinion next season too.

I would say we won despite him

[Guest Jangles]

I think a lot of people underestimate the mess the club was in when Roeder took over, we were an absolute shambles on and off the pitch. No manager in his right mind would come anywhere near us, a paper thin squad of substandard overpaid players and no money to spend.

 

Roeder came in and got us playing some decent football, and we managed to nick the intertoto cup spot. I thought Roeder was the man to build us up to make us a decent prospect for a higher profile more experienced manager to take over.

 

The lack of transfer activity in the summer was disappointing but we got some deadwood shipped out relieving the wage bill and a couple of players in (where would we be without Martins?). Although I dont know how much say the manager has on transfers when Freds around. Since the start of the season Ive been impressed by Roeders attitude but disappointed by some of his decisions to re-instate 'experienced' players like Carr straight back into the team, but I think he'd get slated by the press/fans etc if we lost with older players not in the squad.

 

Everyone knew the squad was weak but who'd have guessed nearly everyone with a left foot (Babayaro, Bernard, Duff & Zoggy) would be missing the majority of the season. That we'd have a different defence almost every other game (20 different back 4s by my reckoning). And that Glenn shockingly believed the 'expert medical advice' that Shola didnt need an operation leaving us with 1 proper striker.

 

Hes an average manager but I think he's the first step in building us back up to where we belong after the demolision job Souness accomlished

[NUFC06]

I think a lot of people underestimate the mess the club was in when Roeder took over, we were an absolute shambles on and off the pitch. No manager in his right mind would come anywhere near us, a paper thin squad of substandard overpaid players and no money to spend.

 

Roeder came in and got us playing some decent football, and we managed to nick the intertoto cup spot. I thought Roeder was the man to build us up to make us a decent prospect for a higher profile more experienced manager to take over.

 

The lack of transfer activity in the summer was disappointing but we got some deadwood shipped out relieving the wage bill and a couple of players in (where would we be without Martins?). Although I dont know how much say the manager has on transfers when Freds around. Since the start of the season Ive been impressed by Roeders attitude but disappointed by some of his decisions to re-instate 'experienced' players like Carr straight back into the team, but I think he'd get slated by the press/fans etc if we lost with older players not in the squad.

 

Everyone knew the squad was weak but who'd have guessed nearly everyone with a left foot (Babayaro, Bernard, Duff & Zoggy) would be missing the majority of the season. That we'd have a different defence almost every other game (20 different back 4s by my reckoning). And that Glenn shockingly believed the 'expert medical advice' that Shola didnt need an operation leaving us with 1 proper striker.

 

Hes an average manager but I think he's the first step in building us back up to where we belong after the demolision job Souness accomlished

 

Last season when he took over as caretaker he did a great job for us,finishing in 7th place

 

But he had plenty of time to build a team that have some style of play and so far i cant see that

 

When i remember the away games against Liverpool,Man Utd,Arsenal...well we were absolutely demolished in these games and ita was pretty embarrassing to watch

 

He is average manager,who has no tactical knowledge,no charisma whatsoever and i dont think we will develop alot under him.We'll be mid table team aiming for 6-7th place

[Guest Knightrider]

We need to wake up a bit and accept a few cold hard facts. Time to face reality people. Unless you have the wealth of Chelsea to buy a new team or the squad that Wenger and Benitez inherited to achieve almost instant success like they did, or give a manager the time Sir Bobby was afforded (5 years) it is always going to be hard to put a wrong right for any new manager, especially one handicapped as Roeder is.

 

It took Sir Bobby two years to put right the wrong of Gullit for example and he inherited a far better set-up than Roeder has. Furthermore the Premiership landscape at the time wasn't as fractured as it is today where there are FIVE leagues within the league itself, the title contenders, the CL hopefuls, UEFA Cup hopefuls, mid-table and relegation. Least of all the burden that is transfer windows. And lets not even get into the financial landscape of the Premiership which has allowed many clubs to spend big in the market and pay better wages meaning increased competition. There was a time when our only competitors for signatures and wages were our direct rivals, now players can say no to Newcastle because a Boro can offer similar wages, or Bolton even.

 

To say "get rid" is far too easy, and totally unrealistic. It isn't going to happen unless we are in real danger of going down (we aren't) or for some unforeseen reason Roeder himself quits (he won't).

 

The club are unlikely to replace him with anyone better because there aren't that many managers available that fall into that category and as we have found out to our cost previously (why we are in this mess to start with), we are hardly prime meat to would-be managers, least of all very good at going about the business of hiring such managers should they want the job or be interested. Just remember some of the names who have turned us down, Steve McLaren turned us down, as did David O'Leary and Steve Bruce! What chance a top manager?!

 

In short we are stuck with Roeder and must lower our expectations and demands accordingly and hope he can deliver two things; improvement over the previous manager and European qualification which a club of our size needs financially in order to pay better wages and to pay top transfer fees to keep us above the also-rans, the mid-table and relegation fighters.

 

The tail end of the Sir Bobby Robson era and then the proceeding Souness era has made it almost impossible for this club to break into the top four regardless of who is managing it. Quite simply both financially and infrastructure wise the top 4 are a million miles ahead of us. While we've thrown money at the team, invested in trophy signings and hired big name managers at great expense, off the field the club has been neglected to the point where today, the likes of Bolton piss all over us in set-up.

 

People harp on about Martin O'Neill with regret, but even he wouldn't be able to break us into the top four either, if anything his arrival would have only brought with it greater expectations and demands and when he inevitably fails to live up to them, we'd demand his sacking or turn cold towards him like we did with Sir Bobby Robson. And that goes for a Hitzfeld, a Scolari or whoever. Top managers like that may bring success quicker but the wheels will eventually fall off because of the poor foundations at the club, just like it did under Sir Bobby Robson a top manager.

 

For once the club have been quite sensible and must have surely realised we can't carry on trying to bluff our way to success on the poor foundations that have been laid going back to KK (the scrapping of the reserve team, no academy set-up, no training ground until recently etc).

 

We have operated as a checkbook club and neglected the infrastructure for far too long.

 

It seems to me the club have now decided that money isn't the answer, and neither is a big name manager, and that first, we need to learn to walk before we can run. Now I'm sure this hasn't come about by design, because the board as we know are clueless in the main, but the scare that was Souness has altered the culture at this club or it seems that way. We are going to be prudent in the transfer market, we are going to build slowly and get those foundations right, we are, or rather the club is, deliberately lowing expectations and tempering those demands to go out and splash the cash, to appoint a big name manager, to go for that quick fix we are famous for. This is clear to me.

 

And for once I am in total agreement if not a bit unsure myself regarding this new approach, because we need those foundations sorted first and foremost.

 

Look at Spurs, they have a good manager, a good squad and money to burn, they are well run now but even they don't look remotely close to breaking into that top four. Villa can spend and spend like mad, even with their so-called great manager, but they like Spurs and like ourselves will also struggle to break into that top four.

 

Fergie has had 20 years or so to build solid foundations, Wenger 10, Rafa was already left a solid base where as Chelsea have been able to buy themselves one.

 

They are a million miles ahead of us on and off the pitch, we can throw money at the pitch to close the gap but if the foundations off the pitch are weak, we'll crumble under the weight of any short-term success. In short we wouldn't be able to sustain it and so the vicious circle continues.

 

We need to stick, for once, and follow through.

 

It is obvious what the club's plans are:

 

Recover financially from the Souness mess

Clear out dead wood and wasters

Rebuild the team

Maintain European qualification/avoid relegation

Blood through youngsters

Improve scouting, fitness etc.

 

Then:

 

Hand over a well run club built on strong foundations off the pitch with a good promising team on it to one Alan Shearer, who the club hope can be our Fergie, our Wenger, or Jose Mourinho, or to be more romantic, another KK.

 

How can we help? By lowing our expectations and demands and accept things for what they are. If we start booing, demanding sackings and start demanding big name transfers, history shows our board react and this will only disrupt any foundation building plans which Roeder and co are hoping to lay.

 

Lets look at the consequences of sacking Roeder shall we...

 

A clear out of old staff (yet more upheaval)

A clear out of some players the new man may not rate or want

A large transfer kitty for the new man

 

(all the while there is still no guarantees that a new man will do better)

 

Meanwhile, those foundations go neglected again or get put on the backburner and that top 4 speed ahead even further.

 

Back to the vicious circle!

 

Aye, lets take that gamble, eh.

[Guest smoggeordie]

We need to wake up a bit and accept a few cold hard facts. Time to face reality people. Unless you have the wealth of Chelsea to buy a new team or the squad that Wenger and Benitez inherited to achieve almost instant success like they did, or give a manager the time Sir Bobby was afforded (5 years) it is always going to take time to put a wrong right for any new manager, especially one handicapped as Roeder is.

 

It took Sir Bobby two years to put right the wrong of Gullit for example and he inherited a far better set-up than Roeder has. Furthermore the Premiership landscape at the time wasn't as fractured as it is today where there are 4 leagues within the league itself, the title contenders, the CL hopefuls, UEFA Cup hopefuls, mid-table and relegation. Least of all the burden that is transfer windows. And lets not even get into the financial landscape of the Premiership which has allowed many clubs to spend big in the market and pay better wages meaning increased competition There was a time when our only competitors for signatures and wages were our direct rivals, now players can so no to Newcastle because a Boro can offer similar wages, or Bolton even.

 

To say "get rid" is far too easy, and totally unrealistic. It isn't going to happen unless we are in real danger of going down (we aren't) or for some unforeseen reason Roeder himself quits (he won't).

 

The club are unlikely to replace him with anyone better because there aren't that many managers available that fall into that category and as we have found out to our cost previously (why we are in this mess to start with), we are hardly prime meat to would-be managers, least of all very good at going about the business of hiring such managers should they want the job or be interested. Just remember some of the names who have turned us down, Steve McLaren turned us down, as did David O'Leary and Steve Bruce! What chance a top manager?!

 

In short we are stuck with Roeder and must lower our expectations and demands accordingly and hope he can deliver two things; improvement over the previous manager and European qualification which a club of our size needs financially in order to pay better wages and to pay top transfer fees to keep us above the also-rans, the mid-table and relegation fighters.

 

The tail end of the Sir Bobby Robson era and then the proceeding Souness era has made it almost impossible for this club to break into the top four regardless of who is managing it. Quite simply both financially and infrastructure wise the top 4 are a million miles ahead of us. While we've thrown money at the team, invested in trophy signings and hired big name managers at great expense, off the field the club has been neglected to the point where today, the likes of Bolton piss all over us in set-up.

 

People harp on about Martin O'Neill with regret, but even he wouldn't be able to break us into the top four either, if anything his arrival would have only brought with it greater expectations and demands and when he inevitably fails to live up to them, we'd demand his sacking or turn cold towards him like we did with Sir Bobby Robson. And that goes for a Hitzfeld, a Scolari or whoever. Top managers like that may bring success quicker but the wheels will eventually fall off because of the poor foundations at the club, just like it did under Sir Bobby Robson a top manager.

 

For once the club have been quite sensible and must have surely realised we can't carry on trying to bluff our way to success on the poor foundations that have been laid going back to KK (the scrapping of the reserve team, no academy set-up, no training ground until recently etc).

 

We have operated as a checkbook club and neglected the infrastructure for far too long.

 

It seems to me the club have now decided that money isn't the answer, and neither is a big name manager, and that first, we need to learn to walk before we can run. Now I'm sure this hasn't come about by design, because the board as we know are clueless in the main, but the scare that was Souness has altered the culture at this club or it seems that way. We are going to be prudent in the transfer market, we are going to build slowly and get those foundations right, we are, or rather the club is, deliberately lowing expectations and tempering those demands to go out and splash the cash, to appoint a big name manager, to go for that quick fix we are famous for. This is clear to me.

 

And for once I am in total agreement if not a bit unsure myself regarding this new approach, because we need those foundations sorted first and foremost.

 

Look at Spurs, they have a good manager, a good squad and money to burn, they are well run now but even they don't look remotely close to breaking into that top four. Villa can spend and spend like mad, even with their so-called great manager, but they like Spurs and like ourselves will also struggle to break into that top four.

 

Fergie has had 20 years or so to build solid foundations, Wenger 10, Rafa was already left a solid base where as Chelsea have been able to buy themselves one.

 

They are a million miles ahead of us on and off the pitch, we can throw money at the pitch to close the gap but if the foundations off the pitch are weak, we'll crumble under the weight of any short-term success. In short we wouldn't be able to sustain it and so the vicious circle continues.

 

We need to stick, for once, and follow through.

 

It is obvious what the club's plans are:

 

Recover financially from the Souness mess

Clear out dead wood and wasters

Rebuild the team

Maintain European qualification/avoid relegation

Blood through youngsters

Improve scouting, fitness etc.

 

Then:

 

Hand over a well run club built on strong foundations off the pitch with a good promising team on it to one Alan Shearer, who the club hope can be our Fergie, our Wenger, or Jose Mourinho, or to be more romantic, another KK.

 

How can we help? By lowing our expectations and demands and accept things for what they are. If we start booing, demanding sackings and start demanding big name transfers, history shows our board react and this will only disrupt any foundation building plans which Roeder and co are hoping to lay.

 

Lets look at the consequences of sacking Roeder shall we...

 

A clear out of old staff (yet more upheaval)

A clear out of some players the new man may not rate or want

A large transfer kitty for the new man

 

(all the while there is still no guarantees that a new man will do better)

 

Meanwhile, those foundations go neglected again or get put on the backburner and that top 4 speed ahead even further.

 

Back to the vicious circle!

 

Aye, lets take that gamble, eh.

 

Uberpost tastic!

 

and that is 5 tbh

 

Agree with a lot of what you've said there, although it sounds like you're trying to convince yourself rather than convince us.

[Guest Knightrider]

But he had plenty of time to build a team that have some style of play and so far i cant see that

 

Almost impossible to do if you can't work with much less select your best players on a regular basis which Roeder has been unable to do since day one. This isn't an excuse but common sense and to expect to see some kind of fluidity and a pattern of play, is unrealistic given the circumstances. I say wait until he can work with and select his better players on a regular basis to see just what type of team develops. At the moment points are more important that performances.

[Guest Knightrider]

Uberpost tastic!

 

and that is 5 tbh

 

Agree with a lot of what you've said there, although it sounds like you're trying to convince yourself rather than convince us.

 

Bit of both, to be honest. You can clearly sense a shift in attitude from the top down at the club though and I'm actually quite hopeful for once that perhaps we are doing the right thing for a change, all the soundbites seem to indicate a change in approach and while actions speak louder than words maybe the penny has sank at last.

[Guest Knightrider]

Good to see over 60% are sticking by him 

[ATB]

Roeder is really shit and I don´t see any positive sinze with him with the rudder .

[Mick]

Over 76% think he should go or we can't get anybody better, not exactly an endorsement.

[NUFC06]

Maybe the club is going in the right direction as far as not spending big money on overrated players and stick with the academy boys but that doesnt change the fact that Roeder is average manager and that Fulham game proved it once again(putting Carr ahead of Nobby)

 

 

[Guest smoggeordie]

Uberpost tastic!

 

and that is 5 tbh

 

Agree with a lot of what you've said there, although it sounds like you're trying to convince yourself rather than convince us.

 

Bit of both, to be honest. You can clearly sense a shift in attitude from the top down at the club though and I'm actually quite hopeful for once that perhaps we are doing the right thing for a change, all the soundbites seem to indicate a change in approach and while actions speak louder than words maybe the penny has sank at last.

 

The change of approach has been forced on Shepherd though. Give him another 50 million to spend and I doubt he'll have learnt his lesson.

[Northern Monkey]

I'm with Billy Ray on this one. Roeder has done and is doing a good job in very difficult circumstances. Imagine if we'd been able to play a fit Ameobi alongside Martins instead of Sibierski, imagine if we hadn't had to employ a different back line every game. I'd guess that any four of our defenders playing together regularly would have got better results than the constantly changing lineups we've had to send out.

 

One thing often overlooked is the time it takes players to get back to their best after returning from injury. So it's not just the players who are out, it's the players who are on the pitch but still a couple of weeks away from their best. We've had two or three of those in the side most games this season. Against Fulham we had Duff, Carr, Bramble and Gooch (can't remember how to spell his surname) all lacking match practice / integration into the team.

 

 

Fucking hell, i'd rather not.

 

And if you think Bramble and Carr just need match practice, you've not been paying attention.

[Yorkie]

I'd rather have Ameobi in the side than Sibierski, which is why i'd probably agree with Lloydie. I'm not Shola's biggest fan, but he'd be a big bonus to our squad considering the amount of games we're having to play. For the European campaign especially, he'd be a big bonus.

 

Unfortunately, there's a good argument for someone who'd suggest that the team would score less goals if Shola was in of the team, in spite of how many goals he would be scoring. I like Shola, i think he's a decent player overall, with good technical ability and the brain of a predatory striker. I also think that he could have forged a good partnership with Martins.

 

However, and i'm about to exacerbate one of Roeder's weaknesses here (so i'm not drifting that far off-topic), whenever Shola or Sibierski is in the team, the manager feels it necassary to pump long balls forward simply because there's a big man in the side. This is probably the best explanation for why we score less goals as a team with Ameobi in the side. It's cos we're shit at long ball and it doesn't work, not because Shola is this abysmal player.

 

Ameobi's got good footwork once he's navigated his way around his first touch, so if we were to play the ball on the floor as we do with Dyer, there's no reason why Shola and Martins shouldn't have made a decent partnership.

 

All goes back to Roeder's starting line-up problems and/or initial tactics at the start of a game. The Ventspils away game springs to mind instantly, even though there are other and probably better examples, Ameobi was a lone striker and he got no joy. He's not good at holding the ball up and he's not brilliant with his head. But he's got strength and he's a good finisher in the box, including when having his back to goal. He got absolutely no joy that game and we were hopeless from an attacking point of view.

 

Finally though, Shola's missed his big chance at becoming the week-in week-out, main striker at this club, because he's got a season-long injury. Something else that is arguably not his fault, because he should have been operated on far earlier. And when he comes back, so will Owen, and another(s) striker will come in.

 

But he definitely could have done it, with the correct tactician. The tactics were different under Bobby and Souness, yes, but he was only playing with Shearer then, which just didn't work.

[Parky]

The question should be: How simple is Glenn Roeder?

[Northern Monkey]

I'd rather have Ameobi in the side than Sibierski, which is why i'd probably agree with Lloydie. I'm not Shola's biggest fan, but he'd be a big bonus to our squad considering the amount of games we're having to play. For the European campaign especially, he'd be a big bonus.

 

Unfortunately, there's a good argument for someone who'd suggest that the team would score less goals if Shola was in of the team, in spite of how many goals he would be scoring. I like Shola, i think he's a decent player overall, with good technical ability and the brain of a predatory striker. I also think that he could have forged a good partnership with Martins.

 

However, and i'm about to exacerbate one of Roeder's weaknesses here (so i'm not drifting that far off-topic), whenever Shola or Sibierski is in the team, the manager feels it necassary to pump long balls forward simply because there's a big man in the side. This is probably the best explanation for why we score less goals as a team with Ameobi in the side. It's cos we're shit at long ball and it doesn't work, not because Shola is this abysmal player.

 

Ameobi's got good footwork once he's navigated his way around his first touch, so if we were to play the ball on the floor as we do with Dyer, there's no reason why Shola and Martins shouldn't have made a decent partnership.

 

All goes back to Roeder's starting line-up problems and/or initial tactics at the start of a game. The Ventspils away game springs to mind instantly, even though there are other and probably better examples, Ameobi was a lone striker and he got no joy. He's not good at holding the ball up and he's not brilliant with his head. But he's got strength and he's a good finisher in the box, including when having his back to goal. He got absolutely no joy that game and we were hopeless from an attacking point of view.

 

Finally though, Shola's missed his big chance at becoming the week-in week-out, main striker at this club, because he's got a season-long injury. Something else that is arguably not his fault, because he should have been operated on far earlier. And when he comes back, so will Owen, and another(s) striker will come in.

 

But he definitely could have done it, with the correct tactician. The tactics were different under Bobby and Souness, yes, but he was only playing with Shearer then, which just didn't work.

 

He missed his chance of being a week in, week out striker for us by not being good enough, fuck all to do with injuries. This fella is NOT good enough, simple as that. He'll never be prolific, or have any particular footballing ability. He'd do a good job in the Championship, for me. He's on a par with Carr, Shambles, Moore and Roeder in that sense.

[Howaythelads]

Couple of decent posts in this thread, notably from BillyRay and grassroots.

[Northern Monkey]

The question should be: How simple is Glenn Roeder?

 

Bramble walks back into the team..... Carr at left back.......Shola is good enough.......

 

So i'm guessing "VERY simple".