revolution saint

Yeah, I'd be happy to keep him. It was a strange signing because his best position seems to be as an out and out winger but he's rarely had the opportunity to play as one. Certainly under RH it was all about working against the ball and cutting inside but think we could have utilised him far better. I'd really only want him as a squad option so if he goes then it's not going to be the end of the world and definitely need to get the size of the squad down.

Probably right although it's hampering them as much as us. They'll be wanting to appoint a manager soon themselves so I expect we'll come to a predictable agreement without too much fuss.

Tella seems an easy one. Either Burnley stump up 20M or we keep him. I’m fairly relaxed either way, I’m not sure he’ll make it in the premier league but looks like he can in the championship so he’ll be an asset to us. He doesn’t look the type to be difficult either. Similar with Sulemana, if someone offers us our money back then I’d probably take it but I don’t think many clubs will. I’m also happy to keep him, could be a great player in the championship. Out of all of them, I would love to keep hold of Alcaraz. The lad can be something special for us.

Midfield needs to be a bit stronger IMO. I wouldn't want to go into the season with Grimes, Diallo, Smallbone and Aribo. Grimes might be OK but the others either aren't proper CM or not good enough at it. Otherwise it's probably decent enough.

Quite like all the DSB mockups. They're mostly all quite clean designs but whatever we usually get always seems messy in comparison.

I'd be happy with that if they kept the stripes on the back.

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Yeah so when I said generally I meant most of the time rather than all of the time. Obviously there's a whole host of considerations that come into play but generally the quality of the squad will be more important than whoever happens to be the manager.

Can't say I'm much bothered either way and certainly not that worried about any delay. Obviously wouldn't want it stretching out too long but this feels like the usual haggling that generally gets sorted without too much bother. I think it was Mick McCarthy who said that generally speaking clubs tend to finish according to the quality of the playing squad and, while managers have an influence, they're not that big a deal. Obviously there's exceptions and really bad ones will mean you do much worse and really good ones could be the difference between promotion and staying where you are. Seemed to make a lot of sense to me.

It was a joke.

Just got a ST for first time in 10 years or so. Quite looking forward to a half decent season where we hopefully win more than we lose, goals, 3pm Saturday kick offs and thinking we have a realistic chance of winning every game (I don’t mean I think we’ll win every game but none of this going to a game and thinking the best we’ll get is a draw or narrow defeat). This optimism will last till end of August…..

Fair enough - I thought the deal included the option to match any bid but I can't find it anywhere so you could be right. Doesn't really matter though - if City want him then they'll get him (assuming Lavia wants to go back there). In fact City are in a position to match any bid and still get him cheaper because of the sell on clause and I don't see a situation where they would be unaware of any potential deal. Not sure the timing is right for a move to City though - Lavia needs to be playing regularly and that's probably less likely if he went back.

Pretty sure City have the option to match any bid as part of the deal to get him here.

I don't feel that students should be included in the figures, or if they are then it's made a bit clearer. Economically they're a huge bonus to the UK and limiting numbers would come at a cost we could do without right now.

I'm probably more likely to get a ST now than if we'd stayed up. I've had one on and off for last 30 years but the most recent L1 and championship seasons were my most enjoyable ones. I find it hard to get excited going into seasons thinking the best we could do would be a slightly above mid table finish.

Cheers, does seem strange to presumably concede far more goals than they're expected to. It'll be interesting to see how he copes managing a side that is (hopefully) expected to be around the top end of the table and with more resources than most other clubs. You'd think our possession stats would automatically be an improvement because, if nothing else, the standard of teams against us will be lower. I guess in that context it's going to be as important to look at chances created and goals scored. Don't know too much about him but Piroe seems to be a fairly regular scorer at this level.

There's loads of stats bouncing around but if I understand you correctly, only 3 more teams conceded more than Swansea this season BUT only 4 teams were expected to concede less than Swansea. Is it just that they have a shit keeper?

And that's kind of my point - the idea that there's one style out there that guarantees success and it's just a case of finding it. I'd be more interested in finding a manager who can look at the players we have and figure out what the best style would be for them (and obviously with the considerations of the league we're in). I'd like a decent manager who will be pragmatic and flexible rather than a dogmatic ideologue. Take your point about why it seems to be the case.

Completely agree. Not every appointment has to be left field and different from everyone else - it's almost like they feel this appointment has to differentiate us from the crowd. I'm not against possession based football but whoever comes in needs to be pragmatic and flexible rather than bound by principle to a particular style. The job is to get us promoted and I couldn't give a toss how that's achieved. I'm also a bit confused about why we're now looking at managers who are only linked with a possession based game. Why the fascination now? It's the exact opposite of a Nathan Jones style of manager who they had tracked for a long time. Smacks of someone desperate and chucking ideas out in the hope one of them will work out well. Your soft skills point is well made - I'd much rather a manager who is a good motivator and can maintain discipline rather than a tactical genius that overthinks and leaves players wondering what they're supposed to be doing. As you say, hope I'm proven wrong but......

I think too much was made of the playbook anyway. It's fine to have a philosophy, and most managers do, but it's always going to be compromised by individual player attributes such as talent, stamina, speed etc etc as well as the opposition. If you have something so dictatorial and precise then you become predictable and dull to watch. The best managers will adjust according to circumstances - it doesn't need a particularly prescriptive playbook. Besides which I quite like the idea of players having a bit of license to express themselves albeit within an overarching philosophy.

I’m watching the Boro v Coventry game. Coventry bossing Boro and one nil up. I guess we could have a chance with Carrick if it stays this way but not seen much to impress me about Boro. Only one game though so might be a bit harsh.

Should definitely try to get him in early doors.

Take your point that it's not as if we had a wealth of talent that's obviously better. However, Bazunu was the one that had the spot and he's the one that has let in goals that he should have saved and is the worst keeper in the premier league. Feel sorry for the lad because he shouldn't have been put in that position but in the context of who has had the most detrimental effect on the team, it's hard to argue against Bazunu.

What, the entire nation? That's a lot to fit into Manchester.

Flicked on to catch the voting but ended up hearing the UK entry for the first time. How bad must Germany have been to be worse than ours? Appreciate it's subjective and it's not my kind of thing anyway but thought the UK entry was really, really awful.