Dman Posted October 27 Posted October 27 On 23/10/2025 at 16:02, Matthew Le God said: Better to have someone good for a short time, than plod along with someone other clubs think aren't good enough. yeah, because that has worked an absoulte treat for us since SR came in. Joe Sheilds - 5 months then he was off Jason Wilcox - 8 months then he was off Spors - 8 months, looks to be off. Completely unsustainable for the figure head of our club in a footballing respect to change as frequently as that. Its absolutely no wonder we're a complete basket case. 6
Matthew Le God Posted October 27 Author Posted October 27 12 minutes ago, Dman said: yeah, because that has worked an absoulte treat for us since SR came in. Joe Sheilds - 5 months then he was off Jason Wilcox - 8 months then he was off Spors - 8 months, looks to be off. Completely unsustainable for the figure head of our club in a footballing respect to change as frequently as that. Its absolutely no wonder we're a complete basket case. Jumping to conclusions to say "looks to be off" Also bizarre to deliberately pick weaker candidates for a job than you need to. 1
Dman Posted October 27 Posted October 27 23 minutes ago, Matthew Le God said: Jumping to conclusions to say "looks to be off" Also bizarre to deliberately pick weaker candidates for a job than you need to. well done, in usual fashion you've completely missed the point 👍 1
trousers Posted October 27 Posted October 27 19 minutes ago, Dman said: well done, in usual fashion you've completely missed the point 👍 There's probably a "fallacy" in your reply. Not sure which one though, will leave that to MLG to clarify. 1 1
benjii Posted October 27 Posted October 27 1 minute ago, trousers said: There's probably a "fallacy" in your reply. Not sure which one though, will leave that to MLG to clarify. Ad nauseam phallus, incoming. 3
Matthew Le God Posted October 27 Author Posted October 27 3 hours ago, Dman said: well done, in usual fashion you've completely missed the point 👍 Yes or no. Do you want Saints to sign staff the top cubs won't want to sign in the future?
trousers Posted October 27 Posted October 27 (edited) 59 minutes ago, Matthew Le God said: Yes or no. Do you want Saints to sign staff the top clubs won't want to sign within 1 year? Made the question more pertinent to our situation for you... P.s. there are pros and cons of both scenarios, for what it's worth... Edited October 27 by trousers
coalman Posted October 27 Posted October 27 4 hours ago, Dman said: yeah, because that has worked an absoulte treat for us since SR came in. Joe Sheilds - 5 months then he was off Jason Wilcox - 8 months then he was off Spors - 8 months, looks to be off. Completely unsustainable for the figure head of our club in a footballing respect to change as frequently as that. Its absolutely no wonder we're a complete basket case. In many new jobs it's going to take you 5-6 months to get to the point where you're really delivering. The first couple of months are about figuring what goes where. Then where you can add some value. And, only then, can you start to make serious headway. Our recent DoFs have stayed long enough to turn the dog's arse they inherited into a bigger dog's arse then fucked off. 5
Dman Posted October 27 Posted October 27 1 hour ago, Matthew Le God said: Yes or no. Do you want Saints to sign staff the top cubs won't want to sign in the future? I want saints to sign staff (and by staff we mean the man setting the strategy of the club), who stay in a job long enough to actually make a difference. 4
Matthew Le God Posted October 27 Author Posted October 27 (edited) 18 minutes ago, Dman said: I want saints to sign staff (and by staff we mean the man setting the strategy of the club), who stay in a job long enough to actually make a difference. You have avoided the question by answering something I did not ask. It was a yes or no question. Edited October 27 by Matthew Le God 1
CB Fry Posted October 27 Posted October 27 (edited) 18 minutes ago, Dman said: I want saints to sign staff (and by staff we mean the man setting the strategy of the club), who stay in a job long enough to actually make a difference. In fairness to the club I think they are trying to do that. They are not intentionally appointing people that they know will leave after seven months. Edited October 27 by CB Fry 3
tdmickey3 Posted October 27 Posted October 27 1 minute ago, CB Fry said: In fairness to the club I think they are trying to do that. They are not intentionally appointing people that they know will leave after seven months. Maybe but are you forgetting the compo they receive from the individuals new employer..... profit not to be sniffed at
Holmes_and_Watson Posted October 27 Posted October 27 43 minutes ago, tdmickey3 said: Maybe but are you forgetting the compo they receive from the individuals new employer..... profit not to be sniffed at Staff trading along with player trading is the SR way. Presumably a reason why we also hired only up and coming project managers.
Dman Posted October 27 Posted October 27 50 minutes ago, CB Fry said: In fairness to the club I think they are trying to do that. They are not intentionally appointing people that they know will leave after seven months. I'm not aruging they are - clearly they aren't. The question is probably why are these people leaving..? But to say, to MLG's point, its better to have someone for a short period that everyone wants, is clearly nonsense.. as proven by the past 2 years.
Matthew Le God Posted October 27 Author Posted October 27 5 minutes ago, Dman said: I'm not aruging they are - clearly they aren't. The question is probably why are these people leaving..? Not hard to work that out. Because some of biggest and richest clubs in world football offer them huge wage increases. 1
Matthew Le God Posted October 27 Author Posted October 27 7 minutes ago, Dman said: But to say, to MLG's point, its better to have someone for a short period that everyone wants, is clearly nonsense.. as proven by the past 2 years. You've taken that out of context. Re-insert the context of what I was comparing it to. 1 1
CB Fry Posted October 27 Posted October 27 19 minutes ago, Dman said: I'm not aruging they are - clearly they aren't. The question is probably why are these people leaving..? Man United, Chelsea and (let's see if it happens) Juventus. Why would they stay? I definitely wouldn't. 3
trousers Posted October 27 Posted October 27 (edited) MLG and Dman both have valid points: a) appointing a DoF that nobody else wants = not great b) appointing DoFs that keep getting enticed elsewhere within months of joining Saints = not great Is there an answer to this conundrum? Who knows. I'd probably look at other similar sized clubs to see how they manage to keep hold of decent DoFs and perhaps use them as a template for what we could/should do... Edited October 27 by trousers
mikee Posted October 27 Posted October 27 3 minutes ago, trousers said: MLG and Dman both have valid points: a) appointing a DoF that nobody else wants = not great b) appointing DoFs that keep getting enticed elsewhere within months of joining Saints = not great Is there an answer to this conundrum? Who knows. I'd probably look at other similar sized clubs to see how they manage to keep hold of decent DoFs and perhaps use them as a template for what we could/should do... I guess the answer is to have success on the pitch so that people want to stay and ride the wave of success. Unfortunately we have been in a downward spiral so it's a case of rats deserting a sinking ship. 1
stknowle Posted October 27 Posted October 27 On 23/10/2025 at 15:36, S-Clarke said: I don't believe that Sports Directors keep leaving us simply because other clubs come knocking, there is seemingly a will for them to explore other opportunities and open the door for these approaches quite quickly. It's usually a good 6 months > year and the cycle continues. They must see the chaos and they know they're better off running rather than committing long term, and let's not forget that if Rasmus still has his muddy hands all over everything, he could certainly be winding up any Sporting Directors once they've been in the room for a period of time. There is a consistent factor which pre-dates Sheilds, Wilcox and Sporrs - and he's called Rasmus. A key indicator of a badly run business is high staff turnover. SFC have this, ergo it is a badly run business run by idiots.
Matthew Le God Posted October 27 Author Posted October 27 5 minutes ago, stknowle said: A key indicator of a badly run business is high staff turnover. SFC have this, ergo it is a badly run business run by idiots. Losing staff to significantly richer and higher-profile companies is not an indicator of a badly run business. Please do not take this as me saying that the club is being well run. 1
stknowle Posted October 27 Posted October 27 (edited) 8 minutes ago, Matthew Le God said: Losing staff to significantly richer and higher-profile companies is not an indicator of a badly run business. Please do not take this as me saying that the club is being well run. Nonsense Matthew, the staff see how shit the business is and want out asap, ideally to better employers. However I am prepared to grant your request to not take your statement as you saying the club is being well run. 👍 Edited October 27 by stknowle
Badger Posted October 27 Posted October 27 Not sure what we look for on the CV for a Sporting Director. Wonder if our search is based solely on football related matters and experience. Perhaps this is too narrow and we should widen the criteria. Aberdeen are showing the way to this less blinkered approach. 2
SW11_Saint Posted October 27 Posted October 27 (edited) 19 minutes ago, Badger said: Not sure what we look for on the CV for a Sporting Director. Wonder if our search is based solely on football related matters and experience. Perhaps this is too narrow and we should widen the criteria. Aberdeen are showing the way to this less blinkered approach. I mean, I’d hire him just to hear the stories over a 🍺! Edited October 27 by SW11_Saint
Badger Posted October 27 Posted October 27 Just now, SW11_Saint said: I mean, I’d just hire him to heat the stories over a 🍺! Sounds as if he knows how to pick up a penguin. 8
saint michael Posted October 27 Posted October 27 5 hours ago, Matthew Le God said: Losing staff to significantly richer and higher-profile companies is not an indicator of a badly run business. Please do not take this as me saying that the club is being well run. Which of these hires do you think have been successful for saints and why? What do you think the bigger clubs have seen to want to hire them? 1
TheAlehouseBrawlers Posted October 27 Posted October 27 6 hours ago, Matthew Le God said: Losing staff to significantly richer and higher-profile companies is not an indicator of a badly run business. Please do not take this as me saying that the club is being well run. Joe Shields couldn't go directly from City to Chelsea, same with Wilcox to United so, it's not too much of a stretch of imagination that SFC were used as a convenient stepping stone to smooth the way. Shit for continuity at our football club but nice drop of compensation for the business model. 2
Mboto Gorge Posted October 27 Posted October 27 1 minute ago, TheAlehouseBrawlers said: Joe Shields couldn't go directly from City to Chelsea, same with Wilcox to United so, it's not too much of a stretch of imagination that SFC were used as a convenient stepping stone to smooth the way. Shit for continuity at our football club but nice drop of compensation for the business model. Please can you provide proof to MLG that the decision to use saints was merely as a stepping stone. Please provide evidence that the compensation provided was an incentive for saints to sanction the move. 1 3
Osvaldorama Posted October 27 Posted October 27 1 hour ago, Mboto Gorge said: Please can you provide proof to MLG that the decision to use saints was merely as a stepping stone. Please provide evidence that the compensation provided was an incentive for saints to sanction the move. Sorry, this post uses the ‘Begging the question’ fallacy. The post assumes the conclusion (Saints were used as a stepping stone and compensated to sanction the move) without providing evidence, then demands proof for those assumptions. 4
leeham_69 Posted October 28 Posted October 28 11 hours ago, trousers said: MLG and Dman both have valid points: a) appointing a DoF that nobody else wants = not great b) appointing DoFs that keep getting enticed elsewhere within months of joining Saints = not great Is there an answer to this conundrum? Who knows. I'd probably look at other similar sized clubs to see how they manage to keep hold of decent DoFs and perhaps use them as a template for what we could/should do... "This director of football is too shit!" said Goldilocks, "and THIS director of football is too good!" "Ah, this director of football is just right! ... actually never mind let's get another shit one" 1
OnceaSaintalwaysaSaint Posted October 30 Posted October 30 On 27/10/2025 at 15:23, trousers said: MLG and Dman both have valid points: a) appointing a DoF that nobody else wants = not great b) appointing DoFs that keep getting enticed elsewhere within months of joining Saints = not great Is there an answer to this conundrum? Who knows. I'd probably look at other similar sized clubs to see how they manage to keep hold of decent DoFs and perhaps use them as a template for what we could/should do... So does Spors fall in to either of these categories? Is he considered good enough to be enticed elsewhere? Leo Scienza looks to be his best find. Can't argue with Azaz and Fellows being brought in from other Championship contenders, but his main fishing is in the leagues he knows best and I would question whether they're as physical as the Championship. And he targeted our major weakness early by finding a striker but how can you find someone so bad? 1
Saint Fan CaM Posted October 30 Posted October 30 (edited) 51 minutes ago, OnceaSaintalwaysaSaint said: So does Spors fall in to either of these categories? Is he considered good enough to be enticed elsewhere? Leo Scienza looks to be his best find. Can't argue with Azaz and Fellows being brought in from other Championship contenders, but his main fishing is in the leagues he knows best and I would question whether they're as physical as the Championship. And he targeted our major weakness early by finding a striker but how can you find someone so bad? Think you’ve also got to factor in who would want to come here for the wages on offer comparable to other clubs - with few options open to him, Downs was obviously a last minute high risk deal to attempt to plug a hole which has clearly failed horribly. Who knows, having been tarnished with the SR shit-stick, Spors may have put out a “come and get me” message to the footballing world in general. Edited October 30 by Saint Fan CaM
Dman Posted October 30 Posted October 30 3 minutes ago, Saint Fan CaM said: Think you’ve also got to factor in who would want to come here for the wages on offer comparable to other clubs - with few options open to him, Downs was obviously a last minute high risk deal to attempt to plug a hole which has clearly failed horribly. I probably sounds like a broken record, but we've only seen Downs under, what is imo a poor manager. I'm reluctant to judge until we see him in a side with a proper manager in the dugout. 1 1
pimpin4rizeal Posted October 30 Posted October 30 On 27/10/2025 at 08:31, Dman said: yeah, because that has worked an absoulte treat for us since SR came in. Joe Sheilds - 5 months then he was off Jason Wilcox - 8 months then he was off Spors - 8 months, looks to be off. Completely unsustainable for the figure head of our club in a footballing respect to change as frequently as that. Its absolutely no wonder we're a complete basket case. Agree with the way we are run there will never be any kind of stability .. we buy players for potential .. young managers with potential and the sporting directors as you say only stay short periods ..
Badger Posted November 1 Posted November 1 Just seen that Vierra has been sacked at Genoa who are bottom of Serie A. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/cd7rr2j58gwo Wasn’t Genoa and their parent company,777, Spors previous set up before coming to Saints ?
Yorkshire Saint Posted November 1 Posted November 1 1 hour ago, Badger said: Just seen that Vierra has been sacked at Genoa who are bottom of Serie A. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/cd7rr2j58gwo Wasn’t Genoa and their parent company,777, Spors previous set up before coming to Saints ? Yes
Bakovnetski Posted Thursday at 12:11 Posted Thursday at 12:11 Bumped, so we can give this guy plenty of shit too. 1 1
Midfield_General Posted 20 hours ago Posted 20 hours ago So, now it looks like maybe Juventus aren't quite as interested after all and he might be sticking around for a bit longer, where do you all stand on what Johannes Spors has brought to the table so far? For me: Successes: - Signed Leo Scienza - Signed Caspar Jander - Brought back Romeu (hopefully this works out as well as we all hope it will) Failures: - Grave error of judgement in failing to identify or resolve the glaring goalkeeping issue - Grave error of judgement in thinking Stewart would last the season - Grave error of judgement thinking Downs was sufficient quality - Grave error of judgement appointing Will Still - Gave Jack Stephens a new three year contract Jury still out: - Signing of Fellows - Signing of Azaz - Signing of Quarshie - Signing of Roerslev - Who he gets in as next manager So for me, he's fucked up a lot more than he's got right, and as it stands those decisions look like they are likely to cost us a shot at promotion this season. And of course, the next managerial appointment is absolutely massive. If he gets that wrong as well then he's not up to it as far as I'm concerned. The usual SR suspects seem to take all the flak but he has had his hands all over everything since last February so needs to be equally accountable. What are your thoughts on his performance so far? 2
Give it to Ron Posted 20 hours ago Posted 20 hours ago (edited) 6 minutes ago, Midfield_General said: So, now it looks like maybe Juventus aren't quite as interested after all and he might be sticking around for a bit longer, where do you all stand on what Johannes Spors has brought to the table so far? For me: Successes: - Signed Leo Scienza - Signed Caspar Jander - Brought back Romeu (hopefully this works out as well as we all hope it will) Failures: - Grave error of judgement in failing to identify or resolve the glaring goalkeeping issue - Grave error of judgement in thinking Stewart would last the season - Grave error of judgement thinking Downs was sufficient quality - Grave error of judgement appointing Will Still - Gave Jack Stephens a new three year contract Jury still out: - Signing of Fellows - Signing of Azaz - Signing of Quarshie - Signing of Roerslev - Who he gets in as next manager So for me, he's fucked up a lot more than he's got right, and as it stands those decisions look like they are likely to cost us a shot at promotion this season. And of course, the next managerial appointment is absolutely massive. If he gets that wrong as well then he's not up to it as far as I'm concerned. The usual SR suspects seem to take all the flak but he has had his hands all over everything since last February so needs to be equally accountable. What are your thoughts on his performance so far? Jury out on Fellows that’s bloody harsh he was excellent on Saturday it’s not his fault the manager has been playing him in wrong position and he was still one of best performers for me! Edited 20 hours ago by Give it to Ron 5
Give it to Ron Posted 20 hours ago Posted 20 hours ago Roeslav is a full back not a wing back that’s why not getting best from him. Looking back at QPR when under cosh and he played there was very good
Weston Super Saint Posted 15 hours ago Posted 15 hours ago 5 hours ago, Midfield_General said: So, now it looks like maybe Juventus aren't quite as interested after all and he might be sticking around for a bit longer, where do you all stand on what Johannes Spors has brought to the table so far? For me: Successes: - Signed Leo Scienza - Signed Caspar Jander - Brought back Romeu (hopefully this works out as well as we all hope it will) Failures: - Grave error of judgement in failing to identify or resolve the glaring goalkeeping issue - Grave error of judgement in thinking Stewart would last the season - Grave error of judgement thinking Downs was sufficient quality - Grave error of judgement appointing Will Still - Gave Jack Stephens a new three year contract Jury still out: - Signing of Fellows - Signing of Azaz - Signing of Quarshie - Signing of Roerslev - Who he gets in as next manager So for me, he's fucked up a lot more than he's got right, and as it stands those decisions look like they are likely to cost us a shot at promotion this season. And of course, the next managerial appointment is absolutely massive. If he gets that wrong as well then he's not up to it as far as I'm concerned. The usual SR suspects seem to take all the flak but he has had his hands all over everything since last February so needs to be equally accountable. What are your thoughts on his performance so far? Scienza and Jander are where the money is. The club will think he's done a great job when those assets are sold. That's all that matters. 1
saintant Posted 14 hours ago Posted 14 hours ago 5 hours ago, Midfield_General said: So, now it looks like maybe Juventus aren't quite as interested after all and he might be sticking around for a bit longer, where do you all stand on what Johannes Spors has brought to the table so far? For me: Successes: - Signed Leo Scienza - Signed Caspar Jander - Brought back Romeu (hopefully this works out as well as we all hope it will) Failures: - Grave error of judgement in failing to identify or resolve the glaring goalkeeping issue - Grave error of judgement in thinking Stewart would last the season - Grave error of judgement thinking Downs was sufficient quality - Grave error of judgement appointing Will Still - Gave Jack Stephens a new three year contract Jury still out: - Signing of Fellows - Signing of Azaz - Signing of Quarshie - Signing of Roerslev - Who he gets in as next manager So for me, he's fucked up a lot more than he's got right, and as it stands those decisions look like they are likely to cost us a shot at promotion this season. And of course, the next managerial appointment is absolutely massive. If he gets that wrong as well then he's not up to it as far as I'm concerned. The usual SR suspects seem to take all the flak but he has had his hands all over everything since last February so needs to be equally accountable. What are your thoughts on his performance so far? Can't argue with your summary. The Damion Downs signing rings massive alarm bells because it's hard to believe someone even remotely competent would get that so wrong and pay good money for a centre forward so lacking in power, pace, physicality, awareness, skill, ability, aerial threat etc etc etc. He has not a single redeeming feature. 1
Midfield_General Posted 13 hours ago Posted 13 hours ago 2 hours ago, Weston Super Saint said: Scienza and Jander are where the money is. The club will think he's done a great job when those assets are sold. That's all that matters. Take your point but Scienza is 27, cost £8.7m and is still playing in the Championship. Even if he tears it up this season and gets a move at the first time of asking, how much would someone realistically pay for him - £15m, maybe £20m at a stretch? There's probably a reasonable profit to be made on him, but not proper big money. At 23 I could definitely see Jander going for a few quid at the end of the season if we're still shit.
Turkish Posted 13 hours ago Posted 13 hours ago 2 hours ago, Weston Super Saint said: Scienza and Jander are where the money is. The club will think he's done a great job when those assets are sold. That's all that matters. If we can sell Scienza, Jander and anyone else for more than double what we paid for them it's another tick in the box for the player trading. League position is irrelevant to that 1
Midfield_General Posted 13 hours ago Posted 13 hours ago (edited) 25 minutes ago, Turkish said: If we can sell Scienza, Jander and anyone else for more than double what we paid for them it's another tick in the box for the player trading. League position is irrelevant to that Again, take your point but what we would make on them is peanuts compared to Premier League TV money. Surely Dragan's brief to Spors is to get us back into the Prem, even if only for financial reasons so he can claw back more of what he's spunked so far. Honestly, with his investment sat 17th in the Championship after £60m spent this summer alone, and having just had to sack and pay off his first managerial appointment after less than four months of the season, do you think Dragan will be happy with Spors' work so far? Edited 12 hours ago by Midfield_General 1
skintsaint Posted 13 hours ago Posted 13 hours ago 1 minute ago, Midfield_General said: Again, take your point but what we would make on them is peanuts compared to Premier League TV money. Surely Dragan's brief to Spors is to get us back into the Prem, even if only for financial reasons so he can claw back more of what he's spunked so far. Not only that, even if Jander had a half decent season in the PL with us, he would make even more profit when selling him on relegation. 1
Weston Super Saint Posted 12 hours ago Posted 12 hours ago 8 minutes ago, Midfield_General said: Again, take your point but what we would make on them is peanuts compared to Premier League TV money. Surely Dragan's brief to Spors is to get us back into the Prem, even if only for financial reasons so he can claw back more of what he's spunked so far. Honestly, with his investment sat 17th in the Championship after £60m spent, and having just had to sack and pay off his first managerial appointment after less than four months of the season, do you think Dragan will be happy with Spors' work so far? When you're in the PL you have to pay PL wages and transfer fees. Soon eats up the PL money. 1
Midfield_General Posted 12 hours ago Posted 12 hours ago (edited) 8 hours ago, Give it to Ron said: Jury out on Fellows that’s bloody harsh he was excellent on Saturday it’s not his fault the manager has been playing him in wrong position and he was still one of best performers for me! I thought he was great on Saturday too, but prior to that he hasn't exactly torn it up has he? Regardless of who's fault it is (and for the record, I agree that he's been poorly managed and I think he's a really good player who's just not really shown it for us yet), until he consistently makes a meaningful contribution surely the jury is still out on whether he has worked for us or not as a signing? I don't think anyone would say he's been a smash hit so far in the way that Scienza, and to a lesser degree Jander, have been, for example. And bearing in mind the question is about Spors' performance, how much of that is down to Spors appointing a manager who clearly had no idea how to get the best out of him? Edited 12 hours ago by Midfield_General 2
Turkish Posted 12 hours ago Posted 12 hours ago (edited) 20 minutes ago, Midfield_General said: I thought he was great on Saturday too, but prior to that he hasn't exactly torn it up has he? Regardless of who's fault it is (and for the record, I agree that he's been poorly managed and I think he's a really good player who's just not really shown it for us yet), until he consistently makes a meaningful contribution surely the jury is still out on whether he has worked for us or not as a signing? I don't think anyone would say he's been a smash hit so far in the way that Scienza, and to a lesser degree Jander, have been, for example. He’s been playing in some weird hybrid wing back role, it’s hardly surprising he was great at Sheffield united then subbed at half time Edited 12 hours ago by Turkish 1
Turkish Posted 12 hours ago Posted 12 hours ago 31 minutes ago, Midfield_General said: Again, take your point but what we would make on them is peanuts compared to Premier League TV money. Surely Dragan's brief to Spors is to get us back into the Prem, even if only for financial reasons so he can claw back more of what he's spunked so far. Honestly, with his investment sat 17th in the Championship after £60m spent this summer alone, and having just had to sack and pay off his first managerial appointment after less than four months of the season, do you think Dragan will be happy with Spors' work so far? Who knows mate, you’d think so wouldn’t you but I guess the objective is to stay in the premier league or yoyo (maybe Glasgow finally has his yoyo strategy 😂) spending as little as possible whilst making as much as we can. Last summer signings didn’t exactly scream we were making a good fist at staying up 1
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