Mauricio Pochettino - Sacked

[DubaiSpur]

Still not fully convinced of Pochettino. Our lack reaction after going behind to Liverpool is a real concern. The way we simply gave up against Liverpool was really disappointing, especially playing at home. Guess it will take more time for Pochettino to get the best out of the players.

Also, his team selection seems a bit similiar to Sherwood. They have both over rated Adebayor while not giving chances to others like Sandro. Not sure why Adebayor is still our top striker or why Sandro was sold despite being our best defensive midfielder. It is a joke why we never thought of buying another striker.

It will take time. Our players are for some reason mentally destroyed, to the extent where anything going against us is more likely to cause a general collapse than it is to spur an effort to get back into a game. They also will take a long time to adapt to Poch's system, especially with the second-choice nature of some of our buys this summer. The key for Poch will be using setbacks like Liverpool to weed out some of the less committed players and then praying to the gods that Levy deigns to toss him some scraps to work with.

It will happen. I know it will. Poch has impressed me more than any of our recent managers have done this early into their respective tenures. But it will take a long, long time. So, patience with the manager, I guess, will reap dividends.

 

[supie]

It will take time. Our players are for some reason mentally destroyed, to the extent where anything going against us is more likely to cause a general collapse than it is to spur an effort to get back into a game. They also will take a long time to adapt to Poch's system, especially with the second-choice nature of some of our buys this summer. The key for Poch will be using setbacks like Liverpool to weed out some of the less committed players and then praying to the gods that Levy deigns to toss him some scraps to work with.

It will happen. I know it will. Poch has impressed me more than any of our recent managers have done this early into their respective tenures. But it will take a long, long time. So, patience with the manager, I guess, will reap dividends.

I was reflecting on Villa's win today and while yes they parked the bus, and yes they only had approximately 25% of play, Lambert must be given credit for what they have achieved. In fact, Villa look like they are gradually and steadily improving and fair play to the Villa board for backing him and trusting him to get it right. There is something in that for a lot if teams and I think over a 2-3 season period their is a real chance that a coach can really start to make a difference. In Poch we trust and I think he will make this team a real challenger for top 4; however it will need time and we will need to be patient.


Sitting on my porcelain throne using Fapatalk

 

[SpurMeUp]

I was reflecting on Villa's win today and while yes they parked the bus, and yes they only had approximately 25% of play, Lambert must be given credit for what they have achieved. In fact, Villa look like they are gradually and steadily improving and fair play to the Villa board for backing him and trusting him to get it right. There is something in that for a lot if teams and I think over a 2-3 season period their is a real chance that a coach can really start to make a difference. In Poch we trust and I think he will make this team a real challenger for top 4; however it will need time and we will need to be patient.


Sitting on my porcelain throne using Fapatalk

Lambert's stock really plummeted with villa looking awful over the past two seasons. Truth is, he probably kept them up, and now he's looking a very decent coach again. There is a lot to be said for the long view and how a manager can build.

At the moment, Pochettino has to - quickly - choose a first team so they can settle into a system. When was the last time we've named the same team for two or three games? We started the season with the players who were back for preseason, the WC players then came back, and now there are two new signings to integrate.

The challenge is there are a lot of similar quality players for each position. We have to give Poch some time to develop his team. He's not inheriting a stable side from last season, more starting from scratch - Lloris, Eriksen possibly Ade the only 3 who were 'first on the team sheet' players.

Now you'd say Capoue, maybe Dembele, Rose, Lamela are staking a claim to play every week. Kaboul, Chadli, Dier likewise but I think they need to do more. You can see some of the blanks being filled in and some foundations to a new team now.

 

[JerusalemMan]

Pretty sure that his preferred back 4 as the season goes on will not include any of the 4 players who appeared in the starting lineup yesterday.

 

[SpurMeUp]

Pretty sure that his preferred back 4 as the season goes on will not include any of the 4 players who appeared in the starting lineup yesterday.

I guess the point is, if we didn't have any other options - those 4 were our best - then the coaching team would get the best out of them. They would settle and improve. But changing constantly leaves us with the same problem - a lack of stability.

I know what your saying, Kaboul always has at least one mistake in him, Chiriches needs to mature (was madding the way he had an easy pass to Rose, dwelt on the ball trying to do too much and lost it), Dier a bit big for a full back and Rose who a majority are still waiting to say 'see I told you so'. Walker would probably get in the side, but how long will he need? Kaboul has a physical presence and power, and under HR he played the best he has. Under Poch (the former CB) I think Kaboul could settle and play well - the signs are he is already. For me Rose is one of the rocks of our defence now. I've been impressed with the transformation in his attitude under Poch. Always walks away now, and is playing well. Why would you change that?

 

[Raziel]

I guess the point is, if we didn't have any other options - those 4 were our best - then the coaching team would get the best out of them. They would settle and improve. But changing constantly leaves us with the same problem - a lack of stability.

I know what your saying, Kaboul always has at least one mistake in him, Chiriches needs to mature (was madding the way he had an easy pass to Rose, dwelt on the ball trying to do too much and lost it), Dier a bit big for a full back and Rose who a majority are still waiting to say 'see I told you so'. Walker would probably get in the side, but how long will he need? Kaboul has a physical presence and power, and under HR he played the best he has. Under Poch (the former CB) I think Kaboul could settle and play well - the signs are he is already. For me Rose is one of the rocks of our defence now. I've been impressed with the transformation in his attitude under Poch. Always walks away now, and is playing well. Why would you change that?

Not sure I would say none of that 4 ..

Walker/Vert are the certainties for me.
Rose has earned his spot so far this season (from someone who is not a fan)
so really it's Kaboul/Vlad/Fazio for 1 PL CB position, I'm assuming Fazio wasn't bought as a backup
Walker is still likely out for a while, do Dier can do a job, with Naughton pressuring if Dier makes too many mistakes.

But the point is valid, until we play the same back 4, plus same protecting pair in front for a few games in a row, hard to judge.

 

[braineclipse]

So far for Poch in the league one average game (Wham), one poor game (Liverpool) and two very good games (QPR and Sunderland). Pretty good for his first four games.

A lot of talk and speculation about how quickly he can make his system work. I thought our pressing against Sunderland was excellent, long spells of the game where they could barely get it out of their own half as the home team. The attacking midfield 3 of Lamela, Eriksen and Chadli seems to be gelling nicely and we're creating a lot more chances than we did most of last season.

Seems that the players are buying into his philosophy too, at least the effort and work rate has been there from the majority of the players most of the time.

Some problems defensively, but with Walker missing, Verts returning from injury and missing some games, Fazio still not featuring, Vlad missing all of pre-season and Ben Davies still bedding in along with the new system of course that's hardly surprising. Just imagine a back 4 of Dier, Kaboul, Vlad and Rose last season under either manager and I think it would have been a lot worse than it was against Sunderland. And despite the disappointment of not wining they only had one shot on target all game and we looking in control most of the time.

 

[wiziwig]

Not sure I would say none of that 4 ..

Walker/Vert are the certainties for me.
Rose has earned his spot so far this season (from someone who is not a fan)
so really it's Kaboul/Vlad/Fazio for 1 PL CB position, I'm assuming Fazio wasn't bought as a backup
Walker is still likely out for a while, do Dier can do a job, with Naughton pressuring if Dier makes too many mistakes.

But the point is valid, until we play the same back 4, plus same protecting pair in front for a few games in a row, hard to judge.

I'm not having a go at the kid Dier but of the five goals we have conceded in the league , four have come down the right side of our penalty area and the other ( Sterling , Liverpool's first ) is a tap-in at his post.

Dier did really well in the first two games and perhaps in hindsight it may have been better for his confidence to have rested him for the sterner test that is Liverpool. I thought he looked a little nervous on Saturday . I just hope any confidence he may have gained from his first two performances has not all gone .

 

[Bullet]

I'm not having a go at the kid Dier but of the five goals we have conceded in the league , four have come down the right side of our penalty area and the other ( Sterling , Liverpool's first ) is a tap-in at his post.

Woah, is that true? Let me think... we conceded 3 against Liverpool, the Sterling tap in where Dier could have tracked Sterling, the very soft penalty he gave away, then Moreno ran down the flank while Dier was pushing on so not really his fault but... hmm OK, and then the 2 against Sunderland where Johnson jinked inside him past Capoue and shot through Kaboul and Lloris and Rose... is that Dier's fault, he did usher him into traffic? Kind of... and then the freekick they scored from was down his side.

Hmmm, it is a bit harsh but you are not wrong in many ways! Thanks for that observation. If only we had a time machine and could find out how we would have fared with Walker at right back. Probably no goals against West Ham and QPR.

 

[wiziwig]

Woah, is that true? Let me think... we conceded 3 against Liverpool, the Sterling tap in where Dier could have tracked Sterling, the very soft penalty he gave away, then Moreno ran down the flank while Dier was pushing on so not really his fault but... hmm OK, and then the 2 against Sunderland where Johnson jinked inside him past Capoue and shot through Kaboul and Lloris and Rose... is that Dier's fault, he did usher him into traffic? Kind of... and then the freekick they scored from was down his side.

Hmmm, it is a bit harsh but you are not wrong in many ways! Thanks for that observation. If only we had a time machine and could find out how we would have fared with Walker at right back. Probably no goals against West Ham and QPR.

I'm not blaming him for the goals conceded but he did seem a tad nervy to me on Saturday , more so in the second half.

As i said in the previous post , it's all hindsight but I do feel thatwe have to remember he's a youngster, he's not playing in his favoured position , with no Lennon there covering ahead of him, and it's a new league too. Taking all these factors in , for me at least , there's nothing wrong in easing him into the team by benching him after he's had a good game or two.

 

[harr1984]

Im very excited about his talents but I prefer Naughton at RB in Walker's absence....

 

[wiziwig]

Im very excited about his talents but I prefer Naughton at RB in Walker's absence....

I think Naughton is a decent defender , certainly good enough to be rotated with Dier for the right-back position. I think he'll starting in Belgrade.

 

[Bedfordspurs]

I'm not blaming him for the goals conceded but he did seem a tad nervy to me on Saturday , more so in the second half.

As i said in the previous post , it's all hindsight but I do feel thatwe have to remember he's a youngster, he's not playing in his favoured position , with no Lennon there covering ahead of him, and it's a new league too. Taking all these factors in , for me at least , there's nothing wrong in easing him into the team by benching him after he's had a good game or two.

He plays the right back position similarly to how Kaboul used too... As a centre back playing out of position.

He regularly tries to jockey and opponent rather than show them the way he wants them to go. He looks uncomfortable there for me but young enough to accept it as part of his development. Going toward he is quite decent at right back as you would expect from a clearly talented footballer

He will definitely be a very good and possibly great centre back and I'd rather see him get his chance there whilst we have ade quiet cover at right back.

I noticed too that all the goals we have conceded have come down his side but he hasnt played right back without Kaboul there I believe and Kaboul has really put us in danger a lot with some of his slack play

 

[harr1984]

I think Naughton is a decent defender , certainly good enough to be rotated with Dier for the right-back position. I think he'll starting in Belgrade.

I dont think he should be rotated, Naughton has more than proved decent cover for Walker. Dier should be left to focus on challenging for a first team place at CB, I dont think shifting between the two positions is going to help his development....

 

[Jurgen the German]

It will take time. Our players are for some reason mentally destroyed, to the extent where anything going against us is more likely to cause a general collapse than it is to spur an effort to get back into a game. They also will take a long time to adapt to Poch's system, especially with the second-choice nature of some of our buys this summer. The key for Poch will be using setbacks like Liverpool to weed out some of the less committed players and then praying to the gods that Levy deigns to toss him some scraps to work with.

It will happen. I know it will. Poch has impressed me more than any of our recent managers have done this early into their respective tenures. But it will take a long, long time. So, patience with the manager, I guess, will reap dividends.

I wonder how much missing out on the CL in 2011/12 really did leave a psychological blow on the club.

 

[braineclipse]

I dont think he should be rotated, Naughton has more than proved decent cover for Walker. Dier should be left to focus on challenging for a first team place at CB, I dont think shifting between the two positions is going to help his development....

I don't know. Pretty normal for young central defenders to play either as full backs or defensive midfielders for a while earlier in their career. I think it can be quite helpful.

I would have preferred Naughton against Liverpool, just seemed like a massive ask to give Dier a start against them, but he did alright I suppose.

Poch has been applauded for bringing in and through youngsters at Southampton and Espanyol, I think it played a part in the decision to go for him this summer. There will be setbacks, but if players like Dier and Bentaleb take strides and improve as a result it could be worth it.

 

[wiziwig]

I dont think he should be rotated, Naughton has more than proved decent cover for Walker. Dier should be left to focus on challenging for a first team place at CB, I dont think shifting between the two positions is going to help his development....

I recall after the Spammers game, Dier mentioning the fact that although his position is center-half , he has also played at right-back for Sporting Lisbon so playing there, wasn't completely alien to him.

I agree, Naughton is able cover for Walker, but our match schedule is three games per week so rotatation comes into it. Dier has shown against the weaker opponent, that he can be decent at right-back so I don't see the problem with the kid getting game time at WHL against any of the bottom half teams. It's those tough away days and against the better teams where I think Naughton should be picked ahead of him, for now at least.

 

[harr1984]

I don't know. Pretty normal for young central defenders to play either as full backs or defensive midfielders for a while earlier in their career. I think it can be quite helpful.

I would have preferred Naughton against Liverpool, just seemed like a massive ask to give Dier a start against them, but he did alright I suppose.

Poch has been applauded for bringing in and through youngsters at Southampton and Espanyol, I think it played a part in the decision to go for him this summer. There will be setbacks, but if players like Dier and Bentaleb take strides and improve as a result it could be worth it.

Completely agree, just dont see the need to play him at RB when we have Naughton - I think he will develop into a fine CB under Poch but for me Naughton has proved worthy of stepping up in Walker's absence and Dier should only play there when Naughton needs to be rested...

 

[harr1984]

I recall after the Spammers game, Dier mentioning the fact that although his position is center-half , he has also played at right-back for Sporting Lisbon so playing there, wasn't completely alien to him.

I agree, Naughton is able cover for Walker, but our match schedule is three games per week so rotatation comes into it. Dier has shown against the weaker opponent, that he can be decent at right-back so I don't see the problem with the kid getting game time at WHL against any of the bottom half teams. It's those tough away days and against the better teams where I think Naughton should be picked ahead of him, for now at least.

Yes I dont have an issue with him having select games at RB, just that Naughton should be playing the majority and Dier fills in when necessary. But I suppose Kyle has been suspended aswell so a little early to really be commenting on who Poch prefers...

 

[DubaiSpur]

I wonder how much missing out on the CL in 2011/12 really did leave a psychological blow on the club.

Not many first-team players from that period are left at the club, though. Beyond Ade, Walker and Lennon, I'm struggling to think of anyone. I agree, it must have been devastating at the time and probably did hurt on some level for most of the staff at the club in some way....but personally, I think AVB's excessive devotion to the collective mentality left a lot of players unwilling to take responsibility or be brave.