Mentality

[Bullet]

Darren Anderton was on a podcast recently.

He talked about the England team in 1996, saying that the dressing room was full of leaders, of real men, fighters, winners and Venables didn't really have to manage that team.

Indicating that it was very different to the Spurs dressing room of the time.

And saying that is still what Spurs lack, some real winners, players that would rather break a leg than lose a game.

Perhaps some of the kids will grow into that one day. But the current "leaders" like Lloris and Vertonghen are far, far from that ideal.

 

[Jordinho]

We need someone at CB to lead the back 4 (Vertonghen is not that guy, Fazio might be) and someone in CM to push the team forward, not accepting anyone just going through the motions.

It's not just on the pitch either, you need a few voices in the dressing room to gee up the more laid back characters.

Mauricio: We need to create a good environment and the right mentality in the squad. It is important that we improve our consistency and sign players with the right profile to give balance to the team, that is the key.

Which is why some of the names being bandied around, like Konoplyanka and Berahino for instance, are complete non-starters and why Ings is most likely much higher up on a list of potential targets than Benteke.

 

[demotw]

aye we never seem to sign anyone with some fire and passion - all a bunch of "nice" guys who get bullied on a pitch. The best teams have that - Chelsea with Terry, Fellani can be a bit nasty at utd, but not the same since lost Keane, Toure/Milner at city etc...

 

[Gutter Boy]

On the flip side, I remember King criticising Anderton, Sherwood, Ferdinand and Sheringham for undermining Hoddle, when the young players like himself were really buying into his progressive methods.

The game has changed a lot in the last 20 years. It's much more about the collective and organisation now (and hence being submissive to the coach), than shouty mavericks.

 

[DubaiSpur]

I'd agree with Gutter, but I feel that the best sides in the modern game have both: they have a coach that the players all respect and believe in, but equally importantly, the coach has an on-field lieutenant who understands his vision and ensures its execution, while also providing leadership and a never-say-die attitude both on the field and in training. The coach is then free to implement his overall vision and focus on treating the players as an equal collective, but his captain (usually the role of said on-field lieutenant) is still able to both provide the motivation necessary for the collective to accomplish great feats, and to provide the never-say-die attitude that ensures that every player, young or old, fights for the team and for his captain.

I'd put Lahm/Schweinsteiger at Bayern (under both Heynckes and Pep), Xavi/Puyol at Barca (again, under Pep) and Kehl/Bender at Dortmund (under Klopp) as examples of this dynamic. Conte at Juve and Simeone at Atletico are somewhat unique figures (being both captain and manager rolled into one, a luxury afforded to them by their previous stints as captains of their respective clubs in their playing careers), and it is important to note that there are some types of 'inspirational' captains which ultimately can break the dynamic between the coach and the team completely (Casillas at Madrid while Jose was around being the prime example), but generally I think there's still a place for the inspirational, Keane-style player in the modern game, even as it moves towards a more collective identity. As an on-pitch lieutenant for the manager, I really feel the right inspirational player (doesn't have to be a captain) can turn a decent side into an outstanding one.

 

[glasgowspur]

What happened to the player who seen it as a personal insult to get beaten? The guy that would kick opponents, bully team mates and be a bad loser? Now it's always some one else's fault, the ref, to many games, the crowd was to quiet. It's way to easy now. Take responsibility for yourself.

 

[Gutter Boy]

What happened to the player who seen it as a personal insult to get beaten? The guy that would kick opponents, bully team mates and be a bad loser? Now it's always some one else's fault, the ref, to many games, the crowd was to quiet. It's way to easy now. Take responsibility for yourself.

Society as a whole has got an awful lot less aggressive over the last 20 years. It's since they took the lead out of petrol (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-27067615).

 

[glasgowspur]

I've seen that about petrol, I used to chew my pencils at school as well so I dread to think what I must have been like

 

[Bedfordspurs]

I think the game is generally lacking characters and invariably they don't get the chances they used too as managers don't have the time

We need players who will take the game by the scruff of the neck

I actually think bentelab can do that and he certainly thinks so from the interview I heard on talkbrick a. While back. He made it clear that he wouldn't suffer anyone not pulling their weight.

 

[Gutter Boy]

I've seen that about petrol, I used to chew my pencils at school as well so I dread to think what I must have been like

It's just a theory, but nothing else can really explain why in the 80s mass gated communities were seen as the only solution to ever rising crime, to how we got to the more placid society we have now (and its world-wide, so not related to politics)

 

[glasgowspur]

Yes bentaleb really impresses me in that regard. He's who we should be building around.

 

[K.D.D.D.D.Soc]

I believe there are less leaders in the game as the manager/coach and their extensive backroom team do all the thinking for the players, there is less room for players to break from the "plan".

 

[Bullet]

Perhaps it is linked to softer upbringing for kids and going into academies earlier nowadays, to be a good boy.
Rather than being out on the streets playing football with a tin can whilst the older boys try to sell you smack and cut out your kidneys like in the good old days.

I would love a player to stand up and be that big mouth, screaming at his colleagues, pulling the best out of them, making them make that extra run and score the winner.

I've got a longing in my longitude
And an attitude in my latitude

 

[Gilzeantoscore]

I've seen that about petrol, I used to chew my pencils at school as well so I dread to think what I must have been like

Pencils are made from graphite.

 

[Raziel]

My memory is fudging hazy, what exactly did that England team of 96 win? oh yeah .. fudge all, much like the one a decade before and after.

You want to talk about mentality, compare City's results to Cheat$ki, similar squads, similar talent, very different application and mentality.

Just like Carrick and all the other idiots who leave to a much better team (squad, quality, depth, experience) and go, "oh, its our winning mentality"

Do you think City finished above the Scum because of mentality? no, they finished above because of Aquero, Silva, Toure and having players like Dzeko on the bench.

 

[glasgowspur]

Pencils are made from graphite.

So they are, where did I get lead from! It's going to a long day

 

[Bullet]

So they are, where did I get lead from! It's going to a long day

As Half Man Half Biscuit said:

That's the third biro that you've broken all day I cannot wait
You can lead a horse to water but a pencil must be lead mate

 

[Jurgen the German]

We need someone at CB to lead the back 4 (Vertonghen is not that guy, Fazio might be) and someone in CM to push the team forward, not accepting anyone just going through the motions.

It's not just on the pitch either, you need a few voices in the dressing room to gee up the more laid back characters.

Mauricio: We need to create a good environment and the right mentality in the squad. It is important that we improve our consistency and sign players with the right profile to give balance to the team, that is the key.

Which is why some of the names being bandied around, like Konoplyanka and Berahino for instance, are complete non-starters and why Ings is most likely much higher up on a list of potential targets than Benteke.

Vertonghen may not be that guy, but Fazio definitely isn't. He should be one of the list we need to boot out.

 

[Jurgen the German]

Who is the leader in our team? Lloris should be really as he captains his country but he strikes me as someone who leads by example. We need a leader like Kompany or Vidic, problem is, where do you find them? I think this is something that Arsenal have lacked in recent years too.

 

[Mr_B]

definitely agree with this, a lot of this I put down to the non english players, they don't understand the passion of the game here, don't really get the rivalries, having an english spine is crucial in a team, players like Rooney, Terry, etc born and bred here, get it and will fight for everything.