Sports Republic 18:54 - Sep 20 with 1594 views | MattFinish | It really is time for Dragan Solak and Kat Liebherr to re-evaluate how SR is performing. SR are always saying they learn from their mistakes and take action where required, well I think they must have learnt more than any other football club ownership. I've been trying to think of what they have actually got right over the last 21 months and I'm struggling. In my opinion they should have got Ralph a couple of strikers and a keeper and I think we'd be mid table PL now. I know a lot of people will disagree. Having decided probably before they bought the club that Ralph was not their man, they should have sacked him when they got there. He was sacked with us 3 points from mid table. Having sacked him they appointed someone far inferior who was clearly a massive gamble, which immediately got the fans backs up particularly when Jones started to open his mouth. It was clear from early on that the fans didn’t like him, he had massive ego issues and was completely out of his depth. Having realised their mistake and reacting to fan unrest they sacked Jones. Great we thought, they won’t make the same mistake again, and to be fair to them they didn’t – they made an even bigger mistake and appointed Selles, who not only had no managerial experience, less than 5 years earlier he’d been working as a Chief Data Analyst at Strømsgodset Toppfotball in Norway. They entrusted him with keeping us in the PL. Again it was clear from the outset that he was massively out of his depth and his team selections, line ups and substitutions made Jones look like Pep. They then kept him in place until he relegated us. There were so many opportunities to sack him and get a Dyche or Allardyce in. I’m not saying they’d have kept us up but they’d have had more chance than Selles. So finally SR and Selles parted company and we all waited with baited breath to welcome someone of the calibre of Potter or Koeman or the likes, but no we got Guardiola-Lite. And SR’s disasters aren’t limited to managerial decisions. Their transfer record is truly diabolical. What other club in the history or world football has spent £150m plus, more than any other team in Europe apart from Barcelona and Chelsea and relegated the club in bottom place. They have brought in 23 players and really only Lavia and Alcaraz are the quality we need Having said that I think we need to stick with Martin until Christmas. I partly think this because he may get it right but more so that I don't trust SR to pick a better manager | | | | |
Sports Republic on 19:16 - Sep 20 with 1542 views | PaleRider | I posted this on Monday: I have a confession to make – the last time I went to a Saints game was the last time we lost 4-1 to Leicester. At that game we had an ineffective goalkeeper, a porous defence, a lightweight midfield and a forward line who couldn’t hit a barn door. We also had no leadership on the pitch and a manager who would arrogantly stick to plan A, choose favourites and play players out of position. What really capped it all for me was the meek acquiescence of our fans. After that game I decided to stop going until things improved as I just went home cross and frustrated. Fast forward 16 months. We’ve been relegated and had a merry-go round of players and managers. Other than that, what has changed? Will we’ve still got an ineffective goalkeeper, a porous defence, a lightweight midfield and a forward line who couldn’t hit a barn door. We also still have no leadership on the pitch and a manager who would arrogantly stick to plan A, choose favourites and play players out of position. The faces have changed but nothing else. So, what’s the constant? It’s Sport Republic – in particular Kraft and Ankersen. At first glance, they remind me of the government of Liz Truss and Krazi Kwarteng – driven by flawed ideology at the expense of pragmatism and anyone other than themselves. Managers, players, staff and are all to be sacrificed on the pyre of ideology. Looking deeper, I believe that they are more similar to Enron, which was run by people who basically thought they were cleverer than anyone else and had a game plan to fool markets and investors (the “useful idiots” who provided the funding and bought into the new approach). In some ways, I believe that Solak is a “useful idiot” who is just there to finance Kraft/Ankersen’s attempt to come up with an ideologically innovative way to disrupt football management and sell books as self-styled gurus in the area of sports management. Enron were described as a house of cards built over a pool of gasoline and I think that is the same for Sports Republic. I believe, that their approach is doomed to failure. I hope that I am wrong but I worry that Saints are on course for League 1 for as long as these charlatans are involved. I also hate to say it but I doubt whether I’ll be back again whilst they are there because I don’t believe in throwing good money/time after bad. | | | |
Sports Republic on 19:23 - Sep 20 with 1535 views | MattFinish |
Sports Republic on 19:16 - Sep 20 by PaleRider | I posted this on Monday: I have a confession to make – the last time I went to a Saints game was the last time we lost 4-1 to Leicester. At that game we had an ineffective goalkeeper, a porous defence, a lightweight midfield and a forward line who couldn’t hit a barn door. We also had no leadership on the pitch and a manager who would arrogantly stick to plan A, choose favourites and play players out of position. What really capped it all for me was the meek acquiescence of our fans. After that game I decided to stop going until things improved as I just went home cross and frustrated. Fast forward 16 months. We’ve been relegated and had a merry-go round of players and managers. Other than that, what has changed? Will we’ve still got an ineffective goalkeeper, a porous defence, a lightweight midfield and a forward line who couldn’t hit a barn door. We also still have no leadership on the pitch and a manager who would arrogantly stick to plan A, choose favourites and play players out of position. The faces have changed but nothing else. So, what’s the constant? It’s Sport Republic – in particular Kraft and Ankersen. At first glance, they remind me of the government of Liz Truss and Krazi Kwarteng – driven by flawed ideology at the expense of pragmatism and anyone other than themselves. Managers, players, staff and are all to be sacrificed on the pyre of ideology. Looking deeper, I believe that they are more similar to Enron, which was run by people who basically thought they were cleverer than anyone else and had a game plan to fool markets and investors (the “useful idiots” who provided the funding and bought into the new approach). In some ways, I believe that Solak is a “useful idiot” who is just there to finance Kraft/Ankersen’s attempt to come up with an ideologically innovative way to disrupt football management and sell books as self-styled gurus in the area of sports management. Enron were described as a house of cards built over a pool of gasoline and I think that is the same for Sports Republic. I believe, that their approach is doomed to failure. I hope that I am wrong but I worry that Saints are on course for League 1 for as long as these charlatans are involved. I also hate to say it but I doubt whether I’ll be back again whilst they are there because I don’t believe in throwing good money/time after bad. |
Spot on | | | |
Sports Republic on 20:56 - Sep 20 with 1429 views | saintwizzler | Nobody wants the manager to be sacked, that would mean the team are not doing well!! Let’s see where we are after the WBA game in November. Then there’s an international break. We will have played 16 league games then. WE MARCH ON | |
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