Do you want Nathan Jones to Manage Southampton Football Club?

[Turkish]

1 minute ago, Lee On Solent Saint said:

Agreed it is, having said that, pretty sure Everton weren't in the bottom three and they probably had a whole pre-season to work with.

actually not, he joined them in March 2002 when they were in a relegation battle. The previous summer Lowe had interviewed Moyes for the job at Saints that Stuart Gray had been caretaking since Hoddles departure, Moyes turned us down as Lowe wanted him to keep Gray and others on as back room staff. 

[Zorba]

Voted No. Would prefer top flight experience but of course hope he does well if he does get the job. Don’t know enough about him yet. Came across well in that interview.

[notnowcato]

22 minutes ago, Killers Knee said:

Speculating with player arbitrage is a different game to gambling with your management.  But sticking to the theme....I fixed your post

I see your post and raise you Poch.

(It's like I saw your response coming)

We could go on forever and a day, your questions do not create a subset of successful candidates.

[Lee On Solent Saint]

1 minute ago, Turkish said:

actually not, he joined them in March 2002 when they were in a relegation battle. The previous summer Lowe had interviewed Moyes for the job at Saints that Stuart Gray had been caretaking since Hoddles departure, Moyes turned us down as Lowe wanted him to keep Gray and others on as back room staff. 

I stand corrected

[Master Bates]

Can't wait, looking forward to the new bright era.

[trousers]

7 minutes ago, Lee On Solent Saint said:

Agreed it is, having said that, pretty sure Everton weren't in the bottom three and they probably had a whole pre-season to work with.

https://www.toffeeweb.com/club/managers/moyes.php

"

When David Moyes took the reins at Everton in March 2002, he inherited a club in freefall, with relegation from the Premier League a very real possibility. Having survived the drop from the top flight twice in the 1990s, the Blues appeared to have steadied the ship folllwing the appointment of Walter Smith in 1998 but though Smith's managerial career in Scotland had been littered with trophies, he found life in England's top flight a good deal more challenging.

Thanks to a run of just one League win in 13, his Everton side sat in 15th place when a 3-0 defeat at Middlesbrough in the FA Cup became the straw that broke the proverbial camel's back for chairman Bill Kenwright and he was dismissed, to be replaced by Moyes, then at Preston North End, three days later.

"

 

Edit: sorry, just seen that Turkish already posted something along similar lines

Edited 9 November, 2022 by trousers

[Ivan Katalinic's 'tache]

I put unsure. I think I'm willing to give SR the benefit of the doubt and let them pick the man they think is the best for the job given the level of investment they put in, in the summer. I'm not saying they got that right but it's more than we've ever spent before. This is their first appointment with us and so they have no history of being terrible at it (yet!). If the guy they choose is Nathan Jones because they think he's the best fit for where we are now, I'm happy to go with it even if it appears a risk. 

[Christophenburg]

A higher profile name doesn't guarantee success, and he's not any more of a gamble then Marcelo Gallardo, indeed Jones knows English football which is a distinct advantage to someone who has never managed outside of South America. There's a huge amount of snobbery behind some of the reluctance, and I'm not convinced Saints fans wouldn't be more enthusiastic if Jones' name was Nuno Jiménez or something.

SR want him, they wouldn't be willing to pay compensation if they didn't. They must have a clear picture that he's the right fit for the vision, so ultimately it comes down to whether you trust them or not

[Turkish]

14 minutes ago, Lee On Solent Saint said:

I stand corrected

I was surprised too to be fair, thought he'd gone there shortly after turning us down. 

[Pamplemousse]

I'm highly sceptical that this will work out. The fact is after the World Cup we have a run of winnable games so I'll make a full conclusion at the end of January/beginning of February.

He needs to hit the ground running though, that's for sure.

[LeBizzier69]

I don’t think we have the level of ego in the club that would make this appointment a problem for the players. The core of the team seem like level headed, grounded lads…..so I think they’ll just get on with it. 
Any managerial appointment is a risk, so let’s see how he wants to set this team up and play football before we go in on him. Apart from a decent finisher, he’s got a good squad to work with so it’ll be interesting to watch things unfold on the pitch. 

[Mr X]

9 minutes ago, Christophenburg said:

A higher profile name doesn't guarantee success, and he's not any more of a gamble then Marcelo Gallardo, indeed Jones knows English football which is a distinct advantage to someone who has never managed outside of South America. There's a huge amount of snobbery behind some of the reluctance, and I'm not convinced Saints fans wouldn't be more enthusiastic if Jones' name was Nuno Jiménez or something.

SR want him, they wouldn't be willing to pay compensation if they didn't. They must have a clear picture that he's the right fit for the vision, so ultimately it comes down to whether you trust them or not

It's hard to trust them though isn't it as they had the opportunity for change at the end of last season and stuck with Ralph and now they are going to make a change mid season! It was clear a fresh change at the start would have given the new manager a full pre season and the best opportunity of gelling the team 

[Midfield_General]

Out of interest, what are people seeing in that interview from last night that they like?

To me he comes across as an inarticulate, jabbering bag of nerves. His body language is terrible and his communication style is jittery and unfocused. It reminds me of when a coach has been made into a caretaker manager and has to give a TV interview for the first time. Like when Wigley for us or Terry Connor for Wolves first had the cameras put on them - no gravitas, just like a rabbit in the headlights. 

It’s not the be and end all, but if you’re inarticulate or a poor communicator it puts you at a real disadvantage from the beginning. 

I watch that from last night, and some of his other interviews, and it’s like watching someone on the Apprentice going on stage and nervously stuttering their way through an awful pitch. It doesn’t exactly instil confidence.

But who knows, maybe when he’s behind the scenes he suddenly transforms into David Dimbleby.

[Mr X]

I voted no the guy clearly has some talents to do what he's done at Luton with mediocre players but now is not the right time for such a huge gamble! 

[nta786]

1 hour ago, Ex Lion Tamer said:

I really want him to succeed now everyone's so certain we'll be relegated.

I voted unsure because although I'm not confident enough to say I actively want him appointed, he's clearly got something about him. Getting Luton to the playoffs is an incredible achievement, let's be honest

Valerien Ismael got Barnsley to the play-off once too not too long ago in 2021.

Now recently got sacked at Besiktas in a team with a certain Nathan Redmond in it.

[Killers Knee]

35 minutes ago, notnowcato said:

I see your post and raise you Poch.

(It's like I saw your response coming)

We could go on forever and a day, your questions do not create a subset of successful candidates.

Poch was the manager of Espanyol & had his debut match as coach vs Peps Barca.  He had also played for Espanyol PSG and for his Nation, among others.  He was experienced in great escapes and mid-table mediocrity by the time he made Saints selection.

[Fitzhugh Fella]

The cynic in me has SR appointing someone who can get a tune out of average players in the Championship which is where they see us developing young players to sell on at a profit. I don’t think their vision is us competing in the PL with an outside chance of a Cup or European qualification. I think we are their money making club and Jones is part of that plan. 
I know this is slightly bizarre but for the life of me I can’t explain this very underwhelming appointment. Just hope I am very very wrong. 

[Saint Billy]

11 minutes ago, Midfield_General said:

Out of interest, what are people seeing in that interview from last night that they like?

To me he comes across as an inarticulate, jabbering bag of nerves. His body language is terrible and his communication style is jittery and unfocused. It reminds me of when a coach has been made into a caretaker manager and has to give a TV interview for the first time. Like when Wigley for us or Terry Connor for Wolves first had the cameras put on them - no gravitas, just like a rabbit in the headlights. 

It’s not the be and end all, but if you’re inarticulate or a poor communicator it puts you at a real disadvantage from the beginning. 

I watch that from last night, and some of his other interviews, and it’s like watching someone on the Apprentice going on stage and nervously stuttering their way through an awful pitch. It doesn’t exactly instil confidence.

But who knows, maybe when he’s behind the scenes he suddenly transforms into David Dimbleby.

With you on that. Not that it is a requirement to have good interview skills, he did come across very nervous and hyper. I feel he was treading a fine line of trying to keep the Luton fans content just in case he doesn't get the job whilst eager not to send the wrong messages to SR. 

Not sure how his type of personality will go down with our players but from my perspective it doesn't install confidence. 

[Toussaint]

8 minutes ago, Fitzhugh Fella said:

The cynic in me has SR appointing someone who can get a tune out of average players in the Championship which is where they see us developing young players to sell on at a profit. I don’t think their vision is us competing in the PL with an outside chance of a Cup or European qualification. I think we are their money making club and Jones is part of that plan. 
I know this is slightly bizarre but for the life of me I can’t explain this very underwhelming appointment. Just hope I am very very wrong. 

I just don't see that, it makes no sense that relegation is part of some grand plan, no sense whatsoever.

[egg]

2 minutes ago, Toussaint said:

I just don't see that, it makes no sense that relegation is part of some grand plan, no sense whatsoever.

Agreed. There's no way whatsoever that the owners are contriving to get us relegated, that's a conspiracy theory too far for me. 

[kjurwi]

If the choises are Jones, Klopp or Pep than i would say no to Jones. If the choise are between Jones ,Dyche or Hughes i'd go for Jones. 

 

Don't know enough about most of the other candidates proposed so i don't mind Jones, but i'm not pro Jones either. 

[Turkish]

7 minutes ago, Fitzhugh Fella said:

The cynic in me has SR appointing someone who can get a tune out of average players in the Championship which is where they see us developing young players to sell on at a profit. I don’t think their vision is us competing in the PL with an outside chance of a Cup or European qualification. I think we are their money making club and Jones is part of that plan. 
I know this is slightly bizarre but for the life of me I can’t explain this very underwhelming appointment. Just hope I am very very wrong. 

A deliberate relegation? Madness, spend £100m+ with an £80m debt and lose hundreds of millions of TV revenue? This was levelled at Goa as well. No chance they will want to get relegated so they can lose all that money and hope to make it back by selling players from the championship.

It's a strange appointment no doubt, it could be a genius one but more likely one that will end up in a relegation battle for sure. It's clear what their aim is, buy young and sell for profit, but they aint going to do that by getting us relegated on purpose.

[St Louis]

1 hour ago, egg said:

That willingness to accept that we're the Luton of the PL is exactly what's wrong with the club, and some of the fan base, in my opinion. 

Im not trying to be antagonistic, but we are one of the smallest clubs in the league, with the smallest budget, etc. Football is so different now, we were on a more level playing field in this division through the 80's/90's/00's, but not anymore, we don't have the money to compete at the higher end of the table (or even mid-table in my opinion). We may have the occasional anomaly period where we finish in the top half, but that isn't our natural position.

Until we get big investment, we will always be fighting to stay in the league. We all love Saints, but from any neutral fans standpoint we are one of the smallest and most insignificant clubs in the division, and I'm absolutely OK with that.

Our model for now (due only to finances and stature) is that we need to buy young rough diamonds, develop them and sell them on for a big profit. And use our owners moneyball data-led approach to try and gain an advantage and a few extra points where we can. I don't know if Jones is the answer, and I personally was hoping for a more proven name, but I do think we have to trust the new owners and their new approach for the club. They made a good choice in giving Thomas Frank the Brentford job, against the fans 'better' judgement. 

Edited 9 November, 2022 by St Louis

[davefizzy14]

I voted unsure as clearly we need a big name manager to galvanise the whole fanbase and the club. Surely we are speaking to other candidates as well. Nathan Jones has done really well in the championship but the Premier League is a completely different challenge.

[Ex Lion Tamer]

30 minutes ago, nta786 said:

Valerien Ismael got Barnsley to the play-off once too not too long ago in 2021.

Now recently got sacked at Besiktas in a team with a certain Nathan Redmond in it.

Barnsley have spent more time in the championship than any other club. It's not that much of a push for them to have a good season and make the playoffs. Luton were in the Conference not too long ago

Edited 9 November, 2022 by Ex Lion Tamer

[Nordic Saint]

1 hour ago, beatlesaint said:

Serious question for all those writing him off straight away - 

How different would this appointment be to when Everton took David Moyes from Preston?

He was exactly the same as Jones, no experience etc but that worked out pretty well.

No, he wasn't. Moyes had no failure in his managerial career whatsoever when Everton appointed him. His win rate at Preston was 47.86%.

Nathan Jones was a disaster in his year at Stoke and his win rate was just 15.8%. His current Luton team have won just 1 of their last 5 games and only scored 22 goals in 20 games this season. He's hardly on the crest of a wave.

 

[Ed Rooney]

Unsure as quite frankly I haven’t got a clue about his managerial abilities or man management skills and do not know who he will be working with.

Let’s face it we are in the bottom 3 and will not attract  so called big name manager. The “big name” managers we have had in the past have only used us as stepping stones and then left without a seconds hesitation. 
 

Have no idea whether it will be Jones, but if it is then I would say he deserves the benefit of the doubt until it is proven otherwise 

[John B]

6 minutes ago, egg said:

Agreed. There's no way whatsoever that the owners are contriving to get us relegated, that's a conspiracy theory too far for me. 

I think they are contriving to get us relegated not intentionally I agree but through their transfer policy

 

I just cannot see us getting enough points with our current attack and cannot see three teams which are worse than us

[Toussaint]

8 minutes ago, egg said:

Agreed. There's no way whatsoever that the owners are contriving to get us relegated, that's a conspiracy theory too far for me. 

I think it's more likely SR have erroneously  put their faith in our existing upper management who talk a good job but probably just aren't up to the mark.

[Toussaint]

2 minutes ago, John B said:

I think they are contriving to get us relegated not intentionally I agree but through their transfer policy

 

I just cannot see us getting enough points with our current attack and cannot see three teams which are worse than us

But, If we had signed the striker(s) we apparently allowed to slip through our fingers, the transfer policy wouldn't be questioned, we would probably be sitting somewhere comfortably lower mid table.

[James G]

4 hours ago, saint1977 said:

With regard to football style and tactics, it depends on how adaptable he is. Someone like Warnock got badged as long ball until he got a team together at Sheffield Utd who could pass the ball, and they did. On the other hand, if you believe Les (ha!), Pellegrino promised a return to high pressing attacking football at interview but then just did what he wanted to anyway with dreadful results. 

Feels very risky when there’s the likes of Benitez out there highly proven at the PL level and with the contacts (not a bloke who worked at Man City for 25 minutes) to get January loans and signings to pull out of trouble. But Jones could also provide the fire that the club has been lacking. JWP is going to be crucial for it to work - Dave Jones lasted longer than Sturrock coming from the lower leagues partly because of a good first season but also because even though MLT was fading, he got him onside at the club quickly so others bought in. 

Shields is a good example of where SR’s judgement is worrying and unproven though - Chelsea change staff like cafes make lattes, so I don’t see that as a reliable guide. What I saw was a striker for Stoke last night more raw than Sam Gallagher was when he left Saints and they wanted to spunk £25m on him. I also see a keeper who should have been £3m back up for £12m in the Saints goal. 

Hi, Jones is highly regarded in footballing circles and is extremely flexible. He will base the formation and style of play around the strengths of the players. The only aspect he is consistent with is the high press, and having players around the ball to pass to. The reason he plays the way he does right now is that with the hoof ball, if certain players are playing, there is a 90 per cent chance of picking the ball up then pushing forward. It's just about numbers. He likes his players focussed and fit, and he's a hands on manager. From a footballing perspective, he's a very good manager, it's just going to be about how the players adapt to him and his methods 

[egg]

5 minutes ago, Toussaint said:

I think it's more likely SR have erroneously  put their faith in our existing upper management who talk a good job but probably just aren't up to the mark.

That I agree with. They've shown themselves slow to deal with Ralph though, and haven't yet addressed Semmens. That, and the dubious recruitment policy of quantity and hope, over quality and ability to deliver, doesn't give me any real confidence in them. 

[Midfield_General]

10 minutes ago, Saint Billy said:

With you on that. Not that it is a requirement to have good interview skills, he did come across very nervous and hyper. I feel he was treading a fine line of trying to keep the Luton fans content just in case he doesn't get the job whilst eager not to send the wrong messages to SR. 

Not sure how his type of personality will go down with our players but from my perspective it doesn't install confidence. 

The thing is though, you do need good interview skills at this level. You need to be able to clearly articulate all your thoughts and ideas in an inspirational, motivational way, at all times. 

Have you ever sat through a bad presentation or wedding speech? When the person speaking doesn’t feel in control, that gets picked up on quickly by the audience, the speaker loses their respect and they lose the room quickly, and that’s peanuts compared to the pressure of what a Premier League manager needs to be able to do. 

It can’t be easy facing aggressive journalists or trying to hold the attention of a roomful of young, cocky multimillionaires. So you have to be bloody good at it, or the danger is they’ll just tear you to shreds, either to your face or behind your back. 

Six months ago, a fair chunk of our first team were working with Guardiola. That’s the level we’re talking about. If this guy doesn’t command their respect instantly then it just feels like it could end really badly, for him as well as us. I really hope SR know what they’re doing, but I’m very far from convinced at the moment.

If he starts badly I fear he’ll get torn to shreds, and then we’ll end up scrabbling around in a panic for Sean Dyche’s number in March, by which time it will be too late. 

[Toussaint]

6 minutes ago, James G said:

Hi, Jones is highly regarded in footballing circles and is extremely flexible. He will base the formation and style of play around the strengths of the players. The only aspect he is consistent with is the high press, and having players around the ball to pass to. The reason he plays the way he does right now is that with the hoof ball, if certain players are playing, there is a 90 per cent chance of picking the ball up then pushing forward. It's just about numbers. He likes his players focussed and fit, and he's a hands on manager. From a footballing perspective, he's a very good manager, it's just going to be about how the players adapt to him and his methods 

Thanks for that input, can I ask how you have drawn that conclusion, it seems to come from a position of direct knowledge, do you follow Luton?

[Puddings and Monkeys]

Everton fans thought they had hit the jackpot with Lampard.

Villa fans thought the same with Slippy G.

No one here wanted Poch - he can’t even speak English FFS!!

 

Fans should have no influence whatsoever on the choice of manager and to think those making the decision would look here or take note of a poll is naive stupidity.

If SR get this wrong the’y’ll see tens of millions wiped off the value of their asset.  I reckon they’re smart enough to have realised this.  All the signs are that they have been researching Ralph’s replacement for a long time; we’ve also heard from 2 people on here who seem to have contacts that 30m (huge money for us) is still available for players in Jan.  SR didn’t suddenly sack Ralph and then think “wtf are we going to do now?”

We have to trust they know what they’re doing - I do because the the spend they committed in the summer shows they have ambition and the club’s best interests at heart.

[jayrivers]

I've already posted this on another thread but here we go again....

 

I think he deserves a fair chance and the fan base should get fully behind him. There are obviously no promises it will work out, but the other names I've seen banded around are from smaller European leagues etc. They don't have prem experience either. At least he's managed in the English leagues and done a fantastic job with Luton. He plays a style now that suits his players and by all accounts is adaptable in how he plays, so let's see how he sets us up before we judge his football too much. 

 

By all accounts he's an excellent man manager as well which is something we are clearly missing. Just having the team organised and giving 100% will automatically give us a boost and improved performances. 

 

Selles is staying by the looks of it, and the players seem to respect him and he doesn't have any top flight managerial experience... As others have said if he turns up, isn't a twat, runs good sessions and seems switched on then the players will buy into it.

 

Of course he might not work out, but that doesn't mean there isn't logic behind the appointment and he deserves our full backing imo. The goal now this season is to stay up and try and have something to build upon next season.

 

If we add a striker in Jan, then we have a really good chance 

 

Would he have been my choice, no. But that doesn't mean it won't work. Look at Gerrard at villa. A big name manager and the players didn't respect him one bit, so anyone suggesting Gerrard needs to have a word with themselves...

[egg]

27 minutes ago, St Louis said:

Im not trying to be antagonistic, but we are one of the smallest clubs in the league, with the smallest budget, etc. Football is so different now, we were on a more level playing field in this division through the 80's/90's/00's, but not anymore, we don't have the money to compete at the higher end of the table (or even mid-table in my opinion). We may have the occasional anomaly period where we finish in the top half, but that isn't our natural position.

Until we get big investment, we will always be fighting to stay in the league. We all love Saints, but from any neutral fans standpoint we are one of the smallest and most insignificant clubs in the division, and I'm absolutely OK with that.

Our model for now (due only to finances and stature) is that we need to buy young rough diamonds, develop them and sell them on for a big profit. And use our owners moneyball data-led approach to try and gain an advantage and a few extra points where we can. I don't know if Jones is the answer, and I personally was hoping for a more proven name, but I do think we have to trust the new owners and their new approach for the club. They made a good choice in giving Thomas Frank the Brentford job, against the fans 'better' judgement. 

There's nothing antagonistic in there St louis - I think it's great that occasional posters are posting, and that differing views are being respectfully canvassed as should be on a forum. I get the point on the money side, but there's a line of mediocrity acceptance that I don't think we need to be crossing - we can do better than Jones and reliance on unproven kids from City imo. With that said, I hope that I'm wrong and that if Jones comes in, that he does a Frank and we move up the league. It's blooming risky though!

[notnowcato]

54 minutes ago, Killers Knee said:

Poch was the manager of Espanyol & had his debut match as coach vs Peps Barca.  He had also played for Espanyol PSG and for his Nation, among others.  He was experienced in great escapes and mid-table mediocrity by the time he made Saints selection.

You're shifting the goal posts from your original EPL requirements.

[Midfield_General]

.

Edited 9 November, 2022 by Midfield_General
Meant to reply

[Midfield_General]

8 minutes ago, jayrivers said:

I've already posted this on another thread but here we go again....

 

I think he deserves a fair chance and the fan base should get fully behind him. There are obviously no promises it will work out, but the other names I've seen banded around are from smaller European leagues etc. They don't have prem experience either. At least he's managed in the English leagues and done a fantastic job with Luton. He plays a style now that suits his players and by all accounts is adaptable in how he plays, so let's see how he sets us up before we judge his football too much. 

 

By all accounts he's an excellent man manager as well which is something we are clearly missing. Just having the team organised and giving 100% will automatically give us a boost and improved performances. 

 

Selles is staying by the looks of it, and the players seem to respect him and he doesn't have any top flight managerial experience... As others have said if he turns up, isn't a twat, runs good sessions and seems switched on then the players will buy into it.

 

Of course he might not work out, but that doesn't mean there isn't logic behind the appointment and he deserves our full backing imo. The goal now this season is to stay up and try and have something to build upon next season.

 

If we add a striker in Jan, then we have a really good chance 

 

Would he have been my choice, no. But that doesn't mean it won't work. Look at Gerrard at villa. A big name manager and the players didn't respect him one bit, so anyone suggesting Gerrard needs to have a word with themselves...

All fair points but I don’t think a single person has suggested Gerrard. 

[Verbal]

I have a bad feeling about this.

[Toussaint]

1 minute ago, Verbal said:

I have a bad feeling about this.

I did initially, but I don't now. He might be the rough diamond breath of fresh air we need 

[Nordic Saint]

24 minutes ago, Toussaint said:

Thanks for that input, can I ask how you have drawn that conclusion, it seems to come from a position of direct knowledge, do you follow Luton?

It looks like that was Nathan Jones' agent's first post here. If it was a Luton fan, they wouldn't be praising him to the hilt, hoping that we'd take him off their hands, or perhaps, after their recent poor run of just 1 win in 5, they would.

 

This is where Stoke were when they sacked him:

 

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	West Bromwich Albion	14	7	6	1	26	17	9	27
2	Preston North End	14	7	4	3	27	16	11	25
3	Leeds United	14	7	4	3	17	8	9	25
4	Swansea City	14	7	4	3	18	13	5	25
5	Bristol City	15	6	7	2	24	21	3	25
6	Sheffield Wednesday	14	7	3	4	18	10	8	24
7	Fulham	14	6	5	3	23	14	9	23
8	Queens Park Rangers	14	7	2	5	24	26	-2	23
9	Charlton Athletic	14	6	4	4	21	16	5	22
10	Nottingham Forest	13	6	4	3	17	12	5	22
11	Birmingham City	14	7	1	6	14	16	-2	22
12	Brentford	14	6	3	5	18	12	6	21
13	Hull City	14	5	4	5	20	20	0	19
14	Cardiff City	14	4	6	4	19	20	-1	18
15	Millwall	14	4	6	4	16	19	-3	18
16	Derby County	14	4	6	4	16	20	-4	18
17	Blackburn Rovers	14	4	3	7	17	21	-4	15
18	Wigan Athletic	14	4	3	7	12	19	-7	15
19	Luton Town	14	4	2	8	21	25	-4	14
20	Huddersfield Town	14	3	4	7	16	21	-5	13
21	Reading	13	3	3	7	14	19	-5	12
22	Middlesbrough	14	2	6	6	11	17	-6	12
23	Barnsley	15	1	6	8	14	29	-15	9
24	Stoke City	14	2	2	10	13	25	-12	8

Edited 9 November, 2022 by Nordic Saint

[Big Ron fan]

I have a mate who is a Luton fan and goes regularly. Although their fans love him again after his return there, my mate reckons it's an odd choice and is surprised that Saints are after him. Although Jones has done well there, he hasn't seen anything to make him think that he would succeed at a higher level.

My QPR mate says their fans loath him (something that surprised me). Apparently this is not because of any particular falling out with Rangers, but because (more than any other manager in that division) he whines and makes excuses for every defeat, even if its been a 5-0 thrashing! It sounds like his demeanour will be very different to Ralph.

[LuckyNumber7]

31 minutes ago, Midfield_General said:

The thing is though, you do need good interview skills at this level. You need to be able to clearly articulate all your thoughts and ideas in an inspirational, motivational way, at all times. 

Have you ever sat through a bad presentation or wedding speech? When the person speaking doesn’t feel in control, that gets picked up on quickly by the audience, the speaker loses their respect and they lose the room quickly, and that’s peanuts compared to the pressure of what a Premier League manager needs to be able to do. 

It can’t be easy facing aggressive journalists or trying to hold the attention of a roomful of young, cocky multimillionaires. So you have to be bloody good at it, or the danger is they’ll just tear you to shreds, either to your face or behind your back. 

Six months ago, a fair chunk of our first team were working with Guardiola. That’s the level we’re talking about. If this guy doesn’t command their respect instantly then it just feels like it could end really badly, for him as well as us. I really hope SR know what they’re doing, but I’m very far from convinced at the moment.

If he starts badly I fear he’ll get torn to shreds, and then we’ll end up scrabbling around in a panic for Sean Dyche’s number in March, by which time it will be too late. 

Have you ever seen Conte interviewed, most of the time he's a bumbling mess (partly due to language, granted) yet is one of the most highly rated managers in Europe.

Intervies are just for fans, how you speak in them and how you communicate to the players are two different things and by all accounts Jones has got the players at Luton running through brick walls for him. Whether he can do that with PL players remains to be seen but I don't get the feeling we have a load of big egos in our young squad, and if the reports are true about most of them being unhappy with Ralph's hands-off man management then Jones' style could be just what's needed to get them all onside.

[Pamplemousse]

13 minutes ago, Big Ron fan said:

I have a mate who is a Luton fan and goes regularly. Although their fans love him again after his return there, my mate reckons it's an odd choice and is surprised that Saints are after him. Although Jones has done well there, he hasn't seen anything to make him think that he would succeed at a higher level.

My QPR mate says their fans loath him (something that surprised me). Apparently this is not because of any particular falling out with Rangers, but because (more than any other manager in that division) he whines and makes excuses for every defeat, even if its been a 5-0 thrashing! It sounds like his demeanour will be very different to Ralph.

I know a couple of QPR fans and they have said the exact same thing pretty much

[obelisk]

Had social media been around in 1973 I wonder whether Lawrie would also have received the thumbs down.

 

[Midfield_General]

I think if Lawrie McMenemy was on the table now as an option he'd genuinely have more fans backing the appointment.

He may be 86, but you can't put a price on experience like that. 

[Fitzhugh Fella]

1 hour ago, Turkish said:

A deliberate relegation? Madness, spend £100m+ with an £80m debt and lose hundreds of millions of TV revenue? This was levelled at Goa as well. No chance they will want to get relegated so they can lose all that money and hope to make it back by selling players from the championship.

It's a strange appointment no doubt, it could be a genius one but more likely one that will end up in a relegation battle for sure. It's clear what their aim is, buy young and sell for profit, but they aint going to do that by getting us relegated on purpose.

Agree but I think they think this guy could get us back if it happens. Don’t think they want relegation perse but perhaps regard us as a natural yo yo club? I dunno I am blundering around in the dark because I just don’t get this guy’s attraction. 

[Turkish]

4 minutes ago, Fitzhugh Fella said:

Agree but I think they think this guy could get us back if it happens. Don’t think they want relegation perse but perhaps regard us as a natural yo yo club? I dunno I am blundering around in the dark because I just don’t get this guy’s attraction. 

Me neither, it's a weird one. Maybe the thinking is like you say, if we go down he would know the league and get us up. Although i really dont like that thinking, they should be planning for how we are going to stay up not plan for the worst.