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Relegation: The silver lining

  • Thread starter Thread starter Bagpuss
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None of those things will happen under anyone currently employed by our inept owner. We're a shambles from the very top, through management and the vast majority of the playing staff
 
buster said:
I'm not looking forward to the JCL's jumping on the promotion band wagon assuming we reach such heady heights , fuckers didn't bother their arses this season when the chips were down , watch them flock back in their thousands.
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What's a JCL, agree with you mind.
 
willo said:
It cant be much worse than our Premier league existence has been.
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Cant argue with that tbh, horrific preparing for every game knowing that you are probably going to get beat, especially when those games are against footballing super powers like Bournemouth, Watford, Hull, Boro etc
 
Bagpuss said:
We took years and years to get many of them off the books which then meant new signings were also impacted in terms of fees and wages available.
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That's not really true tbf. Most were shifted quite quickly though I'd imagine that did come at a cost. Debt did mount up but it didn't affect us to much later as it's only late in the Bruce reign where things became tight.


This relegation will finally give us an opportunity to clear the decks and to build the club from the bottom upwards. Re-evaluate everything from the Academy through the reserves (which always seem to perform to a high standard) and then how that transition continues into the first team which is where the whole thing seems to go shit shaped.
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It wont with massive debt unless we have an owner willing to fund it.

One of the biggest issues is defining our identity as a club, that has been lost and if Im honest we havent had an identity since the Keane era and Reid before that.

We need to decide what kind of club we want to be; Southampton is often held up there as a sustainable, in fact desirable model and its hard to argue with that so what makes Southampton able to develop and sign player after player, get the best out of them and then sell them on for big money without actually impacting on performances.

With the facilities we have both in terms of a fan base, an incredible stadium, a brilliant academy facility and a support most of Europe would die to emulate then everything is in place for the right person to build a club we can all be proud of.
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Agree with that and I think there are several areas we need to take advantage of and use them to our advantage. Of course we need to develop more players and even scout better, even if it's done with a view to selling them on if need be. But we have to be doing so at the right time not like in recent years where its left us short and with too much to do generally selling our best players when the rest of the side wasn't adequately supported.

I also think the large crowd at home and the full on nature of a side in the NE is a problem for many of the players we sign. We've heard countless players and managers mention it and I think some wilt when trying to play there in front of a bigger crowd who at times are more willing to support but also maybe lack some patience. Not all the players we sign are poor, but many struggle to adapt. We need players of a certain character and strong mentality, but I also think we need to have an identity at home, a style which fans can buy into. I think for various reasons at home we're never going to see free flowing football as during the winter months (and most the months during the football season) the weather and conditions doesn't lend itself to it and I think a direct attacking approach at home over the years has been where we've both done better and had the support of the crowd when we've been positive, which is massively underestimated by many of the managers who have come in. Clearly you need the right quality to support any approach, but in modern football having the physique and mentality is half the battle. Too often we hamper ourselves with players not equipped with either and it ends up being a mish mash of nothingness.

Now the fly in the ointment. Can any of this happen under the stewardship of Moyes and Short?
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No. Short has shot his bolt - he doesn't seem interested any longer and it needs backing. Moyes is already alienating fans and I think he's too dour in nature and approach for the fans to buy into it and get behind him, certainly now. Had we not already had such a weak squad when he was appointed and he'd made the same mistakes maybe we could have seen a more organised cohesive team out there more often and bought into his methods, but I simply can't see anything but it getting poisonous now.
 
You're in for a shock if you think anything about playing in the Championship is a silver lining.

How long has it been since you were last in it? Maybe you've forgotten the utter relentlessness of it, 46 games remember not 38. You'd better be prepared from the word go because everyone else will be, there'll be no time for rebuilding once the season starts.

Add into the mix that you'll be seen as a prize scalp for everyone else, playing shit loads of Tuesday night games too will take their toll on a squad.

Oh and don't get me started about the standard of referee you'll get week in week out.
 
I can take relegation, it's not like it hasn't happened before and it's not like it hasn't been coming. What I won't be able to take is the damage this thunderCunt will do if he's given a pre season. He's even started dampening expectations for next season. Why the fuck anyone wants to stick with him next season is beyond me. Everyone of the managers we have had since Keane has shown more than that clown. He has failed miserably in every aspect of his job. I m all for stability but it has to be with a manager who is showing he's worth sicking with.
 
Sussex By The Sea said:
You're in for a shock if you think anything about playing in the Championship is a silver lining.

How long has it been since you were last in it? Maybe you've forgotten the utter relentlessness of it, 46 games remember not 38. You'd better be prepared from the word go because everyone else will be, there'll be no time for rebuilding once the season starts.

Add into the mix that you'll be seen as a prize scalp for everyone else, playing shit loads of Tuesday night games too will take their toll on a squad.

Oh and don't get me started about the standard of referee you'll get week in week out.
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Enjoy the big league mate .
 
If we had to pay over the odds in 2006, how is going down now a silver lining?

The Mags spent £55m and are only 2nd. Villa were in a similar position to us and spent £70m+ and are in mid table. Norwich spent £20m+ for mid table.

We are up to our eyeballs in debt and will lose any player worth keeping for peanuts while the crap players who we don't want will stay. We'll be forced to pay over the odds again anyway, only with significantly less money and pulling power.
 
My little'un is going to be around a good age to get him to a few games. He obviously doesn't have a clue what the difference in the prem and the championship is and will probably enjoy it more if he sees us scoring and winning. Thats the only good thing I can think of
 
You're right - relegation can have a good effect. We cleared out deadwood as you suggest. Changed the focus of the club. When Rafa stayed it got the fans and club all pulling in the same direction. We've lost a lot of money but should even put as our net spend was -£30m.

But be warned - if you don't bounce straight back up you're financially screwed. We might have been had we not been able to sell sissoko, Gini and Townsend for £60+m
 
maginpeace said:
You're right - relegation can have a good effect. We cleared out deadwood as you suggest. Changed the focus of the club. When Rafa stayed it got the fans and club all pulling in the same direction. We've lost a lot of money but should even put as our net spend was -£30m.

But be warned - if you don't bounce straight back up you're financially screwed. We might have been had we not been able to sell sissoko, Gini and Townsend for £60+m
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Or it could have quite the reverse effect.

Shit we got relegated in 1983, 34 years and 3 other home grounds later we may just be back.
 
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