Firstly I want to say that I do not want the manager sacked but my question is
Is Poch a good manager?
My idea of a good manager is someone who has more than one plan and can adjust the team to suit the players he has and the teams he has to play. Admittedly if you have world class players, worrying about the opposition or maybe even tactics are not important. We do not have world class players and Poch has played his 4-2-3-1 system all season with only minor variations. Even when he brings on another forward he drops one of them into midfield so as not to change the shape. He also sticks with his inverted wingers no matter how narrow we look.
In contrast to this I refer back to 1987 when David Pleat realised he did not have the players to play 4-4-2 and so changed the shape of the side to play with 1 up front in a 4-5-1 and we finished 3rd in the League and were FA cup runners up. Thereby getting the best out of the players he had.
Can Poch adjust his tactics if needed?
Poch and tactics
posted on 15/4/15
We do need senior defensive/MF players who will give the kids some steel / confidence in the short term, but may not be playing many games in the season, and may not be getting top wages.
That is a tough sell to make to the likes of Milner (who IMHO fits that mold) .
posted on 15/4/15
comment by Chronic - 100% behind Poch (U3423)
posted 17 minutes ago
Besides the other big clubs would be seen as City's rivals, would we?
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hes on a free... so city don't have a say where he goes
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Keep forgetting that.
It doesn't really matter though, I still don't think he's unattainable.
posted on 15/4/15
what are the deadwood players.....
Kaboul
Ade
Capoue
Paulinho
Soldado
Dembele (Poch has started Paulinho ahead of him lately, which is one thing I am critical of Poch as it makes no sense...Dembele was key to our good form in early 2015)
Lennon (scored more for Everton in a couple months than lamela in +1 season)
Lamela?
Chiriches?
Chadli (we were open to offers in January apparently)
Fazio (went missing until recently)
This could be a serious rebuild, in which case i think that the time to judge Poch would be in 2 years time!
posted on 15/4/15
Just goes to show how pathetic our transfers have been to think we want to get rid of atleast 80% of them the last few years. I think its time for the manager to compile a list he wants and actually get backed for once otherwise we will be in the same situation again and again. It's no coincidence that our best years under harry where when he demanded certain players for the team..
posted on 15/4/15
Comment Deleted by Site Moderator
posted on 15/4/15
Hengy,
I have no problem with Kane being captain when Lloris isn't in the team tbh
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I’m sorry, but it’s just a playground decision to give your most in form player the armband. He only came in to the fold because of his goals in the EL (and rightly so), he’s having an excellent season, but at the end of the day he’s just a 21 year old inexperienced player who should not be given the leadership responsibility. Is it just a coincidence our chances on goal and goals scored have dropped in the last 2 games?
Personally I don’t think a striker should be captain anyway – but I suppose that’s a completely different debate altogether....
posted on 15/4/15
There is a lot of talk about “the squad is average”, “give Poch time to get his own players in” etc, this is all well and good but when Poch was interviewed for the position did he tell Levy he would not be able to improve on what Sherwood did (for example) with this group of players? It’s easy to use the excuse that the players weren’t good enough afterwards.
Some of the players who are being labeled as “average” on this article have at some point being praised quite highly on these very boards. The squad might not be Top 3 or 4 standard but we should not have declined from last season. Seventh is poor – no question about it. The buck? Well, Poch should find it next to the milk bottles on his own doorstep...
posted on 15/4/15
Chicken, sEason hasn't finished just yet and we could well still finish 5th if we put a run together. Anyway that's not the point but my point was if poch got the players he wanted rathee than s hit 2nd rate alternatives like Stambouli then he could of done better. I think you will find I was one of more vocal guys on here when we didn't sign schneiderlin and Musachio. I made it pretty clear I was annoye poch weren't backed like all the other managers under levy
posted on 15/4/15
Don,
I appreciate the season hasn't finished (which is why i said on another article we should not write off the season yet) but if Poch was any good he would have improved on last year - not regressed - which is what it is looking like.
I am not jumping on any anti-Poch bandwagons or calling for anyone's head - i'm just saying that my expectations are higher than this - with this squad of players.
posted on 15/4/15
I agree we haven't improved