Match Thread [FT] Rangers 0 - 1 Celtic

[compo 6,202]

I'm surprised he's still in a job surely someone on the board must realise Beale's not the man .

[Bill 13,717]

6 minutes ago, PoohBear said:

Unfortunately I think most can see that it will be very difficult, if not impossible for Beale to turn this around. It's damning when you can't trust your most expensive signings to play in your most difficult games. However, I dont think there is enough evidence of failure for the board to do something about it yet. For sure they should question Beale about the financial outlay on players who aren't getting time, but I think a sacking is a little way down the road yet. We are in a very strong position to win the League Cup, I think the board will at least wait to see how that plays out first. 
 

It's a worrying time though, for sure.

Tradition has it that we change managers in November when the league is already lost.

[Uilleam 5,462]

Michael Beale cannot, may not, must not, will not, be dismissed today: it is his birthday, apparently. 

 

Do we send felicitations?

Many happy returns?

(He's already had one so far unhappy return, so perhaps not.)

 

 

 

Edited September 4, 2023 by Uilleam

[ian1964 10,430]

 

[26th of foot 5,842]

1 hour ago, JohnMc said:

I was speaking with friends earlier about the Amazon documentary on Manchester City that came out a couple of years ago. I watched it as I curious to know more about Guardiola. I'd expected lots of talk about overlapping, inverted false 9s and venn diagrams of spacial awareness and xG. In actual fact you discovered that 'Pep' is actually a bundle enthusiasm and energy who, when speaking with players, spends most of his time psyching them up and getting the side wound up to go out and play. It was a slightly more sophisticated version of 'get stuck right into them from the first whistle, lads'. Now I'm sure there's a lot of false 9s and inverted overlaps and all that stuff going on in training but the sheer simplicity of what Guardiola does was a surprise but afterwards I realised that's what all successful managers do, they fill their players with belief and desire. It's a room of young men full of testosterone, there's no need to make it complicated. 

 

I've been thinking about it this week. I wonder if we underestimated how important Gerrard's simple communication was. Everyone said Beale was the brain, and that might be so, but when Gerrard said "let's go" on his unveiling as our manager we all responded positively. Gerrard is passion and desire, as a player someone other players admired and listened too. Beale seems a much more considered and thoughtful person, but does he instil passion in our players? I suspect Gerrard's final words in the dressing room carried more weight than Beale's do now.

The great Brian Clough, who won titles with Derby and Nottingham Forest as well as two European Cups had a well documented poor spell at Leeds Utd in between those two jobs. What's often overlooked in his time at Leeds is his long time assistant, Peter Taylor, didn't go to Leeds with him. Clough's 'magic' didn't work at Leeds. He didn't win over the dressing room and he left after only a few months. At Forest he was once again joined by Taylor and the rest is history. Clough famously rarely visited the training ground, he'd watch training but never took part. His thinking was if his players heard his voice too much they would stop hearing what he said. Yet for all his genius, without Taylor, Clough's style didn't work. When him and Taylor fell out and Taylor left Forest they went into a terminal decline that ended with relegation. 

 

Having watched us this season, not just Wednesday and yesterday, I worry we've given Peter Taylor our manager's job. Our performances have lacked cohesion and style, i've no idea what formation and type of football we're meant to be playing. Yesterday we seemed to be playing a long ball to the big lad up front, I've not seen that tactic for over 20 years, I certainly didn't expect to see it yesterday. We had a speed merchant in decent form on one wing and never gave him the ball. They'd two rookie centre halves and we never thought of putting Matondo through the middle to see if that might make them drop deeper and create more space for our midfield who were being overrun for most of the first half. When we did make changes we took off the two forwards who both scored, albeit chalked off, and left on the one who looks short of fitness, sharpness and possibly confidence to the disbelief of almost the entire support. 

 

I'm not one who turns on managers easily. A search of my posts will show I was in favour of persevering with GvB until close to the very end. I was very disappointed when Le Guen left, I felt he should have been backed. But I lost faith in Pedro after the second Old Firm hammering, months before the Progres fiasco. Unfortunately I've lost faith in Beale. I could just about accept the new players struggling to settle and adapt. But both Cantwell and Raskin are shadows of the players we saw last season, what's happened to them? 

 

I know it's early in the season, but I feel I've watched this film before and I know how it ends. It's just a question of when and for all concerned it should be sooner rather than later. 

 

 

Yep, good analysis of the situation.

 

I agree with most, particularly both GVB and le Guen.

 

Interesting points on Clough, what about his time at Brighton and Hove Albion? I seem to remeber to was barely there long enough to enjoy a cup of cockles and a kiss-me-quick hat. 

[compo 6,202]

47 minutes ago, 26th of foot said:

Yep, good analysis of the situation.

 

I agree with most, particularly both GVB and le Guen.

 

Interesting points on Clough, what about his time at Brighton and Hove Albion? I seem to remeber to was barely there long enough to enjoy a cup of cockles and a kiss-me-quick hat. 

Clough without Taylor was like Gin without tonic 

[CammyF 6,849]

From 2017 - Coincidence?

 

https://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/sport/football/901468/celtic-boss-brendan-rodgers-warns-referee-don-robertson-one-more-mistake-could-cost-him-his-top-flight-career/

 

[Rousseau 9,444]

Lyon players getting a dressing down on the pitch by the fans:

 

https://reddit.com/r/soccer/s/8NuDqDgTsf

 

What would our ned with the drum say?

[ian1964 10,430]

 

[Rousseau 9,444]

5 minutes ago, ian1964 said:

 

I thought he was sacked for a moment, there...