Manager Watch: Ange Postecoglou

[Donki]

Err.. I acknowledged by the fact that , the games I included were from Feb 2024 -by then we already recovered from key injuries, got players back from AFCON, Asia cup. Even Bentancur was back

Yes, ofcourse we had 1 or 2 other injured.... Feb 2024 to now, we have had most of our main XI

I guess you just have selective amnesia ?

U think when a player comes back from injury they are tip top ready to go? You have clearly chosen ur best form of defence is to be a bellend and just throw insults. Enjoy ur Sunday!

 

[ajspurs]

Normally when things are bad, as bad as it sounds I actually get a bit excited about the sacking of a manager and the prospect of someone new in. If we get someone else in, it would be nice to not go into every game knowing there's a high chance of being easily split open, conceding from a set piece, having no plan B etc. These problems will go, but I guarantee new ones will take their place.

No manager is achieving what we want them to when their midfield additions are two 18-year-old kids, the attacking additions are a renowned goal-shy and lacking of quality loan, a 19-year-old from Burnley, an 18-year-old winger from Ganwon FC and a striker who's had one good season in the Premier League out of many from Bournemouth.

I won't be excited or happy about sacking Ange at all if this trend continues.

 

[Trent Crimm]

Looking at Ange on the touchline today , he rarely gives anything away expression wise . But today, I don't know, he looked like a man who's penny had dropped. These attacking players aren't going to pull off what he wants.
He should have seen this long ago. I don't want to sound so negative. There are things we're getting right, but the final third isn't working and that's on him. Coaching wise but also decision making.
There has been a litany of bad decisions imo, maybe many are not on him. But I want to point to one that he made early in his tenure before we even kicked a ball , making Son captain.
His days should have been numbered with us. He's been a great player but his legs -they were arguably gone last season - they definitely are now.
We could have cashed in there but instead have set a terrible precedent for standard in making him captain.

Re son. Never going to happen. Look in the crowd. Look at all the business he brings in.

 

[jimbo]

I think he should get at least ten games this season before we open the Next Manager thread again.

But it doesn’t matter who the next guy is. That should be apparent by now, to all of us. We’ve had just about every type of manager going, changing the manager won’t change our fortunes in any meaningful way so it’s all a bit pointless really.

 

[Dougal]

Well maybe Ange is trying to sort the balance? Do you think Ange is trying to sabotage himself with his tactics or do you think he is doing what is right by what he has seen during the week?

He may think he’s right, but the result wasn’t.

 

[McFlash]

If not Ange, then who?

This is the biggest question.

We may as well give him the season because I'm not sure anyone will actually be able to do much better.
The may get us defending deeper but we'll still concede annoying goals and still be unable to score.

I don't want to change for the sake of change, I'd rather give a manager time to sort things out.
I don't want a new manager every 18 months, it sucks.

 

[Styopa]

The problem is we only ever play one way, so we're predictable and that makes it easier for the opposition to prepare.

Must admit that was really deflating to watch live, and the same problems are persisting with our decision making and final ball.

I think these are fair criticisms. But I still think it comes down to not having the players. Maybe if we’re a bit more pragmatic or flexible we do a bit better. But we’re still basically a top seven team in terms of players. We’re in that group with Newcastle and Man U imo.

We just didn’t do enough this summer to expect much more than an outside push for fourth and a decent cup run if we get a good draw.

 

[NorthernYido]

Looking at Ange on the touchline today , he rarely gives anything away expression wise . But today, I don't know, he looked like a man who's penny had dropped. These attacking players aren't going to pull off what he wants.
He should have seen this long ago. I don't want to sound so negative. There are things we're getting right, but the final third isn't working and that's on him. Coaching wise but also decision making.
There has been a litany of bad decisions imo, maybe many are not on him. But I want to point to one that he made early in his tenure before we even kicked a ball , making Son captain.
His days should have been numbered with us. He's been a great player but his legs -they were arguably gone last season - they definitely are now.
We could have cashed in there but instead have set a terrible precedent for standard in making him captain.

I meant to add onto this. It's now very difficult to drop son considering he is captain and probably highest paid player.
He has to change the attack. We're 4 points from 12 and very few goals from attacking players . Bring in some of these younger players that we've spent so much on . They can't be any worse, blood them now if this is the long term plan anyway.

 

[only1waddle]

The stadium has only been built for a few seasons….. it was always gonna be along the same trajectory as Arsnals build, covid clearly didn’t help, but clearly Levy made the virus.

Oh for god sake, debate properly or don't bother.
That's a fucking childish straw man, nobody said Levy created the virus.
Moronic.

 

[NorthernYido]

Re son. Never going to happen. Look in the crowd. Look at all the business he brings in.

Yes , sadly this is a huge part of it

 

[Metalhead]

Sometimes he doesn't help himself does he. He's talked about title charges this season and now this yet 10 points from last 11 games and 44 points from last 32 games. He can be bullish all he wants but he needs to start backing it up or he's making a huge rod for his own back

It doesn't make any difference. Of course he should have ambition and people will expect him too. If people want to support him then they'll support him. If people want to find a reason to pick holes in him then they'll do it.

 

[Gardham90]

Personally, I think rather than reading these tactics blogs and useless analysis, you'd all be better off reading "Bullshit Jobs," by David Graeber. There is just no point in getting your knickers in a twist about a role that is closer to being ceremonial than of any real substance.

The head coach doesn't buy the players. He doesn't scout the players. He doesn't set the budget. Those are all way more important than anything Ange does.

Any fool can see how our system would work if he would make the most of our domination. All systems work in theory. But can anyone look at front line and attacking mids and really claim we've progressed since last summer? Of course not, hence we can't expect to be any better. Blaming the guy who takes the training sessions and writes the names on the team sheet is a waste of time. The football industry talks about elite level, senior pro football like it's the youth game where a coach can really have an impact. To 99.9% of people involved in football, it's beyond the realms of possiblity that the coach just isn't that important. He's really not!

But surely he's responsible for the (lack of) set piece coaching?

 

[panoma]

Which players actually improved under Ange?

I think every single one of our player's regressed on his watch. VdV the only one that looks just as good?

Even young sparks like Udogie and Sarr looks worse now then a year ago.

Worrying.

 

[Donki]

He may think he’s right, but the result wasn’t.

Well no defeat is right is it? There are alot of people gurning but not a lot of people saying who should be the alternative to Ange? Maybe we need a poll

 

[Albertbarich]

I think most people in the club want the club to be successful, the idea that Mr Baldy mad doesn’t want us to be successful has always made me chuckle. We have forums about *laughing at other teams* wasting money, buying too many players, having stadiums that are in ruin. Yet we shout at baldy man for the complete opposite. There is no perfeft club, the sooner people realise that, the sooner you can have a coke and and a smile.

Nobody thinks mr baldy as you call him doesn’t want us to win. I don’t believe anyone has said that.
But does he really hurt if we lose? Does he go into the new season determined to see us challenge? I absolutely don’t think so. I think he needs us to be around that top five or six teams to get champions league football because of the revenue and there is no desire whatsoever to push the boat out financially to go beyond that.
You’re right that there is no perfect club. You have your cheats/dirty states, you have your clueless rich person, the better run machines such as Liverpool and Brighton to name two quite far apart financially and then you have the sort that I think Levy is the best of. The hard nose businessman determined to run it as a business first and foremost.
There is no doubt off the pitch we’re one of the best if not the best run club in the world. On it though, we stumble from project to project, blame managers as they come and go, whilst the man that picks them, the man who told us when he got here that he saw it as a business just carries on with his huge salary . As someone on X said earlier, we’re paying BA prices for an easyJet product.
Before any signings were done, we all agreed that we needed real strength added in attack, defensive cover and a lot said a number six although I don’t think Ange himself wanted one. Well now we’re seeing why. Our attack considering the possession is utterly toothless. Yes ange has to improve but does anyone really think changing a manager now will really push us on? A new man might fix some stuff but other issues will occur that won’t be sorted and we will soon be back here having the same debates that we have had for the past two decades .

 

[thebenjamin]

I meant to add onto this. It's now very difficult to drop son considering he is captain and probably highest paid player.
He has to change the attack. We're 4 points from 12 and very few goals from attacking players . Bring in some of these younger players that we've spent so much on . They can't be any worse, blood them now if this is the long term plan anyway.

Who do you drop Son for? There's no one else. Odobert looks like he's years off being a top half of the PL player. Werner is shit. Johnson isn't much better. We don't have any good wide players and we play a system that relies completely on the quality of its wide players. Whoops

 

[Donki]

Oh for god sake, debate properly or don't bother.
That's a fucking childish straw man, nobody said Levy created the virus.
Moronic.

It was supposed to be a joke mate…..

 

[dontcallme]

I think he should get at least ten games this season before we open the Next Manager thread again.

But it doesn’t matter who the next guy is. That should be apparent by now, to all of us. We’ve had just about every type of manager going, changing the manager won’t change our fortunes in any meaningful way so it’s all a bit pointless really.

I often feel the old phrase 'a camel is a horse designed by committee' perfectly describes our running under ENIC.

I actually don't think any individual is particularly bad. The issue is we have so many different people running so many different areas that there is never any real cohesion.

Jol wanted an experienced centre back and midfielder, and was provided with 2 teenagers. He was fired a few months later.

I don't think our transfer activity was bad. It's what wasn't done was the problem.

We can look to Ange's weaknesses and what needs improving but until the real decision makers put a quality squad together for the right now, it's never going to matter.

 

[Donki]

Nobody thinks mr baldy as you call him doesn’t want us to win. I don’t believe anyone has said that.
But does he really hurt if we lose? Does he go into the new season determined to see us challenge? I absolutely don’t think so. I think he needs us to be around that top five or six teams to get champions league football because of the revenue and there is no desire whatsoever to push the boat out financially to go beyond that.
You’re right that there is no perfect club. You have your cheats/dirty states, you have your clueless rich person, the better run machines such as Liverpool and Brighton to name two quite far apart financially and then you have the sort that I think Levy is the best of. The hard nose businessman determined to run it as a business first and foremost.
There is no doubt off the pitch we’re one of the best if not the best run club in the world. On it though, we stumble from project to project, blame managers as they come and go, whilst the man that picks them, the man who told us when he got here that he saw it as a business just carries on with his huge salary . As someone on X said earlier, we’re paying BA prices for an easyJet product.
Before any signings were done, we all agreed that we needed real strength added in attack, defensive cover and a lot said a number six although I don’t think Ange himself wanted one. Well now we’re seeing why. Our attack considering the possession is utterly toothless. Yes ange has to improve but does anyone really think changing a manager now will really push us on? A new man might fix some stuff but other issues will occur that won’t be sorted and we will soon be back here having the same debates that we have had for the past two decades .

I think if you look back to person kick off most people thought we were in a good place squad wise.

 

[Metalhead]

Normally when things are bad, as bad as it sounds I actually get a bit excited about the sacking of a manager and the prospect of someone new in. If we get someone else in, it would be nice to not go into every game knowing there's a high chance of being easily split open, conceding from a set piece, having no plan B etc. These problems will go, but I guarantee new ones will take their place.

No manager is achieving what we want them to when their midfield additions are two 18-year-old kids, the attacking additions are a renowned goal-shy and lacking of quality loan, a 19-year-old from Burnley, an 18-year-old winger from Ganwon FC and a striker who's had one good season in the Premier League out of many from Bournemouth.

I won't be excited or happy about sacking Ange at all if this trend continues.

With every passing managerial change, I'm less and less bothered. Every time we recruit a new head coach, the timer starts and it's just a case of how long it takes for the natives to start getting restless.