Stadt

We're in the market for a replacement who is probably 70% as good (at best) with less than half the fee received to spend. Another financial shot in the foot that was entirely avoidable.

Oi

In an email full of typos

Trevaskis’ bowling average is errr high. I don’t watch any cricket outside of Leics. Is he talented?

Only actually played 3 CC games at average of 40 so it's hard to say how good he is yet. Has some potential as he's not 24 yet.

Good to see recent LCFC levels of self-reflection on show. You lost out on the title because you didn't play well enough, loser. Fun that they're still smarting about this, we've since won another trophy and got relegated whilst they've been a top 6 fixture and use that to well... I don't know, be around European football?

https://x.com/PubsSaving/status/1654015563113349121

Even the chains in London are pretty unique. Annoyingly provincial pubs are so similar most of the time

The Pep comparisons are weird because he relentlessly changes things, he has a philosophy but he's not wedded to an 'idea' in the same way Enzo is. You'd think EM would have learned that. It's like Enzo's 433/3241 is the end itself rather than the means. Hopefully him actually putting two forwards on (albeit for about 8 minutes) is tacit admission we can't blind fully carry on like this.

Inexperience is fine if a manager is responding to situations they've never encountered before. Enzo is responding to sterile possession play by doubling down and not changing things up. Inexperience can only explain so much, it's boring to keep bringing him up but McKenna isn't that experienced, he's just not as dogmatic.

He’s always going to look less effective when we lose. His performances are consistent it’s just the narrative is different. He has the ability to do more with the ball but the manager isn’t asking him to.

A more standard possession focussed 433, would create far more. Whats the point in the extra man in midfield when you’re already overloading the centre and the wings are so underloaded the wingers are useless. Pereira especially would cause way more problems going beyond the winger as an option.

If he's going to be this dogmatic then he's not the right manager at all for the financial situation we're in. All managers would like to 100% pursue their vision, he's the only one unwilling to compromise on anything. If he's relying on a turnover of 15 players to achieve his vision whilst we lose tens of millions a season he's unfit for the job. McKenna has some L1 jobbers on a par with us so Enzo doing this with a PL team is pathetic.

Pep is extremely willing to change things however. You'd think Maresca would have picked that up after spendings 1000s of hours with him

The 'Big Zuu' Pepsi adverts "Make it bett-ah, make it bett-ah" makes me genocidal

Missed some very obvious shirt pulls and foul throws. Flemming had his feet in the pitch and let go of the ball at face height for one ffs.

I wonder how many limp defeats we’d have to suffer before he changed the system? 20, 30? Never? Its borderline stupidity at this point

In any other career if you brazenly pursued an idea that didn’t work you’d be sacked. Pep broadly believes in playing the same way but he aggressively tweaks things. It’s like Maresca sets a course but doesn’t steer the ship, it’s idiotic

3241 in possession completely isolates wingers and we have no solution when we’re chasing

Saw Declan McKenna tonight at DMH. Good showman, 2+ hour set too. Not been to DMH for a long time, it’s a lovely venue, it helps so much not having crappy agency staff but genuinely friendly and helpful stewards/bar staff etc. Easy to get in and out of as well

We’ve shown some nerve the past two home games. However those who can’t wait to wallow in the bottling don’t mention that. If you talk about bottling you have to talk up gutsy performances too, otherwise you create a bottling feedback loop and it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy

https://youtu.be/8RURImPSBv4?feature=shared

It's way more refined which is what is more boring, e.g Ferguson's 2008 United side were much more fun, because they were less structured and just blew teams away. Pep's Barca were more predictable, more stifling but because of that they were way better. As analytics has really taken hold, the average shot distance is much shorter, there's fewer crosses - it is more stilted but it increases the quality. Less variation, slightly less interesting but the 'product' is better than ever. English football is more interesting by default imo too which helps.

I'm quite extreme in how much better the game is now. To the point if you dropped a decent-ish PL player, say Pedro Neto into 2002 they'd be one of the best in the world, such has the individual player's technical ability, awareness, composure and decision making improved. When you watch how even L1 and L2 teams play out under pressure I think they'd blow PL sides from a couple of decades ago away. The development of pressing over the year in particular has improved the game so much. Now sides have to get ever better under pressure which makes possession play better in turn.

Football has it easy an an industry, the cost per acquisition is absolutely minimal (people are desperate for you product, they get tattoos, wake up at the crack of down etc). The life time value of customers and repeat purchases are through the roof. So why on earth would you try to create any barriers to entry to this? I can half-understand the membership obsession but in that case make them £1 for kids.