CarolinaFox

Thanks for the clarification. I guess where we disagree is on what was realistic to expect this early on. Two points per game is promotion form over the course of a season. That's the end target. If the expectation was that we'd already be averaging two points per game after 10 (ish) matches, that feels a bit harsh to me because his teams have always needed time to get going because of the high learning curve of playing his style of football. You're essentially expecting a new manager, a new squad, and a completely different way of playing to all click immediately. In most sports, when a team is rebuilding and learning a new system, there's usually an adjustment period before you see the best version of that team. That doesn't mean the results don't matter or that Leicester shouldn't be aiming for promotion. It just means I think the expectation of being at full speed by October is probably unrealistic given the fact that his teams need time before performances and results really take off. At the end of the day I'm not saying I wanted Martin, or that I love everything about his football. But I'm trying to stay optimistic. We all love this club and want it to succeed. I think we've sometimes got to embrace change as a process of ups and downs, accept that we aren't in control, and try to stay positive.

You said he would have to "hit the ground running" what would that look like in your eyes? Does that mean winning every game? 80 percent?

Isn't that a bit unrealistic given how his teams typically start off? Martin's bang on form for his style of football. He's never had a team that started winning immediately when he came in. Its not how his brand of football operates. Its has a higher learning curve, that requires time to embed. So I don't think Martin sees an issue with the results right now, which is why he's pointed the fan back to what he's seeing: evidence that we are playing the way he wants and expects will turn into results. You're expecting him to have the same opinion you do of the football we're playing, and he doesn't.

The fact that the "Martin Out" Thread was started in June just proves my point. Some supporters were never going to be convinced by Martin, regardless of what he does. Every decision he makes, or doesn't make, becomes further confirmation of an opinion they've already formed. Winning can paper over that for a while, but the first bad result will see many of those same criticisms return almost immediately. Given how loud that sentiment has been among sections of the fanbase, I don't really have a problem with Martin pushing back. He's a human being, after all. Most people would defend themselves if their work and character were being publicly questioned. The important thing is that he did so respectfully and without personal attacks. And that's what I don't understand about the criticism of this exchange. What was the response people were expecting? For him to say, "You're right, I'm a terrible manager and I should resign"? There was never an answer he could give that would satisfy people who had already made up their minds. So how exactly was he supposed to win that interaction?

Our fans criticized Enzo when he was winning so let's not pretend that RM winning football matches would change anything.

Martin didn't need to engage with the fan and did. He didn't belittle him, he just said they would disagree and gave him his perspective based on the stats he sees. Sounds like RM just can't win in the eyes of some of the fans. If he doesn't say anything he's hiding, if he dodges questions he's got no spine, if he supports his opinion he's arrogant. Personally I like a manager that can back themselves when the critics are being loud.

Too many footballers are basically children whose emotions are too easily hurt. Grow up and show what you've got or be prepared to sit on the bench.

4 shots only 1 on target. Just had no end production today. He played 86 mins, most of them against 10 men and didn't score or really bother the keeper. He wasn't exactly lighting things on fire.

I'm in Charlotte as well!

Alves and Braybrooke should have put the game to bed in the first half. Alves may have been energetic on the ball, but he offered nothing. Should have been hooked at half time.

This one was purely down to tactics - the playing out from the back, slow build up - they are a man down! This was a loss in my book.

Alexander Blessin - former St. Pauli manager. His tactics would dominate league one. Free agent, no compensation fee to pay either. He wouldn't have the team needlessly recycling the ball and passing around the back. Win it back, vertical pass, get numbers forward. He'd be my choice.

Interesting that the analysis indicates he would play much better in a back three. Would we see RM change to a back three?

I wondered the same thing. I think it might depend on the type of ownership stake they have in Leeds. There are rumors its less than 10%, and if its a non-controlling minority stake that might make a difference. But I think yes, long term it would present problems.

Red Bull is an interesting idea...a multi-club organization would see the whole package (men's team, women's team, OH Leuven and Seagrave) as strengthening their overall ecosystem. Seagrave is one of the best training facilities in Europe, it could become a hub for Red Bull's academy system in England. Red Bull also don't have (to my knowledge) a footprint in Belgian football. If they only own about 10% or less of Leeds United it shouldn't be an issue. And as for the name, I don't see them diluting the Leicester City brand. I'd be open to it, but curious to know what everyone else thinks.

Really don't rate Souttar for RM's style of play. Doesn't seem particularly good with his feet, or fast. He's just big.

Still can't believe we haven't brought in any better CB options - Souttar and Okoli do not have the ball playing ability or speed that we need. Really hope we can move them out fast.

I'm all for being sold to an owner with better resources, but the timing seems off. You don't sell an asset when its distressed and undervalued unless its impossible to carry on. Not when you've just hired a new DOF and new manager and the season is about to start in a few weeks. I think it definitely gives more credence to Charlie Methven's analysis of King Power and its financial situation. If a sale is being discussed now, its not a matter of if King Power will sell this year but when - because it feels like Top has realized he must sell the club, that he and his company cannot carry on the financial burden of supporting the club any further.

As time goes by his decision making is becoming clearer. Russell Martin was clearly brought in because of this track record with youth development. And that makes sense: we needed to clear out high salaries/bad apples in the squad (Winks, Vestegaard, Kristiansen), and also build a team within the constraints of now being in league one. I think James has set us up well to rebuild our squad from the inside, using talent we already have. I would expect that to be the recruitment philosophy going forward. Emphasis on building youth who will be the future of the club and grow in resale value, and adding a few players on 2-3 year contracts who are brought in for their ability to deliver results, but whose resale value is perhaps small. I'm actually really excited to see us out there this season, and I know its league one, but I haven't been excited about our squad and its potential in a while.

I think his value to the club goes well beyond any potential resale fee. The main reason he's been given a three-year contract is because of what he can contribute on the pitch and his ability to help us get back to the Premier League. If, over the next three years, he plays a major role in securing back-to-back promotions and getting us back to the top flight, that would be worth far more to the club than any transfer profit we might have made. Sometimes the biggest return on a player isn't resale value—it's the success they help deliver. Overall this feels like a solid signing.

Don’t strain yourself — it’s basic accounting. If a club owes you money and you owe them money, you net the balances. The £25m is just the PSR headline, not the real cost

You’re looking at it the wrong way. We didn’t buy Skipp to “offset money owed.” The simple point is that Skipp didn’t actually cost Leicester £25m. Cooper wanted him, and both clubs structured the deal so it appeared as a £25m purchase for PSR. That number is just the accounting figure — not the real cost to us — because Spurs still owed us money from the Maddison deal. If we were paying £5m a year for Skipp while Spurs were still paying £8m a year for Maddison, we’re still £3m up each year. Over the term, that’s a £15m surplus. So when you look at the real cost, Leicester effectively took Skipp + £15m instead of waiting 5–6 years for the full Maddison instalments. We needed a premier league player for a survival push, and Cooper believed Skipp could help right away. The “£25m for Skipp” figure is just the PSR number — not what we actually paid, or the real cost to us. That's what I'm saying.

I don’t actually think Skipp “cost” us £25m in real terms. Remember, we sold Maddison to Spurs the summer before for £40m, and they still owed us instalments on that deal. When we signed Skipp, it had to look like a normal £20–25m transfer on paper for PSR reasons, but in reality both clubs probably just lined up the payment schedules so the money basically cancelled itself out. Instead of Spurs sending us £8m a year for Maddison and us sending them £4m a year for Skipp, they just mirror the payments. On the books it looks like we’re paying Spurs, but in real life Spurs are still paying us more than we’re paying them. Spurs get to book Skipp as pure profit, we keep Maddison income on our PSR, and everyone’s accounts look clean. So no — Skipp didn’t really cost us £25m. Not in any meaningful, cash‑out‑the-door way.

What's the deal with Wrexham taking all of our old players...how many would that be now? Coady, Matty James, Lewis Brunt, Danny Ward, Callum Doyle (although he was a loan with us) and now possibly Souttar! Guess we're just a Wrexham feeder club now.

I think your take is solid. My heart still wants him on RM’s staff — especially with so many academy guys likely making up the squad this year. Having someone like Fuchs to help anchor a young group would be huge for the club. But my head agrees with you: he looks ready for a number‑one job. Assistant at Charlotte FC for a couple years, manager at Newport. As you said, he probably didn't feel like he was going to be supported with recruitment this summer and felt like his stock was highest now to get a better job. Good luck to him, Leicester legend, and a Charlotte FC legend as well (my other club). Can't say enough good things about his character. Would absolutely love him back here in some capacity.