Susan Whelan calls on fans to trust club's decision to replace Pearson

[MC Prussian]

At the moment with the lack in midfield we are going to go straight down, things are not looking good at all and this new manager does not seem to attract players at all

Alright. There's worries and then there are overreactions.

 

Calm down - I'm eager to see us sign more players myself.

However, let's give it some rest and see where we end up in terms of additions at the start of August, shall we?

[Steven]

Can people stop posting smutty, course, suggestive or other personal comments re Susan Whelan or any other employee of LCFC.

 

We've been asked by the club before to remove them surely you realise by now that they monitor this forum.

 

Thanks

 

Is it ok to post her image in the Hottest Celebs thread?

[Mickyblueeyes]

Trust comes from mutual respect.

This is what the club fails to understand at times. Ok, you went after Ranieri. Refer to him as to what he is an experienced European manager. NOT one of the worlds elite. It's annoying when we are told a cock and bull story.

Secondly, justify some of your decisions/appointments.

Finally, why are your counterparts at clubs of similar stature doing far better than you on the football front?

[chapero82]

Alright. There's worries and then there are overreactions.

Calm down - I'm eager to see us sign more players myself.

However, let's give it some rest and see where we end up in terms of additions at the start of August, shall we?

It's these silly comments that make me laugh! The pre season has not gone well at all we were already short of one midfielder as James is out we have now lost our best midfielder with 2 weeks to go and our new manager won't really know our players yet to know how light we are midfield. This is the worst decision r.e sacking Pearson I have seen

[inckley fox]

Trust comes from mutual respect.

This is what the club fails to understand at times. Ok, you went after Ranieri. Refer to him as to what he is an experienced European manager. NOT one of the worlds elite. It's annoying when we are told a cock and bull story.

Secondly, justify some of your decisions/appointments.

Finally, why are your counterparts at clubs of similar stature doing far better than you on the football front?

 

It's an interesting point about Ranieri being billed as 'one of the world's elite', especially when we appear to be trying to punch over our weight in terms of transfer targets - it suggests a club which is trying to run before it can comfortably walk.

 

As for the managerial switch, Alf pointed out two statements by Whelan which were hard to reconcile with one another; one which indicated the relationship with Pearson no longer being viable as being the reason for the change, the other indicating that the real reason was that Ranieri would be a better person to lead the club into the next chapter.

 

It was speculated, by some, that Ranieri's 'come and get me' plea was a little unusual, as if the board were trying to make it look like he hadn't long since been lined up. It's even more interesting to see Ranieri saying today that he has known Vichai for a long time. Not least because, if he had known him for a long time, there should have been no need to make such a call through the Press, he could simply have got on the phone.

 

I'm aware that there are plenty of other explanations for this besides the board 'tapping Ranieri up' before Pearson had gone (for instance, the 'come and get me' could have been a club ploy to gauge public reaction to a potential appointment) and that even if they had tapped him up, this might still have been the right thing for the board to do.

 

But the complete absence of contact suggested by Ranieri a week after Pearson's sacking is hard to reconcile with the knowledge that he's been an acquaintance of our chairman for some time. It looks just a little disingenuous in light of today's interview. And it hardly adds to the impression of our board as trustworthy. In fact, it indicates - right or wrong - that they were engaging with other managers long before Pearson left (sounds familiar, doesn't it?), and may well have had an idea of the 'best man for the job' long before whatever is supposed to have happened.

 

Of course none of this is to say that Ranieri won't be the man to attract big names to the club, although it doesn't look likely at the moment, and lead us to a place among Europe's elite. If they want to repair their relationship with the fans, and earn back that trust, then we'll have to hope that he does.

[Matt]

It's an interesting point about Ranieri being billed as 'one of the world's elite', especially when we appear to be trying to punch over our weight in terms of transfer targets - it suggests a club which is trying to run before it can comfortably walk.

 

As for the managerial switch, Alf pointed out two statements by Whelan which were hard to reconcile with one another; one which indicated the relationship with Pearson no longer being viable as being the reason for the change, the other indicating that the real reason was that Ranieri would be a better person to lead the club into the next chapter.

 

It was speculated, by some, that Ranieri's 'come and get me' plea was a little unusual, as if the board were trying to make it look like he hadn't long since been lined up. It's even more interesting to see Ranieri saying today that he has known Vichai for a long time. Not least because, if he had known him for a long time, there should have been no need to make such a call through the Press, he could simply have got on the phone.

 

I'm aware that there are plenty of other explanations for this besides the board 'tapping Ranieri up' before Pearson had gone (for instance, the 'come and get me' could have been a club ploy to gauge public reaction to a potential appointment) and that even if they had tapped him up, this might still have been the right thing for the board to do.

 

But the complete absence of contact suggested by Ranieri a week after Pearson's sacking is hard to reconcile with the knowledge that he's been an acquaintance of our chairman for some time. It looks just a little disingenuous in light of today's interview. And it hardly adds to the impression of our board as trustworthy. In fact, it indicates - right or wrong - that they were engaging with other managers long before Pearson left (sounds familiar, doesn't it?), and may well have had an idea of the 'best man for the job' long before whatever is supposed to have happened.

 

Of course none of this is to say that Ranieri won't be the man to attract big names to the club, although it doesn't look likely at the moment, and lead us to a place among Europe's elite. If they want to repair their relationship with the fans, and earn back that trust, then we'll have to hope that he does.

 

As I have said a few times now the owners have made their bed, they now have to lie in it, it could go fantastically well, but I have my doubts and there is more risk than a reward for the owners imo. They have severly damaged their relationship with alot of fans, the only way they can win them round is hitting the ground running, otherwise it'll be toxic down the KP this season - pretty much all thanks to their doing.

 

Even if Ranieri does do well and believe it or not I hope he does, I still think he won't be here long, this appointment (IMO) is not long term successful or not either way.

 

And then where do we go, We're in the same position, looking for a new manager, possibly re-building a squad again, it goes against everything we've strived for in the last 4 or 5 years.

 

Someone mentioned in the Transfer forum about players wanting/needing stability to entince them to come to a club like Leicester, well it's far from stable now imo.

 

That is my main issue with it, no I don't have any proof of this, no I can't predict the future, but given his age, given his track record and given how controversial this situation is it all leads to short term - A year, 1 and half years at most, we'll see, I might be wrong, again, I hope he successful and I am wrong about the length of his tenure but i'm quiet confident I won't be (About the time he'll be here certainly).

[Webbo]

The board upset a lot of fans when they sacked Sven, whatever they or any other board at any other club,do someone else will always know better.

 

If we get relegated we'll all be sad for a few months whereas they'll lose millions of pounds. No matter what any armchair expert thinks the club will always do what they think is necessary for success.

[inckley fox]

As I have said a few times now the owners have made their bed, they now have to lie in it, it could go fantastically well, but I have my doubts and there is more risk than a reward for the owners imo. They have severly damaged their relationship with alot of fans, the only way they can win them round is hitting the ground running, otherwise it'll be toxic down the KP this season - pretty much all thanks to their doing.

 

Even if Ranieri does do well and believe it or not I hope he does, I still think he won't be here long, this appointment (IMO) is not long term successful or not either way.

 

And then where do we go, We're in the same position, looking for a new manager, possibly re-building a squad again, it goes against everything we've strived for in the last 4 or 5 years.

 

Someone mentioned in the Transfer forum about players wanting/needing stability to entince them to come to a club like Leicester, well it's far from stable now imo.

 

That is my main issue with it, no I don't have any proof of this, no I can't predict the future, but given his age, given his track record and given how controversial this situation is it all leads to short term - A year, 1 and half years at most, we'll see, I might be wrong, again, I hope he successful and I am wrong about the length of his tenure but i'm quiet confident I won't be (About the time he'll be here certainly).

 

Yeah, I think that's a fair comment. Lots of factors might put players off coming. Any self-respecting player, whether he intends on racially abusing hookers or not, will be asking if he's expected to attend end-of-season week-long diplomatic functions in Thailand when every other EPL player heads off on his holidays, and what the expectations will be of his behaviour. Plenty more will see the change in manager to be a strange decision, the exit of Cambiasso to be a major loss etc.

 

Ultimately all will be forgiven if it works out well. But the demand for an explanation for what has happened will grow if it doesn't.

[midland_red]

We have no real choice but to trust, or as customers of what is now a business like any other, take our custom elsewhere, like Chaventry or Snottingham.

We will never know the truth of what happenned anyway, NP will be paid off with a confidentiality clause in the deal.

In one sense I do trust - I trust that the owners genuinely felt that they were acting in the best interests of the club. They want to see success on the field not less than we do - all their plans for a huge brand in Asia depend on that.

BUT.....do I trust their judgment to deliver this? That is really another question, and our apparent inability to sign some good CMs is not encouraging. To be fair, there is surely a lot going on that quite rightly I don't know about it. But it surely can't look good to be asked to sign for a club who sacked their manager after what must be classed as a successful season and then failed to keep their best player. For what it worth I think Cambiasso would have gone anyway, but how does that look to potential signees?

So yes, I do trust, but I'm afraid I trust with a great sense of foreboding. Please let me be proved wrong.

[inckley fox]

The board upset a lot of fans when they sacked Sven, whatever they or any other board at any other club,do someone will know better.

 

If we get relegated we'll all be sad for a few months whereas they'll lose millions of pounds. No matter what any armchair expert thinks the club will always do what they think is necessary for success.

 

Of course, but that's stating the obvious, isn't it? We don't have to agree with what they do and, while our opinions are probably irrelevant to them, that's one of the reasons for us having a forum. And the key factor here is that Sven's sacking worked out pretty well. We were 13th when he left and 10th at the end of the previous season, then 9th with a higher p.p.g. average at the end of 2011-12, 6th a season later, promoted a season after that etc. If this works out then, like I say, all will be forgiven.

[Kitchandro]

The board upset a lot of fans when they sacked Sven, whatever they or any other board at any other club,do someone else will always know better.

 

If we get relegated we'll all be sad for a few months whereas they'll lose millions of pounds. No matter what any armchair expert thinks the club will always do what they think is necessary for success.

 

I'm not sure they upset anyone when they sacked Sousa.

[Webbo]

Of course, but that's stating the obvious, isn't it? We don't have to agree with what they do and, while our opinions are probably irrelevant to them, that's one of the reasons for us having a forum. And the key factor here is that Sven's sacking worked out pretty well. We were 13th when he left and 10th at the end of the previous season, then 9th with a higher p.p.g. average at the end of 2011-12, 6th a season later, promoted a season after that etc. If this works out then, like I say, all will be forgiven.

And that's why I accepted Sven's sacking at the time. There was still a lot of people on here saying exactly the same things as I've been reading on here for the last month.

I'm not sure they upset anyone when they sacked Sousa.

Certainly not me.

[Guest Mee-9]

Personally I think if this season doesn't go as well as many think the board could be in trouble.

 

Getting rid of NP was a ballsy move, and one that I think will come back to haunt us possibly. 

[inckley fox]

And that's why I accepted Sven's sacking at the time. There was still a lot of people on here saying exactly the same things as I've been reading on here for the last month.

Certainly not me.

 

For my part I was in favour of the sacking - as opposed to against this latest sacking - because I wasn't impressed with the business Sven was doing, had previously been impressed with Pearson who'd been our last successful manager, and saw that we were unlikely to achieve our goals. I don't think most people have a default position when it comes to managerial sackings, and the two sets of circumstances are outstandingly different: A successful manager who has won two promotions and done well at PL level on the one hand; on the other a manager who had achieved no success in over a decade, none at our club, and had neither won anything nor looked especially likely to win anything. I'd expect people to adapt their opinions accordingly.

[Frank to be]

 It's even more interesting to see Ranieri saying today that he has known Vichai for a long time.

 

 

 

Where is this interview you're referring to?

[Matt]

Where is this interview you're referring to?

 

http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Leicester-City-boss-Claudio-Ranieri-says-feels/story-27478271-detail/story.html

 

 

Ranieri, who takes his City squad to face Mansfield in a pre-season friendly on Saturday (3.0) two weeks before the start of the new Premier League season, said he wants to build up the club slowly but insists he shares the owners' ambitions.

"I think I am an ambitious man," he said.

 

"When I spoke with people at the club, I understood there is a good project and programme, and I am ready. They want me to try to do my best. He knows me very well. He (Vichai) knows me from a long time ago.

 

"He follows me and he knows very well what I can do for the club, the league and everybody.

[Frank to be]

"He knows me very well....he follows me"

 

Ranieri is obviously saying that Vichai knows about him, has followed his career, not that they've been friends for years

[Steven]

"He knows me very well....he follows me"

 

Planefinder?

[inckley fox]

"He knows me very well....he follows me"

 

Ranieri is obviously saying that Vichai knows about him, has followed his career, not that they've been friends for years

 

Clearly you didn't read the whole thing. If you'd made it to the end of the previous sentence you'd have seen the bit which said 'He (Vichai) knows me (Ranieri) from a long time ago'.

 

Like I said, if he knew him then the obvious thing to have done would have been to get on the phone and speak to him, rather than issue a 'come and get me plea' in which he says he's not yet heard anything from Leicester City. What possible reason would Ranieri and the club have had for wanting their next manager to suggest that the club hadn't been in pursuit of him, in the wake of Pearson's sacking? Because if they had, that would sort of dismantle the argument lots of people offered about the owners clearly not having a replacement lined up when they fired Pearson, and that therefore it must have been a spontaneous and entirely necessary decision.

 

Now I'd argue that there's no reason why a club shouldn't line up their next manager even if they're happy with their current one. But up to now very few people supporting the sacking have been good enough at structuring their arguments to mention such things. Equally I'd have said that it might not be a good idea for Ranieri to tell the press that he'd like to manage Leicester, and appear to beg our owners for a chance to demonstrate his worth, then let slip within a couple of weeks that he'd known them all along, they'd followed his career for ages, and if he'd got in touch they'd have presumably taken him perfectly seriously. Especially if, as they claimed, he was clearly 'the outstanding candidate' all along. Because that suggests that he was being disingenuous with his 'come and get me' plea, doesn't it?

 

As I keep saying, if the switch works, none of this will matter. If it doesn't then the people who managed to read all of his comments will have yet another question to ask of the board.

[Frank to be]

I disagree. I think Ranieri is good enough at English to be able to say "I have known Vichai for a long time" if that's what he meant. I think Ranieri was saying "he knows me" as in "he knows a lot about my career", from which "he follows me" makes sense as "he has followed my career". It indicates Vichai undertook some thorough research into ranieri before appointing him, which is of course exactly what you would expect. It doesn't indicate they knew each other personally.

[Vlad the Fox]

I disagree. I think Ranieri is good enough at English to be able to say "I have known Vichai for a long time" if that's what he meant. I think Ranieri was saying "he knows me" as in "he knows a lot about my career", from which "he follows me" makes sense as "he has followed my career". It indicates Vichai undertook some thorough research into ranieri before appointing him, which is of course exactly what you would expect. It doesn't indicate they knew each other personally.

Pretty much how I understood it.

[thursday_next]

This thorough research into Ranieri probably adds up to the fact that he shook hands with him at the Monaco game. Afterwards he said to Top 'Doesn't that guy look like John Inman?'

 

   

[Webbo]

This thorough research into Ranieri probably adds up to the fact that he shook hands with him at the Monaco game. Afterwards he said to Top 'Doesn't that guy look like John Inman?'

 

   

[inckley fox]

This thorough research into Ranieri probably adds up to the fact that he shook hands with him at the Monaco game. Afterwards he said to Top 'Doesn't that guy look like John Inman?'

 

   

 

Yes, you could well be right. On both counts.

 

But he said what he said - "He knows me very well. He knows me from a long time ago. He follows me and he knows very well what I can do for the club." It does sort of suggest the board had some sort of prior communication with the guy, even if you imagine how the same sentence would work in Italian I don't - from my sketchy knowledge of Italian - think the meaning would be changed. I accept Ranieri could be exaggerating their closeness a little, or his poor English could be to blame, but it's another question I'd like to hear the board - or Ranieri - asked: If you knew these guys so well, why did you have to announce your lack of contact with them to the press?

 

There may well be a perfectly reasonable answer, and even if there isn't it will hardly matter if he does a good job for us, but I think the question is worth asking.

[thursday_next]

 

 

There may well be a perfectly reasonable answer, and even if there isn't it will hardly matter if he does a good job for us, but I think the question is worth asking.

 

You'll never find out, but fair play to you for taking all this time and trouble. I couldn't be bothered, but you're saying what a lot of us have been thinking.