Martin Out

[AdcockFox]

3 hours ago, Sol thewall Bamba said:

Wonder if Martin picked up the tab for this piece of client journalism or whether  Anthony went 50/50 with him.

 

Who wrote it btw? Tanner?

Tim Spiers wrote it 

[BenTheFox]

37 minutes ago, RoboFox said:

I don't think he gets "hate."

 

He gets stick because he gives it the big licks and doesn't get the results to back it up. His insistence on a brand of football that rarely works - as shown by his paltry FOUR wins in three years - draws the ire of fans because he's so unwavering in his insistence upon it. I'm not saying it's right, but I think it's a British cultural thing to bring people down a few pegs if their self-confidence outmatches the evidence of their ability. 

 

ANY manager would be getting the same treatment with that record at a normal football club, let alone the 6th most successful club in the country this century who are hovering above the relegation zone in League One. 

 

Frankly I don't care who his wife is and I find people giving him shit because of who he's married to very weird. 

Nor do I give a shit about him being a vegan Buddhist with long hair. I just want him to win some games. 

[bovril]

He's had smoke blown up his arse by idiots in the media and gets prickly when fans take issue with the constant losses. 

 

He genuinely believes people's problem is with his style of football only, not the results. He's like an insufferable NFL fan who thinks people only dislike the sport because they don't understand it not because it's ****ing boring. 

Edited 20 hours ago by bovril

[Trav Le Bleu]

16 minutes ago, bovril said:

He's had smoke blown up his arse by idiots in the media and gets prickly when fans take issue with the constant losses. 

 

He genuinely believes people's problem is with his style of football only, not the results. He's like an insufferable NFL fan who thinks people only dislike the sport because they don't understand it not because it's ****ing boring. 

You do realise your problem with that simile?

[bovril]

14 minutes ago, Trav Le Bleu said:

You do realise your problem with that simile?

Yeah I thought that when I typed it out but I ain't got no time for rhetorical consistency 

[Foxin_Mad]

16 hours ago, ARM1968 said:

Get spanked 4-0 tomorrow and hopefully that’s enough. Sick of the manager merry go round but if they actually got a decent one in we’d get behind them. Russell was never that. 

You are going to struggle getting a decent manager until dumb, dumber and even dumber bring in some home help to assist them making a competent decision. 

[Bozman]

He will be gone after tonight, we could get bullied in this match..

 

[Stadt]

For the culture war aspect, he doesn't actually get much flak for being a self-professed Green voter, there is a bit of stick for being a vegan but that's quite tame - all things considered. Even putting aside the obviously terrible results, he comes across as arrogant because there's zero self-awareness or reflection. He often interrupts the softest of interviewers, doesn't ever consider the possibility that he might be wrong. He'll throw his players under the bus and will always blame nebulous things like collective anxiety rather than any glaring coaching/tactical issues.

 

In a nutshell, it's a confidence trick because there is no substance behind the man to justify how committed he is to repeatedly failing.

[mod hero]

5 minutes ago, Stadt said:

For the culture war aspect, he doesn't actually get much flak for being a self-professed Green voter, there is a bit of stick for being a vegan but that's quite tame - all things considered. Even putting aside the obviously terrible results, he comes across as arrogant because there's zero self-awareness or reflection. He often interrupts the softest of interviewers, doesn't ever consider the possibility that he might be wrong. He'll throw his players under the bus and will always blame nebulous things like collective anxiety rather than any glaring coaching/tactical issues.

 

In a nutshell, it's a confidence trick because there is no substance behind the man to justify how committed he is to repeatedly failing.

Summed up perfectly 👏🏻

[Dan]

I never realised how many mates he clearly had in the media. Like get real. 4 wins in 17 games with Leicester in League One and Rangers in the SPL is bordering on unprofessionally bad.

[BenTheFox]

5 minutes ago, Dan said:

I never realised how many mates he clearly had in the media. Like get real. 4 wins in 17 games with Leicester in League One and Rangers in the SPL is bordering on unprofessionally bad.

<25% win rate with St Mirren in the Scottish Premiership and Stevenage in League One would be bad enough, let alone Rangers and Leicester!

[Corky]

I thought he would be underwhelming and would be delighted to be proved wrong. When we have lost we have been terrible, appallingly bad. Ok in victory but generally just not particularly great.

 

Feels like another Rodgers situation where a PR machine will be out in force to defend and justify. In fairness, they know the media game.

[whoareyaaa]

If he can't see what works and what doesn't then what is the point, managers should be able to adpat to what has worked regardless of there belief.

 

baffling if he reverts back 

[Chrysalis]

On 19/10/2026 at 10:10, Jobyfox said:

Top three in possession stats in the Premier League: Man City, Arsenal and Brighton.

 

Personally I don’t think it’s the playstyle that’s finished. It’s about flexibility and making it work for the players at your disposal. The real skill is looking at the players that you’ve got and utilising their skills to the full potential - as we did so ruthlessly in 15/16. 

If you look at many players in the lower leagues or women’s football they don’t have the technical skills to retain the ball and play through a press. That’s our real issue. We’re asking the likes of McCarthy, Thomas and Souttar to both be able to control the ball, but also have the football intelligence to use it properly. 

I don’t think it’s the style that’s finished. It’s the obsession that’s it’s the best approach for all players, irrespective of ability and technique and at all levels of football. 

I bang on about possession but its not tbad to have the ball, its how its used.

 

Typically teams that use possession well, wont mess about at the back (unless the game is already comfortably won), they get it in the opponents half quickly, and thats when the fancy play starts.  The good teams of course usually have the right players for it as well.

[Wymsey]

Had created a Martin In thread recently but it got swiftly deleted...

Edited 15 hours ago by Wymsey

[foxile5]

4 hours ago, Stadt said:

For the culture war aspect, he doesn't actually get much flak for being a self-professed Green voter, there is a bit of stick for being a vegan but that's quite tame - all things considered. Even putting aside the obviously terrible results, he comes across as arrogant because there's zero self-awareness or reflection. He often interrupts the softest of interviewers, doesn't ever consider the possibility that he might be wrong. He'll throw his players under the bus and will always blame nebulous things like collective anxiety rather than any glaring coaching/tactical issues.

 

In a nutshell, it's a confidence trick because there is no substance behind the man to justify how committed he is to repeatedly failing.

The green voting thing is insidious to be honest. 

[Wymsey]

1 hour ago, Wymsey said:

Had created a Martin In thread recently but it got swiftly deleted...

 

[les-tah]

10 hours ago, les-tah said:

we turn the corner tonight with martins famous 5 at the back, demolition job and HMS piss the league is back! 👀👀

[lanefox]

Has he finally learnt his lesson about goal kicks

[ACF]

Allowing the other team to press, creates the space to move the ball quickly, thus creating chances. Adding extra midfielders and CBs provides more passing options, and some defensive reinforcement. Who would’ve thought?

[winteriscoming]

It certainly helps when you play 2 of the worst teams in the division consecutively. 
 

 

[HitchinFox]

Just now, winteriscoming said:

It certainly helps when you play 2 of the worst teams in the division consecutively. 
 

 

 

To be fair, this is League One. It's a strong field when you're deciding which team is the worst. 

 

Not being funny, but we should be walking this competition. We all know that. It's not arrogance, just facts. 

[shailen]

I sit close to the bench and the first 15 mins against Doncaster, when we were awful, he was encouraging the team and really trying to inspire the squad. I think his man management must be good and hes sorted his tactics out to suit the players. Our issue is confidence and I think hes the type of manager to bring that back.

[StinckleyFox]

24 minutes ago, winteriscoming said:

It certainly helps when you play 2 of the worst teams in the division consecutively. 
 

 

We’ve played 4 of the worst but still lost to Peterborough and drew with barnsley

[The whole world smiles]

15 minutes ago, StinckleyFox said:

We’ve played 4 of the worst but still lost to Peterborough and drew with barnsley

Beat the league leaders.