Sack him now!

[Bob Weasel Fox]

Anything other than promotion is failure. Especially this season with our wage budget.

This, not even getting into the play offs is absolutely diabolical

[gazfox9]

So then, just wondering how everyone feels now Pearson has rid the squad of the 'bad eggs'. Hes managed to move on Mills, Danns, Beckford, Bamba and SSL. Seems his squad harmony has really worked don't you think? Or maybe not.....time to move on Nige..

[Corky]

How do you know they were "bad eggs" alone? Maybe he just didn't rate them as players that much?

[gazfox9]

How do you know they were "bad eggs" alone? Maybe he just didn't rate them as players that much?

Shakey pretty much admitted it.

[Bob Weasel Fox]

So then, just wondering how everyone feels now Pearson has rid the squad of the 'bad eggs'. Hes managed to move on Mills, Danns, Beckford, Bamba and SSL. Seems his squad harmony has really worked don't you think? Or maybe not.....time to move on Nige..

You answered your own question

[johnny the fox]

You answered your own question

He won't be happy till its just him and "head boy" Andy king.... ive heard he wants to send his own reflection on loan..

[Bob Weasel Fox]

How do you know they were "bad eggs" alone? Maybe he just didn't rate them as players that much?

Still we have Beckford and Danns to put back in the team next year as the cornerstone of our next failed promotion campaign

[5waller5]

Still we have Beckford and Danns to put back in the team next year as the cornerstone of our next failed promotion campaign

Or as decent additions to the squad for a manager that can manage players that don't doth their cap as he walks in the room.

[Bob Weasel Fox]

Or as decent additions to the squad for a manager that can manage players that don't doth their cap as he walks in the room.

Never should of bought Beckford but Danns I have been genuinely dissappointed with

[5waller5]

Never should of bought Beckford but Danns I have been genuinely dissappointed with

I still think they both could be decent players in the championship with the right management. Not first name on the team sheet but decent fringe players.

[Bob Weasel Fox]

I still think they both could be decent players in the championship with the right management. Not first name on the team sheet but decent fringe players.

You could have a point Waller, can't stand us being as piss poor as we are at the moment for too much longer. Ok I mean we should of beat Brighton and Birmingham but we can't put teams to the sword

[5waller5]

You could have a point Waller, can't stand us being as piss poor as we are at the moment for too much longer. Ok I mean we should of beat Brighton and Birmingham but we can't put teams to the sword

It's awful isn't it. I just want the season finished, the ashes to start and to forget football for a while. Oh, and start next season with some excitement with a manager that I think we stand a chance of promotion with!!!

[johnny the fox]

It's awful isn't it. I just want the season finished, the ashes to start and to forget football for a while. Oh, and start next season with some excitement with a manager that I think we stand a chance of promotion with!!!

The players know the seasons finished, but nobody bothered to tell the fans..

[Basingstoke Fox]

I disagree there are better managers who will get us promotion than NP, but I am not going to slate you for your opinion we will just agree to disagree

Fair enough. There are a few other managers that some of our fans seem to be looking at who they feel would be better options for us moving forwards. However, while our fans can carry on discussing potential replacements, I think it's important to consider whether we would really be a very good prospect for any of them.

It's well known that the club is in a crazy amount of debt and the longer we take to pay it back, the more we're going to owe to the owners. We currently have a large number of players on fairly large contracts and I believe that it would prove difficult to shift a fair few of them. Beckford, Danns and possibly Konchesky being prime examples of this. There's no question that Sven has spent the most money out of the managers we've had since the owners came in. That's not entirely his fault, the fault for that is primarily with the owners for the strategy that they decided to employ. It wasn't something I particularly agreed with but as fans, there was nothing that we could do other than sit back, enjoy the ride and hope for the best.

Unfortunately, things didn't turn out as any of us had hoped and we were left with a team that had too many average players on premium wages and were left outside the playoff places. Which given the resources afforded to Sven and his team at the time, was frankly unacceptable. Although he may have been able to turn things around given more time, we'll never know whether that would've been the case.

Since then, we brought in Pearson who had to come in and trim the fat off the squad (quite literally in the case of Michael Johnson). While I accept that he's had a fair amount of money to spend, perhaps a million to spend here and there on certain players, I doubt we would've had that much money to spend at that time given the ridiculous sums paid in transfer fees, agent fees and contracts paid in the summer. So he had to sell some players first. When he brought in his own players, he's brought in younger and more hungry players who I personally believe to be very talented on the whole and have a large amount of potential, which can hopefully be realised under the correct guidance.

This season, we have played some of the best football I've seen from City since I've supported the club and can certainly beat any team in this division on 'our day'. It is a massive shame that they've hit such a bad patch of form over the previous two and a half months but I feel that they will be able to improve with time, not only in terms of their quality and technical aspects as players, but also mentally. When they do eventually come through it, I think the experience of doing so will stand them in good stead for the future, both individually and as a team. Don't forget that this is the 3rd youngest squad out of the entire football league! It is frustrating that 'our day' hasn't occurred as often as we'd have hoped this season. But I do believe that as the team develops and gains more experience, there is enough there to show that we can become a very good side not only in this division, but eventually in the Premier League too.

So they're my thoughts on the squad that has been assembled so far, but it's important to consider that it is Pearson who has brought these players in. He has his own philosophy and they're the players that he wanted. The players who he thought would give us the best chance of getting out of this league. He knows them best at this time and as such, he will be the best person to look at our current squad and decide where we need to strengthen. That will allow him to spend whatever money we do have wisely on the key areas that need to be strengthened, which will be absolutely crucial.

Furthermore, I don't believe there will be too much more money to spend in future, there can't be. Especially with FFP coming into the reckoning. In fact, I'd suggest that we may need to look to reduce our outgoings further and there are several other clubs who will be in a much better position than us financially. and they would be a better proposition for any potential manager. They would be able to walk into one of those clubs, bring in the players that they want to build the team that they will believe will give them the best chance of getting out of this division. I can't see these same potential candidates having the same freedom at our club. In fact, I think that Pearson is one of the best candidates that we could go for to continue developing the squad while reducing the wage bill and our outgoings. Of course, alot of this is speculation but I don't believe that we're the fantastic proposition for managers that some of our fans perceive us to be, not for all the top names anyway. It would also be very difficult to find someone who can carry on with the good work that has been done up until now.

With all that in mind, the last thing that I want to see is more upheaval. I don't want to see all the work that has gone into the past 18 months as a football club go to waste and see us slow down the progress that we have made. I'm not saying that Pearson is perfect by any means, he does have his faults. There are times when he makes frustrating decisions that we don't agree with, he isn't the most exciting person to listen to in terms of his interviews and I do find the form from our previous 13 games concerning on the whole. But he had built a good team and he is a good manager. A manager who is probably still learning and improving aspects of his own game (given that he hasn't had the level of expectation going into a season in the past as he has this season) and I think that he will also learn from this year. I like his philosophy of bringing in talented, young and hungry players and I think that puts us in a good position for the future. I trust him and his team to identify our weaknesses and bring in the one or two players who will help to eventually get us to where we want to be.

It's also worth considering the pressure and expectation that comes with the Leicester City job. We as fans all want promotion but how long are we willing to wait for it? This is primarily aimed at the people who want Pearson to go. Supposing we do stay in the Championship, what would the expectations be for next season? Is it a case of get promotion next season or else? Top 6? Top 10? Would the expectations be the same for a new manager as they would be for Nigel Pearson or would they be more lenient?

[Dan]

Yes he has had more time, but this is what I don't understand; Why do people think a new manager would have a better chance after 1 season than if Pearson was to get next season?

As that list you posted shows, we have tried the 'sack the manager asap' game over and over and over and fvcking over.. and it has never worked and never will.

People are just frustrated at our plummet this season (as am I) and are just directing all their anger at Pearson - the best manager we have had in 10 years. If we were to start next season poorly then perhaps it would be time to change.

A lot of our fans would be calling for Mourinho's head if he didn't get us to top of the league within 10 games. I've never been so disallusioned with the other fans at the club, we're supposed to be united but right now I hate so many posters on the forum for the constant negatvity - it's doing my head in.

This. I've said this elsewhere but the thing that depresses me most about the fact we won't go up is the fact our 'fans' will be the same miserable over-expectant whinging bastards that they have been all season this year even when things are going well. It's honestly made what should've been a great season even more unenjoyable and next year will be exactly the same. The only thing that'll create positivity around this club is being in the Premier because this year has taught me whilst we're in this league our fans will just be arseholes regardless.

No, this isn't a complete Pearson arselick post because the past two months have been frankly gutting to watch, absolutely gutting. But I maintain the arsehole 'fans' are what makes this league ten times as unbearable.

[Dan]

Very nice analysis of what's happened Basingstoke. Fully agree with that.

My personal take is that this year is actually still a recovery year. I feel this season one of our main aims should've been cutting the wage bill massively. It's sad, you can all call me unambitious/boring all you want but our fans seriously under-estimate the fvck up of last season. Spending obscene money and delivering an average at best season, that isn't one of those things you can just brush under the carpet. That year should stick with us I'm afraid, we've had no choice but to cut back. We've had to get rid of players (who couldn't give a shit about the club) who are on silly money and we've had to get rid of them regardless. OK, no-one knows exact figures, but it doesn't take a rocket scientist to work out pretty much anyone Sven bought will be on one of the highest wage packets in this division, add that to sticking the likes of Gallagher, Wellens, Dyer, King & Schlupp all on silly money too, how does anyone expect success when our outgoings are so high and there are rules coming in meaning that we'll be penalised should we keep spending at such a ridiculous rate?

It leaves you with a choice. Do you go for broke yet again and spend more obscene money, going one of two ways? Or do you try and stabilise yourself and prepare yourselves for the worst. In other words, do we do a QPR, or do we do what we actually have done? Yes, we have spent money this year (we've definitely wasted some too) but our squad has made progress if you ask me, there's more young players on smaller wages tied down for years, should we have to sell them, they will bring in far more than the shit Sven signed in 2011.

I think we're in a healthier position as a club with Pearson at the helm, but he's shown some serious tactical deficiencies in the past 2 months and I'm afraid it's going to cost him his job. It really is a shame because I think with these rules coming in, he certainly has the right intentions. I think he's a manager who's building a squad with extremely high potential yet I've all but lost faith that he's the man who'll eventually reach it.

We as a club have been quite unlucky as far as timing goes with FFP etc... but we've got what we deserve in truth. I've got no interest in not spending within our means, it's one of English football's biggest problems.

I've accepted Pearson as a goner, but it's where we go from here. It's all well and good discussing the possibilities that are there without Pearson, but lets be realistic, who the FVCK is going to come here? Who that is any good, has any serious potential in management is going to come to a club in a mess like ours? And say we do land someone with that potential, are we going to give them the same shit we've been giving Pearson should they suffer a bad run? It's all short-term thinking, all the time, and it really does piss me off no end. All the expert critics on here will be looking in hindsight where any Pearson replacement gets it wrong in games we've not won etc... it's all well and good, but we really ought to be careful what we wish for. It's fine saying Pearson may not be the man but I really think things could be a lot, lot worse at this club and I'm not convinced we're really in a position where we can risk it.

I can just picture myself being here in a years time and we're having exactly the same discussions yet again, and not with Pearson either. That's what worries me the most.

[inckley fox]

This. I've said this elsewhere but the thing that depresses me most about the fact we won't go up is the fact our 'fans' will be the same miserable over-expectant whinging bastards that they have been all season this year even when things are going well. It's honestly made what should've been a great season even more unenjoyable and next year will be exactly the same. The only thing that'll create positivity around this club is being in the Premier because this year has taught me whilst we're in this league our fans will just be arseholes regardless.

No, this isn't a complete Pearson arselick post because the past two months have been frankly gutting to watch, absolutely gutting. But I maintain the arsehole 'fans' are what makes this league ten times as unbearable.

Firstly I'm not sure you can be 'over-expectant' and 'negative' at the same time.

Secondly, I've written many times about the dour, bitter idiosyncrasies of our fans. But in truth we have one of the largest and most vocal away followings in the league, and an average home attendance of 20,000 +. Some have argued that our home crowds lack volume, but our home record is far better than our away record, so clearly that has nothing to do with it. On Friday night, as it happens, the atmosphere was incredible and no-one complained until the game was over, but we still couldn't win the match.

Thirdly, is the real reason for 'what should have been a great season' being 'even more unenjoyable' (not sure how that works, but never mind) that the fans were negative when we were doing well? Because I kind of thought it had more to do with the one win in fourteen games when we weren't doing well. If, after a run like that, the worst thing on your mind is how damned ungrateful we all were when things were rosy, then I can understand why you're feeling so upbeat.

However, my final point is that, for someone 'positive / trying to generate positivity' I'm not sure your dismissing of our fans as a bunch of 'arseholes' and asserting that 'next year will be exactly the same' is the sort of 'glass half full mentality' that will see us overcome our current turmoils. No, I don't want Pearson out, but those who - in his defence - call the fans a bunch of hopeless arseholes while calling on us to shrug off the second worst run in our history and just, y'know, be grateful seem to be committing a fairly deadly sin of self-contradiction.

Our fans aren't perfect. But neither are they to blame for where we are now.

[Guest Col city fan]

Firstly I'm not sure you can be 'over-expectant' and 'negative' at the same time.

Secondly, I've written many times about the dour, bitter idiosyncrasies of our fans. But in truth we have one of the largest and most vocal away followings in the league, and an average home attendance of 20,000 +. Some have argued that our home crowds lack volume, but our home record is far better than our away record, so clearly that has nothing to do with it. On Friday night, as it happens, the atmosphere was incredible and no-one complained until the game was over, but we still couldn't win the match.

Thirdly, is the real reason for 'what should have been a great season' being 'even more unenjoyable' (not sure how that works, but never mind) that the fans were negative when we were doing well? Because I kind of thought it had more to do with the one win in fourteen games when we weren't doing well. If, after a run like that, the worst thing on your mind is how damned ungrateful we all were when things were rosy, then I can understand why you're feeling so upbeat.

However, my final point is that, for someone 'positive / trying to generate positivity' I'm not sure your dismissing of our fans as a bunch of 'arseholes' and asserting that 'next year will be exactly the same' is the sort of 'glass half full mentality' that will see us overcome our current turmoils. No, I don't want Pearson out, but those who - in his defence - call the fans a bunch of hopeless arseholes while calling on us to shrug off the second worst run in our history and just, y'know, be grateful seem to be committing a fairly deadly sin of self-contradiction.

Our fans aren't perfect. But neither are they to blame for where we are now.

Again.... Top post... Word for word, I agree

[ADK]

Pearson summed up our fans with his delusions of grandeur comment.

I wouldn't mind it if it was in a proud way but our fans seem to think they are actually hard done by.

[gazfox9]

You answered your own question

It was more for the point of discussion......it is a forum isn't it?

[Bob Weasel Fox]

Firstly I'm not sure you can be 'over-expectant' and 'negative' at the same time.

Secondly, I've written many times about the dour, bitter idiosyncrasies of our fans. But in truth we have one of the largest and most vocal away followings in the league, and an average home attendance of 20,000 +. Some have argued that our home crowds lack volume, but our home record is far better than our away record, so clearly that has nothing to do with it. On Friday night, as it happens, the atmosphere was incredible and no-one complained until the game was over, but we still couldn't win the match.

Thirdly, is the real reason for 'what should have been a great season' being 'even more unenjoyable' (not sure how that works, but never mind) that the fans were negative when we were doing well? Because I kind of thought it had more to do with the one win in fourteen games when we weren't doing well. If, after a run like that, the worst thing on your mind is how damned ungrateful we all were when things were rosy, then I can understand why you're feeling so upbeat.

However, my final point is that, for someone 'positive / trying to generate positivity' I'm not sure your dismissing of our fans as a bunch of 'arseholes' and asserting that 'next year will be exactly the same' is the sort of 'glass half full mentality' that will see us overcome our current turmoils. No, I don't want Pearson out, but those who - in his defence - call the fans a bunch of hopeless arseholes while calling on us to shrug off the second worst run in our history and just, y'know, be grateful seem to be committing a fairly deadly sin of self-contradiction.

Our fans aren't perfect. But neither are they to blame for where we are now.

Superb post, normally can't be arsed to read long posts but this was worth the read

We have better fans than people give us credit for but just keep getting by know it alls that we are shite fans!!

It was more for the point of discussion......it is a forum isn't it?

I know Gaz, sorry wasn't really aimed at you but I think the points you raised kind of spoke for themselves that's all buddy

[Boyce]

Tony Pulis maybe available after today's defeat at MAN U??

[damolcfc]

We don't need Pulis, Pearson has Shakespeare as number 2.

Too many cooks and all that.........

[Bob Weasel Fox]

Tony Pulis maybe available after today's defeat at MAN U??

No way pedro

[fleckneymike]

This. I've said this elsewhere but the thing that depresses me most about the fact we won't go up is the fact our 'fans' will be the same miserable over-expectant whinging bastards that they have been all season this year even when things are going well. It's honestly made what should've been a great season even more unenjoyable and next year will be exactly the same. The only thing that'll create positivity around this club is being in the Premier because this year has taught me whilst we're in this league our fans will just be arseholes regardless.

No, this isn't a complete Pearson arselick post because the past two months have been frankly gutting to watch, absolutely gutting. But I maintain the arsehole 'fans' are what makes this league ten times as unbearable.

How are we over expectant when the manager clearly stated when he arrived LAST SEASON that the objective was promotion and then failed to deliver? Then this season he again announced the objective was promotion and again we look like failing because we've gone nearly a third of a season picking up one win. How is expecting what the manager said being over expectant? Are we instead to assume that what ever he says is bollocks?

To call people arsehole because they have the temerity to expect a squad which is amongst the highest paid in the division along with a manager who is also the highest paid in the division to achieve the goals THEY THEMSELVES set is baffling.