[Archived] Nicko's Thread Part 3

[Anti-Dingle-Brigade]

I didn't say I wanted him. I just said I hope people give him a chance before booing and chanting witty, well thought out musical deities.

[spencey7]

This is not panic on my part, but it is clear to me now we are going to end up with Sam Allardyce.

After thinking about it carefully, it just seems the right fit for our situation. It would be too much of a risk for a club to do anything else.

I can see why Shearer would hesitate coming, he does not have a chance to shape his own team. As Hughes said, there are so many times you can keep pulling rabbits out of the hat with the smallest transfer budget in the Premiership.

The purse strings have been tightened, and you need someone you can get bargain buys = Sam Allardyce. I can also see Sam impressing JW/the board, as he has similar views on sports science to Hughes (preparing your teams etc).

My thoughts exactly - Only I am panicking.

The only thing I think which will prevent the board going down the unambitious, cheap route to hideous, boring mediocrity is Allardyce's alleged dodgy-dealings. We have too good a reputation to get mixed up in that.

Please go ahead and call me small-minded and petty, but there's no way I'll be going to Ewood if we appoint Sam Allardyce, not a chance.

[brfc_jonesy]

There may well be coaches with better reputations in Europe than Allardyce but the question is - can they manage in the Premiership on a shoestring budget? We know that Allardyce can but with the others it's open to question. The club's financial situation requires a man at the helm who can wheel and deal in the market in a similar way to Hughes. It's for that reason that Allardyce has my vote rather than some of the other candidates.

However, I've supported this club through thick and thin for forty odd years and no matter whoever is appointed I will continue to support them. I just don't understand anyone who says they will refuse to support the club if they don't like the manager. The club is far more important than any manager or player for that matter.

Absolutely bang on mate!

[rover6]

surely you cant tell hughes not to go for any of our players as they should be allowed to move anywhere they want, should they choose too?

if you told hughes that he cant go for any of our players wouldnt each player have to have a clause put into their contract for at least a year?

does that make any sense

No, the clause would be agreed with Man City that they would not recruit a Rovers player (unless he was offered to them) for a certain period. Rovers players' contracts would be unaffected. Such clauses are valid in normal commercial affairs, so I believe that they'd work in football. Although, Nicko suggests that City and Hughes are not bound by any such provision.

[Iceman]

I think jw and the board need to speed up sum fresh investment,or else we wil be in this situation again.i said a while ago,that our financial disadvantages wil one day catch up to us,and imo it has arrived.we have only survived because of jw's intelligence,and smart control of the every day runnings of the club.how long before things realy go pear shape for us?ive read sumwhere,that sum russian billionaire wants to buy westbromwich(sp) Albion.is there any truth in that Nicko?

[RibbleValleyRover]

why exactly are you so negative towards big sam? is it because he managed bolton? remember he quit that job because he wanted to win things, and he did extremely well with bolton. much better than sparky did with us!

The Bolton connection is far down on my huge list of why i despise the man and don't want to see him become our next manager. I'm sure this is the case for many others as well.

[Baggio]

why exactly are you so negative towards big sam? is it because he managed bolton? remember he quit that job because he wanted to win things, and he did extremely well with bolton. much better than sparky did with us!

i dont mind the problems he had a newcastle. simpky because it is virtually impossible to work under those circumstances. some owners is all about names and nothing about quality. like city seems to be these days. ronaldinho? the man was refused my inter (or what ever club it was) because he's closer to the fitness of keith richards than a world class footballer. and this they want to splash big cash on?

give me fat sam!!!!

So how was it impossible for Allardyce at Newcastle and who were these 'names' that were forced on him?

His signings were...

Alan Smith

Joey Barton

Jose Enrique

David Rosehnal

Habib Beye

Abi Faye

Cacapa

Mark Viduka

Geremi

I don't see any big names there that were forced on him, so perhaps you could explain the point you were getting at.

[liam]

why exactly are you so negative towards big sam? is it because he managed bolton? remember he quit that job because he wanted to win things, and he did extremely well with bolton. much better than sparky did with us!

i dont mind the problems he had a newcastle. simpky because it is virtually impossible to work under those circumstances. some owners is all about names and nothing about quality. like city seems to be these days. ronaldinho? the man was refused my inter (or what ever club it was) because he's closer to the fitness of keith richards than a world class footballer. and this they want to splash big cash on?

give me fat sam!!!!

agree 100%

[1864roverite]

Purse strings tied even more this year ??

I simply cannot agree with that comment.

We finish higher in the league = more prize pot money

We were on tv 14 times = more tv appearance money

We receive more annual tv money for 2008/09

We see an improvement in crowds,matchday revenue and turnover

We didnt see a massive spend in the transfer market and have now released several players from the club

We have just received a reported £5m PLUS for backrrom staff and manager

I think that firmly suggests there is a little more moeny in the Ewood coffers than one would imagine.

[philipl]

mjs- we beat West Ham last game of that season, Brooking and all. They came to Ewood needing a draw to win promotion against already relegated Rovers and we destroyed them.

Ok we only won 1-0 but what a 1; McKenzie from 30 yards beat Phil Parkes on his near post with a shot that bent 6 feet in the air.

Back to more immediate things. There is a pattern emerging in JW's pronouncements:

1) We have a large field

2) It will be two weeks before we appoint

3) No sales unless the Manager sanctions it and therefore no deals whatsoever until the Manager has had a very good luck at his new squad- so anyone thinking a Rovers player will leave in the next four weeks, forget it.

4) Rovers have no need to sell and players are securely contracted.

I think this is adding up to saying to someone or sometwo (Shearer and Bilic)- no problem, we can wait to the end of Euro08.

Obviously the process of checking and winnowing the other leading candidates will continue in the meantime. However, I could get very excited about Bilic being appointed the new Rovers boss.

PS Been checking in St Petersburg about Dick Advocaat and there is zero visibility there of any links between Advocaat and Rovers.

PPS My gut feel is 1864 is calling it right. However, we fans will not know the pot is there unless/until Rovers spend it- just isn't Rovers style to scream loadsamoney any more.

[Hughesy]

I am sure that if we can take a manager who needs very little compo to take charge then the manager will probably be given around £10m to start with + sale of any players.

Followed by abit more cash in January once the new boss has proved themselves. Im sure the club wont give the new manager all our available funds straight away.

[Presty On Tour]

I'd be gutted if we got fat sam out of all the candidates. It's not just the fact he's ex notlob, the guy is surrounded by corruption allegations, he failed at Newcastle and the long ball style of football he employs is a disgrace. I really just don't like him, his personality to a degree and to be even giving him an alleged interview makes me feel sick of worry we might appoint him!

[spencey7]

agree 100%

Big Sham spent £26m buying players for Newcastle - EVERY ONE OF WHICH was chosen by him. This nonsense about having players "forced on him" reeks of disinformation by Sam's one-car "fan club".

THE GAME HAS MOVED ON. Allardyce's "tactics" are incredibly outdated, his choice of players is astonishing (don't forget he dropped Steven Taylor and wanted to sell Obafemi Martins, two of Newcastle's best players) and his "style" of football is a surefire route to empty stands.

The board can't do this.

[Iceman]

Here is a question for all Allardyce haters.what is it about the man that u dont like.is it his hair,his eyes,his ears,his clothes,the way he walks,the way he talks,or his smile?im guessing he aint sexy enough.imo the main reason people dont want him,is because they are seeing the Boltona "long ball" coach on the ewood park bench.if u look at the 2 squads at his disposal,if he has a squad of players like what we do,and plays long ball then he aint a proper coach. With Bolton,he had a squad who he could only play route 1 football.if he gets the job at Rovers,he could play any system and style he wants,because he has the players capable to do just that.

[gumboots]

Can I just add that the Bolton connection has nothing to do with my antipathy towards Allardyce. It's him. Nothing else. there's a lot of guys around who aren't sexy managers in any way either in the style of their football or in their personal appearance but they don't make me feel about them the way I feel about allardyce. It's no good trying to explain if it's not how he makes you feel. My daughter feels like that about pomegranates. she can't look at them without feeling ill. stupid and she knows it but it's just the way it is. That's me and allardyce.

[hawkiiz]

I don't see any big names there that were forced on him, so perhaps you could explain the point you were getting at.

my point is that you cant judge on 6 or so months at newcastle. the fans are desperate, the board is desperate and the players dont go well together, do they? on paper they should be a ok team, but they arent. thats not sam to blame. i dont know if they were fit or not when he took over but they certainly had no self-esteem. newcastles problems go way way deeper than what sam could control. would you say sparky sucks if he dont get city up the table and is sacked by new years?

sam was at bolton for 8 years, brought them up from the championship and placed them firmly in the top 8. and got them into europe. not to mention he lead them to the league cup final. thats massive! and to me it is way more impressive than what hughes did for us.

thats the stats. they tell something but is not a guarantee. he may well fail at rovers, but to me he is by far the best option. he also stayed at bolton for 8 years. thats extremely important. could we hang on to a manager that long we are certainly gonna be successful. stability is everything. we held on to souness and sparky for four years, but thats not long enough. sparky just got his team together and only had details to fix before we could challenge the top 5 or even better. it is vital our next manager stays at least that long, and i dont see anyone willing to commit other than sam. shearer is a one night stand nothing more.

[Presty On Tour]

Here is a question for all Allardyce haters.what is it about the man that u dont like.is it his hair,his eyes,his ears,his clothes,the way he walks,the way he talks,or his smile?im guessing he aint sexy enough.imo the main reason people dont want him,is because they are seeing the Boltona "long ball" coach on the ewood park bench.if u look at the 2 squads at his disposal,if he has a squad of players like what we do,and plays long ball then he aint a proper coach. With Bolton,he had a squad who he could only play route 1 football.if he gets the job at Rovers,he could play any system and style he wants,because he has the players capable to do just that.

so why did he turn Newcastle into a long ball outfit?

26 million on players and he still done it and got fired!

fat sam is a muppet, not a tactician of knowledge.

[Dan Furness]

If its Shearer then fine, if its Sam then fine also - Shearer would be an unknown quantity and Sam has been there and done it in the Premiership. At the very LEAST, survival is a must next season and I would be confident of this with Sam.

The negative attitude on here is just like when ever we sign a new player, I have never known a set of fans like it. And I count myself different from these 'fans' - dont write someone off before they have had chance to do the job for christ sake.

Sometimes I wish Jack had not bothered spoiling us and making us punch above his weight then wouldn't have to ensure the negativity on here. Thank god I have a life off this MB but some dont and its them I generally feel sorry for

I fully trust John Williams will make the correct decision, as always. If Shearer is stalling, shove him to the back of the queue

[RibbleValleyRover]

Thank god I have a life off this MB but some dont and its them I generally feel sorry for

I don't know how you have come to this conclusion.

[gumboots]

If its Shearer then fine, if its Sam then fine also - Shearer would be an unknown quantity and Sam has been there and done it in the Premiership. At the very LEAST, survival is a must next season and I would be confident of this with Sam.

The negative attitude on here is just like when ever we sign a new player, I have never known a set of fans like it. And I count myself different from these 'fans' - dont write someone off before they have had chance to do the job for christ sake.

Sometimes I wish Jack had not bothered spoiling us and making us punch above his weight then wouldn't have to ensure the negativity on here. Thank god I have a life off this MB but some dont and its them I generally feel sorry for

I fully trust John Williams will make the correct decision, as always. If Shearer is stalling, shove him to the back of the queue

I can't remember ever being negative about players we were about to sign because I generally try very hard to back the manager. this is one isue I'm absolutely unable to see the other side of and I do have a life away from here. Just to cheer me up my daughter got a 2.1 in French and history today with a distinction in Spoken French!

[Dan Furness]

I don't know how you have come to this conclusion.

Just the general attitude of certain posters. I have never known so many moaners in my life, I know a lot of Burnley fans and they complain less!!

[hawkiiz]

Here is a question for all Allardyce haters.what is it about the man that u dont like.is it his hair,his eyes,his ears,his clothes,the way he walks,the way he talks,or his smile?im guessing he aint sexy enough.imo the main reason people dont want him,is because they are seeing the Boltona "long ball" coach on the ewood park bench.if u look at the 2 squads at his disposal,if he has a squad of players like what we do,and plays long ball then he aint a proper coach. With Bolton,he had a squad who he could only play route 1 football.if he gets the job at Rovers,he could play any system and style he wants,because he has the players capable to do just that.

exactly.

the "route one" style cant be outdated already if he used it at bolton a year ago. thats bull.

also he had a certain bunch of players at bolton. they are absolutely not david bentleys or tugays or santas. with the bolton kind of players you can not try to be arsenal and play "sexy". you must do what the players know how, and make them feel great. the newcastle job counts for nothing. nothing at all.

norway did great under egil olsen (the wimbledon guy.) and he was all about long crosses and few touches. speaking of wimbledon. they did well under joe kinnear, with the same stye. not lovely but effective. if thats what it takes to win, then so be it. at blackburn he got confident players, a supportive board and generally a great squad. which he did not have at newcastle. he can go for any system he wants, and see what works out. if it is "route one" then let him play that.

whats more fun? play like barcelona, and possibly lose, or play like bolton did and possibly win? its as simple as that. do we want to win or do we want to gamble?

[Iceman]

Presty,thats exactly what im trying to get at.the main reason nobody wants allardyce,is no matter what players he has it his disposable,his tacticts remain unchanged.that makes me think that bfs is not a proper coach.

[gumboots]

Just the general attitude of certain posters. I have never known so many moaners in my life, I know a lot of Burnley fans and they complain less!!

Their expectations probably aren't as high!

[spencey7]

Here is a question for all Allardyce haters.what is it about the man that u dont like.is it his hair,his eyes,his ears,his clothes,the way he walks,the way he talks,or his smile?im guessing he aint sexy enough.imo the main reason people dont want him,is because they are seeing the Boltona "long ball" coach on the ewood park bench.if u look at the 2 squads at his disposal,if he has a squad of players like what we do,and plays long ball then he aint a proper coach.

Exactly - He is not a proper coach. Didn't you watch ANY Newcastle games during his spell as manager?? All he knows how to do is attempt to make teams play like Bolton.

I hate Sam Allardyce's:

- tactics

- footballing ethos

- transfer record

- aloof managerial style (sitting in the stands like a moron)

- "ProZone" rubbish (it still couldn't tell him Alan Smith didn't complete a pass in six months)

- delusions of grandeur

and above all:

- his smug nature

Shall I continue?

With Bolton,he had a squad who he could only play route 1 football.if he gets the job at Rovers,he could play any system and style he wants,because he has the players capable to do just that.

Total nonsense! I honestly can't believe what I'm reading here. He builds a squad at Newcastle (£26m!), sends them divebombing into the relegation zone, is involved in alleged corrupt dealings in the transfer market but THIS is the man some fans (even ONE fan) is turning to???

Thank god you're not on the board.

NO BOSS NASS AT EWOOD