[Archived] Sam Allardyce

[Amo]

Faaar too early to start judging our season, although I'm sure that won't stop the usual crowd.... Joy of joys...

[spencey7]

"We played the way we did because of the players we had available - and we played it very well. All you punters and supporters out there, leave it to me. I'm the expert, not you."

I can't possibly type what I think about that statement from the post-match interview today. There aren't enough swear words in the world.

"That's why we never liked Allardyce - not so much the awful style of play, the long balls, the bad results - it was his sheer arrogance!"

[Tom]

For the first time today I saw what the Allardyce haters see, I wont turn on him yet but it has to get better soon.

[RevidgeBlue]

Utterly bizarre interview from Sam I thought on Radio Rovers post match tonight in which he claimed we played well and our only failing was as usual our failure to convert chances.

I thought we only created one clear cut chance, Hoillet inside the last quarter of an hour, and you can't rely on a 100% conversion rate of one chance a game.

Also I don't know if it was my imagination but Sam seemed to revert to a high pitched and very noticeable Dudley accent when defending the performance.

I've never heard him talk remotely like that before which indicated to me he might be feeling stressed.

[LeChuck]

I've never heard him talk remotely like that before which indicated to me he might be feeling stressed.

He looked incredibly stressed on the touchline near the end. I imagine this transfer window has been the most stressful of his career as well.

Nothing wrong with trying to put a positive spin on what happened today in the interview though, I don't think it's time for brutal honesty after gaining our first point of the season.

[beerwins]

"We played the way we did because of the players we had available - and we played it very well. All you punters and supporters out there, leave it to me. I'm the expert, not you."

Is that really what he said ? Thats not going to do him any favours with people that are still on the fence about him.

Also the phrase "players we had available" we had more players available today to give us more attacking options than the other 2 matches against a weaker team and played for the draw.

Sorry Sam but you got it wrong, you may very well be a good manager but results talk and before i want to hear or see phrases like that from a manager he had better get some results first to give us some basis of your expertise.

[sambo]

I cannot ####### believe that he said that. I know fans were on his back, but today he really DIDN'T know what he was doing.

Dire.

[RevidgeBlue]

He looked incredibly stressed on the touchline near the end. I imagine this transfer window has been the most stressful of his career as well.

Nothing wrong with trying to put a positive spin on what happened today in the interview though, I don't think it's time for brutal honesty after gaining our first point of the season.

Agreed there's nothing at all wrong with him trying to publicly shield his players I would expect thatto a large extent.

I was more concerned with his apparent assertion that we created a number of clear cut chances when in my view we created next to nothing. That was more of a defence of the style of play or his tactics than the players imo.

[Tris]

"We played the way we did because of the players we had available - and we played it very well. All you punters and supporters out there, leave it to me. I'm the expert, not you."

Outrageous comment to make, a real poke at the Ewood crowd. It illustrates a couple of things - SA just has to be the biggest billy big boots in the building, and he is stubborn beyond belief. When Ewood was baying for 4-4-2 it defied rational thinking that Roberts came off for Kalinic rather than one of the midfielders.

The 6 million quid striker was clearly "available" but Allardyce had chosen his tactics and was going to stick with them, regardless of what was apparent to the entire crowd - Roberts was totally isolated and Rovers were pedestrian in attack due to the lack of an alternative outlet up the pitch.

Tugay could have chosen to walk around the outside of the stadium at 3.05pm, but he knows full well he shouldn't have been kicked out of the club and he made the point in the most comical but poignant way. He could have been "available" to Allardyce today if only the manager was able to handle someone else in the set up taking more limelight than himself.

It's absolutely dispiriting, but this game smacked of Arsenal and Liverpool away last season. BFS had made his mind up before these games kicked off what the result would be, and set up his teams accordingly. Those two games last year to lose, and today to scrape a point. At home to a poor, tired looking West Ham, that is totally unacceptable.

[RovertheHill]

Occasionally you make some valid points in between the undisguised bile and relentless repetition but frankly quoting a Newcastle fan (ANY Newcastle fan) as "evidence" to support your point is really not helping you

[RevidgeBlue]

"We played the way we did because of the players we had available - and we played it very well. All you punters and supporters out there, leave it to me. I'm the expert, not you."

To be fair to Sam when/where did he say that?

He didn't say anything remotely as abrasive as that in the Radio Rovers interview I heard.

[Tris]

To be fair to Sam when/where did he say that?

He didn't say anything remotely as abrasive as that in the Radio Rovers interview I heard.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/e...rem/8224438.stm

[RovertheHill]

Outrageous comment to make, a real poke at the Ewood crowd.

Not a comment I would have chosen to make but not what I'd call outrageous. After all, when he was first up for this job there was a wholesale campaign from Rovers fans not to appoint him. Then when that joke of a manager Ince nearly destroyed this club he WAS appointed (to widespread relief from most Rovers fans) and managed to keep us up. Second home game in and a SMALL part of the BBE chant "you don't know what you're doing" at him. I'd say that was the outrageous bit and frankly if I was Allardyce I'd be pretty ###### off. Still, as I say, not a comment I'd choose to make in public.

[beerwins]

post match interview

[mjs]

Also I don't know if it was my imagination but Sam seemed to revert to a high pitched and very noticeable Dudley accent when defending the performance.

It wasn't your imagination, I was thinking something similar too. It was very strange indeed.

[imy9]

Why would Sam think that certain fans were on his back, after all its not as if a facebook group was created ridiculing him and demanding he not be our manager

It is 3 games for FFS, get a grip

Edit: Having seen the interview, he has a big smirk on his face whilst saying the infamous comment, interviewer states "we'll leave it to you Sam" and he replies (again with a huge grin) "good lad", there was no aggression and seemed in jest, but hey thats just my opinion.

[Guest Kamy100]

Telling the supporters that they don't know what they are talking about is not the best way to get them onside. It was out of order people chanting "you don't know what you doing" after just three games, however comments like this is not the way to go.

[sambo]

"We completely dominated the game"

No we didn't Sam...

[imy9]

"We completely dominated the game"

No we didn't Sam...

To be fair that is what the interviewer was saying too, I did not see the game but based on what I have read we had the better chances?

[RevidgeBlue]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/e...rem/8224438.stm

Having seen the video of the interview, I'm going to defend sam for that particular comment. It appears to me he intended it in good humour and not nastily.

I don't however agree his system/tactics are working.

We've gone four games at Ewood if you include WBA last season without even finding the net.

[sambo]

To be fair that is what the interviewer was saying too, I did not see the game but based on what I have read we had the better chances?

We did, but we had about two chances of any note. And thats because West Ham didn't even try to penetrate our defence.

[M2XLY]

what has happened to his voice tho? Has he moved back to Birmingham to live? It's very funny!

[Parsonblue]

Having watched the BBC interview I think it was a case of "tongue firmly in cheek" when dealing with the reaction of the crowd.

I would agree that the lack of goals is a problem but against City, Sunderland and Gillingham we created a host of chances. I felt that we gradually got on top today and had by far the better chances to win the game - although not as many as the previous three games.

In fairness to Sam, I don't think you can judge the system or tactics until all the players are fit. Even though we have fewer points than at this time last season I feel the club is in far safer hands now than with the previous management team.

[Blue blood]

Posted this on another thread - think it sums up the booing quite well. (Btw I was not one of those who booed but was highly frustrated by our performance.)

With regards to the booing, there was something deeply dissatisfying about the first half, perhaps more so then some much worse performances, which got me very frustrated - and not in a we're not getting the bounce of the ball type way. It almost seemed as if we couldn't be bothered to shoot/get in the box which is a first for me. (We've often played like we're incapable of doing these things, but not can't be bothered.)

I know this was the players but surely Sam has to take some of the blame for this. I'm a fan of Big Sam and he might just be right about getting Chimbonda after all - despite his one footedness. But there did seem a large reluctance to shoot/commit anyone bar roberts into the box. I wonder how much of this was the manager's game plan?

[Mc Love]

What was he thinking playing Roberts upfront on his own!? We all know he couldnt score in a brothel not to mind on the pitch!!