[Archived] Henning Berg - Rovers Manager

[blueboy3333]

There's a lot of nonsense being talked about the squad not being good enough. The squad is plenty good enough it's just that every single one of then has underperformed this season. The responsibility for that lies with the manager. I think Berg has got a bit more out of some players than Kean and Black but even this seems to have fizzled out. The truth is we haven't had a decent manager who could organise a team and get consistent performances since fat Sam was sacked. That's two years of dross.

However, player-for-player, this squad is better than 90% of the other teams in this division. It really is a very poor league in terms of quality. You only have to look at the Millwall team. They had Danny Shittu and Beevers at the back for god's sake!Are they really better than Dann and Hanley/Givet? Are they bolloxxx. However they were ORGANISED. Apart from Wood & Keogh the rest of their team were lower league journeyman. Cardiif were average too apart from a couple of quality players, as P'Boro found out on Saturday when they beat them. Did Blackpool really have better players than us? NO. Did Barnsley when they played us off the pitch? NO.

So lets have a look at our really S h i t players!

Robinson - overweight and underperforming. For the money he's on he's not worth keeping BUT i bet he gets a good move in January, he might even go back to the prem.

Dann - He's been utter dross. However he looked a competent Prem centre half with Brum and it wasn't the defence that got them relegated. Macleish isn't inspiring but he knows how to organise a defence. Dann was a big part of that. Dann should be easily good enough for the Championship.

Givet - also should be a star in this division. he'd get a prem move if he was sold. he was garbage on saturday. Bit of a pattern here.

Olsson- good enough to be Swedens left back but not good enough for the Chamionship?

Etuhu - crap all season. Played well in the prem last year under Jol. Can't be that bad!

Murphy - crap all season. legs have gone, but can still pass a ball.

Lowe - Captain of the England Under 21's -is he really as bad as people say? only saw the highlights of Blackpool game but played one 50 yard ball that gerrard would be proud of.

Vukevic- quality player, anyone who says different is a fool! Should be an absolute star in this division but never gets played.

Rochina- with the right guidance would again be a star in this league.

Rhodes - 20 goals easy in this league if some one would give him the ball.

CKR - eay good enough for this league.

King - as above.

Plenty of Championship managers would love our squad.

The squad should not be winning 1 game in 9. The players are not performing. Berg has improved very little and the results have got worse. He's never managed at this level and he's had no real success as a manager. thats why Bury turned him down. Only Shabby and the rest of the idiot board would appoint him. He may improve but lets be honest he can't get any worse. He has no real presence or charisma, just like kean, and this shows in the team.

Berg can't be blamed for everything, but when he took over he said the squad was good enough to go up. He also agreed to keep the existing staff. If he's changed his mind then fair enough, he needs to get his own staff in and some players in Jan. However, whichever 11 he picks he still nedds to organise them, have a game-plan and instill some belief in the players. He's not done any of that as yet. The buck always stops with the manager.

[Salgado Is A Hero]

Well said....I would imagine every Championship manager would love to have Nuno Gomes and Henley in their squad as well.

There's also Best, Fabio Nunes and Formica who are all definitely good enough for this level.

A fully, or almost fully, fit Dunn is too good for this level but he hardly ever is.

Our squad is unbalanced but the amount of standout players in it means that it is very good for this league.

But poor tactics, fitness, confidence and motivation has seriously hindered our players' performances.

[Stuart]

I think we have on paper a reasonable first 11. Once you cut away the elderly and the majority of the Portugeuse contingent, we don't have a great squad though, it lacks strength in depth in every department apart from 'the hole'!

We are also missing a leader on the pitch and a source of energy/heartbeat of the team.

After Kean, everyone, fans, players, staff needed a lift. Unfortunarely, Berg didn't have enough pedigree to do that. As a result we got no new manager bounce and had one of the shortest honeymoon periods since Ince.

I remain unconvinced that Berg is the man to take us forward but he needs more time and a chance to put his mark on the team.

I have no faith either that he would be replaced with a better manager so maybe, as the man I would have liked to have seen here once said, we have to wee with the willy we've got.

[Athlete]

for everypone feeling sorry for Berg saying it's not his fault , give him till Jan , etc....well Berg knew what he was getting into when he took the job , Berg must be picking the side ( unless it's Shebby ) doing the tactics ( we know him + Shebby discuss tactics who decides them is another matter again maybe Shebby ) and doing the substitutes ( unless thats Shebby ).......so for me Bergs failing ( unless he doesn't have the final say on team matters ) 1 win in 9 is relegation form isn't good enougth....

[Stuart]

<blockquote class='ipsBlockquote'data-author="Athlete" data-cid="1349492" data-time="1355729482"><p>

for everypone feeling sorry for Berg saying it's not his fault , give him till Jan , etc....well Berg knew what he was getting into when he took the job , Berg must be picking the side ( unless it's Shebby ) doing the tactics ( we know him + Shebby discuss tactics who decides them is another matter again maybe Shebby ) and doing the substitutes ( unless thats Shebby ).......so for me Bergs failing ( unless he doesn't have the final say on team matters ) 1 win in 9 is relegation form isn't good enougth....</p></blockquote>

Isn't it possible it was worse than he thought?

[DE.]

Isn't it possible it was worse than he thought?

His comments in May suggest not. Direct quote: "'There are no real managers with credibility who would accept a job like that."

Ironically it turns out he may have been correct, but there's no way anyone can say he didn't come into this job without knowing what a circus it was. And you'd only need to watch about 10 minutes of any match this season to see how poor the overall team is. I would hope Berg did more homework than that before accepting the role.

[Stuart]

<blockquote class='ipsBlockquote'data-author="DE4life" data-cid="1349506" data-time="1355731817"><p>

<br />

His comments in May suggest not. Direct quote: "'There are no real managers with credibility who would accept a job like that."<br />

<br />

Ironically it turns out he may have been correct, but there's no way anyone can say he didn't come into this job without knowing what a circus it was. And you'd only need to watch about 10 minutes of any match this season to see how poor the overall team is. I would hope Berg did more homework than that before accepting the role.</p></blockquote>

Things can always be worse, DE.

[yoda]

Here here. Show him some highlights from Glenn Keeley's career that's the kind of footballing philosophy I want to see - you might be more skilful than me but over my dead body will you take the p*ss

Arte et Labore I think it is refered to locally!

[Mercer]

Excellent summary above from Blueboy333 - hits a lot of nails on heads.

[CapeTownRover]

we just dont have any players, who are willing to put their bodies on the line. In previous years we had tough tackling, hard working midfielders who would run all day long. Sometimes those midfielders were not the best the league had to offer, but where they lacked in certain areas, they made up in other areas. Sav was one of those, where he would run all day, put his boot in, but was never skillfull, but knew what he had to do. Right now we have a bunch of softies in midfield, who cant be bothered to get some blood on their shirt.

[Amo]

When you have morons in charge who hire a moron to make footballing decisions, this is what happens.

No offence to Berg, but I won't insult the guy by lining up feeble excuses. The reaction on the pitch to his arrival has been nothing short of disastrous. Our situation called for someone with the know-how of organizing a team and grinding out results in the Championship. Once again we have a manager learning his trade - and the most alarming fact is that he's doing a worse job than Kean with the same team at his disposal.

There is no hope while Venky's name is above the door.

[bypass06]

Berg eyes move for MacDonald

http://www.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk/sport/football/blackburn_rovers/news/10111978.Berg_eyes_move_for_MacDonald/

Rovers boss Berg insists keeper is still in his plans

http://www.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk/sport/football/blackburn_rovers/news/10111980.Rovers_boss_Berg_insists_keeper_is_still_in_his_plans/

[Rover_Shaun]

the Lancashire Telegraph understands Berg’s bosses have reinforced their desire for change behind the scenes over the weekend

So Berg isn't the master of his own destiny? Like he said, before he SOLD OUT and then showed us he is out of his depth, that no manager with any credibility would take the job.

You are right Henning and manager with no credibility did take the job

[den]

Bunkum.

This is the worst side we've had in years, don't delude yourself jimbo, awful players in most key positions, its not Bergs fault.

Correct again Gav. For anyone to think that another manager could simply walk in and get this current squad promoted, well, they're deluding themselves. People keep telling me what good players we have, well they've been second best to the opposition on at least 20 occassions this season. Players have been given opportunities under three different managers so far and nothing improves. Tactical? - nay.

It's so obvious what's happened here. We're back to the days of Viv Busby. He looked good sometimes as well. To get back to where we were player wise two years ago, will prove to be impossible without massive cash injections.

[Rover_Shaun]

But the three previous managers have been bloody useless and out of their depth

Rather like putting a baker in charge of building a motoroway

[blueboy3333]

Correct again Gav. For anyone to think that another manager could simply walk in and get this current squad promoted, well, they're deluding themselves. People keep telling me what good players we have, well they've been second best to the opposition on at least 20 occassions this season. Players have been given opportunities under three different managers so far and nothing improves. Tactical? - nay.

It's so obvious what's happened here. We're back to the days of Viv Busby. He looked good sometimes as well. To get back to where we were player wise two years ago, will prove to be impossible without massive cash injections.

Incorrect again Den. The results and performances have got progressively worse under Berg.

[LeChuck]

Incorrect again Den. The results and performances have got progressively worse under Berg.

Performances are about the same. Kean and Black just got very lucky with some results.

We are a very poor team. No commanding centre half, no midfield, no wingers to supply ammunition and an unblanaced strike force.

[Gav]

Incorrect again Den. The results and performances have got progressively worse under Berg.

They're not going to get any better with the rubbish in the squad.

As I've just posted on the kean thread, I'm just thankful that we don't have a lying scheming rat like kean in charge of the first team. Berg may not be setting the league alive, but I'm far happier attending with someone who has the best interests of the club at heart.

On the players being good enough, its clear from results that they simply are NOT good enough, you can't just lay the blame at the managers door for players so called under performing week in week out.

Murphy, Rochina, Etuhu, Dann, Lowe, Rochina, King, Hanly, Henley - All not good enough, not ready for the first team, or not suited to this league, and thats not Berg fault, its the rats fault for being inept on all fronts.

We need to clear the decks, but with Berg and Singh having not discussed transfer targets, we could end up going down at this rate.

[den]

Incorrect again Den. The results and performances have got progressively worse under Berg.

Performances have been dire all season, in fact they've been dire since Sam was sacked two years ago. Results have got worse granted, but that's more than likely down to the fact that teams know if they press us in midfield they'll create chances. A different manager might get a little more out of this squad than Berg has, I wouldn't argue with that, but to suggest this squad is one of the best in the league is going against what we've been watching for more than 20 games now. Forget names and rely on what your eyes tell you.

[Rover_Shaun]

I'm far happier attending with someone who has the best interests of the club at heart.

Just because he played for us means jack sheet. He has already pimped his opinions for cash so he has HIS OWN interests at heart. Plus he hasn't resigned so it can't be case ;-)

[Amo]

We had the "worst Rovers side ever" under Kidd/Parkes, the "worst Rovers side ever" at the end of Souey's reign, then the "worst Rovers side ever" under Ince. Yet three experienced managers were able to come in and respectively stabilize the side before building their own teams. Berg has failed to make this impact. Quite the reverse, in fact.

[JMillZz]

People defending Berg and blaming our terrible squad. Part of it I understand but:

Has Berg continued to stick with Etuhu despite him consistently proving he is a terrible player with no fight? Yes.

Did Berg fail to substitute Etuhu for Dunn/Rochina/Pedersen who would all most certainly have performed with more commitment than Etuhu? Yes.

Does Berg have influence over how we play as a team and implements tactics accordingly during the game? Yes. Did it work? No.

Berg has seen exactly what we have seen during these games and yet we all seem to have a better idea of what changes need to be made. It's bizarre, as I'm living off scraps as a student working towards a degree in Mandarin and business, many of our fans will be students/ordinary working folk and yet Berg is earning thousands of pounds a week managing our beloved football team.

I'm not calling for his head but anyone who thinks Berg is making the correct footballing decisions is blind as a bat. Yes our team is pants but Berg isn't making them perform any better. Anyone who thinks we'd be performing just as poorly under Holloway is absolutely barmy.

[Steve Kean's Hypnotoad]

The worst thing we could do right now is keep Berg in over January and give him money to spend. If our squad is as bad as everyone says it is, then we need a manager who knows what he's doing to have the time and funds to improve it before we have to write this season off all together. So Berg needs to go in the next 2 weeks.

The way I see it:

Kean - to begin with atrocious, after 2 seasons of management upgraded to poor

Black - poor

Berg - atrocious

Berg is currently a worse manager than Kean and Black were this season, hurts to say it but its true. The fact that the likes of Kean and Black had us in the top 6 implies that if we got a good manager in then we'd shoot up the league. And I suspect all these "rubbish" players suddenly wouldn't look that bad.

[Rover_Shaun]

Give him time. Page 12 in the big book of exuses

[thenodrog]

Nope. Don't agree. Player for player it is a very decent squad. If you want to argue with that, let's just say we will give it till they leave the club and we will see where the players end up. I guarantee Formica, Dann, Vukcevic, Rhodes, Kazim, Rochina, Givet, Olsson, Henley will all be playing good football for good Championship standard clubs or better. Murphy was excellent last season so it is hard to see why he has suddenly turn into a bad player overnight.

We don't have grafters or leaders, nor a stable tactical system, nor a team ethic. That's the issue. Not talent. I find it utterly bemusing that anyone can think that it is a 'bad squad'. An unbalanced one certainly, but the quality is there.

Plenty of skill in the squad but little ability to cope at this level. That lot aren't too good for this div.... they just think they are! The squad is unbalanced in terms of us almost being able to field a full team of skilfull but lightweight inside forwards whilst there is not a dominant ball winner anywhere in sight in either defence or midfield AND there are no natural leaders. The worst aspect is the fragile temperament of the squad, mentally they are weak as kittens and give off the feeling that they all think they are too good for this division and that they would be better elsewhere when in reallity they don't have the guts and determination to compete with squads with fewer 'names' and smaller bank accounts.

People keep banging on about who we can sign in January bit I'd go as far as to say that Bergs success in the January transfer window will be measured by not who he gets in but who he can get out. To perform this badly suggests to me that there are way too many rotten apples in our barrell.