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…as I posted on YOTAC. Hope the chaps over there don’t mind.
RE: The anti-Martinez comments, and the season in general.
“I’ve been unable to fathom why there are so many with anti-Martinez sentiments myself. In fact, halfway through the season, I found myself getting dragged into it myself. (Shames me to say, but hey, I’m being honest!)
Luckily, I took time out to consider everything, and I came to the conclusion that we have a man in charge of us with GENUINE affection, and passion for the club. You can see what he’s trying to do, in getting us playing a nice, attractive, passing style. The problem this season, is that he’s been lumbered with a ‘mish-mash’ squad of players. Some who don’t WANT to be here, some who aren’t up to playing the style, and frankly some who need getting shut of. Yes, it’s been a hard season, but to go from one extreme to the other, with playing styles, it was always going to take a transitional period. The best thing is that we have had certain players who have come through (I.E. McCarthy, Diame, Watson) and it certainly gives us optimism for next season. The football we have played has improved as the season has gone on, and the players got used to it.
Roberto has come across as very articulate, and open to the fans. Perhaps he could possibly learn to say LESS in aftermatch interviews, as if he’d been at any other club, he’d probably have talked himself out of a job, by now.And yet there were still comments from people on Sunday who were saying “He’s no good, this mon! Get someone else in”. To which my question is “Go on then, who?” That soon shuts people up. The best they will come up with will probably be Curbishley. It makes me laugh, what has Alan Curbishley ever done in management, that is so great? Look at Burnley, they got Brian Laws. And Hull, with Ian Dowie. Christ, does that make Brian Flynn a contender for our job?
No, we are lucky. We have a manager with genuine affection for the club. He really DOES care about Latics. So does Graeme Jones. Did Steve Bruce and Eric Black? Yeah, course they did. That’s why when they went to Sunderland, Black came out and said “We’re at a PROPER football club, now”. (As opposed to what? A tin-pot club like Latics?)
All I hope is that Mr Whelan gives Roberto a helping hand this summer, with some transfer funds and some sense regarding player departures. Because no matter how good a manager Roberto is, or can be, if he doesn’t get the tools to do the job, he may as well not bother.
Imagine how different Leonardo Da Vinci would have been, if he’d only had a pack of felt tips.
Or if Eric Clapton had got a tennis racket……instead of a guitar.”(That said, he now has chance to clear players out and bring his own players in. So it is so important that we start off next season looking a lot better than we have this. If we get to October and there is no improvement……well, perhaps questions will have to be asked. But until then, I’m backing him, in the hope that we sign some decent players over the sumemer, and start off the season a lot better off than this)
Thank you very much. Enjoy the summer, here’s to a great World Cup.
Dave
My view seriously.
I’m OK with Roberto – can be a bit pig-headed though with sticking to his guns of fancy footwork when at times we need a plan B, which is “hoof it”.
But I said it early in the season and stick by it (pig-headed some would say). He needs better support staff. Graeme Jones I agree is a Wigan mon – but he just doesn’t have the savvy to be able to advise Martinez to do different, certainly not to PL standard. Keep him on the staff by all means. But Martinez needs a good number 2 – someone who can say to him (and convince him – stood at the edge of the area all alone with his thoughts) “look gaffer, we need to do this, or try that or whatever…”
Someone who can say to the players, and who the players will listen to, and say “after ten minutes if this isn’t working then change to this..”
In my many years standing next to them all, my main memory is people like Alex Cribley yelling “simple ball”, “blue shirt”, “make space”. Simple concepts we have lost trying to play fancy football with players who frankly haven’t got the skill, or more importantly the intellect, to make choices.
We will never be world beaters, but if we are on a positive (Chelsea, Liverpool, Arsenal) we can perform miracles, if we are on a downer (Wolves, Spurs, Bolton, Pompey away, Man U (twice), today) then our heads go. We need someone in the backroom who can get heads in order….
Garswood_Latic,
Yes, I actually agree with what you say. It was funny, but for all our attempts at fancy football this season, our two greatest goals (excluding Figueroa’s effort at Stoke) were the result of a long ball upfield. (Rodallega, at Villa, and N’Zogbia, versus Arsenal, after a long punt upfield by Figueroa, had been held up by Rodallega)
Even the top teams know that they have to ‘mix’ their play. The problem to ‘sticking to your guns’, with a set style of play, as Roberto does, is that once a team susses how to prevent you playing, you are knackered. This has happened more than once, this season. The worrying thing for me, over recent weeks/months, has been the predictability of our play, in the fact that N’Zogbia has been our main attacking outlet. Once a team sussed that, and double marked him, it quite often ‘killed’ our threat off. And if he leaves us this summer, we lose much of our attacking ‘flair’.
Regarding the coaching side. You metion the likes of Cribley, etc, from the past, encouraging the players to play a ‘simple’ game. Yes, I know what you mean. Straight out of the Anfield ‘boot room’ of Ronnie Moran, etc. Pass and move, play it simple, etc. Football is not a hard game, but some people make it hard. Does Roberto? I’m not sure. I think he may be TOO technical at times, certainly. But is he too stubborn to realise that perhaps he could do with another head alongside him? Would it not undermine both Graeme Jones, and himself? And even if he was open to the idea, who?
I must admit, I was alarmed when I heard today that he is looking at bringing Britton and Rangel in, from Swansea. Apparently, Mr Whelan is none too keen on the idea, and questions whether they are actually good enough, for the Premiership. Surely Roberto should be looking at a higher class of player?
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