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[Albion] Hughton, Potter, De Zerbi, Hurzeler









Javeaseagull

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Feb 22, 2014
2,869
When Hyypia managed Bayer Laverkusen the setup was slightly different at first. He was first team manager and Sascha Lewandowski was head coach and both had equal footing (rather like Gritt and Curbishley being joint managers of Charlton all those years ago). Lewandowski was responsible for the training sessions as Sami didn't have the required pro-licence at the time. A lot of the success they had in finishing third in their first season was put down to Lewandowski rather than Hyypia. At the end of the first season, Hyypia became sole head coach and Lewandowski went back to working in the Laverkusen youth setup.

They had a good second season finishing 4th but the following season they went on a run of 1 win in 12 games and Sami was sacked with Lewandowski taking over as caretaker manager winning 4 and drawing 1 of their last 5 games that season.

Things might have been different if Sammy Lee had taken up the offer to be number 2 but I have serious doubts that Hyypia was that good of a manager when his team were faced with a poor run of results and struggled to turn things around both at Leverkusen and here which ultimately lead to his sacking both times.
I seem to remember that all of us were calling for Hyppia to go but TB stuck by him for an embarrassingly long time. Eventually I think Sami walked out, not sacked, and Chris came in to save the club from relegation. That’s how I remember it anyway.
 


lost in london

Well-known member
Dec 10, 2003
1,842
London
Agree. Look at the medical team snaffled from Bayern. And Mat O'R comes on a full 2 months earlier than his initial predicted return date and bags the winner v Citeh. How often do we hear of a player coming back weeks early after surgery?
Have a listen to MOR on the official BHA podcast. He puts his quick recovery down in part to mindset - planning in advance for a number of years how to react should he get injured (this is his first injury in all his time at MK Dons and Celtic), immediately forgiving the guy that did it, meditation, and mindfulness / living in the moment and not in the past or the future. He has a therapist / guru in India. MOR is a very interesting person that will probably have a positive influence on other players. Exactly the sort of recruit I can see TB and PB chasing down.
 
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Joey Jo Jo Jr. Shabadoo

I believe in Joe Hendry
Oct 4, 2003
12,218
I seem to remember that all of us were calling for Hyppia to go but TB stuck by him for an embarrassingly long time. Eventually I think Sami walked out, not sacked, and Chris came in to save the club from relegation. That’s how I remember it anyway.
I think you’re right, in the end Sami stepped down, it definitely went on too long and I remember TB refusing to accept his resignation at least once before.
 






Green Cross Code Man

Wunt be druv
Mar 30, 2006
20,812
Eastbourne
Paul Barber is predominantly responsible for putting the theory into practise. He is, in my mind, a critical factor.
I am so excited, I asked him to come to my school and speak to our older children for careers day. He really is unbelievable, he replied to me a couple of times very quickly and then I found out, via his secretary, that he was on a family holiday. Above and beyond.
 






Right Brain Ronnie

Well-known member
Feb 20, 2023
744
North of North
Fab can't be judged yet, he has had a massive squad upgrade let's see where we are come may.
 


Perkino

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Dec 11, 2009
6,056
FH is the right sort of candidate to succeed in our structure. Bloom, Barber & Weir have created a system which provides young talented players for a manager to coach and utilise.

We looked for a manager who is willing to join the ethos and isn't fearful of playing raw talent. We need a manager that will develop the whole squad and ultimately increase the values of the majority of our players whilst remaining competitive. Hurzler is a great addition to a fully functional set up and he adds something that other candidates wouldn't do, but when he moves on we won't self destruct.

We also need a manager that isn't desperate to sign multiple players that he has managed before. Any new additions have to fit our model to ensure that deadwood doesn't outlast the manager. It will be a long time before we appoint a manager that isn't willing to work within those parameters and any who decide they will change it once in post won't last long.
 


Javeaseagull

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Feb 22, 2014
2,869
Has any other team got 12 different goalscorers at this stage of the season? I think that’s right and it seems to me to be an eminently sensible approach for which presumably means the coach can take some credit.
 






chaileyjem

#BarberIn
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Jun 27, 2012
14,678
Can't recall any off-hand, it was always the opposite. How many times in the past did we hear that so-and-so has 'a slight knock', and then we didn't see them again for months?
Welbeck was back playing and scoring less than 7 days after being rushed to hospital and stretchered off at Newcastle.

(There's also still plenty of mystery injuries or recoveries where there's no real updates as to when players are returning. See Milner, Minteh, March., Webster )
 


chaileyjem

#BarberIn
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Jun 27, 2012
14,678
I seem to remember that all of us were calling for Hyppia to go but TB stuck by him for an embarrassingly long time. Eventually I think Sami walked out, not sacked, and Chris came in to save the club from relegation. That’s how I remember it anyway.
There was a banner at the Millwall home game (surely the lowest point of our entire stay at the Amex) calling for him to go but i don't think it was "all of us". however poor the results. . He ultimately resigned which Bloom said he "reluctantly accepted" . (surely more to it than that - some say Bloom/PB thought the underlying numbers were good). Chris of course did save us from relegation but few remember it was touch and go for a while and his record in that second half season was pretty patchy P22 W6, D6, L10. Dunk was top scorer that year !!
 




Javeaseagull

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Feb 22, 2014
2,869
There was a banner at the Millwall home game (surely the lowest point of our entire stay at the Amex) calling for him to go but i don't think it was "all of us". however poor the results. . He ultimately resigned which Bloom said he "reluctantly accepted" . (surely more to it than that - some say Bloom/PB thought the underlying numbers were good). Chris of course did save us from relegation but few remember it was touch and go for a while and his record in that second half season was pretty patchy P22 W6, D6, L10. Dunk was top scorer that year !!
Yes but come on, Chris came in about Christmas time when we were looking at relegation and he kept us up. Think Nathan Jones had a couple of games over Christmas but Chris basically kept us up so job done. It probably wasn't all of us calling for him to go but I was tearing my hair out!
 


FatSuperman

Well-known member
Feb 25, 2016
2,929
Firstly, I will say that a lot of credit should go to each of the managers, who have all done a great job in building on what their predecessor achieved.

But a whole load of credit should also go to the players who were either already here or brought in (and some subsequently sold on) during that time. They have clearly bought into what each manager is doing and many have improved beyond the wildest dreams of fans during their time at the club (March, for example).

Basically, it's a team effort (including the analysis and recruitment people) and everyone involved has seemingly taken things to higher and higher levels. You only have to look up the road at how the Messiah Glasner has managed to get the worst out of his players (old and new) in a very short space of time.

Take nothing away from the managers, but it helps when you're given the right tools for the job :thumbsup:
Possibly already covered as I’m late to the party, but that surely is correct - because our model is famously about an approach to the game and then buying the players and staff to execute that approach.

So many clubs just buy ‘good players’ and a previously successful manager and think those are the only ingredients needed.

At face value our way seems so simple and so much more likely to over achieve against its investment cost.
 


Brovion

In my defence, I was left unsupervised.
NSC Patron
Jul 6, 2003
19,958
Welbeck was back playing and scoring less than 7 days after being rushed to hospital and stretchered off at Newcastle.

(There's also still plenty of mystery injuries or recoveries where there's no real updates as to when players are returning. See Milner, Minteh, March., Webster )
Welbeck was in the new regime, so more 'proof' that it works better. And I bet (although I have obviously zero evidence for this) that O'Riley wouldn't have come back on schedule last season either.

But yes, we still haven't lost the 'mystery injury' syndrome.
 


dazzer6666

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Mar 27, 2013
56,065
Burgess Hill
Welbeck was in the new regime, so more 'proof' that it works better. And I bet (although I have obviously zero evidence for this) that O'Riley wouldn't have come back on schedule last season either.

But yes, we still haven't lost the 'mystery injury' syndrome.
Not really a mystery, more just rightly imo keeping it out of the public domain.
 




chaileyjem

#BarberIn
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Jun 27, 2012
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Yes but come on, Chris came in about Christmas time when we were looking at relegation and he kept us up. Think Nathan Jones had a couple of games over Christmas but Chris basically kept us up so job done. It probably wasn't all of us calling for him to go but I was tearing my hair out!
Agreed. Chris saved us - in the end - and yes - can't imagine many of us wanted Hyppia to stay. That Milwall game was toxic. . Nathan Jones got us 4 points at Christmas that made a real difference too. Without them it would have gone to the final day.
 


stewart12

Well-known member
Jan 16, 2019
1,950
Agreed. Chris saved us - in the end - and yes - can't imagine many of us wanted Hyppia to stay. That Milwall game was toxic. . Nathan Jones got us 4 points at Christmas that made a real difference too. Without them it would have gone to the final day.
I think with Hughton we went on quite a good run early on in his tenure, mostly from being outrageously dull and tough to beat and got the points that ensured survival, then were really poor for the remainder of the season, only winning 1 of our last 10 games. I remember a particularly poor 0-0 draw at home to Huddersfield where it looked like the game could have been 9 hours long and it still would have remained goalless

We were quite lucky that the bottom 3 were quite poor really as the pressure was relatively off after that initial decent form under Hughton (plus the 4 points under Jones)
 


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