Their recruitment is being lauded (and they don't have the Starlizard algorithm to refer to), so I wonder if one of the big guns will go after their recruitment head.
[Albion] Fab OUT
- Thread starter NorthStandSeagull
- Start date
Got something to say or just want fewer pesky ads? Join us... 😊
Their recruitment is being lauded (and they don't have the Starlizard algorithm to refer to), so I wonder if one of the big guns will go after their recruitment head.
Greg Bobkin
Silver Seagull
- May 22, 2012
- 16,638
I have it on good authority that Hurzeler IS liked and respected within the dressing room, despite some fans being critical about his age and experience when they speak to players. Yes there have been opinions voiced about certain players that have caused further conversations with senior members of the squad, but they remain as a close squad.
I'm not going to reveal MY source, but I can assure YOU that there is nothing to worry about at the moment (relatively speaking) and everyone is aware of the process and the potential within the squad.
The Fits
Well-known member
- Jun 29, 2020
- 10,390
They don’t but I do think we and everyone places a bit too much weight on Starlizard.
Everyone knows the players we signed last summer. None of that was some kind of rocket science. And most of the players we’ve been linked with recently have been linked with other teams and often joined them. Murillo, Beraldo and the guy who has joined City are examples of three CBs we were very strongly linked with but were also regarded as generational talents in Brazil. Even Caicedo was famously wanted by Man United. That proves two things. 1. Our data is good. 2. Other teams have their own data which is also good.
There’s a hell of a lot of very, very good analysts about.
Once other teams become as appealing as us in terms of a stepping stone (ie Bournemouth getting into Europe and/or a Kerkez/Hujsen joining Real) or as long as the biggest teams go for younger players which is increasingly happening, the potency of Starlizard gets more and more reduced.
macbeth
Dismembered
Yes, weirdly enough whilst his inexperience may be his biggest flaw, it could also be his saving grace, as some of the stuff we’re seeing would be a lot harder to stomach had we appointed an experienced coach in the summer. Easy to forget RDZ spent a good few years, including a couple of sackings and relegations, developing his style in a top 5 league before it really clicked. And Potter finished 10th with Swansea before we hired him. FH won’t be given forever, if we still aren’t firing on all cylinders by Christmas this year then he’ll be in big trouble imo, but I think he’ll be given longer than most due to his inexperience. As another poster said though, that may well come at the expense of Europe this season, and therefore some significant sales in the summer.
West Upper Seagull
Well-known member
And this reason, coupled with IF we finish lower than last season could spell danger for FH keeping his job. The clubs model is based on us progressing in the league and buying & developing young talent and selling for a healthy profit. Baleba is probably the only player who looks like achieving this at the moment. I agree that other players seem to have gone backwards under FH that would include Pedro, Estupinan (poor defensively) and even Mitoma whose end product is inconsistent and not as good as it was under RDZ.
If we do finish in the bottom half of the table and Ipswich go down then I wouldn’t be surprised if attempts are made to tempt McKenna again.
After turning us down, he signed a four year contract said to be worth around £6 million per year, making him one of the highest-paid managers in the country, and with a higher release clause. Not sure we'd be willing to pay.
The Fits
Well-known member
- Jun 29, 2020
- 10,390
Ha.
Indeed. And this will continue.
In a year or two there will be another club.
It’s the food chain.
Test for Bournemouth is can they replace those players, something we’ve done well.
Teams like Chelsea will just pluck the best players from a pool of clubs. Question for all of us is can we sustain the model and progress or is this our lot? IE mid table, the odd flirt with Europe but with little hope of anything ‘better’.
It’s a weird place to be really. On the one hand our success over recent years is incredible. On the other it’s very easy to see there’s not really anywhere else to go unless we fundamentally change our model, and if we do that we seriously risk imploding.
There’s something inevitable and sad about watching a player like Baleba storming around the pitch. They will never be about for long and we will probably very rarely get to see players of that quality in their prime.
Hometownglory
Well-known member
- Jan 12, 2014
- 823
Afternoon Fabian. Question, why didn't you start Georginio and Minteh?
Taking shots off target as a marker for creating chances is a "fools gold" IMO.
These can be pea rollers that go out near the corner flag. I can only remember Pickford turning one deflected shot over the bar from a corner and Mitoma bending a shot a yard wide. Absolutely nothing else was created.
Justice
Dangerous Idiot
The battle of the sources begins
so far it’s 1-1Greg Bobkin
Silver Seagull
- May 22, 2012
- 16,638
But WITCH of the SAUCES will fans SWALLOW?The battle of the sources begins
jackalbion
Well-known member
- Aug 30, 2011
- 5,299
The jump from Championship to Premier League to Europe, as much as we like to act like we’re the only club to have ever done it, has been done many times before, and will likely be done again. Solidifying yourself as a consistent top 6 club for a club of our size has never been done. I’m not saying it can’t, but it’s going to take a lot more time than a few years to do it, and there will have to be a point where we stop selling players on, if we are to achieve this.But it's this model of buying young and selling that has got us into the upper half of the Premier. As we progress we can expect to hold onto players a little longer and pay a bit more, but we can't and will never be able to compete financially with the top 6, so we have to find another way
Maybe this is as far as we can go and we've hit Gus's 'ceiling', a dozen years later than he thought, but I suspect TB thinks differently. I thought upper Championship, occasional forage into the Premier was our limit
Justice
Dangerous Idiot
He’s had 23 games now and can you see an improvement? This is the PL not a FIFA badge course.
People seem to be comparing FH to Iraola he had ten dodgy games then hit the ground running, RDZ also had 6 blanks.
We aren’t going to win every game regardless but yesterday was crap home form is crap.
Justice
Dangerous Idiot
Has Ernest hacked your account?But WITCH of the SAUCES will fans SWALLOW?
Leekbrookgull
Well-known member
On current performances and remember the recent wins at Ipswich Town and ManU if you were another club whether EPL or maybe a promotion chasing Championship club is there anyone at The Albion who you would put an offer in for ? Nothing heavy just your POV.
Greg Bobkin
Silver Seagull
- May 22, 2012
- 16,638
Who NOSE?
jackalbion
Well-known member
- Aug 30, 2011
- 5,299
Who else do we get then? What manager is going to be better? It’s just going to be an endless cycle of a manager trying to get quality out of a squad who so far have shown me nothing to indicate they have the technical ability to create the amount of chances to be top 6.
This nails one of the issues IMO. It's all very well saying we've spent 200 mill to get players with potential who need developing but what of those three? Enciso was great for RDZ up to his long injury, and even then was fantastic away at Newcastle away at the end of RDZ's time when he was given licence to be creative. Doesn't look like Barco's even being given a chance, leaving up with left back backup of March (urgh, not THAT again) and Lamptey. And we've literally spent years developing Ferguson only to chuck him away based on a playing style preference.
At the moment there doesn't seem to be any guarantee that FH will develop the current crop well enough or not fall out with them.
Greg Bobkin
Silver Seagull
- May 22, 2012
- 16,638
Fair points, but it's not THAT unusual for a new manager to not fancy existing players, is it? Plus, from all we hear about the setup at the Albion, the decisions are influenced by the DoF, loans teams, etc, etc – it could be the case (I'm certainly not going to speculate) that, in the case of Barco, it wasn't purely down to FH that he went on loan.
With Enciso, there was clearly a difference of opinion on what role he should play (I actually think a loan might do him some good because he tries SO hard sometimes) and Ferguson has been injured/not on a great run of form, going back to the RDZ days. I wouldn't be surprised if he either went out on loan by the end of the month, or became a part of the squad and found his goal-scoring form...