“Be careful what you wish for Brighton fans” - How the football world owes us an apology

[Weststander]

I know. He’s one of those pundits who think we should know our place. Just be grateful to exist in the PL. Sorry Barnesy you’re wrong and have been proved wrong. And he’s still going on about it...!

https://twitter.com/officialbarnesy/status/1279860058151628808?s=21

Is it more a CH obsession? The injustice of it all, our Charlton-Curbishley moment?

 

[vagabond]

Many people agreed at the time that we were mad to get rid of Hughton, but I bet they were not there to see the performances. The problem is C H is a likeable person so it was even harder for them to agree with. Imo the problem Barnes has with it is the fact that C H is black. Barnes is always going on about himself not getting a managers job because of the colour of his skin, he never talks about his managerial career when he was a manager, why because he was shit.

He likes the fact that when a job comes up, a BAME person must be interviewed for the position, that to me is racist. The colour of anyone's skin does not dictate you will get the job, it's your previous record in that position.

Agree, you wonder if John Barnes would care this much if CH was white.

Big Sam for example has been harshly sacked many times, but I don’t recall Barnes making this kind of passionate defence for him.

 

[jessiejames]

Agree, you wonder if John Barnes would care this much if CH was white.

Big Sam for example has been harshly sacked many times, but I don’t recall Barnes making this kind of passionate defence for him.

Exactly nail on head

 

[Weststander]

Many people agreed at the time that we were mad to get rid of Hughton, but I bet they were not there to see the performances. The problem is C H is a likeable person so it was even harder for them to agree with. Imo the problem Barnes has with it is the fact that C H is black. Barnes is always going on about himself not getting a managers job because of the colour of his skin, he never talks about his managerial career when he was a manager, why because he was shit.

He likes the fact that when a job comes up, a BAME person must be interviewed for the position, that to me is racist. The colour of anyone's skin does not dictate you will get the job, it's your previous record in that position.

I agree.

Troy Townsend immediately mouthed off last May, then had to backtrack.

Of all the clubs to criticise with the race card, the club that gave CH a long stint (which he fully deserved), that appointed Hope Powell and which has fought tirelessly against prejudice.

 

[vagabond]

Is it more a CH obsession? The injustice of it all, our Charlton-Curbishley moment?

It could be that. It’s weird, objectively Arsenal fans treatment of Wenger was far far worse. And Emery.. but that’s ok?

We always supported Chris. Even during some turgid performances we always got behind the team. By any stat CH’s job should have been under threat.

 

[Harry Wilson's tackle]

He is the only poster I have on ignore. A clear away fan troll. No idea why he isn’t permanently banned.

Political agitator. Been told to post about the Albion occasionally, or else. This will have been the token post.

Mind you, that's one more* than Das Reich has posted in the last 5 years

*Half a sentence about being in the know about hooliganism doesn't count.

 

[Wozza]

Poor old Barnsey’s still arguing on Twitter about Chris Hughton.. he’s been at it all day.

I feel slightly responsible [emoji23]

https://twitter.com/officialbarnesy/status/1279841192906235906?s=21

FFS. Can't believe you dragged me into that....

 

[Harry Wilson's tackle]

I agree.

Troy Townsend immediately mouthed off last May, then had to backtrack.

Of all the clubs to criticise with the race card, the club that gave CH a long stint (which he fully deserved), that appointed Hope Powell and which has fought tirelessly against prejudice.

Just because you're a spokesman for a just cause doesn't absolve you of checking facts.

Fortunately Townsend did back track.

Personally I'd cut one or two people a bit of slack. If they backtrack, hopefully they may also acquire the humility to realise that not every time a black person comes second is it due to racism.

 

[vagabond]

And he’s still going on about Hughton. Go to bed Barnsey.

[tweet]1279888347041804288[/tweet]

 

[keaton]

So far this thread is making me like John Barnes more and hate Twitter more

 

[Uh_huh_him]

Certainly looked that way in the last half season. We'd all previously seen, though, that Hughton teams could (and had done so at times) play good attacking football. Perhaps his professional opinion was that with the players he had available, that was the only way to go until he could refresh the squad? Guess only Hughton knows the answer to that!


Totally agree with the gratitude bit. I don't know whether he would have turned it round or not; personally, I'd have given him the chance - but that's just my opinion - it certainly does not mean to say I think TB got it wrong! Potter's doing OK .................... and I'm looking forward to next season.

Yeah all of this.


i was gutted when he was sacked, but that was mostly because of who he was and what he'd done for us.

At his core, Hughton believes in the footballing hierarchy. i.e. the bigger teams are going to beat you because they are better and have more quality.
His tactics in the premier league was based on this assumption.
This belief was also the same as Poyet's "Ceiling" comment.
This fundamental "truth" is where Tony and his 2 most successful managers ( to date) differ.
I wonder whether this is because both manager's playing career was at the top end of the table?

In Graham Potter we have a manager who is more aligned to the chairman's vision.

 

[highflyer]

He likes the fact that when a job comes up, a BAME person must be interviewed for the position, that to me is racist.

It is not.

This is not the thread for this discussion (the Bear Pit is thataway ^) but, luckily, most people (under 50 at least) are now way beyond the simplistic notion that 'positive discrimination is itself racism'.

 

[Bold Seagull]

Sensitive lot aren’t we.

Hughton helped transform this club. We went from Championship also-rans and near relegated to 2 of the most fantastic attacking thrill packed seasons in our history. First season in the PL also had its fair share of thrills, as did the first half of last season.

There hasn’t been a complete cut off or rebuild, Potter has come in with a team spirit deeply entrenched in the club, a resilience that became part of our DNA under Hughton. He’s pushed us on tactically but also fallen back on those very principles Hughton established.

Everyone I’ve spoken to outside this football club thought our sacking of Hughton was harsh. Most thought we’d do a Fulham or Norwich and to have 2 seasons without being in the bottom 3 seemed to most a remarkable achievement.

We’ll never know how much of a favour lockdown did for us, I think even the most optimistic of us were fearing the worse. Potter has much to thank Hughton for in his step up to the PL, you would be very ungracious not to credit some recent results to those attributes Hughton instilled.

 

[highflyer]

Sensitive lot aren’t we.

Hughton helped transform this club. We went from Championship also-rans and near relegated to 2 of the most fantastic attacking thrill packed seasons in our history. First season in the PL also had its fair share of thrills, as did the first half of last season.

There hasn’t been a complete cut off or rebuild, Potter has come in with a team spirit deeply entrenched in the club, a resilience that became part of our DNA under Hughton. He’s pushed us on tactically but also fallen back on those very principles Hughton established.

Everyone I’ve spoken to outside this football club thought our sacking of Hughton was harsh. Most thought we’d do a Fulham or Norwich and to have 2 seasons without being in the bottom 3 seemed to most a remarkable achievement.

We’ll never know how much of a favour lockdown did for us, I think even the most optimistic of us were fearing the worse. Potter has much to thank Hughton for in his step up to the PL, you would be very ungracious not to credit some recent results to those attributes Hughton instilled.

Absolutely all of this.

If you hadn't, personally, sat through all the second half of last season, it would be entirely reasonable to judge the sacking as many did. Even for many of us that did sit through those awful games, it still seemed very harsh. And possibly very unwise. I can see both sides, completely. It was clearly a risk that has paid off. But could have been (and nearly was) a disaster.

The one thing I don't like though is all the claims that CH 'lost the dressing room'. Unless you were in the dressing room you can't really say that can you? And what does it even mean anyway? I suspect it's just a mindless parroting of football pundits, who are trying to sound like they are in the know. In reality some managers will be more popular, some less so. Sometimes a group of players will be in a better frame of mind and sometimes they'll probably grumble more. Did Graham Potter 'lose the dressing room' when our results were so dire from Jan to March? I had very serious problems with what I was seeing on the pitch last season, but I would never make any assumptions that I knew about what was happening behnd the scenes.

 

[Couldn't Be Hyypia]

Big fan of CH and will always be hugely grateful for what he did for us, but any manager in any club would have been sacked for the second half of last season.

P18 W2 D5 L11 - that's a 22 point season!

Tony felt it was more risky to keep playing like that than to replace Chris. This whole "play attractive football" is a distraction that has helped the "watch out what you wish for" story narrative, until it didn't.

 

[Jolly Red Giant]

Sensitive lot aren’t we.

Hughton helped transform this club. We went from Championship also-rans and near relegated to 2 of the most fantastic attacking thrill packed seasons in our history. First season in the PL also had its fair share of thrills, as did the first half of last season.

There hasn’t been a complete cut off or rebuild, Potter has come in with a team spirit deeply entrenched in the club, a resilience that became part of our DNA under Hughton. He’s pushed us on tactically but also fallen back on those very principles Hughton established.

Everyone I’ve spoken to outside this football club thought our sacking of Hughton was harsh. Most thought we’d do a Fulham or Norwich and to have 2 seasons without being in the bottom 3 seemed to most a remarkable achievement.

We’ll never know how much of a favour lockdown did for us, I think even the most optimistic of us were fearing the worse. Potter has much to thank Hughton for in his step up to the PL, you would be very ungracious not to credit some recent results to those attributes Hughton instilled.

By far the most sensible post on this thread - and it really should bring the entire discussion to an end. The sacking of Hughton is now part of the club's history and people really need to move on.

 

[sydney]

It is not.

This is not the thread for this discussion (the Bear Pit is thataway ^) but, luckily, most people (under 50 at least) are now way beyond the simplistic notion that 'positive discrimination is itself racism'.

isn't that statement ageist...

 

[Harry Wilson's tackle]

And he’s still going on about Hughton. Go to bed Barnsey.

[tweet]1279888347041804288[/tweet]

Imagine if someone suggested to him there are big races and small races. Big races have had empires and wealth and expectations. Small races should think themselves lucky if they win a few olyimpic medals but they really mustn't expect to achieve as well as the big races.

Races like Africans. Teams like Brighton.

Imagine how he'd feel if John Terry told him he'd done awfully well, for a black man?

Talk about lack of introspection <sigh>.

 

[Jim in the West]

Absolutely all of this.

If you hadn't, personally, sat through all the second half of last season, it would be entirely reasonable to judge the sacking as many did. Even for many of us that did sit through those awful games, it still seemed very harsh. And possibly very unwise. I can see both sides, completely. It was clearly a risk that has paid off. But could have been (and nearly was) a disaster.

The one thing I don't like though is all the claims that CH 'lost the dressing room'. Unless you were in the dressing room you can't really say that can you? And what does it even mean anyway? I suspect it's just a mindless parroting of football pundits, who are trying to sound like they are in the know. In reality some managers will be more popular, some less so. Sometimes a group of players will be in a better frame of mind and sometimes they'll probably grumble more. Did Graham Potter 'lose the dressing room' when our results were so dire from Jan to March? I had very serious problems with what I was seeing on the pitch last season, but I would never make any assumptions that I knew about what was happening behnd the scenes.

I obviously have no more insight than you, but I imagine that if CH had lost the dressing room, Tony would have known, and would have done something about it. His judgment was that it we stood a better chance of staying up with CH in place, and that must (I think) be down to the respect that most players had for Chris - especially the likes of Dunk, Murray, Stephens, etc. It was a tight call, obviously, and the last dozen or so fixtures (except the Palace match) were torture. In retrospect Tony made the right decision. And I was absolutely sure (even without the benefit of hindsight) that CH's sacking was also the right decision. There's no way we could have survived this season playing the same way as last.

 

[sydney]

Imagine if someone suggested to him there are big races and small races. Big races have had empires and welath and expectations. Small races should think themselves lucky if they win a few olyimpic medals but they really mustn't expect to achieve as well as the big races.

Races like Africans. Teams like Brighton.

Imagine how he'd feel if John Terry told him he'd done awfully well, for a black man?

Talk about lack of introspection <sigh>.

ha ha .....i like JB but yeah , bang on ....imagine the ****ing furore.....