"Big Sam" Allardyce.

[Rusthall Seagull]

So by your logic, I should only enjoy watching a team that wins something.(As a Brighton supporter I'm pretty f***ed then). As for Keegan as England manager; well, who told him to go? No-one, he held his hands up & walked away. I call that honesty, not a word that Allardyce would know much about apparently.
They say a team reflects the managers personality, well Bolton were bloody awful to watch & now Newcastle are heading the same way.
He's had years of people saying, "what a great job big Sam is doing at Bolton", but they were playing awful football & punching above their weight by bullying teams at the Reebok.
Now we're seeing what he's all about. Plus, ask Bolton fans what they think about the way he got himself into the Newcastle job.

ok, nicely put....

however, I think it is a myth that Bolton played very unattractive football - Sam Allardyce to my mind played the kind of football that suited them as a team best. It is not rocket science to think 'we only have these kind of players at our disposal, therefore we will play to a system that suits' Would you actually expect him to say, go on, get out there and play flowing football? Knowing that his team would be torn apart by the better sides? At Bolton he had little or no money to spend, so had to rely on coaching and tactics to get results.

Take a look at Keegans spending during the 'exciting' times....it is not comparative.

When Arsene Wenger took over at Arsenal, he continued to play the system that was in place, and he utilised the players he had. He gradually added to the squad with players he felt would be able to play the kind of football he actually wanted to play - this is not an overnight thing.

You have to look at the bigger picture - Mark Hughes is another example of a manager that has been accused of putting out sides that 'bully' other sides - to my mind, if you play within the rules and secure reslults on a regular basis then how can you be considered to be punching above your weight or bullying? You are purely and simply playing the game and winning.

SA may not be the most accompliced manager in the premiership but he is a damn site better than many

 

[Simon Morgan]

Personally, I was getting really sick of Bolton and Big Sam and I wished failure upon them. I think Big Sam sees pure physicality as the main skill necessary for a footballer, which is unfortunate and primitive IMO.

Bolton are a small club and didn't have that little money to spend either. Ok, they weren't amongst the big spenders in the league, but they had enough money to keep players like Campo, Anelka and Nolan at the club with obviously hefty contracts. Signing Anelka in the first place for £8million is not exactly scraping the barrel either, is it? I won't claim that they were rich, but the transfers of Anelka and Diouf showed that there was capacity to sign players. Also, if they were doing so well in the upper echelons of the league, would players not want to join them as well?

I can see what people mean when they say Bolton play the game in accordance with the rules and win games fair and square. Fair enough, but I have far more respect for teams who at least try to play decent football. Obviously they couldn't take the game to every team they played and it's pretty ludicrous to suggest that. But they played a team full of physical players, with a few of a higher quality to make them a good team and they ground out results. Everyone wants to see high quality football and to me, Bolton didn't provide that.

 

[Silent Bob]

You have to look at the bigger picture - Mark Hughes is another example of a manager that has been accused of putting out sides that 'bully' other sides - to my mind, if you play within the rules and secure reslults on a regular basis then how can you be considered to be punching above your weight or bullying? You are purely and simply playing the game and winning.

Actually I think Hughes has shown why Allardyce ISN'T that good.

When he took over Blackburn they were struggling big time, he did play a very physical game to get them out of their relegation scrape, but over the last couple of seasons has built a team that play good football. Also I think it is a myth that Allardyce HAD to play ugly with what he had... Okocha, Campo, Giannakopoulos, Diouf, Anelka, an others all played under him but he still kept the same system... and he's now using it at Newcastle with players that clearly don't fit it.

 

[Rusthall Seagull]

Actually I think Hughes has shown why Allardyce ISN'T that good.

When he took over Blackburn they were struggling big time, he did play a very physical game to get them out of their relegation scrape, but over the last couple of seasons has built a team that play good football. Also I think it is a myth that Allardyce HAD to play ugly with what he had... Okocha, Campo, Giannakopoulos, Diouf, Anelka, an others all played under him but he still kept the same system... and he's now using it at Newcastle with players that clearly don't fit it.

Who said that Allardyce had to play UGLY ? As I said, I dont believe that Bolton did so well over the period they did, just playing UGLY football.....think about when Okocha played and Bolton were scoring wonderful goals from all over the park. yes they were physical and they worked hard as a team and had some class individuals, (who ALLARDYCE brought into the club), who could make the difference. The players you mentioned all came to Bolton after being courted by SA and have been quoted as saying how impressed they were with Allardyces coaching techniques. Campo for example thinks Allardyce extended his career by years.

They played a system because it worked and it produced results and it also supplied some great moments. How that can be classed as UGLY football, I will never know....

 

[smudge]

you tell him smudge

alright m8e?

Alright Foxy. Just been training the new dancers how to flip a liferaft over in the crystal blue waters of Roatan, Honduras. So yeah, not bad!

 

[smudge]

Who said that Allardyce had to play UGLY ? As I said, I dont believe that Bolton did so well over the period they did, just playing UGLY football.....think about when Okocha played and Bolton were scoring wonderful goals from all over the park. yes they were physical and they worked hard as a team and had some class individuals, (who ALLARDYCE brought into the club), who could make the difference. The players you mentioned all came to Bolton after being courted by SA and have been quoted as saying how impressed they were with Allardyces coaching techniques. Campo for example thinks Allardyce extended his career by years.

They played a system because it worked and it produced results and it also supplied some great moments. How that can be classed as UGLY football, I will never know....

Is the way he courted these players in question one of the reasons he won't talk to the Beeb?
Digressing slightly, isn't about time the Premier League told the 3 managers in question that they should talk to the BBC. It's a bit boring when some No.2 gives his opinion on MOTD every week.

By the way, we're going to have to agree to disagree about Big Sam. I think he's boring, you don't.

 

[Spiros]

Digressing slightly, isn't about time the Premier League told the 3 managers in question that they should talk to the BBC. It's a bit boring when some No.2 gives his opinion on MOTD every week.

Would be even better if the beeb simply said 'If we can't interview the manager then we won't bother interviewing anyone from the club' and just give interviews from the other team. And none if the teams in question are playing each other.