[Albion] Bloom knows he got his timing wrong.

[B.W.]

There was an obvious and easier moment to part company with the manager and that was either, immediately after the Cardiff home game or early the following morning. The team were in disarray, many fans were angry beyond belief and the manager's personal stock was at its lowest ebb. NSC was in meltdown. Many predicted relegation and saw no hope. It was a poisonous time. We had gone 5 games without scoring, we could barely muster a shot on goal per game and whole sections of the press and neutral fans were labelling us as an ' anti-football ' team. A non-functioning attacking unit.

If Bloom decided around that time that a change was needed ( he may have decided earlier but I doubt it...feelgood factor re Wembley etc ) then he needed to have been decisive then. It would have appeared brutal but not as bad as Monday and the PR damage would have been limited. We were in freefall. Most would have recognised and understood that. Managers get sacked after poor runs and boy, were we in one.

Five games to go called for short term, fresh faces, to give everyone an immediate lift. He had the men there. Sidwell and Rosenior. Fresh out of the side, highly liked and respected. Of course it would have been a gamble but ultimately we needed one more point after the Cardiff game and I am absolutely certain that anyone new would have got that and more.

The decision to continue with the manager allowed CH to resort to the most basic and desperate tactic of all. Effectively boarding up the goal. Putting everyone behind the ball and defending for their lives. This they did well for two games but forced with the prospect of trying to attack Newcastle from the start and with a strangely predictable line-up, they looked clueless. Thankfully, substitutions rescued a point. A point from Arsenal was welcome relief, when the manager and team knew they were safe.

By allowing CH to continue, Bloom allowed his stock to rise again. Fans felt relieved at survival and the dismay, frustration and anger started to drift away. Opinions mellowed. Many who had wanted him gone, softened their view and felt that he should get a bit more time.

Bloom missed his best chance to get most on board with his decision. He didn't decide the manager had to go on Sunday evening or Monday morning, after the City game. He had already made his mind up. The trouble was, he got his timing wrong, maybe swayed by loyalty and respect and the feeling that he still believed CH could grind out a few points. Calculated and cynical, if that was the case. By delaying until the season had run its course, he put himself in the firing line and has now damaged his own reputation.

This is nonsense... as Tony has already said, he considered sacking Chris after Cardiff, but wisely decided against it to maximize our chances of survival... he was correct, and correct to apply the axe when he did to maximize the new manager's summer recruitment time...

 

[chaileyjem]

‘These are a very good side’. Every, single press conference. Without fail.

No Chris, they’re actually not. Not all of them.

Of course not. Its a press conference. If he wants to say bland, or rather respectful things about the opposition. So what ?
Thats his style. It surely had nothing to do with how we or any of his previous clubs performed on the pitch. Or anything to do with how he motivated the players in private/or 1:1.

 

[Dr. No]

thanks...and BBC Breakfast the previous day and Five Live this morning. I'm on the TV more times than Farage at present, and talking as much shite as him too.

Calling [MENTION=34942]Dr No[/MENTION].

No.

 

[Nixonator]

Of course not. Its a press conference. If he wants to say bland, or rather respectful things about the opposition. So what ?
Thats his style. It surely had nothing to do with how we or any of his previous clubs performed on the pitch. Or anything to do with how he motivated the players in private/or 1:1.

Wait, aren't you the club man?

Shouldn't you be backing this decision?

 

[sydney]

personally i think the correct course of action has been taken ...CH has seen the season out and has left by mutual consent ....he therefore has got his contract paid out , not that he probably needs it but he definitely deserves it .....so lets turn our attention to some of the goons on the pitch ....Locadia ....ffs , wouldn't run if a lion was after him , fat lazy , useless prick....obviously no point putting him on under that system ...GM put him to shame with the reasonable amount of chasing he did but lets face it even GM was no CMS , Andone , jury out ....10 weeks off but get fit for **** sake , same for Izzy .....AJ prrfft , so want this guy to come good , i just don't know if he has it in him ....him and Jurgen together 30 million plus , i mean for fuk sake , i know it's not much in football terms but i bet TB is not happy with them 2....Burn seems sound enough , Balogun not sure one minute he's a wizard the next he's able end ....Bernardo ,Bissouma....2 of the success stories this season ....Stephens ...?? what happened there..?? he's out i reckon ....................i love this club to bits , it ruins my week when we get beat , long way from the Goldstone when it was one step up from decent pub football , this game has come on in leaps and bounds in the last 10 years , like tennis , union , league ....every sport has reached heights that were unbelievable 10-12 years ago .....we have to adapt , surely Bloom knows that , if we want to stay in this league we need to take a sharp upward curve in all aspects .... not sure if the current guy in the cross hairs is the one to be honest , mid table championship team..................i was expecting a Ranieri , Conte, Guus Hidink type but hey ho .........it's wednesday , it's 8.15 and I'm pissed.....x

 

[Frankie]

We got extremely lucky surviving , there are lots of things we can point to that saved us but in truth i would imagine no Brighton supporter was very happy with our style of play , apart from fleeting glimpses of what we were capable of CH dogged determination to play the defensive game at all cost ultimately has cost him his job , nobody can argue that , do we view survival as the main target this season ? if we do then we may as well stuck with CH , Bloom now wants some tangible progress and it will cost him , i think the days of gambling on bargain buy overseas could be good players will end and we will see established quality players being sought after this summer , it would not suprise me at all if we bring in at least 5 and spend in the region of 80 millions to secure their services , i'm of the mind the club will rethink their attitude of must survive , and replace it with a how high can we finish mentality , this must be good news for the fans who travel to all the away games as god did they get a poor return for their money this season ,i'm not suggesting we do a Blackpool and play 5 up front but there must come a point where you must at least set up to be able to cause the opposition some problems rather than letting them have the ball and wait for the inevitable , so with a heavy heart i think the correct decision has been made as long as the team ethic changes along with a new manager .

 

[cjd]

1996/97 was more exciting for me.

I definitely think there is some merit in your opinion. I still miss the protests and almost anarchy of that period....as well of course of some almost insignificant game against Hereford.

 

[El Presidente]

I definitely think there is some merit in your opinion. I still miss the protests and almost anarchy of that period....as well of course of some almost insignificant game against Hereford.

Exciting...certainly

Shite football...certainly too!

 

[LlcoolJ]

We got extremely lucky surviving , there are lots of things we can point to that saved us but in truth i would imagine no Brighton supporter was very happy with our style of play , apart from fleeting glimpses of what we were capable of CH dogged determination to play the defensive game at all cost ultimately has cost him his job , nobody can argue that , do we view survival as the main target this season ? if we do then we may as well stuck with CH , Bloom now wants some tangible progress and it will cost him , i think the days of gambling on bargain buy overseas could be good players will end and we will see established quality players being sought after this summer , it would not suprise me at all if we bring in at least 5 and spend in the region of 80 millions to secure their services , i'm of the mind the club will rethink their attitude of must survive , and replace it with a how high can we finish mentality , this must be good news for the fans who travel to all the away games as god did they get a poor return for their money this season ,i'm not suggesting we do a Blackpool and play 5 up front but there must come a point where you must at least set up to be able to cause the opposition some problems rather than letting them have the ball and wait for the inevitable , so with a heavy heart i think the correct decision has been made as long as the team ethic changes along with a new manager .

Bloody hell at least the OP put some paragraphs and punctuation in. And I couldn't even be bothered to read that!

 

[Jim in the West]

The guys on the Guardian Football Weekly podcast are a pretty knowledgeable bunch. They weren't surprised at the sacking. Barry Glendenning did say that perhaps it could have been done in the week, enabling the City game to be a massive, positive, Goodbye to Chris. But there are probably some very good reasons for NOT doing that. One of which could simply have been the respect necessary to the game itself - given the Premier League title was at stake. That could have been part of TB's thinking - who knows. But one thing's for sure, Tony took a huge gamble on NOT sacking Hughton earlier, and it worked.

 

[symyjym]

Well if we get our man and West Brom get theirs, the timing would have been perfect.

Chris gets a new squad and our misfit bunch of individuals get extra homework under a new regime. This situation makes more sense by the hour for all parties.

 

[sydney]

We got extremely lucky surviving , there are lots of things we can point to that saved us but in truth i would imagine no Brighton supporter was very happy with our style of play , apart from fleeting glimpses of what we were capable of CH dogged determination to play the defensive game at all cost ultimately has cost him his job , nobody can argue that , do we view survival as the main target this season ? if we do then we may as well stuck with CH , Bloom now wants some tangible progress and it will cost him , i think the days of gambling on bargain buy overseas could be good players will end and we will see established quality players being sought after this summer , it would not suprise me at all if we bring in at least 5 and spend in the region of 80 millions to secure their services , i'm of the mind the club will rethink their attitude of must survive , and replace it with a how high can we finish mentality , this must be good news for the fans who travel to all the away games as god did they get a poor return for their money this season ,i'm not suggesting we do a Blackpool and play 5 up front but there must come a point where you must at least set up to be able to cause the opposition some problems rather than letting them have the ball and wait for the inevitable , so with a heavy heart i think the correct decision has been made as long as the team ethic changes along with a new manager .

agreed......shelvey , adams , mata.....all reasonably priced players that would add to our midfield ....room for one more "marquee" signing but not mitrovic.....higuain...!! yeah daft i know but these are the types of players we need ...cant expect dunk , duffy and ryan to save our bacon again next season .....it's tedious..!!

 

[Doc Lynam]

agreed......shelvey , adams , mata.....all reasonably priced players that would add to our midfield ....room for one more "marquee" signing but not mitrovic.....higuain...!! yeah daft i know but these are the types of players we need ...cant expect dunk , duffy and ryan to save our bacon again next season .....it's tedious..!!

And unlikely

 

[Milano]

The timing was totally correct.
Hughton saw the season out, with dignity.
Our squad, management and their agents are only days away from going on holiday. Had we waited then we could not have approached any candidates (who also could have been on the beach) and the people let go would have been in a lesser position to look for their next club. All three will be in demand.
Anyone thinking the timing was incorrect is viewing this with emotion, not logic.

 

[Taybha]

we got extremely lucky surviving , there are lots of things we can point to that saved us but in truth i would imagine no brighton supporter was very happy with our style of play , apart from fleeting glimpses of what we were capable of ch dogged determination to play the defensive game at all cost ultimately has cost him his job , nobody can argue that , do we view survival as the main target this season ? If we do then we may as well stuck with ch , bloom now wants some tangible progress and it will cost him , i think the days of gambling on bargain buy overseas could be good players will end and we will see established quality players being sought after this summer , it would not suprise me at all if we bring in at least 5 and spend in the region of 80 millions to secure their services , i'm of the mind the club will rethink their attitude of must survive , and replace it with a how high can we finish mentality , this must be good news for the fans who travel to all the away games as god did they get a poor return for their money this season ,i'm not suggesting we do a blackpool and play 5 up front but there must come a point where you must at least set up to be able to cause the opposition some problems rather than letting them have the ball and wait for the inevitable , so with a heavy heart i think the correct decision has been made as long as the team ethic changes along with a new manager .

t,
h,
i,
s . :d

 

[chaileyjem]

Wait, aren't you the club man?

Shouldn't you be backing this decision?

Sorry. I think its a big mistake.

 

[sydney]

And unlikely

hopefully potter is a smoke screen .....totally underwhelmed by that one .

 

[dazzer6666]

Sorry. I think its a big mistake.

Phew. You had us all worried there for a bit [emoji23][emoji23]

Everyone saying Bloom has taken a massive gamble in getting rid hasn’t considered the odds IMO. Bigger punt on the club’s future would have been not to change.

 

[Wardy's twin]

Arsenal we could have lost 5-0 and still stayed up we were already safe.

that is true but there is no denying that the three performances wolves, spurs and Arsenal had Hughton written all over them. Had he been sacked earlier who knows what would have happened - yes we could have had the 'changed manager bonus' or it all could have gone to pieces. Maybe I am being a 'bit soft' but I like to think keeping us was his legacy. Personally I think his time had come though as he could not adapt i.e. have a plan B or C and think his tactical ability e.g. around subs, was limited. That said who cannot be grateful for the last 4+ years .

The real proof of his ability will show next year and whether we see some exhilarating performances from Locadia, Andone and Ali J or that they really are duds and CH did his best with what he had.

 

[Easy 10]

there is no denying that the three performances wolves, spurs and Arsenal had Hughton written all over them.

Well I'll deny it.

Wolves and Spurs performances had Hughton written all over them, ie outright FEAR of crossing the halfway line, or of committing anyone forward in support. The handbrake was firmly on.

Arsenal we were actually playing with freedom, as the pressure of needing points had finally been lifted. We actually showed some attacking INTENT for the first time in months, and dare I say it, a bit of confidence going forward. A deserved draw that could even have been a win, had Gross not completely spazzed out with that chance late on.

The concern would be that had Hughton stayed on, then once we were needing points again, the fear would return to our play. And with it the handbrake.