[Albion] Graham Potter joins on four-year deal

[Paulie Gualtieri]

I was just thinking, having read the Nick Powell thread, about player fitness and stamina. Our player stats fell back in this respect in the second half of the season, probably because we weren’t entering far upfield, so out distance travelled obviously shrunk. But on top of that, we actually LOOKED unfit, relative to some of the teams we faced. You read a lot about just how physically fit the high press teams need to be. And I recall watching LUFC for the first few games this season, Bielsa has dormitories built at the training ground, so the players could live there and train three times a day, they came out of the blocks flying with a physical onslaught that I thought they could not sustain even for an hour, but the6 kept it going for a couple of. On the, and then fatigue related injuries started to bite, and the rest is history.

Just wondering how GP will approach this. I’m sure his game demands very high physical resilience and durability. It will be good to see the Albion figuring in a much more active physical way under GP. We had seriously begun to shrink to unacceptable levels under CH.

I’ve seen reports about comfort zones and karaoke, to be fair travelling back from horatio’s on the pier isn’t a walk in the park


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Behind Enemy Lines]

I think ultimately Hughtons downfall was not giving youth a chance. He seemed only to stick with his players and the U23’s were not his players so they never really got a look in. Clearly Blooms long term plan is for the U23’s to feed one or two players a year into the first team hence the big investment into Lancing. That was not happening under Hughton after 4 years. Next season I reckon several U23’s will break into the first team. That could be the equivalent of tens of millions of pounds payback.

No. The club are patient about this. 4 years is no time. We need to be patient about this.
What did for Hughton was very poor results compounded by abject performances, particularly at home, which ultimately meant Bloom concluded he wasn’t the right person to continue as manager.

 

[Guinness Boy]

I was just thinking, having read the Nick Powell thread, about player fitness and stamina. Our player stats fell back in this respect in the second half of the season, probably because we weren’t engaging far upfield, so our distance travelled obviously shrunk. But on top of that, we actually LOOKED unfit, relative to some of the teams we faced. You read a lot about just how physically fit the high press teams need to be. And I recall watching LUFC for the first few games this season, Bielsa had dormitories built at the training ground, so the players could live there and train three times a day, they came out of the blocks flying with a physical onslaught that I thought they could not sustain even for an hour, but they kept it going for a couple of months, and then fatigue related injuries started to bite, and the rest is history.

Just wondering how GP will approach this. I’m sure his game demands very high physical resilience and durability. It will be good to see the Albion figuring in a much more active physical way under GP. We had seriously begun to shrink to unacceptable levels under CH.

I don't think we'll be starting with Glenn Murray up front and the other 10 operating within the same 20 yards of space in their own half.

Andone can press but can he keep his cool? Izqueirdo can press but his strength (when fit) is running at people. And as pointed out by [MENTION=10202]Not Andy Naylor[/MENTION] on a similar thread, our back four is far too slow to push up too high. As observed by me, Stephens is too slow and doesn't look that fit (for me it's a bigger issue than his passing) yet operates as a CDM.

So my issue with Potter is not what he will want us to do, but that we have half the squad that can't do it.

I assume, however, that bringing in Potter and his back room staff will cost around 10 million. Having invested that we have to back it up with player investment.

 

[ferring seagull]

I don't think we'll be starting with Glenn Murray up front and the other 10 operating within the same 20 yards of space in their own half.

Andone can press but can he keep his cool? Izqueirdo can press but his strength (when fit) is running at people. And as pointed out by [MENTION=10202]Not Andy Naylor[/MENTION] on a similar thread, our back four is far too slow to push up too high. As observed by me, Stephens is too slow and doesn't look that fit (for me it's a bigger issue than his passing) yet operates as a CDM.

So my issue with Potter is not what he will want us to do, but that we have half the squad that can't do it.

I assume, however, that bringing in Potter and his back room staff will cost around 10 million. Having invested that we have to back it up with player investment.

According to the BBC it would be around £3m !

 

[Bry Nylon]

According to the BBC it would be around £3m !

Not when you factor in the cost of paying out Hughton and his team, plus the cost of bringing in Potter's team. I reckon £5m to get rid of CH and his team plus £5m to compensate Swansea and get in Potter plus his team sounds about right.

 

[fruitnveg]

I'm looking forward to this.

 

[rogersix]

I'm looking forward to this.

me too. fixtures not for three weeks yet!

 

[ferring seagull]

Not when you factor in the cost of paying out Hughton and his team, plus the cost of bringing in Potter's team. I reckon £5m to get rid of CH and his team plus £5m to compensate Swansea and get in Potter plus his team sounds about right.

I read it as the incoming only ( Guinness Boy's thread ) but agree with your estimate to include severance payment to CH and other staff.

 

[Guinness Boy]

According to the BBC it would be around £3m !

No that's his release clause. We are sacking Hughton and his team, bringing in a fresh team and paying them off from Swansea. £10m is an estimate that might be a bit high but is based on a chat with a few people. £3m is too low IMO.

 

[dazzer6666]

I think ultimately Hughtons downfall was not giving youth a chance. He seemed only to stick with his players and the U23’s were not his players so they never really got a look in. Clearly Blooms long term plan is for the U23’s to feed one or two players a year into the first team hence the big investment into Lancing. That was not happening under Hughton after 4 years. Next season I reckon several U23’s will break into the first team. That could be the equivalent of tens of millions of pounds payback.

Agreed...definitely a big part of it I reckon. He showed absolutely no inclination at all to try any of them except in the odd cup game. With Ashworth and Potter running things we might finally start to see the Lancing investment start to bear fruit.

 

[RexCathedra]

So my issue with Potter is not what he will want us to do, but that we have half the squad that can't do it.

You bin the manager. Because the problem isn't ever actually on the pitch. And you can't bin half a team, now.

We're watching Sir Humphrey Appleby football:
"Something must be done. This is something. This must be done."

 

[Guinness Boy]

I read it as the incoming only ( Guiness Boy's thread ) but agree with your estimate to include severance payment to CH and other staff.

I meant total expenditure but didn't say. It's late on another interesting day!

 

[Shoreham Beach Seagull]

I don't think we'll be starting with Glenn Murray up front and the other 10 operating within the same 20 yards of space in their own half.

Andone can press but can he keep his cool? Izqueirdo can press but his strength (when fit) is running at people. And as pointed out by [MENTION=10202]Not Andy Naylor[/MENTION] on a similar thread, our back four is far too slow to push up too high. As observed by me, Stephens is too slow and doesn't look that fit (for me it's a bigger issue than his passing) yet operates as a CDM.

So my issue with Potter is not what he will want us to do, but that we have half the squad that can't do it.

I assume, however, that bringing in Potter and his back room staff will cost around 10 million. Having invested that we have to back it up with player investment.

I think we have shown at times that we can press, it's that they aren't asked to. I don't think you need pace to be able to press... Milner, Henderson and Matip are three examples at Liverpool who don't have pace yet work successfully in that style of play. Salah and Mane's strength are running at players yet they work to get the ball to begin with. Yes these are examples of players with much more talent, but this still shows pace isn't essential to pressing football.

 

[Guinness Boy]

I think we have shown at times that we can press, it's that they aren't asked to. I don't think you need pace to be able to press... Milner, Henderson and Matip are three examples at Liverpool who don't have pace yet work successfully in that style of play. Salah and Mane's strength are running at players yet they work to get the ball to begin with. Yes these are examples of players with much more talent, but this still shows pace isn't essential to pressing football.

You need pace to get back in position if it's lobbed over you. If I had a team of pensioners pressing me I'd just chip it over them and run past.

 

[Ernest]

No point appointing any new manager unless we get the players to play his way so hopefully the boozers brigade and the high maintenance foreigners will be shipped out

 

[Kosh]

I’ve made it out of bed, had a herbal tea, read every single viewpoint on here, considered all sides of the respective arguments re what this appointment might bring and...

And...

I think it’s important to state I don’t wish GP any ill fortune and I would never wish to see my club struggle or lose games just to prove or score ‘internet’ points on a pointless forum. However, next season will, I suspect, be one of significant transition, painful long goodbyes to players loyal to and integral to the CH years. It’s going to take a reasonable amount of time to GP to assemble a squad suited to his expansive and athletic style. Just about surviving is therefore about as much as we can aspire to... we could be deep in it or comfortably out of it, my hope is that we just survive. Thus I pray those jumping for joy are able to temper runaway expectations when the harsh reality of the PL (re)-bites.

If this is indeed the will of the board, then so be it. The club has my support and so will the new manager, but with expectations in line with sodding reality.

The style may change, the results may not. I hope people remember this when (perhaps) clamouring for a more pragmatic and safety first approach to get points on the board...

 

[dazzer6666]

You need pace to get back in position if it's lobbed over you. If I had a team of pensioners pressing me I'd just chip it over them and run past.

Or try to. Your hammy would probably ping before you got anywhere near the ball [emoji23][emoji23][emoji23][emoji23][emoji23]

 

[Bry Nylon]

Looks like Potter is a TRACKSUIT & TRAINERS manager

How do we all feel about this? I have grown accustomed to Hughton's impecable touchline tailoring, accessorised with a sober lambswool pullover or buttoned gillet. This may take some getting used to.

 

[seagullwedgee]

I don't think we'll be starting with Glenn Murray up front and the other 10 operating within the same 20 yards of space in their own half.

Andone can press but can he keep his cool? Izqueirdo can press but his strength (when fit) is running at people. And as pointed out by [MENTION=10202]Not Andy Naylor[/MENTION] on a similar thread, our back four is far too slow to push up too high. As observed by me, Stephens is too slow and doesn't look that fit (for me it's a bigger issue than his passing) yet operates as a CDM.

So my issue with Potter is not what he will want us to do, but that we have half the squad that can't do it.

I assume, however, that bringing in Potter and his back room staff will cost around 10 million. Having invested that we have to back it up with player investment.

Agreed. If players at this level cannot perform at peak physical endurance levels then they should be toast. I expect GP to be tough on this. We should expect to see some of our own long term payers up their game considerably. Someone mentioned complacency on another thread. We now have the best Chairman (genuine fan), best CEO, best technical director, and now perhaps the best fledgling first team head coach talent, so we have the lot, and we have some money to spend on recruitment that works, not like the last £80m that might as well have been spent over the bar in the Nelson. What a night that would have been.

I am very, very positive about what TB is constructing here. And I use the word constructing wisely.

 

[Guinness Boy]

You bin the manager. Because the problem isn't ever actually on the pitch. And you can't bin half a team, now.

We're watching Sir Humphrey Appleby football:
"Something must be done. This is something. This must be done."

I completely disagree. This is a sea change. If we do not bring in several new players, bin off one or two CH favourites and start using the Academy players there is no point appointing Potter. It's a whole new direction and we can only do it about every x years, where "x" is greater than four-ish.