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2020/21 Carlo Ancelotti

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I tend to take a long view on these things and in truth most things. Shortterm ups and downs don't worry me as much if I can see a longer term picture.

He took over a team who were 18th under the last previous manager (albeit underachieving in 18th but 18th none the less). He dragged us to 49 points, averaging about 60 points per season over thagt 1st half season. To be honest this was very good. Whichever way you want to look at it, it was very good. There's an argument this season we haven't kicked on at all from that point, and will likely finish around 60 points. Thats fair enough and probably more a criticism to be looked at going into next year. What can't be doubted though, is we have made huge strides forward in the 50 games he has been here.

I do think we have been very unlucky this year. We have had a worse injury crisis than Liverpool, who will likely lose 30 points on last season as a result, yet we will be maintaining performance. There were 12 players injured yesterday, and we ended a game with Sigurdsson and James in midfield, neither of them able to run. James was done on 70. I've never known a season like it for injuries for us, or frankly for any other club. It's been insane.

My big criticism for Ancelotti this season was that he moved away from the solid back 4 of 4 CB's. There were games when they were available, like Newcastle at home, Burnley at home and Fulham at home where had we have kept them, I don't think we would have conceded and, may have scored one up the other end. Even if we had just kept 3 clean sheets, we would have 5 more points, and would be favourites for the top 4. It's small margins, but that to me was his biggest mistake. He has kept trying to re-invent the wheel, and thats not always easy to do. It doesn't surprise me that our loss of form coincides with those 4 players not being played together.

Even yesterday, while we didn't play them as a 4, having 4 of them on the pitch led to another clean sheet. Anyway we are going in the right direction. A top 8 finish, with 20+ players injured this season and an awful home record which will have to improve next year wth fans (look at our performance when some fans were in) gives us a good base to build on. Hopefully players stay fit, and the lads return from loan as better players.
 

My tuppence worth;

1. I am still happy to have Ancelotti here, I hope he can remain for a long time. We absolutely do not need further instability.
2. It will be hugely disappointing not to achieve Europe this season. A significant blow in the context of our enthusiasm, early expectation, and inconsistency of some other teams around us.
3. It's a legitimate question to ask who succeeds Ancelotti if he left early? We would face serious difficulties in getting a credible candidate in my opinion.
4. In no way does Ancelotti get a free pass. I'm hugely concerned at how the squad seem to have slipped back into demotivated apathy, he has not been flexible enough with tactics/shape and has been too negative. There does need to be a tangible bonus to having him as our manager which seems to have evaporated now.
5. All things considered, and for the long-term good of the club, he must absolutely be given the opportunity to try and secure Europe for us next season. Injuries have been crippling and he surely deserves the chance the add to the squad with some extra signings.
6. Nobody gets unlimited chances, if we are stuck in this position this time next season, and we see West Ham playing in Europe, then absolutely I think its more than reasonable then to ask where this is going and what Ancelotti's own assessment is.
7. Brands has been disastrous and in no way should have his contract extended. Three years is more than enough time to see the general direction of travel here. Let Ancelotti continue in control of transfers for the summer. We don't need to immediately hire a replacement DOF. That can be reviewed internally. I don't see that it has brought us any benefits at all.
 
ForeverBlue92 said:
I think Carlo has certainly improved some of the players and I wouldn't say he's done a bad job here overall - but I just get this nagging feeling that unless we make wholesale changes at club level i.e revamp of the medic/fitness staff, removal of Brands/possibly scouts at the club and a good 5-6 very good signings this summer early doors and none of this scrambling around on deadline day then he himself has a glass ceiling at the club which isn't worth the wages he's been paid.

All the previous managers post Moyes whilst different in style of play ultimately were very similiar in personality / style of management:

Koeman / Alladyce - would rather be elsewhere

Martinez / Silva - church mouse management with naive/stubborn tendencies.

Carlo is slightly different in that he seems to want to be here and whilst slightly stubborn he does change things but I dont know if thats enough when for me this sort of club needs a manager who has a firm hand and doesn't accept performances that the likes of Iwobi, Siggurdsson, Gomes, Holgate, even Richarlison and DCL this season have put in at times.

Not hyping Biesla up but if he was manager for example Siggurdsson doesn't play if he doesn't run his socks off and some 18 yr old plucked out the academy does / system is tweaked to find a position for someone who does run - whereas he gets made captain under Carlo thats the point im sort of trying to make.
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I think it’s obvious he prefers experience over youth. But if the experienced players haven’t the quality, then surely he will have to change.

We will soon see if he wants better experienced players or he’s happy to try and coach a few younger ones.

Bielsa has been at Leeds 3 seasons and every player knows the system. Ancelotti’s style is different, we all know that. But he needs to make up his mind the system and stick to it for 90% of the time,

We’ve played 433, 442, 532, 4231. And a diamond.
 
Ancelotti said:
After Pep, Carlo is the best manager in the league, probably world football.

And some of yous want to sack him??

we don’t deserve nice things
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I think very very few want him sacked. He’s not immune from criticism though and when we are playing crap - and we have been for a long while - I think that criticism is fair enough.
 

Seathestars said:
He took over a good team, compared to Carlo who took over the Nags Head
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It's hard to compare, and LFC had a better starting point than us. The club has to spend far more money to close the gap. Nevertheless, Klopp had a rising curve on most indicators. You could clearly see that their game was getting better and better, and there was a clear direction. One understood what they were trying to do. It is not until now that their curve has been downward. The development of Everton has been more like a parable on most indicators. While Klopp's LFC got more and more energy, our energy level has flattened out. But let's wait and see what happens next season.
 
Seathestars said:
He took over a good team, compared to Carlo who took over the Nags Head
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Liverpool’s starting XI v Spurs: Mignolet, Clyne, Skrtel, Sakho, Moreno, Leiva, Can, Milner, Lallana (replaced by Allen), Coutinho (replaced by Ibe), Origi
Subs: Toure, Allen, Ibe, Bogdan, Sinclair, Vilaca Teixeira, Randall

Is that seriously any better than our squad?
 
gwladysnight said:
Ancelotti is stuck in 80's/90s negative Italian football. Bielsa is a progressive manager looking to push the boundaries.
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It's a cunning plan from a great thinker. Clearly, a man who is as cunning as a fox who's just been appointed Professor of Cunning at Oxford University, no less! Carlo isn't performing well so what we need to do is get a manager who is performing worse in the same league.

I like the cut of your jib, sir!
 
Stephenlloyd said:
I think it’s obvious he prefers experience over youth. But if the experienced players haven’t the quality, then surely he will have to change.

We will soon see if he wants better experienced players or he’s happy to try and coach a few younger ones.

Bielsa has been at Leeds 3 seasons and every player knows the system. Ancelotti’s style is different, we all know that. But he needs to make up his mind the system and stick to it for 90% of the time,

We’ve played 433, 442, 532, 4231. And a diamond.
Click to expand...

Thats a big problem and reminds me of Jose at Utd - didnt seem to know what side/set up to stick with whereas OGS is a lesser manager but has found and stuck to a system which is slowly paying off.

You only get better at something by repeating it and for me Carlo changes things too much to be able to have the players build a consistent understanding/way of playing.

Injuries havent helped but just change the personnel not the entire system.
 

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