Install the app
How to install the app on iOS

Follow along with the video below to see how to install our site as a web app on your home screen.

Note: This feature may not be available in some browsers.

 

2020/21 Carlo Ancelotti

Status
Not open for further replies.
Gordon will score given the chance, he’s a young lad You can’t go looking at a young lads goal scoring stats saying he won’t scored based on the rare games he’s played already

He hasn't carried any threat for me. I'm sorry, but I just dont agree with the "play the youth and everything will be alright" mentality. Our young players haven't been able to make the step up since Barkley.
 
We needed another striker, we should have got a right back, we should have got a new keeper, we should have got a wide player, we should have got a third midfielder.

Easy to say all those things but going into the summer the priority, and everyone was in agreement on this was to get midfielders in. Last season we were getting dominated home and away by pretty much any team. Allan and Doucoure were duly added and now apart from Southampton away from home, there hasn’t been any games when we’ve played the three in midfield that we’ve been absolutely dominated in like we saw last season. Even Newcastle and Burnley away we still controlled the midfield most of the time.

Thanks to the FFP constraints we find ourselves in though we can’t fix all the problems of the squad at the same time. Holgate and Branthwaite’s injuries didn’t help because it meant having to buy another centreback rather than using the funds elsewhere.

Apart from those three signings though, we’ve had to get James on a free, a youth left back who couldn’t get in the Marseille team and is only in the squad because Baines retired, and a second choice goalkeeper on loan. We’ve also had to shift wages off the books with Kean and Walcott

So now the midfield isn’t so much of a problem but the defence is creaking at the seams with Coleman and Digne injured and we’ve got zero cover across the front line.

These are all symptoms of us continuing to work through the legacy problems that Martinez Koeman Walsh Allardyce and Silva left us with. People may say that was years ago why does it affect now, but the reason is that we only have a limited amount of money we can pay the first team squad, players not good enough for where we want to be are on big wages yet have little market value and no suitors: Sigurdsson Tosun Pickford Kenny Keane Davies Delph Mina Bernard are not good enough for a top 6 team yet are all on big contracts and big wages awarded under previous managers (apart from the ludicrous extension of Keane). We need to clear that financial millstone from round our necks to allow us the room to get in players who can push the first team so that when Richarlison isn’t on it we can bring him off, we can rest Rodriguez, we can rotate DCL. That’s what all the other top 6 clubs are able to do. We have to play them all the time because we bring Sigurdsson or Bernard off the bench and it’s like playing with ten men. All the first team know that no matter what they do no one is good enough to take their place so they mentally slack off leading to inconsistency.

Ancelotti needs time to build a squad of 22 quality players. If we fire him, we’ll just spend a load of money appointing another manager who might not even be as good, and he’ll have exactly the same problem except there’ll be even less money to play with.
 

Thanks to the FFP constraints we find ourselves in though we can’t fix all the problems of the squad at the same time.
Man City don't seem to have this constraint - Everton have ample players in the U20s that are simply not given any opportunity AT ALL to even get into the bench for the senior team. I would sooner have a 50% fit Gordon in the side over Sigs or Delph
 
We needed another striker, we should have got a right back, we should have got a new keeper, we should have got a wide player, we should have got a third midfielder.

Easy to say all those things but going into the summer the priority, and everyone was in agreement on this was to get midfielders in. Last season we were getting dominated home and away by pretty much any team. Allan and Doucoure were duly added and now apart from Southampton away from home, there hasn’t been any games when we’ve played the three in midfield that we’ve been absolutely dominated in like we saw last season. Even Newcastle and Burnley away we still controlled the midfield most of the time.

Thanks to the FFP constraints we find ourselves in though we can’t fix all the problems of the squad at the same time. Holgate and Branthwaite’s injuries didn’t help because it meant having to buy another centreback rather than using the funds elsewhere.

Apart from those three signings though, we’ve had to get James on a free, a youth left back who couldn’t get in the Marseille team and is only in the squad because Baines retired, and a second choice goalkeeper on loan. We’ve also had to shift wages off the books with Kean and Walcott

So now the midfield isn’t so much of a problem but the defence is creaking at the seams with Coleman and Digne injured and we’ve got zero cover across the front line.

These are all symptoms of us continuing to work through the legacy problems that Martinez Koeman Walsh Allardyce and Silva left us with. People may say that was years ago why does it affect now, but the reason is that we only have a limited amount of money we can pay the first team squad, players not good enough for where we want to be are on big wages yet have little market value and no suitors: Sigurdsson Tosun Pickford Kenny Keane Davies Delph Mina Bernard are not good enough for a top 6 team yet are all on big contracts and big wages awarded under previous managers (apart from the ludicrous extension of Keane). We need to clear that financial millstone from round our necks to allow us the room to get in players who can push the first team so that when Richarlison isn’t on it we can bring him off, we can rest Rodriguez, we can rotate DCL. That’s what all the other top 6 clubs are able to do. We have to play them all the time because we bring Sigurdsson or Bernard off the bench and it’s like playing with ten men. All the first team know that no matter what they do no one is good enough to take their place so they mentally slack off leading to inconsistency.

Ancelotti needs time to build a squad of 22 quality players. If we fire him, we’ll just spend a load of money appointing another manager who might not even be as good, and he’ll have exactly the same problem except there’ll be even less money to play with.

A striker is what we don't need - we need someone to replace Sigs, Delph, Gomez and Bernard - none of them are strikers. Having them in the side is like gifting a goal to the opposition
 
I'd be happy to bring him on in games but if I think logically, I can understand why a manager doesn't. Hes shown a lot of pace and energy but in his opportunities, he's not looked a goal threat.

We have literally 2 players who carry a goal threat.

Ok, some claim that Ancelotti needs 3/4 years, but they do not specify what he needs 3/4 years for. Anyway, if you consider this a long-term project, wouldn't it be wiser to give younger players playing time over players who are most likely to be sold? It is an investment in the future.
 
Ok, some claim that Ancelotti needs 3/4 years, but they do not specify what he needs 3/4 years for. Anyway, if you consider this a long-term project, wouldn't it be wiser to give younger players playing time over players who are most likely to be sold? It is an investment in the future.

Its only worthwhile if Ancelotti genuinely believes they have the ability. None of us know that.
 

Just watching west ham v United. Jared Bowen is causing utd all sorts of problems, and he's been good all season. Fast, energetic, clever, determined....Everything most of our players aren't. Why cant we sign players of his ilk instead of the likes of delph, siggy, schneiderlein etc?

I'm sure west ham got him from the lower leagues. Is it really that difficult to spot and sign players like him? Our squad is crying out for the Jared Bowen's of this world, not crab like sloths.

Who is to blame for our recruitment?
 
Man City don't seem to have this constraint - Everton have ample players in the U20s that are simply not given any opportunity AT ALL to even get into the bench for the senior team. I would sooner have a 50% fit Gordon in the side over Sigs or Delph

Maybe because Man City have massive commercial revenues that we don’t have plus over a decade of uninterrupted champions league football money. They also tend to spend their money on good players so when they bought Aguero Fernandinho De Bruyne Laporte etc. they improved with it so didn’t have to plug these positions in the team again. We splashed out millions in 17/18 on a whole new spine for the team and they all weren’t good enough, and the players we got in after that haven’t been good enough either.
 
To be fair to Carlo our recruitment has been all over the place, but I don’t agree that he himself cannot come in for criticism. You have to question what’s gone on in that dressing room to have gone from 13 points from 15 to 1 win in 6 after it
The only criticism I can give Carlo is trying to play with 3 at the back without out and out wing backs AKA Digne and Coleman. Even then I just think the formation stinks. Too defensive too deep. Two central midfielders boxed in and DCL isolated.
The main problem has been squad depth though. We’ve still got utter [Poor language removed] on our books. We need another forward thinking central midfielder and a RB & LB to cover then cover for DCL.
 
Just watching west ham v United. Jared Bowen is causing utd all sorts of problems, and he's been good all season. Fast, energetic, clever, determined....Everything most of our players aren't. Why cant we sign players of his ilk instead of the likes of delph, siggy, schneiderlein etc?

I'm sure they got him from the lower leagues. Is it really that difficult to spot and sign players like him? Our squad is crying out for the Jared Bowen's of this world, not crab like sloths.

Who is to blame for our recruitment?
Just been thinking same, Soucek and Declan Rice would be great too, West Ham look completely different. Happy we've got Carlo and is the right man for the job but please bin Delph and this 343 off, not seen anything to suggest it works
 

Status
Not open for further replies.

Welcome to GrandOldTeam

Get involved. Registration is simple and free.

Back
Top