21 hours ago, Snedger said:

As much as I sympathise with Frank over not getting any reinforcements, his press conference outburst is not good at all and there is no good that can come from his words. We can only hope no harm is done such as upsetting the players and board or emboldening the opposition.

As for his words bringing him closer to the fans, that is the least of Frank’s problems. He’s a club legend. This came across to me as fear and weakness and certainly hasn’t raised his stock in my eyes.

 

I wonder if Frank isn’t the messiah after all. Maybe we’ve not got the right club legend yet. I can’t help but ponder whether JT is the legend who’ll eventually lead us back to the holly land of league champions.

Gawwdd !! Where is all of this coming from ? In every job in the world you need to negotiate and put pressure on colleagues and demand better..  Se of the best innovation happens when there is conflict.. 

infact Frank has done absolutely the right thing by putting pressure on the board and warning his players that they have not been good enough.. it brings in the right checks and balances ..  for a club our size we should have done better in the window. 

I would have been more worried if he would have not called a spade a spade and acted as ayes man.. every coach worth his salt complains about transfers..

so on the basis of this interview that someone else would have done better is strange in my opinion.

23 minutes ago, KonaKai Blue said:

Well that good 2013 scouting was mostly down  to Emanalo, who was made a scapegoat by 90% of the fans just because his face didn't fit. Now look he's gone (rejoice) and we are nowhere near better off. Prime reason why fans would make bad owners.

Didn’t he oversee the Baka, DD, Barkley,Zappa,Morata window too?

4 hours ago, Spiller86 said:

I think the challenge is that we're not entirely at the races for the Sanchos and Werners compared to others who might come in for them. 

Look at Leicester and Dortmund for the model we may have to pursue. That requires a reboot of our scouting and recruitment approach. More 2013 and less 2018.

Leicester and Dortmund are great clubs, but they consistantly sell their best players to big clubs, and they dont spend alot on transfers. 

The reason why dortmund attract so many good young players, is becsuse they are a stepping stone club. 

We are still a financial power house, maybe not as much as we were, but enough that we can spend big, and still keep hold of our best players. 

The Emanalo approach around 2012-2014, is much more difficult to acheive in todays market, with vastly inflated transfer fees, and amyone with potential moving for a premium. 

I think we need to look at the scouting and recruitment process at liverpool, Juventus, Bayern. Teams with similar financial power, but also compete in domestic and european competition. 

Dortmund and Leicester would be a backwards step in my opinion.

23 hours ago, Snedger said:

As much as I sympathise with Frank over not getting any reinforcements, his press conference outburst is not good at all and there is no good that can come from his words. We can only hope no harm is done such as upsetting the players and board or emboldening the opposition.

As for his words bringing him closer to the fans, that is the least of Frank’s problems. He’s a club legend. This came across to me as fear and weakness and certainly hasn’t raised his stock in my eyes.

 

I wonder if Frank isn’t the messiah after all. Maybe we’ve not got the right club legend yet. I can’t help but ponder whether JT is the legend who’ll eventually lead us back to the holly land of league champions.

Great players don’t necessarily make great managers, however give the geezer a bit of rope. Don’t pretend to know the inns and outs of FL and JT’s respective intelligence, JT’s never struck me as a front runner in the IQ stakes.

Ps Who ever said Frank was the Messiah?

23 hours ago, Snedger said:

As much as I sympathise with Frank over not getting any reinforcements, his press conference outburst is not good at all and there is no good that can come from his words. We can only hope no harm is done such as upsetting the players and board or emboldening the opposition.

As for his words bringing him closer to the fans, that is the least of Frank’s problems. He’s a club legend. This came across to me as fear and weakness and certainly hasn’t raised his stock in my eyes.

 

I wonder if Frank isn’t the messiah after all. Maybe we’ve not got the right club legend yet. I can’t help but ponder whether JT is the legend who’ll eventually lead us back to the holly land of league champions.

Great players don’t necessarily make great managers, however give the geezer a bit of rope. Don’t pretend to know the inns and outs of FL and JT’s respective intelligence, JT’s never struck me as a front runner in the IQ stakes.

Ps Who ever said Frank was the Messiah?

23 hours ago, Snedger said:

As much as I sympathise with Frank over not getting any reinforcements, his press conference outburst is not good at all and there is no good that can come from his words. We can only hope no harm is done such as upsetting the players and board or emboldening the opposition.

As for his words bringing him closer to the fans, that is the least of Frank’s problems. He’s a club legend. This came across to me as fear and weakness and certainly hasn’t raised his stock in my eyes.

 

I wonder if Frank isn’t the messiah after all. Maybe we’ve not got the right club legend yet. I can’t help but ponder whether JT is the legend who’ll eventually lead us back to the holly land of league champions.

Great players don’t necessarily make great managers, however give the geezer a bit of rope. Don’t pretend to know the inns and outs of FL and JT’s respective intelligence, JT’s never struck me as a front runner in the IQ stakes.

Ps Who ever said Frank was the Messiah?

23 hours ago, Snedger said:

As much as I sympathise with Frank over not getting any reinforcements, his press conference outburst is not good at all and there is no good that can come from his words. We can only hope no harm is done such as upsetting the players and board or emboldening the opposition.

As for his words bringing him closer to the fans, that is the least of Frank’s problems. He’s a club legend. This came across to me as fear and weakness and certainly hasn’t raised his stock in my eyes.

 

I wonder if Frank isn’t the messiah after all. Maybe we’ve not got the right club legend yet. I can’t help but ponder whether JT is the legend who’ll eventually lead us back to the holly land of league champions.

Great players don’t necessarily make great managers, however give the geezer a bit of rope. Don’t pretend to know the inns and outs of FL and JT’s respective intelligence, JT’s never struck me as a front runner in the IQ stakes.

Ps Who ever said Frank was the Messiah?

23 hours ago, Snedger said:

As much as I sympathise with Frank over not getting any reinforcements, his press conference outburst is not good at all and there is no good that can come from his words. We can only hope no harm is done such as upsetting the players and board or emboldening the opposition.

As for his words bringing him closer to the fans, that is the least of Frank’s problems. He’s a club legend. This came across to me as fear and weakness and certainly hasn’t raised his stock in my eyes.

 

I wonder if Frank isn’t the messiah after all. Maybe we’ve not got the right club legend yet. I can’t help but ponder whether JT is the legend who’ll eventually lead us back to the holly land of league champions.

Great players don’t necessarily make great managers, however give the geezer a bit of rope. Don’t pretend to know the inns and outs of FL and JT’s respective intelligence, JT’s never struck me as a front runner in the IQ stakes.

Ps Who ever said Frank was the Messiah?

23 hours ago, Snedger said:

As much as I sympathise with Frank over not getting any reinforcements, his press conference outburst is not good at all and there is no good that can come from his words. We can only hope no harm is done such as upsetting the players and board or emboldening the opposition.

As for his words bringing him closer to the fans, that is the least of Frank’s problems. He’s a club legend. This came across to me as fear and weakness and certainly hasn’t raised his stock in my eyes.

 

I wonder if Frank isn’t the messiah after all. Maybe we’ve not got the right club legend yet. I can’t help but ponder whether JT is the legend who’ll eventually lead us back to the holly land of league champions.

Great players don’t necessarily make great managers, however give the geezer a bit of rope. Don’t pretend to know the inns and outs of FL and JT’s respective intelligence, JT’s never struck me as a front runner in the IQ stakes.

Ps Who ever said Frank was the Messiah?

Still liking frank as manager and we should remember he's learning on the job...but you can't deny he's making more and more mistakes lately...playing Abraham (and for so long) when he clearly wasn't fit at Leicester, going to terrible front nine which handed all initiative to Leicester and in general, I think his treatment of Giroud is outrageous 

Edited February 2, 20206 yr by The Brit

12 minutes ago, The Brit said:

playing Abraham (and for so long) when he clearly wasn't fit at Leicester, going to terrible front nine which handed all initiative to Leicester and in general, I think his treatment of Giroud is outrageous 

What was the option? Giroud wants out, Lampard wanted to let him go and bring in someone else but it didn't happen.
Lampard even said on deadline-day that sometimes it's just as important to get the unmotivated lads out as bringing players in.

“And not only have they signed a few but a couple of players have left, not being too crude about it, but they were coming towards the end of their contracts and weren’t happy being at the club any more.

“And that’s sometimes as important as bringing players in, that you can change the feeling of the group, if players are not willing to be there.

“So I think that’s smart business on that part, and now what remains to be seen will be seen"

And Batshuayi is clearly far from good enough so what was the option? Start with Barkley/Mount up top? Not for me.

Lampard have made mistakes over the course of the season as every manager in this league. But the biggest mistake of the season is the club's fault. And that mistake will cost us dearly.

Goalkeeper situation isn't nice, neither is the left back situation. I must admit though Azpi was quite good going forward against Leicester, but still, if you put him on his left foot you've limited that that side of the field. Striker options are very poor, we're going to run Tammy into the ground at this rate. 

Not signing anyone in January is a big gamble, I understand the arguments people have made, but a new LB or backup striker wouldn't have broken the bank would it. A keeper yes, you're lucky at a big fee there unfortunately and January isn't a wise time to buy one. 

3 minutes ago, Sindre said:

What was the option? Giroud wants out, Lampard wanted to let him go and bring in someone else but it didn't happen.
Lampard even said on deadline-day that sometimes it's just as important to get the unmotivated lads out as bringing players in.

“And not only have they signed a few but a couple of players have left, not being too crude about it, but they were coming towards the end of their contracts and weren’t happy being at the club any more.

“And that’s sometimes as important as bringing players in, that you can change the feeling of the group, if players are not willing to be there.

“So I think that’s smart business on that part, and now what remains to be seen will be seen"

And Batshuayi is clearly far from good enough so what was the option? Start with Barkley/Mount up top? Not for me.

Lampard have made mistakes over the course of the season as every manager in this league. But the biggest mistake of the season is the club's fault. And that mistake will cost us dearly.

Lampard’s persistence on playing Kante was 100% his fault, there's a fair share of blame here. 

I blame the board for the majority of our issues. Never supported previous managers after we won the league, unlike City who strengthened immediately after winning the league. 

The board also brought in mediocre players and thoroughly wasted £100-200m. 

Not having a clear, concise plan for our youth and academy players. It has always been about sending them on loan, season after season without a route to the first team squad. 

Getting rid of players who otherwise would have made us a better side or were not given enough time, i.e. Salah, KDB, Lukaku, Falcao, Felipe Luis. 

The club has been up to their old tricks for 5+ seasons. It is the same thing almost every season. Instead of splashing out on genuine top class player/s, they spend the same amount for 3/4 bang average players who have hindered our progress and not improved us whatsoever. 

Money wasted by the club on average players: 

Morata = £58m 

Bakayoko = £40m 

Drinkwater = £30m+ 

Barkley = £15m 

Zappacosta = £22m 

Emerson = £18m 

Batshuayi = £35m 

Baba Rahman = £18m 

Kennedy = £7m 

Remy = £11m 

Cuadrado = £27m 

Torres = £50m 

The above are players who have barely played for us or have played but not improved us and have been average. 

I put Torres because we went for him over Aguero. I believe we would have been in a far better position had we bought Aguero instead. 

We may have won the CL and league titles since Torres signed, but the club haven't been consistent enough in strengthening when we were on top. 

more than subs i think what i would have wanted Lamps and Morris to have a solution for was our situation on the right where they completely shut us off in the second half.. It could have been as simple as WIlly trying to find Christensen or James more often or asking CHO to withdraw a little from a high starting position.. But Rodgers managed to stop our threat going forward focussing play through the left and we never responded..

4 hours ago, Sindre said:

What was the option? Giroud wants out, Lampard wanted to let him go and bring in someone else but it didn't happen.
Lampard even said on deadline-day that sometimes it's just as important to get the unmotivated lads out as bringing players in.

“And not only have they signed a few but a couple of players have left, not being too crude about it, but they were coming towards the end of their contracts and weren’t happy being at the club any more.

“And that’s sometimes as important as bringing players in, that you can change the feeling of the group, if players are not willing to be there.

“So I think that’s smart business on that part, and now what remains to be seen will be seen"

And Batshuayi is clearly far from good enough so what was the option? Start with Barkley/Mount up top? Not for me.

Lampard have made mistakes over the course of the season as every manager in this league. But the biggest mistake of the season is the club's fault. And that mistake will cost us dearly.

And why did Giroud want out? Because he's barely kicked a ball all season and tammy, who deserves to be first choice, has been flogged far too much and is increasingly showing the strain. Hazard called Giroud best target man in the game to play off last season and Yet he's never even in the squad now...not saying he should start every week, but frank could have involved him a lot more, even off the bench.

batshuayi is obviously flawed but is kind of guy that can get you a goal out of nothing. By bringing Barkley and William on as false nine at Leicester we surrendered any chance of winning the game. Bizarre when a win would have set us up well for Man Utd and Tottenham games.

16 minutes ago, The Brit said:

And why did Giroud want out? Because he's barely kicked a ball all season and tammy, who deserves to be first choice, has been flogged far too much and is increasingly showing the strain. Hazard called Giroud best target man in the game to play off last season and Yet he's never even in the squad now...not saying he should start every week, but frank could have involved him a lot more, even off the bench.

batshuayi is obviously flawed but is kind of guy that can get you a goal out of nothing. By bringing Barkley and William on as false nine at Leicester we surrendered any chance of winning the game. Bizarre when a win would have set us up well for Man Utd and Tottenham games.

He's wanted to leave since last summer due to not being first choice. Now he's been kept against his wishes for two transfer windows. He's not motivated to be here and someone like that is no good. Look at Eriksens performances for Spurs before he was allowed to go to Inter. 

You do know why Giroud wanted to leave right? Game time so he can stay as Frances first choice forward.

Dont you think now he has to stay he will work his tail off to achieve that? He left Arsenal to join us for game time that helped him win the World cup. 

Say what you want, no doubt in my mind Giroud would have given his all if used yesterday and may have won us the game.

1 hour ago, Sindre said:

He's wanted to leave since last summer due to not being first choice. Now he's been kept against his wishes for two transfer windows. He's not motivated to be here and someone like that is no good. Look at Eriksens performances for Spurs before he was allowed to go to Inter. 

Had the board signed another striker Giroud would have been sold this January. But since nobodoy went in, nobody went out. 

If Tottenham had signed Giroud he would be their first choice striker for every remaining game this season.

It's a difficult situation for Frank because he doesn't have anyone prolific in the front line, it's all well and good playing Giroud up top when you've got Hazard running off him but completely different when Willian and a young teenager are partnering him up top. 

I don't blame the board all that much either as clearly there weren't many Strikers around in the Jan window, ourselves United and Spurs were all after a front man and none of us managed to secure one which should tell us about the lack of quality in the Jan market. 

It is understandable that Frank's frustrated and has probably tried to send a message to fans and board alike with his decisions during the Leicester game however I reckon he has got it out of his system and now can focus on securing top 4.

2 minutes ago, Davey Baby said:

If Tottenham had signed Giroud he would be their first choice striker for every remaining game this season.

The improvement he would have brought to Son, Alli and co would have been absurd.

15 minutes ago, Gol15 said:

Had the board signed another striker Giroud would have been sold this January. But since nobodoy went in, nobody went out. 

Yes, which is my point. Kept although he wants to leave. 

13 minutes ago, Sindre said:

Yes, which is my point. Kept although he wants to leave. 

The club simply can't risk with having only Tammy and Michy. Giroud just didn't play well in his last game when he was the starter and while it's unfair to judge him for one bad game, it's most likely due to his performance in training that he doesn't get any chance, Lampard has been fair when it comes to that, if the player shows during practice that he's good enough he'll get his chance.

The club has been too nice to the players, Cech wanted to stay in London no problem we sold him to Arsenal, Matic wanted to go to Mourinho no problem, Mata to ManUtd no problem...No way that we should help Spuds in any way by selling them Giroud, I just don't see why we would do it. He just needs to be a professional till the summer, Lampard has said that his attitude was on point during the whole transfer window. 

3 hours ago, enigma said:

I blame the board for the majority of our issues. Never supported previous managers after we won the league, unlike City who strengthened immediately after winning the league. 

The board also brought in mediocre players and thoroughly wasted £100-200m. 

Not having a clear, concise plan for our youth and academy players. It has always been about sending them on loan, season after season without a route to the first team squad. 

Getting rid of players who otherwise would have made us a better side or were not given enough time, i.e. Salah, KDB, Lukaku, Falcao, Felipe Luis. 

The club has been up to their old tricks for 5+ seasons. It is the same thing almost every season. Instead of splashing out on genuine top class player/s, they spend the same amount for 3/4 bang average players who have hindered our progress and not improved us whatsoever. 

Money wasted by the club on average players: 

Morata = £58m 

Bakayoko = £40m 

Drinkwater = £30m+ 

Barkley = £15m 

Zappacosta = £22m 

Emerson = £18m 

Batshuayi = £35m 

Baba Rahman = £18m 

Kennedy = £7m 

Remy = £11m 

Cuadrado = £27m 

Torres = £50m 

The above are players who have barely played for us or have played but not improved us and have been average. 

I put Torres because we went for him over Aguero. I believe we would have been in a far better position had we bought Aguero instead. 

We may have won the CL and league titles since Torres signed, but the club haven't been consistent enough in strengthening when we were on top. 

I was completely on Conte's side when he was here about the board, but now that I've seen Conte's behaviour at Inter and the signings he's made, I actually think he was more of a problem than the board. 

Remember when he contradicted himself? He was shouting for several players in each position, saying Chelsea don't have rotation options in his first season. Second season we sign a f**kload of players, most of them terrible, and he starts saying that we signed too many players, what you need to do is get 2-3 world class ones and that's it... When he was clearly implying we needed rotational players a year before. 

So it's not that cut and dry really, it's complex, we don't know the ins and outs.