Next Coach?

May 13May 13

26 minutes ago, RMH said:
I agree, I was just responding to a particular take on some coaches by Bisright. Name it crumble under pressure or couldn't handle the highly poisonous changing room, but why would we think that Alonso can handle the present Club culture?

RM dwarfs Chelsea for poison.

bisright1
1

May 13May 13

2 minutes ago, Sconnie Blue said:
David Ornstein is reporting that not only are the club exploring a deal for Alonso (who is open to the move) but that more recruitment is planned. Getting Alonso is just the first step.
Doesn't go into detail if that means changes upstairs.

Interesting. Ornstein is usually more reliable than most of them.

May 13May 13

1 hour ago, dermott said:
His sin? He had the nerve to try to implement tactics to overcome what had become a major issue post-Kroos: no midfield control. Various players with oversized egos told him to f**k off. He didn't crumble under pressure, he was chewed up and spat out by a dysfunctional organisation.

Supposedly a fight on the training pitch there this week. I can see why theyre considering Jose, would literally pick players up and dump them in a bin.

Would mean some players becoming available. I wonder if Mbappe would like a stint in west london, blue of France and Chelsea... only city could afford that bugger.

May 13May 13

5 minutes ago, bluelightening said:
Supposedly a fight on the training pitch there this week. I can see why theyre considering Jose, would literally pick players up and dump them in a bin.
Would mean some players becoming available. I wonder if Mbappe would like a stint in west london, blue of France and Chelsea... only city could afford that bugger.

Tchouaméni and Valverde. It continued in the dressing room. Mourinho is as undisciplined and ego-driven these days as their worst offenders. Bring it on!

May 13May 13

1 hour ago, RMH said:
Similarly, Alonso probably had no pressure at Leverkusen while he crumbled under the high pressure environment of Real Madrid.

70% win rate at RM. I'd take that level of crumbling to be honest

AndyDowsleftflank, erskblue and BordeauxBlue
3

May 13May 13

Here’s his quotes:

“The information we have is that Chelsea are exploring a deal for Xabi Alonso and that he would be open to this possibility. It would seem that Alonso is at the forefront of Chelsea’s minds at the moment but the process continues. Expect news in next days / weeks. (@David_Ornstein @TheAthleticFC podcast)”

May 13May 13

3 minutes ago, JM7 said:
Here’s his quotes:
“The information we have is that Chelsea are exploring a deal for Xabi Alonso and that he would be open to this possibility. It would seem that Alonso is at the forefront of Chelsea’s minds at the moment but the process continues. Expect news in next days / weeks. (@David_Ornstein @TheAthleticFC podcast)”

This was what I was referring to.

May 13May 13

1 hour ago, dermott said:
Tchouaméni and Valverde. It continued in the dressing room. Mourinho is as undisciplined and ego-driven these days as their worst offenders. Bring it on!

Absolutely bring it on... Whatever we may think of Jose, (i still think he walks on water despite the united and Spuds thing) he is phenomenal box office.

May 13May 13

BTW, can you imagine the smell at Anfield if we got top 4 over Liverpool with Alonso in charge! Its almost worth a punt just for that...

erskblue
1

May 13May 13

57 minutes ago, Sconnie Blue said:
This was what I was referring to.

We already know there will be more incomings, but they will all be under 22

Edited May 13May 13 by Caps_Lock_King

May 13May 13

2 hours ago, dermott said:
RM dwarfs Chelsea for poison.

It doesn’t make my point invalid, though.

May 13May 13

2 minutes ago, RMH said:
It doesn’t make my point invalid, though.

Your points are never invalid.

May 13May 13

My dog just pissed on the floor. Everyone’s a football critic these days.

TheCeleryKing, PhilH930, WhiteWall and 2 others
5

May 13May 13

2 hours ago, dermott said:
My dog just pissed on the floor. Everyone’s a football critic these days.

Yeah, blame it on the dog. Are you sure it wasn't a 'senior moment'?

dkw and Valerie
2

May 14May 14

9 hours ago, RMH said:
I agree, I was just responding to a particular take on some coaches by Bisright. Name it crumble under pressure or couldn't handle the highly poisonous changing room, but why would we think that Alonso can handle the present Club culture?

I don't think anyone realistically does. The SDs and owners are happy for someone to come in and 'rescue' them now, but he could win the league next season and they will not cede control. His success will be their credit. We saw this play out under Maresca after the CWC win, they made it out as justification for their decisions and the 'model' rather than the lucky bail-out it actually was. If even someone as gormless as Maresca eventually got tired of it, so too will anyone else with a modicum of self-respect.

The RM situation is more bizarre the more you read. Alonso naively tried to court the favour of Mbappe and Bellingham while sidelining Vinicius. Except Mbappe and Vinicius seem to be particularly close, so it became perceived as an attack on both of them, backfiring immensely. As early as October, Valverde was complaining about being shifted around positions during a defensive crisis, even though he apparently had no qualms doing so for Zidane. Tchouameni, who arguably was shafted by Ancelotti having to play CB and fullback to cover that defensive crisis, seems to absolutely adore Alonso who put him back in the heart of midfield. Arda Guler started getting a run and showed his talent as 10/8 hybrid, which put more pressure on Valverde and Bellingham. The big elephant in the room of course was that the 'star' player Mbappe was less experienced at winning in club football than most of the squad, and they were further off winning anything with him than before.

Obviously you can look at that and conclude that the players were at fault, but I don't think Alonso was blameless. From Valverde's perspective, he was one of the best box-to-box midfielders in the world for the last two years but was told to play utility. Tchouameni, a guy who was probably on his way out, was given a place in midfield instead and improved. Alonso tried to suck up to Mbappe and Bellingham but any one with half a brain would tell you that their petulance makes them poor leaders. Vinicius had come off a slight downturn but rather than being built up, his role was diminished. There are shades of AVB, Sarri, Amorim etc and I think this is the inherent conflict that comes with these "system" managers. It isn't their tactics that end them, it's how they fail to get key players to buy in.

That said - none of the above really applies to Chelsea's lot. We're a bunch of kids and a sad sack of sorry losers. Anyone should be able to come in here and kick them into shape. The problem is always going to be meddling from above.

Chris Gundleton, PloKoon13, TheCeleryKing and 6 others
8
1

May 14May 14

RM is a strange club, failing to do well there means little. Plenty of great managers and players have gone on to bigger and better things once leaving.

As for the SD’s taking any glory for any success our new manager brings well that ship has sailed,other than in their own little clicks and sycophant circles and egotistical minds because everyone in football will know the truth and that is the wheels were completely falling off until they abandoned their failed project and got in someone who knew what they are doing.

If they want credit for doing their job of hiring a competent manager then first make it happen then knock yourselves out there’s 5 of them they could huddle or form a jerk circle,go wild!