Next Manager Watch

[Ghost Hardware]

In all honesty, I think we need to stop looking at managers for their tactical set up and we need to look for the Fergie style of management, which is human focused, adaptable tactics. Poch was in this mould, Redknapp was in this mould. I'm not saying they are the same level as fergie (I know where I'm posting so I'll make that clear) but we need a manager who knows how to make the best of what they have and keep all the players on side even when they're on the bench, make the players feel trusted. If we focus on tactical approach, our squad will never fit the needs because we're always lurching from one disaster to the next, we need somebody who opens the fridge that is our squad and can make a meal no matter what they find. If the trait of our next manager is rigidity, whether they're attacking, defensive, counter, 3-4-3, 4-4-3, christmas pudding, it doesn't matter, they will fall flat imo because this club needs somebody who can adapt. That's why as funny as it sounds, that Fonseca would have probably been a good appointment but I'd say that Gallardo has shown he has that flexibility.

Gallardo is also known for how much he values the player’s mentality. One of the big reasons I want him isn’t just for his tactics or adaptability, which both fit perfectly, but the way he works with his players and his understanding that the mental aspect is just as important as the physical one.

I completely agree with what you say, by all accounts Conte, Nuno and Jose were often quite aloof. I’m sure that doesn’t help. Even if you go back to Poch’s final months he was also supposedly very withdrawn, which we all know was unusual for him. That means 3 managers plus the end of Poch all not being human focused, it’s really not that surprising that we start to see a big disconnect from the players on the pitch especially when things start going sideways.

 

[RuskyM]

Thomas Frank being linked more again today.

Whilst I don't like his style of play, long balls to Ivan Toney and long throws etc, I don't know if he is capable of coaching a more possession passing based approach, however one box his does tick in a massive way is that he is a very likeable positive character and I think our club and players and fans would hugely benefit from that, he builds people up, he's brave, he gives belief etc etc and he works on a tight budget.

Absolutely not one of my top choices but if it was him if he was able to coach a better style of football then that aside he could actually be a very very good fit.

This is going to sound very "Nuno's Valencia side were fun" but Frank's Brentford were genuinely a good attacking outfit, and it's impressive they've improved every season despite losing Benrahma/Watkins/Eriksen. He's also pretty clearly tactically intelligent - we're the only top six team they've not beaten since coming back, and three of those were by 3+ goals. I'm not sure he's top of the list but he's a very good manager.

 

[RuskyM]

Personally I thought Jose, Nuno and Conte were all poor fits with where and what we are as a club. Everyone was sick of project managers at the time but that's what I thought we needed with a new DoF and access to better quality players because of increased stadium revenue

Oh I personally agree but Mourinho and Conte were both seen as the winners to get us over the line - I don't think another long term build-up manager would've been an easy sell post Poch.

 

[y1dk1d]

The Thomas Frank links are what concerns me most. Seems like a top bloke and I really like Brentford, but his football is bad on the eye and I feel like it would be like the Nuno appointment whilst I fear the hierarchy think it would be like Poch

 

[Peterh1980]

Should be easy, Levy is such a good judge when it comes to these important decisions.

I know there isn’t a outright answer to this but in your opinion @Trix what is the best solution from our current sh*t show? (If there is such an outcome)?

 

[RuskyM]

The Thomas Frank links are what concerns me most. Seems like a top bloke and I really like Brentford, but his football is bad on the eye and I feel like it would be like the Nuno appointment whilst I fear the hierarchy think it would be like Poch

You could argue the reason they favour long balls to Toney is cos he's the best non-Norwegian robot in the league to handle it. He's certainly not wedded to it: the team he got promoted with didn't do it, for instance.

 

[Styopa]

Personally I thought Jose, Nuno and Conte were all poor fits with where and what we are as a club. Everyone was sick of project managers at the time but that's what I thought we needed with a new DoF and access to better quality players because of increased stadium revenue

Yes, I think this is right. People here tend to forget this now, but many fans thought we were on the verge of great things when Mourinho took over.

Things had gone stale with Poch, but we were in the final of the Champions League the previous summer. We had invested heavily in Ndombele and Lo Celso a few months before. Vertonghen, Alderwiereld and Eriksen were all still here. The narrative was mainly about Poch lacking the cutting edge to win something and Mourinho being the man to get us over the line. That story only changed a few months later to the squad not being good enough.

Something broke with the club when we hired Mourinho. We lost our way.

 

[fishhhandaricecake]

In all honesty, I think we need to stop looking at managers for their tactical set up and we need to look for the Fergie style of management, which is human focused, adaptable tactics. Poch was in this mould, Redknapp was in this mould. I'm not saying they are the same level as fergie (I know where I'm posting so I'll make that clear) but we need a manager who knows how to make the best of what they have and keep all the players on side even when they're on the bench, make the players feel trusted. If we focus on tactical approach, our squad will never fit the needs because we're always lurching from one disaster to the next, we need somebody who opens the fridge that is our squad and can make a meal no matter what they find. If the trait of our next manager is rigidity, whether they're attacking, defensive, counter, 3-4-3, 4-4-3, christmas pudding, it doesn't matter, they will fall flat imo because this club needs somebody who can adapt. That's why as funny as it sounds, that Fonseca would have probably been a good appointment but I'd say that Gallardo has shown he has that flexibility.

mate, we’ll obviously any new manager will need to be tactically astute ofc but we need a people manager a positive influence who can build the players and fans and club’s confidence back up, a la Jol, Redknapp, Poch previously.

It’s just the way our club is, we are a ‘nice’ club, we’ve always played nice football with good to watch stylish players and in the distant past we have been very successful but the landscape of football is completely different now with all the money.

One thing Jose, Nuno and Conte have shown is it’s not just their style of play but their personalities have been a bad fit for our club too.

The personality and man management style of the next manager has to be almost just as if not more important than their tactics although they absolutely cannot be another negative defensive low possession rigid style manager, the fans will not have that a 4th time in a row.

 

[funkycoldmedina]

Oh I personally agree but Mourinho and Conte were both seen as the winners to get us over the line - I don't think another long term build-up manager would've been an easy sell post Poch.

It shouldn't have been about that if Levy had a vision. Fans never know the right thing. Levy went for the shortcut to success and set us back 4 years

 

[zonbon32]

Frank is a weird one. They are an attacking side but it's not pretty and they very much stick to the basics. Good record vs the big teams but they seem to come unstuck against other middle of the road sides which would be a concern for sure

 

[HertsYid]

i was against Poch coming back as Its far to easy to see him through rose tinted glasses at the end before he was sacked.

but reading all this thread again, I just don't trust the current shower at the top table of this club to do anything right footballing wise so just get the man back in. At least after a few wins at home everyone will forget all our worries for a while and unite to get behind him (we will right!?!?!)

 

[Ghost Hardware]

This is going to sound very "Nuno's Valencia side were fun" but Frank's Brentford were genuinely a good attacking outfit, and it's impressive they've improved every season despite losing Benrahma/Watkins/Eriksen. He's also pretty clearly tactically intelligent - we're the only top six team they've not beaten since coming back, and three of those were by 3+ goals. I'm not sure he's top of the list but he's a very good manager.

I don’t think anyone doubts he’s a good manager, in fact most people on here are pretty positive of him. But like you say essentially hiring him would be the same as hiring Nuno in the sense it would be tactically based on a way he used to play in the past not what he plays now. If it was a choice between Frank and Glasner say then yes I would go Frank but in reality there are many different options out there. Considering he primarily plays long ball football we shouldn’t assume that he will change and even if he did change that his style of football would actually work.

Personally I think we need to look for a manager that tactically fits exactly what we want now rather then hoping he can change to fit once he’s here. I personally really can’t deal with anymore long ball football and if you look around the top leagues in Europe not many, if any, play that style of system.

 

[Ghost Hardware]

i was against Poch coming back as Its far to easy to see him through rose tinted glasses at the end before he was sacked.

but reading all this thread again, I just don't trust the current shower at the top table of this club to do anything right footballing wise so just get the man back in. At least after a few wins at home everyone will forget all our worries for a while and unite to get behind him (we will right!?!?!)

Yeah I’m sort of the same, personally I saw this as an opportunity for a fresh project but some of the names being favoured have got me so concerned that I’m very much warming to the idea of Poch back. Unfortunately I think he will almost certainly go to RM.

 

[Timberwolf]

Frank would be a solid, unexciting pick.

Problem for him is that he wouldn't be a popular choice and if he didn't start strongly or get immediate results, he wouldn't have attractive football or a history or trophies to fall back on to appease the fans. I think he could do quite well here given time, but after 4 years of watching shite-ball, the fans will be on a very short fuse if the football's not good and that alone could do for him.

I do think that, unlike Nuno, his charisma would buy him some time though. He's a very eloquent, likeable guy and I think the fan-base would warm to him on that level unlike Nuno who was about as charming as a trout with halitosis.

 

[Styopa]

i was against Poch coming back as Its far to easy to see him through rose tinted glasses at the end before he was sacked.

but reading all this thread again, I just don't trust the current shower at the top table of this club to do anything right footballing wise so just get the man back in. At least after a few wins at home everyone will forget all our worries for a while and unite to get behind him (we will right!?!?!)

As you say, we can't trust the board to make a good call now. There are many reasons not to appoint Poch, but we could end up with someone much worse.

I think you're being a bit optimistic about people uniting to get behind him though. There are many posters here who actively do not want him back- there are even multiple posts denigrating his past achievements here. I don't think it would take much for fans to turn on him.

 

[RuskyM]

I don’t think anyone doubts he’s a good manager, in fact most people on here are pretty positive of him. But like you say essentially hiring him would be the same as hiring Nuno in the sense it would be tactically based on a way he used to play in the past not what he plays now. If it was a choice between Frank and Glasner say then yes I would go Frank but in reality there are many different options out there. Considering he primarily plays long ball football we shouldn’t assume that he will change and even if he did change that his style of football would actually work.

Personally I think we need to look for a manager that tactically fits exactly what we want now rather then hoping he can change to fit once he’s here. I personally really can’t deal with anymore long ball football and if you look around the top leagues in Europe not many, if any, play that style of system.

Agreed, but worth mentioning Frank changed to more direct football to keep Brentford up. It does suggest at least an adaptable manager. Plus they just went on a 12 game unbeaten run, so it may be a case of don’t fix what isn’t broke.

 

[Bluto Blutarsky]

In all honesty, I think we need to stop looking at managers for their tactical set up and we need to look for the Fergie style of management, which is human focused, adaptable tactics. Poch was in this mould, Redknapp was in this mould. I'm not saying they are the same level as fergie (I know where I'm posting so I'll make that clear) but we need a manager who knows how to make the best of what they have and keep all the players on side even when they're on the bench, make the players feel trusted. If we focus on tactical approach, our squad will never fit the needs because we're always lurching from one disaster to the next, we need somebody who opens the fridge that is our squad and can make a meal no matter what they find. If the trait of our next manager is rigidity, whether they're attacking, defensive, counter, 3-4-3, 4-4-3, christmas pudding, it doesn't matter, they will fall flat imo because this club needs somebody who can adapt. That's why as funny as it sounds, that Fonseca would have probably been a good appointment but I'd say that Gallardo has shown he has that flexibility.

I do think that man management is often overlooked - but I disagree with the premise that we need a tactically adaptable manager.

If you want to improve as a squad - you need direction. You need to know where, and why, you need to improve certain positions. If you simply take the approach of "I'll just make what's in the fridge" then you will be mired in mediocrity - and have no plan for improvement.


Take the current flavor of the month - Arteta. He has always known how he wanted to play - and was willing to wait for the club to deliver the players he needed in specific positions. It was not about adaptability, it was about knowing how he wanted to play tactically, so that he could then identify the players needed.

This, of course, requires patience, which is in short supply at the club. I worry that too many people just assume that a new manager, or a new approach can turn players into something they are not. Who ever we bring in, should have a plan - in concert with a DOF - and then we should start - again - at building a squad in that vision. But, its a recipe for disaster if we expect a manager to simply turn existing players into something else...

 

[chas vs dave]

Agreed, but worth mentioning Frank changed to more direct football to keep Brentford up. It does suggest at least an adaptable manager. Plus they just went on a 12 game unbeaten run, so it may be a case of don’t fix what isn’t broke.

He comes across as flexible, and a very likeable coach.

My biggest concern is that a lot of Brentford managers have left for bigger opportunities, but haven't stepped up. There is a question over working within our organisation vs Brentfords.

 

[Trix]

I know there isn’t a outright answer to this but in your opinion @Trix what is the best solution from our current sh*t show? (If there is such an outcome)?

 

[cruise 99]

Enrique plays the football that we want. The problem with him is our squad needs a lot of work to do it his way.

He 100% plays great football and again we dont have the players for it but if I remember peps first season in the prem didnt he have the players squad to do it and even though they started like a house on fire they ended up finishing 3rd behind us. City perserved and now they have one of the best teams on the planet. Would we be so accomodating. 2 bad results we will be on his back