Are we willing to accept that "good" players who don't fit the manager's style of play need to be dropped?

[croadyman]

Yes but will it actually happen

 

[Adnan]

Yes but will it actually happen

I don't see why not. Woodward was a yes man for the managers and allowed Mourinho to not only break the world transfer record for Pogba, but also allowed him to dismantle the Sports Science department at the club. He then allowed Ole/Phelan to sign Maguire, when it was reported by credible journalists that the club's recruitment department had vetoed the signing a year earlier due to Maguire not being deemed to be any better than the CBs already at the club.

 

[ROFLUTION]

We have some highly talented young players on the cusp of breaking through so hopefully they can fill some of the positions and we won't have to buy everywhere. In addition to that we don't need to spend huge sums on every signing. You are talking about spending 40-50m on a GK, we could have got Onana on a free who was perfect for ETH system. There are opportunities in the market, the club needs to be smarter than they have been.

Onana wasn't gone for and that probably says something. He's probably not World Class level which we should strive for.

I've only seen him a couple of times, but I don't think he's any better than pickford - If that's what we need, then we could just play Henderson.

And I agree, we should push the talented youth forward, but some fatal positions need upgrading. It's a long term project (again) where we need patience. There's also a chance we'll become Arsenal if we just play semi-good players.

 

[roseguy64]

I've been going back and forth on this, so much so that I don't really know what to think.

There are players here who've shown they can't be trusted. They've shown it for years. I wouldn't be sad to see the back of them tbh.

But I also remember our run to the European Cup win in 2008. We faced Barcelona in the semis, and I can't believe how bad Barca looked. The Rijkaard regime was on its last legs, and it showed. Barca looked shot to pieces, and short of confidence. They seemed to be just going through the motions. Iniesta, one of my favourite players to watch, was a shadow of himself. He got hooked before the end, and seeing him come off, he just didn't seem the same player.

But then, that summer, they hired Guardiola, binned the likes of Ronaldinho, Thuram, Zambrotta, brought back Pique, in Busquets etc., and the rest is history. Iniesta, Xavi, Messi, the very players who stunk out OT that very match, looked totally different. Was it the players, was it the manager? Was it the combination of both, something Rijkaard lost after '03 - '07? Or was it a critical mass of player, a toxic element, that had to go before performances could improve?

I'm asking because I don't know. I just hope the decision-makers at the club give Ten Hag a proper go in terms of support for his decisions. Otherwise, we are lost.

You just have to look at Chelsea last season and Barcelona this season. Don't need to go that far back. A change of manager and players who looked hopeless suddenly started performing. Sometimes you just need a leadership change and things just click.

Yes a squad change is needed but it's never as dramatic as people like to make out. We're not gonna sell/lose 15 players and sign 10 like some people want.

 

[roseguy64]

We have some highly talented young players on the cusp of breaking through so hopefully they can fill some of the positions and we won't have to buy everywhere. In addition to that we don't need to spend huge sums on every signing. You are talking about spending 40-50m on a GK, we could have got Onana on a free who was perfect for ETH system. There are opportunities in the market, the club needs to be smarter than they have been.

Only Garner is really ready for the squad. Maybe Hanibal, Pellistri, Laird and Amad too. None of the others has really shown it yet.

Also, why would the club have signed a player like Onana when things weren't settled yet re: the new manager? It's why we didn't sign Zakaria in January. That would be potentially a waste of money.