I feel like our fanbase wants a clear cut issue to point at but the truth is, it is a collection of things. Re players, for me there is a core of players who I feel need to be moved on before we can really evolve as a team. Even forgetting ETH, let's say there was a new man in today, what changes? Suddenly players try harder as it matters again? We might get a bounce but the senior players do not suddenly become better.
I can't tell if we just overrate our players massively (I have seen Maguire, Dalot, Rashford, Bruno, Shaw from the old guard referred to without irony over the years as best in the league or even more than that). The amount of coaches we have churned through through makes me think there is at least some issue with our players and the types of personality we recruit - even someone like Dalot who is supposedly an excellent trainer does inexcusable things like for Spurs 1st goal. No coach would even consider a defender not marking their man, it is just what you do as a player at all levels of the game. If you get beaten by them for pace or get caught out of position, then fine but to simply give up on tracking them for no reason is mental. This happens all over the pitch, Bruno will press and leave huge gaps, Rashford will lose the ball about 10 times a game allowing continuous counters down that side, our CBs this year have been toilet in one on ones, Case seems to be only playing Hollywood passes or passes to the opposition this year and Garnacho refuses to pass in any capacity. You can name any player and there are issues maybe bar Onana who seems to be filling the tragic gap left by DDG, when he was good, where our GK becomes our key player.
Well said, I agree. It definitely is a combination of factors. And while I can live with sacking ETH, I think, the team would benefit from ripping a few players out as well. That being said, I can understand the dilemma to a degree. I mean, they all see that it isn't working and probably they also know it is a combination of the tactics and their ability to follow the instructions and maybe, they hope that ETH would adjust at some point, and even we as fans said at different points in time, that he should adapt - we know he can because he did in his first season. Him not doing it again, has to mean something. I always had the feeling, that he put all his eggs in Brunos and Rashfords basket... thinking that somehow those two in a functional team will lift the rest. But it isn't happening and eventually, he will go down for it.
its a combination but it obviously starts with the manager. There are teams with much worse quality players on much lower wages who play better football. And if a big name player isnt doing what you want, you need to pick someone else and make sure they understand they are in the team to do what you wanted.
We play slow buildup from the back because the manager wants it.
We play slow buildup? Not sure, if I would agree to that. Also the first halves against either Fulham and Brighton this season showed that the potential of good interplay is there. Question is why does it evaporate so quickly. Apart from that I agree, managers should be ready to drop anybody that doesn't perform. No matter the name.
I was the standard bearer of 'the players are undermining the manager' brigade. But that argument grew weaker and weaker throughout the past months. I mean look at this squad. Its basically Ajax V2.0. The defense + keeper is ETH's former players, we've got Eriksen and Antony in midfield (+ ETH's signing Casemiro) and Zirkzee/Hojlund upfront. Even our assistants speak Dutch. So why aren't they implementing his vision? Is Rashford or Bruno the culprit? Then why are they the cornerstone of ETH's team? Should we get rid of Garnacho or Mainoo? Is Dalot to blame?
I think we can all agree, that our recruitment has been bad for quite some time. The fact that ETH is part of that issue shouldn't be mixed up with how his coaching should be judged. I think, it is safe to say, that he doesn't get the best out of his players, but who knows, maybe he thinks too much of some of them. Dalot, Shaw, Rashford, Bruno... Each has been talked up but are they the ones when the going gets tough? Is identification of talent should be judged separately, otherwise those discussions will go in circles endlessly.
Or could it be the case that the manager is massively out of depth? I mean he only have to modes of play, the high press BS he uses were the FB go up and never come back. Alternatively he revers to a less effective and far more boring version of Oleball.
He may very well be out of his depth. I wouldn't be so quick to judge the tactics though. Because what you describe could very plausibly be explained by him wanting to play a high press but due to players not being able to he has to revert to other ideas. And thats not me protecting him, he should be able to come up with temporary solutions when he notices that his intended plan isn't working but the tactics he is trying to implement aren't wrong per se. We, and that means him and the players, don't seem to be able to execute them properly.
And yes the squad is massively overrated but its still a side that, if properly managed, should end between 4th-6th place. We ended 8th place last season and we're 14th at the moment.
After only a few matches. No question the trend is alarming and I agree, something has to be done to stop the bleeding. But I am fairly sure, if that is the single one objective for this year, a 6th place for example, there is a good chance, that ETH is able to make that happen as well. Again, we know he can be pragmatic. We have to expect more from our manager than to get results by playing lower table tactics - no question about it. But also we aren't going to wake up one day and suddenly being able to press in an organized unit. The work has to be put in and it will go wrong along the way, as it did with other teams as well. By all means, get rid of Erik, but please make sure, to bring in somebody with the same principles.
Ajax hasn't produced a top manager since 1991-97 ie LVG. The likes of Koeman had a very underwhelming managerial career outside the local pond. De Boer won 5 league titles with Ajax and still hold the honor of being the worst manager the EPL and the Serie A has ever seen which speaks volumes of how difficult it is for an Ajax manager to do well elsewhere. So why should we trust ETH? What makes him so good to deserve such trust?
I think, you are arguing against the wrong things at this point. I haven't seen a group of fans indicating we should do this. There is one loud (maybe even hysterical) group that screams for his head (to a degree understandably though some expressions very un-classy) and the only ones that don't join into the mob, aren't his fans, just wanting to dampen the impulsiveness.
Bringing in the wrong manager could lead to another cancelling out of "invested effort and time" like the Mou after LVG decision, completely contradicting ideas of football. Something like that has to be avoided at all costs.
