Kieran McKenna | Close to signing long term deal to stay at Ipswich

How effective are Ipswich at pressing? Because an organised high press needs to be prioritised above all else. Possession and patterns of play are great but won't win us games alone.
 
NK86 said:
It will be a huge test for McKenna if he is hired to coach our team. No top 4 is a sackable offense and he will be competing with 7 other clubs for those 4 spots.

It maybe a case of this massive job being too early for him. Hope he proves me wrong and does a Pep or Zidane and hits the ground absolutely flying.
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Where we are at and where he is as a manager, top 4 isn't the be all and end all. It can't be. We gotta be patient and stick with him a few years minimum, even through a tough run. The same logic is fair for Ten Hag through this season, but he was hired by different guys. McKenna is Ineos' guy, he will be in charge of coaching and working with the structure which I'm sure he's fine with. He's part of the puzzle now and it's a fresh start for all, so will just need patience from all.
 
Not sure how you go from never managing a single PL game (or similar level) to managing United

Disaster waiting to happen this. Leaks from the dressing room under Ole about how amateur the coaching staff was back then were regular.

Shambles as always
 
Blood Mage said:
How effective are Ipswich at pressing? Because an organised high press needs to be prioritised above all else. Possession and patterns of play are great but won't win us games alone.
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My mate (an Ipswich ST) says pressing and possession aren't really what they are about. They attack fast and in numbers and overwhelm the opposition, but aren't obsessed with having the ball all the time like Leicester or Southampton.
 
Powderfinger said:
What all these managers did have was a lot of experience being part of truly elite, high-performing club environments, whether as players or assistant managers.

Arteta was a key part of Pep's staff from the start of his tenure at City in summer 2016 until December 2019. He was part of building the centurions and saw the standards it took to achieve and maintain that level.

Mourinho was assistant to Robson at Porto and Barcelona and then to LVG at Barcelona. Those teams won a massive load of trophies, had some of the best players in the world, and competed at the very highest level.

Pep and Xabi both won everything as players and competed at the very highest level of football for much of their careers.

I think that's what you worry about with somebody like McKenna. To the extent he had formative experiences within a big club environment, it was a dysfunctional environment. That's the sort of experience that gives you insight into what not to do in terms of how a club is run, the type of culture you need, how the relationship with players should work, etc. While that might be valuable, its probably not nearly as valuable as having a deep immersion in a successful environment with a club competing at the highest level.
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Equally, knowing exactly what NOT to do would set you up for success too, no? There are plenty of elite managers who came from non elite environments too.

The common denominator amongst them all is actually that they were all great coaches who brought modern football to their clubs + they all had fantastic personalities. I am unsure if he has the latter, but from what we can see he does have the former. Part of the reason Arteta commands so much authority was because every player knew that their future was unsure - they had to impress Arteta or they'd be gone. I think we will do this too with the new structure.
 
Powderfinger said:
What all these managers did have was a lot of experience being part of truly elite, high-performing club environments, whether as players or assistant managers.

Arteta was a key part of Pep's staff from the start of his tenure at City in summer 2016 until December 2019. He was part of building the centurions and saw the standards it took to achieve and maintain that level.

Mourinho was assistant to Robson at Porto and Barcelona and then to LVG at Barcelona. Those teams won a massive load of trophies, had some of the best players in the world, and competed at the very highest level.

Pep and Xabi both won everything as players and competed at the very highest level of football for much of their careers.

I think that's what you worry about with somebody like McKenna. To the extent he had formative experiences within a big club environment, it was a dysfunctional environment. That's the sort of experience that gives you insight into what not to do in terms of how a club is run, the type of culture you need, how the relationship with players should work, etc. While that might be valuable, its probably not nearly as valuable as having a deep immersion in a successful environment with a club competing at the highest level.
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I guess the best potential comparison could be klopp in terms of where klopp retired early as ordinary player and where he started as manager with mainz before taking over dortmund and winning them titles
 
Infra-red said:
My mate (an Ipswich ST) says pressing and possession aren't really what they are about. They attack fast and in numbers and overwhelm the opposition, but aren't obsessed with having the ball all the time like Leicester or Southampton.
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The old Ole counter attack then?

....
 
GreatDane said:
We wont know if he's good enough until he's actually here, but saying the club will devour him is foolish.
Most of the 'bad eggs' are out already and our new structure will serve to help both him and the club. He's has both managerial experience and experience guiding young players, which would serve our rebuild well.
If anything the timing to take a gamble on a truly rising star has never been better.
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It's the perfect timing and what's even more diminutive in terms of mentality is thinking that a manager that persisted with a failing system for months on end to the extent that the media (Carragher) had to give an expose on how bad the team is tactically, the notion that the same manager could change things in the upcoming season is definitively close to insanity when objectively observing where the club has fallen short this season.

24 months in charge, terrible performances, two different systems in each of the seasons, poor tactical adjustments, negative goal difference it's the perfect period for an upcoming manager to not reinvent the will but make incremental improvements.
 
I can't say I'm too convinced by the idea of McKenna. Overachieving with a small club doesn't necessarily mean you'll be able to repeat the trick at a big side. Potter worked miracles in Sweden and did a very impressive job at Brighton and it didn't help him at Chelsea - if the big egos in the dressing room don't buy in, you're dead.

If we're taking a chance on a young manager, I'd have preferred someone like Motta, who has equally impressive achievements at a higher level and might have an easier time being taken seriously by senior players with his solid playing career behind him.

It's a complete gamble for me, but when the other options on the table are mostly people we already know are bang average like Southgate and Poch, I guess we might as well roll the dice. It might require a scorched earth transfer policy as with Arsenal in the early days of Arteta to even give him a proper chance, though.
 
Castia said:
Disaster waiting to happen this. Leaks from the dressing room under Ole about how amateur the coaching staff was back then were regular.
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Considering its gotten worse since then, it sounds to me the best course of action would be to get rid of the leaks. Not the coaching staff.
 
3KDré said:
He has technically won League 1 in his first season. What did Arteta win before he went to Arsenal? Jose before he went to Porto? Pep before Barca? Xabi Alonso before this season? They were all gambles. Of course it may not pay off, nobody is denying that.

You're missing the point. If they bring him in its because they believe in his potential. If we're to see that potential realised we have to give him time regardless of the results (provided they see the football going in the right direction). It's really that simple.
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Arteta learning fron one of the best managers in history, you can't compare the two.
 
Lee565 said:
I guess the best potential comparison could be klopp in terms of where klopp retired early as ordinary player and where he started as manager with mainz before taking over dortmund and winning them titles
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Yup, as a comparison I think that's a closer trajectory. Although if McKenna were truly following Klopp's footsteps he would stay at Ipswich a couple years in the PL before moving to a big club.
 
Castia said:
Not sure how you go from never managing a single PL game (or similar level) to managing United

Disaster waiting to happen this. Leaks from the dressing room under Ole about how amateur the coaching staff was back then were regular.

Shambles as always
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This.

He’s currently a flavour-of-the-month manager and this will end in tears once again.

We have learnt nothing in the 11 years since Sir Alex retired and keep making the same mistakes time and again.
 
FujiVice said:
Considering its gotten worse since then, it sounds to me the best course of action would be to get rid of the leaks. Not the coaching staff.
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Well they wasn't exactly proving those leaks wrong were they?

Even on this forum how many people on a weekly basis used words like 'they dont even look coached' under Ole?
 
This will be a huge job for him. I worry he isn't ready
 
I can't help think the job would be too big for him, we've seen how toxic things get after a few bad results.

Ole said himself managing this club isn't easy
 
Castia said:
Well they wasn't exactly proving those leaks wrong were they?

Even on this forum how many people on a weekly basis used words like 'they dont even look coached' under Ole?
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That was 4 years ago. He's managed two successful seasons with Ipswich and gotten two promotions since then. You dont stand still as a young coach. Nobody starts out as Alex Ferguson. Not even Alex Ferguson.
 
I would like this. Then again, I wanted him to be given the job before we got Ole as the interim.

I have no issues if he is given the job.
 
FujiVice said:
That was 4 years ago. He's managed two successful seasons with Ipswich and gotten two promotions since then. You dont stand still as a young coach. Nobody starts out as Alex Ferguson. Not even Alex Ferguson.
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How many games in the PL? Im sorry the whole situation is fecking comical like always with this club.

He's done well with Ipswich but it's a million miles away from the United job.

Even somebody like Frank at Brentford isn't suitable and he's not only took a small club to the PL but solidified them as a regular team. McKenna is 3-4 years minimum away from a top job.
 
Yeah I struggle to get behind this. Putting the romantic connotations aside, its hard to forget he was part of the Solskjaer coaching setup that ultimately failed at United, never mind the fact he has no head coaching experience at the top level.

And while his humility and mild temperament is praised, I feel like he'd be torn to shreds by the players and the media.
 
Kaos said:
Yeah I struggle to get behind this. Putting the romantic connotations aside, its hard to forget he was part of the Solskjaer coaching setup that ultimately failed at United, never mind the fact he has no head coaching experience at the top level.

And while his humility and mild temperament is praised, I feel like he'd be torn to shreds by the players and the media.
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This is what concerns me. If we're going down the unproven route then I'd rather RDZ personally.
 
Some of the babies that complained about his training methods as assistant are still at the club.

Surely after yet another sacked manager we have to clear out the lads that have been here for 3/4 managers now. Can’t give them yet another chance.
 
Kaos said:
Yeah I struggle to get behind this. Putting the romantic connotations aside, its hard to forget he was part of the Solskjaer coaching setup that ultimately failed at United, never mind the fact he has no head coaching experience at the top level.

And while his humility and mild temperament is praised, I feel like he'd be torn to shreds by the players and the media.
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Is managing in The Netherlands a higher level than in The Championship?
 
Manchester united
Irrational. said:
This.

He’s currently a flavour-of-the-month manager and this will end in tears once again.

We have learnt nothing in the 11 years since Sir Alex retired and keep making the same mistakes time and again.
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A club in the size and prestige of Manchester United learn nothing from it's mistakes in more than a decade. It's mind boggling.
 
Posh Red said:
Is managing in The Netherlands a higher level than in The Championship?
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Yes, is that even a question? Inflating not only the premier league, now inflating the fecking championship? have you seen the English teams in Europe?
 
Castia said:
Not sure how you go from never managing a single PL game (or similar level) to managing United

Disaster waiting to happen this. Leaks from the dressing room under Ole about how amateur the coaching staff was back then were regular.

Shambles as always
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Why? Is Lingard coming back also?
 
Castia said:
Not sure how you go from never managing a single PL game (or similar level) to managing United

Disaster waiting to happen this. Leaks from the dressing room under Ole about how amateur the coaching staff was back then were regular.

Shambles as always
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The same way Arteta ended up managing Arsenal?
 
He really does need the groundwork of selling those senior players that have had 4 managers now. Rashford and Shaw need to go so that he isn’t undermined early doors.

Bruno never stops fighting on the pitch so he would be the one I would take forward. Rashford, Shaw, McTominey, Martial should all go.
 
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