Rafa is a big name
Ashley doesn't give big names money
He mAkes them chase their own tail
Makes it as hard as possible
Having moved house late last month and still sorting old stuff out I came across the programme for the home game v Liverpool in April 2013.
Pardew, just today appointed head coach at Den Haag, was then manager here and had at his disposal the likes of Krul, Coloccini,Santon,Cabaye,Simpson,Sissoko, Anita,Cisse, Ben Arfa,Gouffran,Yanga-Mbiwa, Perch, Ryan and Stephan Taylor, Jonas, Robbie Elliot,Dummett,Harper, the two Amiobi's as well as another 19 decentish players in that squad.
I was just wondering how Rafa would have fared if he had taken over a squad with that quality.
Mind you quality doen't assure results as that day were were humiliated 0-6 at home and it could have been more.
The only bright memory of the day was that is was then when I met June for the first time.![]()
Rafa is a big name
Ashley doesn't give big names money
He mAkes them chase their own tail
Makes it as hard as possible
Just thinking along the same lines as you Kev, the likes of Phatrdew, Steve McMuffin and Bruce, have had almost unlimited funds to spend compared to Rafa the one class manager we have had appointed.
It doen't make one iota of sense in the football world or for that matter in the business world. You would think Ashley was trying to prove something about the relativety of failure.
It's pathetic.
He's like a child deliberately not picking the kid that is good at football just to show he has the power, even if it means his team loses.
Well, I'm confident that Rafa wouldn't have ended up with the horendous records that Pardew did.
That team had some talented players...but that's all it was...even when we finished 5th there was no obvious style of play or hope we could continue it, (especially when Ashley decided not to invest further) it was all down to a decent defence and the odd moment of magic from Cisse, Ben Arfa, Cabaye, Ba...
To be fair I don't think HBA would ever have played in a Benitez team!
What's happening now reminds me of that period...we are getting some good results but there is no plan or style to play other than a bad version of Rafa's tactics...and that is straight from the Bruce supporters mouths!