The mancityfans.net football forum

by **Bianchi on Ice** » Sun May 11, 2014 10:05 pm

Thought Id offer some thoughts on the clubs in the premier league, from bottom to, you guessed

CARDIFF
People have sympathy for Malky Mackay but I dont carry much of that. Principally because he signed players seemingly on viewing a DVD and his owner/chairman was too naive to question the logic of it. Newly promoted teams tend to do this more than most. The aquisition of Cornelius was a disaster, eight million quids worth, and although not grounds for dismissal directly, the managers attitude to this particular player afterwards would not have endeared the owner to him. Sacking Mackay was more to do with the owner exerting control and having people take his own judgement seriously. Small man syndrome they call it. Pity then that afterwards he hired a fucking hobbit. And as a footnote its no good the owner softening his approach on the kit colour... just adjust your beltline and revert to blue, you might find it helps you.
NEXT SEASON:will challenge for promotion

FULHAM
Had an experienced and, it would seem, a decent squad well capable of comfortable existence. Jol ran out of gas surprisingly quickly, but again, a trigger happy, slightly naive owner made some hasty decisions. I dont think the decision to fire Jol was a bad one...as I said...Jol seemed ready for it, he looked weary of it all, maybe looking at that statue as he came in to work every day wore him down I dont know, but hiring Mulensteen and firing him with no real thought was borderline crazy. Results werent great, but they were ok...enter Magath, who I happen to like for some reason. Looks like a Bond villain...but, he is a German Mancini...short term he will get results and shape a team, long term his methods will dissipate as new players/characters come into the club...unless he has complete control. There will be a major overhaul there as they are carrying mid to lower big name players on big contracts that will still command good fees, and so upheaval, which rarely wealds immediate returns....but Im informed by a Fulham fan whos a pal of mine that their youth structure could well provide three or four players to the side next season...so it could go either way.
NEXT SEASON:Will be inconsistent

NORWICH:
Made a big investment in the summer in an area they needed to. Not many were predicting they would go down. Sadly, for Norwich, the signings of Hooper and Van Wolfswinkel did not provide the return Chris Hughton would have envisaged. This is what has cost them. The last four fixtures loomed like the four horsemen on the horizon but I still think the timing of the sacking was ridiculous. Every time I saw Norwich or heard commentary it was going on about Nathan Redmond being an ace in the pack for Norwich..so why didnt he play?...I think they are in a good position if they keep that squad, offhaul van wolfswinkel (who wasnt even in the squad today, tells you all you need) and use whatever they get for him to bring in a tried and tested championship striker. If they do that, they can bounce back.
NEXT SEASON:will challenge for promotion

WEST BROM:
Poor season for west brom and a poor decision to sack Steve Clarke, who deserved credit in recognition of a good season last time out, which was the best the club has had since Ron Atkinsons time there. He deserved time to ride the rocky patch they were experiencing. It was by no means terminal. This decision has left the club feeling lucky three sides were worse than they were. Scant consolation. You do wonder what a club like west brom expects to achieve. If a strict wage structure is in place you cannot expect the standard of player you are signing to better last years position year on year. That is the ceiling limit for West Brom as the club is run imo...staying in the league. Its what we had under Pearce. No different. All rumours point to Pepe Mel being told "thanks but no thanks" pretty soon, which, having heard the contract was an almost "no ties" deal makes sense, and also makes sense why mel was blocked in his aim to have his own staff but is this really a way to run the club when the situation didnt merit such a radical shift?.. It would not surprise me if all the good work put in place by Clarke will have unraveled by next may.
NEXT SEASON:will get relegated

HULL CITY:
This season will be regarded as a good one for Hull City. Staying in the league...key signings justifying their fees, more or less, and a cup final, which is eminently winnable...and deliciously so if they do. They also have european football, whatever happens in that game...but bruce, as much as he is maligned on here, is a pragmatist, has done reasonably well as a manager, and will probably just take the euro campaign as it comes, for like a few clubs in this league, they are not immune from the trap door...and an extra 8-10 games could kill them... as for the debate about the impending name change, It doesnt matter whether they are Hull Tigers, Hull Tiggers or Hull pussy cat dolls, if they go down next season only Hull's finest will give a fuck.
NEXT SEASON:Will stay up...just

Hopefully that was decent reading and Ill provide part 2 shortly