Southampton are (or at least, have been) one of the best run football clubs in England. Their recovery from a third-tier outfit, to the side which finished sixth in the Premier League under Ronald Koeman, was impressive.
Yesterday they sacked the manager who took over from Koeman a year ago, Claude Puel, after a season which saw them finish 8th in the league, and reach the League Cup final. It looks like a bonkers move, but Southampton have a made bonkers-looking moves work before.
In 2013 they sacked Nigel Adkins, who achieved two promotions at the club, to replace him with little-known Mauricio Pochettino, who had been sacked by Espanyol a year earlier. What’s worse, Pochettino couldn’t speak to language. I’ve no idea what happened to him.
When bold moves come off, they embolden you. Risk-aversion reduces until you become an irascible gambler and are caught with insufficient chips. Southampton look like they are closing the book on an era.
The man who replaced Adkins with Pochettino, Nicola Cortese, left the club in 2014, his replacement also left last month. They are looking for both a manager and a chief executive. Your guess is as good as mine who will appoint the former.
All of this takes place which the club is preparing for a sale to Chinese investors, doubtlessly with the potential buyers approval. If it was Cortese placing these chips, I would hold my criticisms, but this looks like nothing more than a ludicrous punt.
Southampton fans didn’t cover themselves in glory on this one either, chanting “You don’t know what you’re doing” at Puel as his side ran out of steam at the end of the season. Football is so dysfunctional.
This episode tells us lots about the managers’ market in England, but the most relevant point is that it is an increasingly unpredictable environment, which Brendan Rodgers knew when he pitched his tent in Glasgow a year ago.
If you want to build a great football team, the Celtic job is a rare place you may succeed.
Listen to 'The CQN Podcast: A Celtic State of Mind' with special guest, Paul Gallagher https://t.co/GcqBRsupLY pic.twitter.com/NYtC4ETCCE
— Paul John Dykes ⭐️ (@PaulDykes) June 11, 2017
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STARRYPLOUGH
Thanks,mate. I’ve signed a few on this issue,but the distinction between inquest and inquiry is an important one.
Starry Plough
Signed that.
It seems the Tory state has had second thoughts now, considering the backlash against their ‘inhumanity’.
The usual parcel of rogues with their crocodile tears.
Sickening.
HH
I don’t usually come on here and say when I’ve signed a petition, but …………I’ve signed this one.
NO COVER UP!!!!!!!!!!!!
STARRYPLOUGH
Having trouble signing that,for some reason.
Have forwarded it to myself in a mail,I’ll delve further later.
HH
GARY67 on 16TH JUNE 2017 7:55 AM
Jozo now the latest to get the leaving Celtic treatment in the rags. Half the bottom end of the EPL wanting him, £9m fee.
Looks like we’ll need to enter a 5-a-side league next season!!
Yes,and a whole 8 or 9 million as well.How lucky are we.Some no mark signed by some no mark club yesterday for 17 million.
THE GREEN MAN
If I post what I would like to happen to May it would be deleted.
BOBBY MURDOCH’S CURLED-UP WINKLEPICKERS
THE GREEN MAN SAYS SACK THE BOARD
I just pulled it off Akala FB page I think that’s where he lives up round there.
People going to get angry about this, it’s just monstrous what’s going on.
I said 20 years ago when I still lived in London that the plan was to make London a playground for the rich and we would all be pushed out onto the Orbital and need a pass to come in and out to do our menial tasks and would have to be out of the city before curfew.
They’re even gentrifying Peckham now, Brixton is long gone and where I used to live down round Old Street is unrecognisable now from what it was back then.
Whole communities under pressure and at some point that pressure gonna drop.
HH
PHILBHOY
Aye not usually what I would do either but when I saw May up there and not talking to one person, got to say my blood was boiling..
How dare she do that..
NO COVER UP
THEGREENMAN
The tories have just received permission to govern for another five years.
Watch them say in public the opposite from what they do behind the scenes on this.
And hope that it all goes away…
I know that the ideal scenario is for a speedy resolution to the inquiry-which will only result in the usual platitudes of lessons learned,etc-but as everyone probably acted within current laws and guidelines on such works,no-one will be charged with any offence.
Then it will all be subject to consultations on upgrading the laws to ensure that lip-service is paid to the memory of the victims.
And the tories can say truthfully at the next election that they have acted on the recommendations of the inquiry that-please,worth remembering-they acted immediately to set up.
Rank hypocrisy,aye. ‘Twas always thus…
” Cover up.” .
The list of those known to be missing includes a large number of ‘foreign nationals ‘. I very much doubt those Governments will allow a cover up .
Just seen an interview with Angela Leadsom ( a woman who funded her ” taking back control of our border” campaign with money from the US of A Alt right and some interesting off shore Hedge Funds .) . The word vile would be apt but she would probably see it as a compliment.
May is a dead woman walking.
However, there will be no attempt to replace her at this time following this disaster.
Hell mend her and soon.
Starry Plough
Yes indeed, its social cleansing.
Trying to remove communities to sell the land to billionaires, its truly criminal.
May shamed into showing compassion, that woman is truly despicable.
If there is no justice, London will go berserk.
You cant deliberately treat people like that and get away with it, no way.
That Tory KC council leader, should be in handcuffs now.
The rage is palpable, and no wonder.
Its fkn outrageous.
HH
I don’t usually get involved in post about politics or politicians, however, murder is something else.
NO COVER UP!!!!!!!!!!!
Petition signed.
Here’s a novel idea why don’t they house the now homeless souls from Grenfell Tower in all those empty properties in London owned by rich Arabs/Russians/property tycoons that were bought for the purpose of making more money and not for personal habitation.
http://uk.businessinsider.com/property-partner-20000-ghost-homes-sitting-empty-in-london-2017-4
The hotspot for “ghost” houses — those left empty to appreciate in value — is in the affluent borough of Kensington & Chelsea in London, where 1,399 houses sit empty. The number represents an 8.5% rise on 2015 and a 22.7% rise between 2006 and 2016.
Kensington & Chelsea is a hotspot for so-called “buy-to-leave” property deals, where wealthy foreign investors purchase properties as investments and leave them to sit empty as their value increases. Both the Evening Standard and the Guardian have dubbed Kensington & Chelsea a “ghost town” in recent years due to this practice.
Turkeybhoy
They are finished now, thats for sure.
Lets see them try to explain how they werent responsible.
It wont wash this time, and they know the strength of the backlash, they must be sh***** themselves.
And they deserve everything they get.
HH
Hypocrisy is alive and well amongst our politicians…and others.
BTW…serious question, what do you think the media coverage of this tragedy? Honest/slanted/exploitative?
THEGREENMAN
They’re not finished,mate. Stuck with them forever,we are.
Anybody who has a Facebook account please post the petition on there I have done so and already getting responses.
https://www.change.org/p/uk-parliament-this-government-must-carry-out-an-inquest-into-the-grenfell-tragedy-not-a-public-inquiry
Could this be another summer of discontent on the streets of London and elsewhere?
Tories will be getting nervous…
WeeBobbyCollins
The media coverage is managed.
I noticed the KC tory council leader this morning, trying to shift the blame on the BBC.
The local Labour council members have demanded he retract his lies.
He should be in handcuffs right now.
They are trying to cover this up already.
HH
BMCUWP
No, we are not stuck with them.
This tory criminality will not be accepted.
This goes too far.
There are no excuses.
HH
WEEBOBBYCOLLINS .
From a long way away ( in every sense ) the media coverage seems muted –like they are keeping a lid on a horrendous man made atrocity ..
Re your second point — a sample of one – pal who lives in Notting Hill says there is serious anger and hostility in the air.
I repeat what I said yesterday. Time for the tumbrils and knitting needles.
THEGREENMAN
Sadly,mate,we can’t wish them away.
They’ve survived worse scandals than this. They always survive.
The only time in my lifetime that scandal tainted them so badly as to make them unelectable for a few years was when they got greedy.
But greed is barely regarded now as a deadly sin,it’s an aspiration.
Watch,they’ve got five years to brush this under the carpet,and they will.
“We have to move on. It was a tragedy,yes,but we have a country to screw up via Brexit.”
BMCUWP
I think you might be underestimating the anger.
Im sure you have pals down there.
Check it out yourself.
Politicians, can only go so far.
They’ve went too far now, thats for sure.
HH
Italian tele broadcasting film of La Regina meeting the public and then pointing out that Mr Corbyn and Mr Khan did it too but Mrs May didnt . She did however send Angela Leadsom.
THEGREENMAN
Loads,mate. Almost all vote Tory. Fewer now than recently,mind,so the drip drip effect of me telling them they’re a buncha whatever for voting that way is getting through!
The twitter exchange between Mick the Fireman and the Sun picture desk captures both the hypocrisy of the media and the public’s growing awareness of and reaction to it.
https://www.joe.co.uk/news/the-sun-must-regret-asking-if-they-could-use-a-firefighters-tweet-129755
BMCUWP
Lets see how this unravels.
Politics cannot deal with this anger, they wont ignore this, they wont be allowed.
HH
THEGREENMAN
If The Queen can stay out of politics,I think it’s only fair we don’t drag her into the argument.
HH
BOBBY MURDOCH’S CURLED-UP WINKLEPICKERS on 16TH JUNE 2017 11:35 AM
THEGREENMAN
They’re not finished,mate. Stuck with them forever,we are.
Exactly Bobby.I can understand TGMs anger,but what we all have to remember is that the Torys are backed by the establishment.The press and media will fudge and cover up.This will be forgotten about in a couple of weeks sadly.The Manchester attacks seem like ancient history now.Cover,sweep,move on.Watching House Of Cards,its hard to see where fiction stops.Would you think it a ridiculous notion that they will manufacture something else to take the public eye off this disaster?.I would not.
My 97 year old father phones and shouts –
See Betty Windsor has taken her revenge on Blakey Maybot . . That’ll teach her not to make her miss the Order of the Garter Party and Royal Ascot again…
That done -he put the phone down .
Parents -Who’d have them ?
new article posted.
Kids killed in a horrific tower block blaze, yet these royal feckers live in palaces.
Seriously.
THEGREENMAN
I mostly agree,as you might expect. But The Queen was born into a gilded cage. We might all fancy the gilded part of it,but how many of us would fancy the cage?
By all means,rail against the system which placed her there-frankly,I think she would agree!-but for me,she does a job which would not be to my liking,benefits or not.
I hear Joey Garner has gone, In gonna miss the we’ve got Joey Garner song!