Katie Borkins 1 Posted February 6, 2016 More telling than these two quotes from Paddy Davitt:“I have two promotions on my CV and the last thing I want to do is go back to the Championship,” Neil said. “It is not a trial for me. This is the situation, you have to make the most of it. I am extremely disappointed. I have been working hard to get us into a better place and unfortunately at the moment we are not doing that. All you can is prepare the players as best as you can and hope the players provide the quality on the pitch.“These boys are Premier League footballers. If you want to stay in the league you shouldn’t need building up. That should be your motivation right there. We worked so hard last year for this opportunity and no-one wants to feel the pain of relegation.”... is the quote he didn''t use:''It''s not about me giving them belief. It''s about them showing some balls now.''Sounds like we lack a leader amongst the players, or AN I''d blaming the players for the odd selection and "sit deep" tactics, or both.Worryingly it feels like our season is starting to unravel in line with our worst fears.We must beat West Ham. To misquote an old village idiot, "Not beating West Ham could relegate us". Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Wishbone 8 Posted February 6, 2016 I think he''s being tested cos he''s never been in a situation where he''s lost many games in a row / been underachieving as a manager. It isn''t good to keep blaming your players (staff) as it undermines them and you stop becoming a collective.. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sonyc 5,517 Posted February 6, 2016 Just read that as well Bor. This is one of the worrying signs when the boss starts to say it''s not about hike ( yet tellingly he does indicate it is about him and his desire not to go back). Not quite Roeder-esque just yet. He needs some good advice perhaps from one or two senior players (could Naismith be one?) and stick with a team, play to their strengths, develop consistent formations. Maybe his strategy post Newcastle worked for a few games but now he needs a new one.If this carries on for one or two more matches then it could go really wrong. West Ham is not going to be for the faint hearted. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sonyc 5,517 Posted February 6, 2016 Correction "not about HIM" Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Barclay seats 4849 the 3rd 0 Posted February 6, 2016 Just posted the same thing in Twitter . I don''t think he is very clever to be publicly blaming the players , when an awful lot of supporters feel that his inexperience is one major factor , and I can''t believe it endears him to the players either .I don''t remember Lambert ever doing anything but accepting group responsibility ,,, maybe he is losing control , the players look lost . Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mello Yello 2,293 Posted February 6, 2016 I blame the board......but, I''ll keep that to myself...... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
City 2nd 191 Posted February 6, 2016 Wishbone wrote the following post at 2016-02-06 10:36 PM:................It isn''t good to keep blaming your players (staff) as it undermines them and you stop becoming a collective.. He''s done that alright by simply dropping players and making them scapegoats for recent defeats......Pinto, Ollson!Bennett!Martin! (although he got his place back today so punishment served)It''s hardly surprising some don''t seem to play for the manager!He is certainly consistent at being inconsistent with his team selections! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
? 0 Posted February 6, 2016 Starting to blame the players is the quickest way of losing your job! Criticise in private, fine, make it public and you will lose any respect left from the players. Time is up for him IMO! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Row D Seat 7 0 Posted February 6, 2016 He''s right to blame the players. No fight, no desire, no points. You get what you deserve and we did today. The whole club should feel extreme embarrassment today. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
chrisr1606 4 Posted February 6, 2016 I''d just written on the ''what''s gone wrong?'' thread but fits here as well... I wonder if Neil himself expects too much. He hasn''t so much as named names, but he has constantly bashed the players in post match interviews, even when we''ve won. And yes, a lot of the time the players deserved it and it''s refreshing to hear some honesty. But you also need to play the game a bit. Players now are delicate little flowers and if their egos aren''t massaged they simply won''t put a shift in, never mind battling against the odds when your backs against the wall. It''s something I''ve always wondered, even last season. I fear it has become the case and now Neil has lost the dressing room. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fuzzar 1,702 Posted February 6, 2016 Blaming the players doesn''t usually go down too well. United we stand... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dean Coneys boots 1,400 Posted February 6, 2016 He is distancing himself from the failings and whilst this is understandable from a pyschological point of view it creates a distance between him and his team. Another nail for me Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Barclay seats 4849 the 3rd 0 Posted February 6, 2016 RowD seat 7No fight, no desire, no points. You get what you deserve and we did today. The whole club should feel extreme embarrassment today. But AN picked the team , decided the tactics and formation , substitutions and timing of such , nothing worked , so he is not right to blame the players , he and his coaching staff are at the least equally to blame . Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Row D Seat 7 0 Posted February 6, 2016 Alex Neil will be sacked if the players underperform. The players still pick up their thousands a week. Time they dug deep for the club instead of giving nothing. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
GJP 79 Posted February 6, 2016 He''s got 2 promotions on his CV.But no track record of keeping a team in the Premier League. That is what counts now. Not what came before. Sounds like he needs to realise that. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mr Jenkins 0 Posted February 6, 2016 Haven''t heard the interview, but, a big part of the problem today was yet again personal blunders by individuals, it seems to happene every game and costs us goals. Not sure if this was what he was referring to, if he is trying to divert critisism away from himself I am really dissapointed, if that is actually what has happened then he is only going to make things worse. Doesn''t sound like the AN that I have seen in the past. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
unique 435 Posted February 6, 2016 Quite right too.He is clearly doing everything he can to prepare the players for match day and then when it comes down to the ninety minutes for the players to perform and carry out his instruction, they unerringly fail to do so.Individual errors have cost Norwich a considerable number of points this season and without them, we would be comfortably placed in the table........Ruddy/Rudd''s errors.....Martin''s back pass....Brady''s header......O''Neil''s stupidity.......Tettey''s unnecessary recent yellow card and ban.......the list is endless. AN must be fed up suffering the same post-match interviews. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mr Jenkins 0 Posted February 6, 2016 Yep unique, a new scapegoat seems to have emerged. At least it''s taken the heat off Russ. Dec seems to be Teflon. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Capt. Pants 4,234 Posted February 6, 2016 [quote user="unique"]Quite right too.He is clearly doing everything he can to prepare the players for match day and then when it comes down to the ninety minutes for the players to perform and carry out his instruction, they unerringly fail to do so.Individual errors have cost Norwich a considerable number of points this season and without them, we would be comfortably placed in the table........Ruddy/Rudd''s errors.....Martin''s back pass....Brady''s header......O''Neil''s stupidity.......Tettey''s unnecessary recent yellow card and ban.......the list is endless. AN must be fed up suffering the same post-match interviews.[/quote]I agree on the second part, but not about the preparation. For example we had 10 days to prepare for the Spurs game but were so slow out the blocks it was untrue and couldn''t string 2 passes together for the entire first half. I do wonder what the hell they do in training! That fault lays with the manager. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lessingham Canary 99 Posted February 6, 2016 He is right to have a go at the players, but it should be done behind closed doors, doing it publicly doesn''t usually end up anywhere positive. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites