I wish we'd gone for Russell Martin

[JonnyJonnyRowe 972]

There wasn't much appetite from our fans for this unfortunately.

Plays progressive football, and just says it how he sees it. 

Unfortunately boat missed, we're clearly a downward step and he'll be in the Premier League next season. Fortunately, that will likely be at the expense of Ipswich.

 

[canarydan23 4,760]

I would've had him, pretty sure I said as much at the time. Trouble is it would have been a sensible appointment and we had Webber pulling the strings, and he was a total ****ing fool.

[hogesar 10,762]

The toxic part of our fanbase wouldn't have accepted it. You should have seen the backlash when his name was merely mentioned.

[Worthy Nigelton 1,299]

Well said Russell. 👏 

[JonnyJonnyRowe 972]

1 minute ago, hogesar said:

You should have seen the backlash when his name was merely mentioned.

Yes I seem to remember that he wasn't a popular choice.

That seems to have been a mistake.

[canarydan23 4,760]

Just now, hogesar said:

The toxic part of our fanbase wouldn't have accepted it. You should have seen the backlash when his name was merely mentioned.

And yet they largely accepted a man who failed to win the title with Young Boys for the first time in 4 seasons and wrote his name in Schalke's history books for the worst run in their history.

Massive missed opportunity, and he'd have crawled to Colney for the job.

[Monty13 2,736]

3 minutes ago, hogesar said:

The toxic part of our fanbase wouldn't have accepted it. You should have seen the backlash when his name was merely mentioned.

Irony is he’d be welcomed with open arms now, but it’s too ****ing late.

[Graham Paddons Beard 2,789]

Russell Martin has one of the top 4 squads in the league. 

Edited December 29, 2023 by Graham Paddons Beard

[Indy 3,471]

5 minutes ago, JonnyJonnyRowe said:

There wasn't much appetite from our fans for this unfortunately.

Plays progressive football, and just says it how he sees it. 

Unfortunately boat missed, we're clearly a downward step and he'll be in the Premier League next season. Fortunately, that will likely be at the expense of Ipswich.

 

Pretty much said so in the summer, good manager, Webber has thrown Wagner under the bus with his over spending under Smith. Biggest mistake was not sticking with Farke after the start of the upturn in form.

That said Wagner certainly isn’t doing very well in his motivation and coaching!

[JonnyJonnyRowe 972]

4 minutes ago, Graham Paddons Beard said:

Russell Martin has one of the top 4 squads in the league. 

Decent enough coach but give him our lot and see what he does . 

He's doing better than Farke, who also has one of the top 4 squads in the league. 

The Swansea squad that he had up in 10th last season is currently sitting in 17th too.

Edited December 29, 2023 by JonnyJonnyRowe

[Capt. Pants 5,008]

His side had 78% possession tonight and 26 shots - 26!

We have adopted this aimless pedestrian style where we have the possession, but can't get beyond the halfway line. It's a hideous style an utterly dreadful to watch.

[Big O 287]

He wasn’t popular as people identified we’ve been down the ‘club connection’ path before and it’s turned out hideously. He has now outgrown us and fair play, looks a progressive young coach, we could probably do with one of those. 

[Cowboy 240]

9 minutes ago, JonnyJonnyRowe said:

Yes I seem to remember that he wasn't a popular choice.

That seems to have been a mistake.

Even a dog turd would have been an improvement after Liz Truss.

(I may have followed the wrong part of the thread here )

[Ray 111]

If you know the man, then you know he is a deep thinker and goal driven and imo was a massive missed opportunity because as said elsewhere, he would have given everything to manage here, but as also said elsewhere, that boat has probably sailed😖

[TIL 1010 5,246]

The boat sailed with Russell Martin as he would never have come back whilst Webber still had a desk at Colney.

Those that know will know.

[hogesar 10,762]

15 minutes ago, canarydan23 said:

And yet they largely accepted a man who failed to win the title with Young Boys for the first time in 4 seasons and wrote his name in Schalke's history books for the worst run in their history.

Massive missed opportunity, and he'd have crawled to Colney for the job.

Yep, but at the time it was Martin that was immediately written off by a % of fans. As it goes of course some of us would have had him.

[canarybubbles 2,199]

10 minutes ago, Capt. Pants said:

His side had 78% possession tonight and 26 shots - 26!

We have adopted this aimless pedestrian style where we have the possession, but can't get beyond the halfway line. It's a hideous style an utterly dreadful to watch.

Aimless pedestrian style, and then eventually an attempted Hollywood pass to the wings. It's a Frankenstein mixture of pointless possession football and hoofball.

Edited December 29, 2023 by canarybubbles

[Dean Coneys boots 1,531]

Comparing apples and pears- Soton are streets ahead of us in every way. That said I would take Russel Martin’s granny over Wagner at this stage 

[JonnyJonnyRowe 972]

7 minutes ago, Big O said:

He wasn’t popular as people identified we’ve been down the ‘club connection’ path before and it’s turned out hideously. 

Peter Grant and Bryan Gunn no doubt to thank for that.

Not sure about Deehan and Megson, both had their work cut out working under Chase when he was flogging players and not replacing them, and Megson ended up taking West Brom up twice in their yo-yo years.

Go back further though and one of our greatest ever managers was a former Norwich player, Dave Stringer 

[JonnyJonnyRowe 972]

3 minutes ago, TIL 1010 said:

The boat sailed with Russell Martin as he would never have come back whilst Webber still had a desk at Colney.

Those that know will know.

Any chance you could PM me the gossip?

[Ulfotto 798]

Can I just say why would Russell Martin come here he was pretty unpopular and made Kenny McLean seem like Emi Buendia

Edited December 29, 2023 by Ulfotto

[JonnyJonnyRowe 972]

2 minutes ago, Dean Coneys boots said:

Comparing apples and pears- Soton are streets ahead of us in every way. That said I would take Russel Martin’s granny over Wagner at this stage 

She wouldn't get the job.

Delia: "So, Edith, are you prepared to find a place for Kenny McLean in every single starting XI, even if you have to shoehorn him into some position he's never played before?

Edith:

[mastoola 204]

23 minutes ago, Graham Paddons Beard said:

Russell Martin has one of the top 4 squads in the league. 

but he got them playing!!!   we have a great squad too

[Indy 3,471]

1 minute ago, mastoola said:

but he got them playing!!!   we have a great squad too

What! We have a what? Great Squad! You are Mr Webber! I claim my £5

[mastoola 204]

Just now, Indy said:

What! We have a what? Great Squad! You are Mr Webber! I claim my £5

sorry cant give you any money as i already spunked it

[Capt. Pants 5,008]

13 minutes ago, canarybubbles said:

Aimless pedestrian style, and then eventually an attempted Hollywood pass to the wings. It's a Frankenstein mixture of pointless possession football and hoofball.

I'm far from a tactical expert but surely when we have our fullbacks so far up the pitch we have to find a better way of getting the ball to them? There seems no cohesion at all and as you say more often than not ends up with a hoof down the pitch to bloody Barnes who's as much use as a tree.

[Graham Paddons Beard 2,789]

7 minutes ago, mastoola said:

but he got them playing!!!   we have a great squad too

Sorry Mas but we ain’t got anything like a great squad . Martin may well get a better tune out of them but we have players are simply not good enough . 

[By Hook or Ian crook 943]

I wasn’t sure on him at the time but he’s certainly earning his stripes now and makes hindsight a wonderful thing. 

He did do a decent job at Swansea too getting them playing nice football in difficult financial circumstances. 

The Norwich job in the summer was a much bigger task though than the Southampton rebuild. 

[Indy 3,471]

2 minutes ago, Graham Paddons Beard said:

Sorry Mas but we ain’t got anything like a great squad . Martin may well get a better tune out of them but we have players are simply not good enough . 

To be fair all of them signed in the summer back in their prime say 8 years ago would certainly be a great squad mixed with the youth we have, but unfortunately it looks like age has caught them up and their enthusiasm for the fight has long gone!

[JonnyJonnyRowe 972]

4 minutes ago, Indy said:

but unfortunately it looks like age has caught them up and their enthusiasm for the fight has long gone!

To be fair to Barnes I think he'd still love to have a fight, just seems to have had enough of running.