Jump to content
Sign in to follow this  
Mister Chops

Can Paul Lambert make the step up to the Championship? - and next season's success criteria

Recommended Posts

Is a good manager a good manager, regardless of the league he operates in?  I''m not so sure.  He has done an amazing job to take the bedraggled bunch of no-hopers Gunn bequeathed him and turn them into a League One winning side but, as so many posters on here will remind you, it is only League One.  There are question marks over a number of players who did well this season in League One, so do we think Lambert the manager will be able to cope with the demands of the Championship?And what would you define a "successful" as next year? Playoffs?  Mid-table?  Survival?

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
It will be interesting to see if he can motivate them when things are difficult. I was concerned at the couple of times in the last six games when we didn''t turn up. The Championship will be more searching of our weaknesses, and if we have a bad run of a few games.......

His reputation on selection is mixed, his record on tactics better and his substitutions good, while his record on player acquisition is mixed - Fraser, Johnson and perhaps Macnamee good, but on Rose, Martin, Elliot there has to be a question mark.

He has not managed above Division 1 level, so it will be new and something of a personal test for him.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

i think he will do well to get up play offs! mid table is fair.

i think he will be able to make the correct decision but they will not come off as many times as they have done this year.

 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
With his experience as a player and what he has done as a manager to date i am confident that he is the best manager since O Neil. He shoed what he could do i am sure Lambert will. The objectives need to be realistic though and linked with the level of resources that he has at his disposal

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
I think these are fair questions really. I agree that he''s done a great job in League 1 but that is no guarantee for next year. We thought Roeder had done a great job pulling us back from the abyss of relegation 3 years ago, only to collapse into disaster the year following. I hope he can move up, but also have doubts about many of the players he has brought in and his action in releasing Doherty. Time will tell and I hope that City can at least consolidate next year. OTBC!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Lambert has proven himself as a good manager and motivator of players.  However, there is less time on the ball in the championship, a lot more first-time passing required, with accuracy of distribution from the better teams at speed.  None of the management team have worked at this level before.  It''s a shame we couldn''t hold onto Doherty really, as he, Drury and Russell are the only proven Championship performers we have left.Lambert and team need to be given time to get used to this level.  If we start badly, then patience has been earnt - unless we have a catastrophe, there shouldn''t be any calling for anyones'' head next season, they have dug us out of a hole and deserve a season to get us pointing in the right direction in the Championship.  Central midfield signings will be key for me, as this tends to be the engine room of championship matches, where they are won and lost.  Who we bring in will have an impact on where we finish.I''d be happy surviving next season, much as Sheffield Wednesday would have been, with anything else being a bonus. But if Lambert can get us playing the kind of football we have been able to play in league 1, while coping with the increased tempo of the championship, a top 10 finish is possible.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
[quote user="First Wizard"]

We will go up in the top 2.......then what? can he cut in the Premiership?

Oh ye of so little faith![:|]

[/quote]i like you optamism 1st wiz[Y][:D]

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I agree with several other posters in that next season is going to be a time of consolidation as well as a learning curve. Lambert et al are going to have their work cut out to implement different tactics, styles of play and add to the squad in order to make a successful impact on the Championship. We will be starting on a high - no bad thing - but we will have to keep that momentum going with results and performances.Patience will be key from fans next season too, as we know Lambert can achieve at this level and may well need some time to adjust. As a young manager, he will be learning too. Like many jobs, there is always something new to be learnt, however successful you have been in the past. Realsitically, we must be happy with whatever position come May next year, providing we''re facing the upwards direction. Top half of the table would be fab and anything higher, tremendous. Heart says top 6, head says mid-table. Let''s wait and see.OTBC!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Yes is the answer from me, he''s got something special about him, he can motivate and has a lot of respect from the players and fans alike.  Together with a few decent signings I think he will flourish as manager in the CCC.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Obviously a lot of it depends upon how much money the club gives him - if we have to sell before we can buy then I would expect us to finish mid-table at best.  My point was more about whether his tactics, style of play and motivational ability will cut it in a higher league - the gap between Champs & League One is fairly big, I could not believe some of the poor football teams who visited us this year and who looked like pub teams for the most part.We have had in recent times a number of no-shows and lazy performances - perhaps complacency after some of the fireworks from November to February where we couldn''t do anything wrong.  The point is if those performances continue then we''ll be punished much more heavily next year.  I think he will bring in some quality, particularly in the midfield and at centre back, and I think we''ll do pretty well but my expectations are rather more modest than the Wizard''s, and I would think 10th place would be a good achievement.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
He is proven as a good tactician and a good motivator, these will help next year. Is he good at the transfer game? That is still undecided and could be his undoing...though I do not predict it and very much hope not. But certainly the summer is fascinating and none of us can know what to expect......will he sign a few turkeys or some real gems?

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
I know it''s clichéd but I feel we can do well next year if we can believe we can. Obviously in the championship teams are fitter and quicker, and our passing game will feel more strain. But I believe with the right additions that with the fire-power we have and hopefully some good midfield and defensive signings we can be able to play a patient enough game to frustrate the opposition. From what I have seen of Lambert and the way he gets the team to play, I am confident that in signing the right players we can do more than OK next season. It''s a big if I know, and it all requires a big part on the players to train hard over the Summer to get ready for a much harder and tiring game, and in understanding that next season is going to be a fight. At times we will be behind but we have the ability and the tactics to win games out of nothing. I guess I really echo most of what has been said already.In terms of a successful season, really we should at least be looking to better the last 3 end of season league positions. Mid-table at least, but aiming for higher.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I fail to see how Russell Martin''s a "questionable signing". He''s been nothing but mostly solid for us, he''s had the odd poor game this season yes, but so have players like Holt & Hoolahan.

 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Why are there question marks over Lambert''s selections? I think the way he''s set the team up this year has been sensational. A tight 4-4-2 at the start to stem the flow of goals against, then the inspiration of the diamond, getting the best out of Russell in a position few of us would have seen him in, and of course getting the very best out of Wes. Then, as the season went on, he was prepared to change it to accommodate McNamee on occasion. He''s been superb in this regard if you ask me.

The Championship is an undoubted step up, but with the promotion of Newcastle and West Brom, and the relegation of three utter deadbeats, I don''t think there''ll be an outstanding side in it next year. I would be happy with a top 10 finish, but if Lambert is backed in the transfer market and he gets his signings right, in midfield and at the back especially, and if we keep hold of Forster, why shouldn''t we reach the play-offs?

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

[quote user="Mister Chops"]Is a good manager a good manager, regardless of the league he operates in?  I''m not so sure.  He has done an amazing job to take the bedraggled bunch of no-hopers Gunn bequeathed him and turn them into a League One winning side but, as so many posters on here will remind you, it is only League One.  There are question marks over a number of players who did well this season in League One, so do we think Lambert the manager will be able to cope with the demands of the Championship?

And what would you define a "successful" as next year? Playoffs?  Mid-table?  Survival?

[/quote]

The problem with this, of course, is that your proposition is flawed. Gunn didn''t bequeath a "bunch of no hopers" to Lambert. Lambert himself has stated that he inherited a very good group of players. If, on the other hand, you are referring to them as "no hopers" on the basis of a one-off match which they lost heavily then that, too, is flawed. Many theams suffer one-off heavy defeats. Indeed, Everton lost 6-0 at home a week later but look what position Moyes then guided them to over the rest of the season. Correct me if I''m wrong but under Bryan Gunn we had the best pre-season in many years. Then, after the heavy one-off loss to Colchester, the "bunch of no hopers" you refer to bounced back with an emphatic 4 goals to zero away win at Yeovil. The "no hopers" you refer to presumably include Holt, Hughes, Nelson, Gill none of whom have been released by Lambert. If you want to talk about a "bedraggled bunch of ho hopers" that was the legacy inherited by Bryan Gunn from Roeder. Anyway, is Lambert a good manager ? Well, you can only make a judgement on the basis of his track record and it is clear that at league one level and with a good support team and a bunch of good players he was motivational and welded the players into a very effective unit. He demonstrated astuteness with many of his substitutions and is a positive thinker. My big concern was that in the last few months of the season we only managed to scrape narrow victories and this suggested that the opposition had worked out Lambert''s game plan and our strengths and weaknesses and there wan''t much in reserve. Will he succeed in the Championship ? No one knows of course but his challenge will be to bring in players who will not only strengthen the current team but also enable us to compete in the higher reaches of the Championship. However, if he does succeed IMO he will not stay at Norwich.

 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Interesting question...

The key principles of successful management should apply regardless of division.

A manager needs to be tactically aware and able to ''read the game'' in order to make changes to the formation or use substitutions to his advantage. This also applies to signing new players i.e. understanding what skills and attributes are needed to compliment the team and fit in with the playing style. Managers also need to understand how to motivate each individual player and recognise that each person will respond differently i.e. an arm round the shoulder or a kick up the backside.

On this season''s evidence, Paul Lambert is a very good manager. His substitutions have often changed games and he''s managed to get the players, the owners, the fans and the press on his side.

But we''ve only seen him manage a ''successful'' team.

When you''re top of the league and results are going your way, the job becomes much easier. The big unknown with PL is how will he cope when or if we have a run of bad results and he comes under pressure or scrutiny. Will he still back his players? Will he still compliment the fans when we''ve jsut booed his team off the pitch? Will he bemoan the lack of funds made available from the board to sign players etc?

One other key factor is simply luck. Refereeing decisions, injuries and key moments in matches are largely out of the manager''s control but will ultimately determine how successful they are.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

[quote user="Alf Tupper"]However, if he does succeed IMO he will not stay at Norwich.[/quote]So, in your opinion (dreams), if he fails, he''ll go and if he succeeds he''ll go which is why we should have stuck with Gunny. [^o)]

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
[quote user="lappinitup"]

[quote user="Alf Tupper"]However, if he does succeed IMO he will not stay at Norwich.[/quote]So, in your opinion (dreams), if he fails, he''ll go and if he succeeds he''ll go which is why we should have stuck with Gunny. [^o)]

[/quote]

 

Well, I thought my post was sensible, constructive and some considerable distance from being a piece of propaganda in support of Gunn but if you want to reduce it to that then that''s up to you.

I didn''t understand your first point - are you saying that my "dreams" are for Lambert to go ? If so, you are just being silly.  

 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
Sign in to follow this  

×
×
  • Create New...