Wayne Rooney

[Jourdan]

3 minutes ago, Crewton said:

None of those clubs are operating under a "soft" embargo, let alone the "nads-in-a-vice" embargo that we are. They've all been free to extend players contracts, pay their players what they're able, sign players and not have to motivate players under the cloud of administration and potential points deductions. Huddersfield still receive parachute payments. 

There is no other manager in English professional football operating under the constraints that Rooney is and I doubt there are many who would volunteer for the job right now. 

They might not be in an embargo, but they are amongst some of the more financially disadvantaged clubs in the division.

Three of those clubs have recently been in League One and largely have squads built in those divisions and the budgets to match. Huddersfield have also cut their cloth massively too. So are the constraints really that bad? 

People carry on like Rooney has the hardest job in football right now. I think it’s a myth that no-one else would entertain the job if it became available.

Look at Forest. That should have been an equally unappealing job. On the back of two play off runs and Premier League interest, Steve Cooper went there.

[Jourdan]

21 minutes ago, LeedsCityRam said:

Not that he would even be considered a top 10 candidate but Rooney has been linked by the media with Newcastle & their fans (whilst not keen) have acknowkedged he's done a good job here & why he has been linked. On that basis alone, I think he could get a decent gig elsewhere.

Re winning football...the bookies were adamant we were finishing bottom well before we went into administration. The fact we could potentially be off the bottom in 48 hours even with 12 points taken off is well ahead of general expectation.

I know you're unlikely ever to be convinced by him & I respect that. We were on the same side of the argument 6-9 months ago but character in adversity is one of the biggest things I respect in life & Rooney has shown that in spades. Maybe I'm naive in thinking there isnt an angle but just want to hang onto something positive whilst we're neck deep in this mess.

On his links to Newcastle and on our relegation in waiting, it really depends on how seriously you take media reports and bookies’ odds.

Was his link to Newcastle a genuine and serious one? It’s hard to say. Were we doomed from the start? It’s not really conclusive.

We have had the luxury of dropping 28 points on top of our deduction and still finding ourselves with a reasonable shot at survival. That suggests the quality of this league was always going to present opportunities.

It’s not that I am unconvinced by Rooney. I am desperate for him to do well and prove me wrong. I just think an experienced manager would be a better fit and reap more rewards.

We can all accept there has been improvement from the last third of the previous season and we can all see Rooney has done some good. But will it be enough?

I just think it will take more than 3 wins in 15 to close the door on the idea that Rooney is the best and the right man for the job.

[Crewton]

22 minutes ago, Jourdan said:

They might not be in an embargo, but they are amongst some of the more financially disadvantaged clubs in the division.

Three of those clubs have recently been in League One and largely have squads built in those divisions and the budgets to match. Huddersfield have also cut their cloth massively too. So are the constraints really that bad? 

People carry on like Rooney has the hardest job in football right now. I think it’s a myth that no-one else would entertain the job if it became available.

Look at Forest. That should have been an equally unappealing job. On the back of two play off runs and Premier League interest, Steve Cooper went there.

Blackpool, Coventry and Luton have amongst the smallest budgets in the division, that's true, but they've been able to build and develop their squads without interference from the EFL. 

And I'm sorry, but your opinion that the Forest job was equally unappealing is laughable. You seem unable to comprehend the debilitating effect of the restrictions that Rooney is operating under. Your obviously in a very entrenched position and so I see no point in debating this with you further. 

[Jourdan]

25 minutes ago, Crewton said:

Blackpool, Coventry and Luton have amongst the smallest budgets in the division, that's true, but they've been able to build and develop their squads without interference from the EFL. 

And I'm sorry, but your opinion that the Forest job was equally unappealing is laughable. You seem unable to comprehend the debilitating effect of the restrictions that Rooney is operating under. Your obviously in a very entrenched position and so I see no point in debating this with you further. 

Why is it laughable? Forest were bottom of the league when Hughton left. They had won 1 in 13 league games dating back to April, losing 8 of those. Poor, negative, flaccid football had been a feature. Morale was on the floor and disgruntlement rife, and a previously accomplished manager at this level found his reputation very much damaged. I am not seeing the appeal yet, are you?

On the face of it, yes, a big club, but with question marks over the owner, the transfer strategy and the size and make up of the squad, it can’t have been an easy sell.

I can comprehend very well the restrictions Rooney is and has been working under. Perhaps we just have different ideas on just how debilitating they are.

Entrenched? Me? No. It just takes more to impress me than 4 wins in 30.

[uttoxram75]

I guess some will dislike Rooney no matter what happens. My take is that he has shown proper leadership during the worst possible time for any manager, let alone a complete rookie. The players are giving their all for him and the fans at the games can see this and are responding with unbelievable support.

He gets some things wrong tactically like the first half v Blackburn but then sorts it out and turns it round.

I'm happy to have him in our corner with the position we're in. He's a winner and a fighter and will bring out the best in our young lads given the time.

I still think this could one of the best seasons as a fan.

COYR ?I

[uttoxram75]

This needs to be our theme tune this season....

 

 

[Foreveram]

15 minutes ago, uttoxram75 said:

This needs to be our theme tune this season....

 

 

It already is.

[Norman]

49 minutes ago, Jourdan said:

 

Entrenched? Me? No. It just takes more to impress me than 4 wins in 30.

Is that what it is? ducking hell. Didn't realise it was that bad. With everything else going off this summer, I had completely forgot how bad it was at the end of last season on the pitch. 

[Ramifications]

For me, you just have to get behind Wayne Rooney and the team. 

He hasn't had a fair crack of the whip yet and the players are giving 100%. Well, apart from the diversion that was the first half against Blackburn. 

Hoping more goals will come now CKR is back. 

If we beat Barnsley things will start to look a bit different. It really is a huge game. 

[S8TY]

2 hours ago, Jourdan said:

Why is it laughable? Forest were bottom of the league when Hughton left. They had won 1 in 13 league games dating back to April, losing 8 of those. Poor, negative, flaccid football had been a feature. Morale was on the floor and disgruntlement rife, and a previously accomplished manager at this level found his reputation very much damaged. I am not seeing the appeal yet, are you?

On the face of it, yes, a big club, but with question marks over the owner, the transfer strategy and the size and make up of the squad, it can’t have been an easy sell.

I can comprehend very well the restrictions Rooney is and has been working under. Perhaps we just have different ideas on just how debilitating they are.

Entrenched? Me? No. It just takes more to impress me than 4 wins in 30.

How can you compare Florist and us? As usual you’re making it sound comparable and yet the only comparison is league positions …that’s it!! don’t think they’re on an embargo are there? Players not paid? very thin squad? bereft of strikers ? Absolute nonsense ….whether Rooney is right for us or not he has been magnificent in how he’s dealt with the rubbish he’s had to deal with …in his first job …he hasn’t jacked it in or run away he’s stayed and remained dignified and that’s what we needed …we would’ve been in an even bigger mess if we had no manager no one pulling in players on short term deals etc etc he has been dealt a very difficult hand and to me is handling it well when we needed some form of stability when everything else was falling around our ears …give  the bloke a break he may not be right for us long term but I’ve welcomed his loyalty and shouldn’t be over scrutinised as this juncture that time will come but not now….just give the bloke a break for pity’s sake !!

[tomsdubs]

12 hours ago, Jourdan said:

Why is it laughable? Forest were bottom of the league when Hughton left. They had won 1 in 13 league games dating back to April, losing 8 of those. Poor, negative, flaccid football had been a feature. Morale was on the floor and disgruntlement rife, and a previously accomplished manager at this level found his reputation very much damaged. I am not seeing the appeal yet, are you?

On the face of it, yes, a big club, but with question marks over the owner, the transfer strategy and the size and make up of the squad, it can’t have been an easy sell.

I can comprehend very well the restrictions Rooney is and has been working under. Perhaps we just have different ideas on just how debilitating they are.

Entrenched? Me? No. It just takes more to impress me than 4 wins in 30.

We had to beg Morrison to take 3.5k a week, a player that no other club wanted. We got outbid by clubs in League One for free transfers.

If we had no deduction we'd be safe right now despite lacking the quality to score goals. I find your criticism way out of touch with reality.

[Woodley Ram]

Rooney is the right man for the job at the right time. It’s important we back him and the team. In the future who knows if he is the right person but right now, he is the man

[England Ram]

On 01/11/2021 at 11:17, Long Time Lurker said:

That's funny, I've seen quite a lot of a lad called Jack Stretton in the u23s, and he is both pretty quick and has a decent first touch.   He is certainly up to mixing it with the opposition defenders physically.  Perhaps we've got two of them at the club.........

I’ve no issue with his ability at u23 level but being pretty quick in the under 23’s does not make him have pace at the normal league level of defenders. 
A decent first touch in the under 23’s makes him average at best in the normal league. 
 

I’d love him to be prolific and score at will, but so far he’s shown next to nothing at league level. If we’d signed him from somewhere else rather than him being from our u23 he’d be getting much less leeway for his short comings. 

[Leeds Ram]

On Rooney he's given himself a lot of grace with the fans due to how he's reacted to the administration, the restrictions and the general chaos. He's earned that good grace I think by his behaviour in the past couple of months and an attempt to get something going. However, there does seem to be a massive piece of cognitive dissonance going on with our fan base at the moment; either our youngsters are great and real talents that clubs are hungrily eyeing up and our veterans are proving themselves up to the task or our squad is shot to bits, probably one of the worst division, and Rooney is doing a marvellous job in even keeping us in contention. In my mind people can't really be having it both ways.

I tend to think our younger players aren't as good as we think they are and Rooney is not genius when it comes to management either. Moving on, my personal opinion is at the start of the season is when we've had the best chance to pick up points. The numbers of the squad are likely to be less of an issue in september-november than they will be in december onwards due to issues of general fatigue, injury, suspensions etc. Getting 17 points from 15 games is slightly better than I envisaged but it's hardly stellar form either. Even without the points deductions we'd be in 20th place looking over our shoulders. 

The period of good form just like last season's coincided with a run of clean sheets and defensive stats that were unlikely to last unless you've got an equivalent of peak ferdinand and vidic as your cb's. Rooney needs to figure out a way for us to create chances besides set pieces for us to score some goals as defensively we're naturally becoming leakier but so far this has not coincided with an additional attacking threat. 

[sage]

1 minute ago, Leeds Ram said:

On Rooney he's given himself a lot of grace with the fans due to how he's reacted to the administration, the restrictions and the general chaos. He's earned that good grace I think by his behaviour in the past couple of months and an attempt to get something going. However, there does seem to be a massive piece of cognitive dissonance going on with our fan base at the moment; either our youngsters are great and real talents that clubs are hungrily eyeing up and our veterans are proving themselves up to the task or our squad is shot to bits, probably one of the worst division, and Rooney is doing a marvellous job in even keeping us in contention. In my mind people can't really be having it both ways.

I tend to think our younger players aren't as good as we think they are and Rooney is not genius when it comes to management either. Moving on, my personal opinion is at the start of the season is when we've had the best chance to pick up points. The numbers of the squad are likely to be less of an issue in september-november than they will be in december onwards due to issues of general fatigue, injury, suspensions etc. Getting 17 points from 15 games is slightly better than I envisaged but it's hardly stellar form either. Even without the points deductions we'd be in 20th place looking over our shoulders. 

The period of good form just like last season's coincided with a run of clean sheets and defensive stats that were unlikely to last unless you've got an equivalent of peak ferdinand and vidic as your cb's. Rooney needs to figure out a way for us to create chances besides set pieces for us to score some goals as defensively we're naturally becoming leakier but so far this has not coincided with an additional attacking threat. 

it's almost like all of our CFs (aged 20 or 35) have been injured

[Leeds Ram]

3 minutes ago, sage said:

it's almost like all of our CFs (aged 20 or 35) have been injured

I don't deny the club has a lack of talent up front this points to one of the problems I did mention. Baldock has been back for a little bit and CKR is starting to return (although i don't see him getting more than 7-10 this year) have I missed anyone out? But it's not like we've been carving out loads of chances when I have seen us play and just lacked a striker to finish them. Apart from a couple of games we've really lacked in our chance creation. 

[Tyler Durden]

18 minutes ago, Leeds Ram said:

However, there does seem to be a massive piece of cognitive dissonance going on with our fan base at the moment; either our youngsters are great and real talents that clubs are hungrily eyeing up and our veterans are proving themselves up to the task or our squad is shot to bits, probably one of the worst division, and Rooney is doing a marvellous job in even keeping us in contention. In my mind people can't really be having it both ways.

I tend to think our younger players aren't as good as we think they are and Rooney is not genius when it comes to management either. Moving on, my personal opinion is at the start of the season is when we've had the best chance to pick up points. The numbers of the squad are likely to be less of an issue in september-november than they will be in december onwards due to issues of general fatigue, injury, suspensions etc. Getting 17 points from 15 games is slightly better than I envisaged but it's hardly stellar form either. Even without the points deductions we'd be in 20th place looking over our shoulders. 

The period of good form just like last season's coincided with a run of clean sheets and defensive stats that were unlikely to last unless you've got an equivalent of peak ferdinand and vidic as your cb's. Rooney needs to figure out a way for us to create chances besides set pieces for us to score some goals as defensively we're naturally becoming leakier but so far this has not coincided with an additional attacking threat. 

 

[nottingram]

9 minutes ago, Leeds Ram said:

I don't deny the club has a lack of talent up front this points to one of the problems I did mention. Baldock has been back for a little bit and CKR is starting to return (although i don't see him getting more than 7-10 this year) have I missed anyone out? But it's not like we've been carving out loads of chances when I have seen us play and just lacked a striker to finish them. Apart from a couple of games we've really lacked in our chance creation. 

The “it’s not like we’re creating chances” line is a little simplistic though when often you need the striker to have that instinct, to be able to create the chances for them, if that makes sense? CKR has been back 5 minutes and has already missed 3 good to very good chances mostly because he has the instinct of where to be.

[Ghost of Clough]

7 minutes ago, Leeds Ram said:

I don't deny the club has a lack of talent up front this points to one of the problems I did mention. Baldock has been back for a little bit and CKR is starting to return (although i don't see him getting more than 7-10 this year) have I missed anyone out? But it's not like we've been carving out loads of chances when I have seen us play and just lacked a striker to finish them. Apart from a couple of games we've really lacked in our chance creation. 

But how much of that is because there isn't a natural striker in the team? Stretton is raw and will need time to physically adapt, Baldock has replaced the Nugent from Lampard's season, whereas Kazim, Lawrence and whoever else we stick up there isn't the sort to get into the right positions to receive the ball in the box.

Anyway, here's an xG table which kind of proves your point (only Peterborough have a lower xGF):

[Tyler Durden]

10 minutes ago, Ghost of Clough said:

But how much of that is because there isn't a natural striker in the team? Stretton is raw and will need time to physically adapt, Baldock has replaced the Nugent from Lampard's season, whereas Kazim, Lawrence and whoever else we stick up there isn't the sort to get into the right positions to receive the ball in the box.

Anyway, here's an xG table which kind of proves your point (only Peterborough have a lower xGF):

That kind of confirms what I already had summised that granted we have a paucity of strikers available but notwithstanding this we don't create nearly enough chances as we need to.