Roy hodgson new West brom manager

[billybonzo]

Top post Colin, keep it up.

[Dicko]

“Roy will look at it with the same philosophy he employed at Fulham – he will set the team up to be very compact at the back but still playing football which is pleasing to the eye.”

How does he do it?

Despite all evidence to the contrary.

[Sandman]

The Last Word: Hodgson has found his level with West Brom - News & Comment, Football - The Independent

 

 

The Last Word: Hodgson has found his level with West Brom

 

Roy fell short at Anfield where he was a safe pair of hands shackled by his own rigid system

 

By James Corrigan

 

Sunday, 13 February 2011

 

At Liverpool, the perception of Roy Hodgson quickly changed from genius to pragmatist

 

 

On the face of it, West Bromwich Albion have fared rather remarkably in the latest round of Premier League musical chairs. The jingle has stopped and there they find Roy Hodgson in the hotseat. The man who just last May was voted the LMA Manager of the Year by a record margin.

 

How did West Brom, little West Brom, manage to entice such a gargantua of gafferdom? They are but one place off the bottom three (on goal difference), have lost 13 of 19 matches and last kept a clean sheet in August – against Leyton Orient. As offers go, it can't quite have been of the "I couldn't turn down" variety.

 

Except to Hodgson it plainly was, and to understand why is to reflect on nine months in which a new perception of the greying 63-year-old has gestated and is slowly emerging into the blinking world.

 

 

In this time, Hodgson has gone from genius to pragmatist; from master tactician to long-ball merchant; from everyone's favourite uncle to a grumpy old man in the corner who cannot connect; from the beloved who turned a sow's ear into a silk purse into the accused who turned a silk purse into a sow's ear. He had his chance and wasn't up to it. With West Bromwich he has found his level.

 

Of course, none of that is fair to either manager or club. Hodgson is one of those "fine servants" to the game who should never come in for personal criticism. His credentials are his track record and that is indisputable. He took Fulham to a European final, for goodness sake.

 

All very true, yet it's a mystery to me why it is deemed allowable for the media to target his Liverpool predecessor so readily. After all, Rafael Benitez's track record isn't too shabby; having won the Champions' League, having reached the final on another occasion, the semi-final on another occasion and having helped Liverpool to their finest League finish in 19 years. But there we go. One should not argue with the accepted perception, and the accepted perception for so long was that Hodgson's Anfield failure could be laid at the door of the departed Spaniard. "This is Rafa's mess," went the cry. "Poor old Roy had no chance."

 

Yet a different reality suddenly dawned. In the four weeks that led to the – albeit disappointing – home draw with Wigan, Kenny Dalglish, a manager who has been out of the dug-out more than a decade, has taken a team in 12th, four points off the drop zone, into sixth, five points off a European place. A case of same team, different results; so the transformation requires some explanation even with yesterday's minor setback. Although perhaps not the explanation being offered by those clinging on to the Liverpool myth. That goes as follows.

 

Dalglish has turned it all around by the power of his own legend. The players who wouldn't play for Uncle Roy are playing for King Kenny. With the wretched American owners no more and with the blessed American owner now in place, the club is filled with the positive where before only the negative ruined the roost. It has not been a managerial change so much as a culture change. It was merely Hodgson's bad luck that he was the last custodian of the evil empire.

 

As part of this theory, the fans were complicit in his sacking, too. They never chanted his name, they never supported him. The manner in which supposedly the most loyal set of fans in footballing civilisation turned on him made his task impossible. Again, Hodgson suffered largely because of the stench of a decayed ownership.

 

But look at it another way. Look at it through the eyes of Daniel Agger, an accomplished player who saw the Hodgson regime through his own depressed eyes. The centre-half found out about Hodgson's belief in "positive brainwashing", in his irrefutable mantra of "shape, shape, shape". Agger was told to get rid of the ball, not play with it, not cultivate it; and he could not understand why. The rumblings emerging from the dressing room now indicate that neither did so many of his team-mates. Each and every interview with a Liverpool player features their enjoyment of training. They are off the leash. Their talents are no longer shackled.

 

That is the truth of Hodgson's demise at Anfield. The players looked like they weren't trying because they didn't believe in what they were trying. If a manager is not there to enthuse and inspire, then why is he there? Not to moan to journalists about needing everyone's support.

 

And if you still insist on putting the cart before the horse, Dalglish probably did have a head start in hearing his name being chanted from the off. But the Kop admired him for his previous achievements, just like they only sang out for Gérard Houllier and Benitez after they had achieved. With Dalglish, the players, like the fans, know what they are about to receive and that's what put a smile on their faces. They were right all along but only now does anyone acknowledge their footballing understanding and accede that maybe it wasn't all about their blind, arrogant faith in a saviour. Hodgson's limited ideals may work in the lesser clubs, with lesser players, but at the better clubs, with the better players, they plainly fell short.

 

So should West Brom weep or cheer? Depends on what they want. Roberto Di Matteo could have taken them higher than Hodgson, but he could have taken them lower as well. That's the problem with a safe pair of hands. Particularly ones handcuffed in a rigid "system". Funny how a gain can so quickly become a loss.

 

--------x------------------

 

Well fucking said, James.

[Beno]

Met a Fulham fan on holiday last year and he loved Woy in almost the same manner as we love Keny. He even went as far to say most Fulham fans will follow Liverpool now that Woy was in charge.We watched the Man City away game toghether and I could see Hodgson had no fucking clue with regards to tactics or the basics but he disagreed and said he's great.

Actually feel sorry for WBA fans now that they are going to be subjected to his footballing way

[Guest davelfc]

Met a Fulham fan on holiday last year and he loved Woy in almost the same manner as we love Keny.

 

I think you'll find that it is called Lemming Syndrome.

[Guest davelfc]

The Last Word: Hodgson has found his level with West Brom - News & Comment, Football - The Independent

 

 

The Last Word: Hodgson has found his level with West Brom

 

.

 

Nice to see it finally accepted.

[RedinSweden]

Nice of him to do the half time team talk though. Apparently it involved the words "West Ham" and "formidable"

[silverlining]

The journos who only a few months ago were saying that we had shit players and that we deserved to be where we were have now changed tack and are using the line "he never had a chance here because those nasty scousers wouldn't support him once he was chosen over Kenny." It's not because he's an average manager with an average record and outmoded ways of thinking, it's that he was "the wrong man at the wrong time." Complete bollocks, obviously, but I suppose they have to find some way of rationalising their own lack of insight.

 

There's a lot of people on this very website that were happy with the appointment of Woy.

 

Some even went so far as suggesting that he'd be a better choice than continuing with Benitez.

 

Still others suggested that the ownership issue was of secondary importance to the removal of Benitez.

 

So. There's cunts everywhere. But at least journalists have to admit it and put their real name to their cuntery.

[usernameunknown]

Embarrassing himself on SSN again. Dreadful.

[silverlining]

The only person I feel for sorry for is Peter Odamwinge, who will now be treated like Bobby Zamora, expected to take the ball down on his face from a 60 yard punt by the center back.

 

Zamora got into the England team under Hodgson, you fucking dimwit.

[StevieH]

Embarrassing himself on SSN again. Dreadful.

 

I thought he came across very well in the press conference that he gave when he was unveiled as LFC manager, but the constant references to Alex Ferguson, Malmo and his 36 year career in management at today's press conference were a bit tiresome.

 

Roy needs to get some new material.

[StevieH]

Zamora got into the England team under Hodgson, you fucking dimwit.

 

To be fair to Hodgson, Zamora developed into a much improved striker under his guidance.

[silverlining]

Sacking Di Matteo and bringing in Hodgson is mental unless maybe they got wind of the fact that the former was eyeing a move to another club.

 

Yes, after losing 13 out of his last 18 matches and leaving WBA in the relegation zone, DiMatteo was being lined up for the fucking Chelsea job.

 

It's so obvious.

 

GYAC, he got sacked because they LOST 13 OUT OF THE LAST 18 GAMES AND HE WOULD HAVE GOT THEM RELEGATED.

[silverlining]

To be fair to Hodgson, Zamora developed into a much improved striker under his guidance.

 

Yes, which is why I called the original poster a "dimwit".

 

Some of the shite being spouted on this thread is amazing.

 

Luckily, I can be objective about it, because I knew that Budgie would be a disaster at Liverpool, but let's stick to facts.

[smilezzz]

To be fair to Hodgson, Zamora developed into a much improved striker under his guidance.

 

True, and apparently we had him lined up in January as well, before the King came marching back.

 

I shudder to think we could have paid upwards of 10m for him.

 

In fact, I shudder when I think how much Woy cost us...

6M comp for Rafa

2M for Fulham

4m AND Aquilani for Poulsen

6M AND two promising youngsters for Con-chesky

6M payoff

 

that figures can get certain prem teams relegated...

 

poor poor West Brom...

[StevieH]

True, and apparently we had him lined up in January as well, before the King came marching back.

 

I shudder to think we could have paid upwards of 10m for him.

 

In fact, I shudder when I think how much Woy cost us...

6M comp for Rafa

2M for Fulham

4m AND Aquilani for Poulsen

6M AND two promising youngsters for Con-chesky

6M payoff

 

that figures can get certain prem teams relegated...

 

poor poor West Brom...

 

I think Hodgson will do well at West Brom. Whatever we think of his time in charge at LFC, Roy Hodgson did an excellent job at Fulham keeping them in the premiership when he took over at the mid way point in 2007 and then taking them to 7th the following season and the Europa cup final last season. He struggled here badly, but managing LFC is a totally different ball game to managing the likes of West Brom and Fulham.

[moof]

[YOUTUBE]1YZoxouN3Yo[/YOUTUBE]

[usernameunknown]

Hopefully he keeps them up then he can take some of the crap he signed for us. Cant see it though, they have tough home fixtures and as usual he wont get any points away from home.

[Randy Marsh]

^

 

That video and the whole series of Hodgson videos they produced during his time at Liverpool are absolutely hilarious.

[Randy Marsh]

"He's never won the John West Tuna Cup in Sweden"

 

HAHAHAHHA

[Antynwa]

He's gone

 

Please

 

Lets all rejoice

 

And get over it

[lifetime fan]

There's a lot of people on this very website that were happy with the appointment of Woy.

 

Some even went so far as suggesting that he'd be a better choice than continuing with Benitez.

 

Still others suggested that the ownership issue was of secondary importance to the removal of Benitez.

 

So. There's cunts everywhere. But at least journalists have to admit it and put their real name to their cuntery.

 

This is very true.

[betterman]

This is very true.

 

Isn't it just!

[ctkeepercoach]

He'll steady the ship...

 

 

Only if the bottom is flat.

[ctkeepercoach]

WBA 3-0 up at half time, couldn't believe it until I realised that of course roy doesn't take over until the next game. But I did hear he went into the changing rooms at half time and gave them a pep talk. Anyone know the final score?

 

Brilliant that!:yes: