Yes I share a lot of those views. I have been very defensive of Ancelotti, partly because I think the points he's got are better than the league position but partly because in general I think we turn on managers a bit quickly and I am in favour of giving people time. But the doubts certainly started to creep in for me.
I kind of felt we had got to a bit of a fork in the road. One way was the way Ancelotti wanted to go, the other was the way the club probably needs to go if it wants to move in a sustainable direction. I don't think there was anyone in the club who was able/prepared to stand up to Ancelotti and say no, and the concern was that we may have gone further down a rabbit hole.
There is a chance of a re-set now, and the positive is it's not a re-set in mid season with us in or around the relegation zone which leads to a short termism. We finished 30 points above 18th (twice as high) last season so to me there is no excuse for a pragmatic choice of coach. I understand the criticism of Brands, but this has to be his moment to stamp his authority on the club as to what we want to do moving forward. Selecting a coach that fits that brief becomes important.
I think overall we are all a bit guilty of a bit of an old fashioned outlook, that getting the biggest name manager is how you turn a club around. What you really need is a good process, a process that makes sense for where you sit and the to be consistent and patient with it.
The alternative was Ancelotti was going to be to gamble again. Gamble on 2 or 3 players who will offer nothing in terms of "sell on" in the hope we could gate crash the top 4.
He reckons they will get 35 mill compo, fuckin loony