06 Jan 2025 18:41:48
So only three clubs have used fewer subs than we have this season and the average earliest time one of ours comes on is 63 mins. EM clearly doesn't fancy considerable percentage of his squad?
06 Jan 2025 19:18:07
JBS, that stat might be slightly skewed because the majority of clubs don’t have European football. We have approached this season with one team for cups and one for the premiership.
06 Jan 2025 23:04:24
But there's a subs bench for both competitions Tom not just a squad of a 11 for each?
07 Jan 2025 06:28:36
JBS, the manager “may” have been reluctant to use players as subs who already played. I’m only guessing but he seemed to have a preference for players only playing 90mins per week. If that is the case it would slightly limit his substitution options.
Or, maybe my thinking is just very muddled at the moment. Sorry.
07 Jan 2025 09:47:13
Surely Tom
Substitutions are not just for tired player but also to change things when they are going wrong.
Prior to Christmas, things were going smoothly and he got away with it, now they are going wrong, questions are being asked of his management and the pressure will only increase the longer this run goes on.
07 Jan 2025 10:56:10
Bill, as I mentioned in a previous post, if we were winning these questions wouldn’t be asked.
I haven’t looked at who was used as substitutes while we were in the league cup and playing conference league games and as those comps are behind us for the time being this is now a historic view.
The original point was about how many substitutions were made by Chelsea in the premiership games in comparison to other clubs. I am just saying that maybe the manager was reluctant to let certain player play more than 90mins per week. If that was the case and I except that I’m only guessing that could limit his substitution options.
In the purest sense you could have 22 players playing 90 mins and that would only leave (depending on size of squad) a few players available to be used as subs.
It sounds as if I’m making an excuse but I’m not. I’m just saying it could slightly skew the stats.
07 Jan 2025 12:58:52
Tom
Totally get where you are coming from Tom however the issue is when things are going wrong, he is too hesitant to change players.
I fear that if he continues to do this, we are going go have a very unhappy squad for the second half of the season.
07 Jan 2025 14:12:16
Any player who isn’t starting should be unhappy.
I think he will rotate for the premiership games but then revert back to the two teams for the FA cup and the early stages of the conference cup.
07 Jan 2025 15:45:35
An unhappy squad? for goodness sake this is elite level football not under 8 schoolboy football.
07 Jan 2025 16:19:24
Enzo
Are you seriously suggesting that people do not get disillusioned and unhappy at being constantly overlooked.
As Tom said earlier, he like me would expect nothing less.
07 Jan 2025 17:33:58
Of course they do Bill but so what! It is not schoolboy football where the coach needs to keep the players and parents happy! This is cut throat elite level football where only the very best make that starting line up. The day a Chelsea coach starts picking players because they are unhappy at not getting minutes is the day he gets shown the door. Maresca might not be your cup of tea but he is showing great strength of character in managing the squad. The sporting directors loaded him with way too many players at the start of the season and he took action to filter the group to make things manageable. He has now had half a season working with that group and has formed an opinion on who fits in and who doesn't. To leave Tosin and Disasi out against Palace and play an 18 year old academy player may well of totally p---ed his bosses off not to mention the players and their highly paid agents but so bleddy what. Tough. Happy smiley dressing rooms don't win championships because they don't exist and haven't done so since the 70's and 80's when squads were no more than 17 or 18 players. We want players who work so hard and produce the results on the pitch competing for a starting place. I expect them to be knocking the managers down asking why they don't get a game. Harsh it is but no mamby pamby smiles across 28 players faces for me. Winners is what we want and if they are not happy then phone your gold laden agent and off you go.
07 Jan 2025 20:15:08
Enzo
You need happy players to be a successful club, that's not to sat they all walk around grinning like a Cheshire cat.
Good coaches today know that some players need an arm around them and feel appreciated, something I don't think your namesake top of the class at. The old days of the Fergies and to a large extent, older Italian coaches, are past it.
07 Jan 2025 21:00:23
Total tosh Bill.
07 Jan 2025 21:15:20
Yep, there is more than one way to get the best out of players and for that matter managers.
Supporting them can be effective.
07 Jan 2025 21:25:17
Enzo, Bills opinion is not tosh.
07 Jan 2025 22:07:15
I believe Bill talks a lot of Tosh Tom but I'm sure he and others think the same of me. It's a banter site for goodness sake.
07 Jan 2025 22:58:01
That’s absolutely correct.
08 Jan 2025 10:59:19
I haven't monitored SLot at LFC very carefully but he seems to be proving ED02 right - Ed02 had thougt very highly of him and reckoned he do well for us. OK he inherited a pretty happy squad from Klopp - who was surely a manager who could get best out of players by putting arm round them but also expecting highest of standards even if it took him a coupl of seasions to get there. Klopp also used his full squad even if he clearly had a sense of best starting line up. Slot appears to be in same mould and appreciate and uses squad that is a useful mix of youngesters with experience. his rotations and substitutions thus far pretty spot on. ED02 was ptedictably right to have said - when seemed Poch would be off - that Slot wouod have been good at the Bridge
The question mark for me over EM is whether he is too easily dimissing some plauers of real talent and shose attitude seems v good. Is he getting the calls right e. g. in hardly playing Chucky or Casadei at all for any minutes in the EPL - especially given Lavia imnjury proneness - or (but did he have any say in this? ) letting TC and Santos go out on loan given Disasi shortcomings and Fofana injury history. Why is Nkunku now a shadow of the player he appeared to be when he first signed for us - with such great link uo play eg with Kackson in pre-season - and before his injury, and when he had pergformed pretty well in Conference League? Perhaps his head is alteady out of the door?
Maresca may still prove to be a v good manager for us and thus the vindicated the SD decision to sack Poch after such a strong finish to last season. Point is that many of us thought then that brining in a GK, CB replacement for TS, and proven striker plus outgoings of loanees and likes of Disasi the only changes needed last summer. And most thought we could be Top 4 this season nbefore our rather dreadfiul pre-season perfiormances and easy surrender to City at the Bridge in first game of this season. But having lowered our expectations they rose again as EM did get our team playing good football and as importanbtly getting resulkts to propel us to 2nd in the league.
But we shouldn't be surprised if EM's inexperience in management in the top flight combined with not makin some of the needed improvements in last transfer window costs us top 4 this season though I obviously and fervently hope it won't. But this was why my prediction was 5th to 9th though I mentally/ empotionally upped that for a while when we were doing so well!
Yes of course the EPL is not schoolboy football and wanting happy faces all the time. Though in my distant experience schoolboy football wasn't always like that and there was ppenty of frowning faces, disappointment and competition even at that level! Same went for play for a club after school coached by an ex-First Division pro.
So I still take the view that a manager has to perform as the job title suggests: be a v good man manager. as Klopp was, Slot seems to be and Fergie was. Yes Fergie could fling a hairdryer but as many ex-players of his have testified he also had a softer side and knew that getting the best out of players was also at times a matter of showing understanding and compassion for individual players.
EM may well have what it takes and seems to have been good with younger players at least when with the City academy and did do especially well at Leicester in first half of the season there. But managing bigger clubs with bigger player egos (and fan expectations) is surely a bigger job. and one that is not just a matter of being a hard man . or indeed a Ten Harg man?! But eg picking players up after a bad game/ disappointing result or if dealing with personal problems etc. As said EM may well have these skills and surely all of us want him to succeed. Wouldn't it be great if we could have a manger who stays for some time overseeing the improvement evident towards the end of last season and adding trophies. Yet presumably if EM doesn't get top 4 (or 5 if that is number who get ECL) or fairly comfortably exceed the 63 pounts Poch got when gelling together a squad fiulled with newbees and highest injusry toll in the division, he will be doomed to follow in the now well worn footsyteps out of the door at the Bridge. Again I repeat in case there is any misunderstanding that I much hope this won't happen.
08 Jan 2025 12:07:55
JBS, I enjoyed your post and it’s a pity it’s so far down this thread.
Let’s be honest over the last few seasons our club has been a bit of a basket case and although I didn’t want him sacked I didn’t want Poch as our manager.
When given a chance in the Premiership team players have to take that chance a force the manager into making a tough decision, Nkunku, as much as I rate hasn’t done that in the premiership.
We have a history of letting unhappy players leave and I can’t see that changing. I can also understand why a player would want to leave if he feels he isn’t being given a chance to prove himself. Nothing has changed at our club on either issue as far as I can tell.
Our manager will come under scrutiny if at the end of the season we haven’t achieved what the owners demand. That’s is probably the same at most clubs.
The club owners also have financial rules to consider and that may well dictate the reasons for some sales. I gave up being precious about home grown players (sadly) some time ago!
I always think, could things be worse and the answer to that question is an emphatic YES.
09 Jan 2025 18:55:51
Thanks for your post Tom!