"Alex Neil is not one of the best managers in this league"

Sorry avenging canary - but what?! If he isn't one of the best managers in this league, who is?

We know who the best is: the manager of far and away the biggest, richest club and best squad in the division: which stands to reason. His fellow Champions League-winning manager is about to be sacked by an impatient shambles of a club.

Then there's McCarthy, whose record is very good - but he oversees ugly football and slowly drains the energy out of supports. That's been a pattern throughout his career actually. Just as Hughton, the wrong fit, did at Norwich.

Lee Johnson seems up-and-coming. Zenga has a lot of experience but I wouldn't want him at Norwich for a moment. Carvalhal seems to fit Wednesday really well, but their football is pretty agricultural at times; it's too early to tell how good David Wagner might be.

Tell you what I think about Neil. He is us. By which I mean: his level is the same as our current squad's level, ie. mezzanine. Probably too good for this league, not good enough for the Prem. His favoured way of playing is our favoured way of playing - which means we'll probably always be ropey defensively, and will always have goals in us: in the Championship, at least.

He's not outstanding - but he keeps his feet on the ground, and has a large amount of practical common sense. In Scottish parlance, that makes him "canny". Managers will always be second-guessed; but bluntly, if he was that brilliant, he wouldn't be managing us. As it is, he's fine. There really ain't that much to complain about where he's concerned.

Posted By: thebigfeller on October 2nd 2016 at 16:48:22

Message Thread

"Alex Neil is not one of the best managers in this league" (NCFC) - thebigfeller, Oct 2, 16:48:22
- Too many words (n/m) (NCFC) - Ken Breadstick, Oct 2, 18:18:58
- Good post. (NCFC) - lurd, Oct 2, 17:46:31
- Depends how far down you want to go to be 'one of the best'. (NCFC) - avenging canary, Oct 2, 17:19:43
  - I might too. But Hughton was the wrong fit. Neil's a good fit (n/m) (NCFC) - thebigfeller, Oct 2, 17:20:54
    - He's not a bad manager. But he's not good enough IMO. (NCFC) - avenging canary, Oct 2, 17:24:14
      - I'm not disagreeing on that at this stage. I doubt we can get someone who is though (NCFC) - thebigfeller, Oct 2, 17:25:32
        
        what stage are we at? (NCFC) - Tombs, Oct 2, 17:31:49
        
        I'm in denial. About everything. (n/m) (NCFC) - avenging canary, Oct 2, 17:51:30
        
        We're at the "Neil is proven at this level but unproven at the next level" stage :) (NCFC) - thebigfeller, Oct 2, 17:36:34
        
        There's an endless stream of managers (NCFC) - SCC 28, Oct 2, 17:38:59
        
        Absolute nonsense pal (NCFC) - Charles21, Oct 2, 19:51:01
        
        Struggling is fine (NCFC) - SCC 28, Oct 2, 20:24:42
        
        Probably because it's really, really hard. Look at the calibre of managers there now (NCFC) - thebigfeller, Oct 2, 17:40:59
        
        Exactly it's hard so you need to find someone good enough (NCFC) - SCC 28, Oct 2, 17:45:41
        
        Got lots more money than us tbf (n/m) (NCFC) - lurd, Oct 2, 17:55:12
        
        Correct. If we truly want to upgrade as a football club longer term (NCFC) - thebigfeller, Oct 2, 17:57:56
        
        Palace weren't loaded when they turned things around (n/m) (NCFC) - SCC 28, Oct 2, 17:56:38
        
        Still much richer than us. (n/m) (NCFC) - lurd, Oct 2, 18:02:53
        
        If it makes you feel happier (NCFC) - thebigfeller, Oct 2, 18:02:02
        
        Hopefully we'll just sign a decent CB to partner Timm! (n/m) (NCFC) - SCC 28, Oct 2, 18:03:40
        
        I'm at the observer stage. Occasionally discussing matters but aware that my opinion makes (NCFC) - APB, Oct 2, 17:36:16
        
        Also the "Sunday afternoon on the sofa" stage. (n/m) (NCFC) - APB, Oct 2, 17:37:24
        
        sun artenoon sofa stage here aussi (NCFC) - Tombs, Oct 2, 17:43:02
        
        And with regard to the Sunday afternoon stage (NCFC) - thebigfeller, Oct 2, 17:44:53
        
        good lord (NCFC) - Tombs, Oct 2, 18:12:18
        
        I'm just very frustrated that he hasn't improved, or indeed be learning from mistakes. (NCFC) - avenging canary, Oct 2, 17:29:50
        
        He does things that frustrate me, certainly. But we're not made of money (NCFC) - thebigfeller, Oct 2, 17:32:59
- Not often I agree with you but I can't argue on this one. (NCFC) - camcan, Oct 2, 17:15:15
- Wagner looks like he might be very good. (NCFC) - APB, Oct 2, 16:57:19
  - Yeah, I get that. I don't see what Frankie McAvoy adds, for example (NCFC) - thebigfeller, Oct 2, 17:02:46
    - Lambert was a bit old school in some ways. (NCFC) - APB, Oct 2, 17:11:13
      - Alan Irvine had a heck of a rep as a great coach until pretty recently (NCFC) - thebigfeller, Oct 2, 17:13:16
        
        I was being flippant about Karsa. Did anyone ever find out what he did? (n/m) (NCFC) - APB, Oct 2, 17:31:10
        
        Don't think so - but Villa's problems have been so endemic in any case (NCFC) - thebigfeller, Oct 2, 17:35:36
      - Lambert made us horrible to play against, I think now we are quite nice to play against (NCFC) - lovely old job, Oct 2, 17:13:11
- All really good points (NCFC) - Duck, Oct 2, 16:54:30
  - Yep need to take the next step if we go up (NCFC) - SCC 28, Oct 2, 17:09:30
    - 'Course we will. And now we're known as a yo-yo club (NCFC) - thebigfeller, Oct 2, 17:10:44
      - Most "yoyo clubs" stop yoyoing one way or the other after a while. (NCFC) - APB, Oct 2, 17:13:20
        
        They've been my template for years and years now - but even they've just changed owners (NCFC) - thebigfeller, Oct 2, 17:14:29
        
        We had to tolerate Hughton and where he sent us back to (n/m) (NCFC) - SCC 28, Oct 2, 17:18:05
        
        We couldn't tolerate him. And not being able to tolerate him made it harder for him (NCFC) - thebigfeller, Oct 2, 17:19:27
        
        How did he try to change his approach? (NCFC) - SCC 28, Oct 2, 17:37:35
        
        After Fulham in the Cup, he tried to be more positive. This resulted in us conceding more (NCFC) - thebigfeller, Oct 2, 17:39:57
        
        Before Fulham that season (NCFC) - SCC 28, Oct 2, 17:55:49
  - No. The reason we'll struggle to establish ourselves in the Prem is our owners (NCFC) - thebigfeller, Oct 2, 16:57:24
    - Not to mention the corruption. (NCFC) - APB, Oct 2, 17:00:59
      - This is of course purely hypothesis on my part. (NCFC) - APB, Oct 2, 17:04:45
        
        Regarding which, I entirely agree (NCFC) - thebigfeller, Oct 2, 17:08:16
        
        I don't know. Less money = less ability to affect others. (NCFC) - APB, Oct 2, 17:20:34
        
        Sunderland explanation is simple. Location, location, location (NCFC) - thebigfeller, Oct 2, 17:23:53
        
        That's what I mean. How have they survived? (NCFC) - APB, Oct 2, 17:26:11
        
        With their wage bill, I don't think survival is any sort of achievement in their case (NCFC) - thebigfeller, Oct 2, 17:27:46
      - Agree. But it's the way of the world, sadly (n/m) (NCFC) - thebigfeller, Oct 2, 17:03:14
        
        it's the glitterati and the treemasons in their ivory maronic lodges (NCFC) - Tombs, Oct 2, 17:26:57
- Gary Rowett is up there for what he's done at brum. (n/m) (NCFC) - protheroe fitzgibbon, Oct 2, 16:53:12

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