Have to admit I'm pretty torn on the Rafa situation now. Yes he has been f*cked by the owners and the lack of any decent money to spend but what money he has spent, has been spent badly, really badly.
It's didn't take much skill to spend big cash on Torres and Masch - they were fairly safe buys. The other 'big' money spent recently - Johnson (why not keep Aberloa who was a decent right back and spend �18 on some sort of striker that we desperately need?) and Aquilani (jury still out here - but rafa, at least play the midfielder supposedly capable of making an attacking pass rather than playing 6 defenders and 2 defensive midfielders like yesterday)
But the real problem with rafa's signings are all the other dross (mentioned a few posts ago). Where are the 1 or 2 signings that have really represented good value (or even a 'great' buy)? There are none. No one you would look at and go, this guy is good, and if he keeps on improving like this, he may be world class..........the type of players that should wear the red shirt.
And where are the youth? 5 years in and not 1 decent youth team player breaking through? Or is it that Rafa just won't give them a chance? A bit of both I would imagine. N'gog is crap. Utter crap. Too lightweight for the premier league. 2nd touch is a tackle. Doesn't work hard enough for me. Why not give Pacheco a go? Kyrgiakos? (anyone else have to google that before typing?) From what I've seen, why not play Ayala? Lucas? Plessis? (He played a blinder against L'Arse at the new library a couple of seasons back). Is rafa just too stubborn to try some of these?
I don't think Rafa will go as it will cost the club too much. But we're edging closer and closer to not qualifying to the CL, Torres/Gerrard/Masch/Reina looking around and going we want CL football, less revenue generated through not qualifying, even less money to spend, less attractive to quality players to come to, top stars leave, even less attractive for other players to come to, another season not qualifying for the CL, less revenue generated...........and then mid table mediocrity. We may even (with the current injuries and non-performance of the rest of the squad) already be too far down that road for it to be reversed....
And the owners............. %*$S �$%&*� *%&� *%$&$$�
Hope as always.........but it's not looking good from a red perspective.
Have to admit I'm pretty torn on the Rafa situation now. Yes he has been fcked by the owners and the lack of any decent money to spend but what money he has spent, has been spent badly, really badly.
It's didn't take much skill to spend big cash on Torres and Masch - they were fairly safe buys. The other 'big' money spent recently - Johnson (why not keep Aberloa who was a decent right back and spend �18 on some sort of striker that we desperately need?) and Aquilani (jury still out here - but rafa, at least play the midfielder supposedly capable of making an attacking pass rather than playing 6 defenders and 2 defensive midfielders like yesterday)
But the real problem with rafa's signings are all the other dross (mentioned a few posts ago). Where are the 1 or 2 signings that have really represented good value (or even a 'great' buy)? There are none. No one you would look at and go, this guy is good, and if he keeps on improving like this, he may be world class..........the type of players that should wear the red shirt.
And where are the youth? 5 years in and not 1 decent youth team player breaking through? Or is it that Rafa just won't give them a chance? A bit of both I would imagine. N'gog is crap. Utter crap. Too lightweight for the premier league. 2nd touch is a tackle. Doesn't work hard enough for me. Why not give Pacheco a go? Kyrgiakos? (anyone else have to google that before typing?) From what I've seen, why not play Ayala? Lucas? Plessis? (He played a blinder against L'Arse at the new library a couple of seasons back). Is rafa just too stubborn to try some of these?
I don't think Rafa will go as it will cost the club too much. But we're edging closer and closer to not qualifying to the CL, Torres/Gerrard/Masch/Reina looking around and going we want CL football, less revenue generated through not qualifying, even less money to spend, less attractive to quality players to come to, top stars leave, even less attractive for other players to come to, another season not qualifying for the CL, less revenue generated...........and then mid table mediocrity. We may even (with the current injuries and non-performance of the rest of the squad) already be too far down that road for it to be reversed....
And the owners............. %$S �$%&*� *%&� *%$&$$�
Hope as always.........but it's not looking good from a red perspective.