Adkins Out? - Match Thread

Trying to find out who "they" are.  Who ever "they" are are gone. 

MuttleyCAFC said:

What if, if has been reported by some on here, the budget was suddenly slashed in the Summer? It might be a reason why Thomas is finding it hard to sack Adkins. I mean, Adkins could say he was promised X and got Y instead etc.... I must stress, I don't know, but there has to be a reason it hasn't happened yet.

Seems to me that if he wasn't sacked today then he won't be until the pressure on TS's credibility becomes too much. If there is still a belief from TS that Adkins can turn it around then he is mistaken.

We all fall in the trap, me included, of feeling sorry for under fire managers like Adkins. But then it gets mentioned he might be on £1m compensation and you realise it is like feeling sorry for somebody who has won the lottery!

Dave2l said:

If and when he gets sacked....will it result in an immediate £1,000,000 (more or less) cash injection for him?

He's on £350,000 a year. Think his contract was 3 years?

I think they get something like remainder off that season and then maybe some payment that stops if and when they take another job. 

Cafc43v3r said:

AFKABartram said:

Personally I think it’s fairly obvious he is being ditched.

1. It’s clear there was a late night meeting. If the outcome was to continue, there would have been indications and whispers dropped today that was the case

2 The comms team haven’t put a single thing out today

3 There is no logical reason why to continue the status quo

I love the fact that architects of one of our worst transfer windows in history get a say in the fate of the poor bastard that got lumbered with them. 

Couldn't agree more.
Whoever comes in will have a massive job on their hands getting a tune out of this shower of shite. 
It's all about survival this season and try to kick on next season. 

Sam_777 said:

MuttleyCAFC said:

What if, if has been reported by some on here, the budget was suddenly slashed in the Summer? It might be a reason why Thomas is finding it hard to sack Adkins. I mean, Adkins could say he was promised X and got Y instead etc.... I must stress, I don't know, but there has to be a reason it hasn't happened yet.

He's finding it hard to sack him because he's an egotistical prat who can't admit when he made a mistake. 

And your knowledge of this is I assume based entirely on fact?

ButtleJR said:

Heard from multiple sources he's gone. One reckons announced at 6. 

He or they?

I got told 5 but the ducks are in a row apparently. 

The 5 would be, Adkins, JJ, Euell, Shimmel and ? 

Rothko said:

The 5 would be, Adkins, JJ, Euell, Shimmel and ? 

I think he meant announced at 5.  I could be wrong though

Rothko said:

The 5 would be, Adkins, JJ, Euell, Shimmel and ? 

Eh?

Surely the 5 is 5pm?

The Red Robin said:

Dave2l said:

If and when he gets sacked....will it result in an immediate £1,000,000 (more or less) cash injection for him?

He's on £350,000 a year. Think his contract was 3 years?

I think they get something like remainder off that season and then maybe some payment that stops if and when they take another job. 

Theres a lot of thinking going on in this thread today.

AllHailTheHen said:

Cafc43v3r said:

Addick_8 said:

carly burn said:

Bailey said:

Cafc43v3r said:

CL_Phantom said:

killerandflash said:

I still think that with a change of formation, we can be more competitive, as there are enough options in the squad. Our 4231/433 isn't working as we're being slaughtered down the flanks. With 4 attacking players who can't defend on the pitch, it can easily look more like 424

Change to a Curbs/Powell 442 or 4411 with one winger and 3 midfielders and we look more solid, e.g.

Keeper

RB Lavelle Famewo LB

Clare/Morgan  Arter/Dobson  Gilbey/Morgan  CBT/Leko

Lee/Leko/Washington

Stockley/Davison

In no way excusing Adkins, but is the constant use of the 433/ 4231 a requirement? We've heard of the pathway plan which sounds exactly like the saints model, a clear pathway from the youngest age group to first team, all play to the same formation and style, players and coaches  are scouted and brought in to fit to the club's vision.

I guess a question.to ask is, are we paying 433/4231 because that's what Adkins wants or do we have Adkins because thats what the club wants - 433/4231, sound similar yet pretty different... Look at Adkins' past jobs in particular the League one seasons and he mainly played... yep, 442...add in the comments that Henry wrote up from the teams chat the other day, about what's needed for a league one squad he said: 

Tall players - as lot of goals come from set pieces
A captian - for those tough games

Warriors - for those tough games 
Athletic players to get through a 40+ game season

Settled side

Left and right set piece takers - as a lot of goals come from set pieces 
Pacey player
20+ goal a season man

Sounds like the basics of a 442 to me...

And from that list of league one must haves we signed what? 

One tall player - Stockley
Pacey player - CBT/Leko

Again, not excusing him as if his hands are a bit tied*, then he needs to have a word and say something to the powers that be rather than act a complete mug and go with it - that's still stackable as that's avoiding our issues in the hope it'll click.






* Not trying to add to the current list of CL   conspiracy theories facts: 

Roddy keeping Adkins in job because they're old buddies from when they wasn't at Reading together

Roddy not telling TS how bad it really is because TS has no way of seeing that for himself.

Adkins has lost the dressing room because he's far too nice and the players don't respect him because of it.

JJ and Euell have no say because Adkins Mr far too nice immediately shuts them down and bullies them into silence.

Adkins channels his inner Fraye and only gives instructions such as "play football"

DJ threw a dildo called Adkins at the dugout on Saturday.

It's a good question.  I see a lot of comments that it's the formation that's the problem or doesn't suit the players we have.   Every club in this division, and the one above, play either a flat back four and 1 central striker or 3/5 at the back.   The very rare examples of 442 use either a diamond or box 4 rather than the flat 4 of yesteryear.

We played it at the end of the season last season and it worked.  Kirk probably hasn't played in any other formation in his career, Leko and CBT would have played it a youth level, Arter has played it most of his career.  It shouldn't bother Lavelle in his position.  Lee played it at both Luton and Oxford. 

All the summer recruitment should have been based on 4231/433 because that's what the manager wanted.   It probably was but, to me, it looks like it was more based on data and "good players" rather than how they fit in to the team.  Kirk and Lee are good examples of this, they are very different types of players to the ones we had in those roles last season. 

It's not, in my opinion, that it doesn't suit the players it's that he doesn't have the players that have defensive nous to play the system. Corey Blackett Taylor does not understand tracking back, maybe one of the reasons he is at this level. Lee is once again a purely offensive player as is Kirk. Contrast that with someone like Miller, who clearly knew how to defend and attack, Pratley and the sorely missed Forster Caskey. Players like Dobson and Morgan are still learning the game but will be very good players but not yet. For me Adkins problem is that he is stuck to a system that is not producing results and refuses to alter that system, look at the substitution of Lee on Saturday, he bought Corey Blackett Taylor on rather than Stockley, he then changed it positionally twice after that. 

 I agree. Adkins has to go but this squad is no great shakes either. A terrible recruitment drive in the summer.

We are in deep shit

Agreed we are currently in deep shit. However, this current squad is easily a top 6-12th squad in the league. No way should this group of players be where they are. They are partly to blame but buck stops with Adkins.

Is it?  To be 6-12th we would pretty much have to have had double the points we have got.  I could make an argument for 4 or 5 more points, but not 9-10 with the players we have got.

Last season we had a 6-12th team, a couple of slight improvements would have made it a comfortable top 6 team.  We haven't improved a single position (maybe right wing and back up RCB at a push).  Every other new player is worse than the one they replaced, in the starting 11.

Add in the fact last season, for large parts, we were as poor as we are now, the big difference was Aneke turned defeats into draws and draws into wins.

The whole place is rotten. 

That there is one of the most overlooked issues. We'd have been a lot further down the table last season without his contributions and he helped paper over some bang average performances. 

Hmmm......I wonder who's been saying for months that we are going to be in the shit because we haven't replaced our top goalscorer. In fact, from the end of the January transfer window we've weakened our front line to the extent we have just TWO recognised strikers (Washington having played virtually all his time here not as part of a front 1 or 2 and Lee is more of a No 10 / midfielder).

Now I know you might say our current problems lie further back - either centre of midfield and/or defence - but you dont win games by not scoring goals. Yes a few clean sheets will help steady the ship but as last night showed, at the start of the 2nd half with it being 1-1 we came out all guns blazing but had very little up front. I bet you my pension fund that if we had gone ahead at that point we would not have lost.

I'd love to start a match with a 4-4-2 line up. 2 proper strikers up top to give their defenders something to think about & 2 central midfielders who can mix it up & get into them. We have enough wide players to mix & match but defending starts from the front.

Edit. 

Just realised I was replying to a post from last night & 20 pages later things look like they are moving along.


Perhaps TS was just waiting for Bruce to become available.