Clough: We're a work in progress - not a failure without promotion

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You can read that 2 ways. Either Clough is taking the pressure off the players or he genuinely believes after all the outlay this season that promotion is not the be all and end all this year. (Weather hrh or Jim will think the same is another matter.)

What a difference a season makes.
 



Kev Gee said:
You can read that 2 ways. Either Clough is taking the pressure off the players or he genuinely believes after all the outlay this season that promotion is not the be all and end all this year. (Weather hrh or Jim will think the same is another matter.)

What a difference a season makes.
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I'm pretty sure his remit is longer term. I think the responses are in line with expectatons.
 
Torrix1889 said:
Just about sums the man up for me......get rid, in my opinion we have gone backwards under Clough and at best are no better off than we were 2 years ago at this stage about to go into the play-off semi's with Yeovil. CLOUGH OUT.
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All well and good but who else would be available from a famous footballing dynasty that McCabe can cock wave around to help promote his overseas business interests?
 
I want to be on Nigel's side, but he does himself no favours at times.

Annoyed by this, likely to be a journo fishing for a quote I guess, but it's a deflating message on the eve of these playoffs.

Why not a rallying cry "we're going all out to win the playoffs and have the quality in the squad to do it." Rather than getting the reasons and excuses in first?
 
Grecian2000 said:
For anyone bored of my continuous belittling of twatter/face cunt and other forms of gob shiterry, please read the above.

If ever there was a reason to close the whole fucking thing down . . . . . . .
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Don't give it up G2K, social media is a tumour on the puckering sphincter of the world. The level of sheer cuntery committed on there every hour makes me think mass extinction of certain parts of the human race (those who class themselves as social commentators first in the queue followed by "marketeers" please) isn't actually a radical thought at all.

#stopfuckingtweetingyourhalfarsedopinionsyouwankers or whatever the kids say these days.

As for Cloughs comments. Nothing like an overreaction to a manager talking to the media is there?
 
Alternatively, the article could have read like this and everyone would be calling him a deluded, out of touch fool:-

Sheffield United manager Nigel Clough will see this season as an abject failure if his side do not win promotion from League One.
The Blades, who reached the last four of the Mickey Mouse unimportant Cup, will play Swindon in the play-off semi-finals, starting with Thursday's first leg at Bramall Lane, for a chance to reach Wembley and put themselves one step away from ending their four-year stay in the third tier.
Many people expected the Blades to be up there in the race for automatic promotion, not least their supporters, but Clough's side has struggled for consistency in the league and had to settle for a fifth-placed finish.
This is the Blades' third attempt at the play-offs in those four years in League One and Clough is confident his side will get their reward immediately.

"It's like saying it's a total failure if we don't go up this season and I think so too," Clough said.
"It's not difficult to pick and choose your times to go up and we've chosen to go up now.
"No doubt about it, the aim is to get in the Championship this season or we've wasted our time and I'm chucking the towel in"
"You see with what MK Dons have done, they've been there, building for five years, knocking on the door, lost in a couple of play-offs and now they've got automatic.
"And that is the case a number of times, you keep knocking and getting close eventually you will get there. But not us, we're absolutely certain to do it this year"
While the Blades, in the top flight as recently as 2007, are ready for the Championship off the field, Clough is keen to get there now because he is entirely happy with his playing squad.
"It's not about being in a good enough position if you do go up," Clough added. "It's all about going up immediately".
"This is still a team that has been developing and growing and is now the finished article".
"We're finished in numbers and in terms of who we need for the squad for the Premiership never mind the Championship."
"We are 18 months into this process, which is more than enough time and I'm 100% certain we will go up this season".

Surely it's better that he understands and is honest about the shortcomings and realistic prospects of the current squad, even if it reflects badly on him to say so.
 
Not sure of the number of weak willed lily livered, sniveling whingers and whiners that we have tended to 'follow' the Blades but would you do all the rest of the Blades fans a favour by not coming to BDTBL on Thursday - Whatever the expectation was at the start of the season we now have it all to do starting Thursday and only a positive reaction from the crowd will help! UTB - Lets go to Swindon on a high !
 
William Henry Foulkes said:
The pressure seems to be getting to a few people.
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Yes, Clough! He's signed a boatload of players and now he says he's not sure the squad he assembled isn't even good enough for League 1. Great rallying cry just before the first leg of the PO semi; and you say the supporters are negative.
 
Fiery Blade said:
Not sure of the number of weak willed lily livered, sniveling whingers and whiners that we have tended to 'follow' the Blades but would you do all the rest of the Blades fans a favour by not coming to BDTBL on Thursday - Whatever the expectation was at the start of the season we now have it all to do starting Thursday and only a positive reaction from the crowd will help! UTB - Lets go to Swindon on a high !
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Well said Fiery, a decent bit of commonsense that really needn't have to be aired. Whatever anyone's view our chances, surely there's only one approach to follow? I know that there are posters on here who use the forum as a way to let off steam, and that makes absolute sense, but it's not as if we aren't in with a chance of achieving something we've all craved. Take it from one Blade who's unable to get to most games due to ever worsening injuries, I'll be glued to the shoutbox, and at the Lane in spirit, willing the Blades onto a well deserved win. UTB!!!
 



YES Blade said:
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The Board's Target for this Season is the thread

Revolution said:
Better to have said nothing,
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Agree, but if he feeds the team with this stirring inspirational stuff in his morale boosting team talks no wonder most of them look like they have lost a fiver and found a quid. I'm not sure why he felt the need to respond to the line of questioning in the way he did. Its a bit out of character as he doesn't normally fall into that kind of media trap. I hope it wasn't an exercise in expectation management for our benefit? We don't really need our expectations of the play-offs downsizing. After that interview the only thing left is hope and he retired years ago. (Swindon fans trolling this Board have already picked up on our's and Preston's morale levels).

I hope we get a bit more "tribal", for want of a better word, for the play-offs. Its a red and white striped shirt out there. It is "of us" and "for us" and there are these "outsiders" coming to ridicule us, outplay us, beat us on our own turf (they fancy their chances at the Lane) and out shout us with their 2,000 expected fans. We need to get a bit of pride back, a bit of fight, do the best we can and recognise that each and everyone of us care but feel it in different ways.
 
pommpey said:
Well, we do Cluffy.



Well, take your time, eh?



Or the one after. If you're still here, that is



You see, what Sheffield United have done is drop ungracuiously from Championship battlers to Div One bottlers. IN about the same period of time, in fact.



Has McCabe got his hand up his arse during this interview, or what?



Meanwhile, Sheffield United's fanbase is just resigned to lower league mediocrity, week after week.



It's also about Game Changing Investments, added everybody else



Growing and developing. With a midfielder in the back four, no proper central defenders and no bedded in strike force.



Key statement of truth



Whilst getting relegated.



Well, you should fucking know. We know more than you, then Nigel. How does that sound?

pommpey
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It's a hell of a statement to put out there on the run up to the play offs.

Motivational?

How are the players expected to react to his statements?
 
I am not surprised at all that Clough has said this, the only surpise for me is that anyone who has been going this season is surprised.

The lack of urgency had been palpable from day one. I genuinely believe that he feels he has over achieved by getting us to the play offs this season.

If we do go up I am sure that he will be puzzled as to why he hasn't won manager of the season.

It should also be sounding alarms to those who want him in charge if we are still in League one next season, there is not going to be a change of approach, no all out push for auto just more of the same and more guff about work in progress.
 
Revolution said:
This is a very odd interview. Better to have said nothing, perhaps.
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I think to be honest he is speaking like a politician appealing to the voters or his case the fans and board.
Getting the excuses in early.

Will it be a hung parliament and/or a hung Clough.?
 
Im a little surprised but it could all be a bit of reverse psychology taking pressure off the players
and may have been in response to the Swindon manager making United favourites for the play offs
when clearly they have been the better team this season
 
Harry's Game said:
I genuinely believe that he feels he has over achieved by getting us to the play offs this season.
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Cmon Harry's Game cut him some slack, it is the highest position he has ever obtained in a Football League division in his whole career.
Getting 5th place is an amazing achievement for him.

He is bound to be very excited and that enthusiasm to go on and on and on comes across clearly, it's just so infectious.
 
MiserableBlader said:
"Clough: We're a work in progress
Sheffield United manager Nigel Clough will not see this season as a failure if his side do not win promotion from League One."

http://www1.skysports.com/football/news/11683/9837923/clough-were-a-work-in-progress

Why has nobody seen this - or are they just too distraught to post.

After my anger had subsided and I read the rest of this bollocks I tweeted

"@Saudi49er @JamesDPhipps @PATRIOTS1899 http://www1.skysports.com/football/news/11683/9837923/clough-were-a-work-in-progress …. This has given me a headache:( #Furious #disgusted #devastated Just #GetRid"

140 characters is far more than this clown is worth :blue:
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If the remit was consolidation in league 1 , and we had reached above expectations ,then Clough is correct. However if we do not get promotion , any manager in the play offs would deem it as failure. It fact some managers have resigned or got the sack when failing in the play offs. He may be getting the draft report ready for the end of season board report. I wonder if McCabe and Mr Prince , see it in the same light as Clough.

Unless i have read it wrong , if not - disappointed

UTB.
 
Bladebri said:
At least he is honest in his opinion on where we are at the moment, fans have been saying it for a while, NC says it and we get an uproar, I'm not going to read to much into this as I am just focused on the playoffs.
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Bladebri , agree with you , except us fans don't buy the players or pick the team . Us fans have been saying it for a while , but its up to him to do summet about it.

Yes focus on the play offs , and so should Clough , and not be coming out with a defeatist statement like that . We need Churchill talk and rally cry , not Churchill talk off the bloody car insurance advert.

UTB
 
If he dares to send the team out with an apparent intention of playing for penalties after "achieving" two goalless draws he will find out very quickly how important it is. In fact he might even end up in personal danger.

What am I talking about ? Of course he's going to try this, there's nothing more sure than the negative approach in such an important game and this will lead to failure.
 
Aren't most teams a 'work in progress'?

On the failure quote, he actually says "It's like saying it's a total failure if we don't go up this season, well we don't think it is," Clough said.

I'm sure he'll come out and say they've failed in their stated objective if we don't get promoted...but from his perspective, he's building a squad/club for the long term success of Sheffield United.
 
Pedro Verde said:
Im a little surprised but it could all be a bit of reverse psychology taking pressure off the players
and may have been in response to the Swindon manager making United favourites for the play offs
when clearly they have been the better team this season
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Hope you are right Pedro . We will all be there tomorrow , but Clough does shoot himself in the foot .or make a rod for his own back sometimes.

Lets hope it is a bit of kid - ology and psychology going on. Still think we will win the play offs , but even with being pro Clough , its hard not to get frustrated with the fella .

UTB
 



That's why I said I'm not going to read to much into it, what I said was not to influence other fans in anyway.
 
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