The way I see this season going..

[wizadry]

Wiz, I know you have the club's best intention's at heart, but your comment about Clough possibly being a liar, or the Prince withdrawing his commitment, just doesn't stand up to scrutiny mate.

One thing some of our supporter's share is a 'Woe is me' attitude. The easiest answer for this elite bunch of moaners is to point a finger and blame someone, anyone! It's as if what's been said from the beginning has been forgotten, or even more worrying, swept under the carpet because it doesn't fit with their version of how life should be. It was made abundantly clear from the beginning that the funds available to Clough would be increased the higher we went. Now I've no idea how much those funds are, and neither does anyone else apart than Clough, the Prince, and one or two other people I suspect. Yet a few up and down results during pre-season and finger's are pointed and the clouds descend.

To be honest, to suggest Clough is telling lies is pretty low in my book. I'd also suggest that the Prince, and those who facilitate his wishes, hasn't mislead anyone. When I read posts that say they were expecting this, that, or the other, it strikes me that they've convinced themselves that we'll spend relatively large amounts. Then, when this doesn't happen, they blame, even though it's themselves who've invented this scenario. They attribute these falsehoods to Clough, the Prince, and just about anyone who they feel is worthy of their irrational and confused thinking. So, some posters aren't impressed by the signings we've made? The answer's simple, either don't support the team or produce evidence to back up the claims that we've been lied to. If anyone can substantiate that we've been lied to I'll support you, but until then, base those accusations on facts, not some aberrant figment of an over-active imagination.

We seem to have one of the best managers we've had for years, possibly decades, yet the realities of managing this club seem to escape these doolally idiots. Yes, Clough will be judged in exactly the same way as any other manager. If he loses more than he wins I imagine he'll be sacked. He realises these realities as much as we do, but the one thing I do recall is that after Weir's departure there was a chorus of support for the next manager to be given time and not chop and change at the first sign of a problem. It's pre-season FFS, not a deciding game regarding promotion. Some of us need to cut Clough some slack, stop referring to him as a liar, and base any judgements that seem relevant on the facts, instead of fertile imaginations that suggest we've been lied to. UTB

The only thing i like about that post mate,is that ive got the clubs best intentions at heart.Its a shame that some people don't see it the same way as me.Cloud cuckoo land doesn't even come close to some people,you see what you want to see and ignore what you don't want to see,plain and simple,and on that note i'm out.

 

[sheffielder]

Agree about the lack of effort in any game, but 'shouldn't' lose? Dundee FC beat Man City recently,and as galling as that must have been for the Man City management, I doubt they'll have responded in any other way than to access the pros and cons and work hard to correct what were clearly attitude issues on the day. It happens, to the best, so little ol' SUFC will be treated to the very same by teams we imagine are there for the taking. Of course, in this scenario is that little glitch that doesn't consider that other teams want to beat us, and give us a lesson in how to perform. It happens, period. It shouldn't, but it does.

I find it very deflating to see my team lose, but I also know we're in good hands, therefore we've got little alternative than to let those who manage this team get on with it. Does anyone seriously think Clough takes any pleasure from watching his team lose?

Sorry I have I ask if Dundee beat man city's first eleven like York beat ours. I know people get dramatic over a loss but the same can be said of people defending defeats.

 

[itsinyerblood]

The only thing i like about that post mate,is that ive got the clubs best intentions at heart.Its a shame that some people don't see it the same way as me.Cloud cuckoo land doesn't even come close to some people,you see what you want to see and ignore what you don't want to see,plain and simple,and on that note i'm out.

Thanks for that confirmation Wiz, I kinda suspected you'd have that point of view. The fact that you've not actually addressed any of the points in my post, but instead settled for a sweeping condemnation, only adds to the opinion that you're imagining wrongs where there are none. You've displayed an acute lack of understanding of what has been made clear by the club's hierarchy already. I know there are those who refuse to let go of the past and use this as the barometer to judge every action of this current regime, so I think you should cling onto you dystopian view that whatever happens at SUFC it has a negative intent behind it......love that comment, "It's a shame that some people don't see it the same way as me". It must be very isolating when you feel so aggrieved that no one can see the rightness of your position, yet surprise, surprise, you have no evidence to support any of this. I guess we can anticipate seeing a season long moan from you then about the club having no desire to move forward, looking forward to the "I told you so" posts.

 

[itsinyerblood]

Sorry I have I ask if Dundee beat man city's first eleven like York beat ours. I know people get dramatic over a loss but the same can be said of people defending defeats.

Man City may have not had the first eleven playing that day, but I dare say that even a second rung side for City should be more than a handful for many teams. Teams lose, pure and simple, that's why you have cup upsets, it's why we beat, deservedly, Villa and Fulham. I wasn't defending a defeat, just making the point that losses happen, whether we choose to acknowledge their value or not.

 

[SandyMcBlade]

Judging by the way we performed against the two 2nd div sides we better not get relegated .....

 

[Flatulent_Bob]

The beauty of always taking the negative stance is that at some point you'll be able to say you were right.
You'll have been wrong many times prior but you'll not acknowledge them and just fall back on the dull same owd.
Case in point the sunstroke comment. No one has presented any claim that this wasn't the case or claim from Harry on prior evening for missing the meal. It's just used as a stick to beat the club with to have something to moan about.

 

[Deadly_D'Jaffo]

In Clough I completely trust, but like I said in my thread '2014/2015 Patience Required'...well...the title say's it all.

My only slight concern is that a Manager should know his best XI and after the reports of Scougall, McNulty, Murphy & Baxter all looking slightly disappointing during pre season I wonder if 5 days left is enough time for NC to figure his first team out. Again, i'd warn that we are in for a shaky couple of months whilst a lot of fans have got carried away with the way we finished the season, the bookies odds for L1 and the strength of teams around us.

The first team is weaker, but the squad is stronger. I just hope (not expect) that over the course of next season we have enough to get us promoted.

 

[blade too long]

One match does not make or break a season but I fancy how we do against Bristol City (in what should be a six pointer) will cast a strong shadow over how the first 10 games or so go. Lose 0-2 or so and it will be confidence sapping and slow the new team bonding which is important given the number of key personnel changes.

I know we won the first match under Weir and we know what happened after but confidence can be a fragile thing ( UTB

we went into last season unbeaten in pre season , won and were on a very big high
pre season is training and system sorting , has no value other than give Nigel some pointers
beating fener and losing at york mean diddly
Belief is everything, if we go in believing we can do it , we just might , if we go in thinking ooh they look strong , we wont ... simples

We go out with the intent to win , in league games , nothing else matters

 

[metalblade]

Anybody on here think that Harry really did have sun stroke ? Ahh that's right half the golf players in Sheffield also went down with sun stroke that day.
Sorry to say it Happy Chappies but it works both ways, when you say everything in the garden is rosey one day you just might be right but not if the last seven years of steady decline are anything to go by. Nice to know that anyone not sharing these views are labelled as "these doolally idiots" some people really are pompous overbearing idiots full of their own self importance. Not everyone shares the view from the rose tinted specs learn to live with it and accept it, opinions are like arseholes we all got one running with the majority don't make any ones opinion right.

 

[Going up]

Agreed Deadly DJ, the team is a little weaker, but not for want of trying...we got lucky with Brayford and Coady. It wasn't likely that a team in League 1 could attract equivalent players, or as the goal always is, better players, than those.

The squad certainly has more depth which should see us though the busy Christmas period and through cup runs, if there are any.

I just feel we need a little time and a game changer, or two.

 

[blade too long]

The personnel certain individuals matters little its the team ethic that carries the day, love Brayford back but you dont always get 100% what you want ,, but if we can pass and move like we did second half of last season be fine

 

[crucialkneeligaman]

Thats why i put should, instead of have been made available to answer your question.The problem is,Cloughy has said on a numerous of occasions he is happy with the budget made available to him,so either he has told porkies or he has to get us promotion.I find it strange that since the prince has gone back,our funds seem to have stopped to a certain degree.There is something telling me that all is not well and we have been told bullshit yet again.

Totally agree Wizadry, we think along the same lines, especially your last comment.

 

[crucialkneeligaman]

I think that even as warm up matches you can still read something from them. If your forward warms up by taking 20 practice penalties and he blasts every single one wide you're entitled to worry about how they're going to play,

But on balance I still agree with you, there's been enough positives in patches throughout these friendlies that I'm still very positive about a bright start to the season

I have concerns about our hit and miss form displayed in the friendlies, however I've seen some wretched friendly performances in the past and then on the day it really matters we have turned up and performed. At the end of the day, I still think we have a gem of a manager and will support him even when times get tough as I'm sure the majority of Blades will, we all know what he is capable of as witnessed last season.

 

[crucialkneeligaman]

Wiz, I know you have the club's best intention's at heart, but your comment about Clough possibly being a liar, or the Prince withdrawing his commitment, just doesn't stand up to scrutiny mate.

One thing some of our supporter's share is a 'Woe is me' attitude. The easiest answer for this elite bunch of moaners is to point a finger and blame someone, anyone! It's as if what's been said from the beginning has been forgotten, or even more worrying, swept under the carpet because it doesn't fit with their version of how life should be. It was made abundantly clear from the beginning that the funds available to Clough would be increased the higher we went. Now I've no idea how much those funds are, and neither does anyone else apart than Clough, the Prince, and one or two other people I suspect. Yet a few up and down results during pre-season and finger's are pointed and the clouds descend.

To be honest, to suggest Clough is telling lies is pretty low in my book. I'd also suggest that the Prince, and those who facilitate his wishes, hasn't mislead anyone. When I read posts that say they were expecting this, that, or the other, it strikes me that they've convinced themselves that we'll spend relatively large amounts. Then, when this doesn't happen, they blame, even though it's themselves who've invented this scenario. They attribute these falsehoods to Clough, the Prince, and just about anyone who they feel is worthy of their irrational and confused thinking. So, some posters aren't impressed by the signings we've made? The answer's simple, either don't support the team or produce evidence to back up the claims that we've been lied to. If anyone can substantiate that we've been lied to I'll support you, but until then, base those accusations on facts, not some aberrant figment of an over-active imagination.

We seem to have one of the best managers we've had for years, possibly decades, yet the realities of managing this club seem to escape these doolally idiots. Yes, Clough will be judged in exactly the same way as any other manager. If he loses more than he wins I imagine he'll be sacked. He realises these realities as much as we do, but the one thing I do recall is that after Weir's departure there was a chorus of support for the next manager to be given time and not chop and change at the first sign of a problem. It's pre-season FFS, not a deciding game regarding promotion. Some of us need to cut Clough some slack, stop referring to him as a liar, and base any judgements that seem relevant on the facts, instead of fertile imaginations that suggest we've been lied to. UTB

Were not the supporters being sold a bit of a pup when we were told that Maquire wasn't playing against Huddersfield because he had been in the Sun too long on the day of the match, clearly wasn't the case. Didn't Nigel go along with that story when he knew that the real reason was that he was about to put pen to paper with Dull City ?.

 

[itsinyerblood]

Were not the supporters being sold a bit of a pup when we were told that Maquire wasn't playing against Huddersfield because he had been in the Sun too long on the day of the match, clearly wasn't the case. Didn't Nigel go along with that story when he knew that the real reason was that he was about to put pen to paper with Dull City ?.

Despite the impossibility of that last sentence being unable to be confirmed, I think the reality is that Clough may have been put in an unenviable position, and Harry's future was, at that exact moment, still some way from being decided.

I've already responded to this in a previous post, but I'm happy to state that due to the circumstances that had happened over the 48-hour period of that Thursday-Friday I think that Clough may have found himself on the back foot, but it doesn't mean he's a liar. If you're unsure, why not write to Clough and categorically state that you feel he's lied to the supporters?

 

[JOEYDEE]

Were not the supporters being sold a bit of a pup when we were told that Maquire wasn't playing against Huddersfield because he had been in the Sun too long on the day of the match, clearly wasn't the case. Didn't Nigel go along with that story when he knew that the real reason was that he was about to put pen to paper with Dull City ?.

Get over it !
Just file it with Beatties flu',and the broken fax machine stories !
Next.....

 

[crucialkneeligaman]

Despite the impossibility of that last sentence being unable to be confirmed, I think the reality is that Clough may have been put in an unenviable position, and Harry's future was, at that exact moment, still some way from being decided.

I've already responded to this in a previous post, but I'm happy to state that due to the circumstances that had happened over the 48-hour period of that Thursday-Friday I think that Clough may have found himself on the back foot, but it doesn't mean he's a liar. If you're unsure, why not write to Clough and categorically state that you feel he's lied to the supporters?

Why would it be impossible to confirm ?, Maquires future still some way from being decided at that moment ?,.... right. It's a minor point anyway but lets stop painting these people whiter than white, I for one get sick of officials at football clubs treating us like dummies, if Maquire was going, he was going, it's football it happens. Lets drop the liar bit and substitute fib, sounds more cuddly and maybe doesn't upset certain supporters as much. I would be quite happy to write to Cloughie along the lines you have stated, of course I'm quite sure he would be able to put me right on the matter in an honest & truthful way.

 

[wizadry]

Thanks for that confirmation Wiz, I kinda suspected you'd have that point of view. The fact that you've not actually addressed any of the points in my post, but instead settled for a sweeping condemnation, only adds to the opinion that you're imagining wrongs where there are none. You've displayed an acute lack of understanding of what has been made clear by the club's hierarchy already. I know there are those who refuse to let go of the past and use this as the barometer to judge every action of this current regime, so I think you should cling onto you dystopian view that whatever happens at SUFC it has a negative intent behind it......love that comment, "It's a shame that some people don't see it the same way as me". It must be very isolating when you feel so aggrieved that no one can see the rightness of your position, yet surprise, surprise, you have no evidence to support any of this. I guess we can anticipate seeing a season long moan from you then about the club having no desire to move forward, looking forward to the "I told you so" posts.

Before this goes to a stage where i don't want it to go,i like most of your posts iiyb,you have good knowledge and understanding of absolutely allsorts,but i don't like what you think of me.Whats my position?why am i isolated and aggrieved?and why do i have no evidence?infact why do i need any?especially to make you feel better in yourself.

Let me take you to the first post what you commented on,or have you forgot about that on your high horse.Has cloughy said on a numerous of occasions that he's happy with the budget,the answer is yes.So therefore if he is happy with the budget,then promotion is the only thing for us,is it not?Right,the point i was getting at with the porkies, was if he was told he was getting x amount,and only got y amount from the board,is he then going to come out and say we haven't had the right funds to get the right people in(if we don't get them)or will he stick to what he said?

Has the prince,who was our co-chairman,stepped down from his role to take a presidencial role in his native country,yes he has.This means like he said" i'm going to take time away from Sheff Utd but my son will deal with matters",(he's still co-owner though)now correct me if i'm wrong,but apart from Mcgahey,who we got for next to nothing may i add, i don't think we have spent any money since he has gone and we only got him because we knew Maguire was going,uncanny aint it,but true.So this was why i said it was strange that our funds to a certain degree,had stopped.I hope that clears that post up for you iiyb,so no i'm not imagining the wrongs,i'm quite clearly having an opinion on something,which is surely aloud because its a forum.This has nothing to do with the past either.

Its just my opinion of the situation what we are in at the minute and if it doesn't improve to the extent where we atleast spend a bit of money on a striker,then we are going to be a mid table side at best,and that my friend,will be where I SEE THE SEASON GOING,unless we get a bit of quality in for our respective league.

As for the moaning and i told you posts,i hope for all our sakes,that you can say to me i told ya so.

 

[grafikhaus]

Anybody on here think that Harry really did have sun stroke ? Ahh that's right half the golf players in Sheffield also went down with sun stroke that day.

As I said at the time...

Oh come on, Pinchy. 'SuntanGate' has been blown out of all proportion, and I bet HM never even said it. Him and his agent have probably been talking to 'ull for weeks. They decided that last Friday's meaningless friendly with Dundee would be the time to make their play (and also avoid a possible transfer-endangering injury). HM will have told NC that he was feeling a bit 'off' and didn't want to play. NC, sniffing the wind and also mighty pissed off, would have been asked by the media 'Why no Maguire?' and NC - mirroring his dad's infamous temper - would have snapped back with the first thing that came to him. In this case 'Sunstroke'.

That's my take, anyway. Harry refused to sign our latest offer for weeks before he finally left. Clough was simply exasperated and could have come out with 'flu', 'herpes' or fuckin' 'Eboli' but it wasn't meant to be taken as gospel.

And, while we haven't seen 'headline figures' for players we've brought in, obviously they'll expect to be paid. I'm guessing the dressing room average is around £2k per week. That's £1m. a year x the many players we've brought in. Nobody else in the division will be able to match that.

 

[itsinyerblood]

Before this goes to a stage where i don't want it to go,i like most of your posts iiyb,you have good knowledge and understanding of absolutely allsorts,but i don't like what you think of me.Whats my position?why am i isolated and aggrieved?and why do i have no evidence?infact why do i need any?especially to make you feel better in yourself.

Let me take you to the first post what you commented on,or have you forgot about that on your high horse.Has cloughy said on a numerous of occasions that he's happy with the budget,the answer is yes.So therefore if he is happy with the budget,then promotion is the only thing for us,is it not?Right,the point i was getting at with the porkies, was if he was told he was getting x amount,and only got y amount from the board,is he then going to come out and say we haven't had the right funds to get the right people in(if we don't get them)or will he stick to what he said?

Has the prince,who was our co-chairman,stepped down from his role to take a presidencial role in his native country,yes he has.This means like he said" i'm going to take time away from Sheff Utd but my son will deal with matters",(he's still co-owner though)now correct me if i'm wrong,but apart from Mcgahey,who we got for next to nothing may i add, i don't think we have spent any money since he has gone and we only got him because we knew Maguire was going,uncanny aint it,but true.So this was why i said it was strange that our funds to a certain degree,had stopped.I hope that clears that post up for you iiyb,so no i'm not imagining the wrongs,i'm quite clearly having an opinion on something,which is surely aloud because its a forum.This has nothing to do with the past either.

Its just my opinion of the situation what we are in at the minute and if it doesn't improve to the extent where we atleast spend a bit of money on a striker,then we are going to be a mid table side at best,and that my friend,will be where I SEE THE SEASON GOING,unless we get a bit of quality in for our respective league.

As for the moaning and i told you posts,i hope for all our sakes,that you can say to me i told ya so.

Hi Wiz, it's been made clear on more than one occasion that this a season when we achieve promotion. It's what you, I, and Nigel Clough, want more than anything else for this club. If we don't achieve that we'll all be bitterly disappointed, and unless we have a catastrophric stroke of bad luck through injuries, questions will be asked about the management team.

Nigel Clough doesn't need me to defend him, I'm sure he's more than capable of standing his ground and responding to questions about his integrity and professional capability. At best, anything that suggests he's misleading the supporter's is naive. Nothing in the way he's accounted for himself since he took over the job as manager suggests he behaves in a way that avoids addressing the facts. Whether you agree with that doesn't matter. I don't blindly accept what I hear, I've got decent antennae, so if something were to smack of taking the supporters for fools I'd respond in an equally forthright manner. What Clough has said is that no manager is ever happy with the budgets they've been given, but that he was also not unhappy with this budget and would do his best to work within this figure. I don't know about you but that's not a complicated response. I find him refreshing and plain speaking. I don't know what else we can expect of a manager? Familiarity can create a sense of high expectation that sometimes borders on an unrealistic view of what's genuinely achievable, and in Nigel Clough we're fortunate to have someone who has the capabilities to keep everyone grounded whilst not having a lack of aspiration and ambition. I doubt he's here to work 9-5 Monday to Friday and turn off at the weekends.

You appear to think I have a consistently negative view of you as a poster Wiz. That's incorrect. What I did object to were the views expressed in your earlier post. It happens. There are a few posters on here whose opinions I follow. I don't always agree with them, but overall I find they comment in a way that offers a healthy contribution to the quality we find on this forum. There are also one or two posters who I've chosen to 'ignore', simply because I get the feeling that returning from the pub they commence to send posts, the content of which are often abusive and overly aggressive. It's not why I joined this forum so I'm happy to let others comment on their manic responses. You're forthright Wiz but you're not offensive, so this time you've disagreed with what I've written and made your view known. Good, I'd support that, and I'm happy to respond in kind. Isn't that how forums work? Guys like yourself are the lifeblood of a football forum, it's obvious you're a unitedite to your marrow, so keep up the attention to what happens on here Wiz.

On the question of McGahey, a fee is still to be determined later this year, so he's far from a free signing.

One of the problems of a forum, any forum, is that in airing questions about finances I doubt supporters will ever be provided with a completely transparent view of financial matters. Having said that, there are enough canny heads on this site, as well as BladesMad, who have access to the club's accounts and are capable of interpreting monies collected and monies spent. So ultimately we do have ways to understand the nuts and bolts of club finances.

I don't quite understand the correlation between the Prince's current focus and what's spent by Clough? It's been made clear that Clough has access to the Prince via his representatives, so unless there's poor communication at work I can't see why you'd arrive at the conclusion that there's some kind of financial stagnation? It's not the Prince who chooses which players the club signs, it's Clough, so given the manager's mantra that he'll only sign who he consider's are the right players, surely it's the manager who's responsible for what is or isn't spent? Manager's make mistakes, Paynter was an unresounding flop, White was another that didn't make the impression I'm sure Clough had hoped for, and so on. All managers have successes and failures in the transfer market. They're judged on their overall ratio of successful signings allied to the success of the team. Overall, Clough has taken this club by the scruff of the neck in a short space of time, a major overhaul is still in place, and I doubt there's any lack of resolve to make us a promotion contender this season. As I write, it looks as if we're on the cusp of signing a forward, is that a sign that we're skint? So the negative tones I read just don't add up. We'll just have to agree to disagree Wiz, most importantly, I'm sure we both want United to wave goodbye to this division as soon as possible.

 

[JJBlade]

Bad start against teams that are better than us.
From November onwards we start to make inroads due to the good form of Murphy and Di Girolamo.
January, Murphy and Di Girolamo sold for a pittance.

One day later, me done forever.

 

[itsinyerblood]

Why would it be impossible to confirm ?, Maquires future still some way from being decided at that moment ?,.... right. It's a minor point anyway but lets stop painting these people whiter than white, I for one get sick of officials at football clubs treating us like dummies, if Maquire was going, he was going, it's football it happens. Lets drop the liar bit and substitute fib, sounds more cuddly and maybe doesn't upset certain supporters as much. I would be quite happy to write to Cloughie along the lines you have stated, of course I'm quite sure he would be able to put me right on the matter in an honest & truthful way.

You clearly like to rattle on until you feel your point has been accepted as the correct interpretation of events. I doubt any human being is whiter than white, but that's another discussion for another time. If you choose to cautiously dance around which word suits your comment it doesn't mean that your original meaning is any less striking or damning. So Clough is a fibber? Liar, liar, pants on fire....or something to that effect. And yes, I have absolutely no doubt Clough would correct you about your misinterpretation. So go on then, write to Nigel, tell him he's a fibber, and in the process let him know your world view is more accurate than his, I'm sure he'd be impressed.

 

[sheffielder]

Whatever happened with Harry and the suns stroke doesn't really matter. What does matter is that we spend the fucking money to make this TEAM better.

If not you can add Harry to the list of jags and the kyles who were sold and not adequately replaced.

 

[crucialkneeligaman]

You clearly like to rattle on until you feel your point has been accepted as the correct interpretation of events. I doubt any human being is whiter than white, but that's another discussion for another time. If you choose to cautiously dance around which word suits your comment it doesn't mean that your original meaning is any less striking or damning. So Clough is a fibber? Liar, liar, pants on fire....or something to that effect. And yes, I have absolutely no doubt Clough would correct you about your misinterpretation. So go on then, write to Nigel, tell him he's a fibber, and in the process let him know your world view is more accurate than his, I'm sure he'd be impressed.

Read the first sentence you've written itsinyerblood and reflect. Anyway I don't want to go to war with you over it as I respect a lot of what you write on this forum. I shall do exactly what Joeydee advised me to do.

 

[wizadry]

[QUOTE="wizadry, post: 631220, member: 13101"I find it strange that since the prince has gone back,our funds seem to have stopped to a certain degree.

What's your evidence for that?[/QUOTE]
Sorry string forgot to reply mate,i hope i answered your question in post 48 paragraph 3,this is just my take on it thats all.