Brendan Fraudgers!

Love listening to his interviews.

He knows exactly how to deal with those mugs in the media that only want to talk about and ask about one thing also, which I love.

Reminds me of the way O'Neill dealt with the media.

Mentioning Aberdeen and then Hearts for teams that'll challenge before you know who is exactly how to get it up the journalists that were choking for him to make it an 'us and them' nonsense all season.

 

Sturridge & world class do not go together. The rest I agree with

 

Clearly a massive upgrade on Deila but I wish people would stop talking about the latter as if he were some sort of bullshitter. In the end it didn't work out for Deila but there's a lot he did right. I think he helped lay the groundwork for Rodgers regarding fitness, focus on constant improvement, turning Griffiths around, bringing Tierney through, etc.

There's a lot of battles Rodgers would have to fight in order to change the culture at any other Scottish club that he won't have to here thanks to Deila and that's allowing him to make such rapid progress.

 

Agree. Been saying the same thing

 

From what I'm seeing, no one is overly slagging Ronny. Just stating the obvious early door's, that we look to have an upgrade, it's clear as day. Right sub's, game management and flexibility, his pedigree of course with the board and allowing him the fund's to attract high calibre player's who want to PLAY FOR HIM..

Comparisons are always gonna be there when a new man replaces the outgoing. Ronny did a lot of good here by the way, most accept his forward thinking idea's but a pity it fell flat on the playing side..

 

I was one of Deila's biggest supporters but his stubbornness in persisting with his tactic when it wasn't working or the game called for a different approach began to look as if he didn't have a clue. The biggest change I see here is Rodgers willingness to change it up.

Im sure I heard that Tanner character say pre-match that the players personally felt as if they weren't fit enough last season. Might be wrong on that but it would account for many of the lacklustre displays I seen last season & casts some doubt on Deila's fitness regime.

 

I might be saying this prematurely but what the comparison so far has shown me is how fine a line it can be between being a decent/good manager and a great one.

We got through the Astana game by showing character and through very good substitutions and game management. Under Ronny we probably would have been the better team in that tie but wouldn't have been able to see it out. We simply weren't able to attract players like Toure, Dembele and Sinclair while Ronny was here either, having that extra bit of quality we previously lacked has got us over the line in our previous two games.

Edit: I agree though that Ronny has laid the foundations, I argued several times last season that we weren't a million miles off being a good team and now we've spent what, 5 million or so and we already look that bit better on paper.

 

100% yeah. I feel we are much more assured of ourselves in Europe so far under Rodgers. Under Ronny you always sort of felt like we were just playing "attacking football" and, like you say, we just didn't have good game management at all.

 

As for your last bit yeah I agree as well. Always felt like we just needed another striker, winger and centre half and we'd be well on our way. A centre midfielder is obviously needed right now as well. If we sign a quality centre midfielder and that's us done for the summer I wouldn't complain.

 

We were absolutely crying out for a leader and an experienced player at the back. Our central defensive pairing in the majority of our European games last season consisted of two of Boyata/Ambrose/Jozo.

Since then we've signed Erik and Toure, massive upgrades in the leadership/experience departments. I haven't seen us look as assured at the back in Europe as we did for the half hour Kolo came on against Astana, in a lon time.

We've also signed Roberts, Sinclair and Dembele in that time on top of Ajer. It's been said already but we really should be a different animal altogether this season. Another good box to box midfielder and I think we are absolutely flying

 

Agree with that Mr M

 

For me, there was an evident decline in Deilas reign from what Lennon achieved.
Rodgers will have to stop this decline and turn things round for the better.
To try and attribute or relate any of Rodgers achievements to Deila is incorrect.

 

Id credit Ronny for helping to bring Tierney through, but Griffiths was already an established spl player and goalscorer. Wanyama or Van Djik didnt automatically make the starting XI when they joined, Griffiths was no different.

In terms of fitness, again i dont think you can try and attribute our current sutuation to Deila as Rodgers had to conduct his own pre season and in essence a clean slate.
Moreover, fitness seemed to be an issue the team had under Deila.
I dont think there has been any evident tapid progress thus far. As Rodgers has conceded himself, its the mentality he has had to change first and foremost, with the technical side being a more geadual process.

 

Amazing the difference just a few choice signings can make to the perception of the quality of the squad. Someone mentioned the double impact certain players bring by adding not only their individual talents, but also rising the performance of their new teammates either through competition or positive influence. Think the three guys we've brought in thus far have had a very positive impact, and they're all just at the beginning of things.

If we consider the first team options and their cover, the squad is starting to look competitive. One or two more choice additions will really strengthen things, but i'm happy to continue in the slowly, slowly vain if it continues to bring in young talent, experienced pros and match-winning capability as it has thus far.

Looking at it:

GK: Gordon, Baililey, Fasan

Def: Lustig/Janko, Toure/Simunovic, Eric/O'Connel, Tierney/Izzy (plus Boyata and Efe)

Mid: Roberts/Forrest, Brown/McGregor, Bitton/Ajer, Sinclair/Armstrong (plus Christie, Henderson, Johansen, GMS)

No.10: Rogic/Commons

Strikers: Griff, Dembele, Ciftci


It's not looking too bad. Brown looks like a new man, O'Connel has been a revelation, Tierney has picked up where he left off and Roberts, when he gets back, will be a force.


Certainly room to see some of the guys in brackets be moved on or loaned out, which might free up some space for a quality defensive CM and another left-sided player, perhaps younger. But all in good time.

Lot of hard work still ahead, but glad to see steps in the right direction. Feel like we're right at the cusp of something here...

 

Lets not get carried way, he has had one good game thus far. A pretty less than flattering pre season if you ask me. Hopefully, yes he string a few more together.

 

Brendan has certainly brought a freshness to the team. Whatever about the new signings, he seems to be getting the best out of players that i, for one, thought had no future here. I have been a big critic of Forrest and Brown especially. But they were 2 of the best players on the park yesterday. Brown seems to be playing more direct football, like he did many moons ago, instead of the negative, backward and sideward play from last season. And Forrest actually looks like he is trying, and showing some of the football that we knew he could play when he could be arsed.
Brendan seems to have sussed out early who he can improve and use in the team and who needs to go. If Forrest and Brown keep up this standard of play i will eat humble pie and admit i was wrong about them. And if Brendan can do something about that big * Gordon then i will have * all else to complain about.
At last, a manager who knows what he is doing.

 

He's had three or four good games in a row. No one is getting carried away.