SHA Small Heath Alliance

I wouldn’t have replaced Eustace, but backed Rooney more in hope than anything

I don’t think it’s going to work now, the players are lost and not onboard or good enough to play how he initially wanted them to. He’s made thinks worse by chopping and changing lineups, formations and tactics,

I think his coaching team is a big names as opposed to experienced coaches.

I don’t think they’ll sack him. With a bit of luck he will walk

I said back as it was a binary question. I didn’t particularly think we needed a new manager at the point we did, and if we did Rooney looked on paper a poor appointment. So it’s proving as the games go by, but 9 games is still not very many. So I still say give it time. But as I said on the other thread, there’s no way he can survive another, say, 5 games like this. By then the crowd will have decisively turned and it would feel reasonable to conclude it’s just not working and there’s a big risk we’re slipping towards relegation.

Big question is whether to ‘back’ him in this coming window. I don’t think it would be unreasonable for Knighthead to exercise a bit of caution and tell him to prove he can do it with what he’s got plus a few low budget additions (it’s not like there’ll be lots to spend anyway).

He won’t walk and I can’t see the owners sacking him either. We’re stuck with him. They should sack him, if they are so ruthless that JE needed to go when he did, they should have no problems binning Rooney off, their choice or not.

I can't imagine why anybody would back Rooney based purely on his performance alone. I can see why some may say back him because we need to get behind the owners and so on. But that is a different rationale and is really about supporting the owners not Rooney. I think that backing is misplaced though because it is only a matter of time before the owners have to bow to the inevitable and pull the trigger. I think we all know it is coming even if some are not willing to admit it. I have seen no evidence that he will turn this around at all. In fact it seems to be getting worse.

Kop Corner

I can't imagine why anybody would back Rooney based purely on his performance alone. I can see why some may say back him because we need to get behind the owners and so on. But that is a different rationale and is really about supporting the owners not Rooney. I think that backing is misplaced though because it is only a matter of time before the owners have to bow to the inevitable and pull the trigger. I think we all know it is coming even if some are not willing to admit it. I have seen no evidence that he will turn this around at all. In fact it seems to be getting worse.

This reasonates with me but Rooney will be given much more time and new players in January. If there is no improvements after a January of some recruitment then by the beginning of March Wagner will be pulling the trigger. Rooney will need to have a buffer of at least 4 points from the bootom 3 by then.

I haven't read the whole thread so apologies if someone has already raised this, but he is inexperienced, the coaches are inexperienced. He spent most of his footballing life working with elite players. With the greatest will in the world, he just isn't equipped to deal with sorting this situation out and the right thing to do is deal with it now and accept the mistake and move on. But...and this could be going on now in the background, it is crucial that his replacement is top drawer. I cannot beleive in the recent review that Wagner will have had with Cook that his performance wasn't debated.

Yeah this. I just feel that if it’s predominantly to do with sponsorship and marketing reasons then they won’t sack him, and let’s be honest it is to do with that as they’ve appointed him for being a big name, not because he’s got good credentials and experience.

Anything they make will be offset and more when they have to pay off him and his army of coaches

Agree with all that but top drawer is probably subjective

The former forest green manager got Luton up last year and is doing relatively well up there too considering the squad

I want a good coach not just a name, the results and profile should follow if we get that right

Yeah very true. Unless they just blindly stick with him, hoping it’ll get better when it clearly isn’t. He’s arguably lost the dressing room, and outside of buying a new team in January, how does he turn it round from here?

My Blue Heaven

I wouldn’t have replaced Eustace, but backed Rooney more in hope than anything

I don’t think it’s going to work now, the players are lost and not onboard or good enough to play how he initially wanted them to. He’s made thinks worse by chopping and changing lineups, formations and tactics,

I think his coaching team is a big names as opposed to experienced coaches.

I don’t think they’ll sack him. With a bit of luck he will walk

Just about sums it up. I had a bad feeling about Rooney's appointment, as I think Cook pushed the idea that his mate was a marquee signing. Sure, Rooney is a name, but we still need results.

Bluenose27

Yeah this. I just feel that if it’s predominantly to do with sponsorship and marketing reasons then they won’t sack him, and let’s be honest it is to do with that as they’ve appointed him for being a big name, not because he’s got good credentials and experience.

And even if it is about "business", investors will still want done bang for their buck.

I said back as it was a binary question. I didn’t particularly think we needed a new manager at the point we did, and if we did Rooney looked on paper a poor appointment. So it’s proving as the games go by, but 9 games is still not very many. So I still say give it time. But as I said on the other thread, there’s no way he can survive another, say, 5 games like this. By then the crowd will have decisively turned and it would feel reasonable to conclude it’s just not working and there’s a big risk we’re slipping towards relegation.

Big question is whether to ‘back’ him in this coming window. I don’t think it would be unreasonable for Knighthead to exercise a bit of caution and tell him to prove he can do it with what he’s got plus a few low budget additions (it’s not like there’ll be lots to spend anyway).

You're right to say that nine games isn't many but across those nine games we are getting progressively worse. Even if results weren't getting better one would have hoped that by now we had developed a new style and were working towards playing that way with performances improving and fans being able to say "he'll get there, i can see how were developing". But it's not, and we're not.

There were, from the very start, a lot of people who didn't think JE should be sacked
.... but there were a VERY lot of people saying "okay, you want to sack JE, that's your right - but appointing Rooney will be a disaster"

Yeah very true. Unless they just blindly stick with him, hoping it’ll get better when it clearly isn’t. He’s arguably lost the dressing room, and outside of buying a new team in January, how does he turn it round from here?

Even if they buy a whole new team for Rooney i am certainly not convinced that he is a coach who can improve those new players. He's done nothing to show that.

They should save their money for a good manager who has shown he can coach players to play the style they want.

Rags

I said back as it was a binary question. I didn’t particularly think we needed a new manager at the point we did, and if we did Rooney looked on paper a poor appointment. So it’s proving as the games go by, but 9 games is still not very many. So I still say give it time. But as I said on the other thread, there’s no way he can survive another, say, 5 games like this. By then the crowd will have decisively turned and it would feel reasonable to conclude it’s just not working and there’s a big risk we’re slipping towards relegation.

Big question is whether to ‘back’ him in this coming window. I don’t think it would be unreasonable for Knighthead to exercise a bit of caution and tell him to prove he can do it with what he’s got plus a few low budget additions (it’s not like there’ll be lots to spend anyway).

You're right to say that nine games isn't many but across those nine games we are getting progressively worse. Even if results weren't getting better one would have hoped that by now we had developed a new style and were working towards playing that way with performances improving and fans being able to say "he'll get there, i can see how were developing". But it's not, and we're not.

There were, from the very start, a lot of people who didn't think JE should be sacked
.... but there were a VERY lot of people saying "okay, you want to sack JE, that's your right - but appointing Rooney will be a disaster"

1000% this

Everyone was laughing at us for appointing such a joke of a manager, he was viewed and still is as a laughing stock