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[Football] Potter to West Ham?



Stat Brother

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Jul 11, 2003
73,786
West west west Sussex
Has any manager anywhere (in the top division I mean) ever completely turned around a team's style of play and improved the results over a whole season without any investment in the squad at all?

That seems an incredibly harsh bar to set anybody.
When was Potter not backed with investment over his 3 and a bit seasons?
 




Braggfan

In the beginning there was nothing, which exploded
May 12, 2014
1,835
Right up until the last 7 words!

I think you're right in saying De Zerbi after Hughton wouldn't have worked.
But although his time here wasn't 'nothing special' he was far from fantastic.

A manager doing a fantastic job would have transitioned the team from Hughton to De Zerbi on his own and in half the time.
I guess the "Fantastic" part is where it comes down to opinion.

I don't think there's any denying, the transition didn't happen over night. And thats probably where some of the frustrations with him lie. And people point at the bad times as evidence of him not being "that great". But i think his time here was about progression. As a team we evolved over several seasons. And people are right that we we struggled to score goals for large periods of his time. But i think thats because we were a work in progress that was gradually coming together.

I remember, when he first came in we had seemed to have a big problem linking the midfield with attack. A legacy maybe of the Hughton era. But with the additions of Lallana and Mac Allister, we started to over come that and create more chances. But as mentioned scoring goals was a problem. But in his last season it did feel like we were starting to crack that nut.
 




Springal

Well-known member
Feb 12, 2005
23,857
GOSBTS
I remember, when he first came in we had seemed to have a big problem linking the midfield with attack. A legacy maybe of the Hughton era. But with the additions of Lallana and Mac Allister, we started to over come that and create more chances. But as mentioned scoring goals was a problem. But in his last season it did feel like we were starting to crack that nut.
exactly this - and if he had a Pedro , Fati etc rather than Maupay, Connolly & Zequiri he’d probably have had a better outcome.

Worth noting as well our goal scoring is pretty rotten at the moment - the odd game aside
 


The Grockle

Formally Croydon Seagull
Sep 26, 2008
5,687
Dorset
In English football he hasn’t won anything or really achieved anything apart from getting a lower/mid table PL side to the dizzy heights of eh one place above mid table.
A feat many a manager has achieved with a lower ranked side the ginger darlek finished higher once with Burnley.

Are you referring to Potter or Moyes???
 




Stat Brother

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Jul 11, 2003
73,786
West west west Sussex
I guess the "Fantastic" part is where it comes down to opinion.

I don't think there's any denying, the transition didn't happen over night. And thats probably where some of the frustrations with him lie. And people point at the bad times as evidence of him not being "that great". But i think his time here was about progression. As a team we evolved over several seasons. And people are right that we we struggled to score goals for large periods of his time. But i think thats because we were a work in progress that was gradually coming together.

I remember, when he first came in we had seemed to have a big problem linking the midfield with attack. A legacy maybe of the Hughton era. But with the additions of Lallana and Mac Allister, we started to over come that and create more chances. But as mentioned scoring goals was a problem. But in his last season it did feel like we were starting to crack that nut.
But to get to that last season is a long, long, time in football management.
When his team were fantastic - because they could be - for me it never felt like the new normal.
A pragmatic game was just around the corner and once played it became a hard habit to break.
 




Justice

Dangerous Idiot
Jun 21, 2012
18,730
Born In Shoreham
exactly this - and if he had a Pedro , Fati etc rather than Maupay, Connolly & Zequiri he’d probably have had a better outcome.

Worth noting as well our goal scoring is pretty rotten at the moment - the odd game aside
He didn’t have a better outcome with better players at Chelsea they very quickly became a low scoring side without many wins. Drew quite a few though
 




Stat Brother

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You said he'd have done a fantastic job if he'd done it "on his own" in half the time.

I'm asking if that's a reasonable expectation. And to be direct, suggesting it isn't.
You're maths is off as 2019 to now is slightly longer than 2 seasons (half the time being 1 season) with backing every single step of the way.
 


The Grockle

Formally Croydon Seagull
Sep 26, 2008
5,687
Dorset
Agreed in that case. He did wonders for us in terms of developing our style but hadn't really earnt the right to take a big job yet and was subsequently found out at Chelsea
 


Springal

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Feb 12, 2005
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He didn’t have a better outcome with better players at Chelsea they very quickly became a low scoring side without many wins. Drew quite a few though
Nor has MauPo 🤷🏻‍♂️ former Spurs & PSG manager (for whatever either of those are worth)
 






Stat Brother

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Jul 11, 2003
73,786
West west west Sussex
Are you reading different posts to what I'm writing?

I haven't mentioned any length of time or suggested he wasn't backed over that time.
#140 says otherwise.

This is clearly going nowhere so lets draw a line under it now.
 


Sid and the Sharknados

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Sep 4, 2022
4,088
Darlington
#140 says otherwise.

This is clearly going nowhere so lets draw a line under it now.
Oh that.
I just meant improving results over a whole season as opposed to over a short run of games. I didn't mean that to refer to Potter's or anybody else's time at the club.

I'm not trying to argue with you to be clear, I'm genuinely interested in whether anybody's actually achieved what we have in less time or with less money.

To my mind, what we as a club achieved over the last few seasons with the money spent was entirely creditable. Loads of clubs come up to the PL and then go back down after a couple of seasons, or try and overhaul the play style and give up after a few dodgy results (looking at you Palace). Frustrating as the results and performances often were, we pretty consistently punched above our place compared to wages and generally played good football. I don't meet many Brighton fans up my way, but throughout Potter and De Zerbi's time at the club I've only ever had fans of other clubs be entirely complementary about how we've played and how good it's been to watch.
 




GT49er

Well-known member
Feb 1, 2009
46,760
Gloucester
He didn’t have a better outcome with better players at Chelsea they very quickly became a low scoring side without many wins. Drew quite a few though
If only Chelsea had appointed an internationally famous foreign manager of a status appropriate to Chelsea fans entitlement, like Pochetino, that Chelsea team, after a few £100M more were spent, they'd have romped away ....................






.............oh.
 


HastingsSeagull

Well-known member
Jan 13, 2010
9,259
BGC Manila
Potter certainly wasn't fantastic, but did a very solid job. The Brighton headcoach role is one of the best in football. Uncle Tony and the set up are exceptional and everything sets you up to succeed. He did a nice job of steadily letting us improve and bring him with us. He was the reliable hometown girlfriend while you're at college, growing and exploring new opportunities and not crashing and burning or flying off the handle as we grew into a top half PL side.

We're now with an exciting firey Italian prospective Supermodel and are a more established good choice for a certain standard of manager. Returning to Potter would be fine and reliable but not progress. I'd back us for some more 12th-7th finishes like the 9th we achieved as a high with him. We're a good match but without much more to do and experience. I don't think over a whole season he'd be the partner to get us into all the top tables of world football.
 


Stat Brother

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NSC Patron
Jul 11, 2003
73,786
West west west Sussex
Potter certainly wasn't fantastic, but did a very solid job. The Brighton headcoach role is one of the best in football. Uncle Tony and the set up are exceptional and everything sets you up to succeed. He did a nice job of steadily letting us improve and bring him with us. He was the reliable hometown girlfriend while you're at college, growing and exploring new opportunities and not crashing and burning or flying off the handle as we grew into a top half PL side.

We're now with an exciting firey Italian prospective Supermodel and are a more established good choice for a certain standard of manager. Returning to Potter would be fine and reliable but not progress. I'd back us for some more 12th-7th finishes like the 9th we achieved as a high with him. We're a good match but without much more to do and experience. I don't think over a whole season he'd be the partner to get us into all the top tables of world football.
Remember we were 13th at half time v West Ham.

I think GPott's world would be very different now if West Ham weren't shite!
 


Justice

Dangerous Idiot
Jun 21, 2012
18,730
Born In Shoreham
If only Chelsea had appointed an internationally famous foreign manager of a status appropriate to Chelsea fans entitlement, like Pochetino, that Chelsea team, after a few £100M more were spent, they'd have romped away ....................






.............oh.
He’s not the best is he, I could probably give the league a good go with PSG.
 






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