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Club Come here to laugh at Gooners

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That fella is James McNicholas, he's a Woolwich fan (comedian, writer), he's the guy behind Gunnerblog, which is a huge (probably Woolwich's largest?) and has a big following on Twitter. Not sure what the deal is (he may have sold Gunnerblog to The Athletic or they licence it????) but whatever it is he is now well and truly under The Athletic umbrella (which is why he's on Tiffo as they too have been acquired by The Athletic).

He's an articulate writer, not overly kneejerk, so his takes are always measured. HOWEVER, since the signing of Artetta which possibly coincided with his tie-up with The Athletic his views read like a party political broadcast. I've no idea if he gets a small chunk of change from Woolwich to keep the news upbeat, Amy Lawrence too has become this flag waiving positive energy PR machine that's been flowing out of the club whilst they results have nosedived. All seems at odds from what is actually happening.

Keeping the delusion up is good. We can all see what’s really happening and I suspect a portion of their actual match going fans can too not their twitter army who are based all over the world from what I’ve seen.
 
Keeping the delusion up is good. We can all see what’s really happening and I suspect a portion of their actual match going fans can too not their twitter army who are based all over the world from what I’ve seen.
I think it's too early to call delusional, as so much was wrong behind the season it's like trying to turn an oil tanker around - it takes ages.

What I am really enjoying though is just how over the top the PR machine went, literally all in the media jumped on the bandwagon with practically zero to back it up. I get the reason for a Club to control the narrative, as a positive/negative vibe around a club can spread and maybe affect performance. But they do it every year, go way, way, way over the top, nothing is measured.

It's fucking great.
 
"I hope you see dis Troopz man and I hope u see it 4 wot it iz":



I certainly see it for what it is. Hope Troopz does too lol

Excuse Me What GIF
 
Lee Judges used to actually be the reasonable one when they did AFTV outside of the stadiums etc and he'd get perhaps a 5 minute talk.

But he's become a proper meme now.
 
I think it's too early to call delusional, as so much was wrong behind the season it's like trying to turn an oil tanker around - it takes ages.

What I am really enjoying though is just how over the top the PR machine went, literally all in the media jumped on the bandwagon with practically zero to back it up. I get the reason for a Club to control the narrative, as a positive/negative vibe around a club can spread and maybe affect performance. But they do it every year, go way, way, way over the top, nothing is measured.

It's fucking great.
The Tim Cahil defence of Arteta "they knew how they lost" is looking a bit forlorn now. At the time most journalist would of defended Cahil and had RK down as a Dinosaur. Turns out Roy Keane was right.

 
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Lee Judges used to actually be the reasonable one when they did AFTV outside of the stadiums etc and he'd get perhaps a 5 minute talk.

But he's become a proper meme now.
He was weirdly complimentary about us. Much like Claude.

I remember him saying ''Fucking Spurs, fucking Spurs, are everything we want to be. And we should be 10 years ahead of them.''

Had a begrudging respect for him at that point.
 
The Tim Cahil defence of Arteta "they knew how they lost" is looking a bit forlorn at the time most journalist would of defended Cahil and had RK down as a Dinosaur at the time


To be fair Keane saw it for what it was and that Manure were that bad that they made Woolwich look better than they actually were. He has since been proved spot on. Cahill was speaking for a mate
 
To be fair Keane saw it for what it was and that Manure were that bad that they made Woolwich look better than they actually were. He has since been proved spot on. Cahill was speaking for a mate

Watching back - Redknapp is so hyperbolic. In everything he says.

Woolwich win - and all of a sudden they're going in the right way. Arteta is signing the right players etc.

I didn't hear him at the weekend, but I assume if he was to comment on Woolwich, it would be that there isn't really any game plan, they're not really improving and their signings (Partey and Willian in particular) weren't good enough...

I remember 2018/19 when we were "competing" for the title. We were 2nd behind Liverpool at the time and he was complimenting us saying how Pochettino is doing a great job. Didnt sign anyone in the summer yet got the best out of his squad and are now competing. When we could ALL see the performances weren't the best but we were just managing to sneak important wins in (Winks against Fulham etc)

By the end of that season, he was criticising Poch, the players and the club for poor performances, falling off and not signing any players...

He's an awful pundit, he really is. Cliché bollocks.
 
I've seen clips of some show he's doing with Barstool out there and, to be honest, it's fucking embarrassing. Just more yelling.
Hopefully the rational Americans who are thinking of getting into "soccer" can see through this attention-seeking approach and decide to stay away from supporting that club....but I doubt it.
Is his show a straight Woolwich show or a football/soccer show?

Either way the American audience will not tolerate his type of speech/accent.
 
The Tim Cahil defence of Arteta "they knew how they lost" is looking a bit forlorn now. At the time most journalist would of defended Cahil and had RK down as a Dinosaur. Turns out Roy Keane was right.


For me this isn't anything to do with Arteta, in my eyes he is a total unknown, there is nothing to suggest he's good or bad.

The way the season is going (given shortened off-season, shortened pre-season, condensed season with more games played in a shorter period of time) it has favoured, SO FAR, managers who play a passive style as opposed to what is considered a progressive style (teams that have adopted a progressive style of football have dominated their domestic and European leagues by winning and/or competed for stuff for a number of years now).

So, what I'm saying if Arteta is supposed to be a "progressive coach" (I have no idea if he is or isn't but the media say he is) then it stands to reason that this season makes him look shit, just as City, Barca are struggling. So, the concept of who is or isn't a dinosaur (a term usually adopted to describe a style of football that's not capable of competing) may be moot for this season, it could be that as the season develops there is a return to this style, or that it disappears and it's not seen again until next season. So if Woolwich stick with him and this scenario plays out (assuming he is a good manager) than the narrative will on him will change again.

My disbelief is how a manager with zero games under his belt has gained such an overwhelmingly positive commentary on the style of his football just because he was Pep's assistant for 2yrs. There are no prior games, and even now after a 1yr in the job no evidence to back up that he's good or bad (yes they are very bad this season but dig into the context there can be some get-out clauses for him as per pressing teams are struggling this season).

But is he a "progressive coach"? There's zero evidence to support this. Is he a passive coach? There's no evidence to support this too! Because of this, it is fair to assume that this is a significant issue, as his team play with no identity and that this strengthens the argument for him not being a particularly good coach is certainly currently the more persuasive commentary.

But it is hugely enjoyable to see those that were so adamant and so decisively advocating him as the future of football management based on nothing other than he's my mate or he's young or he was Pep's assistant. Had Brian Kidd became their coach would these same people have been waxing lyrically in those same terms as Arteta? I doubt that very much.
 
For me this isn't anything to do with Arteta, in my eyes he is a total unknown, there is nothing to suggest he's good or bad.

The way the season is going (given shortened off-season, shortened pre-season, condensed season with more games played in a shorter period of time) it has favoured, SO FAR, managers who play a passive style as opposed to what is considered a progressive style (teams that have adopted a progressive style of football have dominated their domestic and European leagues by winning and/or competed for stuff for a number of years now).

So, what I'm saying if Arteta is supposed to be a "progressive coach" (I have no idea if he is or isn't but the media say he is) then it stands to reason that this season makes him look shit, just as City, Barca are struggling. So, the concept of who is or isn't a dinosaur (a term usually adopted to describe a style of football that's not capable of competing) may be moot for this season, it could be that as the season develops there is a return to this style, or that it disappears and it's not seen again until next season. So if Woolwich stick with him and this scenario plays out (assuming he is a good manager) than the narrative will on him will change again.

My disbelief is how a manager with zero games under his belt has gained such an overwhelmingly positive commentary on the style of his football just because he was Pep's assistant for 2yrs. There are no prior games, and even now after a 1yr in the job no evidence to back up that he's good or bad (yes they are very bad this season but dig into the context there can be some get-out clauses for him as per pressing teams are struggling this season).

But is he a "progressive coach"? There's zero evidence to support this. Is he a passive coach? There's no evidence to support this too! Because of this, it is fair to assume that this is a significant issue, as his team play with no identity and that this strengthens the argument for him not being a particularly good coach is certainly currently the more persuasive commentary.

But it is hugely enjoyable to see those that were so adamant and so decisively advocating him as the future of football management based on nothing other than he's my mate or he's young or he was Pep's assistant. Had Brian Kidd became their coach would these same people have been waxing lyrically in those same terms as Arteta? I doubt that very much.
Great post
 
For me this isn't anything to do with Arteta, in my eyes he is a total unknown, there is nothing to suggest he's good or bad.

The way the season is going (given shortened off-season, shortened pre-season, condensed season with more games played in a shorter period of time) it has favoured, SO FAR, managers who play a passive style as opposed to what is considered a progressive style (teams that have adopted a progressive style of football have dominated their domestic and European leagues by winning and/or competed for stuff for a number of years now).

So, what I'm saying if Arteta is supposed to be a "progressive coach" (I have no idea if he is or isn't but the media say he is) then it stands to reason that this season makes him look shit, just as City, Barca are struggling. So, the concept of who is or isn't a dinosaur (a term usually adopted to describe a style of football that's not capable of competing) may be moot for this season, it could be that as the season develops there is a return to this style, or that it disappears and it's not seen again until next season. So if Woolwich stick with him and this scenario plays out (assuming he is a good manager) than the narrative will on him will change again.

My disbelief is how a manager with zero games under his belt has gained such an overwhelmingly positive commentary on the style of his football just because he was Pep's assistant for 2yrs. There are no prior games, and even now after a 1yr in the job no evidence to back up that he's good or bad (yes they are very bad this season but dig into the context there can be some get-out clauses for him as per pressing teams are struggling this season).

But is he a "progressive coach"? There's zero evidence to support this. Is he a passive coach? There's no evidence to support this too! Because of this, it is fair to assume that this is a significant issue, as his team play with no identity and that this strengthens the argument for him not being a particularly good coach is certainly currently the more persuasive commentary.

But it is hugely enjoyable to see those that were so adamant and so decisively advocating him as the future of football management based on nothing other than he's my mate or he's young or he was Pep's assistant. Had Brian Kidd became their coach would these same people have been waxing lyrically in those same terms as Arteta? I doubt that very much.
Regardless of the style of play, it seems increasingly obvious to me that his man management is poor. Comes across as a dictator in the dressing room for certain people but forgives others (i.e. no consistency). He seems to have walked in trying to be the demanding culture builder without anything to back it up but a couple years setting out cones for Pep. As a result he's alienated just about all of their creative midfield players.

He's also shown to get desperate when results don't go his way (i.e. starting an unfit Partey).

He's also called out players publicly multiple times already.

He just seems like a cold, demanding asshole without any warmth or people skills. Journalist gobble him up because he speaks well at press conferences.
 
The Tim Cahil defence of Arteta "they knew how they lost" is looking a bit forlorn now. At the time most journalist would of defended Cahil and had RK down as a Dinosaur. Turns out Roy Keane was right.


Something I fully agree with Roy Keane on, if you need the manager to motivate you to play in Premier League football, you need to find another profession.

I can't stand Roy Keane as a person, but as a pundit he's great IMO, he doesn't even hide the "for fucks sake" look on his face when a fellow pundit is talking bollocks.
 
Regardless of the style of play, it seems increasingly obvious to me that his man management is poor. Comes across as a dictator in the dressing room for certain people but forgives others (i.e. no consistency). He seems to have walked in trying to be the demanding culture builder without anything to back it up but a couple years setting out cones for Pep. As a result he's alienated just about all of their creative midfield players.

He's also shown to get desperate when results don't go his way (i.e. starting an unfit Partey).

He's also called out players publicly multiple times already.

He just seems like a cold, demanding asshole without any warmth or people skills. Journalist gobble him up because he speaks well at press conferences.
Yeah, make to right on that. However, there could be a bigger picture being played out that we're yet to see come to an end. That's to say so many players in that squad are old and coming to an end of their careers and contracts and they do have some promising young lads (being bloodied and playing well in Europa) to come through. One thing that a manager will not want to do is make it seem easy for these players coming through, so he doesn't pick them or has them playing in U23's???? So the culture that he wants is being developed with the young players rather than the Snr's???? (this is me just playing devils advocate and should the board stick with him, might be the reason why as the older zimmer framed players will all be gone sooner rather than later??).

That's not to say that I agree with any of the decisions made about Willian, Luiz, Ozil, Xhaka, Aubameyang (I've been consistent on him that he's nothing like the player he was at Dortmund & Martinelli would have scored the vast majority he did last season) and Lacazete etc but
 
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