[Dexy]

But go back and see how happy people were with the Grant and Grady signings for instance.

Grady yes , less so Grant especially when it was clear he'd be used as a lone forward .

[gazberg]

But go back and see how happy people were with the Grant and Grady signings for instance.

None of us knew Grady was 'broke' I think he is be it physical or mental (just my opinion of course) Grants record looked ok but he got that record playing a completely different way Bilic thought he could mould him into.

[Baggies]

Very good article in the athletic today by Steve Madeley setting out in further detail what has gone on this season. The pertinent point is that our budget was just £20m with anything else to be staggered over the next few years and that left us with no realistic chance of being able to compete. The writing was on the wall before a ball was kicked:

"The Athletic has learned that even during pre-season senior Albion figures, chatting to others in football, raised serious doubts about their ability to compete in the top flight with the money available."

The club should have been more honest and admitted we were broke and doing a Norwich.

I feel like Norwich had a coherent strategy with a lot more forward planning. They were relegated and were in a stronger position than when they went up.

Sadly I don't think we can say that about us. Very few youngsters breaking through who have been battle hardened in the brief prem stay like Norwich had/have, huge gaps in our squad once all the loanees go back and much like Fulham in 2019, our 2 most expensive signings the summer before have serious question marks over their futures less than a year after signing.

Somebody at the club will eventually need to work out a coherent strategy and stick to it if we are going to have any chance of a prolonged stay in the top flight - that's the only way Lai gets his fanciful £200m valuation met.

[tex]

get a grip, we failed to stay in the prem and have to start again. Just because we failed does not mean you give up or claim that its better to be good at being second class. We had eight years in the EPL, the waste was that we did not build a foundation other than JP's new place in the channel islands. The new owner is desperate to get out but we still will be a favourite to return next year. The key will be to build a squad that can get out of the Championship but does not have to be over run with loans next season.

[BigFrank20]

We might be heading towards being a biggish fish in a pond full of smaller fish where surely we need to grow into a nice big, sustainable and sturdy big fish before jumping back into the big fish pond?
Love an analogy me
COYB

[Standaman]

The seeds of this relegation were sown many years ago with a series of short term fixes to keep us in the Premier League each failed quick fix has weakened the club. Each quick fix has a player contract legacy many of which are still lingering draining the club of resources.

We might complain about how we managed this season and there have been many mistakes but there was a pathway to survival. We had to get everything right and plainly we did not. Allardyce's appointment is another failed quick fix and even if it is rescued by a rapid return it is quite likely that the ground is being prepared for the next aging squad to stumble to the next relegation.

Norwich had a deeper reset and took the time to implement a plan built around youth development and hiring players with development potential. They are on their 2nd iteration of the promotion/relegation I am far from sure they will survive but at least the structures are in place and they are not plunging into a desperate gamble just to stay in the division.

 

[PartisanBaggie]

Norwich had a deeper reset and took the time to implement a plan built around youth development and hiring players with development potential. They are on their 2nd iteration of the promotion/relegation I am far from sure they will survive but at least the structures are in place and they are not plunging into a desperate gamble just to stay in the division.

It’s all very well using Norwich as an example, but the Canaries have been owned by Michael Wynn-Jones and Delia Smith for the past 25 years.

Totally different situation to our ownership.

[WBA]

100000% this. Myself and others on here suggested the very same thing before a ball was kicked.

Actions speak louder than words.  The actions said it all really with Diangana offering a bit of a passifying divergence but kind of ending up as a sacrificial lamb on the altar of failure.

[gazberg]

Actions speak louder than words.  The actions said it all really with Diangana offering a bit of a passifying divergence but kind of ending up as a sacrificial lamb on the altar of failure.

I like the cut of your jib

[MarkW]

The seeds of this relegation were sown many years ago with a series of short term fixes to keep us in the Premier League each failed quick fix has weakened the club. Each quick fix has a player contract legacy many of which are still lingering draining the club of resources.

We might complain about how we managed this season and there have been many mistakes but there was a pathway to survival. We had to get everything right and plainly we did not. Allardyce's appointment is another failed quick fix and even if it is rescued by a rapid return it is quite likely that the ground is being prepared for the next aging squad to stumble to the next relegation.

Norwich had a deeper reset and took the time to implement a plan built around youth development and hiring players with development potential. They are on their 2nd iteration of the promotion/relegation I am far from sure they will survive but at least the structures are in place and they are not plunging into a desperate gamble just to stay in the division.

 

It's like owning a house. You want to improve the house itself, maybe you fit new doors and windows to reduce the draft, maybe a new roof to stop any leaks, a bit of paint to make it more appealing.

But you also have to attend to the foundations. Are cracks starting to appear because the foundations are faulty?

In those final Pulis seasons, we tried sprucing up the house, but at the expense of the foundations we had spent an age tending to, so that we could build our house that fitted into the nice neighborhood.

Now we have an owner who wants to sell up, but won't fix the broken foundations, so he's painted the front door and hired a gardener to make the front garden look nice to those who pass by, but go look a little closer and you realise the only way to get back to where we were is to spend some time fixing the core problems

[Dexy]

Read another Madeley article this morning on Bilic's demand to sign Grant , absolute madness at this level .
I'd have been up in arms as much as the next bloke but maybe we should have done a Watford and parted ways with Slav in the Summer . Clearly both parties were far from happy .

[gazberg]

Read another Madeley article this morning on Bilic's demand to sign Grant , absolute madness at this level .
I'd have been up in arms as much as the next bloke but maybe we should have done a Watford and parted ways with Slav in the Summer . Clearly both parties were far from happy .

This is precisely what should have happened. They knew they couldnt work together. Also confirmed he felt we needed a holding midfielder but felt getting Krov and Grant etc was far more important. Insane.

Slav could have walked away with his head held high and cash in his back pocket and reputation enhanced and we would have a good shot at staying up.

30m quid and 1 completely unbalanced squad later, Bilic got a smaller payoff and created one of the worst sides in PL history.

[BaggieNick]

He was allowed to do this?

Take a bow Mr Dowling.

The likes of Grant and Dianga were woefully inadequate. They'll be okay next season and then...?

Pathetic signings.

[WBA]

He was allowed to do this?

Take a bow Mr Dowling.

The likes of Grant and Dianga were woefully inadequate. They'll be okay next season and then...?

Pathetic signings.

They are both 23 and will become key players for us next season and in the future.  They aren't woefully inadequate but our overall recruitment was,  as we didn't strengthen the areas we needed to - too  .

ps change the record Nick!

[SmethDan]

.......Pathetic signings.

The new (not so) cheap and nasty type  ?

[MarkW]

Read another Madeley article this morning on Bilic's demand to sign Grant , absolute madness at this level .
I'd have been up in arms as much as the next bloke but maybe we should have done a Watford and parted ways with Slav in the Summer . Clearly both parties were far from happy .

Was that the mail bag article? He didn't like my suggestion that Diangana was Dowling's vanity project

What was more worrying was that between Bilic and Dowling they decided to strengthen other areas ahead of Sawyers and Livermore.

[BigFrank20]

I see the Merry Hell shop/store is holding aa closing down sale - can't help but wonder if it's connected to the relegation?

[crazedwbafan18]

I see the Merry Hell shop/store is holding aa closing down sale - can't help but wonder if it's connected to the relegation?

Would say it's the legacy of covid more than the relegation impacts. Last year has been disastrous for so many clubs, although online shopping should still be thriving so goodness knows.

[Albionic]

Would say it's the legacy of covid more than the relegation impacts. Last year has been disastrous for so many clubs, although online shopping should still be thriving so goodness knows.

footfall in these big malls must have"well" fallen away dramatically, Covid and big stores closing. Will be a purely commercial decision I imagine. (not saying its right to expect folks from the far flung regions west of dudley to travel to B71 but Lai and his commercial team will doubtless have considered the long term benefits they will lose...)

[cads_ap_albion]

Amongst it all there are two simple questions need answering that underlies huge incompetence at the club:

1. How did the press find out about Bilic' sacking before he did? That is gross incompetence and basic HR skills.

2. Why did someone not clarify with Sam about the transfer of Snodgrass and what he could and could not say on tv? Inept knowledge or poor communication.

Plus the others:

3. Why was squad so unbalanced? We have 1 senior striker and 5 wingers  at the end of this season?

4. Who signed Kipre and why? Because it clearly wasn't Bilic?

5. Who has allowed us to be in a position where we will be 14 players down at the end of this season? Austin, Grosicki, Gibbs, Bartley, Kanu, Yokuslu, Niles, Lonergan, Ivan, Gallagher, Diagne, Edwards. plus the sales of SJ and MP. Is there any strategic planning?

6. Why are our academy staff so disillusioned that so many have left, and worse have then come back and taken some of our best young talent?
Harrison, Hopcroft.. plus other key staff have left unhappy. Why?

7. Why was Bilic so disillusioned after promotion that apparently he wouldn't even consider discussion of a new contract?

happy to be convinced otherwise, but to me at a football level, this is Dowling...

[TheJacko2000]

Amongst it all there are two simple questions need answering that underlies huge incompetence at the club:

1. How did the press find out about Bilic' sacking before he did? That is gross incompetence and basic HR skills.

2. Why did someone not clarify with Sam about the transfer of Snodgrass and what he could and could not say on tv? Inept knowledge or poor communication.

Plus the others:

3. Why was squad so unbalanced? We have 1 senior striker and 5 wingers  at the end of this season?

4. Who signed Kipre and why? Because it clearly wasn't Bilic?

5. Who has allowed us to be in a position where we will be 14 players down at the end of this season? Austin, Grosicki, Gibbs, Bartley, Kanu, Yokuslu, Niles, Lonergan, Ivan, Gallagher, Diagne, Edwards. plus the sales of SJ and MP. Is there any strategic planning?

6. Why are our academy staff so disillusioned that so many have left, and worse have then come back and taken some of our best young talent?
Harrison, Hopcroft.. plus other key staff have left unhappy. Why?

7. Why was Bilic so disillusioned after promotion that apparently he wouldn't even consider discussion of a new contract?

happy to be convinced otherwise, but to me at a football level, this is Dowling...

Not too fussed about 1 (anyone could have leaked that, often happens), 6 (based on the u18s Cup run) or 7 (Bilić knew the hierarchy at the club when he took the job) but the rest are very valid concerns imo.

[cads_ap_albion]

Not too fussed about 1 (anyone could have leaked that, often happens), 6 (based on the u18s Cup run) or 7 (Bilić knew the hierarchy at the club when he took the job) but the rest are very valid concerns imo.

Jacko, accept your points on 6 and 7, but with regards number 1... the unsuccessful candidates were told they hadn't got the job, hence one of the agents leaked it. Why are Albion telling the unsuccessful agents before they tell Bilic he has lost his job? That is just basic good Human Resource management.

[Adder]

Re point 6, yes there may have been some turbulence with Dowling but we also have to factor in that Harrison and co will be on significantly more money at Villa as they were effectively head hunted.
We have decent replacement staff. Sometimes a change is needed by all parties. If there turns out to be further upheaval then that would be greater cause for concern.

[gazberg]

Jacko, accept your points on 6 and 7, but with regards number 1... the unsuccessful candidates were told they hadn't got the job, hence one of the agents leaked it. Why are Albion telling the unsuccessful agents before they tell Bilic he has lost his job? That is just basic good Human Resource management.

Highlighted what our club is missing.

[PartisanBaggie]

This is precisely what should have happened. They knew they couldnt work together. Also confirmed he felt we needed a holding midfielder but felt getting Krov and Grant etc was far more important. Insane.

Slav could have walked away with his head held high and cash in his back pocket and reputation enhanced and we would have a good shot at staying up.

30m quid and 1 completely unbalanced squad later, Bilic got a smaller payoff and created one of the worst sides in PL history.

Bilić and his back room staff should have been publicly thanked by the club, their contracts and bonuses paid up, hands shaken and a mutual parting of ways after QPR at home.

As far as I’m concerned, Bilić and his coaching staff would have left the club having completed their objective to get the club promoted within two years. As Gaz said, reputations enhanced. The Albion, on the other hand, may have avoided what was to later unfold.