Many have asked what I mean by the phrase I used in Minority Report for the Millwall game, “The Mess”. Well, let me explain. Comments by the new CEO The summary provided by Gally of the meeting with the new CEO is difficult to read, but basically, he is saying the club was in a huge mess during the summer. The CEO left taking with him the Company Secretary. The club captain left along with our US loanee. The club needed to recruit and they knew that there would be a change in the number of substitutions allowed so the playing system could not continue unchanged. That would mean that we had to recruit players to play a different way. Because the CEO had gone, Conway had to stand in during the recruitment period, but Conway is not a CEO and he was learning as he went. Then the manager left, taking with him several of the coaching staff and the chief analyst. That meant that both the on field management and the off field management was gone. If that is not a mess, then I do not know what is. All the important people who were meant to prepare the club for the coming season were gone. The club is rudderless during its important preseason recruitment and preparation period. The preparations for the new season are shot, and no-one is keeping tabs on the players so that they maintain their fitness during their summer break. The first thing that Conway did, and quite rightly in my opinion, is try to recruit a new Chief Coach, but these things take time, and during that time, the usual pre-season preparations are not happening. When the new Chief Coach arrives to take over the team, he finds that recruitment has barely begun, he finds players who in many cases have had too much of a good time back home during the summer, and because of that, are unfit and not ready for the new season. Undeterred he begins training using the staff that are left. He cannot bring anyone in that he knows from Austria because under post BREXIT regulations, the UK only allows foreign workers under special conditions, so he uses the few coaches that have not moved on to West Brom. In spite of everything things are beginning to get back on track, and then Mads Andersen, a player who is vital to our playing system gets a bad injury. Of course, there are other centre backs, but if Schopp is to change the way that the club plays in response to the reduced number of substitutions now allowed, he needed Andersen. If he is to play either of his favoured system, as well as a back 4, he also needs a big man to be our 1 up front. Conway knows that and knows that without that man, Schopp cannot change the way that the club plays. In fact, he knows that a big man is vital to the performance of the club for the coming season. The problem is that the players who would fit the bill are out of our price range to recruit in the UK. The only option is to look abroad, but many of the players that we would want are too old or they will have better offers. In desperation, we offer the job to a player who fits the right description (tall and young and cheap). The only problem is, that in the past, he has had injury problems that have reduced his appearances and fitness. Because of that we negotiate a pay as you play deal, with his club and after a delay whilst we get a work visa from the government, he arrives. To play in English football, he must be fit, but he keeps breaking down before he is fit enough. However we are not desperate because we have Carlton Morris, who could fill in….. then Morris gets a similar injury to Andersen (probably caused by rushing their fitness training) and the new coach’s long term plans are in a pile on the floor. If that was not bad enough, there is an injury crisis / fitness crisis / availability crisis that reduces the team to just 14 fit players at one stage. In spite of everything, Schopp does not complain. He realises that if he complains in public, the players have an excuse, and if they have an excuse, their resilience decreases, so he maintains a positive attitude, in spite of everything. Anyone who wonders why I feel sympathy for Schopp has only to read the foregoing to understand why. Other problems It is the club policy that recruits are less than 25 years of age. That way, they can be improved and sold on for profit, and that profit used to finance the other loss making aspects of running a football club. Sadly, this is important if you are going to run a football club without a constant need to re-finance it. I remember Schopp asking for a new recruit with experience, but he did not get one. He got 20 year old Remy Vita (loan), 19 year old Josh Benson, 19 year old Claudio Gomes (loan), 19 year old Will Hondermarck, 23 year old Aaron Leya Iseka and 25 year old Obbi Oulare. He is wary of plunging the very young players into a relegation fight, and personally I can understand why. Oulare is not fit, and as we saw on Saturday, Iseka is not fit enough to play more than 45 minutes at the English pace of the game. I have been through some of our injuries, but in addition Aapo Halme, Ben Williams, Jordan Williams, Josh Benson and Romal Palmer have all spent periods out of the team through injury, and one suspects that some of these were caused by pushing unfit and tired bodies too far. Our new CEO has only just begun his active service with us, having had to go through a period of garden leave on leaving Manchester City. I would hope that he begins to tackle some of the issues very soon, but unfortunately, strengthening the playing squad will have to wait until January. Getting our absent players fit enough to contribute is only half the battle, in my view. Schopp must also change the playing system, but that work cannot commence until the players that are vital cogs in the new system are fit enough to take part. As I say. WHAT A MESS.
Quite a depressing read but all true.Unfortunately most fans demand points and don't look at the reasons behind the events,hence the clamour for Shopps departure. Like I say depressing read but well posted.
if the players are unable to ensure they come back fit and raring to go for pre season without someone checking on them and telling them what to do then they are at fault themselves and are not behaving as pro footballers should. And weve seen it season after season now that not having that older experienced pro in the dressing room and on the field is hurting us. Some would say cauley is that person and he standing up for the players now but even he still has a lot to learn imho.
Tbf to the players we don't know that they didn't stick to their fitness plans . Difficulties were made when Stendel wanted Tonge at Hearts despite Struber having his own backroom staff so I was surprised that Murray and the fitness coach were allowed to leave us so soon after Vals move to WBA.
Not a lot wrong with that post as an assessment of how turbulent a Summer it was. Still had Covid issues, Brexit issues, and everything else to deal with. Doesn't excuse some of the poor in game management by Schopp, and random decisions on Starting XI's, and that's coming from someone who's tried to offer a balanced reason as to why some of these decisions were being made. He hasn't helped himself. I'd love us to pick up a couple of wins, or just four points in six with three or four goals scored, just to instill some belief again and see what he can really do - as he can obviously manage from his previous role and he understands football far better than the likes of us. Said this elsewhere, but I do wonder if we'll go down the foreign route for the next Head Coach if it comes to that. They've got to be allowed to bring in a couple of their own men OR walk in to a settled, dynamic and long lasting work environment. I'm not sure Schopp walked in to either and is stuck in no man's land from that point of view. Who is he turning to for advice during the week, during a game, etc.? I would point out that there's a lot of assumptions about what Paul Conway knew and what he did though. I'm not sure he would have been as streetwise and as involved as you've described, but we'll never really know.
A very good post that makes a lot of sense and does emphasise the problems Schopp has had to deal with. However, it doesn't excuse some of his team selections like persisting with playing centre halves in midfield, ignoring Gomes altogether and playing Oduor as a striker when clearly he isn't.
In his defence though he hasn't persisted with playing centre halves in midfield has he? I've not seen Halme, Sibbick or Moon start a game there, just brought on or moved there. QPR was when options were down to the bare bones, so Saturday was the only frustrating one for me when Moon moved up there - but even though it baffled and infuriated me I could see a reason for it. Didn't work though, so the buck stops with Schopp. An Oduor cameo as a forward on Saturday would have been a lot better than the one Vic put up. Oduor also outperformed Vic at Blackpool in that forward role. He's been nowhere near as bad some suggest, but three (or two) from Iseka, Cole, Woodrow and Frieser feels the right way to go. But I definitely think Oduor will have benefitted from finally getting some first team minutes in a more favourable position. Gomes - 100%. This happens with certain players though and we can never understand it. All that happens then is we build them up to being far better than they actually are and we end up disappointed.
Whilst Schopp hasn't been dealt a great hand, I would have a little more sympathy for him if I could see any semblance of a team structure developing or a definitive way of playing. It's chaos out on the pitch and he has to take full responsibility for that. A basic requirement should be that the team are organised and difficult to play against but unfortunately the reality is very different. Regarding the players, bless the little darlings, do they need someone to hold their hands 24/7 to be telling them what they should and shouldn't be doing? If they've come back for pre-season training totally unfit then they should be embarrassed.
Moon in midfield on Saturday was crackers. We were crying out for someone with some pace to close down their midfield, Gomes is perfect for that. I agree about Oduor having some decent games but he just isn't a striker. He'd be better used as an extra midfielder for me. We really need to either play 4-4-2 or 3-5-2 because we're getting overrun every week in the middle. Plus 2 strikers in tandem operating closer together would be far better for us. The extra bodies in midfield should also offer a bit more width at times.
Millwall were a very big side. In my opinion, that is why Schopp change from the long ball tactics he used against Forest. He tried to play out from the back, but Millwall were wise to it. They marked up all the keeper's options and we had to go longer again. When we changed Palmer, I believe we chose to play a centre back in mid-field as against Gomes because Gomes is not only tiny, he does not have the game experience to deal with it. In spite of the 4 centre backs, we still conceded from a set-piece cross. It must be gutting to settle for a draw and still be beaten in that way.
We've definitely looked disorganised at times (a lot of times) but I think in most games we've been difficult to play against. Hence all the defeats outside of Bournemouth and Forest being by the single goal. We're not a soft touch overall, we're just so so so poor going forward we don't hurt the opposition when we're in the ascendency and don't take our chances at the crucial moment. Once they realise we're not going to hurt them they grow in confidence and take more risks - ultimately taking control of the game as it goes on.
I think on Saturday we were just crying out for someone to replace Palmer. It feels light in there with him and Styles but even worse when Palmer just isn't in the game either attacking wise or defensively. It was the equivalent of ten men for spells in that second half. Moon to CM was crackers. But knowing Iseka and Cole would be unlikely to last 90 minutes it only left one sub. I can see an argument for wanting the extra height on the field for the set piece bombardment we knew was coming, but some good that did!
I imagine he didn’t put Gomes in as would have lost everything in the air in midfield which we didn’t win much of anyway with Styles/Palmer. Probably realises he’s not ready for mens football yet either.
The players must take responsibility for some of the fitness problem. I appreciate that matchday fitness is a different thing from simply being fit, but any professional who returns from the closed season break without having at least tried to maintain some level.of fitness, needs to take a long hard look at themselves. We don't allow teachers to go back to school in September unable to teach.
He inherited a massive mess. I commented some time ago that you can’t lose all of the ceo, club Secretary, manager, assistant manager, other coaches and analysts, club captain - and it not cause a lot of pain. I acknowledge that. However even with a poorly dealt hand, a semi competent manager would have changed something; done something different to try and facilitate a different result. All Schopp has done is put square pegs in round holes and refused to change the ‘system’ - whilst the team look uncoached and devoid of ideas; they have no obvious tactical setup, and have got worse as the season has worn on. He got a **** hand and had a bloody horrible job from the outset, yes. Doesn’t mean he’s the right man to take us forward now, in fact he’s shown over twelve fixtures he’s not that person at all. Is this situation all his doing? God no. But he isn’t the one to lead us into fixing it.
I have tried to understand why he would not be able to change the system until he has enough players of quality fit to occupy the important positions. I agree the system should be changed, but the new system must have some chance of improving things, otherwise , what would be the point. The biggest problem he has, in my opinion is that the club does not have a fit centre forward. Cauley Woodrow is not a centre forward. He is a striker who feeds off the space he gets as the opposition cover someone else. So tell me. How do we overcome the lack of a centre forward in any alternative system.
All the OP says is fair, and sums up why I have worries about the club beyond what happens on the pitch, because such an exodus shouldn’t be happening. Also shows the flaw of having the release clause that can be triggered after one season. Just leaves us constantly on a tightrope. Schopp’s still doing a terrible job though.
