Curbs on the Defensive
'Curbs on the defensive?' - well there's no change there then.
According to Sky Sports Alan Curbishley is 'determined to win over the fans'. Which is strange when all he seems to do in the interview is slag off West Ham fans.
"Whatever I (would have) done, they would not have been amused," said Curbishley. "It seemed a bit pre-meditated.
"That is the way that it is at the moment - there is no use crying about it at the moment.
"Whatever happened on Saturday I have not been subject to before.
"I don't think that many people have. Winning 2-1 at home and getting booed.
"But it is there and I have to get on with it. It is not going to stop me wanting to be as successful as I can and I think that West Ham throughout the years has been a bit volatile, the crowd, whoever has been in charge.
"It is up to me to turn it around."
I still think Curbishley has done a good job this season with limited resources. He deserves to be given the chance to prove he can put out a team that will play attractive football, when his flair players are fit.However his belligerent attitude to criticism is winning him few friends and it has got to a stage where he needs to win back a lot of the fans. Criticising them is obviously not the best way to go about it.
posted by Keir Clarke @ 12:29 AM
4 comments
4 Comments:
Hence you must be pleased with the last part of his statement: "It is up to me to turn it around."
At least he's no longer ignoring the problem.
i think he had an extremely good season up to christmas, injuries prevailing and the fact he signed them i would be confident with him at the helm next season
to be booed at this stage being 10th isnt fair, but thats absolutely no excuse to retaliate with the fans.
few key player signings and a few of the cling-ons booted out and i think we could have a very promising season next year..
I feel that in terms of his relationship with the supporters,over his nearly 18 months here,Curbishley has tended to make it harder than it needs to be. As wrong as it is for him to be booed,his tendency to make comments that are critical of supporters only inflames the situation.
There is no upside to Curbishley complaining about supporters,whether he feels aggrieved or not. There are many examples of him objecting to criticism from fans ,whether it s about use of a 4-5-1, about how the season has gone overall,about the trio of 4-0 losses, and about being booed off at the end vs Derby. So to a certain extent ,he has created the monster.
To me part of a manager s responsibility is the way he conducts himself with supporters,with the media, and for that matter,with the players. It is in these areas where I think he has fallen short this season, more so than tactically. Regarding tactics ,some of which have determined themselves due to the injuries ,I think that he s got a lot right,but has also made key mistakes at times.
The comment that it is his responsibility to turn it around is the most sensible thing he has said on the situation thus far. That s the first step towards a solution- and he needs a solution ,because I think even he can see that what is going on now between him and supporters is not sustainable. Something has to give. And Curbishley knows it.
Our performances at Man City (league game), Reading & Everton, to name three have been superb. Better than I can remember for many a year. The way we played & controlled the game was fantastic & gave me great enthusiasm for the future. But there's no denying we have fallen away drastically since the 4-0's. Anything other than a 10th spot finish will mean, to me, we have had a poor season, even taking last season’s debacle into account. The team has changed dramatically since then so I don't feel it’s fair to compare. Curb’s has got to understand that the style of football & his persistence with certain players, LBM for example, has upset a lot of us & as manager has got to take the criticism. I agree we are a very demanding crowd, although you can’t accuse us of being glory hunters, we just want honesty, hard work & an exciting style of football. The club has also played its part in raising expectations with all the noises about challenging for Europe & the new stadium. Next season he can’t offer up any excuses so he will have no where to hide.
Post a Comment
<< Home