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News Thread for 2013-14 Season

Martin Jol has been sacked by Fulham, with head coach Rene Meulensteen taking responsibility for the first team.

Jol had been in charge since June 2011 and his dismissal comes on the back of five straight Premier League defeats that leaves Fulham 18th in the table.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/25170983

Wont come as a huge surprise, new owner and a bad run of form almost always equal a new manager.
 
Yeah ... the press have had Jol sacked several times during the season, so no great shock there. They just haven't had the same spark this season, and I understand that Jol is a bit of a clanging cymbal. Sooner or later they tune him out.
 
andyt said:
An article in si.com about the Celtic-Rangers rivalry and the demise of Rangers.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/so...r-post-celtic-scotland-rangers/?eref=sihp#all
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"Me? I suspect I am like many Celtic supporters. The League Cup and Scottish Cup are the only two competitions in which the Old Firm can now take place. Earlier this season, Rangers was knocked out of the Scottish League Cup in the first round, defeated by Forfar Athletic, a semi-professional outfit nicknamed "The Loons". I recall with feeling how I greeted that news -- 'Damn, another lost chance to beat that lot."

Well summed up, well researched and well written.

The loss of the Old Firm relationship has absolutely brutalized the financial stability (what little there was) of the Scottish Premiere League (and by extension the rest of Scottish professional football) and has left Celtic clinging to the payday they get from Champions League games as their lifeline. And there's really no way for them to actually compete at that level without smoke and mirrors ... and grand fortune like 2 years ago when they found Vic Waynama and Effie Ambrose languishing around the fringes of world football with boatloads of talent and no big stage on which to strut their stuff.

Without the Old Firm, the whole thing becomes really futile, really fast. And Celtic supporters who are still taking evil glee at Rangers' sad plight are just being ridiculous. These two NEED each other.
 
davemess said:
Think that's a little early, I would have given Clarke another couple of weeks.
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Or another couple of months. The Baggies are still playing pretty good football, they are just lacking from selling off some players and the loss of Lukaku's punch up front. That ain't Clarke's fault, but the manager is always the fall guy. Overall I think Clarke proved that he could successfully transition from Number 2 man to the lead role. He'll get another job soon enough.
 
It will be interesting to see who gets both those jobs, cause I cant think of a really obvious sensible choice for either.
 
davemess said:
It will be interesting to see who gets both those jobs, cause I cant think of a really obvious sensible choice for either.
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There's been a little bit of noise Stateside that former USMNT and Egypt boss Bob Bradley has drawn some interest from West Brom. I would love to see Bradley manage in Europe, but I don't think he's the change in style from Clarke that they have in mind.
 
Cali Ed said:
Spurs selection a surprise to anyone? Was to me...
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Yes and no. I think they'll make another move eventually, but I do think that keeping things relatively stable for now is probably a good call. They've had so very much roster turnover over the last two years that it's probably wise to let things settle rather than bringing in a big ego manager who will want to mess around with things even more.
 
Maybe they have their eye on one of the World Cup coaches.

Giving Sherwood 18 months rather than 6 keeps things settled but still leaves them able to move come the summer.
 
http://worldsoccertalk.com/2013/12/27/cardiff-city-owner-vincent-tan-sacks-manager-malky-mackay/

Cray-cray Cardiff owner Vincent Tan sacked manager Malky MacKay today, after hinting at such a move for a couple of weeks. To his credit, MacKay refused pressure to resign, forcing the nutso little Malaysian to do the dirty deed his own self. I know the ownership group is desperate to avoid relegation but the way this was handled was miserable. Tan blew off repeated requests for a meeting from his manager and has been just completely erratic since the team gained promotion last spring. I think MacKay will land on his feet after doing a solid job under some trying circumstances. There's some speculation that Baggies are interested in making his return a quick one.
 
I was sort of surprised he didn't make his way to West Brom the day after Clarke was released. Those rumors started almost immediately.
 
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