Robbie

I could name many managers who left Notts to go to bigger clubs, , even Jimmy Sirrel did it before he came back. However, leaving a club to manage a bigger club & further a career, should never come as a surprise to anyone. It certainly doesn't annoy me because that is just football. All the managers that have come & gone & left a great legacy, are legends as far as I'm concerned & should be treated as such. Stuart Maynard may leave us to manage a bigger club, but if he gets this club promoted he will be a legend too

Good afternoon. It's been a lovely morning here with lots of sunshine & much milder than late. Nice to see the ground drying up after days of near on continuous rain. Hopefully I will get an opportunity to do some more work in the garden. I want to do a final cut of the grass & do some tidying up too.

I would certainly like to see a return of the British style of play. I do regret the growing influence of the continental style. I was never a fan of teams who always wanted to "walk ithe ball into the net" I think that a team that decides to use the direct style now could be very successful, because most teams won't know how to counter it effectively. Wimbledon were famous for that style of play in the 80s & 90s along with their aggressiveness & physicality on the field of play.

Your Thursday Afternoon Weather

The media has asked for Harry's opinion because his opinion is respected & he's popular as a pundit, former manager & player. As I said before & I repeat it. The pressure of winning the national league is probably much more than winning the PL league. In fact, it's easier for one of the "big six" managers to win the PL because they are in a league of six, not twenty & they have access to hundreds of millions of pounds sometimes billions of pounds, to buy the most expensive players. Let's see the likes of Tuchel, & Guardiola get a team like Morecambe, Accrington or Carlisle who are currently at the bottom of league 2, promoted from league 2, with the players they have. I've said my peace. Now Tuchel has been appointed we have to go with him. But in my opinion he's no better a coach than coaches in our lower leagues.

Harry Redknapp was asked for his opinion by Sky Sports News on the Tuchel appointment & he gave his opinion. He like anyone else, is entitled to his opinion, & many thousands of football fans around the Country will agree with him. As for "jingoism", I don't see it's relevance on this thread. The UK is hardly going to declare hostilities over a football appointment. To be accused of jingoism for expressing an opinion is somewhat bizarre. But of course, that happens on X all the time As for any court case, I recall it ended with an acquittal on both counts.

The Head Coach position is still an important part of a football club, because the Head Coach will normally appoint his own coaching staff when he is appointed at a club. The Head Coach will have people around him who will believe in his coaching methods. Just look at Stuart Maynard. He bought in his own coaching staff when he joined Notts. And a far a Russia is concerned, Russia is not one of the strongest footballing nations, England is, for all said and done we invented the game . There are home grown players capable of playing in the PL right now but are being held back,I just don't think that is right. As for Management talent, I believe that there are better managers & coaches in the lower leagues than there are in the PL As I've said before, get these foreign Head Coaches to go to a ninth tier side with little funds & get them promoted multiple times. I think you'll find it won't happen.

Big Sam is a legend at Notts. His opinions & methods should be respected. For all said & done his methods got Notts promotion. "Sam Allardyce, was known for his hard work, organization, & focus on training when he managed Notts County: Training Allardyce was known for his detailed training sessions, where he made sure players understood their roles & responsibilities. He also brought sport analytics to the club. Set plays Allardyce believed in the importance of set plays, and worked on them with the team every day. Long ball tactics Allardyce's teams were known for their long ball tactics, which some call a bad style of play but others call methodical & effective. Player development Allardyce was able to transform players, such as Davies, who became a focal point target man. Allardyce managed Notts County from January 1997 until October 1999. He led the club to promotion as champions of Division Three in the 1997–98 season". (Source Google) Neil Warnock's direct style of play lead Notts to two promotions so it proves that the direct style of play can be successful.

I agree @Chris One thing Lee Carsley had was time working with the FA regarding the under 21s, he also had the experience of working as an international manager all beit with the junior team. There is a big difference between being a club manager & an international manager, & Tuchel might not suit it for all we know. For all the criticism that Gareth Southgate had, he did serve his apprenticeship with the under 21s, & when the time came he moved up to the senior team very smoothly, & became one of the successful England Managers.

Jim Ratcliffe only has a 28% stake in United. The Glazers still have an overwhelming majority.

The problem we have is that home grown players, who at a different time would have been good enough to play in either the Championship or Premier League are now having to go further down the league pyramid to find work. Also, home grown Head Coaches, coaches & assistant coaches are having to do the same thing to get work I personally don't think that it is a good thing for our domestic game and our national teams that this is happening.. A coach who coaches a team in league 2 still has to be as good , as if not better than a coach who coaches in the PL. The coach is still trying to do the same job no matter what league the team is in. Finish as high as possible. Dan Crowley is good enough to have played in the old first division, when most of the players were home grown, & first division teams were still winning European Cups.

The phoenix club of Third Lanark is still going strong.

You are absolutely right @Wheelbarrow repair man We've seen it at Notts, they've seen it at Southampton, trying to play the ball out from the back despite being in a dangerous situation. Why can't they do the sensible thing by booting the ball upfield or just kicking the ball into touch, or pass it back to the goalie so he can clear the ball to safety. I agree with Sam that direct football can be much more exciting than the slow slow build up that we see with modern football. And going more direct can put opponents on the wrong foot because they possibly don't know how to deal with it.

Does Big Sam have it right when he slams modern-day ‘brainwashed’ football? Sam Allardyce slams modern-day ‘brainwashed’ football and praises surprise club for long-lost tactic WWW.GBNEWS.COM Legendary former Premier League manager Sam Allardyce has lambasted...

@Piethagoram "the best talent, most of which is from overseas" I beg to differ on that one. There are dozens of home grown players that are very talented & should be playing in the PL, but in my opinion are being held back, just like the home grown managers are.

@Wheelbarrow repair man At the end of the day the FA just wanted a big name didn't they. Whether he's the best coach is open to conjecture.

This is an interesting article on football tactics & formations. The 3-4-2-1 formation is the preferred formation of Notts for the last few years, certainly under Williams & now Maynard. It is the preferred tactic of Antonio Conte, & Brendon Rodgers when both were in charge of Chelsea & Liverpool respectively. It is very informative & I can now see why Notts prefer the one centre forward upfront, & why Didzy & Scott are used as "inside forwards" supporting Jatta The 3-4-2-1 Formation: Its Uses, Strengths, and Weaknesses | Jobs In Football JOBSINFOOTBALL.COM The 3-4-2-1 formation is one of the less commonly used tactics, favored by the likes...

@Wheelbarrow repair man Crikey. £5 million a year & how many games per year? 10 to 20 games in a year is at least £250K to £500K a match. Don't the players just get expenses paid?

There are a few more I could mention that would make good loo roll, like the Mirror & the Guardian, but I'll stick with the loo roll.

I don't get it when people say that the best Head coaches / Managers are in the PL. Phil Parkinson of Wrexham looks like he may have three promotions on the bounce when this season ends, & yes his Club has money, but the big six in the PL have 20 times or more finance than Wrexham. So what's wrong with Phil Parkinson being considered, or for that matter, any other Head Coach in the lower leagues?