I have lost complete faith in Martin Jol

[Alfayedslovechild]

Part of me wants the WBA game to be next weekend, but we've got an international break so the anxiety drags on. It also allows the so called dust to settle around Martin Jol where part of me really wants us to keep the pressure on him.

What worries me deeply, is that Khan said that he will run with the current plan and that means keeping Jol until the end of the season. Unfortunately, this isn't the NFL and teams do get relegated, so I'm somewhat concerned.

I had every faith in Jol last season that he'd turn things around, but he didn't really and we just limped over the finishing line with a couple of lucky results, nothing to do with his managerial ability.

This season, Jol seems even more out if his depth and even more clueless with what is 'his' so called squad. His ability to read games and make simple tactical decisions is shocking and if I didn't know any better, I'd say he sends 11 men out on a Saturday and hopes for the best.

You can clearly see that our team has no shape, no guidance, no leader and certainly no game plan. When the chips are down, they all look at each other as to say "What do we do now, what's plan B?". Surely this is something that is worked on at training along with our woeful free kicks, corners and our inability to attack the flanks without cutting in the all time.

The Berbatov and Ruiz situation is really starting to get up my nostrils ad well, plus this love affair that Jol seems to have with Steve Sidwell. Berbatov plays when he feels like it, Ruiz doesn't play at all and Sidwell is just well, Steve Sidwell. I just wish Jol would would have some balls and bench Berbatov, sell Ruiz and admit Sidwell isn't the answer.

Anyway, the moral of this story is that if we fall into the bottom 3 early this season, I can't see Martin Jol dragging our asses out of it and if we do get into a relegation battle, I can't see this set of players being up for the fight. If any of you have cared to watch Norwich, Crystal Palace or Stoke over this weekend, they really do make us look woeful.

Anyway, lets all enjoy our miserable break away from Fulham for the next 2 weeks and observe Martin Jol as he drafts in 1 or 2 more pointless players. Players that won't even fill the positions we are most desperate to fill.

Here's hoping that the WBA game is the straw that finally breaks the camels back and board have enough guts to pull the plug on Martin Jol. If they're sensible enough, they may even be looking for his replacement right now. 

[Walsh]

bang on! I was heavily behind Martin Jol all last season and to be fair, the start of this season. He is great at bringing in decent players but his actual managerial skills seem no existent, I wouldn't like to be in Jol's shoes because I don't even know what he can do to save himself now, he has 2 days to get some players in... if he doesn't bring a midfielder in then we're in the deep stuff.

[Alfayedslovechild]

bang on! I was heavily behind Martin Jol all last season and to be fair, the start of this season. He is great at bringing in decent players but his actual managerial skills seem no existent, I wouldn't like to be in Jol's shoes because I don't even know what he can do to save himself now, he has 2 days to get some players in... if he doesn't bring a midfielder in then we're in the deep stuff.

He won't, I'll even lay my season ticket on it. All the time he has to accommodate Ruiz, you've got a hope in hells chance of seeing a creative midfielder. It will be another waste of a space type player i.e. Boateng that we don't even need. That's how much faith I have in the guy.

[HatterDon]

Actually, the beginning of an international break is a WONDERFUL time to can your manager. You get your new one in the next day and he's got 10-12 days before his first match.

Not that I want Jol to lose his job Monday or anything like that.

[PokerMatt]

I admitted that I now wanted Jol to go in the other long thread on the subject, having been convinced that he was the right man up until yesterday.

I can't disagree with much, if any, of what you say here.

Last season we had a really good start which gave us an advantage over the rest at the bottom. But now I honestly can't see where 40 points will come from.

Yes if Jol goes maybe berbatov will go with him, but that's even more of a reason. We don't need him, we need players who work as a team.

How we can fail to create chances with the attacking talent we possess is staggering. What happens in training and what on earth does he tell the players? Does he even say anything? It doesn't look like it to me. He doesn't seem to care either. That's inexcusable.

[SKSW6]

I think usually we wouldn't be so depressed after a result like this today away from home as we knew the Cottage was still a fortress and that home form alone would be enough to keep us up. Not any more.

[Nero]

More worryingly is that he didn't seem to reslise we need another right back before the one we have gets injured.  

[Arthur]

You can clearly see that our team has no shape, no guidance, no leader and certainly no game plan. When the chips are down, they all look at each other as to say "What do we do now, what's plan B?".

To say that we have 'no shape' implies that the players simply run around wherever they fancy, like 10 year-olds on a school playground. Berbatov apart, this clearly wasn't the case.

From where I was sat, Scott Parker - albeit undemonstratively - was giving instructions and/or offering advice to others. Obviously, I have no idea how useful or motivating this was, but leadership on the football pitch doesn't necessarily have to be overt.

And was there really no game plan whatsoever? No instructions to the team as to how to approach the game? The parts of a plan that I thought I saw at St James' Park were, first and foremost, to maintain our defensive solidity and organisation. Secondly, to pass the ball from the back through the midfield whenever possible. Thirdly, for Stockdale, if needing to kick the ball, to aim for Ruiz. And for our midfield players to seek to chip the ball over the top of the central defenders for Bent.

Now, the merits of this group of strategies are debatable, for sure. However, if Jol's intention was to play for the draw and hope to secure a win (as happened at Sunderland), his was a plan that stood up for 85 minutes. (In the end, not a successful plan, but by the same token, not a disastrous one.) And this, incidentally, would explain why, on Saturday at least, there was no evidence of 'plan B'. All the while it was 0-0, it wasn't needed; the 'chips weren't down' - the original plan had yet to fail.

I'm not sure what is meant by 'no guidance'. It would seem to be synonymous with either the claim that there was no instruction (from Jol) or that there was no leadership (on the field).

There is criticism of the weekend's performance that can be supported with reason and evidence - not least that there were better game plans than the one that Jol devised (to which you offer a valid observation that we should be "attacking the flanks without cutting in all the time"). Your main criticisms, however, I think are inaccurate and, as such, represent a misplaced attack on Jol's shortcomings.

[JBH]

We have had a poor start to this season and it is always frustrating when the results are not what we would like them to be, but it has also been the same for a majority of the teams in the Prem so far and after all we are only 3 points behind Man U (who were very poor yesterday) and Spurs (who have spent a Kings Ransom this summer and haven't scored from open play)

All the time Martin Jol is in charge I will support him and his team and if the board think the same as a majority of posters on here then I expect him to be gone if we fail to beat WBA.

No one wants to return the the old ways of seeing FFC struggle but sometimes you have to take a reality check.

Keep the Faith COYW  065.gif