What we learnt

[Ordar]

* Hughes is happy to be here and is looking towards a top 10 spot rather than the negative avoid relegation.
* He wants to bring in some attacking options but is unsure of the money avaliable.
* The style of play wont change much.
* He wants to improve our away form (thank god!)
* Al Fayed still has the hump with Roy, and is still generally quite embarrassing!
* We dont need to sell our best players

Then loads and loads of stupid questions about City from journalists who clearly dont care about us.

[Lighthouse]

* Hughes is happy to be here and is looking towards a top 10 spot rather than the negative avoid relegation.
* He wants to bring in some attacking options but is unsure of the money avaliable.
* The style of play wont change much.
* He wants to improve our away form (thank god!)
* Al Fayed still has the hump with Roy, and is still generally quite embarrassing!
* We dont need to sell our best players

Then loads and loads of stupid questions about City from journalists who clearly dont care about us.

Don't forget the highlights can be watched again when they put it up on the Sky Website. Any City fans we know might be interested

[Andy Crysell]

I kn

* Hughes is happy to be here and is looking towards a top 10 spot rather than the negative avoid relegation.
* He wants to bring in some attacking options but is unsure of the money avaliable.
* The style of play wont change much.
* He wants to improve our away form (thank god!)
* Al Fayed still has the hump with Roy, and is still generally quite embarrassing!
* We dont need to sell our best players

Then loads and loads of stupid questions about City from journalists who clearly dont care about us.

Don't forget the highlights can be watched again when they put it up on the Sky Website. Any City fans we know might be interested

I know it's daft, but I kind of like that MAF is still hacked off with Woy!

[finnster01]

I kn

* Hughes is happy to be here and is looking towards a top 10 spot rather than the negative avoid relegation.
* He wants to bring in some attacking options but is unsure of the money avaliable.
* The style of play wont change much.
* He wants to improve our away form (thank god!)
* Al Fayed still has the hump with Roy, and is still generally quite embarrassing!
* We dont need to sell our best players

Then loads and loads of stupid questions about City from journalists who clearly dont care about us.

Don't forget the highlights can be watched again when they put it up on the Sky Website. Any City fans we know might be interested

I know it's daft, but I kind of like that MAF is still hacked off with Woy!

It is not daft Mr Andy.

I agree with you completely. It is the difference between a journeyman who just does his job and goes home and then moves on a soon as a better offer comes in, and someone (MAF) who loves every second he spends with the love of his life, Fulham FC. That is priceless. Roy did a good job but lets not deny that he fucked us in the end.

[Lighthouse]

It is not that Roy went off to a better job. It is the way he acted so coy as if he had no communication with Liverpool before the World Cup. Something I can't believe. Then he just moves on without a backward glance. Yes he gave us the best seasons. But it is not his leaving but the way he left that angers me.

Of Coarse MAF was angry at being let down. YET AGAIN.

[MrCheviot]

It is not that Roy went off to a better job. It is the way he acted so coy as if he had no communication with Liverpool before the World Cup. Something I can't believe. Then he just moves on without a backward glance. Yes he gave us the best seasons. But it is not his leaving but the way he left that angers me.

Of Coarse MAF was angry at being let down. YET AGAIN.

I agree 100%. I was discussing this w/ a co-worker today.. he wondered why I was slightly resentlful towards Roy after smiling when recounting how Mo made his views clear. For everything he accomplished while he was here, I am eternally grateful. The way he left though was not befitting of his claimed fondness for our supporters - not so much as a thank you or sincere goodbye. He's like Kaiser Soze in the Usual Suspects - "And then like that *poof* he's gone."

[TonyGilroy]

I think a lot of us misread Roy. I certainly did.

We bought into the notion of him being kindly, eccentric Uncle Roy. Not too worldly, a true gentleman. A good manager who really cared about life's decencies. A man who seemed surprised and grateful to be enjoying a bit of success. The more I go on the more ridiculous it actually is but I think most of us felt he was sharing our journey.

In truth we now know that he's as ambitious, ruthless and self centered as they come which are probably necessary traits for successful managers.

I think the lesson is that we shouldn't fall in love with our managers but understand that they are simply professionals trying to maximise the rewards they can get from their careers.

We're the ones who are stuck with the clubs we fell in love with. The great thing is that I truly believe MAF is one of us.

Unless I've got that wrong too.

[Logicalman]

I think a lot of us misread Roy. I certainly did.

We bought into the notion of him being kindly, eccentric Uncle Roy. Not too worldly, a true gentleman. A good manager who really cared about life's decencies. A man who seemed surprised and grateful to be enjoying a bit of success. The more I go on the more ridiculous it actually is but I think most of us felt he was sharing our journey.

In truth we now know that he's as ambitious, ruthless and self centered as they come which are probably necessary traits for successful managers.

I think the lesson is that we shouldn't fall in love with our managers but understand that they are simply professionals trying to maximise the rewards they can get from their careers.

We're the ones who are stuck with the clubs we fell in love with. The great thing is that I truly believe MAF is one of us.

Unless I've got that wrong too.

You've got nothing wrong there Tony. Perfectly put and in perspective. Great post.


As for MaF still being hacked off, you just have to love the old bugger really, don't you? The passion for the club is so real, unlike the porn stars from the other side of town in comparison.

[FatFreddysCat]

It is not that Roy went off to a better job. It is the way he acted so coy as if he had no communication with Liverpool before the World Cup. Something I can't believe. Then he just moves on without a backward glance. Yes he gave us the best seasons. But it is not his leaving but the way he left that angers me.

Of Coarse MAF was angry at being let down. YET AGAIN.

To steal a Tom term +1  :clap_hands: .

[epsomraver]

Mo could have blocked the move if he wanted to!

[JBH]

Mo could have blocked the move if he wanted to!

Okay please explain how MAF could have blocked the moved, because as far as I am aware RH resigned his position as Fulhma Manager  :49:

[Dragoman]

Perhaps there was a little bit of psychology in MAF's comments about Roy in that he is aware of most of the fans' deep admiration of him and what he did for Fulham over the past two seasons. By referring to Roy in that way that may be he wanted to give Mark Hughes a bit of a boost and draw a line under the Hodgson era by portraying him as a villain rather than a saviour.
Incidentally I can't remember whether MAF badmouthed Sanchez when he went. That's when you would have expected some vitriol.

[TonyGilroy]

We could have stopped Hodgson talking to Liverpool unless he resigned first. Had he then joined Liverpool we would have been entitled to damages from Hodgson (no doubt payable by Liverpool) for the value of the contract - normally the money unearned by Hodgson as yet.

That's simplistic because I haven't seen the contract and there could have been provisions in there either preventing Hodgson working elsewhere during the period of the contract or allowing him to leave but probably the first paragraph sets the position out.

Allowing Hodgson to talk to Liverpool probably made sense anyway on the basis that we'd rather he decide not to go rather than feel that we were denying him the freedom to make a choice.

Of course the Jol/Ajax situation was identical. They took the decision to force Jol to stay unless, as I suspect, Jol never had any intention of leaving.

Personally I never thought Liverpool would offer Hodgson the job but I knew that he'd go if they did.