Our manager.

[BigbadBillyMcKinley]

There is so much negativity surrounding Scott Parker. Why? I have no idea, we are third and just come off the back of a 4 game winning run.
Having a look at the following list https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/trainer/verfuegbaretrainer/statistik
Of out of work managers, we could realistically only get Sam Allardyce or Mark Hughes. Personally I dont want either. Hughes wouldnt come back and big sam tactics are woeful. I'd rather finish top 6 with the football we are playing under Scott, than win promotion with Sam ir Mark in charge.

People need to get a grip to be honest. It's not bad by any stretch of the imagination.

[davew]

There is so much negativity surrounding Scott Parker. Why? I have no idea, we are third and just come off the back of a 4 game winning run.
Having a look at the following list https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/trainer/verfuegbaretrainer/statistik
Of out of work managers, we could realistically only get Sam Allardyce or Mark Hughes. Personally I dont want either. Hughes wouldnt come back and big sam tactics are woeful. I'd rather finish top 6 with the football we are playing under Scott, than win promotion with Sam ir Mark in charge.

People need to get a grip to be honest. It's not bad by any stretch of the imagination.

Not yet anyway, plenty of time left to get worse!! Performances need to improve and Parker needs to be more careful in his team selections, too many weakest links in our squad. The transfer window might improve our chances of making the play offs but think we can forget about automatic promotion this season, we are simply not good enough!!

[BigbadBillyMcKinley]

But we were never guaranteed an automatic spot. So being in the play offs should be what we aim for. Surely.

[Statto]

Not sure the "just come off the back of a 4 game winning run" argument is valid when we lost our last match. If we're 17th in April are people still going to be pointing out that we won four consecutive games back in November/December?

The FACT is (and it is a FACT) that we're performing significantly below the expectations of the general body of football fans, pundits, bookies et al, and below the expectations implied by our economic position.

[Baszab]

Just wait for the meltdown after we get thrashed at Griffin Park

[BigbadBillyMcKinley]

Not sure the "just come off the back of a 4 game winning run" argument is valid when we lost our last match. If we're 17th in April are people still going to be pointing out that we won four consecutive games back in November/December?

The FACT is (and it is a FACT) that we're performing significantly below the expectations of the general body of football fans, pundits, bookies et al, and below the expectations implied by our economic position.

So, by that equation Pep should be sacked at Man City then?

And, say we do sack Scott and replace him with a "experienced" manager and we end up well out of the Top 6 and Scott gets a job elsewhere and smashes it because they're more pragmatic about the whole scenario, then what?

[Sting of the North]

Not sure the "just come off the back of a 4 game winning run" argument is valid when we lost our last match. If we're 17th in April are people still going to be pointing out that we won four consecutive games back in November/December?

The FACT is (and it is a FACT) that we're performing significantly below the expectations of the general body of football fans, pundits, bookies et al, and below the expectations implied by our economic position.

Agree broadly with this. I do however question whether we are significantly below expectations? We are third, after all. Even though there is a point gap to second, I believe that is a bit harsh. Wasn't we one of the two favorites by most? Not too far off. As you yourself pointed out on another thread, Leeds and WBA have performed very well and acquired points in a manner that is likely not sustainable over a 46 game season.

[Sting of the North]

Not sure the "just come off the back of a 4 game winning run" argument is valid when we lost our last match. If we're 17th in April are people still going to be pointing out that we won four consecutive games back in November/December?

The FACT is (and it is a FACT) that we're performing significantly below the expectations of the general body of football fans, pundits, bookies et al, and below the expectations implied by our economic position.

So, by that equation Pep should be sacked at Man City then?

And, say we do sack Scott and replace him with a "experienced" manager and we end up well out of the Top 6 and Scott gets a job elsewhere and smashes it because they're more pragmatic about the whole scenario, then what?

I would imagine Pep has quite a lot of goodwill accumulated over the years. Scott would likely not have that.

Also, "what if" scenarios are difficult to argue against. What if we sack Scott and and replace him with an experienced manager, finish first and then fininsh next season in the top half of the Premier League, whereas Scott never makes it further as a manager?

Every action or inaction has consequences. We will only know what happened after the fact, and it will never be possible to compare it to the opposite action because it never happened. Every move is a gamble, at least to some degree. Appointing SP was quite a big gamble for example, given the very small sample size of his previous managerial career. He did however know the club, owners and players, which mitigated some of the risk.

[FFC1987]

Don't criticise Parker guys, we've been awesome all year. Remember those 4 wins on the bounce? Don't bother looking into it any further, we'll always have those 4 wins guys. Another great post but someone content on finishing in the lottery playoffs.

[Statto]

Not sure the "just come off the back of a 4 game winning run" argument is valid when we lost our last match. If we're 17th in April are people still going to be pointing out that we won four consecutive games back in November/December?

The FACT is (and it is a FACT) that we're performing significantly below the expectations of the general body of football fans, pundits, bookies et al, and below the expectations implied by our economic position.

So, by that equation Pep should be sacked at Man City then?

And, say we do sack Scott and replace him with a "experienced" manager and we end up well out of the Top 6 and Scott gets a job elsewhere and smashes it because they're more pragmatic about the whole scenario, then what?

Where did I say Parker should be sacked? For the record, I don't think we should sack him, at this point.

But he's under-performing, and is therefore going to be the subject of criticism and negativity, which is what I understood you to be questioning in the OP.

[Statto]

Not sure the "just come off the back of a 4 game winning run" argument is valid when we lost our last match. If we're 17th in April are people still going to be pointing out that we won four consecutive games back in November/December?

The FACT is (and it is a FACT) that we're performing significantly below the expectations of the general body of football fans, pundits, bookies et al, and below the expectations implied by our economic position.

Agree broadly with this. I do however question whether we are significantly below expectations? We are third, after all. Even though there is a point gap to second, I believe that is a bit harsh. Wasn't we one of the two favorites by most? Not too far off. As you yourself pointed out on another thread, Leeds and WBA have performed very well and acquired points in a manner that is likely not sustainable over a 46 game season.

I'll concede that if my statement was be entirely factual, I shouldn't have used the word "significant", which is somewhat subjective.

We were expected to at least be in the top 2. Whether that means being runaway league leaders, or just scraping a points total that would be enough to finish 2nd in an average season, will depend what measure you use to determine our pre-season expectations. But I think it's reasonable to say, for the sake of argument, we're 10-15%, ie 4-6 pts, off the points total we should have.

Personally, I'd say 10-15% is a "significant" shortfall, but yes it's subjective.