Jokanovic would have kept this side up

[bog]

May be contentious, but I really believe it. Jokanovic never had a good defence to work with, so we were always vulnerable, but that man knew how to coach attacking. With our back 5 plus Reed we'd have been far more solid plus we'd have actually posed a threat going forward. He also got the best from Mitrovic.

Agree, he was getting to grips with the Prem. Mitro had a goal disallowed against Liverpool, before he sacked.

That goal was about 4mm offside. We were still celebrating thinking it was a goal and the ref lets Salah go running the length of the pitch to score.  :031: :031:

[dgnffc]

May be contentious, but I really believe it. Jokanovic never had a good defence to work with, so we were always vulnerable, but that man knew how to coach attacking. With our back 5 plus Reed we'd have been far more solid plus we'd have actually posed a threat going forward. He also got the best from Mitrovic.

Agree, he was getting to grips with the Prem. Mitro had a goal disallowed against Liverpool, before he sacked.

That goal was about 4mm offside. We were still celebrating thinking it was a goal and the ref lets Salah go running the length of the pitch to score.  :031: :031:

Not forgetting that their free kick was taken while the ball was moving!

[rebel]

May be contentious, but I really believe it. Jokanovic never had a good defence to work with, so we were always vulnerable, but that man knew how to coach attacking. With our back 5 plus Reed we'd have been far more solid plus we'd have actually posed a threat going forward. He also got the best from Mitrovic.

Agree, he was getting to grips with the Prem. Mitro had a goal disallowed against Liverpool, before he sacked.

That goal was about 4mm offside. We were still celebrating thinking it was a goal and the ref lets Salah go running the length of the pitch to score.  :031: :031:

Not forgetting that their free kick was taken while the ball was moving!

We didn't get any breaks that day.

[colinwhite]

Our promotion season under Jokanovic produced some of the best football I can remember our team playing. I would have kept him on longer. However his success was in the championship not the PL. It takes time to build a new team and Jokanovic didnt prove that as his strength in double quick time.
The throw away idea that we are good at the back (and therefore defnsively sound ) now is because of the players and nothing to do with the coach ,whilst we have trouble scoring goals but thats not down to the players its all Parkers fault,is neither logical nor balanced . You really cant have it both ways .
The reality for me ,is that we have better defensive players now than 2 years ago but are also set up differently with all our offensive players defending from the front and working very hard for the team and team shape. We also have problems  scoring goals because we both lack quality up front and are also set up with offensive players who work hard for the team but dont offer enough creatively  or in putting the chances that we create in the back of the net.

[toshes mate]

Only a fool has to answer what could have been had they not done what they did.  Both Dad and Son were grooming Ranieri long before Wembley and the promised land.  Jokanovic had no chance.

Ranieri was brought in knowing fully that there was nowhere to go t FFC. His arms were tied behind his back and he had no say in anything. In my view, he took the job as a stop gap, better than no money coming in, and a nice little pay off at the end. TBH I would have done the same.

Yes, Mr Blingo, I noted your comment about Ranieri (must remember not to press the 'n' too many times in future) from a previous thread, but I think/believe/understand there is lot more to the CK sacking than meets the eye so far as Jokanovic's demise is concerned, but I cannot offer it on this forum because I do not have corroboration of some of the things I have heard from a usually very reliable source I know of.   There are also some other factors which come to have additional meaning in the timeline of events with some fleshing out but I have a feeling we will never know the truth about what really went on.  As it stands the way Jokanovic was treated was outrageous, IMHO, and he was not alone in that. 

[rebel]

Our promotion season under Jokanovic produced some of the best football I can remember our team playing. I would have kept him on longer. However his success was in the championship not the PL. It takes time to build a new team and Jokanovic didnt prove that as his strength in double quick time.
The throw away idea that we are good at the back (and therefore defnsively sound ) now is because of the players and nothing to do with the coach ,whilst we have trouble scoring goals but thats not down to the players its all Parkers fault,is neither logical nor balanced . You really cant have it both ways .
The reality for me ,is that we have better defensive players now than 2 years ago but are also set up differently with all our offensive players defending from the front and working very hard for the team and team shape. We also have problems  scoring goals because we both lack quality up front and are also set up with offensive players who work hard for the team but dont offer enough creatively  or in putting the chances that we create in the back of the net.

I agree with all that.

[HV71]

Colin you make some great points . For me The thing about Joka was that he often took average players and made them a hell of a lot better within the team structure. For example - Whilst it may have appeared to be " good business " he didn't want Aluko or Malone to leave . Aluko couldn't hit a barn door but , and this is crucial, he created space - scared the life out of defenders and meant that people like Stefjo could get Ito the box and score. Joka understood the sum of the parts better than any manager I have seen ( a bit like Roy and Ray but in a different way ) . Players felt free to express themselves. . Given the talent we currently have -I am confident  he could have made it work . Scotty is a good man , but not as experienced , and hasn't got there yet - he comes over as a bit of a control freak who is scared of losing . With time he may change - and I genuinely hope so . The question the op has posed though is whether Joka would have kept us up ? If he was left to his own devices then my Answer is a resounding YES!

[colinwhite]

Colin you make some great points . For me The thing about Joka was that he often took average players and made them a hell of a lot better within the team structure. For example - Whilst it may have appeared to be " good business " he didn't want Aluko or Malone to leave . Aluko couldn't hit a barn door but , and this is crucial, he created space - scared the life out of defenders and meant that people like Stefjo could get Ito the box and score. Joka understood the sum of the parts better than any manager I have seen ( a bit like Roy and Ray but in a different way ) . Players felt free to express themselves. . Given the talent we currently have -I am confident  he could have made it work . Scotty is a good man , but not as experienced , and hasn't got there yet - he comes over as a bit of a control freak who is scared of losing . With time he may change - and I genuinely hope so . The question the op has posed though is whether Joka would have kept us up ? If he was left to his own devices then my Answer is a resounding YES!

I would like to have seen him do it ,thats for sure ,but we were very naive at times that season in the PL. There would have been a lot of quick lessons to have been learned, but maybe you are right .He  only got nine matches.so we will never know.

[rebel]

Colin you make some great points . For me The thing about Joka was that he often took average players and made them a hell of a lot better within the team structure. For example - Whilst it may have appeared to be " good business " he didn't want Aluko or Malone to leave . Aluko couldn't hit a barn door but , and this is crucial, he created space - scared the life out of defenders and meant that people like Stefjo could get Ito the box and score. Joka understood the sum of the parts better than any manager I have seen ( a bit like Roy and Ray but in a different way ) . Players felt free to express themselves. . Given the talent we currently have -I am confident  he could have made it work . Scotty is a good man , but not as experienced , and hasn't got there yet - he comes over as a bit of a control freak who is scared of losing . With time he may change - and I genuinely hope so . The question the op has posed though is whether Joka would have kept us up ? If he was left to his own devices then my Answer is a resounding YES!

I would like to have seen him do it ,thats for sure ,but we were very naive at times that season in the PL. There would have been a lot of quick lessons to have been learned, but maybe you are right .He  only got nine matches.so we will never know.

The annoying thing is that, performances were improving, results might of followed, I think he was sacked after 11/12 matches, then the Khan's did the three manages in a season 'gig' again, which at the end of the season resulted in relegation. 

[HV71]

What I really do hate , and it happens throughout football, is that Rangers was basically lined up and appointed prior to the game at Anfield. The owners , not unnaturally, thought we wouldn't get anything from the fixture, so didn't make the appointment before the game. Joka was a dead man walking ,,,,,,
We watched one of our best ever talents be shafted ..,., it's not just about winning it's about having a belief in a style and being entertained. When do you remember that last happening ?

[HV71]

For Rangers read Ranieri - apologies

[Bassey the warrior]

Our promotion season under Jokanovic produced some of the best football I can remember our team playing. I would have kept him on longer. However his success was in the championship not the PL. It takes time to build a new team and Jokanovic didnt prove that as his strength in double quick time.
The throw away idea that we are good at the back (and therefore defnsively sound ) now is because of the players and nothing to do with the coach ,whilst we have trouble scoring goals but thats not down to the players its all Parkers fault,is neither logical nor balanced . You really cant have it both ways .
The reality for me ,is that we have better defensive players now than 2 years ago but are also set up differently with all our offensive players defending from the front and working very hard for the team and team shape. We also have problems  scoring goals because we both lack quality up front and are also set up with offensive players who work hard for the team but dont offer enough creatively  or in putting the chances that we create in the back of the net.

I never said the improved defending has nothing to do with the coach. He's done a great job with his defensive tactics.

He does play the main tole in stifling the attack though, we weren't good going forward last year either.

[deadcowboys]

We all know Joka did a great job in the championship, he was less than convincing in the Prem. However, it needs to be remembered that he constantly snipped at the Khans & refused to sign a new contract. As I remember it, wasn't  he supposed to have been overheard negotiating with another club too. Sadly he's gone let's move on.

[Penfold]

We all know Joka did a great job in the championship, he was less than convincing in the Prem. However, it needs to be remembered that he constantly snipped at the Khans & refused to sign a new contract. As I remember it, wasn't  he supposed to have been overheard negotiating with another club too. Sadly he's gone let's move on.

I didn't hear anything about him negotiating with another club. As for sniping at the Khans, as I understood it, he had a fairly decent relationship with SK who decided to get rid of Kline after a meeting with Jokanovic. However, it was reported at the time that TK was less than happy with that. It's fairly clear that he didn't have much respect for Tony Khan. 

[Snibbo]

He's managing in Qatar not the Prem or even the championship. No English team has taken him on. There's a reason for that

[RaySmith]

We've generally look a lot more competitive in the Prem under Scott than under Slav, once we got the new defensive signings in, and did look to have a good chance of staying up, after looking doomed.

Slav should have had more time, certainly in hindsight anyway, with the shambles that followed his sacking, but though we had a  far more decent performance at Liverpool, in the previous game at Huddersfield, which we lost, we looked  awful against opposition we  might have been expected to beat.

That Slav would have kept the current team up is an unprovable statement, and  just seems to be used to have a go at Scott.

[bobby01]

We all know Joka did a great job in the championship, he was less than convincing in the Prem. However, it needs to be remembered that he constantly snipped at the Khans & refused to sign a new contract. As I remember it, wasn't  he supposed to have been overheard negotiating with another club too. Sadly he's gone let's move on.

I didn't hear anything about him negotiating with another club. As for sniping at the Khans, as I understood it, he had a fairly decent relationship with SK who decided to get rid of Kline after a meeting with Jokanovic. However, it was reported at the time that TK was less than happy with that. It's fairly clear that he didn't have much respect for Tony Khan.

Tbh I always believed his problems were with Kline, the sumo suit, etc. That Obviously  upset TK, so there was stress there. I do not think the chairman had any problem with Slav or viceversa.

[RaySmith]

Our promotion season under Jokanovic produced some of the best football I can remember our team playing. I would have kept him on longer. However his success was in the championship not the PL. It takes time to build a new team and Jokanovic didnt prove that as his strength in double quick time.
The throw away idea that we are good at the back (and therefore defnsively sound ) now is because of the players and nothing to do with the coach ,whilst we have trouble scoring goals but thats not down to the players its all Parkers fault,is neither logical nor balanced . You really cant have it both ways .
The reality for me ,is that we have better defensive players now than 2 years ago but are also set up differently with all our offensive players defending from the front and working very hard for the team and team shape. We also have problems  scoring goals because we both lack quality up front and are also set up with offensive players who work hard for the team but dont offer enough creatively  or in putting the chances that we create in the back of the net.

Agree, good post.

[rebel]

What I really do hate , and it happens throughout football, is that Rangers was basically lined up and appointed prior to the game at Anfield. The owners , not unnaturally, thought we wouldn't get anything from the fixture, so didn't make the appointment before the game. Joka was a dead man walking ,,,,,,
We watched one of our best ever talents be shafted ..,., it's not just about winning it's about having a belief in a style and being entertained. When do you remember that last happening ?

Agree, he created an 'identity' on the pitch. You knew what to expect and his teams rarely disappointed.

[rebel]

We all know Joka did a great job in the championship, he was less than convincing in the Prem. However, it needs to be remembered that he constantly snipped at the Khans & refused to sign a new contract. As I remember it, wasn't  he supposed to have been overheard negotiating with another club too. Sadly he's gone let's move on.

I didn't hear anything about him negotiating with another club. As for sniping at the Khans, as I understood it, he had a fairly decent relationship with SK who decided to get rid of Kline after a meeting with Jokanovic. However, it was reported at the time that TK was less than happy with that. It's fairly clear that he didn't have much respect for Tony Khan. 

Agree, why would you respect Khan Jr? 'Moneyball' and Kline fiasco and Slav is trying to get results on the pitch. Why would anyone wed themselves to a club for a few more years. Slav is too 'old school' (gentleman) to negotiate with other clubs, he didn't take up a new position for 18 months or so. Guess who took up a position after just 2 weeks, that's probably been going on for months, prior to Super League.