Jonesy wrote: ↑Fri Feb 06, 2026 10:47 pm
hate farke, but at the same time, love him.
I think Farke's biggest strength is building squad unity. Even just listening to Okafor's post match interview, he said it's like a second family for him here and he arrives to training every day with a smile on his face. Seen other players in recent times also say it's a very close squad. I know footballers are supposed to say stuff like that but ya can tell when they mean it.
That kind of togetherness can take you far imo. Tactically Farke isn't much different from the rest of the exchangeable managers on today's merry-go-round. But as far as environment building goes, I think he stands out from the crowd.
Was the right manager at the right time for promotion and consolidation in the Prem (it now seems). Obvs has his weaknesses mind, stubbornness and game management can hold him back. He's also not great at setting teams up to "contain". Use of subs rarely has the desired effect and often come too late.
All things even mind, he usually gets the better of opponents (particularly at ER). Therefore, next season after a few quality additions I expect a comfortable mid-table finish. Then we can really kick on as a club with stadium expansion coming.
I said to a mate last night.
They turned us round but our very first attack with Ampadu bringing the ball yo the edge of their area, the look was almost "beat these and we are a long way towards staying up". We need to be careful who we bring in, they need to be team players.
Yep @Hampshirewhites maintaining team spirit should be a key factor when pursuing new signings. Had great spirit under Bielsa, then the board and the Yank brought in players who had to be told to fuck off by Liam Cooper if the dont want to be here.
