Is Bruno Lage A Good Manager Or Should He Go?

[Tony Towner]

Hypothetical question if Bruno left this summer which PL club would look at it think yep he would improve us compared to who we’ve got now?

One less than last Summer

 

[Paddingtonwolf]

It's ironic that you were so pissed with the press for not acknowledging us as a potential Champions League contender.

It's ironic you think I care about what you say or post.

 

[Elephant Pyjamas]

It's ironic you think I care about what you say or post.

are you 12?

 

[Elephant Pyjamas]

Hypothetical question if Bruno left this summer which PL club would look at it think yep he would improve us compared to who we’ve got now?

There isn't one is there, particularly if they've watched us play lately.

 

[Deutsch Wolf]

Rangnick
Hodgson
Smith
Jackson

Think they are the only current PL managers I wouldn't take over Lage. Three of them are leaving too.

 

[jd1981]

https://www.wolvesforum.co.uk/index.php?threads/everton-0-1-wolves-verdict-thread.37765/

Picked at random, people genuinely talking about Europa conference. We've been shite since then, but we haven't been shite all season.

We’ve been getting worse and worse ever since, results have been good at times but when have we put in a very good performance.

Good performances
Everton Home first half
West Ham Home
Man Utd away
Watford home
Leeds home first half
Villa home first half

We were decent in the games at the start of the season but let’s not kid ourselves that we were brilliant we weren’t.

Games where we’ve been atrocious
Brentford Home
Villa away until 80 minutes
Leeds away
Palace away
Norwich away
Arsenal away
West Ham away
Palace home
Leeds home second half
Newcastle away
Burnley away
Brighton home
City home

Also consider the toss of a coin games that we won saints away, Newcastle home, Leicester home, Brentford away, Everton away.

 

[White Wolf]

Our xGa is 15 worse than the actual goals conceded, it's an enormous disparity, no one else is even close, in fact it's a historical chasm.

It's like when Stam's Reading outperformed every single possible metric. Guess what happened in the end...

I was thinking about the comparisons to Stam's Reading this morning also! Finished third but played in an incredibly unsustainable way that sort of broke all the metrics at the time, and then now and then they'd put out a performance where they looked like absolute no-hopers. 7-1 loss to Norwich, and they were awful against us back in Zenga's first home game. 20th in the Championship the following year when things evened out. Makes you wonder how bad they would have been if they won the play-off final, only lost it on pens.

 

[YoungWolf]

I was thinking about the comparisons to Stam's Reading this morning also! Finished third but played in an incredibly unsustainable way that sort of broke all the metrics at the time, and then now and then they'd put out a performance where they looked like absolute no-hopers. 7-1 loss to Norwich, and they were awful against us back in Zenga's first home game. 20th in the Championship the following year when things evened out. Makes you wonder how bad they would have been if they won the play-off final, only lost it on pens.

And largely because of a pretty incredible goalkeeper performance that season too...!

 

[AndyWolves]

We’ve been getting worse and worse ever since, results have been good at times but when have we put in a very good performance.

Good performances
Everton Home first half
West Ham Home
Man Utd away
Watford home
Leeds home first half
Villa home first half

We were decent in the games at the start of the season but let’s not kid ourselves that we were brilliant we weren’t.

Games where we’ve been atrocious
Brentford Home
Villa away until 80 minutes
Leeds away
Palace away
Norwich away
Arsenal away
West Ham away
Palace home
Leeds home second half
Newcastle away
Burnley away
Brighton home
City home

Also consider the toss of a coin games that we won saints away, Newcastle home, Leicester home, Brentford away, Everton away.

The post match verdict thread doesn't indicate it was a coin toss match, rather that most folk we're happy with the performance aside from the first 30 minutes.

 

[Tony Towner]

Everton?
It's the very definition of Lage's tactics away from home. Let the opposition have the ball in the first half, hold your shape, look to frustrate and then look to be more expansive in the second half. How it's viewed will be dictated purely by the result, on that day we got a bit of Neves brilliance and a good Coady header. Newcastle a couple of weeks later was the same game plan, but with a different result and a different response.

In games where we unexpectedly scored like Arsenal and Leeds he attempted his first half tactics for the next 80 minutes.

 

[Elephant Pyjamas]

Everton?
It's the very definition of Lage's tactics away from home. Let the opposition have the ball in the first half, hold your shape, look to frustrate and then look to be more expansive in the second half.

It was often Nuno's tactic too, and not just away.

 

[Tony Towner]

Yes to the bit you quoted, no to the bit you didn't

 

[Lupollet]

Yes we could be. Our goalkeeper has massively over performed on every stat out there. Thats why we are where we are.

And the GK has now had a dip in form, meaning we lose 3-0 rather than scrape a 1-0 win.

 

[Lupollet]

No you’re right but just looking at the table and assuming everything is ok is simplistic.
Sheff Utd 2020 & Watford 2019 are your examples of sides whos league position at the end was good but their form was dreadful to finish off with.
Tell me what Bruno has done different that makes him stand above the previous regime?

That’s exactly right… the lower leagues are littered with clubs who had a few good seasons in the top league, over-achieved one season, got complacent, and started next years relegation form early.

 

[jd1981]

It was often Nuno's tactic too, and not just away.

Post pandemic yes before that we were a good counter attacking side with a clear identity.
What are we currently?
A lot of people were disgruntled with Nuno towards the end with the pragmatism.
Not saying you’re but any fan who’s content with Bruno is basically saying I’d be just as content with prime Pulis, Allardyce, Megson etc
As someone said this forum seems to be a bit of bubble because so many of our fans are coming across contented with things.
Not sure if it’s the general malaise that’s set in or whether it’s not looking at the bigger picture or whether people on here seem safer to view what they really think.

 

[Elephant Pyjamas]

Post pandemic yes before that we were a good counter attacking side with a clear identity.
What are we currently?
A lot of people were disgruntled with Nuno towards the end with the pragmatism.
Not saying you’re but any fan who’s content with Bruno is basically saying I’d be just as content with prime Pulis, Allardyce, Megson etc
As someone said this forum seems to be a bit of bubble because so many of our fans are coming across contented with things.
Not sure if it’s the general malaise that’s set in or whether it’s not looking at the bigger picture or whether people on here seem safer to view what they really think.

Agreed, we had an identity under Nuno, although the performances towards the end really tailed off, it might be recency bias but i don't recall the players looking as disinterested under Nuno as they do now. (Burnley! And perhaps in the United home game, but he'd already announced he was going by then.)

I for one was never disgruntled with how we played under Nuno aside from a handful of performances, i have never found watching Wolves "boring" since we were promoted, and still don't now, and i certainly didn't want him sacked.

I want Bruno gone though, as i think that solution is far less painful, expensive and risky than attempting to get rid and replace 5 or 6 players that either don't want, or can't play under him. Of course that depends on who we bring in, i wouldn't be disappointed with the attainable Gattuso, Cooper (if they don't come up) or Fonseca though, and would obviously love us to get Lopetgui, though that seems very unlikely.

However i don't see Bruno being sacked, and i fear for us next season.

 

[Johnny75]

Gattuso is shockingly poor.

 

[Elephant Pyjamas]

Gattuso is shockingly poor.

Worse than Bruno?

 

[Johnny75]

Worse than Bruno?

The football his side's play is just as bad. He seems tactically poor and more of an Italian Lampard.

 

[Mel Evo]

Still not sure why Diego Martinez doesn't have a club. Evidently in my opinion he'd be a better option than what we have, as it's more a case of no bar rather than low bar for me, but I'm sure (genuinely!) there will be plenty on here who can correct me. Not being a Mendes man is likely the complete show stopper. Still, his Granada team were very good and he was working with something there that looked like more of a read across to Wolves. Liked the cut of his jib compared to others on the merry go round. My knowledge of plausible candidates is extremely partial / limited though.