Heimir Hallgrímsson

[ontheotherhand]

My 2c. I think Duff yoyo's between occasionally making very useful points about the state of Irish football, using his profile to bring attention to things he believes needs to change and then the other stuff. He has been a huge boost for the league generally, he's definitely a mad man, this level of intensity about anything isn't good for a person but I think most of his carry on is to take attention away from his players, it's all screaming Jose. I thought his interview with Richie Sadlier last year was a good insight to his mentality, he's a good guy at the heart of it I would imagine. The pro level of the sport is a sitcom with some football in between, so I wouldn't take much of what anyone says very seriously, let alone get worked up enough to dislike anyone.

I do wish Bradley was a bit happier, I think he uses negatives to motivate himself, a never ending siege mentality no matter how well things are going, and look he's been through some really tough events in his life, and has a sick child, so I cut him a lot of slack for his general demeanor. I would agree that his general results with Rovers have been on par with budget/expectations for much of his time there, except at the beginning where he managed to cling in to the job, and build something very succesful. I also think he deserves praise for last years Euro run. It will be very interesting to see how things pan out this year, I'm sure he still has much to improve on if he's going to be an International manager one day, but he is still only 40/

I think they were both too hasty to take shots at Heimir, and were better off sticking directly to comments re the top level of the organization, and hopefully we're past that now.

I am not as convinced of Heimer as some others here, but I think he's doing ok, and seems like a very decent, capable man who I only wish well. The individual players and depth is continuing to improve, we will have a decent shot in September if we can put close to our best squad together.

A lot of fair points made there. I will say that Bradley is incredibly positive in person. I'd have reservations about a few things he's done or said but he's a gent in the flesh, and very different to how he sometimes comes across in interviews. Of course the interviews are part of the job and how he will be seen generally so it's understandable if people have their own opinions.

I'd agree with your HH assessment so far. A lot is going to hinge on a couple of key players finding form at the right time.

[rebelmusic]

I'm really confused by some of the responses to what I said but I don't see how criticising Bradley is any reflection on this forum, which has been a fantastic place to share thoughts on Irish soccer for 15 or so years (for me)

I'm also a Cork City supporter so maybe living in a perpetual state of disappointment has an effect on my outlook on managers of Dublin sides

[ontheotherhand]

I'm really confused by some of the responses to what I said but I don't see how criticising Bradley is any reflection on this forum, which has been a fantastic place to share thoughts on Irish soccer for 15 or so years (for me)

I'm also a Cork City supporter so maybe living in a perpetual state of disappointment has an effect on my outlook on managers of Dublin sides

😂😂😂 I wasn't really responding to you tbf rebelmusic. I don't agree that Bradleys comments were hypocritical though fwiw. He wants his players to play at the highest level they can. If you listen to him regularly that is obvious and he never stands in the way of them moving up. The issue was the national manager coming out and suggesting that they should leave Ireland in order to get a call up. At that point in time, with all things considered, it was a clumsy statement. I don't think he meant it that way and his apology showed that he understood why it was an issue. He comes across as a smart man who understands how important the domestic league is and will be. He made a mistake and he owned it. Have to respect that.

Bradley saying he wants to manage at the highest level is fairly irrelevant to the discussion imop. He's said many times that Josh can go on and play at higher levels. Of course, a senior call up will help Rovers earn a bigger fee when that inevitably happens. Which is why I say Bradley got what he wanted.

For some added context: Neil Farrugia was knocking on the door of a call up while with Rovers. He left and stated that the primary reason was to get a senior cap. That hurt Rovers, particularly in Europe, and that was clearly fresh in Bradleys mind. Farrugia looks further away from a call up now than before. Probably would have been in a squad had he stayed and helped us beat Molde, fitness permitting. Kenny is another who might have been in the frame for at least this June window had he kept playing and scoring goals in Europe. It's not always as simple as the magic airplane.

[rebelmusic]

That sentiment I completely agree with. Ever since watching Simon Cox get called up game after game I do believe that the LOI has been unnecessarily shunned by Irish managers. There's many occasions where an experienced LOI player would have been a far better choice then what was called up. Hopefully that's changing and I do hope that Josh's callup wasn't just a box tick from HH to silence the noise.

I did think that HHs idea of having a camp in May would have been a great idea and maybe an LOI only camp at end of season would be something worth investigating. US or Norway being examples who could benefit from this. Getting the FAI onboard is another story.

[ontheotherhand]

That sentiment I completely agree with. Ever since watching Simon Cox get called up game after game I do believe that the LOI has been unnecessarily shunned by Irish managers. There's many occasions where an experienced LOI player would have been a far better choice then what was called up. Hopefully that's changing and I do hope that Josh's callup wasn't just a box tick from HH to silence the noise.

I did think that HHs idea of having a camp in May would have been a great idea and maybe an LOI only camp at end of season would be something worth investigating. US or Norway being examples who could benefit from this. Getting the FAI onboard is another story.

Careful. They'll think you're suggesting Cathal O'Sullivan will solve all of Ireland problems and score a peno v Spain in 2002 while he's at it.

[elatedscum]

Careful. They'll think you're suggesting Cathal O'Sullivan will solve all of Ireland problems and score a peno v Spain in 2002 while he's at it.

Just once can we call up Git Forrester? He looked so so so good from when Kenny came in last season. I kinda think without the personal heartbreak and awful stuff that happened in his life, that we’d be talking about a mainstay in the irish setup

[Kingdom]

Jesus Christ this is absolutely ****ing pathetic reading on this forum.

I'll expand on this.
That the jibe of hypocrite could be levelled at Bradley is ludicrous. I don't like Bradley but I don't particularly dislike him either. I wouldn't have on the level of idiot as Damien Duff for example. I don't think he's a particularly brilliant manager, but he's earned respect with his achievements with a very good group of players.

"HH had Bradley on toast."
The MNT manager had his press conferences dominated in the early stages of his tenure over stupid comments he made about local players. I don't see how 'dig up, stupid' in at attempt to extract oneself from a farcical situation earns one brownie points.

I don't know is it the inbred nature of Irish society that brings out the worst in people, or whether our 'national' media is really just that petty that it makes rational people perform down to base levels, but it's reflective here.

[Kingdom]

Just once can we call up Git Forrester? He looked so so so good from when Kenny came in last season. I kinda think without the personal heartbreak and awful stuff that happened in his life, that we’d be talking about a mainstay in the irish setup

100%.

I'm only somewhat aware of the difficulties Git has faced, but there's no shadow of a doubt that the guy's career has been impacted by it. There's parallels to a degree with Keith Fahey, another incredibly gifted footballer.
I think of players like Diesler who simply couldn't reach the standards they were capable of due to difficulties off the pitch, very sad.

[ontheotherhand]

Just once can we call up Git Forrester? He looked so so so good from when Kenny came in last season. I kinda think without the personal heartbreak and awful stuff that happened in his life, that we’d be talking about a mainstay in the irish setup

He's lovely to watch on his day but probably hasn't had enough consecutive days. 3 or maybe 4 seasons ago when he was scoring for fun might have been a time to have a look? Think he's well capable of playing up a level, particularly if surrounded by better players. He's head and shoulders above almost everyone when he's at it and often looks like he's let down by the movement around him. As of now though, I think Honohan is the most likely candidate given the options we have. Josh will be across the water soon enough so I'm sure he'll get more chances. Hes showed he can standout against big clubs in Europe. Remarkable upwards trajectory considering he wasn't rated much by a lot of Cork supporters. Has more improving to do to be a serious option obviously.

If things were different you might have the likes of Git, Burke or Byrne around the edges of the squad. We don't have many players like them. They've all had their struggles though and those doors are probably closed. It was hard enough for Hoolahan to get a look in. The LoI themed friendlies would have been interesting but I think you'd really want the top players here to be included alongside the ones playing at a higher level if we were seriously considering them and we won't need to unless we are hit with a serious injury crisis.

But look, it's a conversation that rarely goes anywhere good online. Great one for a few pints after a game although tonights conversation will probably be dominated more by Drogs European situation.

[elatedscum]

How many of the " best " sports managers are nice people, I'll wager not too many.

Edit ~ You probably have to be pretty duplicitous with, players / agents / other, at times any !

Premier League Winning Managers:

People who I think were definitely nice people: Arsene Wenger, Jurgen Klopp, Claudio Ranieri
People who are probably nice: Carlo Ancelotti, Kenny Dalglish, Manuel Pellegrini,
Complicated Individuals: Alex Ferguson, Jose Mourinho, Roberto Mancini, Antonio Conte, Pep Guardiola,

[seanfhear]

Premier League Winning Managers:

People who I think were definitely nice people: Arsene Wenger, Jurgen Klopp, Claudio Ranieri
People who are probably nice: Carlo Ancelotti, Kenny Dalglish, Manuel Pellegrini,
Complicated Individuals: Alex Ferguson, Jose Mourinho, Roberto Mancini, Antonio Conte, Pep Guardiola,

Complicated Individuals = = Nice One !

I think I would prefer my soccer managers to have a bit of an edge. If you really want some-one nice ~ Get yourself a nice dog !

[irishfan86]

Give this man a new contract now. It was slow out of the gate but he had a lot of rot he had to undo.

He’s restored our organization and most importantly our guts and pride.

[rebelmusic]

Give this man a new contract now. It was slow out of the gate but he had a lot of rot he had to undo.

He’s restored our organization and most importantly our guts and pride.

100% agree. His comment at the end about the positive impact on the whole organisation says it all. And never do the Kenny experiment again. This is how Ireland play.

[Eirambler]

It took a full year for HH to undo the damage Kenny did. I'm not sure it's fully undone at this point either. But we must never go back to choosing a manager who is hell bent on implementing a personal ideology and style of play that doesn't suit the players we have.

[passinginterest]

It took a full year for HH to undo the damage Kenny did. I'm not sure it's fully undone at this point either. But we must never go back to choosing a manager who is hell bent on implementing a personal ideology and style of play that doesn't suit the players we have.

Has it changed that much? It’s pretty much the exact same style as the positive results under Kenny. By the end the confidence was drained from the players under Kenny. Heimir has lifted that back up and got them a little more organised. They’re still trying to play football when they have the ball and trying to use pace on the break.

No doubt Heimir deserves another campaign now. But he hasn’t completely reinvented the wheel.

[irishfan86]

Has it changed that much? It’s pretty much the exact same style as the positive results under Kenny. By the end the confidence was drained from the players under Kenny. Heimir has lifted that back up and got them a little more organised. They’re still trying to play football when they have the ball and trying to use pace on the break.

No doubt Heimir deserves another campaign now. But he hasn’t completely reinvented the wheel.

Couldn’t disagree more strongly. The team is far more direct now. Uses long balls and crosses when appropriate.

Apart from blooding the young players (a not insignificant thing), Heimir has implemented a more solid organized unit that is far more urgent and intense.

This isn’t the day to sh*t on Kenny, he’s taken his lumps — but romanticizing his tenure beyond the blooding is really a stretch.

[Nesta99]

We still play it short out from the back along with lumping it. We are just more comfortable moving the ball to break a high press. A lot of forward momentum was from a ball played down the line and playing it around the corner. Its working now, it didnt when it ws started as a way to keep ball rather than go 50/50 with a keeper going long all the time. This manager is definitely more pragmatic than idealistic but there is overlap beyond the capping of players. Not that its important now really.

[Eirambler]

Has it changed that much? It’s pretty much the exact same style as the positive results under Kenny. By the end the confidence was drained from the players under Kenny. Heimir has lifted that back up and got them a little more organised. They’re still trying to play football when they have the ball and trying to use pace on the break.

No doubt Heimir deserves another campaign now. But he hasn’t completely reinvented the wheel.

Ah it has. Much more direct, a significant reduction in the tippy tappy through the thirds stuff that we just don't have the players to successfully implement. I still have issues with some of what HH is implementing, particularly in terms of how we set up against lower ranked teams. But it's far more sensible as a whole than what came before him.

I agree that we don't need to spend too much time today dragging the man through the mud again, but at the same time I'll absolutely take issue with the view that where we have got to here is in any way to do with Kenny. Probably the best thing that happened was that his time in charge coincided with our weakest period in terms of the players we had available to us. But he managed the team woefully poorly during his time in charge, even taking that into account, and if he was still there now we'd have been battling Armenia for third in the group.

[ontheotherhand]

Has it changed that much? It’s pretty much the exact same style as the positive results under Kenny. By the end the confidence was drained from the players under Kenny. Heimir has lifted that back up and got them a little more organised. They’re still trying to play football when they have the ball and trying to use pace on the break.

No doubt Heimir deserves another campaign now. But he hasn’t completely reinvented the wheel.

Yeah. It's not very different. Backs to the wall against the better sides, maybe a bit more chaotic against the peers, with more direct play and more long throws but that's how a lot of teams are playing now. A few of the players have improved, notably Parrot, but Kelleher, O'Shea and others too. That's the difference really. But that's football. Kenny would've lost that game 2-1 because nobody up front would've rescued it. He had to go. Heimir had to go a few weeks back but Ferguson's injury put Parrot forward and he stepped up in a ridiculously massive way. Even Coleman coming back was huge. Doherty finally being sidelined. Sliding doors stuff and it'll keep HH in the job, which I'm fine with. Managers need luck. But what a ****ing week. Anyone trying to still swing digs at Kenny at this stage should be ignored. Just enjoy the moment.