Before anyone starts, I don't want to see the Roy Keane debate appear in this thread. Analyse his time at Sunderland but don't get into the Ireland thing.
Just announced - no details
Before anyone starts, I don't want to see the Roy Keane debate appear in this thread. Analyse his time at Sunderland but don't get into the Ireland thing.
He was sacked
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/foot...nd/4778496.stm
It had to come. I suspect they didn't want to pay him off so that's why it took so long. He'll do a good job for another Championship team. They deserved to get something out of the game against Man City but their defending was poor.
Best of luck Mick wherever you go.
Forget about the performance or entertainment. It's only the result that matters.
Feel a bit sorry for him, very little cash to spend and won the Championship with some frankly rubbish players. Was never going to stay up with that team and had to take a fall. I reckon there's few if any managers would have done better. Best of luck to him in the future
Haven't really followed developments in depth, but it seems harsh if it wasn't his choice to go the route of sticking with what he had rather than splash out. The fact that he was sacked obviously raises questions whether it was a board policy or his own, or his inability to attract the right people.
One thing though, despite the obvious big reduction when they got relegated the last time, as far as I'm aware Sunderland always had a top range Championship/Division 2/ Division one (delete as applicable to your age) playing budget. I think his ability to get promotion on a tight budget was somewhat overplayed by elements of the media.
If you attack me with stupidity, I'll be forced to defend myself with sarcasm.
I have to disagree. He did nothing to stop the rot. His whole attitude was defeatist since the begining of the season. Regardless of what level you are playing at, this midset trickles down into a team and will be reflected in the results.
He said that he didnt come up to the Premiership to sit back and not have a go and indeed he didnt. At his pearl. This attitude is foolhardy and Id say over the course of a whole season the Sunderland fans would have been happy enough to sit back if it meant being closer to some sort of battle for survival.
He was proud of his players after every game. This counts for little. It will take the club a long time to bounce back from this.
There was no consistancy in his selection process and the players that didnt deliver were rewarded with regular places.
Wigan or West Ham didnt spend huge fortunes when coming up to the Premiership but have done extremely well.
He should have went at Christmas. Pity the fool who takes his place.
Who is this guy, Trapper Tony?
Mod Edit: Make a sensible post or don't at all.
Last edited by Poor Student; 06/03/2006 at 10:46 AM. Reason: Stupid post
He obviously did a great job getting them promoted but made a hash of trying to keep them there. I understand a tight budget giving him limited room for maneuvre but are Sunderland that badly off financially compared to the other Premiership newcomers?
Greece 1 - 0 Germany
Socrates (89)
Best of luck to Mick in whatever he does after this experience. A gentleman and one of the most honest people in football.
"Love many, trust few, always paddle your own canoe." Dillo
a nice bloke maybe but a rubbish manager , first div at best 10 points all season very poor . cant see the point of sacking him though whats a new manager going to do if they go on a great run they may not set a new record for the lowest points total ever of 17 !!
You have to remember it's not all about transfer funds, it's about wage budgets too. And I can't imagine he had a particularly big one (Kelvin Davis, Jon Stead and Andy Gray can't have wanted too much) but West Ham had Yossi Benyaoun and Wigan had Henri Camara (both on a hell of a lot more than the Black Cats' lads, one would imagine).
Obviously the three signings I mentioned above for Sunderland proved to be less than successful but if you only have a small amount of money to spend you're not going to get class (generally, obviously players like Kevin Doyle are an exception).
I doubt any manager could have kept them up (maybe got them more points, but not kept them up) with the players he had and the resources. He was also unlucky that their biggest goal threat (Steven Elliott) has been out for a large chunk of the season.
And it was obvious that they had half an eye on next season's Championship campaign with their squad but it's a shame that they aren't giving McCarthy a chance to get them back up again (they could have made their decision if he had failed then this time next year).
I just hope he doesn't struggle to get another job now. He did a very good job with Ireland (just compare us under Mick to under Brian Kerr), and to get Sunderland promoted in the first place. I just hope this season hasn't recked his chances of getting another job.
Any one see what Gary Breen got sent off for? If you've got planks like that in your team then you haven't got a hope in hell. He still did very little to stop the rot and seemed to be consigned to relegation in August. Even blamed the chairman for not spending more money, not a good move.
Surprised Sky didn't blame the ref for not showing "common sense!Originally Posted by Soko
Madness ok as they were chasing an equaliser. Losing becomes a habit and that's why good friendly results for Ireland are important. A whole season so far plus a good few games from the previous season in the Premiership without a league home win. I am very sad for Mick but it was inevitable. Listening to his voice booming across the City of Manchester stadium yesterday reminded me of old times.
Forget about the performance or entertainment. It's only the result that matters.
About time, nice man but didn't make much of a fist at keeping the team in the premiership![]()
I feel a bit sorry for him actually, he took over a team with enormous debts and a dodgy side and rebuilt them into a side that won promotion. I agree that he never really came to terms with building a premiership side, especially compared to West Ham and Wigan, but with his transfer funds and wage constraints.... Fine they've gone straight back down but so what, he got them an unexpected promotion in the first place. This year must have done great things for their finances, plus next years parachute payments..... Many teams have built themselves up into secure clubs having yo-yoed for a couple of years.
What's the point in changing now anyway. Nobody can save them. Next year they know they'll need a good Championship manager, which they've got but instead they'll have to take a risk on someone else taking over.
"...and it's Charlie Chaplin on the wing..."
It's almost pointless sacking him now. Seemingly, they're going to appoint a caretaker until the summer and then look for a new manager so it's not even as if the new manager has the last 10 games to settle in. Murray should have bitten the bullet long ago and sacked him. It was clear from October that they had no hope of survival. I feel sorry for Mick, but he can't blame lack of funds really because Charlton bought Darren Bent for only a little more than he paid for Stead. Andy Gray was muck too. It leaves several Irish players in a delicate position now....Elliott, Lawrence, Breen, Daryl and Joe Murphy.
Last edited by bluemovie; 06/03/2006 at 3:43 PM.
Good championship manager/bad premiership manager? You need a budget to work in the premier league - as stated his budget was limited. He worked miracles to get Sunderland to the premier league. I'm sure Mourinhno would struggle with the budget Mc Carthy had. For me his problem lay in the fact that McCarthy refused to change his footballing principles, willing his team to play good football, refusing to adopt a win at all cost mentality, whilst adhering to a passing game rather than the long ball game to get results. There wasn't enough of his own playing character in his team, it was lacking bite and leaders on the field.
Sunderland midfielder Liam Lawrence criticised the board's decision to sack Mick McCarthy with 10 games left this season.
"Things could have been done at Christmas. I don't understand the timing, it's come at the wrong time for us," Lawrence told Sky Sports.
"All the lads are gutted. When we were told it was a bad atmosphere, everyone was gutted and there was a lot of upset people in there.
"We were all behind Mick. A lot of the lads owe a lot to him."
"...and it's Charlie Chaplin on the wing..."
McCarthy's Premiership Record as a manager:
Played: 37
Won: 2
Drew: 4
Lost: 31
Says it all really. He doesn't have what it takes to be a successful manager.
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