Surely people can recognise the difference in the actual football we’re playing this season compared to last? It’s night and day! There actually seems a plan and a strategy. There maybe not a huge difference points wise but that is a bit of a red herring and doesn’t tell the whole story.
Silva has only just got here and it’s yet more upheaval and a new man with different ideas that the players have to get used to. It took an age to get to grips with zonal marking and Silva’s way of playing. Maybe that’s more about the players intelligence than the manager?
It cost us an awful lot of points early on but he stuck to his way of coaching and the players finally adapted to his methods and have made them work.
There were shouts of Martinez mk2 early doors and fears that he couldn’t organise a defence. Don’t hear those shouts anymore funnily enough.
There’s no doubt he’s improved players too. The Stoke fans were not the least bit impressed with Zouma last season and that’s being kind. He looks an absolute rock for us.
Gomes came with supposedly shattered confidence, he’s rebuilt that here.
And Keane? Incredible turn around in form. Gueye has been good from day one but has arguably had his best season, DCL has improved also.
All a coincidence or the sign of a very good coach?
It was pretty unfair to expect Silva to get this team firing straight away after all the upheaval of swapping managers every season, and trying to bed in a handful of new players some of which were completely new to the league.
Things take time and he fully deserves to be given the opportunity to improve again next season. A few more quality additions (especially goalscorers) and lets see how far up he can take us.
lol
