Allardyce aims to raise standards

[Dr Kenneth Noisewater 0]

Allardyce aims to raise standards at St James’ Park

 

On the pitch and in the transfer market, Sam Allardyce has already made a substantial impact as Newcastle United manager, but it is at the club’s training ground where change has been felt most keenly. Alongside the recent influx of sports scientists, dieti-cians and psychologists, there has been a more rudimentary innovation; locking out latecomers.

 

At a club that has endured a recent history of indiscipline, Allardyce has taken forceful steps to root out tardiness among his illustrious first-team squad. Each morning at 9.45, the electronic gates of Newcastle’s Benton training academy swing shut, forcing sleepyheads to endure the embarrassment of leaving their cars and using a buzzer to request entry in front of autograph hunters.

 

On assuming his position, Allardyce complained that Newcastle’s facilities were more reminiscent of a “squash club”, than a centre of sporting excellence and he has implemented other measures to improve the focus of his team. Agents, relatives and hangers-on no longer have open access to the training site and are obliged to wait for players in a makeshift hut. It all forms part of a bigger picture.

 

As he did at Bolton Wanderers, Allardyce is implementing a culture of no excuses on Tyneside, one that supporters who have had their fill of wasters and underachievers will appreciate.

 

“You have a lot of very, very experienced, very, very talented human beings that have a desire to be successful and that’s why they are as talented as they are,” Allardyce said of his players. “You’ve got to live up to their standards and by the same token you’ve got to set your standards higher than them.”

 

Allardyce has been assured that he will be permitted to reinvest the £7 million Newcastle have received from the sale of Kieron Dyer to West Ham United and he expects to complete the signing of Abdoulaye Faye from Bolton Wanderers for about £2 million.

 

“I don’t know if anything has been finalised,” he said, “but we’ve been in negotiations. The chairman has been dealing with it.”

 

The position of Nolberto Solano, whose family have moved to London, is still uncertain, with the Peru international keen to leave. “Whether I can resolve that problem or not I don’t really know at the moment,” Allardyce said. “There has been no interest from any other club.”

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/foo...icle2274356.ece

[ewerk 31600]

9.45 ffs, if they can't make it in for that time they should be fined.

[pooptash 0]

fuck fines, they shouldn't get that weeks wage

[Glen 0]

9.45am? Fucking hell. Slave driver eh.

[jaythesouthernmag 0]

BS looks like he is installing a certain mentality that has been lacking for years, a winning one where excuses or slack arses will not be tolorated and it will show on the pitch

[Row Z 0]

Remember the whole point in employing chop souey was because he was a "disciplinarian" but that didn't work.

 

I reckon players will have more respect for allardyce though and most of the antagonisers if not all of them are now gone. I know it's early days but surely we should be looking to qualify for europe, maybe even push the top 4 although i know we wont finish there.

[Guest alex]

Remember the whole point in employing chop souey was because he was a "disciplinarian" but that didn't work.

 

I reckon players will have more respect for allardyce though and most of the antagonisers if not all of them are now gone. I know it's early days but surely we should be looking to qualify for europe, maybe even push the top 4 although i know we wont finish there.

The whole point in employing Souness was that we were stuck with him after several managers had turned us down already.

[Barney 0]

....including Allardyce, tbf to Fred.

[Papa Lazaru 0]

Remember the whole point in employing chop souey was because he was a "disciplinarian" but that didn't work.

 

I reckon players will have more respect for allardyce though and most of the antagonisers if not all of them are now gone. I know it's early days but surely we should be looking to qualify for europe, maybe even push the top 4 although i know we wont finish there.

The whole point in employing Souness was that we were stuck with him after several managers had turned us down already.

 

Also Souness wasn't a disciplinarian he was just an obnoxious little prick who picked fights with people. Allardyce will be strict, but has already won the respect of all the players with what he's said to them and shown them pre season and beyond and will get them to follow his rules without the need for acting the hard man like Souness did.

[Guest alex]

A bully, basically. Big difference between him and Allardyce in many ways, not least the latter's ability to man-manage 'difficult' characters whilst not taking any shit at the same time.

[ChezGiven 0]

I remember reading about Sam going to spend time in a New York ad agency, maybe it was Saatchi or something and thinking 'wtf is he going to learn from that bunch of puffed-up nerbs?'. It did eventually dawn on me that managing creative talent was probably not that different to managing footballers.

 

When you've studied management at that level, you know when to be the hard bastard and when to be the good guy. I have to say the 9.45am curfew would catch me out on the odd day

Edited August 17, 2007 by ChezGiven

[Smooth Operator 10]

The players are normally there for 9 in my experience of passing them coming the other way as I head to work at about 10 to 9. So this 9.45 am lockout business seems realy lenient to me.

[Fop 1]

Remember the whole point in employing chop souey was because he was a "disciplinarian" but that didn't work.

 

I reckon players will have more respect for allardyce though and most of the antagonisers if not all of them are now gone. I know it's early days but surely we should be looking to qualify for europe, maybe even push the top 4 although i know we wont finish there.

 

I'm not actually sure he really was.

 

 

Plus Allardyces isn't so much building discipline (although that will happen with it) but more professionalism and procedures that should remove the need for the "big bad boss" to shout at anyone (at least until a very, very last resort).

[bassplayerjj 0]

He reminds me of the teacher at school that was fair but firm. You learned more from him because you respected him and he in turn treated his students with respect. To command this sort of respect as a manager is by far one of the most important traits for him to have. Jose, Sir Alex & Wenger all have this.