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Based on a lot of interviews I've seen over the past couple of days (including a great video from Ross bringing together reporters from Cook's other teams), this is what I've gleaned:
The positives:
ATTRACTIVE FOOTBALL
Every person spoken to says that Cook's teams play attractive football. Well, we'll love that!
BEST MANAGER WE COULD GET RIGHT NOW
They all say that Cook is a Championship-level manager, and for us to get him while in League One is a coup for us. I tend to agree.
HE GETS TEAMS PROMOTED
Nuff said. Love it.
And now...the negatives...
PLAN A - 4-2-3-1. PERIOD.
This will be our formation. There will be no others.
THERE IS NO PLAN B
Even when Plan A is not working.
HE GETS PRICKLY WITH THE PRESS WHEN QUESTIONED ABOUT PLAN A
So if we do hit a rough patch and, as is our wont, TWTD starts calling for 2 up front, we're gonna get a foxtrot oscar from Cook.
All in all?
I'm very happy, with a small wary look if things don't go well.
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Paul Cook - positive and negative on 17:25 - Mar 2 with 2051 views
Paul Cook - positive and negative on 17:26 - Mar 2 by ScottCandage
Because reporters of his other teams, separately and without prompting, both said "There is no plan B."
Don't you think it's best to wait and see how he manages us before declaring that you know everything about him, his management style and what is going to happen?
SB
Edit: Somehow I failed to read that you had gathered that from a number of various sources, apologies.
[Post edited 2 Mar 2021 17:44]
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Paul Cook - positive and negative on 17:30 - Mar 2 with 1975 views
Paul Cook - positive and negative on 17:29 - Mar 2 by StokieBlue
Don't you think it's best to wait and see how he manages us before declaring that you know everything about him, his management style and what is going to happen?
SB
Edit: Somehow I failed to read that you had gathered that from a number of various sources, apologies.
[Post edited 2 Mar 2021 17:44]
If he changes, all the better, IMHO. But, to me, as it seems right now, Paul has a plan that he has implemented in every job he's been in. If he doesn't implement that same plan now, that would be a change.
When a non-random event happens five times in a row, it's likely the sixth one will be the same.
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Paul Cook - positive and negative on 17:33 - Mar 2 with 1934 views
Paul Cook - positive and negative on 17:30 - Mar 2 by jayessess
No objection to 4-2-3-1 if it isn't a disjointed mess, played at the slowest footballing tempo known to man
The cool thing is that every report I've seen says it's a very attractive style of playing a 4-2-3-1, not plodding and disjointed as we've seen it done for quite a while now.
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Paul Cook - positive and negative on 17:34 - Mar 2 with 1900 views
Paul Cook - positive and negative on 17:29 - Mar 2 by StokieBlue
Don't you think it's best to wait and see how he manages us before declaring that you know everything about him, his management style and what is going to happen?
SB
Edit: Somehow I failed to read that you had gathered that from a number of various sources, apologies.
[Post edited 2 Mar 2021 17:44]
To be fair to Scott this is a common observation from fans and journalists, so quite valid to raise the Plan A and Plan B debate
But to counter, here's a whole article where Cook discusses his ability to have a Plan B and when to use it!!:
It's funny. As technical and tactical football is these days it always come down to such simple things as one up front and possession based football or two up front and being more direct. Patient build up or 'get it forward'
Whether you're for or against either side of the argument, it often amuses me.
Paul Cook - positive and negative on 17:29 - Mar 2 by StokieBlue
Don't you think it's best to wait and see how he manages us before declaring that you know everything about him, his management style and what is going to happen?
SB
Edit: Somehow I failed to read that you had gathered that from a number of various sources, apologies.
[Post edited 2 Mar 2021 17:44]
To be fair at think former fan bases have a good grasp of former managers. I’ve seen Portsmouth and Wigan fans both say a lack of a Plan B is an issue so therefore one we might have to accept.
Admittedly maybe he has learned and that will be great to see if so. Certainly I don’t think we could have appointed anyone more proven to get results at this level.
Thanks. This article is encouraging (although maybe a natural reaction to claims that there is no Plan B, you're not going to say, Nope, no plan B), but darned if he didn't use the dreaded phrase! Somebody's got to get to him to get that phrase out of his vocabulary! LOL
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Paul Cook - positive and negative on 17:37 - Mar 2 with 1871 views
Paul Cook - positive and negative on 17:29 - Mar 2 by StokieBlue
Don't you think it's best to wait and see how he manages us before declaring that you know everything about him, his management style and what is going to happen?
SB
Edit: Somehow I failed to read that you had gathered that from a number of various sources, apologies.
[Post edited 2 Mar 2021 17:44]
To be fair on Candage he does seem to be making it very clear he is reporting what he has heard/read elsewhere.
I would like him to have some flexibility but if his system works so well, he doesn't need it even better.
As you say, let's give him a chance and see how it goes but Candage was only reporting what he has heard.
Paul Cook - positive and negative on 17:31 - Mar 2 by ScottCandage
If he changes, all the better, IMHO. But, to me, as it seems right now, Paul has a plan that he has implemented in every job he's been in. If he doesn't implement that same plan now, that would be a change.
When a non-random event happens five times in a row, it's likely the sixth one will be the same.
Fair enough.
We will know soon enough, just whilst you can look at as many previous articles as possible it still doesn't always translate to what is going to happen at a new club.
For instance, there may have been no plan B at other clubs because he simply didn't have the ridiculously large squad he has here. We won't fully know until plan A doesn't work at some point.
As you say, plan A seems fairly fixed as a 4231.
SB
[Post edited 2 Mar 2021 17:43]
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Paul Cook - positive and negative on 17:45 - Mar 2 with 1765 views
Managers dislike talking tactics as they do seem to cause confusion. There are basically only two formations. 442 which turns into 4411 when you are defending and 352 with three centrebacks and wingbacks. How you deploy these is another matter. For example 442 is sometimes described as 4222 meaning that two of the midfield players are more defensive. The expression of 'two up top' is just another piece of modern jargon picked up from watching TV! MM often used to say it is all about the players not the tactics...
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Paul Cook - positive and negative on 17:55 - Mar 2 with 1670 views
He will score or create more goals if we start getting more players up to support him.
...that PC's version of 4-2-3-1 is the one that has the links between defense/midfield and most importantly, midfield/attack that we've seemed to lack for years.
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Paul Cook - positive and negative on 18:11 - Mar 2 with 1494 views
Paul Cook - positive and negative on 17:37 - Mar 2 by ScottCandage
Thanks. This article is encouraging (although maybe a natural reaction to claims that there is no Plan B, you're not going to say, Nope, no plan B), but darned if he didn't use the dreaded phrase! Somebody's got to get to him to get that phrase out of his vocabulary! LOL
Not having a go at you because you’re just reporting it. But isn’t the “no plan B” line often lazily trotted out by fans and journalists for almost every manager when things aren’t going well or just after a loss?
It was aimed at Mick as if he was wedded to long ball and 442 but over the six years we played a wide variety of styles and formations. Sometimes in the same game. The ethos of working hard, and not fannying about at the back but attacking quickly was always there. But that seems more like getting the basics right below the Premiership rather than a specific plan or set-up.
[Post edited 2 Mar 2021 18:37]
Pronouns: He/Him
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Paul Cook - positive and negative on 18:34 - Mar 2 with 1297 views
Paul Cook - positive and negative on 18:11 - Mar 2 by MrTown
He doesn’t get prickly, or very very rare.
He’s definitely seen as a real gent, top class manager, but most Wigan fans state he’s a top class bloke as well.
There isn’t any negatives, don’t try and make any.
[Post edited 2 Mar 2021 18:11]
Pronouns: He/Him/His.
"Imagine being a heterosexual white male in Britain at this moment. How bad is that. Everything you say is racist, everything you say is homophobic. The Woke community have really f****d this country."
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