Pretty cutting piece on Malky from the Guardian

[ccfc_is_my_life]

Let's be honest, everyone knew he was going at that point

I'm not defending his actions regarding the texts ect, but we were pretty solid before our dirty laundry started being washed in a very public and humiliating way, yes he didn't play an expansive brand of football but it was seen as the most efficient way of getting to 40 points and staying up

Well, you could well argue that the players certainly didn't show up for him.

I don't believe we'd have stayed up. We lacked goals, lacked pace - the squad simply wasn't setup for the way he wanted them to play. Hoilett, Zohore, NML - capable of breaking with pace, hold ball up. Then? Bellamy whose legs were gone, Campbell a hard worker, Mason/Smith?

The only chance we had staying up that season was to keep the opposition to at most one goal.

I'd also disagree that that style was the best way of staying up. Plenty of other teams coming up play more expansively - not gung ho balls to the wall stupidity - and stay up. For me, our squad just wasn't good enough - wasn't diverse enough to allow tactical flexibility, lacked pace. That is down to the recruitment in the summer window. Around £25m on Caulker, Medal and Cornelius imo could have been better utilised by being far cuter in the signings we made - more players for lower fees to fit the garing gaps we had.

[City123]

Well, you could well argue that the players certainly didn't show up for him.

I don't believe we'd have stayed up. We lacked goals, lacked pace - the squad simply wasn't setup for the way he wanted them to play. Hoilett, Zohore, NML - capable of breaking with pace, hold ball up. Then? Bellamy whose legs were gone, Campbell a hard worker, Mason/Smith?

The only chance we had staying up that season was to keep the opposition to at most one goal.

I'd also disagree that that style was the best way of staying up. Plenty of other teams coming up play more expansively - not gung ho balls to the wall stupidity - and stay up. For me, our squad just wasn't good enough - wasn't diverse enough to allow tactical flexibility, lacked pace. That is down to the recruitment in the summer window. Around £25m on Caulker, Medal and Cornelius imo could have been better utilised by being far cuter in the signings we made - more players for lower fees to fit the garing gaps we had.

It was well known that players would run through brick walls for Mackay, the atmosphere at the club was toxic, we were the laughing stock of British football who's owner was portrayed as a Bond villain, Mackay had been told to "Resign or be sacked" a bad result was inevitable

We had a better second half of the season which was squandered by attempting a more expansive style, before the shit it the fan we were getting solid, if unspectacular, results

I seem to remember Mackay being roundly praised after signing Caulker and Medel

[ccfc_is_my_life]

It was well known that players would run through brick walls for Mackay, the atmosphere at the club was toxic, we were the laughing stock of British football who's owner was portrayed as a Bond villain, Mackay had been told to "Resign or be sacked" a bad result was inevitable

We had a better second half of the season which was squandered by attempting a more expansive style, before the shit it the fan we were getting solid, if unspectacular, results

I seem to remember Mackay being roundly praised after signing Caulker and Medel

Caulker has only had one good season - when alongside Williams at Swansea. Christ, when Liverpool bizarrely loaned him as defensive cover, he spent more time coming off the bench playing up front than he did at the back! For £8m it was a silly signing, especially making him captain. Medel was billed as being a midfield dog. Some neat stuff at times but disappeared the second half of the season, no doubt saving himself for Chile - he's now playing in Turkey.

I'd have preferred us to have addressed the issues we had - ie get a pacy winger or two. The best player we had in the squad at the start of the season was injury prone Mutch.

Warnock has assembled a more rounded, more flexible squad for a fraction of the money spent by Mackay.

[City123]

Caulker has only had one good season - when alongside Williams at Swansea. Christ, when Liverpool bizarrely loaned him as defensive cover, he spent more time coming off the bench playing up front than he did at the back! For £8m it was a silly signing, especially making him captain. Medel was billed as being a midfield dog. Some neat stuff at times but disappeared the second half of the season, no doubt saving himself for Chile - he's now playing in Turkey.

I'd have preferred us to have addressed the issues we had - ie get a pacy winger or two. The best player we had in the squad at the start of the season was injury prone Mutch.

Warnock has assembled a more rounded, more flexible squad for a fraction of the money spent by Mackay.

At the time Steven Caulker was being touted as a future England captain, people were creaming themselves when he signed. Medel was seen as a fantastic signing, who went on to play for Inter so he must have been half decent (Are you really surprised a defensive midfielder performed worse when we stopped defending?)

We played with hard workers, much like Burnley do now, we never had electric pace and flair but it was seen as the best way of keeping us up and most people would have agreed at the time