Quote: K-Diddy "Unfortunately yes, if we don't laugh we'll cry. Seriously though I am interested to see what a bit of confidence would do to this side. At the minute we are in a sticky situation. The players aren't trying things off the cuff for the fear of messing up & losing, as a result they're playing to regimented which is to easy to read which means we're not scoring & still losing. It seems individuals are trying to get things going attack wise but it isn't enough.'"
This.
When your down on confidence and can't seem to find the right solution (to most things in life) the easy option it to try and avoid the worst case scenario rather than be bold and try to change, it's human nature. Phil Brown was guilty of it at City before he was sacked, being afraid of losing or failure is a powerful emotion.
That said, confidence is something that can be installed by good management whether that be the carrot or the stick, a good manager (in any industry) know which players/employees will respond to which, and how to pull a team together, make them feel confident and believe in themselves.
This is where LR lacks experience.
Imo, good manager doesn't have to been the best at his trade, but he does need to be tactically aware of his industry, and most important of all, be a good manager of people and their very different personalities and emotions. Mourhino is a good example (like him or hate him) - was never a Lionel Messi but players seem to respond to him.
Of course having some attacking nouse wouldn't go amiss either, but even without that, belief, hard work, passion and confidence can take you a long away, even if you not be the most gifted individual.
Sorry rant over, been in pub to watch Saints v Wigan!