[Slick_Footwork]

Slick, much of what you write I don't disagree with and, just as you say you don't want to be seen as a big Pulis fan, well I'm not completely anti Pulis, despite how I may come across. I fully recognise the improvement he has brought to the club, particularly in the way we are organised, and also the stability that has ensued. My issue is that I believe we are entering a period of diminishing returns with TP; I honestly feel he has achieved all he can with the Albion and that we have got all the benefit from him that we will ever get. It is not in his DNA to play a different style of football, I think what we are seeing now and for the last two seasons is what we will see going forward and for as long as he is the manager. Just as people highlight Wenger's inability to recognise the need to defend, so I feel Pulis has the opposite problem. At some point, just staying in the PL cannot be enough, there also has to be some entertainment, some pleasure in watching the Albion, some excitement. However, the fear from the club's owners will be that changing the current approach and the manager will result in relegation, so we continue down the same path on the grounds that, in their eyes, this formula works. I personally believe this is a fallacy but, to date, history does not support my view. I was delighted when he signed Phillips and Chadli and, by and large, these have been successful for us. But he's also been responsible for Lambert, McManaman, Robson-Kanu, Chester, the completely wasted loan signings of Gnabry, Pritchard and Galloway and, although I like the guy, Rondon who couldn't hit a cow's arse with a banjo. Evans was a brilliant signing but I have a less positive view on Livermore, who I feel is OK - next season, and the absence of Fletcher, may push him on. As you say, let's see what this transfer window brings and judge afterwards, I think you have more faith than me, Slick. Still, at least it looks like the Vile will be signing Terry, so some good news

I wouldn't say necessarily that I have more faith in Pulis, it's just that I don't have any faith in our board to back any manager if we did decide to make the change. Plus I'd like to him him given backing in line with other sides in this division before deciding outright that the football will remain dull.

I appreciate that we changed owners last season, but I've seen no change in tack at all - Janaury was another profit, with a striker sold and not replaced. Same old same old.

Based on TP's performance at Stoke with money, it could be fair to say that you will be right and we will only be a mid table side even if he was backed. I personally thought he became very stagnant there, after initially doing a fantastic job in taking them from the bottom of the Championship to 'stable' Prem side. But the evidence does suggest that with money, he hits a plateau.

I don't think that Stoke have really managed to beat that plateau without him mind you, I also still find them dull to watch.

But the cross side of that is, at Palace he used wingers and played some decent stuff. There's an argument that he plays with what he has at his disposal. Given we have McAuley and Dawson who are 2 of the best in the air in the league, maybe that is why we put so much emphasis on set play? Let's remember he inherited a midfield with players like Gardner, Yacob, Brunt and Chris Baird - which doesn't really give you enough pace to play any incisive, attacking football. Replacing all these players takes time.

From my point of view, I think he's done enough to deserve to be backed here (i'd like any manager backed, for that matter) and then we can judge him fairly.

From Pulis' statement after last season's window, it appeared that Chadli and Phillips were the players we really wanted. Robson Kanu and Nyom came in during the dying embers because we couldn't attract our main targets. HRK screamed of a signing to appease the fans - came in at the last minute despite being a bosman all summer.

We know he was after Sakho from Liverpool, Schneiderlin from Utd and William Carvalho from Lisbon who are all quality footballers in the right age. It just so happens that they chose to go elsewhere, maybe because of the stigma that we've developed as being 'tight arses' over the years; or more likely that we just didn't stump up the cash. I don't believe they turned down the club because of Pulis, after all, Sakho went to play under Allardyce! I think the reality is, we don't have the cash to stump up for players from the top sides.

I appreciate the Terry link was completely uninspiring, but last summer his oldest signing was Nyom at 29 and for next to nothing. We don't really know if the Terry link has legs or if it was just paper talk.

You might be 100% correct that he's taken us as far as he can, but I'd just like to see 1 window with real backing. Players like Chadli need other good passers to play with. At the moment, we're still over reliant on old heads who have been here for years. If TP is forced to scrat around for freebies or budget signings, as usual, I guess we can only expect players in their 30s.