Probably good to get that out of the way on the 1st day.
I will say this. Last season we got away with a lot of chances that should have had the net bulging. Not going to be as fortunate this time & if Brentford can do that - so can others - most without breaking sweat.
Yes - totally agree we got here with the skin of our teeth and euphoria blinded many of the reality of the league one level and our prowess based on team spirit !
Many points due to deficiencies of the opposition at both ends of the pitch.
Today was a good wake up call.
We have to respond by being hard to beat !
Warne had 60% of the season in the championship and constantly played expansive football. We can't do that !
Let us be clear it isn't the fact we lost it is the manner in which we lost and the lack of ability in planning and implementing those plans on the pitch. -4 after one game, we have to learn to be boring away from home, pack the midfield and keep the ball longer than 3 seconds
Warne states it is obvious we are light in the middle of the park, so why play with only 2 there?
He says we are doing everything we can to get players in......no we are not we are not buying players we are after free players or loans, how is that doing everything we can, the lack of investment is not Warnes fault that is TS, and he wanted us in the championship well that costs money
Just seen the goals on that new goddam awful Quest TV highlights programme with that Northern Irish ***** Murray, our defence was abysmal, why have Raggett on the bench & play f***ing Semi?
I'm not going to write off players until we get players we need in & move players out who aren't championship players. Yesterday Vyner? Wood? Taylor & Da Ball are never championship players. This transfer window apart from Robertson Vassell Rodak it's been a non-event. Dom Ball goes out on loan again when we don't have Centre backs good enough for this league exactly leaping out at you. That was financial. His wages will cover all of the wages for Price Vyner Raggett. Price resigning, can anyone work that out? Signing loan players from clubs from the same league. if they are not good enough for clubs from the same league they are not good enough for us. Jones at 31? Tell me the last player over 30 when we signed him who proved to be any good.
All the players are good enough to learn a system of play that we must adopt to survive in the championship. On about history repeating itself!
Every team should have a defensive system drilled into them for let's say cup matches v far better teams. ( for us every week ) that can shut out better teams - frustrate them. Teams that go to Barcelona do it. Klopp said he played under a manager that coached the old twin banks and disciplined defencive formation. He says: "It taught us belief that we could play better teams".
That's why loaning out two half decent defenders was madness. They were good enough to coach into a backs to the wall defensive unit where fitness / class of the players that offer the "outball" is all important from a more or less stagnant defensive line pushing up as a unit and NOT chasing the ball - and breaking ranks.
Like Izzy feeding Ward.
It's not rocket science !
Keep it simple attack as one, defend as on. On our left we are stronger with Mattock & Newell so we get away with it. It's on our right. Unless Vyner shapes up we are struggling for a right back. If Warney told Lee Johnson he's not good enough for the championship, we are not going to play him would he take him back & loan him to a club in league 1? None of our right wingers are good enough doing both tracking back & getting forward. We've got to play 3 in midfield in this league. We'll just get overrun if we don't. Grind the points out.
If you went to the Cardiff game you'd have seen Purrington has no basic speed, can't get forward. Had to move on. Dom Ball is playing for Aberdeen today looks like on the right of midfield. A mystery why we didn't keep him. Could play centre back & holding midfield. Kept wrong Ball. Da Ball never a championship player.
But SPEED ( a foot race) should be avoided like the plague. Even if the defender is as quick as the attacker IT SHOULD BE AVOIDED. Playing a defensive 442 - 451 - 4321 requires that ( defensively ) gaps / space is maintained to suit the defence NOT pulled around to suit the attackers.
Barcelona THE BEST tick tacky - whatever for 96 minutes 30/35 yards away from our goal is a 0-0 and a point. PLUS it keeps energy levels high for calculated attacks when SOME teams would over commit. Which ( if clinical ) can be a 0-1 3 points and all the team has to do is play spoil sports and maintain their bloody shape.
Play football with better footballers and guess what.....the team comes off the pitch like grease spots humiliated having chased shadows.
Take control - set the agenda for the game - maintain discipline and ONE POINT AWAITS !
Can’t ever remember a season where I wasn’t that excited but this is the one. Unless we get significant investment results like Saturday will be a lot more common. I don’t think it was even a case that we didn’t try because I thought for the most part we did, Brentford were just streets ahead of us.
Taylor, Vyner, Wood, Ball all have to come out for the Ipswich game. Jones, Robertson, Williams, Vassell to replace them and possibly id even say Wiles for Palmer he did himself no harm when he came on.
Can’t ever remember a season where I wasn’t that excited but this is the one. Unless we get significant investment results like Saturday will be a lot more common. I don’t think it was even a case that we didn’t try because I thought for the most part we did, Brentford were just streets ahead of us.
Taylor, Vyner, Wood, Ball all have to come out for the Ipswich game. Jones, Robertson, Williams, Vassell to replace them and possibly id even say Wiles for Palmer he did himself no harm when he came on.
Agree with Taylor Vyner Wood Da Ball to be out of the side for the Ipswich game but can only see Robertson who is going to improve it. Vassell not saying he couldn't but can see us only playing 1 up front. We need players in good enough now. A right back Holding midfield player Right winger Striker with some presence, size about him.
The miserable facts of it all is that we're sending two YOUNG defenders ( Ball - who played really well for Aberdeen yesterday ) for balance of the team and alledgedly a "bad attitude ) and to get games with MKD's. Those reasons are all fine and proper IF ....1 We hadn't given Wood a pension. 2 We had replacements ready.
My point is - on the one hand we sound a professional outfit then we send a team out v Bent ford THAT NOT ONE FAN WOULD'VE DONE!
The moment EVERYONE saw that line up they knew we were toast. Sentiments aside - that's 3 points just thrown away without a fight. Hard work but a futile gesture !
I lost it when I heard about "players personal presentations" about "what motivates them"...but more about favourite dead dogs than A CLEAN SHEET / SCORING A GOAL / SKINNING A FULL BACK / WATCHING THE FANS GO WILD - FOOTBALL - FOOTBALL - FOOTBALL ! Sounds like a boring office rah-rah party and NOT even energy / motivational. Warne said "there were teary stories - heartwarming". Phew - inspired!
Derby - I think Purrington was 300k - go figure !
He was ok when he came in but speed isn't the be-all and end-all of defending or Bolt at 9.96 whatever would be at City right now. Both Ball and Purrington could be part of a defensive unit. So - Ball thinks he's better - don't freeze him out - give him a run of games in his preferred position to prove it - never happened - what came first - frozen out ( as he was ) or bad attitude?
Ah - but would that have pushed Wood out - no bessy's comes before the team ! Sorry but Wood has been woeful and the centre of a leaky defence the last championship campaign - JUST OK in league one but now passed it....scored 2 - ok - canonise the guy - just don't play him in the championship.
Purrington: Mattock is better, we've got Hinds coming through. Dom Ball I've always rated him at this level. Tony Stewart is a business man. I've already said this can see logic in Robertson Vassell Rodak being here. I can't see the logic in letting Dom Ball go. Also signing players on loan from the same league. Resigning Price. Signing a full back at 31 & giving him a two year contract. Extending Wood's contract. Can't see no logic in any of that. Doesn't make business sense.
Strength in depth!
Older players get knocks and need replacing AND they need ( at this level particularly ) "UNDERSTUDY's" to keep them on their tippy toes. So a lacklustre performance is likely to result in a replacement - and then the "replacement" needs to be on fire - to keep the shirt!
That's "MOTIVATION" NOT player presentations of favourite dead dogs! Ugh!
Its not too much of a surprise. We are going to take time to adapt.
We know football is like this and we know the relative strength of our team.
This season we all need to be somewhat realistic and support the manager and chairman as much as we can.
Lets not throw the dummy out too early.
Agree with that Ian, and remember about half way through last season we got closer to relegation than promotion, but then kicked on and improved.
It will be a good test of Warny as a manager to see if he can improve the players and his own tactics to get us enough results. A couple of wins on the bounce helps as well - as does scraping a win from a terrible performance (Blackpool away was definitely our turning point last year, we looked like a Sunday League team until we got those two goals, and never looked back after that game...)
Let's get 3 points on Saturday and let's enjoy being back in the Championship no matter what !!! UTM
-- Edited by Davidedin on Monday 6th of August 2018 03:05:30 PM
