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“a half-arsed Chris Willock is a more effective Championship team player than Ilias Chair will ever be as he has end product.”
Let’s look at that end product…
Willock 143 games 20 goals 22 assists
Chair 224 games 34 goals 34 assists
…so Willock’s goal involvements = around one every 3.4 games, Chair’s around one every 3.3.
However, Chair’s figures are remarkably consistent. In his 5 seasons as a regular, his goal involvements have been: 10-12-14-14-15 – with the last season, in a relegation struggle, being his highest figure.
In contrast, Willock had 18 in 35 in season 2021-22 (1 in 2), then dropped to 8 in 28 (22-23) and 8 in 39 (1 in 5) last season.
One signed a contract extension option shortly after Bright & Manning refused to do so and made a pointed comment about how much he owed the club. The other ran his contract down and left on a free for a club at the same level as us.
Just came on to put a shout out for nix - and there you were right on cue.
You save me a lot of posting time, as literally 99% of what you write could be me speaking (eg here). Verges on spooky, I sometimes wonder if I unknowingly registered a second account and have also been posting as nix whilst in some otherworldly state.
As someone who started supporting Rangers in the 70s, I always thought of Arsenal & Spurs as London's 'Big 2.' I grudgingly accepted that Chelsea and WHU were next in line - but they never felt that far ahead of us. Palace I thought of as just behind us. The rest I saw as also rans.
As has been well documented, we fell off the gravy train at just the wrong time, as the big money poured in - then fkd up big time when we finally got another bite of the cherry.
We may not like it, but it can't be denied that Chelsea have barged their way onto top table in characteristically classless style; so that makes it a Big 3.
Clearly WHU are now fourth - but as they have shown they can still flirt with relegation, if I was a Hammer, I wouldn't take that as a given.
However, much as others have overtaken us for now, the likes of Fulham, Brentford and Palace are only one bad season / dodgy managerial appointment / key player sale away from relegation - and even with parachute money, none are guaranteed an instant return. Much bigger clubs have dropped into League One.
So I do retain hope that in my lifetime I may again see us swap places with Fulham & Brentford - but equally am aware that just now, swapping with Charlton is more likely.
For what it's worth...worries about 'losing a generation of fans' seem unfounded. Home crowds are ridiculously good all things considered, as is the away following - and in both cases, regularly surpass the figures we had in way more successful eras. The age range is also very encouraging too - not just a bunch of boomers.
A lot of talk about how Marti "looks fed up", "can't have been involved in the signings", is "giving messages to the board with his subs bench" etc etc
Yet he and Calm signed contract extensions only a few weeks ago.
Are we really in such cynical times as to think they solely did that to ensure a higher pay out when it goes to $hit? Do they really have no belief in the (ahem) "project"?
Just my rhetorical questions / idle pondering tbh...
Thought I'd revive this vid of his goals last season.
A few from dinks (rather than punts) over the top, a few fox in the box picking up scraps, a couple finding space on right hand side of box, coupla pens, one header from a free kick.
I am no closer to knowing why he's failed to do this for us, but at least it reminded me the bloke does know where the goal is when confident.
I’ll take your Adam Ant and raise you a Pete Perrett.
That’s my post-match new wave icon gig tomorrow night.
Still writing good songs, but be interesting to see if he can handle a live performance - he was positively skeletal last time I saw him 10-12 years ago.
Truly amazing that he’s survived this long given what he’s put himself through, but so underrated - a brilliant songwriter.
If you’ve only ever heard Another Girl Another Planet - treat yourself and dig deeper.
Without really wishing to go tit for tat on the train to Pedant Central, I would say in reply:
1 - shorn of our two best players (based on market value but expect few would disagree) and one of our two 'wise old heads', we're mediocre, and we knew that when the season started 2 - I stick by my 'two contrasting styles' point, and my belief that they beat us primarily due to a mad 90 seconds 3 - Nardi's two 'wow' saves came when we'd gone gung ho (ok, all things are relative) 4 - Dembele first half shot (tho granted we certainly didn't test him enough) 5 - Wednesday was a boring watch. Millwall at home we pisballed about in our own half. Blackburn was the one away I've missed but my son's feedback / your report I'm well aware was dire. But first half on Sat? I wasn't bored. Enthralled, no. But satisfied with a half that was way more purposeful than Weds & Ewood? Yes.
On a side note, one of my son's best mates is a Derby ST holder, and the two of them persuaded a bunch of uni mates to attend as neutrals - half sat in the home. end and half sat in the away. Their neutral consensus was the first half (the main point of my argument) was even. Interestingly, they all thought Frey was shocking.
I’d be genuinely interested to know what everyone was thinking at half time. Was it just me thinking ‘pretty decent away performance so far, a couple of scary moments but we’ve battled to a rare clean sheet, and while not really creating enough clear chances, we’re getting the ball forward a lot quicker and have made Derby work for their clean sheet. 0-0 about right so far.’
10 minutes into the second half we threw that away with two criminally conceded goals and it was game over. Marti changed the shape and I thought that was a good call, but the damage was done and while chasing the game Nardi kept the score down at our end.
But I still feel that 90 seconds of madness cost us in an otherwise pretty even game.
Yes ever since his MotM performance v WBA, Andersen has been shocking, yes Madsen was anonymous yet again, yes we couldn’t be without three more important players, yes it’s worrying how only Nardi of the new signings has hit the ground at any sort of pace, and yes I fear a loss of confidence that could lead to a relegation battle. This is when we find out how good Marti really is.
But I was surprised by the vitriol around me at full time, and am surprised this report suggests a one-sided game. I agree it was a match of contrasting styles and their style won the day. But I did still feel our old friend ‘fine margins’ had a role to play…as I say, what was everyone thinking at half time?
I was quite amused / irritated by the BBC report. Opening para said Derby enjoyed a “dominant win over an insipid QPR”. However, the bit clearly written mostly at half time said “while QPR were menacing going forward in the first half, with the creativity of Dembele to the fore, and had a spell on top in the closing stages, they looked far from comfortable at the back throughout.” The dominant / insipid line made for the sexier opening, but I felt the other para was more measured.
I’m not saying we don’t have major concerns, far from it. But for me this wasn’t one of those tipping point games - some of the boos / anger at half time suggest for many it was.
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