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Reply | A turning point perhaps?
at 15:12 5 Sep 2024
What is conceited about asking a human being to examine their conscience before working for another human being who - judged by the standards of today - has a poor record in how they treat human beings?
Using dark age European history to justify somehow the killing of journalists, the disregard of migrant workers health and safety, the bombing and starving of Yemeni people seems a little strange?
And another tip to help you along today.
Sometimes the majority are right. |
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Reply | The Give Russell a chance thread
at 15:06 5 Sep 2024
If he can demonstrate a little flexibility in his playing style and tactics, then yes, stick with him.
He must however realise that playing in the big boys league is very different from scraping out of the Championship as other contenders faltered.
Let's try not to give the opposition any more free goals and then we might begin to recover a little faith. |
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Reply | A turning point perhaps?
at 09:52 4 Sep 2024
You'll have to explain Mr Jellybaby.
The point is whether player choosing riches over international duty will harm the game in the more established (European) leagues?
West may not be "best" but in this example, west is where the quality is presently in football.
Here's a tip. Not everything is a conspiracy but making unwarranted and incoherent leaps of cause and effect is a well known technique used by conspiracy theorists. |
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Thread | A turning point perhaps?
at 15:53 3 Sep 2024
I see that Koeman (present manager of the Dutch national team) has said that the international career of a 26 year old winger is now "closed" following his transfer to a Saudi club.
Koeman says that the move shows a lack of ambition to play at the highest level and therefore makes him unsuitable for international duty.
He distinguished the case of a defender he took to the Euros on the grounds that said defender went to a Saudi club because his PL team was not playing him.
I'm very definitely in the Koeman camp on this.
I think the Saudis (and other rich Arab nations) pose a risk to all football in Europe and if enough players are tempted by the money, we will see a drop in standards.
I also think that players should examine their conscience at least briefly and see if they really want to paid by those with such a poor human rights record. |
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Reply | Mission to Burnley - Season 2
at 15:46 3 Sep 2024
Doesn't make him anything other than a water carrier for those who can play and I see little in his post playing days which equip him for telling others how it's done. |
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Reply | Some rather telling stats - pass completion
at 10:50 3 Sep 2024
Playing a game in which you look to create chances with less possession requires a couple of key elements.
First, you need strikers who have a good chance to goal conversion ratio. We don't. Arguably you need a different type of striker than we have although that can be largely solved on the training pitch. If you have say 35% possession, the ball has to be moved from defence to attack quickly - either passed or a strong and quick run. We don't have that player either.
Second, you need an opposition willing to engage.
That means either a 50/50 possession game where we have a chance, they have a chance and you hope that we convert more or a game in which we can defend well and tight for say 65% of the time and when we get the chance, we break fast.
I would say that the present team is ill equipped for either of those scenarios. |
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Reply | The Solution Is Clear For Russell Martin If He Is To Stay In His Job
at 10:11 3 Sep 2024
The article makes the implicit point that the same determination/stubbornness that RM displays in playing possession football without the quality of player to do so and in picking Stephens for roles he is unsuited for, is now hampering the term and costing us goals.
The players are scared of putting a boot through the ball to remove it from dangerous areas, choosing instead to "follow orders" and pass their way out of trouble. Sometimes the agricultural approach is correct. The players however seem to fear doing that and I'm wondering if it's because of fear of being dropped.
Comparisons with other PL teams is not very helpful but even a few weeks of MoTD says that we and perhaps one other (City) play a possession game. The fact that they are top of the league and we are bottom speaks volumes for how difficult that style is and how easily it can be overcome if you don't have quality players.
If the players are fearful of RM, he has a problem. It's not as bad as the players not wanting to play for him, quite the opposite. They want to play but they need more freedom to make decisions especially when in pressure situations.
Perversely I think the forwards can help the defenders by offering runs into spaces a long ball might be played. That also requires a bit of courage and a freedom to play which is some obviously lacking at the moment. |
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Reply | Mission to Burnley - Season 2
at 15:52 2 Sep 2024
To my way of thinking the TV "pundits" are just trained parrots who repeat what those who think about the game they see in front of them have said, usually in newspapers.
Murphy was a bang average player and worse pundit. Gary Birtles - forgot he even existed and is certainly not visible to people like me. (I don't and never will have Sky).
I'd be interested in what Moyes might think. |
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Reply | !!!!!!!!!! Russell Martin out !!!!!!!!!!!
at 12:57 2 Sep 2024
I will say now that not only am I not in favour of changing RM now or at Christmas and I think that the Board will not be in favour either.
Many of us are frustrated by the style of play and the fact that RM is stubborn to the point of unreasonableness about that style. He has seen us lose three times now to what in PL terms is modest opposition and at least two of those defeats are a direct result of his desire to play out from the back.
Worst of all, this is a solvable problem.
If, as a defender, you think it too risky to pass, then foot through it and reset.
If, you as a midfielder, get the ball, do NOT play sideways or backwards but look forwards. |
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Reply | individual errors v team tactics
at 10:09 2 Sep 2024
I agree Mr Ifonly, but equally launching the ball forward from defensive areas is not an answer either in this league. Do that without the forwards to hold the ball up and the ball comes back to you very fast.
Part of the issue is that the team appears to be two units. One the defence and most of the midfield. The other the forwards. There is little connection between them.
Whilst the defenders are playing their way into/out of trouble, the forward unit is a spectator.
The forwards need to be aware when a defender needs that long out ball and be making the runs into space. They're not. Combined with RM's instructions to play it short, the defenders are between a rock and a hard place and don't have the tools to deal with it. |
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Thread | Financial con men
at 09:05 2 Sep 2024
I've previously mentioned here the activities of an Iain Stamp.
He is a con man. He promises people financial freedom which is based on:
1. Paying him a big fee
2. Claiming that UK tax and financial rules cannot apply to a sovereign citizen
He was accused by an organisation called Open Democracy of being a con man. He went to a Court (one of the Courts he says have no jurisdiction over him or anybody else) to sue them. He failed.
He has since produced a 48 page document which seeks to justify his criminal activities. (This might be a contempt of Court).
If you run across him in any way, shape or form, please distance yourself and your funds as quickly as possible. |
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Thread | individual errors v team tactics
at 08:59 2 Sep 2024
Another loss (to Brentford) largely created by two individual errors which Brentford scored from. Aside from that, they were not that much better than us.
It's now unfortunately known that we will try to play out and I'm expecting to see more teams press us high and unfortunately, without a change of approach, more goals given away.
We saw last season that RM thinks changing the plan is somehow making him less of a man (whereas I see changing something that is not working to be a sign of strength) and I think he will need to lose more games before he admits this.
Dibling can be a good player and we could do worse than start him in the next game. |
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Thread | Too stubborn to be flexible?
at 12:41 27 Aug 2024
Lot of threads here about tactics, team selection and the hate/hate most of us over the possession and passing game.
My view is that teams promoted to the PL on the back of a possession/passing game tend to do poorly - Burnley, Norwich etc.
teams who learn to speed up passing and play fewer more direct passes, tend to do better. Forest are a good example. That style however needs a central striker willing to make a dozen runs into the box and get the ball once. We lack that focus.
So we need to manage with what we have but playing the same way we did in the Champ is not going to work.
Is RM so stubborn and/or convinced of his way of playing that he is willing to risk the chance of losing a lot of games?
Or should he react to what he sees every day and find a new way of playing?
Answers on a postcard please.
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Reply | Oasis Reform
at 12:34 27 Aug 2024
Yesterday's people desperate to make a few more quid from music that's 15 years old (and shows).
Compare them to say Biffy Clyro who I saw at the weekend. Energy, dynamic, great tunes and brilliant musicians who clearly loved being at a gig.
I know who I'll be buying tickets for next year. |
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Reply | I think we are overlooking a big problem. Jack Stephens
at 09:52 27 Aug 2024
As we saw towards the end of last season, RM thinks that Jack can be a link between the defensive line and the midfield. I see it as playing a midfield diamond with JS at the base.
There are a number of problems with that, some because of JS's abilities and years of training and some tactical.
JS is and always will be a CB. He wants to face the ball and deal with it coming towards him and needing to be sent on its way back where it came from. Playing in a position where he needs to pay the ball in a different direction from which he received it, i.e. turning, is not his game. His vision is not good enough and nor is his passing ability. OK, he may be better able to break up play but often he is found out of position and he does not do that either.
Tactically, playing a flat back 4 with JS slightly advanced can be a problem. JS has a tendency to drop into that back 4, making a flat 5 and space ahead of them for the opposition to exploit. The very best DF do not do that. Think Kante, Kalvin Phillips at his best, Rodrigo at City. They all step into that space, stopping or cramping the opposition number 10 and JS is not confident we enough for that.
There are shapes that would help JS but perhaps not the team. A 4-3-2-1 say where JS is part of a deeper lying 3 man shield in front of the back 4. This very much limits our options going forward but frankly at the moment does that matter because we have no real threat there and a few draws in the next matches would be welcome.
Another option is to free JS of tactical shackles and ask him to win the ball and give it to those who can play a bit. That risks a bit of anarchy of course.
Or just leave him out because he does not really fit the possession/passing game RM wants? |
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Thread | A dark forest
at 08:33 25 Aug 2024
As I said in my post about the Newcastle game, it's going to be easy to find some negatives so I'll try to stay balanced.
The reality is that Forest were not much better than us but they have learned that their players are comfortable with a more direct attacking approach and will try something in two passes that we would need five or six to do.
Their defensive style was all about shape and working hard and this early in the season it works because they're all fit and have trained together for weeks. It's also helped by our playing passes sideways and not forward.
We have one player at PL level - KWP. RM needs to look at all the others. |
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Thread | For my sins
at 16:55 22 Aug 2024
Going to Victorious this weekend (Sunday).
Any fellow Uglies there? |
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Thread | That explains a few things
at 16:53 22 Aug 2024
I see that Kyle Walker is claiming that his father never praising him and always criticising him in his younger days has made him the player he is.
In turn he says that he doesn't always let his kids win at games (even the two he has with a mistress and never sees?) as otherwise, when they do lose, they won't know how to react.
My view is that his father sounds like a mean man and Walker is a mean mans' son which is why he is capable of being a selfish, arrogant and not above the dark arts in football and life.
Do you/did you let your kids win at snakes and ladders and has that made them a better or worse person?
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