Sorry, Rio, nothing personal, but it's just not working

It didn't work with Ji Sung Park either

Class players playing alongside class players Rio with Vidic, Evra, Rafael etc: - Works well

Class players, especially class players past their best, alongside players of less ability - well, we all saw it for ourselves..

I don't doubt his sincerity or commitment - it's just too hard to adapt to the ordinary after years of relentless success with a world giant like Man U

Mistake repeated I'm afraid.

Agree with Recoilboss about this early injury crisis - must be something to do with training

Strange that the pre-season stars Hoilett and Onuoha can't get a start. Remind me who signed them?

Barton redemption has been the highlight of the last 2 seasons - remind me who signed him?

Simpson sold a week before we ditch 3-5-2 - why?

Last minute trolley dash again - Harry admits it. None of them fit, two can't speak a word of English.

4 transfer windows; still no continuity, still no stability and still no maturity; only 4 Wembley heroes on the pitch yesterday....

Trying to keep the faith in the face of bewildering signings, baffling selections, weekly formation changes and knee jerk substitutions

Other than that, it's fine.

0

our problem at the moment is we are not scoring enough goals eight in six games ,need to concentrate on getting goals

0

Well I hate to say "told you so" but Ca Plane Pour Moi! (See last post about Plastic Bertrand). What a little gem this player has turned out to be. However man of the match for me was the manager. First half Saints struggled to break down the offside trap, but he changed the formation and an exciting second half followed. After the second goal we seemed pretty composed but let no-one tell you this was a easy. To their credit QPR dug in and played well in the second half. This is the sort of game we would have lost last year though not making changes when they were needed.

4

A hard fought victory against a decent looking QPR. Stand out goals from Bertrand and Pelle. I can't believe how quickly these guys have become a team that fights for each other. Bertrand outstanding, Pelle always contributes even when he isn't scoring September's goal of the month and Mane is going to provide a lot of entertainment for us this season, he just loves to run at defences. We missed Victor when he went off and I was worried they were going to breach our defence once the man-mountain wasn't there. Shane Long needs a goal to boost his confidence. It won't be long.

1

Scrappy for much of the first half and we stuttered after the injury to Sandro which disrupted the play for six minutes. Tadic hit the post and Schneiderlin should have scored but missed from a close-range angle. QPR tried to play but weren't a threat until after we scored. Then we were opened up straight through the middle and Austin scored as he usually does against Saints. Pelle's overhead kick was spectacular but he was much more than that with some lovely lay-offs and he held the ball up well. I thought this was his best performance for us. QPR tried even harder and Hoilett and Zamora caused us a lot of problems after Wanyama had surprisingly been taken off for a less than convincing Cork. Targett came on and plugged some awful gaps that were left by both Bertrand and Mane, who is a livewire but isn't a tackler on this showing. Mane reminded me of Papa Weigo. Very nippy but unable to look directly across the pitch to check whether he's onside. Long came on for Mane and gave QPR a lot more to think about. A win but not the most convincing win.

-2

Harry parked the bus and the game was a struggle, especially against Clattenburge who was determined to give us nothing. Sadio Mane struggled with the high line but showed loads of promise. Wanyam had a commanding game and Bertrand looked good all match. Long changed the game when he came on and Pelle scores again. 3 points and still second in the BPL whats not to like.

0

A nothing special performance from Southampton proved good enough to collect, deservedly I guess, all three points.

After the comedy festival week at Loftus Road (celebration injuries, cheesegate, clapped out motors and the like), those that are all too familiar with the law of sod (me) fully expected a complete surprise away win today. But nope - not even Sod could save us. There were one or two positives: we didn't lose 4-0, Troare looked quite energised & focused (despite the daily Big Macs & Fries), Niko didn't get injured but couldn’t quite match last week despite another exquisite free kick which might have rewarded us again with an underserved point if honest. Charlie’s excellent goal out of the blue gave us at least 2 minutes of blissful joy, while Karl Henry did a reasonable job again after he sub’d for sick note Sandro (head injury this time but there’s a pattern emerging).

However, still worrying, in order of concern, is the Chilean connection. Isla looked suspect again and Vargas - well, I haven’t worked out what he actually does yet apart from peddling backwards a lot and getting caught in the process. Rio continued his underwhelming season - a really half-hearted clearance started the panic which led to Saints first goal for example. Fer, who does have some undoubted skill is currently flattering to deceive with his one step-over trick, looking off the pace when it really counts. Philips - falls overs a lot as he gets the ball caught under his feet before considering doing anything significant with it. Similarly, Hoillet, on as sub, produced a display very reminiscent of many of last season's cul-de-sac outings. You know the one: He collects the ball… "promising… promising… where’s he going?… shit…"

The overriding thing I noticed, apart from the usual lack of pace & spark when attacking, is that the players just don't seem to care much when we lose. A resigned shrug, some handshakes. No recriminations or heated on-pitch debates. No apparent frustration - just back to the coach, the Xbox on and FIFA 15 underway. Virtual escape replaces virtually escaped… with a point.

Talking of the law of sod, comedy week also included our resident gobshite philosopher who, of course, put the mockers on the immediate future by slagging another pro again (from the comfort of his sofa) who possesses infinitely more talent than his Lordship. Law of sod (which failed us today) therefore says that this childish, transparent & calculated provocation will almost certainly result in a wonder goal from Balotelli in our upcoming Liverpool fixture. Thanks. New reformed Barton - proving once again that you can take the boy out of the gutter, but you can’t take the gutter out of the boy.

0

For the second league match running we have been harshly treated by the ref. Routledge fully deserved a penalty decision and Rangel`s second yellow was very harsh. One thing the game showed is that we have to start with Bony upfront. He gives us so much more than Gomis.

0

Tremendous team performance the like of which we have not seen since Holloway left. Even more impressive if you consider that Lewis, Clarke, Cubero, Orlandi all absent and Joan Oriol substituted in first 15 minutes.
Of course, we should not get too carried away by one win (out of eleven) but we are improving match by match and it is abundantly clear that the players, coaches and manager are really up for it now.
Best moment of the night for me ? Jose Riga's expression at the final whistle, closely followed by his post match interview. Never heard him speak so eloquently or for so long.
Last night might turn out to be the high point of a wretched season, who knows, but for two hours I was once again proud to be a Seasider after all the s**t we have had to take from the rest of the football world in recent months.

1

A free header from a corner gave Barnsley the lead. Dale then missed three good chances to score but the shots were blocked by a resolute defense. Vincenti blasted the ball high over the bar when in a good position to score. Barnsley also had a couple of good breakaway chances to score as Dale pushed forward in numbers leaving gaps at the back.
The second half saw Dale have more of the possession but fail to breakdown the Barnsley packed defense.
A great run by Barnsley's Cole saw him brought down in the box and the resultant penalty saved superbly by the Dale loan keeper Logan. It was a good contest with the hard and quick tackling of the Barnsley team proving too much for the more lightweight Dale side.

1