Really don’t understand the Boro result as a fluke ? It happened because we scored and they didn’t , yes we had a different team out and it should have stayed that way for last Saturday , we didn’t ride our luck as I’ve mentioned before , we got a fair result. Huddersfield fans thought we played some really good football but are generally toothless - they say they have a really solid defence now - maybe a slight change in team personnel and formation may make us more potent - but don’t see Mcann changing which is becoming really frustrating
People thinking that Middlesbrough result was richly deserved but being mad at our other performances is a classic case of not being able to see beyond the scoreline. There are fine margins and luck comes into things. We often haven't had any luck but in that game we did. We played better football at Huddersfield but didn't get the lucky break in front of goal. Ideally we'd play well enough to not need any luck but that seems fanciful at the moment.
Chazz posted a load of comments from the Boro game the other day, they weren't based on the scoreline, they were mainly from the first half before there was any goals and based purely on the way we were playing.
If we'd conceded a **** goal from a corner early on, those comments would've been no different to any of the games we've lost. People were going on about us winning the midfield in that game, but our pass completion was 66%. It's absolute nonsense. We were lucky to score in that game and very lucky that Boro didn't score 3 or 4. Equally, if Huddersfield had gifted us a goal from a corner early on instead of the other way around, people would probably have been posting about how well we played there.
That describes every football match. Were we lucky week after week last season when we won the League? All of our opponents had chances to score against us.
I completely agree, luck plays a big part in most games and it applies just as much to when we've played well and lost as it does to the Boro game where we got a better result than we probably deserved. My point isn't to play us down, it's just that our performances have actually been far more consistent than some on here think. Boro wasn't some brilliant performance followed by a ****-show at Huddersfield. Boro was a scrappy game where we fought hard as we usually do and on that occasion won luckily, followed by a game at Huddersfield where we again fought hard and actually played better on the ball than against Boro, but didn't have the luck we got the previous week in front of goal, nor in our opposition missing their chances. That was the key difference.
We really didn't! Take a look at the hdm player ratings, as a fairly independent objective view, and you will see mainly 4s and 5s. We were poor at both ends of the pitch and nothing more than ok-ish in between.
That’s a better comment- not being patronising or condescending - but it better explains your thinking - like it
Pass completion percentage is a red herring in a lot games. In the Boro game, I saw more urgency to get forward and try something, even if it didn’t come off. Against Huddersfield, I saw more of the same pedestrian passing that we’ve seen most games this season. Pass completion will obviously be higher when Coyle knocks it to Bernard, who plays it Greaves, who plays it Smallwood, who plays it back to Greaves, who then passes it back to Ingram, who then passes it to Elder etc. etc.
That's just the modern game. Very few teams don't pass it about now. We were doing it pretty well at Huddersfield. People were groaning when we tried to pass it out from the keeper despite Huddersfield pressing us, but we managed to avoid any calamities and at one point in the first half we played right through their press and released Smith I think it was, to run at their defence in a 4 on 4 attack. When they sat back in the second half, it wasn't as if we just passed it on the halfway line, we got forward well and got into decent crossing positions and created some reasonable half-chances for Eaves and Wilks. Certainly more than we created against Boro.
(in bold) Wow, that's amazing! Really? And a few half chances? That's great! (btw, I don't recall them, other than maybe 1 for Wilks. Lot's of crosses (!!) that were a total waste). I know, sarcasm is the lowest form of wit and all that, but has it really got to this, meaning we should be happy for the 'positives' you typed?!!
I don't think we should be particularly happy with it. I was just saying it isn't true that we just passed it around pointlessly. I'm not arguing that Huddersfield was great, just that it wasn't actually a worse performance than Boro.
Was there any 'action' in front of their goal on Saturday? I wasn't there and haven't seen anything but I interpret comments, write ups as 30 crosses and nowt. Correction, saw KLP miss the chance when the keeper was out of his goal. Just seen gone for a walks post
There was nothing really clear cut, we didn't force any saves that I can recall, but there were a few that could have been. There was the KLP semi-open goal, Wilks and Eaves both had low shots go narrowly wide and Wilks had another one where he had time and space but took far too long and never got the shot off in the end. Then there was one from a corner where Greaves was about to volley at goal quite close in but Bernard took it off his toe while going away from goal. Loads of crosses that never looked like coming to anything. I think it's certainly fair to say we didn't create enough from the domination of possession and territory that we had across the game, but it was like pretty much every game this season in that respect.
i was at a wedding Saturday and didnt see the game so havent been able to comment, but am i right in saying Eaves didnt start? i thought that was harsh on him to be fair, i never thought id write that as i arent a fan at all , in fact i think he is well out of his depth at this level generally , however i thought against Boro he did well and caused a bit of hassle to their back line. i actually also thought Emmanuelle was a key to that victory and his dropping was once again very harsh. of course i am just an armchair manager and wouldnt want to question the gaffer
If McCann't decides his plan A is still working and sticks with the same old routine we'll get hammered, if he decides to abandon the 4222 or 442 abortion and goes for the 352 that served us better against Boro then I fancy us to do these. Emmanuel needs to be back in, Elder the other wing back, gives Eaves a go with Smith up front, just do something ffs instead of the same.ol.shyte he keeps spewing out .. we looked so.much better in the 352, why he thought it was a good idea to change that I have no fkn clue, but then again the clueless one has left me at a loss for so.long now I'm no longer surprised !
Fml .. just had a Homer Simpson moment ... looking for team news thinking the game was tonight ! Doh !
The only problem is, for as much as we saw it as a 3 5 2, he still insisted it wasn't and it was 4.3.3... says it all really...
