I felt quite positive today. I thought Delap, Sammy, Hirst and Chappers all did well today and Phillips was much better. 1st half we dominated and but for abysmal reffing and Clarke's mishaps, we would have gone on to win. Davis enjoyed a good game and his cross for the third goal was superb. Our defence is like a sieve and we need Axel and Greaves back. Time to bring Walton bac too. Given the injuries/ sickness it was a better performance and more enjoyable than previous 2 games.
First goal - moves to tackle the player who assists, doesn’t tackle him, and leaves goalscorer unmarked in his area of the pitch. Second goal - where the hell was he? That’s his area of the defence. Completely out of position. I probably overreacted for the fourth goal, which was more a collective failing. O’Shea was to blame more out of the two over the course of the game (he had an atrocious game) but Burgess is not Premier League quality. He’s fine dealing with aerial threats. But when the ball is played on the ground, he’s too slow and not positionally aware.
Absolutely. We’ve got enough depth and potential up top to create chances and take them. It’s just completely undermined by an error-prone goalkeeper and a defence that massively lacks depth when a couple of key starters are out. We may as well give Walton a start against Leicester and see if that improves a defence down to the bare bones.
I think that's being a bit harsh, 1st goal he has to come across because O'Shea went across because both Clarke and then Phillips let the man go past them. The whole defence had to shift across ultimately because Clarke dived in. The 2nd yes he wasn't in the area of the pitch as expected but was clearly under instruction to be where he was, Davis had pushed up high to close down the full back so Burgess pushed up on Mbeumo. If anyone Cajuste got caught the wrong side of his man which created the space to play the through ball. If I'm being overly critical I thought O'Shea was meant to be quicker but looked sluggish in comparison to Clarke and Wissa. To be fair both of Brentfords first 2 goals were superb moves as McKenna says with players only being half a yard off. Given how slow Burgess is (remember when he first came to the club it was painful) he does remarkably well how few times he gets beaten and few mistakes he makes. I thought his passing today was on the whole superb, the past season or so he's really added long balls on the floor as a great strength to his game. Clearly O'Shea and Greaves are quicker than Woolfenden and Burgess but positionally they sometimes get caught out, hopefully this will come with experience and playing time but for now I can see a perfectly valid argument to start Woolfenden and Burgess even if Greaves and O'Shea are both fit. I suspect particularly in Greaves case that he will come in eventually but for me and I've seen it with both Burgess and Davis today plus Chaplin and Hirst, they know each others games and in terms of performance from what I've seen makes a huge difference. RB for me is the conundrum, it's been the one position on the pitch since McKenna has been here that no one has ever really made their own. 4th goal for me sits heavily with Muric and maybe slightly with O'Shea who both look like players who were relegated from the PL last season at the moment.
Yes, Burgess has to move over to cover other failings (which is why I said he was partly to blame), but he still misses the tackle and leaves the space for the goalscorer. For me, in both instances (and in other scenarios) he’s looked too slow. He and Davis might know one another’s game better - compared to Greaves and Davis - but that hasn’t helped in the most recent two matches, which have been really bad defensive displays. I take the point Burgess might be off the pace, because he’s working to full match fitness. But as you say, he wasn’t exactly fast last season. He did well passing today, but I think his long balls to the channels - so effective last season - haven’t quite worked in the last couple of games. Maybe more game time will sort that out. He could stake a claim if he puts in a couple of good performances before Greaves comes back, but on the basis of the last two games - he hasn’t done enough for me. Don’t forget how Calvert-Lewin easily beat him for pace a couple of times last week to go through on goal. Greaves looks more composed and is quicker on the ball. He’s also a more solid defender at this level, in my opinion. It’s not like Greaves has come in to an really good defence from last year either - we were really leaky then too! The other centre back space is completely up for grabs though. And nobody has put down a serious claim for Tuanzebe’s right back spot.
I think the encouraging thing today was we looked more like the team we were the past 2 seasons in terms of goals scored but also probably goals conceded (except for the winner). Still a weakness in the RB position...far to many goals coming from down that side last season and also generally just getting caught out because we're a high pressing team who commit players forward. In our previous games this season we've heavily relied on the individual brilliance of Delap mainly for goals and have conceded too many from real blatant mistakes. I suspect Greaves will come back in for Burgess and probably go on to achieve greater things as he certainly has more potential but there are still some definite weaknesses to his game which I have noticed in all the games, he's a very front foot defender stepping in which can be rewarding but also high risk as can cause him to get pulled out of position easily. But I do think because as a team last season we conceded a reasonable amount of goals considering where we finished Woolfenden and Burgess were underrated. The past 2 seasons they have been outstanding, for me often the defensive frailties have come more sonfrom the fullback positions and linked to this the type of football team we are. If we want to improve defensively it's as much about tactics and the rest of the team as it is the CBs and improving the quality in that position.
And at the heart of our defense is a nervy, indecisive keeper who is making too many poor decisions. And those throw outs to the oppo. Crazy. He is costing us too many points and cost us way too many £'s. Time for Walton.
I agree yet he also makes outstanding saves which you don't expect him to make. I'd prefer a GK with more consistency. The past few weeks have definitely made me question in particular whether we've needed all the signings in particular from relegated PL clubs and whether they have improved us.
I reckon McKenna has just one more roll of the dice. There’s probably an argument for Slicker to come in and take the shirt and gain experience. Unless we beat Leicester we’ll be in the drop zone with the bottom sides playing each other over the next couple of fixtures. Those fixtures against Palace and Wolves in December look like dictating whether we will be in with a shout come the next transfer window. If we are stranded in the drop zone come the transfer window and are offered £40m for Delap, I hope we’ll take it and recoup some of the silly money we’ve paid out to Burnley whilst at the same time they’ve had our goalie for free. There’s a case for the fraud squad to come in and investigate those dealings.
Big game next Saturday, and what with injuries I am sure KM will stick with the same team more or less, but with Woolfy, Hutch in place of Oddbins, and Walton back. I just hope he starts with Hirst and Chappers. If we lose this one, then we will all begin to wonder when and if we can turn round our season, as the 4th, 5th bottom gap widens into a chasm.
Royston made the point earlier - and it’s been mentioned before - but I wonder if it’s worth going three at the back? I’d certainly want to see it against Spurs and Man United, if both Tuanzebe and Greaves are out. We haven’t been able to defend properly for the last three games now. I’m with ptc on Muric - yes, he’s capable of keeping the scoreline down with some great saves, but he makes far too many gaffes and his passing just isn't up to scratch. Watching the MOTD replay (on a bigger screen and better quality than my match-day stream), it’s clear he is the main person at fault for the fourth goal and made several other errors that could’ve led to goals. He doesn’t command his area. He shouldn’t be playing. Yes, he’s playing behind a slow defence that makes mistakes - but I wonder if Walton will bring a bit more composure? Worth starting against Leicester next week. If McKenna persists with Muric, then I feel another defender (and an option for a short pass) would be beneficial. Three at the back would have O’Shea, Woolfenden, and Burgess - as we’re short of alternatives. Burgess will be there for passing and aerial defence, but his lack of pace will be mitigated by two other centre backs. I’m not sure who could fill the right wing-back slot though. Burns probably fits the profile best, particularly as we have no available right backs currently. Only problem is that three at the back removes a number 10 and impacts on our attack - which has been the only real thing working for us in this league. For Leicester, we’re probably better off sticking with the current formation and focus on getting a win. That should mean Walton comes in and hopefully gets a run of games.
I just hope that attacking performance can be replicated against better teams. Brentford have one of the poorest defences this season. Agreed it’s worth starting Chaplin and Hirst against Leicester - opponents they know well from last season - and bring Delap on (but bring him on at 60 minutes). Szmodics, Chaplin, and Hutchinson behind. Morsy (if fit - Phillips if not) and Cajuste in midfield. The defence is what it is at this point - probably going to have to go Johnson at right back (if fit) with Woolfenden and Burgess in the middle. Davis on the left. Walton starts. A defence that doesn’t fill me with confidence at this level. But ultimately, Kieran will know who’s been training well and looks up for it. Let’s just hope confidence is high as it can be after nine games without a win.
Slicker?! You want to put that young lad behind the worst defence in the league? Poor kid! I hope we won’t be stranded in the drop zone by January, as there’ll still be half the season to play. Selling our top scorer - I’d be surprised if anyone else can overtake him - does not send out the right message to me, to both the players and the fans. If we want to stay up, we need Delap and his goals. Even if we get relegated in the summer, we’d still be able to make a healthy profit on him as he’s likely to get double figures this season.
With the exception of Johnson I think the others are good defenders or have potential. As well as all the mistakes Muric makes, he’s also not vocal and doesn’t command the defence. I think with Walton or Slicker between the sticks the defence would be better organised. There also sooner or later comes in an element of building for the future. I think experience for Slicker with Premier League minutes could only be good if he’s going to take over the gloves at some point. I’m not sure McKenna is ever looking at Walton as the future number one.
But perhaps not the best game to introduce him, as it has become a must win match. I wouldnt relish being put between the sticks for the 1st time in the Prem after a poor run of form, and a weakened defense in front of me.
It’s not as though Muric has been handling the situation. Maybe if Slicker had been in the last few games we’d have some points to show.
If we had a solid defence and it was solely goalkeeper gaffes leading to goals, I’d be more inclined to give him a chance. But he’s not even played a league game in his career. Ideally, we’d be loaning him out somewhere for first team football - preferably the Championship - but I’m guessing we didn’t get any interest in the summer. If we’re changing goalkeeper, it makes much more sense to me to give Walton a run of games.
