Match Day Thread Sunderland v Rochdale - Saturday 6th March - KO 15:00

Grrr

 

Three wingers is bad enough ...

... why Wyke was making it four on Tuesday night I've no idea.

It needs stopping.

 

Great thread as always chaps
A game we need to win and hopefully win well
No resting players for the sake of it for me. Always a believer I playing our strongest team
Unless they are under performing or we want to change formation
Saying that Since Sanderson is cup tied for Wembley I would take the opportunity of giving Younger or whoever is coming in for him a run out
I would play them instead of Onien and push Onien up into midfield.
I'd also push Power up into midfield.
A strong mobile midfield pressing hard and we'll batter Rochdale.

 

I haven't particularly noticed is Jones any good at defending the left back spot, if so he starts.
If Mcgeady is allowed to float (almost tell him he is not allowed in his own half) and when the oppo has free kicks and corners Mcgeady is the one left up front as the lone striker.

 

Just what was he doing out there I will never know, it was as comical as having Jones and Diamond on the same side of the field, There is a lot to like about LJ but clarity is not his strength , or mine sometimes.

 

Thats a great idea, and who knows, if Olly can repeat his debut performance over 90 mins its a massive win win.

 

Yeah I noticed that... but I doubt Jones/Diamond have spent that much time on the playing pitch together.. on the training pitch, thats another matter.

Certainly when Diamond and Mcgeady have played closely together, their interplay is good and they work off each other, ie wingers on the same wavelength and movement.

Now whether this sort of interplay with Diamond/Jones is something that has been demonstrated on the practice pitch, we don't know.

I just have an inkling that that sort of pass the ball move into a position to receive a ball back interplay, particularly with forwards is something LJ wants, players with similar attributes may find this easier to achieve, as they have a chance of being on the same wavelength.

 

My opinion for what it’s worth is that there’s pro’s and cons with both approaches- playing your strongest team vs. Resting players / squad rotation. We’re in the final third of the season with a few of those near us in the league still to play. Don’t forget we still have quite a few injuries and although it’s pleasing to hear that some of them are nearing a return it could potentially derail the promotion push if we lose any more key players to injury - and let’s face it injuries are more likely if players are tired / fatigued so I’m all for resting some players every now and again to keep them fresh. Other teams around us haven’t got the squad depth we have and they could quite easily run into injury problems as the season draws to its conclusion and that’s when we could really capitalise. Surely we can afford to rest some players and still have enough to beat Rochdale???

 

I wouldn't Blame Wyke too much for this.
I just think he has bought into and understands what LJ wants quicker than some of the other players.
He is certainly working harder.
He wouldn't need to be out wide if other players were making the runs.
Excuse the arsey language but he has started to be a lot more proactive . Making runs into areas expecting the ball whereas some of the other players are still a bit reactive waiting for the ball to be played before moving. What we need is some of the lads with pace taking a chance and getting down the channels quicker
I would love to see Wyke playing the way Ancelotti has Calvert Lewin
Basically told him the width of his pitch was the width of the penalty area. So he's always in a position to receive the ball

 

Lee Johnson presser:



On Denver Hume...
"The speed of his recovery from this one has been surprising.
"He was part of our passing drills on Friday, he did some 1-v-1's with Ross Stewart and joined in with some patterns of play work towards the end.
"He looks good, he's obviously a great mover anyway in terms of how he gets across the ground.
On when he could realistically return...
"You need to tick the boxes and there are obviously steps to get back to a first-team game, particularly with the kind of hamstring injury that he's had.
“The positive is that he's been in controlled training, which is good.
“He's moving well and feeling good which means we can now step it on.
“Ideally, of course, you'd want a player like that to get 90 minutes once or twice [in the U23s] before even considering a first-team return.”
On Ross Stewart...
"Ross Stewart was in training today and looks a bit closer.
“He is slightly different [to Denver Hume] as his hamstring injury was a much lower grade.
“He can be progressed a little bit quicker in terms of those boxes that need to be ticked.
On Grant Leadbitter...
"Grant we know is fit because he's played recently, so it's just a case of him being comfortable.
“He went to see a specialist, and the diagnosis was major trauma to everything in his shoulder, said Johnson.
"But it is a manageable situation. With the right strapping and the right conditions, it can be managed.
“There is a risk that it might pop out again, but I think Grant is probably willing to take that risk. Maybe not necessarily over the short term, but over the medium term as he gets stronger and starts to feel a bit more comfortable.
“He looked like an American football player today because he had a nice thick padding, but hopefully that will help him and his confidence.
“The situation will always remain the same – there’s a 50 per cent chance that his shoulder will pop out again – and if it does, then I think it will require surgery.
“But at the moment, there are protective measures we can use to aid the healing and mitigate against the chances of it popping out again.
& whether he could realistically feature at Wembley...
"If you look at him move, he 100% has a chance.
“It won't be about that, it'll be the contact, the prospect of falling over, that's the bit we haven't really had a time to properly discuss.
“Grant has been out with us on Friday but just for passing drills, not with contact.
“It'll depend on how he feels.
“He's a sensible player, he won't chase it if he's not ready.
“He knows we're competing on two fronts.
“I know that's a bit vague, nut we're not ruling him out at this stage.
On Bailey Wright...
"Bailey's calf injury, the three-week mark is really important because you have to let it heal properly.
“He's not a million miles away.
On Tom Flanagan...
"Flanno has been out there today and once fit, we shouldn't expect it to be too long or him to need much rehabilitation.
“It will be him catching up on his lung capacity more than anything.
“He's starting to look a bit stronger and he's not a million miles away either.
On Conor McLaughlin...
"Conor had an injection and he has settled well.
"There's a risk of rupture of he comes back too quickly, and when I say too quickly that means about 32,48 hours.
“So he should be another one [back soon].
“I reckon he'll train Monday, maybe Wednesday.
“Portsmouth might come too soon, it might not.
On Lynden Gooch...
"Lynden is going to have a fitness test on Saturday morning.
“He felt his calf but the scan was brilliant news, with no damage.
“That probably means it's a compressed nerve or it was cramp. At the moment we can't know that. A compressed nerve will take a little longer, if it's cramp we'll know tomorrow morning because he'll be fine.

 

Interesting

 

Won 5 of their last six matches. Only defeat?.............. The Lads!

 

Denver, Benji even Ross - all desperate to play at Wembley

 

Massive incentive for the injured lads to get back.
Think that's a real bonus for the Portsmouth game
Even with injuries we've got a big squad. No one can risk saving themselves for Wembley
If they don't perform they're not going to play
Touch wood we'll see a team really up for it against Portsmouth

 

I'm looking forward to seeing what Johnson can do with Kimpioka, he's raw as hell currently but there's talent there and even better, pace. His development is in good hands now.

 

Yeah - just look what he's done for Charlie Wyke

 

I'd have...

Burge

Onein Sanderson Younger Vokins

Winchester Power Scowen

Diamond Wyke Jones

For Rochdale.

 

I think they will be playing for Sunderland though

 

Fully expecting a home win and hopefully a decent performance to go along with it

Not being greedy I'll be happy with 1st option if we can't manage both

2-0 to the lads

HTL

 

Heard that every week about Stewart since he’s signed tbf. Good news about Hume.