I know it was a good point against Forest but I am getting a bit bored with these draws. It is plain to see where are problems are but since the start of the Season these weaknesses haven't been addressed. This season we have a great opportunity to sneak into the play offs, but the opportunities are fading fast. I don't understand why RD didn't allow Peeters to get another Striker in on loan. Danny Graham, who scored for Wolves today, would have fitted the bill. I can see us slipping down the table fast. I feel sorry for Vetokele who is not 100 per cent fit trying to lead the line by himself. What odds on us slipping up against Blackpool, as I notice they beat Birmingham today.
You speak for me ****. We seem to be doing our 'brave little Charlton' thing against mid table championship sides. And yes, Vetokele coming back from injury is still expected to lead the line. It would have been a better appreciated draw if we had'nt done so msmy of them.
We have drawn eleven, more than any other team in the table. Only Wednesday (10) and Brighton (9) have drawn more than eight. But this is not a result of playing defensive football, trying to scrape points. It is the result of having a strong defence (as good as any in the division?) and a one-man (and he is currently not fully fit) attack. We have Henderson, Gomez, Morrison, Wiggins, Buyens, Wilson and Onyewu to come into the defence as and when needed. What do we have in reserve in attack? I understand the need to balance the books, but you need to balance the squad at the same time. However, today is not the right day to moan. It was a good point. I was again prevented from forecasting, but I would have gone for a 0-2 defeat so I am more than happy. The players and manager (oops! I mean "Head Coach") are not to blame. They are working hard to make bricks without straw. No chance of our slipping up against Blackpool. I have forecast a win, and that is a rare event. Although Lee Clark does seem to be making some progress in sorting out Riga's mess.
It was a good point today, not like for instance the Millwall game which we should have won. We were outplayed in the second half, but defended well and reduced them to hitting hopeful balls into the box.3 points would have been nice, but it took a worldy for them to equalise.
I agree that it was a good point today, but the point I am making is that with a bit of investment in August some of these one points could be turned into three. RDs rationale in waiting till January, to me, is flawed. There is a hell of a lot of money to be made in getting to the Premiership. We are on the fringes of the play offs, we might not get a better chance to get promoted. But Bob Peeters is having to manage the team with effectively one decent Centre Forward in Vetokele. Pigott, Church, Tucudean are not good enough. We need a physical presence up top and another quick forward. I am just deeply frustrated at what could be happening.
I fully agree with Dick that these draws are becoming tedious. We should have won on Saturday IMO. Better finishing before half time would have seen us 2 or 3 up, and the game over. One noticeable trend under Bob is our complete inability to play a full 90 mins of decent football. Fed up with this bollox, heard again after Ipswich & then Forest, of "that was our best half of the season". How about that was our best "90 mins" of the season, FFS ? We are coasting serenely into mid table obscurity. This season will be a non event.
I see us slipping up against Blackpool because when I looked at the table a few minutes ago it reminded me of when we walked Division One We were on our lovely run and Swindon Town came to the Valley.. they went down without a fight at all that season but got a lucky own goal (courtesy of Dean Kiely?) early on and it finished 1-0 cos we couldnt break them down and the unbeaten run that we'd been on came to an end after all the tough teams we'd walked over
I see us slipping up v Blackpool for the profound reason that we are not that good. What is frustrating is that this is the weakest Championship in memory. I mean...Derby and Ipswich, FFS ! With a bit of ambition and wit, we should easily be able to get in the play offs. I think the January transfer window will be the preverbial damp squib.....RD will look at out league position of 11th-14th by then, and shut up shop. Personally I will become more selective about my attendance if that happens. I am not wasting time & money watching complacent bore draw specialists.
I wasn't disappointed with the result on saturday, more with our second-half performance. We were comprehensively outplayed, lost most of the physical battles in midfield and the 50/50's and the final whistle couldn't come soon enough. To see us repeatedly giving the ball away was very disappointing, so to escape with a draw was very pleasing, a tribute to our defense. But we all know the defense isn't the problem. The draw against Millwall on the other hand was 2 points lost.
The reason I think we will slip up is that Blackpool will sit ten men behind the ball and I do not think we have the wit and invention to break teams down. Bob needs to play 4-4-2 on Saturday and get people in the box. I would play the following team: Pope Solly, Bikey, Ben Haim, Fox Gudmundsson, Coquelin, Cousins, Harriott, Vetokele, Tucudean(because there is nobody else)
Not sure that we aren't that good, Nick. Our first team 11 are a top 10 side, but the strength in depth is non existance. I too think some of the decision making has been poor since the season started in regards to our transfer policy - loaning MM out to Birmingham for a player to come in who's match fitness is non existance is an example of that. We would have been better off making Gomez the 3rd choice and putting that money towards a striker. I don't buy in to this whole ''we are trying to find the right player'' as several good options have moved to Championship rivals.
i dont think we're too worried about our money situation now though. Roland is flush with cash and a couple of grand a week isnt much to him. what is, is spending a few million on a striker - he's pretty shrewd so i think he's just making sure that we get the right one. we're 3 points off the playoff, this time a year ago, we'd have taken that.
So far he's bought 5 strikers; Igor, Tucudean, Moussa, Reza and Polish Pete. I make that a success rate of 20%.
Not forgeting Bulot (although it is easily done), and great loan signing strikers Obika & Tudgay last season
We need at least 3 signings in January to mount a play off challenge. Our squad is thinner than Lena Zavaroni after a session at Weightwatchers.
