I saw another average performance that lacked any bite, any conviction, any plan B, any growth... I saw a team that despite a massive overhaul in playing staff, coaching staff, and changes in significant board staff, a team that has showed absolutely no improvement to the make-shift teams we have had over in the 3 prior to SOD's supposed revolution. I saw not a single person on the pitch show the desire to win the game, to penetrate an astonishingly poor Sheffield Utd team, or a player that looked like he had learned from the many mistakes made week in week out over this past year. I saw a dejected SOD that looks and sounds like he is waiting for the chop. I saw a team going backwards. For me, the only person getting us results is JET, and that is not enough to save our bacon, or SOD's hide. ANOTHER experiment and punt that has failed from a clueless board well behind the times and have consistently acted to late in every avenue of the club from top to bottom for far too long. Leyton Orient is my last game of 2013 before I am off to New York until January, and I have resigned myself to the fact I will sign out of AG with another loss!
'average performance' ??? Honestly thought it was dire. Sheff Utd were awful beyond words and won. Never have I enjoyed watching City less, we're are close to the Abyss. I still say we have the players to climb the table but I'm sorry, SOD's leadership and 'tactics' are taking us down.
Does anyone think they are fit enough? Is the work rate there? We concede a lot of late goals. I said on a different thread that when we get the ball there is no movement ahead of the back 4 which is why it goes sideways, and is frankly boring. Watch teams like Barca or Swansea (or at a lower level even Oldham in the first half) - the guy on the ball has lots of options because the rest of the team are still running - watch our lot, they are static
Absolutely dire performance. For a team that had gone five unbeaten, there did not seem to be an ounce of desire, invention and any attempt to unlock the worst team I have ever seen from Sheffield United. We are doomed to League Two and probably worse.
That was how I saw it. We had plenty of the ball, but that was because a poor Sheffield side let us. We never threatened and there was never any movement off of the ball. Only JET has any vision, the other 9 outfield players had less between them- This made things very predictable and to cap it all, we started to by pass, over the midfield, route 1 to a 5'7" forward, where a 6'4" centre back headed the ball away for fun. We could be still playing now, and still would have probably failed to register another shot on target. Defensively, we looked better and I do like the look of Osborne. He looked very solid and composed, but we were always likely to be undone by a sucker punch and that's exactly what happened. SOD said that we didn't look like conceding, but it we are going to stay in this League, a 0-0 draw against a poor side that were 2 places below us, is hardly the way to do. He didn't get a very good reception from the Atyeo at the end. The game is won by scoring goals and it wont happen whist there is no creativity especially from midfield, which really must be looked at. You would never believe that Shorey once played for England, Wagstaff for me the jury is still out and why Elliott, whos best days are past him, played above Gillet was a strange one. Where were Reid and Bryan? I can only assume injured
Yes average... That performance yesterday was a typical, average performance on par with what we have seen for the last year under SOD. I also saw more fans than usual in my section turn on SOD, and although I don't agree with the boo'ing I bloody well understand why they do it, how else do you voice your disgust, disdain at the delusional berks that run our club other than stop turning up altogether, which I imagine when we drop another league is how voices will be heard. In business rule number 1 is, it is easier and more cost effective to keep an existing customer happy than attract a new customer. Something this board have clearly lost sight of. This unbeaten run we were on meant nothing to me, as it wasn't a true reflection of a team progressing, it was JET dominating and the team barely getting by!
They will probably think they did a good job cos there were over 12,000 people in the stadium. Sheff. Utd. fans most have thought Christmas had come early when we presented them with the goal and a team that was set up to draw. Why is Wes Burns not in or around the first team, Why was Mclauglin on the bench, why don't we start with Harewood, it would be easier to take him off if it wasn't working rather than bring him on when we are losing. We don't seem to have anybody capable and willing to take people on or get to the byline (except JET who sometimes takes on too many but can't really blame him) Where are the surges fro our midfield? Only in the last 10 mins or so did we look like we wanted to win. Although even then we allowed Sheff Utd. to hang onto the ball and see the game out
This is what I saw yesterday 1- clueless tactics playing Sam Baldock alone against 2 x 6'4 defenders 2- No width on the pitch what so ever, I can remember Cunningham belting down the wings and getting a cross in. Since SoD he seems to be scared to get into the final third. 3- Jet is a great player but I've said it before and will say it again WATCH his final pass! And then tell me if he has one, he might have all these assist but how many of them are deliberate. He's a greedy player that is not a team player my daughter can win more in the air. He more than often tries to flick it with his shoulder or chest it to someone. BEFORE SOMEONE SAYS WITHOUT HIM WE WOULD BE IN THE ****, ASK YOURSELF WHERE ARE WE WITH HIM. 4 And most importantly we all could see number 1 wasn't working so our manager who masterminded that great showing against massive Port Vale and the second half destruction of the mighty Carlisle, could not see for 80 minutes so he throws on the donkey. Yes I'm pissed off still.
Without JET, we would be rooted to the bottom of the table and adrift, his assists and more importantly, his goals, have all pretty much come from nothing, and solely created by him. Take him out, we have nothing in that team. He maybe lazy, he may do things that mostly never pay off, but when they do, we salvage something. First half of the season it will be teams are afraid to try against us, because we were a Championship team. Second half of the season they will have worked out we are literally zero threat and try and beat us, and succeed, as we quite simply cannot defend for 90 minutes.
i agree with all the negative comments............... ......we are lost, we have only 1 plan and were stuffed if it doesnt work, that was so dire that after 41 years of watching City if i didnt have a season ticket i wouldnt bloody go, but hey-ho ive paid for it now. Is anyone really looking forward to Orient? it could be a bloody massacre 3,4 or more is my worry!!! I think apart from us all agreeing we are too slow, too predictable, no width, no movement, no play maker, no ingenuity nothing infront third of pitch, the MOST worrying thing for me is that after 17 games we havent PROGRESSED AT ALL!!!!!!!!!!!!! I finally was so bored yesterday i went into a stare/trance and the realisation hit me, just like it has with England, we are a very poor team and are unfortunately where we deserve to be, all the hope and excuses cannot change this!!!! Why are we scared to play wide, i know we go narrow when we havent got the ball but we shouldnt be with it, but still when we get out wide there is no one tall enough or who can head the ball, or infact anyone in the box anyway! apart from tiny sam!! We have sam upfront and waste time going sideways for 5 mins at back, the other teams forwards get fed up we watching us do this and push...........then we hump it up to Baldock who is usually marked by a 7 foot defender!!!!!!!!!! Arrrggghhh I GIVE UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Orient will tear us apart (on paper) and a heavy defeat should be the end of SOD I've had enough, really!
But if we never had JET we would be playing a different system, so impossible to tell if we would be at the bottom with no points. We might have a different player who would work alongside Baldock and him scoring a shed load. What I would like to see is if JET has a bad day is subbing him to play a different system. Don't get me wrong Jet is the first player I want to see on the team sheet alongside Williams but I get pissed off with O'Driscoll never having a plan B and why does Parish insist on hoofing it long to JET who can't win in the air? That tells me the manager says to the team no matter what piss arse with the ball but it don't go forward to anyone else apart from Jet if that fails whack it further to Sam to try and put their big defender off so the ball falls to Jet. The weak link in our team is O'Driscoll and I've never slated a manager when he's with us openly but I can still hear one of my work mates whose a Forest fans voice in my head "he worries about the opposition and don't have a plan B" arggggghhhhhhhhh
"Does anyone think they are fit enough?" I have to say I do agree with this, I remember the pre season training SOD was quick with the "they don't need beasting with loads of running, we make it fun with a ball. blah de blah.. They simply don't look fit to me, the system he wants them to play requires high levels of fitness, without that you can't complete what he is asking them to do.. I didn't see yesterdays game, but I have noticed this in previous ones..
"Jet is a great player but I've said it before and will say it again WATCH his final pass! And then tell me if he has one, he might have all these assist but how many of them are deliberate. He's a greedy player that is not a team player my daughter can win more in the air. He more than often tries to flick it with his shoulder or chest it to someone. BEFORE SOMEONE SAYS WITHOUT HIM WE WOULD BE IN THE ****, ASK YOURSELF WHERE ARE WE WITH HIM." Most common sense I have read on here in ages.. You are dangerously close to 'plank' territory though..
I have to disagree re JET I think he wins a fair amount in the air, and as long as he scores goals I'm prepared to allow him to try to beat all and sundry or try something outlandish. However we do need to attempt to play wide at times and FFS how about trying a quick break out of defense sometimes. You ever know we might actually surprise a few teams.
Most of us all seemed to see the same thing- Question is- Why cant SOD?- Or maybe he can- He's in charge tactically and its not working- It or he needs changing-
Which is my argument, walking out the ground yesterday and someone said he's too scared to make a change. Bollocks I'm becoming Redprint
