Thoughts on recent run

[Arriba Los Zorros]

We're still shite and can only pick up points in games where the opposition self-destruct.

 

However to give him his due Brendan has decided to be a little more pragmatic and stopped us being the ones who self destruct which is a start. So it means we are in a position to draw or win games where we'd have beaten ourselves before.

 

I'll take anything that gets us 17th right now. Then we can **** him off in the summer and start again with a proper manager.

[Guest Col city fan]

18 hours ago, francis39 said:

We got 7 points from the last 4, comparing to 1 in the first 7. Great improvements.

But we have to look at the fixtures.

H D Brentford

A L Arsenal

H L Soton

A L Chelsea

H L Man Utd

A L Brighton

A L Spurs

H W Forest

A L Bournemouth 

H D Crystal Palace

H W Leeds

————

the recent run is more due to a easy run of fixture recently, and the poor run earlier was more due to touch fixtures earlier. 

we could only win at home against Minnow teams (20th, 17th), draw mid table/bottom teams at home occasionally, and lose every matches away from home. We are going to 

play 3Away games and at home vs Man city before the wc. doesnt look good. 

I think we need to be sceptical of the slight upturn in form. I know that sounds negative but it’s how I feel.

We sit where we sit in the league, having played four, theoretically, very average sides at this level.

It’s NOW I think we’ll soon know how the season is going to pan out. Pick up a few points from the next few fixtures and it’s looking more likely we’d stay up. But lose the next few and we are very much in a relegation battle.

Though it sounds a little dramatic, I think the period from now until the World Cup will pretty much define our season.

[Paninistickers]

Good runs start somewhere. I don't think we've turned the corner by any stretch. We look totally bereft of confidence but that gets built bit by bit. 

 

I was screaming out to grind a point at Bournemouth. In the way we did v Palace. 

 

I have been buoyed by hiw poor Leeds and Palace were. That Forest look gone. That I thought  that was the worst Southampton I've seen (I said even in our self destruct defeat that they'll go down)....and that Bournemouth will.almost certainly crumple soon soon as the pack gets within a point or 2. And I'm presuming Villa are tosh. 

 

We ought to be able over a period of time to claw all of those teams back bit by bit

 

I think us fans need to accept it'll be a season long attritional process to edge our way put, bit by bit. I'm prepared for a rough ride.

[Guest worth_the_wait]

22 minutes ago, Paninistickers said:

 

I think us fans need to accept it'll be a season long attritional process to edge our way put, bit by bit. I'm prepared for a rough ride.

Spot on.  Just what i've been thinking.

 

Rodgers is going nowhere, so it's just going to be a long hard slog.

 

 

[lcfcsnow]

Reminds me of the mini run we had around Christmas in our first season back, Hamer came in and got a few clean sheets as we beat very poor Hull and Villa sides.

[Wasyls Pec Deck]

Not conceding goals and looking much more solid at defending generally - but mainly set pieces - is a huge plus. Faes has had a good impact imo - very assertive and adding leadership that we are so devoid of.

[st albans fox]

7 minutes ago, Wasyls Pec Deck said:

Not conceding goals and looking much more solid at defending generally - but mainly set pieces - is a huge plus. Faes has had a good impact imo - very assertive and adding leadership that we are so devoid of.

I blame brexit - the set piece coach would have been here weeks earlier …..

[deep blue]

2 hours ago, J. James said:

 A hadeven if hm too, onally I'm cautiously optimistic atm, l feel like Rodgers just may have realised he's been taking a knife to a gunfight and might have suddenly got a bit streetwise.

 

I'm happy to win ugly atm and my criticism of him is on hold due to the  sudden defensive upturn which l think is encouraging.

 

However if he benches Praet again and plays Madders on the right, my optimistic outlook may be strangled at birth!

I'm sure Maddison will be one of the first names on the team sheet.  It's hard to see how Rodgers will be able to accommodate Praet in the team as well, even if he had any particular desire to do so.  A shame, as I think Praet is a reliable and solid team player, gives us forward movement on the right wing that we don't get from anyone else in the squad, and by all accounts he was very effective last night.

[deep blue]

13 minutes ago, Wasyls Pec Deck said:

Not conceding goals and looking much more solid at defending generally - but mainly set pieces - is a huge plus. Faes has had a good impact imo - very assertive and adding leadership that we are so devoid of.

Assuming we remain in a relegation dogfight Faes' aggression, toughness and organising abilities will be very important given the general softness of the team.

[J. James]

1 hour ago, deep blue said:

I'm sure Maddison will be one of the first names on the team sheet.  It's hard to see how Rodgers will be able to accommodate Praet in the team as well, even if he had any particular desire to do so.  A shame, as I think Praet is a reliable and solid team player, gives us forward movement on the right wing that we don't get from anyone else in the squad, and by all accounts he was very effective last night.

Oh l agree and he should be, first in fact but not on the right - CM is his place, Praet right and bench KDH

So:

Ward

Castagne

Faes

Amartey

Justin

Soumare/Mendy

Tielemans

Praet

Maddison

Barnes

Daka/Vardy

[Cadno'r Cymoedd]

Lucky 

[francis39]

4 hours ago, Col city fan said:

I think we need to be sceptical of the slight upturn in form. I know that sounds negative but it’s how I feel.

We sit where we sit in the league, having played four, theoretically, very average sides at this level.

It’s NOW I think we’ll soon know how the season is going to pan out. Pick up a few points from the next few fixtures and it’s looking more likely we’d stay up. But lose the next few and we are very much in a relegation battle.

Though it sounds a little dramatic, I think the period from now until the World Cup will pretty much define our season.

We were actually not that bad in the first 7 matches, tough fixtures; not that good in the next 4 neither, easy fixtures at home. 

That the backline is better now could be an illusion—the opponents were not that good offensively. Even when they had big chances they couldnt even shot on target. 

Playing them away from home will be v different. 

For Amartey and Ward I still dont think they r good. They didnt make fatal mistakes against poor sides, but the poor sides didnt give them enough pressure to force them into mistakes. Easy to keep CSs when u face only 3 shots on target in 2 matches so CS isnt really telling a lot. 

[francis39]

16 hours ago, Fox92 said:

I'm pleased with three home games without losing or without conceding.

 

However Leeds and Forest were both terrible. Not sure who was worse.

Palace weren't great and any decent side would've beaten them. Same applies to Bournemouth, Southampton and Brentford.

Should've got a point at Spurs, Chelsea and Man Utd at the very least. All big names but all three were ordinary on the day.

I can accept defeat to Brighton on the day, although it'd be obviously different playing them now.

Arsenal were far better than us.

 

We should now be getting something from Molinuex on Sunday, starting with a clean sheet.

Leeds is a great side at home but absymal away from home. CP as well. Wolves is a fine side at home. 

Forest is shit everywhere. 

Everton and WHU r tough to beat/draw at home

Edited 21 October 2022 by francis39

[francis39]

6 hours ago, Arriba Los Zorros said:

We're still shite and can only pick up points in games where the opposition self-destruct.

 

However to give him his due Brendan has decided to be a little more pragmatic and stopped us being the ones who self destruct which is a start. So it means we are in a position to draw or win games where we'd have beaten ourselves before.

 

I'll take anything that gets us 17th right now. Then we can **** him off in the summer and start again with a proper manager.

I would rather like winning 0 out of next 12 points (that's not impossible, we have never collected a point away from home this season and we are going to have 3 away games in 4, and the remaining one is vs city at home), then the owner has no choice but to fire rodgers.

[Skid_1884]

People seem to forget the manner of the defeats which was the biggest issue for me.

 

Still far from turning the corner, we haven’t won more than one game in a row yet although the clean sheets are promising.

[Happy Fox]

With a competent manager we would be doing a damn site better our players are good enough to be in the top 7 in the league , we have regressed under Brendan. The sooner he leaves the better in my view. I appreciate what he has done but it’s clear this cycle has ended. It would be best for both parties if we parted ways.

[francis39]

2 hours ago, Skid_1884 said:

People seem to forget the manner of the defeats which was the biggest issue for me.

 

Still far from turning the corner, we haven’t won more than one game in a row yet although the clean sheets are promising.

The issue is that we actually only defeated some minnow teams, at home, and they had awful offence so the CSs r quite easily won. 

That people r saying as if Ward has become a competent goalkeeper and Faes has been great is ridiculous. Dont forget we lost the previous match away from home to Bournemouth with errors from Faes and Ward. 

[francis39]

15 hours ago, Col city fan said:

I think we need to be sceptical of the slight upturn in form. I know that sounds negative but it’s how I feel.

We sit where we sit in the league, having played four, theoretically, very average sides at this level.

It’s NOW I think we’ll soon know how the season is going to pan out. Pick up a few points from the next few fixtures and it’s looking more likely we’d stay up. But lose the next few and we are very much in a relegation battle.

Though it sounds a little dramatic, I think the period from now until the World Cup will pretty much define our season.

i agree. It is just the incentive of our tough fixtures at the beginning of the season. 

Form is temporary, class is permanent. We may have higher confidence now after defeating some minnows, but Im afraid  the likes of Ward Amartey and Faes are more incapable than lacked confidence. 

[francis39]

16 hours ago, Pick Good Name Later said:

This.

 

We’ve secured points against teams with zero ambition to get at us in Palace and Leeds. Who let’s face it were an embarrassing excuse for a FPL team. If forest had a striker who could have hit a barn door that result would have also been different.

 

Teams that show any inclination to get at us, be aggressive and press, we fold.

 

For me it’s not about comparing the severity of fixtures, whether we’ve improved at the back, whether we score ‘the best team goal this season’ ‘we’ve turned a corner’ or whatever overused footballing phrase that is thrown out there. 
 

The pattern is the same. A change is needed. And quickly. 

An average striker like Solanke would have grabbed 3 points for Forest

[Arriba Los Zorros]

9 hours ago, francis39 said:

I would rather like winning 0 out of next 12 points (that's not impossible, we have never collected a point away from home this season and we are going to have 3 away games in 4, and the remaining one is vs city at home), then the owner has no choice but to fire rodgers.

I see your point here but losing our next 4 would put us in a terrible situation, cut off at the bottom and even with a new manager there's a good chance we go down 

 

No the focus has got to be on winning games with or without BR starting Wolves tomorrow. Stay in the league then reassess!! 

[BKLFox]

FT does confuse me sometimes as I’m constantly told we are the shittest team in the league then when we gain points it’s because the opposition is shit and when we lose points ooh we can’t even beat this shit.

 

The only game where I thought we were utter garbage and gave up was Brighton. In the main we have been in every game, even the Spurs game at 3:2 it could have gone our way but pushing for the equaliser it let them lump quick ball up to a Son that had a point to prove, that was not a 6:2 game.

 

We have outscored both Chelsea and Man U who occupy 4th & 5th and despite losing every away fixture so far, only Arsenal and Man C (1st & 2nd) have scored more on their travels than us.

 

FT can lay blame solely at the feet of Rodgers and yes he has played his part but for me lapses in concentration, poor passing, not winning individual battles and just poor basic defending are the reasons we are where we are.

Something has happened at the training ground since the international break and the Forest win and green shoots of something have appeared, individually players seem to working harder and there’s a better togetherness which is seen after every crunching tackle, clearance, save and not just reserved for goal celebrations.

The set piece coach has obviously made a difference we don’t look like rabbits in headlights on corners anymore, still not perfect but I don’t think ok here we go again anymore.

 

There are 5pts between us in 19th and 11th place, 6pts to 10th and looking at form there is a green arrow pointing up against us whilst red arrows pointing down for all other clubs from 14th position, a good result tomorrow would see us out the bottom 3 and given other teams fixtures potentially even propel us to 14th even a draw could see us out the bottom 3.

I think I read that form guide has us 10th after these last 5 games or so, whilst the football hasn’t been overly entertaining not sure I care or if it’s needed just yet as long as we get results.

I’d like to think by the WC we are clear of the drop and even pushing into top 10 as other clubs start to go through their wobble period.

[ithuriel]

On 21/10/2022 at 03:51, francis39 said:

The backline just couldnt handle strong offence. 

Was more the case that on a very hot day, they made 5 subs and we made only 1, we looked shot halfway through the second half and Brendan just did nothing. Two points thrown away, against Southampton though, after taking the lead we collapsed, trying to defend a one goal lead and being unable to.