The Championship Thread 2023/2024

[goose2010]

1 hour ago, Pliskin said:

Come on, I’ve predicted one or two wins!

Exactly pretty much every week you predict a loss

[Pliskin]

30 minutes ago, goose2010 said:

Exactly pretty much every week you predict a loss

Spencer would have other things to say! 

[Pliskin]

 

 

**** it. 

[ARM1968]

1 hour ago, goose2010 said:

Exactly pretty much every week you predict a loss

It’s working. Don’t knock it you fool. 

[Lillehamring]

10 hours ago, Les-TA-Jon said:

 

 

Just updated this. As I've said before, a few weeks back, by the end of MW 38, I think the gap between the top 4 will have shrunk right down. Ipswich and Leeds have an opportunity to really close the gap. 

 

 

But if we navigate the next 5 without the wheels coming off, and keep calm on the back of some 'bad' results, then we've the opportunity in the final 8 games to pull away again. 

 

Even if we do something like W8 D3 L2 (to Leeds and Southampton) we finish on 105. 

 

Ipswich and Leeds can only get 108 with max points

Southampton can only get 106 with max points

 

And they can't all do that since they all play each other

Appreciate the work, but i think it might be more interesting to break it into three (1-8, 9-16, 7-24) as those seem to be the 'pushing for play-offs', 'nothing to play for' & 'relegation dog fight' brackets - unless you have your own, better logic.

[Lillehamring]

7 hours ago, bovril said:

Yeah after posting that I realized the difference between us and Ipswich is greater than I thought. But still I think GD can swing quicker than people realize.

Sure, but it usually relies on a series of heavy wins and/or defeats.

 

Edited 21 February by Lillehamring

[Lillehamring]

6 hours ago, ClaphamFox said:

I honestly don't know where this stuff about us not having any fight is coming from. I really don't. There have been plenty of games this season where we've had to scrap our way to a win despite not playing well. We did it just recently at Watford. The reason we've won more games than anybody else is because we win in different ways - sometimes by completely outplaying the opposition, sometimes by battling harder than them. We do both.

We're not going to win every game and even in the games we've lost we've been in it until the end. We were fighting desperately on Saturday and could easily have got a point or three with better finishing. Where has this perception that we can't fight come from?

You can actually go even further than that and say that the only time we've lost games is when we've had trouble with shooting accuracy:

 

Hull - 21 shots, 1 on target

Leeds - 10 - 1

Boro - 12- 4

Cov - 8 - 4 (bit of course totally different reason for losing that one.

Boro - 24 - 2

 

In a sense, no one has really 'beaten' us, we've only really beaten ourselves.

 

[Saintquin]

Well I didn't enjoy last night one little bit!

Oh well shit happens!!!! 

[Vazman]

6 hours ago, ClaphamFox said:

You're probably right that it stems from the Rodgers era. But we have a different manager now and a largely different team. At no point this season has the team showed the kind of mental fragility and tactical confusion that it showed under Rodgers. I understand that the scars run deep, but people seriously need to let go of the Rodgers era...

Agreed, and I for one will hopefully see this being done Friday, in what will be our toughest away fixture, I desperately want us to win, for so many reasons, will be nice to read positivity in the Post Match thread, and a great start to the weekend, as well as give us an even bigger points advantage.

[Vazman]

7 hours ago, whoareyaaa said:

I think it stems from when Rodgers was in charge and we blew two chances of being in the Champions League and then eventually got relegated.

 

I think Enzo will not allow us to fall into that rot that Rodgers could never get us out of.

It's clear Rodgers gave up, which rubbed off on the team, the only crime, is he was allowed  to remain as long as he did, which led to the avoidable relegation. 

 

I dont know Enzo but he doesn't strike me as a manager that will accept anything but the best from his players, all the time, and I am sure he is as annoyed as anyone else that we missed 3 or 4 sitters v Boro, but wont allow it to bother the team, he will want to beat Leeds, I am sure he realises the importance of doing so, and what it will mean, i really think the team will pull out a blinder, wont be easy but Leicester 2 Leeds 1, Fatawu and Vardy to score.

[FrankieADZ]

2 hours ago, Lillehamring said:

You can actually go even further than that and say that the only time we've lost games is when we've had trouble with shooting accuracy:

 

Hull - 21 shots, 1 on target

Leeds - 10 - 1

Boro - 12- 4

Cov - 8 - 4 (bit of course totally different reason for losing that one.

Boro - 24 - 2

 

In a sense, no one has really 'beaten' us, we've only really beaten ourselves.

 

thats what ive said tbf about our defeats this season, if we had been better infront of goal on them days we would have got at least a point, maybe more

[Simonb]

22 minutes ago, FrankieADZ said:

thats what ive said tbf about our defeats this season, if we had been better infront of goal on them days we would have got at least a point, maybe more

Exactly this. Start Vardy Friday, be clinical and we'll be fine.

Been a bit sloppy of late, time for a decent run again now

[Wigston Tractor Boy]

7 hours ago, trugerkem said:

Just an aside ….. in the 1980/81 season Aston Villa won the league using only 14 players the entire season …. Last night Ipswich used 17 players at home to Rotherham … how times change 

Modern game with 5 subs is all about rotation, plus bigger squads. When Ipswich won the league in 61/62, they only used 17 players with 6 of those played 5 games or less (1 only actually played in the cup and made no league appearances).

 

My fav stat of that era is that Sir Bobby Robson only signed 14 players in his 13 year spell as Ipswich boss (69-82). I've just tallied up and Kieran McKenna is already tied with him after 2 years! Can't imagine modern football fans could cope with only signing 1 player a year.

[LCFCJohn]

12 hours ago, trugerkem said:

Just an aside ….. in the 1980/81 season Aston Villa won the league using only 14 players the entire season …. Last night Ipswich used 17 players at home to Rotherham … how times change 

This made me wonder about ourselves in 2015/16. Only 23 used in total over the season but this included Joe Dodoo (one appearance) and Kramaric (2). In fact there were 4 (Benalouane and Wasiliewski) who were under 5 appearances which is the requirements to have contributed enough for a medal.

 

Given is so recent and in modern football, that’s very impressive too!

Edited 22 February by LCFCJohn

[SystonFox]

didnt Wasyl get given a medal?

[LCFCJohn]

8 minutes ago, SystonFox said:

didnt Wasyl get given a medal?

I don’t think he was entitled to one but think we may have paid for him to have one or had one made or something, to acknowledge his involvement.

[Les-TA-Jon]

14 hours ago, Lillehamring said:

Appreciate the work, but i think it might be more interesting to break it into three (1-8, 9-16, 7-24) as those seem to be the 'pushing for play-offs', 'nothing to play for' & 'relegation dog fight' brackets - unless you have your own, better logic.

 

New version. It's tricky though because are the bottom third 'easiest = green' or should they be amber for 'yeah they're bad and down there for a reason but they'll be scrapping to avoid relegation' 

 

There's an argument to say that it's the middle third that should be green for 'easiest' fixtures as they have less to play for. 

 

This is what that looks like:

 

 

Ahhhhh I think it might be better to just subscribe to the 'no easy games in the Championship' cliche! 

 

Will be a lot of twists and turns yet!

[LVFox]

1 hour ago, Les-TA-Jon said:

 

This is what that looks like:

 

 

Ahhhhh I think it might be better to just subscribe to the 'no easy games in the Championship' cliche! 

 

Will be a lot of twists and turns yet!

A real chance that after Norwich we only play 1 match where teams have anything to play for. Maybe Milwall and Plymouth.

 

[FoyleFox]

3 hours ago, SystonFox said:

didnt Wasyl get given a medal?

 

3 hours ago, LCFCJohn said:

I don’t think he was entitled to one but think we may have paid for him to have one or had one made or something, to acknowledge his involvement.

He did, yes. We requested one. I mean, would you have wanted to be the one to tell him he wasn't getting one?!!

[NZ_Foxile]

4 hours ago, Les-TA-Jon said:

 

New version. It's tricky though because are the bottom third 'easiest = green' or should they be amber for 'yeah they're bad and down there for a reason but they'll be scrapping to avoid relegation' 

 

There's an argument to say that it's the middle third that should be green for 'easiest' fixtures as they have less to play for. 

 

This is what that looks like:

 

 

Ahhhhh I think it might be better to just subscribe to the 'no easy games in the Championship' cliche! 

 

Will be a lot of twists and turns yet!

Looks like a Championship Facebook page has copied @Les-TA-Jon!

[Lambert09]

4 hours ago, Les-TA-Jon said:

 

New version. It's tricky though because are the bottom third 'easiest = green' or should they be amber for 'yeah they're bad and down there for a reason but they'll be scrapping to avoid relegation' 

 

There's an argument to say that it's the middle third that should be green for 'easiest' fixtures as they have less to play for. 

 

This is what that looks like:

 

 

Ahhhhh I think it might be better to just subscribe to the 'no easy games in the Championship' cliche! 

 

Will be a lot of twists and turns yet!

edit i had a mare 

Edited 22 February by Lambert09

[Les-TA-Jon]

55 minutes ago, NZ_Foxile said:

Looks like a Championship Facebook page has copied @Les-TA-Jon!

With a nonsensical and unintuitive colour system I might add!

[Spudulike]

Oops, wrong thread 

Edited 22 February by Spudulike

[Lillehamring]

5 hours ago, Les-TA-Jon said:

 

New version. It's tricky though because are the bottom third 'easiest = green' or should they be amber for 'yeah they're bad and down there for a reason but they'll be scrapping to avoid relegation' 

 

There's an argument to say that it's the middle third that should be green for 'easiest' fixtures as they have less to play for. 

 

This is what that looks like:

 

 

Ahhhhh I think it might be better to just subscribe to the 'no easy games in the Championship' cliche! 

 

Will be a lot of twists and turns yet!

I don't think it's necessary to allocate a level of difficulty, but really to give some perspective of the position of the opponents.  Thanks for doing it.

 

Looking at it - there's a reasonable argument to say we have the easiest last two games, given that preston and blackburn aren't likely to have much to play for - everyone else will be playing teams that may still be involved in relegation or the playoffs.

 

Mind you, as you say, this can change dramatically every week.

[Lillehamring]

Opta prediction:

 

 

NB: The predictions are calculated for a team’s remaining fixtures based on the strength of the respective sides and simulating each of those games thousands of times to calculate an average of their forecasted finishes. 

Edited 22 February by Lillehamring