Leicester Pompey Post Match Thread

[Happy Fox]

At least tomorrow we can get rid of the deadwood

[Kitchandro]

That's 3 home game against Peterbro, Ipswich and Pompey, all teams in the bottom half and not one win from any of them, any way you look at it that's just diabolical.

You can attempt to pick out individuals if you choose. Say this player did a little better than than that player but the fact is no one looked like they gave a fook today. At one point midway through the 2nd half Konch was taking a throw in from the halfway line. Took him about 30 seconds because he had no one to throw it too, no one moving, trying to give him an option, nothing! All just standing around looking bored. Sums it up really.

Well said

[seenitall]

Pretty much all of Narboroughs post is wrong

[Kitchandro]

Thing is though, he may of ran the game but he ran it so slowly there was no point in him being there. The chance he had in the first half when he took a touch when he could of whacked and in the end took to much time before laying it off to Abe (who was phenomenal) just showed how much we were lacking in creativity.

Mills? Aye, his distribution is laughable. My team-mates have better distribution and he doesn't cost £5 million and isn't on 20k a week.

[MrFox781]

Useless.

[Libertine Dream]

Wrong Comment at the wrong time.

[inckley fox]

I actually spotted a few very good passes by Mills, who I thought may have edged it as our man-of-the-match. Certainly would have sealed it over Abe.

Very true about Schlupp in the air - definitely out-leapt big men a few times. There were glimpses of a good player there, but when the delivery from defence and midfield is as poor as ours, it's asking a lot of your forwards to make something out of it.

I agree that the key to success is to avoid short-termism. The loans and 25+ year old signings (and all of Sven's permanent signings were 25+) should be few and far between, and not be the usual 'never won anything in their lives' variety. I'd like to see that this money we're spending is an investment for the future rather than money blown on has-beens like Danns / Konchesky or never-gonna-bes like Bamba / St. Ledger.

I thought the players responded when the atmosphere got restless today, but remember that being vocal with our dissatisfaction is fine (in spite of what the 'prawn sandwich fan' tends to say, it's better than being deathly silent) but calling for the manager to go after nine, ten, even twenty games would be premature. We need to remember that quite a lot happened to NP's Leicester team between June 2010 and November 2011 and this turn for the worse was underway long before he got back on board. We've had twelve managers since O'Neill, now is the time to stabilise. If we can afford to wait another year or two before we go up then that's better than going back to where we were in 2007-08 when we also tried to rush things.

But, putting stability to one side for just a moment, we need some changes. People keep telling each other not to exaggerate about how bad they are, but if you were unfortunate enough to see the likes of Colin Gordon then you'll know full well that we only remember him, or Brian Carey or Michael Trotter, because they were bad players in a successful team. A lot of these guys, on the other hand, have a sort of Craig Hignett / Gareth Williams glow about them.

And Colin Gordon scored two perfectly good goals in the ZDS cup against Port Vale back in '91!

[Narborough_fox]

What? In the first 45 minutes I think he won absolutely everything. Yes he faded in the 2nd half but who didn't and the way that King and Wellens were poor may of made him look better but overall we were an absolute shambles and until Pearson drops both Wellens and King we aren't going to do anything.

[Kitchandro]

I think we should rename King 'The Amazing King'. Not because he's any good but because he magically disappears all the while.

It's like he's purposefully trying to be no where near the ball.

[Kitchandro]

What? In the first 45 minutes I think he won absolutely everything. Yes he faded in the 2nd half but who didn't and the way that King and Wellens were poor may of made him look better but overall we were an absolute shambles and until Pearson drops both Wellens and King we aren't going to do anything.

Phenomenal is a gross overstatement.

He was better than King and Wellens no doubt on account of a good first half and the fact they were atrocious, but some his attempts at tackles were laughable, and in the second half it was like there was a force field around him which wouldn't let the ball stay near his feet, it just bounced off him and he gave it away countless times.

It was typical Abe, some impressive bits of play but then a little boy lost at others.

[seenitall]

I actually spotted a few very good passes by Mills, who I thought may have edged it as our man-of-the-match. Certainly would have sealed it over Abe.

Very true about Schlupp in the air - definitely out-leapt big men a few times. There were glimpses of a good player there, but when the delivery from defence and midfield is as poor as ours, it's asking a lot of your forwards to make something out of it.

I agree that the key to success is to avoid short-termism. The loans and 25+ year old signings (and all of Sven's permanent signings were 25+) should be few and far between, and not be the usual 'never won anything in their lives' variety. I'd like to see that this money we're spending is an investment for the future rather than money blown on has-beens like Danns / Konchesky or never-gonna-bes like Bamba / St. Ledger.

I thought the players responded when the atmosphere got restless today, but remember that being vocal with our dissatisfaction is fine (in spite of what the 'prawn sandwich fan' tends to say, it's better than being deathly silent) but calling for the manager to go after nine, ten, even twenty games would be premature. We need to remember that quite a lot happened to NP's Leicester team between June 2010 and November 2011 and this turn for the worse was underway long before he got back on board. We've had twelve managers since O'Neill, now is the time to stabilise. If we can afford to wait another year or two before we go up then that's better than going back to where we were in 2007-08 when we also tried to rush things.

But, putting stability to one side for just a moment, we need some changes. People keep telling each other not to exaggerate about how bad they are, but if you were unfortunate enough to see the likes of Colin Gordon then you'll know full well that we only remember him, or Brian Carey or Michael Trotter, because they were bad players in a successful team. A lot of these guys, on the other hand, have a sort of Craig Hignett / Gareth Williams glow about them.

And Colin Gordon scored two perfectly good goals in the ZDS cup against Port Vale back in '91!

Agreed

[dave the caveman]

I can draw positives from that performance and fully understand the position we're in and the mess that needs sorting out. NP spoke about changing players mentality after the Doncaster game but to me the fans also need their mentality changing. Today from the minute the players walked out the crowd was flat, clueless and some lacked passion, all things that people have said about the players. And as the game went on and the lack of quality on the pitch diminished the fans, instead of backing there team, threw abuse at certain players, cheered substitutions and made the atmosphere all the more negative, the Pompey players seized on this, used it to their advantage and our lot crawled into their shell, not surprising really. Although funny, the chant of 'How **** must you be, we're drawing at home' is not helpful at this moment in time. Then after the game Stringer adds to the frustration by asking pathetic, poorly worded to NP which riled him and again added more negativity and frustration to an already awful atmosphere around the club. The fans need to start getting behind the team, lifting the pressure and negativity, so all fans and players can start enjoying themselves again, just as happened last January when we went on a good run after gathering heart from great performances vs Man City. I know the style of football doesn't help, but that is how it is and will get better when more balance is added to the squad. So get behind the team and enjoy games rather than creating the tense atmosphere that was there today. Look at the positives, one being Beckford when he came on, he isn't going to run around lots but give him a ball to run onto and he will create something, one day he may get a referee that gives him the decision to lift his confidence. Not just the penalty but his shoulder barge on Mattock was legit and perfect.

Next game Abe and Danns must start together in the middle, thought Abe did his job excellently today.

So you're blaming the fans, referees and Ian Stringer? Nothing to do with crap players and management at all, then? If only we had loud, blindly supportive fans, great referees and a more charismatic interviewer on local radio everything would be alright.

[Callabinho]

I can't help but blame Pearson for today, his tactics again left me scratching me head, the midfield was so lightweight we may aswell put the spice girls in there, why oh why should Paul Konchesky have to stand there with his hands out as if to say where are you? Pompy toyed with us and if they were more clinical they could have finished us off. We were just so uninspiring today it was unreal, I thought beckford showed a few decent touches, as for that misplaced pass, if we had a midfield somebody would have got that. The player we needed is currently sorting a move out to Udinese... Overal conclusion Sven shouldn't have been sacked.

[Kitchandro]

So you're blaming the fans, referees and Ian Stringer? Nothing to do with crap players and management at all, then? If only we had loud, blindly supportive fans, great referees and a more charismatic interviewer on local radio everything would be alright.

It's always the fans fault.

I doubt it will be down to us if Nigel sorts it out this season or next though.

[simtacular]

As I now live in Newcastle, today was one of the few opportunities to get down to the KP.

I have been following city via stringer etc. and wanted to see this 'dire' midfield for myself.

I have a few points to make from watching the game:

1. We look defensively weak, every time they came forward they looked threatening because we gave them so much space, hence how we conceded. Individually they are all very good players but they just didn't seem to play together at the back as a unit and there were even mix ups between them and kasper which almost cost us dearly.

2. King really does go missing. Yes he marks up one of their players and I suppose this helps prevent a forward pass but that's not what I want to see from a midfield player. I want the opposition worrying about him because we all know he's a talented lad. Just seems to be wasted at the moment.

3. Schlupp had a decent game today. Was good to see him hogging the touch line trying to create some width. His touch could have been better at times but that would come with games under his belt, which I hopes he gets.

4. Abe did well also. The amount of times I clapped him for reading the play and getting a foot in was numerous. Our attacking play seemed to always start through him too. The downside to Yuki is his physical weakness, the wind could knock this lad down.

5. Wellens was very wasteful with the ball which was frustrating. One memorable moment to demonstrate this was when he tried to chip the keeper from just inside their half when he had runners!

6. Nugent had a decent game, always willing to put the effort in, took his goal well but just needs more support.

7. Beckford looked sharp when he came on but also looks very lazy at the same time. Good pieces of skill on ocassion but doesn't seem to have much of a footballing brain. Hopefully he will come good if he's here come feb.

8. Atmosphere wasn't terrible, was fearing worse.

9. Didn't look like the players were giving their all towards the cause. This is heartbreaking and very frustrating to see because Pompey were there for the taking today. I for one would love to play for the team I love and want to see more passion from the players.

[inckley fox]

Some people on here are seriously praising Konchesky's performance...

I'm out of the country at the moment and had to watch that on TV and everyone around me was laughing about how bad he is, and the Sky commentators pointed this out too, saying that he could have cost us two goals early on too. As a defender, even if everything else you do is just swell, the sort of mistakes he's made early on in the past two games won't do.

Oh, and he failed to keep with his man for their goal too, which was a combination of Konchesky and the other defender who, in the eyes of some people, can do no wrong (Mr Bamba) contriving to throw away a goal when we're otherwise on top.

King was absent, Gallagher put in effective but one-dimensional dead balls and chickened out of every challenge, Wellens failed to do anything of note, Schlupp looked promising but faded. Schmeichel was poor for the second game running.

If you ignore the names of the players we're criticising in this thread, it's noticeable that many of the criticisms (tactical negativity aside) are interchangeable and are linked to apathy, poor positional discipline and a lack of concentration... all of which now seem to pervade the entire side. We're looking for our positives in individual players, but the horrible truth is that - as a group - this is a very poor team which, having finally gelled, has betrayed itself to be far worse than it was when we first plonked them all together.

At least we've become consistent, though.

[HEGGSY]

Frustrating

That's all I have to say on the matter

Oh wait...that referee needs to take a good look at himself how the fvck was that not a penalty, I'm not blaming just the ref, we only have ourselves to blame.

[Kitchandro]

I can't help but blame Pearson for today, his tactics again left me scratching me head, the midfield was so lightweight we may aswell put the spice girls in there, why oh why should Paul Konchesky have to stand there with his hands out as if to say where are you? Pompy toyed with us and if they were more clinical they could have finished us off. We were just so uninspiring today it was unreal, I thought beckford showed a few decent touches, as for that misplaced pass, if we had a midfield somebody would have got that. The player we needed is currently sorting a move out to Udinese... Overal conclusion Sven shouldn't have been sacked.

This has been happening all season, under Sven too, the midfielders are a disgrace, none of them want the ball and none of them want to take responsibility. They want to shift the pressure on to the defence and make them hoof it and take the stick. They also don't track back and we wonder why they are outnumbered and struggling to defend?

I can't say the defenders weren't crap today but they get little help. The strikers could argue the same.

Fernandes played some games didn't he? And we played crap in some of them as well didn't we? A decent player he is, a committed player he's not, the answer to all our midfield problems he isn't either.

I still have more faith in Nigel than I did Sven.

[MikeyT]

Terrible stuff, we'll exempt Abe, Nugent, perhaps Gallagher, and Bamba in the second half. Mills the worst, looked totally uninterested in playing. Also time to replace Wellens as the midfield general, looked past it, unfortunately Danns hardly looks much of a replacement.

I thought Abe and Konchesky were really good today, the rest...were a bit...well...meh.

[Bob Weasel Fox]

As I now live in Newcastle, today was one of the few opportunities to get down to the KP.

I have been following city via stringer etc. and wanted to see this 'dire' midfield for myself.

I have a few points to make from watching the game:

1. We look defensively weak, every time they came forward they looked threatening because we gave them so much space, hence how we conceded. Individually they are all very good players but they just didn't seem to play together at the back as a unit and there were even mix ups between them and kasper which almost cost us dearly.

2. King really does go missing. Yes he marks up one of their players and I suppose this helps prevent a forward pass but that's not what I want to see from a midfield player. I want the opposition worrying about him because we all know he's a talented lad. Just seems to be wasted at the moment.

3. Schlupp had a decent game today. Was good to see him hogging the touch line trying to create some width. His touch could have been better at times but that would come with games under his belt, which I hopes he gets.

4. Abe did well also. The amount of times I clapped him for reading the play and getting a foot in was numerous. Our attacking play seemed to always start through him too. The downside to Yuki is his physical weakness, the wind could knock this lad down.

5. Wellens was very wasteful with the ball which was frustrating. One memorable moment to demonstrate this was when he tried to chip the keeper from just inside their half when he had runners!

6. Nugent had a decent game, always willing to put the effort in, took his goal well but just needs more support.

7. Beckford looked sharp when he came on but also looks very lazy at the same time. Good pieces of skill on ocassion but doesn't seem to have much of a footballing brain. Hopefully he will come good if he's here come feb.

8. Atmosphere wasn't terrible, was fearing worse.

9. Didn't look like the players were giving their all towards the cause. This is heartbreaking and very frustrating to see because Pompey were there for the taking today. I for one would love to play for the team I love and want to see more passion from the players.

Well said

[Kitchandro]

Some people on here are seriously praising Konchesky's performance...

I'm out of the country at the moment and had to watch that on TV and everyone around me was laughing about how bad he is, and the Sky commentators pointed this out too, saying that he could have cost us two goals early on too. As a defender, even if everything else you do is just swell, the sort of mistakes he's made early on in the past two games won't do.

Oh, and he failed to keep with his man for their goal too, which was a combination of Konchesky and the other defender who, in the eyes of some people, can do no wrong (Mr Bamba) contriving to throw away a goal when we're otherwise on top.

King was absent, Gallagher put in effective but one-dimensional dead balls and chickened out of every challenge, Wellens failed to do anything of note, Schlupp looked promising but faded. Schmeichel was poor for the second game running.

If you ignore the names of the players we're criticising in this thread, it's noticeable that many of the criticisms (tactical negativity aside) are interchangeable and are linked to apathy, poor positional discipline and a lack of concentration... all of which now seem to pervade the entire side. We're looking for our positives in individual players, but the horrible truth is that - as a group - this is a very poor team which, having finally gelled, has betrayed itself to be far worse than it was when we first plonked them all together.

At least we've become consistent, though.

He was marking 2 players at the back post, wtf is he supposed to do?

He was easily our most solid defender today and passed to his teammates better than anyone.

Fair point about the errors in general though, i do think he's mostly good but then he'll make a silly mistake or get skinned which often seems costly.

Today though I don't think he deserves much stick.

[Kitchandro]

As I now live in Newcastle, today was one of the few opportunities to get down to the KP.

I have been following city via stringer etc. and wanted to see this 'dire' midfield for myself.

I have a few points to make from watching the game:

1. We look defensively weak, every time they came forward they looked threatening because we gave them so much space, hence how we conceded. Individually they are all very good players but they just didn't seem to play together at the back as a unit and there were even mix ups between them and kasper which almost cost us dearly.

2. King really does go missing. Yes he marks up one of their players and I suppose this helps prevent a forward pass but that's not what I want to see from a midfield player. I want the opposition worrying about him because we all know he's a talented lad. Just seems to be wasted at the moment.

3. Schlupp had a decent game today. Was good to see him hogging the touch line trying to create some width. His touch could have been better at times but that would come with games under his belt, which I hopes he gets.

4. Abe did well also. The amount of times I clapped him for reading the play and getting a foot in was numerous. Our attacking play seemed to always start through him too. The downside to Yuki is his physical weakness, the wind could knock this lad down.

5. Wellens was very wasteful with the ball which was frustrating. One memorable moment to demonstrate this was when he tried to chip the keeper from just inside their half when he had runners!

6. Nugent had a decent game, always willing to put the effort in, took his goal well but just needs more support.

7. Beckford looked sharp when he came on but also looks very lazy at the same time. Good pieces of skill on ocassion but doesn't seem to have much of a footballing brain. Hopefully he will come good if he's here come feb.

8. Atmosphere wasn't terrible, was fearing worse.

9. Didn't look like the players were giving their all towards the cause. This is heartbreaking and very frustrating to see because Pompey were there for the taking today. I for one would love to play for the team I love and want to see more passion from the players.

Good post

[Libertine Dream]

So you're blaming the fans, referees and Ian Stringer? Nothing to do with crap players and management at all, then? If only we had loud, blindly supportive fans, great referees and a more charismatic interviewer on local radio everything would be alright.

It's the atmosphere that is created, which doesn't help, the football on the pitch is naff and the performances are terrible but the fans aren't helping the matter by constantly moaning.

All you did was take a few things I said and claim I 100% blame that, just tried to take some of the players and management as our situation isn't the greatest.

[inckley fox]

Fernandes played some games didn't he? And we played crap in some of them as well didn't we? A decent player he is, a committed player he's not, the answer to all our midfield problems he isn't either.

I still have more faith in Nigel than I did Sven.

I disagree with you re: Konchesky, but this about sums up my feelings on the whole Fernandes issue and, for that matter, on Pearson too.

And yes,the lack of protection for the defence is largely a midfield issue too. We outnumbered their midfield today, but their four totally out-ran and out-muscled our five. I think I understand why people are raving about a largely ineffectual performance from Abe - it's the relief at seeing someone who can actually be bothered. King is anonymous because he chooses to be anonymous by shadowing players rather than getting the foot in and then sticking with them rather than making runs into space. Maybe a loan to League One / a lower Championship club would do him good, as opposed to a 'panic-sell'.

[Tielemans63]

What a ****ing mess. Only city could spend 15 mill and come out a worse side. NP has got a huge job on his hands.