Ipswich 5 United 0 - report/ratings

[Bell4]

I thought in the first half, we controlled the play without ever really looking to get past their defence and created very little.
Ipswich were well organised and looked to hit us on the counter and were very effective in doing so but could have been nullified if our defenders got closer to their attackers.
At half time, I was messaging family thinking we could get back into it with some changes, not expecting the second half surrender.

I thought Cooper looked a shadow of himself and should have done better with at least 2 of the goals but did make a couple of decent saves.
Burrows had a decent first half with no end product and disappeared in the second half.
McGuinness was, as has been said, slow, cumbersome, poor with his feet and average in the air. Surely Mee/Zatterstrom have more to their game to fill that position?
Tanganga was fairly solid but was being pulled out of position to cover the huge gaps left by McGuinness/Godfrey. Felt sorry for him as he didnt deserve to be so exploited.
Godfrey was atrocious positionally and created problem after problem for himself by giving Philogene 10-20 yards space every time he got the ball and then showed him inside onto his stronger right foot every time. Offered nothing going forward and should have been replaced by Seriki sooner.
Peck was the one trying to make things happen from midfield but rarely had options from players in advanced positions so had to go square/backwards a lot.
Matos did a decent amount of running and made a few good interceptions but was largely ineffective. Unlucky that his attempted interception went straight to Philogene in acres of space.
Barry looks devoid of confidence and it seems that every time he gets it, he either runs straight at a defender and loses it or plays a poor pass to no one in particular. Should not be starting at the moment.
O'Hare cant be faulted for his effort but he, again, is ineffective and creates very little with no one to link up with.
Brooks has the potential to be a fantastic player but isnt showing this and doesnt seem to want to take a player on.
Cannon looked lost up front by himself. He never got into any good positions to receive the ball into the channels to run with the exception of his near post shot and was a virtual passenger until replaced.
The subs didnt improve us any with Hamer not getting into the game and playing a fair few loose passes, Campbell spending more time tracking backwards than going forwards and Chong appearing to not have a position assigned to him.
Seriki didnt have enough time to do anything/have any impact.

Whatever Selles is trying to implement, clearly isnt working and it looks like a lot of the players have checked out/not bought in to the ideas.
I dont think he can recover from this and the owners have some big decisions to make if there is any chance of salvaging anything from the season.
If Selles is in post next weekend, it could get very toxic if we dont show anything positive from the off.

Agree other than Brooks / he’s awful and as has already been said - has the heart of a pea. And that’s being a bit tough on a pea

 

[McGrath]

Such naive tactics away from home against a team with the likes of Philogene in it. Especially with recent results.

Ipswich and McKenna must have thought it was Xmas come early with us turning, playing a high line with ineffectual passing football. They just had to wait (not that long) to pick us off

 

[Working Class Hero]

Can't disagree with any of that Deadbat . Any idea if that's your lowest combined score ever given? It can't be far off!

The most frustrating thing about this season, is how previously good players have looked so poor, and it's not just a one off bad performance now, it's a genuine concern. It's a perfect illustration of how you don't just luck your way to 92 points, football management has many aspects and getting the most out of your players is a massive part of that. Selles clearly can't do that.

 

[SRBlade]

Ref was my MOTM too

Set the tone early by not giving a foul for anything physical. Very refreshing.

 

[Addison]

Where do you start DB. Its a rinse repeat of the previous 5 games. Its insane that the same mistakes are being made and no one has said by now we need to stop this.

Selles position is now untenable. I'm sure some of us feel the same way about the invisible owners. In his short time here RS has transformed top end championship players into confused nervous wrecks incapable of stringing passes together or looking like professional footballers.

I'm convinced now RS and his coaching team are so far out of their depth no one can understand a fucking word they are saying. Formation obsession has caused this mess. Lack of tactical nous and game management is prevalent. Team selection is embarrassing yet this nightmare on the pitch is allowed to continue. If becoming a laughing stock on national TV isn't enough for the owners to take action then nothing will.

Throughout the summer despite changing the manager not one word has been uttered in public by the Board explaining their vison and plan for the Club. We are left to surmise through snippets of information that they are looking to upgrade the football side by appointing a Head Coach supported by the use of AI in recruitment and management of injuries. A modern approach many of us agreed with. The problem is to achieve that you have the right tools in place. Sadly the Club lack the experience to implement this. Why choose an inexperienced head Coach when there is not a Sporting Director in place? Why choose an inexperienced coach when you have dispensed with the services of a successful manager. No one would complain about the change in direction if a better replacement was in situ.

This season only 5 league games old has been an unmitigated disaster. The recruitment mess amplifies the fact no one with football experience has got hold of this perennial failure. Rumours of committee decision making just adds to the angst of the supporters.

In my time supporting SUFC we've had some shocking leaders of the Club. At least occasionally they were seen to be heard and we could agree/disagree with their vision. This lot imo are going to get the record of being the worst in my lifetime unless they kick start into action this week end. Relegation looms and they continue to fiddle while the Club is in flames.

Immediate direct action is needed starting with RS being shown the door. Follow this with a phone call to David Weir and offer him the role of Technical Director with a remit to bring in a new man and change the off field structure. To include recruitment, sports science, medical and a complete overhaul of coaching methods.

Alternatively just sit by the phone disagreeing with each other for days as to the best cause of action whilst the paying customer votes with their feet and organise protests for the Charlton match. Time to show some leadership Mr Rosen and Eltoukhy.

 

[Bell4]

The ref was excellent wasn't he - really good job

 

[anglian blade]

I thought the marks for Peck and O'Hare were a bit harsh in comparison to the others. At least they put themselves about a bit and showed a bit of enthusiasm, while others stood and watched

 

[10p]

PRESSING: It’s impossible to press unless ALL the players do it. How many times did O’Hare press their goalie or defender only to see it passed around him to one of their’s who wasn’t being marked. Brookes and Barry were particularly guilty.

I noticed when we cleared high and Cannon or Campbell were beaten to it and the ball went to their other CB, they just stood next to the guy who’d headed it. Contrast to Ipswich’s Hurst who immediately went after the one who had received it when he was beaten to a header.
Sure Selles must have told the players to press, but with a couple of exceptions (O’Hare and Peck) they just don’t bother.

 

[Karaoke Blade]

PRESSING: It’s impossible to press unless ALL the players do it. How many times did O’Hare press their goalie or defender only to see it passed around him to one of their’s who wasn’t being marked. Brookes and Barry were particularly guilty.

I noticed when we cleared high and Cannon or Campbell were beaten to it and the ball went to their other CB, they just stood next to the guy who’d headed it. Contrast to Ipswich’s Hurst who immediately went after the one who had received it when he was beaten to a header.
Sure Selles must have told the players to press, but with a couple of exceptions (O’Hare and Peck) they just don’t bother.

Brooks and Barry are typical of many players that will never play consistently at the top level. They are simply lazy.

 

[bakeblade]

Such naive tactics away from home against a team with the likes of Philogene in it. Especially with recent results.

Ipswich and McKenna must have thought it was Xmas come early with us turning, playing a high line with ineffectual passing football. They just had to wait (not that long) to pick us off

Quite right, the tactics yesterday should have been to double up on Philogene and take it turns to kick him.
We should have set out to frustrate Ipswich who've had a poor start and their fans have been getting restless.
But no the genius Selles decides to take the game to them and give Philogene the freedom of Portman road

 

[UTB Blade]

United – An absolute shambles in terms of the performance, result and how we imploded so easily. The manager’s time is surely up now? 5 (6 if you count the cup) straight defeats and an absolute hammering tonight must see the board concede his appointment has not worked and make the change. His team selection was bizarre and seemed to almost say I am taking out the big games and if he goes down on my sword, then he does it spectacularly and quite stubbornly. No problem Campbell coming out if Ings was fit but Cannon done nothing to deserve a start and Hamer, as poor as he has been, is our own only real creative element. The first half we actually did ok. Matos was giving us some energy and Tanganga continued to be front foot but we still created nothing. Ipswich had not been great and we had more of the ball but they still created three chances even in this first spell and then the danger sign down our right was not plugged. Philogene gave Godfrey an absolute going over all night and the goal was so easy as he showed him inside and no one came across. The lack of cover when he comes inside was equally pathetic. After this you sensed the heads would drop but we at least stayed in the game till half time but again despite seeing more of the ball than previous games, it was all behind the Ipswich defence with the weak and ineffective Barry, Brooks, Cannon and O’Hare offering nothing of attacking note at all.



After the break, we went 2-0 down relatively early on with another easy goal as Philogene took advantage of Godfrey’s lack of pace and intelligence as he did the same thing again! Then it just fell apart. The third saw errors all over the place and Burrows slice/Cooper’s nutmeg were almost laughable. The fourth then came from more dreadful defending from Godfrey and the 5th was the same man but mistake from Hamer and Soumare in giving the ball away also contributed. The way they simply walked through us all night was embarrassing. Selles will rightly get hammered and the buck does stop with him but the players seem to have given up playing for him and for themselves. Regardless of whether the tactics are bad and he is maybe not motivating them or giving them confidence, the way they sort of walked or ambled back was shameful. They should be embarrassed at their efforts this season – they have looked completely spineless pretty much to a man (maybe Tanganga and Matos escape criticism) but the likes of Cooper, Burrows, Brooks, Peck, O’Hare, Campbell have fallen off a cliff this season and barely look competent Championship players which is incredible to write when they were part of a side that were so close to promotion. The fact they are not doing it will be pointed to the person leading them and managing them but they are going to have really improve their attitude, work rate, and play (passing and control is wretched) when the new man comes in – as if they don’t then who do they blame then? However, going back to the manager, he simply has no idea how to get us into any position to create, let alone score goals. Yet, at the other end, we look wide open. I am not sure how we have managed to be so bad going forward and never looking like scoring (7 hours of football without a goal and barely a shot!) but then looking like conceding every time the opposition with big gaps all over the field. No idea, how we seem to have players miles off each other both with and without the ball. The structure of the team is horrific but this allied to poor decisions, mistakes on the ball and not doing the basics make a perfect recipe for what is happening – us losing every single week and losing easily.



The players look on the floor and they did give up tonight and stopped even running as the final goals showed when several did not even run back. People will talk about Cooper’s poor form and his mistakes (could have been 8 or 9 actually without him – although he should have saved a few too!) or Godfrey’s nightmare performance, or Cannon’s non-existent showing, or Brooks/Barry looking completely not up to it, but when you keep going through every player you are seeing players simply not doing their job. There has to be a change as the longer this goes on, not only does it become even more toxic, but the real threat of going down becomes something that could happen despite this opinion our squad is too good to get relegated – well at the moment we are the worst team in the division by a fair distance on all the metrics and the players are showing no leadership or pride. I was amazed some clapped them at the end – it seemed like at Boro (not there tonight so maybe I misread it) but by clapping them it was as if they were with them but against Selles. I am sorry if I had paid to go down tonight I would not have been so patient with them after their complete capitulation. They should be embarrassed how bad they are playing.



So where do we go from here? If, as expected he is sacked, then I have no idea who we bring in. The talk of Nuno or Dyche is fantasy land. Neither are coming here to this mess. We will probably have to appoint another foreign coach but just hope he has more idea? I see no real outstanding candidate really. I expect they’ll go for Garry O’Neil or Carrick but neither inspire me either. However, whoever comes in, cannot do any worse. It has been an absolute shambles of a start and then the bizarre way we suddenly brought in lots of players pre deadline smacked of more appalling planning and a muddled approach. Many of the players coming in will be thinking what have they let themselves in for?





Ratings:



Cooper 2/10 – 2 seems too high weirdly for someone who let in 5 goals, got nutmegged twice and was badly at fault for the third and maybe some of the others he should have done better. However, he did make 4 or 5 other saves (most standard but a couple decent ones) and was badly exposed again. His form has been really poor. United fans were so convinced he was the best keeper in the league last year but this season he looks miles off that and is really struggling. There are bigger issues than him but is making mistakes with alarming regularity.



Godfrey 1/10 – I considered even less but my marking system normally says you would have to have a nightmare and get sent off/score an own goal. Also, he got no help as terrible as he was. He did not do that but he did little else right all game and was completely embarrassed by Philogene who made him look so poor. I am not sure he a right back at all and showed that tonight as a quick and tricky winger just did what they wanted against him. He was meant to be athletic and quite mobile but tonight looked woefully slow and cumbersome. The first he just let him drift inside but he had done this already and this happened time after time. He never even tackled him or put a body on him all game and just ambled alongside him. Surely after the 2nd or 3rd time, you would know where he was going and try and put him on his other foot? Why was he kept on the pitch? The 5th goal was as bad as it got as Clarke, a different player, brushed him off and then he just gave up. On that performance, a complete and utter waste of the sizeable loan and wages we are paying him – he had done ok in the first few games to be fair.



Burrows 2/10 – Actually, thought he started quite bright and the most far forward we have seen him since that first half v Bristol City but his passing and crossing was poor when he get into some decent positions. After the break, he faded badly and then he started making mistakes as evidenced on the third with the poor control leading to the Hirst goal. After this he started losing his man and just went into his shell like the rest. Shadow of the player from last season and for all the talk of him being a possible Premier League player – looks closer to League One currently than the next level up.



McGuiness 2/10 – He started ok and won a few headers, got to the ball first but then he made a mistake that led to a chance. For much of the rest of the game, reminded of the player I thought he was whenever I have seen him before. Slow, clumsy and easy to turn. He did not really dominate aerially for such a big lad but they played it down the sides more to be fair. Cynical booking and as the game went on, looked really leggy.



Tanganga 4/10 – Our best defender but even he got sucked into the malaise with the rest tonight. A few headers over the bar and a couple of early tackles but as the game went on, he got pulled about too and looked frustrated by the end. He was gesturing at others when goals went in and probably wonders what he has come into? Felt a bit sorry for him as he was making more effort to at least close down and tackle which barely anyone else did all night.



Matos 5/10 – Our best player merely by the fact he just ran around, won a few tackles, and got stuck in. He had a few neat touches and runs early and snapped into them and I thought that is what we need but then he sliced the clearance for the first and he could not keep his energy levels up and trailed off second half. At least some promising signs I suppose but another who was probably wondering what the plan was? Everyone did cry out for a holding midfielder alongside or being Peck. Well, we did that tonight and still got hammered so guess there are more problems than just plugging in a player there?



Peck 2.5/10 – Made captain which is telling considering he was the youngest player out there wasn’t he? He began busy enough but a lot of his efforts seem misguided and he seems a bit of a headless chicken. He does not create anything, never looks likely to be involved in goal chances/attempts of note and rarely gets his foot in and wins tackles like he did last year. Also gets run off the ball too easily. He is a young lad and many others more experienced should be doing more but he has been poor this season. As the game went on, he was throwing his arms around but he looked a forlorn figure. I think he was one of the few who did try and keep running but even he by the end just sort of gave up.



O’Hare 2/10 – Been dreadful this season. Runs around but looks like a young lad rather than an experienced pro and just falls over. Seems to have no idea of his role, what he is supposed to do. When he gets it, his control is poor, he loses it too easily and often just falls over meekly. The ref was just waving him up and I agreed. I liked him last season and though this pressing approach we were supposed to see, would be perfect for him but he looks miles off it. He does not really close down or cause them to cough the ball up but the rare time he has it, he loses it instantly. Another who surely must do better under a new manager?



Barry 2/10 – As with above, looks predictable and pitifully weak. He gets the ball and then just has one trick that defenders read. Gets shoved off the ball and lacks any kind of physicality. He is not fast either. Also, I thought he had some skills/ability to create moments/space but just looks like the league above is too much for him. A poor signing so far and surprised he keeps getting picked as he has offered nothing but that says as much about those behind him.



Brooks 1.5/10 – I thought he was nearly as bad as Godfrey and all night everything he did, he ballsed up. He looks woeful at the moment and I was one calling for him to be a regular starter. He has had a number of chances this season and has been abject in every game. He comes inside all the time, never runs at his man, is one footed and his control/passing (like the rest to be fair) is always bouncing off him. He spooned three crosses behind and then when he had it, he just came back all the time. Sadly, at the moment does not look up to this level and I am really concerned whether he will ever be able to step up. He is another that seems to have the heart of a pea and no fight at all.



Cannon 1.5/10 – I give him a mark as at least he had a shot. The rest of the game he barely moved and was outmuscled in the challenges and just stood stagnant. He had very little service but then he does not move. I watched him when we go wide and he just stood motionless. Those who keep saying he is a poacher/Billy Sharp – what are the basing that on? He never moves. The fact we supposedly nearly moved him out on loan and then end up starting him sums up what a mess Selles approach is. He has been an absolute disaster of a signing. The fact Selles started him tonight summed up his reign.



Subs – Hard to criticise too much as we were 3-0 down but none of these were great either….



Hamer 2/10 – Came on and at least got on the ball a few times but gave the ball away that led to one of their goals and then did it again on the late chance for Szmodics. Amazed he was dropped even if he has started badly- he is still our best player.



Chong 2/10 – No idea where he was even playing – was it right back with Godfrey inside or was he right wing? He seemed to be just another running around but by this time the game was done.



Campbell 2/10 – Did not really have much of the ball to be honest as by this stage it was just about how many they were going to score. He did hold it up twice which was more than Cannon did. Not shocked he was dropped, as he has been poor but if Ings is not fit, then surely he still has to keep his place? Cannot being preferred was ridiculous.



Soumare 2/10 – He was all over the place in terms of his work – he overran the ball twice and one of these moments led to another goal. Took heavy touches and this led to us turning the ball over. As I say, the damage was done. Suppose he at least tried to run forward even if he gave it away!



Seriki – Came on right at the end – should have been brought on a lot sooner.



Manager: Selles 0.5/10 – Still not given 0/10 but today was close! I am marking it for the game rather his overall reign which would be a 0/10 probably! Tonight, he made the big chances and calls and it did not work but then nothing has worked for him. We do not create, do not score, concede, do not win tackles and give up space all over the pitch. We have no organisation, no structure and no plan how we progress with the ball. We have no partnerships, players are miles apart, we look like we have less men than anyone else. I have discussed how his position is untenable. He has come in and simply looks way out of his depth. He lacks personality and seems totally uninspiring but you can live with that if he is coaching them and getting his ideas across but he is not doing anything. He has become a joke now. It is now at the point where it is uncomfortable and even he will probably be glad when they put him out of his misery. His future in the English game will be very uncertain after this you sense. May go down as the only United (permanent manager) not to win a single point before he leaves. Even David Weir, Adrian Heath and Micky Adams won the odd game! I have no idea what he is trying to achieve at all. After the game he came on and just threw out phrases and almost seemed to know his time was up. He seemed resigned to the fact that they may make a change and if they do, they do. His body language was of a man who knows he will not be here much longer. He might be a nice fella and has fronted up – never hid or made excuses but he is simply not up to it. Been a disastrous appointment. As I said before, moving on from Wilder (I would have kept him another year whilst we changed the overall structure, coaching/DOF etc) might not have been the worst idea (although looking like it was now!) but we have backed the wrong horse.





Ipswich – We’re my favourites to go up and their manager/squad seemed more settled than the other two relegated sides. They had retained most of their core albeit losing Delap and a few experienced performers like Morsy and Chaplin. However, they had spent heavily before the end of the window after a start that was nearly as poor as United’s!



I do expect them to be around the automatic places but sometimes like we found with players who came through League One to the Premier League, there can be a burn out or point where players regress to levels they were at before. However, they still possess arguably the deepest squad in the league and I cannot see them any worse than a certain playoff spot.



In terms of the game, they were maybe second best to start but still had chances and then once they led, just blew us away, ruthlessly exploiting our weaknesses and jumping on our fragile confidence. They ended up with an absolute hammering and get their season up and running.



Opponent Man of the Match – Tricky one! Philogene. Superb but made easy but scored three great goals. Rest of team did what they had to and they after the break they ran all over us.



Opponent Weak link – Won 5-0 so hard to really give anyone this mark. Thought Akpom was ineffective though.



Referee / Officials – Farrai Hallam. Thought he was excellent and I admired him more than any of our players. Think he ran about more than most of ours too! He let the game flow, did not fall for players from either side trying to buy free kicks and just thought he let the players play. Really good.

 

[Igor]

I just can’t comment on that debacle, I can’t summon up the strength to process what we’ve all witnessed.

On a lighter note, if that game was a film, it would rank among some of the worst films ever made, like Ed Wood’s “Plan 9 from outer space” or “Attack of the killer tomatoes”.

My particular favorite:

The Creeping Terror (1964)—a true titan of terrible cinema and a cult classic in the “so bad it’s brilliant” category.

• Monster design that resembles a giant shag rug
• Overuse of narration due to lost audio tracks
• Acting so wooden it could be used for kindling
• Plot holes you could drive a spaceship through. (From AI)

We may all look back at this one day and laugh, but I very much doubt it.

 

[Geordie Blade]

Best ref I’ve seen in absolutely ages. He actually let the football happen and didn’t pander to the pathetic dives (both teams) and the fifty-fifties, which he just allowed (great to see).

 

[wadblade]

I am now convinced Cooper is playing through that rumoured injury, he looks a shadow of the keeper he was a year ago. Tonight was Grbic levels bad,

I never thought I’d say it but Adam Davies now has to come into the reckoning for Saturday.

Stole my thunder was going to post the exact same.

I say this with sadness not glee, Cooper hasn’t made a ‘good save’ since before Wembley.

Def cost us the point at Boro and I feel also possibly the result at Wembley.
is he injurered?

 

[wadblade]

The ipswich game actually reminded me of the Bristol game. Only one goal down had actually at times looked like a team and hoping that Hamer coming on would get us back in the game, But in both games 2nd half total collapse Just what did he say to them at half time