Performance wise its not too different to last season

[Sharp as a blade]

8 of our last 9 games have ended in fine margins with a single goal deciding the outcome.

In our last 14 games last season. We scored more than 1 goal in only 3 of them.

We grinded out results but the fine margin wins were never sustainable long term. It reminds me of our first and second seasons in the premier league under Wilder when those 1-0 wins turned to 1-0 losses.

Performance wise we've been dreadful. But we often looked poor last season.

There's no chance creation, no patterns of play and last seasons plan of keep it tight and give it to Hamer isn't working because like the rest of the team, he's miles off it this season.

Beating us is so easy. Defend deep and let us have the ball knowing we won't create anything and then you only need one chance yourself to win the game. On the odd occasion you lose the ball to us on an attack, don't stress, we'll pass it round the defence for a bit and let you get back into position.

Add to that disallowed goals, penalty misses and bad luck. Right now we definitely look like relegation fodder.

These players are miles better than the results suggest. We absolutely have to play two up front and attack faster.

 

[Blade 1971]

8 of our last 9 games have ended in fine margins with a single goal deciding the outcome.

In our last 14 games last season. We scored more than 1 goal in only 3 of them.

We grinded out results but the fine margin wins were never sustainable long term. It reminds me of our first and second seasons in the premier league under Wilder when those 1-0 wins turned to 1-0 losses.

Performance wise we've been dreadful. But we often looked poor last season.

There's no chance creation, no patterns of play and last seasons plan of keep it tight and give it to Hamer isn't working because like the rest of the team, he's miles off it this season.

Beating us is so easy. Defend deep and let us have the ball knowing we won't create anything and then you only need one chance yourself to win the game. On the odd occasion you lose the ball to us on an attack, don't stress, we'll pass it round the defence for a bit and let you get back into position.

Add to that disallowed goals, penalty misses and bad luck. Right now we definitely look like relegation fodder.

These players are miles better than the results suggest. We absolutely have to play two up front and attack faster.

A good appraisal. I'd add that the movement in midfield is awful. Today Peck was trying to do the job of two players with Matsos absolutely static. You just can't compete in today's game with a player whose sole job (it seemed to me) was to wait for the opposition to get the ball and then kick them.

 

[ATL Recs]

8 of our last 9 games have ended in fine margins with a single goal deciding the outcome.

In our last 14 games last season. We scored more than 1 goal in only 3 of them.

We grinded out results but the fine margin wins were never sustainable long term. It reminds me of our first and second seasons in the premier league under Wilder when those 1-0 wins turned to 1-0 losses.

Performance wise we've been dreadful. But we often looked poor last season.

There's no chance creation, no patterns of play and last seasons plan of keep it tight and give it to Hamer isn't working because like the rest of the team, he's miles off it this season.

Beating us is so easy. Defend deep and let us have the ball knowing we won't create anything and then you only need one chance yourself to win the game. On the odd occasion you lose the ball to us on an attack, don't stress, we'll pass it round the defence for a bit and let you get back into position.

Add to that disallowed goals, penalty misses and bad luck. Right now we definitely look like relegation fodder.

These players are miles better than the results suggest. We absolutely have to play two up front and attack faster.

Good post and why we needed a change of direction at the end of last season
I would like to think your reasoning was a factor in the minds of our owners
However they cocked that up ( who advised them on Selles who wasn’t even part of an interview process - they just offered it him)

 

[Davalon]

8 of our last 9 games have ended in fine margins with a single goal deciding the outcome.

In our last 14 games last season. We scored more than 1 goal in only 3 of them.

We grinded out results but the fine margin wins were never sustainable long term. It reminds me of our first and second seasons in the premier league under Wilder when those 1-0 wins turned to 1-0 losses.

Performance wise we've been dreadful. But we often looked poor last season.

There's no chance creation, no patterns of play and last seasons plan of keep it tight and give it to Hamer isn't working because like the rest of the team, he's miles off it this season.

Beating us is so easy. Defend deep and let us have the ball knowing we won't create anything and then you only need one chance yourself to win the game. On the odd occasion you lose the ball to us on an attack, don't stress, we'll pass it round the defence for a bit and let you get back into position.

Add to that disallowed goals, penalty misses and bad luck. Right now we definitely look like relegation fodder.

These players are miles better than the results suggest. We absolutely have to play two up front and attack faster.

Very much agree.

We need a stronger spine imho but we have enough in the squad, despite the imbalances, to be doing better than we are.

The system and set up simply has to change.

 

[Foody]

Couldn't agree more. Last season we relied heavily on some moments of individual brilliance, largely from Hamer, with moments from Campbell and Burrows. We then had a goalkeeper that was on exceptional form that inspired confidence.

The drop in form of Hamer and Cooper effectively removes any competitive advantage that we had. That loss is far bigger than the transfers.

 

[Blades98]

A key issue with this (And I think you nailed the situation) is the Peck Matos midfield. They seemingly aren't able (or don't feel comfortable) breaking lines and playing passes forward. You see an instant improvement when Davies plays. It's far too slow and when hoof it up to Campbell and the 1 in 10 situation he holds it, nobody is up there supporting him. There massive issues going forward.

 

[Sharp as a blade]

A key issue with this (And I think you nailed the situation) is the Peck Matos midfield. They seemingly aren't able (or don't feel comfortable) breaking lines and playing passes forward. You see an instant improvement when Davies plays. It's far too slow and when hoof it up to Campbell and the 1 in 10 situation he holds it, nobody is up there supporting him. There massive issues going forward.

I completely agree. Davies brought so much more to the midfield against Southampton and also brought more out of Peck too. I understand why he wasn't able to start, given his recent availability issues. Wilders even gone on record in the post match interview as saying that's why Ings and Davies have played at the top level. Because they affect the game.

Hopefully Arblaster can come back in and make a difference. He definitely has the ability. But it's been a long lay off so may take some time for him to get back to his best.

 

[toledo]

The problem we have is that we didn't replace Vini.

At this level Vini was a midfield general and soldier at the same time. The midfield has a specific purpose: it is the engine room of a successful team and all things must go through it.

I disagree with much of the negative Peck comments: yes, he is young and raw but he was left with no support and he cannot manage the play from defence to attack by himself. He has been asked to do that this year.

Our late, late recruitment never addressed this glaring hole in the team. We basically have three groups operating by themselves and not as a unit because we don't have a midfield capabable of recieving the ball from the defence and moving the ball forward and supplying passes to the strengths of our forwards. Because of this, Peck finds himself having to pass square or back and very seldem forward.

If this is a fair assessment, then its easy to see why we are struggling. Yes Arblaster and Davies were injured, which makes the need to strengthen the midfield oh so more important. To sign Matos (no disrepect intended young man) as midfield support for / with Peck was never ever going to work. And because we are incapable of recieving the ball in midfield, moveing it forward with skill, and then bringing in the forwards and wide players, the play ends up going square, back, square, back and 5 minutes later we try to make a pass and its intercepted because we don't know how to connect with our forwards, or rather our only forward. Our forwards are mediocre and simply don't have the skill sets to recieve the ball and attack. This is also why we cannot break down opposition defences.

So, we have 3 teams playing together with no cohesion or purpose from defence to midfield and midfield to attack.

Maybe I'm an old fashion footballer (I'm 72) but the style of play that we are asking the 3 teams (defence, midfield, forwards) to deploy will never make them a whole or anywhere near the cohesive, all supporting and movement based team we need to be to get out of this sorry mess.

It seems to me with the players we signed in the transfer window, we made these signings out of fear rather than really knowing how each player would contribue to the workable tactical plan we should have been deploying.

And if what I read is correct, and we didn't intervew Selles before we offered him to manager's job, then someone at the management level should be held accountable for putting square pegs in a round hole at transfer window deadline.

Today, after all of this mismanagement, we are 1-8 and surely in a relegation fight.

And if AI was used to identify these incoming players, then shame on us, football is not a statistics driven profession and AI should not be part of this sport. Here in the US, AI is used in all pro sports so I have no doubts about where a lot of this current plight sits and thats with the stupid belief that AI can predict how someone will score goals, or outrun a defender. Football is an emotional game requiring quick thinking, and a single cohesive game plan.

Until CW sees this as a tactical plan and creatives a playing style that plays to the strengths of all, we will not get out of this sorry situation. It needs a different vision, a different style, and a tactical plan that brings together the three individual parts of the team together as a unit working together to.

Alas, today, it seems to me that we cannot do this.

Just my thoughts,

toledo

 

[andy m]

The problem we have is that we didn't replace Vini.

At this level Vini was a midfield general and soldier at the same time. The midfield has a specific purpose: it is the engine room of a successful team and all things must go through it.

I disagree with much of the negative Peck comments: yes, he is young and raw but he was left with no support and he cannot manage the play from defence to attack by himself. He has been asked to do that this year.

Our late, late recruitment never addressed this glaring hole in the team. We basically have three groups operating by themselves and not as a unit because we don't have a midfield capabable of recieving the ball from the defence and moving the ball forward and supplying passes to the strengths of our forwards. Because of this, Peck finds himself having to pass square or back and very seldem forward.

If this is a fair assessment, then its easy to see why we are struggling. Yes Arblaster and Davies were injured, which makes the need to strengthen the midfield oh so more important. To sign Matos (no disrepect intended young man) as midfield support for / with Peck was never ever going to work. And because we are incapable of recieving the ball in midfield, moveing it forward with skill, and then bringing in the forwards and wide players, the play ends up going square, back, square, back and 5 minutes later we try to make a pass and its intercepted because we don't know how to connect with our forwards, or rather our only forward. Our forwards are mediocre and simply don't have the skill sets to recieve the ball and attack. This is also why we cannot break down opposition defences.

So, we have 3 teams playing together with no cohesion or purpose from defence to midfield and midfield to attack.

Maybe I'm an old fashion footballer (I'm 72) but the style of play that we are asking the 3 teams (defence, midfield, forwards) to deploy will never make them a whole or anywhere near the cohesive, all supporting and movement based team we need to be to get out of this sorry mess.

It seems to me with the players we signed in the transfer window, we made these signings out of fear rather than really knowing how each player would contribue to the workable tactical plan we should have been deploying.

And if what I read is correct, and we didn't intervew Selles before we offered him to manager's job, then someone at the management level should be held accountable for putting square pegs in a round hole at transfer window deadline.

Today, after all of this mismanagement, we are 1-8 and surely in a relegation fight.

And if AI was used to identify these incoming players, then shame on us, football is not a statistics driven profession and AI should not be part of this sport. Here in the US, AI is used in all pro sports so I have no doubts about where a lot of this current plight sits and thats with the stupid belief that AI can predict how someone will score goals, or outrun a defender. Football is an emotional game requiring quick thinking, and a single cohesive game plan.

Until CW sees this as a tactical plan and creatives a playing style that plays to the strengths of all, we will not get out of this sorry situation. It needs a different vision, a different style, and a tactical plan that brings together the three individual parts of the team together as a unit working together to.

Alas, today, it seems to me that we cannot do this.

Just my thoughts,

toledo

I think the problem is we never replaced Arblaster.

 

[Jon B]

It's not rocket science.

We let Vini, Anel and Kieffer go.

And replaced them with worse players.

Vini was sheer class in the Championship. He was revelling in showing how much better he was than anyone else on the field.

Anel was a good dependable Championship defender.

Kieffer was solid Championship level target man (though he'd have had to win us over again after his late cock up at Wembley).

We've done this before. Buy players on the cheap who we hope are up to Championship level and watch where that takes us when we find out they aren't.

The Ings, Tanganga and Mee acquisitions were desperate late signings as we watched the wheels fall off. They have ability and experience. With them in the squad we now have a chance.

 

[Houston_Blade]

We've done this before

We’ve also done the opposite and held onto players to get us promoted. It got us an embargo and 2 point deduction.

I’d have preferred to do that though and have a go at promotion this season instead of relegation and face the consequences upon PL relegation.