A decent side

[Roygbiv]

Wilder got is spot on last Saturday. We are a decent side but need to do more to be a good one. We have improved a ridiculous amount since the start of the season and we dominate every game in a way I haven't seen United do before. The issues are we rarely keep a clean sheet despite only being troubled about twice a game and we waste the great areas we get into.

In a way we remind me of how Arsenal have been in recent years. Control every game, miss chance after chance then let a sloppy one in out of nowhere.

Wilder knows this though and he's brought us far in a short space of time. He knows where we are and that we need a bit more. It's incredibly frustrating because we are so much better than the teams we are playing but are being punished due to bad decision making at both ends.

 

[SteveBlade]

I agree. Imagine being the Arsenal of league 1 though, that'd be a proper living hell.

 

[Esablade]

Ched?

 

[RealMcCoy]

Ched?

Nooooooo!

 

[Seanshoreham]

I thought that we lost it in the first half-hour playing that tip-tappy shit that we played under clough, we only showed a lack of urgency in the 2nd half

 

[SteveBlade]

Nooooooo!

Yeeeeees!

 

[Seanshoreham]

correction showed urgency in the second half

 

[Caseh]

Ched?

I still think no. If we want a striker we should bust a gut for Omar Bogle.

Or alternatively, go back to using Done which was working, or give Lavery a few starts. We need a runner up front with Sharp, Lavery has energy and pace in abundance.

 

[Roygbiv]

I thought that we lost it in the first half-hour playing that tip-tappy shit that we played under clough, we only showed a lack of urgency in the 2nd half

It was the same against Bury. Then the last 15 minutes we throw everything at them and actually start creating decent chances. I'm glad we have the Cup on Saturday as it gives Wilder a few weeks on the training ground to sort stuff out

 

[bladesman3]

I still think no. If we want a striker we should bust a gut for Omar Bogle.

Or alternatively, go back to using Done which was working, or give Lavery a few starts. We need a runner up front with Sharp, Lavery has energy and pace in abundance.

Don't know what to make of Lavery

 

[Esablade]

Nooooooo!

Yeeeeees!

Guess that would split the fans

 

[Jim Chimmerney]

The trouble now is that everyone knows how we play, look how they pushed up on Coutts and Fleck tonight, they did a job on us as Bury almost did last week.

More often than not, the percentages will favour us with the amount of possession and chances but since Chesterfield, teams have shown that we're going to need a bit more class at times. Our final ball tonight was terrible.

 

[PokerBlade]

From playing some incisive direct football we seem to have slowed the pace down. I like building from the back and all, but it makes me wince every time I see defenders stroke it at half pace, while the receiver is stood still waiting for it to get there. Not asking a lot of them to move it quicker.

 

[PokerBlade]

And don't get me started on crossing it neatly to the foot of the nearest defender.

 

[Guesty]

It's been coming. The second half against Shrewsbury was the warning sign, then all the huffing and puffing to beat a poor Bury side. We got caught out on Saturday and finally beaten today. Tonight's defeat can't have come as a surprise to anyone who has seen the last couple of home matches.

Don't get me wrong, this is no doom and gloom post. In the main, we've played very well. But against Shrewsbury and since, we've been a bit toothless and, dare I whisper it, complacent. The football is very nice to watch but a few bits look elaborate for it's own sake. Look at the contrast tonight; Sharp spends an age working a shot (onto his weaker foot, no less!), the ball is half cleared, re-worked, Duffy and Fleck try a ludicrously tight one-two, they win it back, go straight over the top and score.

We're outplaying most teams in most regards but we're converting a fraction of the chances we make and failing to keep clean sheets. The side is a good one but some improvements are needed to get automatic, whether they be tactical or personnel.

Oh, and games in hand continue to not be worth the paper they're written on. We should just always assume defeat in future.

 

[grafikhaus]

Yeeeeees!

Abso-fucking-lootely. While we persist with the hapless Clarke, Ched would bring a positive boost to our strike force. We had plenty of 'let it go' comments about Ched down the months/years, but he's been cleared and it's time for the people who won't admit they were wrong to 'let it go'.

 

[bladesmanluke]

Ched is the answer to the fucking question. Get him

 

[ShockingBadBuy]

I thought that we lost it in the first half-hour playing that tip-tappy shit that we played under clough, we only showed a lack of urgency in the 2nd half

From playing some incisive direct football we seem to have slowed the pace down. I like building from the back and all, but it makes me wince every time I see defenders stroke it at half pace, while the receiver is stood still waiting for it to get there. Not asking a lot of them to move it quicker.

Yes and yes.

We shifted the tempo up for about 15-20 minutes in the first half, eventually, and looked more threatening, despite not scoring. If we move the ball forward quickly, to feet (as per 2nd half v Chesterfield, for example) we are a cut above. Not enough of that on show tonight, sadly.

We have been ace recently. But ending a 15 game unbeaten run at home to Walsall, with a whimper, on a freezing murky tuesday night, does rather have "Blades" written all over it.

 

[Jim Chimmerney]

Abso-fucking-lootely. While we persist with the hapless Clarke, Ched would bring a positive boost to our strike force. We had plenty of 'let it go' comments about Ched down the months/years, but he's been cleared and it's time for the people who won't admit they were wrong to 'let it go'.

Ched Evans is 28 in a couple of weeks and has played well for about 8 months in his career.

 

[HighfieldBlade]

I'm glad we have the Cup on Saturday as it gives Wilder a few weeks on the training ground to sort stuff out

I wonder which team will be more eager to lose so they can 'concentrate on the league'? Us or Bolton?
Gotta laugh - it's my only way of enduring crap nights like this.

 

[Roygbiv]

It's been coming. The second half against Shrewsbury was the warning sign, then all the huffing and puffing to beat a poor Bury side. We got caught out on Saturday and finally beaten today. Tonight's defeat can't have come as a surprise to anyone who has seen the last couple of home matches.

Don't get me wrong, this is no doom and gloom post. In the main, we've played very well. But against Shrewsbury and since, we've been a bit toothless and, dare I whisper it, complacent. The football is very nice to watch but a few bits look elaborate for it's own sake. Look at the contrast tonight; Sharp spends an age working a shot (onto his weaker foot, no less!), the ball is half cleared, re-worked, Duffy and Fleck try a ludicrously tight one-two, they win it back, go straight over the top and score.

We're outplaying most teams in most regards but we're converting a fraction of the chances we make and failing to keep clean sheets. The side is a good one but some improvements are needed to get automatic, whether they be tactical or personnel.

Oh, and games in hand continue to not be worth the paper they're written on. We should just always assume defeat in future.

I said the same during the game about being complacent. Confidence is great but since the 2nd half v Shrewsbury we are starting every game like we are 2 goals up. It's only in the last 10 minutes or so that we look like a team who really need a goal.

 

[blackydog]

Ched Evans is 28 in a couple of weeks and has played well for about 8 months in his career.

And he's a bit dodgy when he plays away.