Match Thread Middlesbrough v The Mighty Blades

[Luke1993]

We will win, no idea the score, but we will win. CW and the players will prove a point tonight. Regardless of starting lineup and when subs come on, we will win tonight.

 

[Eric Cartman]

I think it's you who needs to have a re-think.

Your logic is this. Play Evans and Lundstram and we will get battered.

We won with those two last season so playing them together doesn't automatically equal a battering. I'm not saying we won't get beat, I'm saying that your logic is flawed to the point in that it's non-existent. Now, if you'd made the argument that they are significantly better than last season you might have a point, but you haven't. You've made an illogical argument based on your negative agenda against Lundstram and Evans.

Moving on, and for arguments sake lets say I agree with you. What would be your solution? Who would you play instead?

I have no agenda against either, I think Evans has got great talent and Lundstram has some talent too.
Can they play together? No. Not at this level.

Any answer to my set piece point? We're significantly weaker than most in that area and they're stronger. And the fact they've strengthened to suit Pulis' style.

Leonard, he's more combative. That's if he isn't deployed at RCB after Wilder hung Bash out to dry the other day.
Leonard - Fleck
Duffy

 

[LJBlade]

I'd be very surprised if they didn't finish in the top ten.

Wouldn't you be?

People need to start waking up and realising that we're shit, and we have been since last November. It's not just suddenly going to get better all of a sudden.

Best we can hope for this season is to finish above Wednesday because we'll be a million miles away from the play offs.

You were guaranteeing top 10 in your last post, now you'll only be very surprised if they don't get it. I fully agree though, I'd be surprised if they don't get top 10 either. In fact, they're that good I'm not sure why we're bothering to play tonight. Wouldn't it be better to just give them the win?

 

[FinchleyBlade]

Duffy or Woodburn should start but no doubt won't, more than likely it will be the same team and we'll struggle to create a shot on target again.

 

[LJBlade]

I have no agenda against either, I think Evans has got great talent and Lundstram has some talent too.
Can they play together? No. Not at this level.

Any answer to my set piece point? We're significantly weaker than most in that area and they're stronger. And the fact they've strengthened to suit Pulis' style.

Leonard, he's more combative. That's if he isn't deployed at RCB after Wilder hung Bash out to dry the other day.
Leonard - Fleck
Duffy

Was your set piece point a question?

So your argument is that 'Boro are very dangerous at set pieces and your solution to this would be to take two taller players out and put Duffy in? Leonard might be more 'combative' (nice use of a buzz word) but he's not as good on the ball as either Lundstram or Evans.

 

[Kozzy_is_my_Dad]

We've got to have a chance tonight. Revert to our more attacking style and take the game to them, and try to move away from the "THE END IS NIGH" attitude we've had on here since Saturday.

 

[PeterNdlovu081]

In fact, they're that good I'm not sure why we're bothering to play tonight. Wouldn't it be better to just give them the win?

They are quite good and we are demonstrably very poor.

It's not like I'm making this shit up. These are sound observations based on watching us play football over the past 9 months.

We're a bunch of pushovers who are extremely frustrating to watch.

 

[LJBlade]

They are quite good and we are demonstrably very poor.

It's not like I'm making this shit up. These are sound observations based on watching us play football over the past 9 months.

We're a bunch of pushovers who are extremely frustrating to watch.

'Quite good'....Well that's come down a bit.

Middlesbrough, top 10 team, 'quite good'.

Sheffield United, top 10 team, 'demonstrably very poor'.

 

[Eric Cartman]

Was your set piece point a question?

So your argument is that 'Boro are very dangerous at set pieces and your solution to this would be to take two taller players out and put Duffy in? Leonard might be more 'combative' (nice use of a buzz word) but he's not as good on the ball as either Lundstram or Evans.

Evans and Lundstram are brilliant in the air, you're right. Let's keep them in, both of them.

Shall we mark Flint up with Evans and Gestede up with Lundstram too?

 

[Kozzy_is_my_Dad]

Leonard - Fleck
Duffy

I'd like to see this too, I was just thinking this earlier.

Fleck has to be a starter
Coutts we hope will recapture previous form, when fit
Lundstram - has potential but is a young lad that needs a steadying influence next to him
Leonard can be class, but has yet to show it at this level or look up to the pace, I really hope we give him a chance. At least he's been the main man and the leader elsewhere, albeit at a lower level.
Evans has a little bit of class about him, could be a very good footballer at this level, but cannot be trusted to run the show the way Coutts would.

Simply - Evans and Lundstram cannot be trusted together as they don't work for one another and still need someone to be doing the marshalling alongside them.

 

[LJBlade]

Evans and Lundstram are brilliant in the air, you're right. Let's keep them in, both of them.

Shall we mark Flint up with Evans and Gestede up with Lundstram too?

They're a lot better than Duffy, that's for sure.

Personally I would play Duffy as well but my reasoning isn't based on the idea that 'Boro are good at set pieces.

 

[Eric Cartman]

They're a lot better than Duffy, that's for sure.

Personally I would play Duffy as well but my reasoning isn't based on the idea that 'Boro are good at set pieces.

We aren't going to have 11 players man marking when defending set pieces.

Leave Duffy outside the box, like we normally do? There's an idea.

 

[HighfieldBlade]

I've got a bad feeling about this. I don't think we'll get any points tonight.

 

[5tannington Blade]

Tony Pulis is not going to accept their performance at the weekend, I think it will be a real response from them tonight. I can't see the same coming from us away from home.

 

[5tannington Blade]

As a team they are significantly better? There wasn't much difference when we played them at their ground last season.

We were well out of that game, it was only because they took the foot off the gas we had a chance to get a point (and should have equalised at the end.)

 

[PeterNdlovu081]

'Quite good'....Well that's come down a bit.

Middlesbrough, top 10 team, 'quite good'.

Sheffield United, top 10 team, 'demonstrably very poor'.

We finished in the top ten because we had automatic promotion form from August to November.

After that we were absolute dog shit for the rest of the season.

Were you in a coma last season? Did you not see us getting bummed by Millwall, Wolves and Fulham? Did you miss us imploding against Cardiff, Brentford and Bristol City? Did you not watch our complete non-perflrmance against Hull or our embarrassing defeats to Bolton and Birmingham?

 

[Revolution]

3-0 them. We aren't good enough to get anything up there.

 

[ekke287]

I'd be very surprised if they didn't finish in the top ten.

Wouldn't you be?

People need to start waking up and realising that we're shit, and we have been since last November. It's not just suddenly going to get better all of a sudden.

Best we can hope for this season is to finish above Wednesday because we'll be a million miles away from the play offs.

 

[S5Blade]

Were going to lose 4-0
Then we are going to get relegated
Its all mccabes fault for selling brooks
wilder is a wanker for not signing waghorn, regardless of wages.

Im off to support Barnsley

 

[Booker4]

3-0 them. We aren't good enough to get anything up there.

They've lost Gibson, Traore and Bamford with no replacements yet in for tonight and they limped to a draw against Millwall, who dominated the match. Its the prefect time to play them. 2 - 1 Blades! Believe!

 

[Revolution]

They've lost Gibson, Traore and Bamford with no replacements yet in for tonight and they limped to a draw against Millwall, who dominated the match. Its the prefect time to play them. 2 - 1 Blades! Believe!

They are still a lot better than what I saw Saturday.

We will find it hard to score as Wilder won't pick some of the players who would help with that, and the defence isn't good enough.

 

[Damski]

Score draw tonight. And we should be glad for it. Very rusty on Saturday, and to be fair Swansea weren't that great either. I'd like to see Duffy start and get ourselves a bitbof creativity in midfield, but it'll likely be another defensive line-up. I'm not expecting a classic. We should have just about enough to to home with a point. Nowt wrong with that!

 

[bromtom]

Hoping for a performance after Saturday. Would be happy with a point.

The dream is a Reading away esque performance after that appalling Hull defeat, although a clean sheet for Henderson would be nice.

 

[super_pig]

i’d like to see steers for bash.. duff for evans

 

[RammyBlade]

I would put Stearman in for Basham and put Bash in place of Baldock so we have height in all 5 back positions hopefully countering the set piece threat from Boro.
Might also put Freeman (if fit instead of Stevens or Norrington Davies if still here) as Stevens seems to amateurish at best at defendind ball watching instead of following the runners.
Try Woodburn instead of Clarke ?

 

[Not_a_Cheat]

This might be a stupid question but why are we playing tonight?

 

[Fulwood Blade]

It's quite simple for me: if our midfield perform then we have a chance.

If not then we are onto a stuffing.

Can see something really different coming tonight - perhaps a defensive 3 with Stearman in for Bash and no thoughts whatsoever of overlapping centre backs. Don't think we are quite ready for 4-5-1 but can see that on the horizon too. We need to get something from the game and would quite happily take a very boring and hard working 0-0.

UTB as usual.

 

[Pollingtonblade]

We rarely get owt here, we also don’t beat top teams away and will concede at least one. So need to have more shots tonight than Saturday to stand a chance.

 

[LJBlade]

We finished in the top ten because we had automatic promotion form from August to November.

After that we were absolute dog shit for the rest of the season.

Were you in a coma last season? Did you not see us getting bummed by Millwall, Wolves and Fulham? Did you miss us imploding against Cardiff, Brentford and Bristol City? Did you not watch our complete non-perflrmance against Hull or our embarrassing defeats to Bolton and Birmingham?

The season doesn't run from November to May. We finished top 10 over the course of a full season, which obviously makes you 'demonstrably poor', unless you are the Galacticos of Middlesbrough or play at Fortress Riverside, and then you are 'quite good'.

Don't get me wrong, we may well lose tonight, but if we're going to be fucking terrified of a team like Middlesbrough we may as well pack it in now

 

[snootyfenooty]

We've got to have a chance tonight. Revert to our more attacking style and take the game to them, and try to move away from the "THE END IS NIGH" attitude we've had on here since Saturday.

Yep, agree with that. We've got quality in the squad in Woodburn and Duffy but they need to be on the pitch not the fucking bench. Stick with Saturday's line-up and formation though we won't score against Boro', especially one managed by Pullis.