[Albion] Mr Potter has got to sort out his blind spot or else...

[Mo Gosfield]

Could we be the first team to stay in the PL without beating any team below us?! Quite an achievement if we manage it

Its not as if we lost all six games. We actually drew four and none of the teams beat us at ' sandcastle Amex '
I think this season has balanced itself out a bit with a bonus win at Liverpool and a point at Chelsea and a better away record. It doesn't look good on paper but in the grand scheme of things, providing we survive, its not a big deal. It only starts to become an issue if it carries on next season and the same pattern is maintained.

 

[Mo Gosfield]

But the team did make its customary mistake.
&
Didn't/couldn't score a goal.

Far far to much 'if's and but's' surrounding this season.


Not every team wants to 'do a Sheffield' to beat us.
Not every team can do a Sheffield' to beat us.
But
Every team that can and have needed to do a Sheffield to get a result against us has.

That'll be why the team will be playing in May still not safe from relegation.


Thankfully we have The Leeds next, a side with a pathological hatred of doing a Sheffield.

We'll have less of the ball.
We'll have more space in the final third.

I have higher hopes for a win and possibly a bit of a masterclass.

That in turn will have the disciples frothing at the mouth, bouncing posts left right and centre, completely missing the point of the post Utd threads like this one.

You are right about the customary mistake.
Too many times we give the ball away in dangerous areas that lead to goals. Defenders marauding forward have to be accurate in their passing. On Saturday, Webster gave a cheap ball away, we were left exposed and it ended up in the back of the net. Sheffield would never have scored in that game without that gift. At Old Trafford, with more than an hour gone, we had United in trouble.Then Veltman gives a cheap ball away 40 yards from goal to Bruno Fernandes, who duly sets up Rashford. Two mistakes, two likely draws not gained. There have been others, equally as costly. If you are encouraging players to be expansive, then you have to work even harder on ball carrying skills and passing. Whats the point of a CB carrying the ball upfield, if he promptly loses it or gives it away?
Not too many other teams allow their CB's to be exposed like this.
We can all bemoan missed scoring chances but we can't afford these damaging mistakes in our own last third.

 

[zefarelly]

Its not as if we lost all six games. We actually drew four and none of the teams beat us at ' sandcastle Amex '
I think this season has balanced itself out a bit with a bonus win at Liverpool and a point at Chelsea and a better away record. It doesn't look good on paper but in the grand scheme of things, providing we survive, its not a big deal. It only starts to become an issue if it carries on next season and the same pattern is maintained.

we said that last season . . . and the season before.

 

[Machiavelli]

Nah sorry I'm no longer having that.

Irrespective of who is playing striker the default setting for our oh so pretty system (which I do enjoy) will always be:-

'if only we had a better striker'.

The system creates a 1001 half chances but only 2 decent chances.


I get suckered in by the press, the movement, (no matter how slow) and the talent on show, but the bottom line is it doesn't produce much and it produces nothing against a team of defenders.

The Emperor needs to but on some more clothes.

While I'm very much Potter IN, it's difficult to argue with your original post. But in terms of how to beat the low/deep block, I still think the ideal option would be Murray from about 3 years ago. Someone with height, and good in the air, and an excellent finisher. Murray c2021 can't do it, but if I were Potter/Bloom/Ashworth/Winstanley those are the qualities we should be looking for.

 

[Stat Brother]

It doesn't look good on paper but in the grand scheme of things, providing we survive, its not a big deal. It only starts to become an issue if it carries on next season and the same pattern is maintained.

That's where I'm at with an added hint of:-

'surprised moves haven't already been made to redress the problems'.

 

[Paulie Gualtieri]

Controversial I know but is there any substance that Potter is actually aware of the shortcomings in the squad and for some reason rather than moan in public about it gets on with it?

I am not going to rule out that he’s actually informed TB,PB and DA about this and there’s a plan subject to budget to address this.

Mad, eh?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[rippleman]

What shouldn't be overlooked is that five attacking players have joined the club during Potter's tenure.

Trossard, Welbeck, Lallana and Zeqiri all singed during Potter's tenure and Percy was recalled from loan in January this year.

Unless you want to argue that these players were all imposed on Potter against his wishes, then maybe Mr Chairman is not really to blame for our lack of a goalscorer. Maybe Potter is not so great at identifying players who can score goals.

 

[Marshy]

What shouldn't be overlooked is that five attacking players have joined the club during Potter's tenure.

Trossard, Welbeck, Lallana and Zeqiri all singed during Potter's tenure and Percy was recalled from loan in January this year.

Unless you want to argue that these players were all imposed on Potter against his wishes, then maybe Mr Chairman is not really to blame for our lack of a goalscorer. Maybe Potter is not so great at identifying players who can score goals.

Assuming its GP that identifies the players.... he will have a strong say in if they sign, but i suspect they are identified elsewhere, very much a joint effort. No one individual can be blamed for that although its always put at the managers feet.

 

[KeegansHairPiece]

Controversial I know but is there any substance that Potter is actually aware of the shortcomings in the squad and for some reason rather than moan in public about it gets on with it?

I am not going to rule out that he’s actually informed TB,PB and DA about this and there’s a plan subject to budget to address this.

Mad, eh?

Pretty out there blue sky thinking that. I doubt in reality this type of thing happens...

 

[KeegansHairPiece]

What shouldn't be overlooked is that five attacking players have joined the club during Potter's tenure.

Trossard, Welbeck, Lallana and Zeqiri all singed during Potter's tenure and Percy was recalled from loan in January this year.

Unless you want to argue that these players were all imposed on Potter against his wishes, then maybe Mr Chairman is not really to blame for our lack of a goalscorer. Maybe Potter is not so great at identifying players who can score goals.

Let's be brutally clear here, we're signing those players because no one else is really in for them and they're therefore affordable to us. Trossard and Zequiri are a combined total of £21m. Zeqiri was under £4m which is now cheap by Championship standards. Meanwhile Newcastle spent £40m on Joelinton. So it's all relative.

 

[SEWDONIM]

What shouldn't be overlooked is that five attacking players have joined the club during Potter's tenure.

Trossard, Welbeck, Lallana and Zeqiri all singed during Potter's tenure and Percy was recalled from loan in January this year.

Unless you want to argue that these players were all imposed on Potter against his wishes, then maybe Mr Chairman is not really to blame for our lack of a goalscorer. Maybe Potter is not so great at identifying players who can score goals.

You expect Lallana and Trossard to bang them in?

Lallana is a creative midfielder and Trossard is a winger; both's primary duty is to create chances...lack of chances isn't exactly the problem is it?

 

[Pavilionaire]

What shouldn't be overlooked is that five attacking players have joined the club during Potter's tenure.

Trossard, Welbeck, Lallana and Zeqiri all singed during Potter's tenure and Percy was recalled from loan in January this year.

Unless you want to argue that these players were all imposed on Potter against his wishes, then maybe Mr Chairman is not really to blame for our lack of a goalscorer. Maybe Potter is not so great at identifying players who can score goals.

I expect that Trossard would have been a player that we were well down the road to bringing in before Potter got the gig. Knockaert had already shown he wasn't quite good enough at Prem level while Izquierdo had already sustained the knee injury that eventually kept him out for over a year. As for the rest you mentioned, Zeqiri was not bought to play 1st XI this season, Lallana's been OK, Welbeck was a bit of a cheap punt and Tau was a Hughton signing that Potter wanted a look at.

I'd cut Potter some slack and argue he's been extremely unlucky with his forwards:

1. He arrived here just as Glenn Murray's body packed up.
2. Then Andone imploded vs Southampton.
3. Hughton's Percy Tau turned out to be rubbish.
4. Connolly has turned into a bit of a ****.
5. Maupay has lost his form.
6. The Darwin Nunez deal fell through.

 

[zefarelly]

I'd cut Potter some slack and argue he's been extremely unlucky with his forwards:

1. He arrived here just as Glenn Murray's body packed up.
2. Then Andone imploded vs Southampton.
3. Hughton's Percy Tau turned out to be rubbish.
4. Connolly has turned into a bit of a ****.
5. Maupay has lost his form.
6. The Darwin Nunez deal fell through.

As things stand we can only hope Andone gets fit and makes amends with the manager and the rest of the squad . . . . He could be the key to unlocking Maupay ( I doubt it but you never know) in the same way Iheanacho has clicked up front with Vardy.

TAu and COnnolly can move on, we desperately need at least one qualified striker to come in.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

If the Albion don't address the ongoing striker issue this coming transfer window that is bleeding obvious to the whole of football then the blame lies fairly and squarely at the door of Tony Bloom, rather than his massed ranks of Yes Men who will tell him what he wants to hear, rather than what he NEEDS to hear

 

[Marshy]

You expect Lallana and Trossard to bang them in?

Lallana is a creative midfielder and Trossard is a winger; both's primary duty is to create chances...lack of chances isn't exactly the problem is it?

I expect both to get a lot more goals than they have

 

[*Gullsworth*]

I expect both to get a lot more goals than they have

I agree and they should have. Trossard hit the woodwork 3 times v United, either or all of them could have been goals.....centimetres out. Llanna should have had at least 2 or 3 near misses that should have been goals.

 

[SEWDONIM]

I expect both to get a lot more goals than they have

I also expect Webster and Dunk to have more goals than they have given how good our dead ball deliveries from Gross can be...

 

[boik]

If the Albion don't address the ongoing striker issue this coming transfer window that is bleeding obvious to the whole of football then the blame lies fairly and squarely at the door of Tony Bloom, rather than his massed ranks of Yes Men who will tell him what he wants to hear, rather than what he NEEDS to hear

People keep saying this as if the club aren't aware of or don't want to address the problem. What if it's just not financially viable to address the problem without risking everything? I know that your counter argument will be that relegation will risk everything, but it doesn't really. c.f. Norwich and Watford.

 

[Stat Brother]

People keep saying this as if the club aren't aware of or don't want to address the problem. What if it's just not financially viable to address the problem without risking everything? I know that your counter argument will be that relegation will risk everything, but it doesn't really. c.f. Norwich and Watford.

The problem being Ulloa and Maupay aside the club (1.2) have never addressed the problem.
Constantly looking for either cheap or the emotionally attached strikers who live local!