[Football] The season’s turning point

[sir albion]

That's the first time I've seen the problem, CH is bloody terrific but please TB give him a little more ammo. WBA and Udddersfield away showed we are so short. TB, I've every faith in you but have the feeling that this is the pivotal season.... go outside your normal box.

Relying on a 34 year old striker is just hideous

 

[djentist]

Call me a bedwetter all you want, but I think this is the point that the wheels have come off. Not just the defeat to a team desperately struggling at the bottom, but such a poor defeat that highlights how we've seriously punched above our weight up to now

 

[majnoon]

As much as i hate to say this, i cant see us staying up

 

[Weststander]

We're shockingly bad away and don't win at home. With our run in we effectively need to be safe by end of March. Constant negative CH tactics and p;aying to draw has slowly infested the mentality of the whole team. We can never get enough points like that if we constantly concede corners. Why on earth was a striker not ready to come in at the start of the window? I'm afraid we are down ladies and gentlemen.

I agree with a lot of your points, but I find it hard to blame CH.

He will never complain or politic (Poyet), but our squad is slow, uncreative, lacks goals and the hype about Dunk/Duffy being top 4 quality was silly hyperbole.

CH simply hasn’t got the tools at this level to eek out anything but 1-0 wins if we’re lucky.

The Board have had since last April to deal with these deficiencies. Hopefully the next few days are very fruitful on transfers in.

 

[Albion Dan]

It's official. We are fast becoming last seasons Middlesborough!!!! They were lauded the first half of last year for being defensively tight then just dropped like a stone unable to score. De Ja Vu!

 

[Super Steve Earle]

Lets not overdo it. Loads of wins= 5 wins from 15 games. But yes it has been a depressing day and probably the worst so far this season.

Well probably 5 from 8. The other 7 are utterly beyond the Albion this season. We have a mountain to climb and no mistake.

 

[symyjym]

I agree with a lot of your points, but I find it hard to blame CH.

He will never complain or politic (Poyet), but our squad is slow, uncreative, lacks goals and the hype about Dunk/Duffy being top 4 quality was silly hyperbole.

CH simply hasn’t got the tools at this level to eek out anything but 1-0 wins if we’re lucky.

The Board have had since last April to deal with these deficiencies. Hopefully the next few days are very fruitful on transfers in.

Agree, the players couldn't even get the basics right today.

 

[Sussex Nomad]

Losing away isn’t the worst. Anyone thinking we were guarenteed to win today is either arrogant or stupid. A team that survives on scoring from set pieces against a team with a reputation of conceding from them.

I would be gobsmacked if anyone believed we had a guaranteed win today. It is not the defeat, but the manner of the loss. Losing to two more set pieces, being toothless, not holding the ball, a completely under performing team, we showed nothing, not a thing that would convince us we are anywhere near safety. I still believe we will stay up, but if we play like that a few more times we best get used to being one season wonders.

 

[Weststander]

It's official. We are fast becoming last seasons Middlesborough!!!! They were lauded the first half of last year for being defensively tight then just dropped like a stone unable to score. De Ja Vu!

True, alas.

 

[twickers]

Is it a turning point...or a watershed? Maybe we should downgrade it to a juncture.

Onward the transfer window.

 

[raymondo]

With the well documented shortcomings of our squad the very least we should be doing well is defending and attacking at set pieces. Alas our coaching staff appear to be clueless on both counts. Our attacking strategy seems to be to lump the ball into the mix and hope that Duffy somehow makes contact and our defensive tactic seems to be to hope that er........Duffy somehow makes contact.

Yes, the coaches need a rocket up them to improve defending at set pieces. What do they do in training? Maybe we need a couple of coaches on loan just as much as players. Our attacking options are limited to a degree, but... for goodness sake... lets try better tactics for attacking... and maybe 442 with Baldock... wouldn't exactly be a risk given recent results. Our tactics/coaching is starting to look very limited and predictable. Shake it up.

 

[ManOfSussex]

 

[Weststander]

Yes, the coaches need a rocket up them to improve defending at set pieces. What do they do in training? Maybe we need a couple of coaches on loan just as much as players. Our attacking options are limited to a degree, but... for goodness sake... lets try better tactics for attacking... and maybe 442 with Baldock... wouldn't exactly be a risk given recent results. Our tactics/coaching is starting to look very limited and predictable. Shake it up.

The players aren’t as good as you think.

The Board need the give consumate gentleman CH the PL tools, or it’s back to facing Burton Albion etc.

 

[AZ Gull]

How have we gone from 8th and looking comfortable to relegation in fodder in such a short space of time.

We haven't. That "short space of time" is 12 matches (we were 8th after beating Swansea, our 11th league match) during which we have won ONE game and scored in only 4 (of which one was a consolation, really soft penalty against Liverpool and one was the winner against Watford from a shot that really should have been saved).

We simply don't create enough chances and struggle to score from those we do create. And we can't defend corners. It is not a recipe for staying up.

 

[twickers]

True, alas.

Alas, 'tis true I have gone here and there*
And made myself a motley to the view.

I love the new Shakespearean NSC, but im not ready to accept we are this seasons Middlesbrough.

 

[LlcoolJ]

What's needed is a few more threads on exactly the same subject.

 

[GT49er]

The season's turning point? I don't know - the two points dropped at home to Palace/Everton/Burnley/Southampton perhaps? Another four points would have made the outlook tonight look a lot different - another 6 or 8 points would have made a HUGE difference!
Or maybe the 5-1 drubbing by Liverpool knocked our confidence too badly for it to recover?
Or, of course, if we stay up - none of the above!

 

[Seagulls1984]

If we don't change the way we play we are down .

 

[Albion Dan]

If we don't change the way we play we are down .

No No No. Lots of people here will tell you we have to play that way otherwise we'll get thrashed every week. Scoring almost no goals is the way to go!

 

[raymondo]

The players aren’t as good as you think.

The Board need the give consumate gentleman CH the PL tools, or it’s back to facing Burton Albion etc.

Well, I think they are about as good as I think they are ). I mean, I agree with you that we are currently lower/possibly relegation level, but I do believe that our tactics, coaching, and squad rotation [or lack of] are not getting the best out of what we have. Yep, I'd too be very happy if we find a few higher quality players who want to come here.