Wasn't there can't comment but wonder if the shenanigans of last week re Stephens and Solly affected us, especially Stephens pulling out of travelling the day before.
When the Aston Villa deal fell through Stephens should have travelled up and bloody well played, all this cobblers about him not being in the right frame of mind does not come into itCharlton employ him as a player so play him!
I agree with this but it was CP's decision for him not to travel and he, I'm sure, had a better reading of the situation then us at home.
In an ideal world, emotions shouldn't affect a person's conduct at work. However we all know that this is not how things work in real life and I see no reason why Stephens would be any different. SCP has hinted that the transfer may still go ahead in Jaunuary so I do still feel that more has happened than we know about and that the whole squad has been affected by the mini dramas going on.
Wasn't there can't comment but wonder if the shenanigans of last week re Stephens and Solly affected us, especially Stephens pulling out of travelling the day before.
When the Aston Villa deal fell through Stephens should have travelled up and bloody well played, all this cobblers about him not being in the right frame of mind does not come into itCharlton employ him as a player so play him!
Maybe, as his lack of presence made Powell test out his diamond formation or in our case diamanté formation.
Wasn't there can't comment but wonder if the shenanigans of last week re Stephens and Solly affected us, especially Stephens pulling out of travelling the day before.
When the Aston Villa deal fell through Stephens should have travelled up and bloody well played, all this cobblers about him not being in the right frame of mind does not come into itCharlton employ him as a player so play him!
I agree with this but it was CP's decision for him not to travel and he, I'm sure, had a better reading of the situation then us at home.
In an ideal world, emotions shouldn't affect a person's conduct at work. However we all know that this is not how things work in real life and I see no reason why Stephens would be any different. SCP has hinted that the transfer may still go ahead in Jaunuary so I do still feel that more has happened than we know about and that the whole squad has been affected by the mini dramas going on.
This is very worrying - I had thought the deal with Villa had gone away. We can't afford to keep paying Stephens if he's not going to be in the right frame of mind to play.
Apparently not according to the two people who have already asked this.
I think there may be, by the standards of this division. Three, probably.
Only two people? ;-)
As long as there are three poor teams we'll be okay, but before the season started, I thought the general view was that it wasn't much of a step up.
Id say the first 4 games for us have shown that the step up is not that great unless you were expecting every team who gets promoted to do it straight away again?
I don't agree with this - the Leicester game was played at an incredible pace compared to any game last season and we were out-classed by Forest on Saturday. Other teams contain players that have commanded transfer fees of millions of pounds. The top teams have serious money and contain Premiership quality players. We've had 4 tough games and I don't see where the easy games are going to come from because that quality goes quite a way down the table, it's not just one or two teams. As I said, let's hope there are at least 3 worse teams than us over the course of the season.
Let's give it at least 10 games though and see where we are then.
Was it just me or were our fullbacks at 'fault' for their three best chances?
To be honest I think you need to look at the players in front of them, particuarly in the first half, Solly and Wiggins were getting very little help. Solly in particular must have been shattered come half time.
I think we'll stay up, and that was certainly the opinion of the Forest fans we spoke to on the way back.
let's not go too mad - we lost by one goal away to the best team I've seen so far this year. Yes it could have been a lot more and hopefully Powell realises this so we get the benefit of a wake up call without a morale devastating thrashing. Just a shame it came the day after the transfer window shut !
Up until Friday night many people were saying that Stephens was the player whom we could most easily dispose of if we had to sell. Suddenly people are seeing him as the missing link who would have made our midfield work on Saturday. Perhaps he will come good - though if his heart is set on leaving for the Prem, I doubt it. IMO he has shown nothing this season (nor in the latter part of last season) to justify the hope that he can change our midfield for the better.
Wasn't there can't comment but wonder if the shenanigans of last week re Stephens and Solly affected us, especially Stephens pulling out of travelling the day before.
When the Aston Villa deal fell through Stephens should have travelled up and bloody well played, all this cobblers about him not being in the right frame of mind does not come into itCharlton employ him as a player so play him!
I agree with this but it was CP's decision for him not to travel and he, I'm sure, had a better reading of the situation then us at home.
What would slightly annoy me is not that SCP decided Stephen's shouldn't play but if Stephens didn't plead with him to let him. We don't know what happened but I noticed SCP didn't say Stephens wanted to play.
The spirit in the side is going to be very important and that means respecting your club and its fans. He better knuckle down or we should bung him in the reserves. A proper player and character would play harder and earn enough interest in him that a big club doesn't half heartedly bid for him in future. That is teh challenge for Dale.
They were really up for the tackle though - taking it to the very verge of recklessness I thought. This clearly unsettled our boys on the ball in the first half. The ref did try to get to grips with it by booking a few, but should have acted earlier. We were lucky not to lose any through injury.
Yeah Stephens was a big loss, Pritchard didn't look amazing in the centre, is he a right midfielder by trade as he's certainly looked better on that side.
Lets not forget that Pritchard is learning his trade, he has come a long way in a short time and was up against a very expereinced and high quality midfield in Forest. He may develop into something good at this level .... he may not ... time will tell
Lets not forget that Pritchard is learning his trade, he has come a long way in a short time and was up against a very expereinced and high quality midfield in Forest. He may develop into something good at this level .... he may not ... time will tell
problem is that we haven't got the time to see.......these games aren't pre-season friendlies but real life league games. I think it is there for all to see that this league maybe a step to far AT THE MOMENT for Pritchard and maybe a loan out to a League 1 side would help him. Powell has already siad that Smith could do with a loan somewhere & i can'r see why it shouldn't be the same for pritchard - he was only playing non-league footbal a year or so ago.
For the games i have seen ( both pre-season and the opening 5 league & cup games) I really do think that this diamond formation is prone to problems & I think going back to the system that won us the League 1 title isn't a bad option !!
I would bring back Green (or Waggy if YOU prefer - I don't but thats another 3 threads) and play Kerkar out wide left - I also liked to look of Bover when he played at Welling and would find a place on the bench for him.
Lets not forget that Pritchard is learning his trade, he has come a long way in a short time and was up against a very expereinced and high quality midfield in Forest. He may develop into something good at this level .... he may not ... time will tell
problem is that we haven't got the time to see.......these games aren't pre-season friendlies but real life league games. I think it is there for all to see that this league maybe a step to far AT THE MOMENT for Pritchard and maybe a loan out to a League 1 side would help him. Powell has already siad that Smith could do with a loan somewhere & i can'r see why it shouldn't be the same for pritchard - he was only playing non-league footbal a year or so ago.
For the games i have seen ( both pre-season and the opening 5 league & cup games) I really do think that this diamond formation is prone to problems & I think going back to the system that won us the League 1 title isn't a bad option !!
I would bring back Green (or Waggy if YOU prefer - I don't but thats another 3 threads) and play Kerkar out wide left - I also liked to look of Bover when he played at Welling and would find a place on the bench for him.
Let's see Pritchard and the others in a proper 4-4-2 or 4-5-1/4-3-3 before we write him off. He did after all have a stormer against Prem oppo. It seems clear that diamond wasn't working and by the time CP got a line up to work it was too late. Swopping players in and out of the side each week looking for magic combo harks back to Pardew.
Lets not forget that Pritchard is learning his trade, he has come a long way in a short time and was up against a very expereinced and high quality midfield in Forest. He may develop into something good at this level .... he may not ... time will tell
problem is that we haven't got the time to see.......these games aren't pre-season friendlies but real life league games. I think it is there for all to see that this league maybe a step to far AT THE MOMENT for Pritchard and maybe a loan out to a League 1 side would help him. Powell has already siad that Smith could do with a loan somewhere & i can'r see why it shouldn't be the same for pritchard - he was only playing non-league footbal a year or so ago.
For the games i have seen ( both pre-season and the opening 5 league & cup games) I really do think that this diamond formation is prone to problems & I think going back to the system that won us the League 1 title isn't a bad option !!
I would bring back Green (or Waggy if YOU prefer - I don't but thats another 3 threads) and play Kerkar out wide left - I also liked to look of Bover when he played at Welling and would find a place on the bench for him.
Pritchard has already had a season in League One......with Charlton.
It is known what he can do there so now we see if he can make the step up.
It would also leave us very short in midfield so I don't think a loan is the right thing to do right now.
Yes, that we had a bad game by our own standards and that Nottingham Forest are a superior team/squad, which we knew anyway.
Nothing to panic about. We've lost one game in our first four in this league. There are a number of established sides in this league who have a worse record so far.
Pritchard is a CM and a pairing of him and Hollands playing as two out and out CM's (none of that diamond shit) will work imo.
I've still got a fear that Prich & Hol are a bit too likely to get overrun .. boring Hughes alongside Hollands with Prich and Kerkar wider would do for me in a 4 4 2 But as I said before I dont think Powell fancies Hughes or they've had a bust up and he's not yet fit anyway .. other than that, a perfect plan (:->)
We won a lot of points last season with an experienced defensive holding midfielder in our team, such as Hughes or Russell, indeed we had one in Alonso who never played! This does seem a gap in our team with Hughes injured, and obvious fill for an experienced loan player or free agent type signing, e.g. someone like Shaun Derry?
I wonder what Reading fans were saying at the same point last season when they had no points!
THIS!
Reading had four points at this stage last season (we have five). They drew their opening home game with Millwall 2-2 and then won at Leicester, before losing the next four games.
That's not a prediction of what we are going to do, just to point out that they did not lose their opening four games.
I wonder what Reading fans were saying at the same point last season when they had no points!
THIS!
Reading had four points at this stage last season (we have five). They drew their opening home game with Millwall 2-2 and then won at Leicester, before losing the next four games.
That's not a prediction of what we are going to do, just to point out that they did not lose their opening four games.
So we could lose the next four games and still not have to have suicidal tendencies LOL!! I think we all know it's a marathon and not a sprint. As long we have good consistency this season then we'll be fine and if the run of form comes at the right time for a late surge into play-offs come April/May then so much the better. As a team/squad they are all learning and keen learners at that. They don't like to lose and I expect a positive response on the 14th and beyond.
i think we'll stay up but there are certain areas of concern that need addressing which have brought to th attention of most lifers on the previous 3 games and all the sugarcoating answers and positive speculation won't solve them. it seems if someone says "we have a have suspect midfield that needs to be sorted"- this means pressing the panic button and it isn't, its just fact.
Comments
Let's give it at least 10 games though and see where we are then.
I think we'll stay up, and that was certainly the opinion of the Forest fans we spoke to on the way back.
let's not go too mad - we lost by one goal away to the best team I've seen so far this year. Yes it could have been a lot more and hopefully Powell realises this so we get the benefit of a wake up call without a morale devastating thrashing. Just a shame it came the day after the transfer window shut !
For the games i have seen ( both pre-season and the opening 5 league & cup games) I really do think that this diamond formation is prone to problems & I think going back to the system that won us the League 1 title isn't a bad option !!
I would bring back Green (or Waggy if YOU prefer - I don't but thats another 3 threads) and play Kerkar out wide left - I also liked to look of Bover when he played at Welling and would find a place on the bench for him.
It is known what he can do there so now we see if he can make the step up.
It would also leave us very short in midfield so I don't think a loan is the right thing to do right now.
Nothing to panic about. We've lost one game in our first four in this league. There are a number of established sides in this league who have a worse record so far.
But as I said before I dont think Powell fancies Hughes or they've had a bust up and he's not yet fit anyway .. other than that, a perfect plan (:->)
That's not a prediction of what we are going to do, just to point out that they did not lose their opening four games.