It would be unatural not to feel depressed and dispirited following another soft cup exit and the run we are on.
But come the end of the week, dust yourselves down, give yourselves a slap round the chops, and turn out at The Valley on Saturday prepared to give it everything you've got.
This could be a season defining game. Our club is clearly in a slump, but though its down primarily to the manager and players to play / fight their way out of it, we can at least assist the process and do everything we can on the.matchday to create the support and atmosphere to help trigger that extra 5%.
Saturday is now huge. Let's do our bit like we have a few times during difficult periods over the last few years.
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Comments
The extra 5% boost that a crowd can give still leaves us short by about 20% I fear........
Brighton is far more important a game ( if we've got the luxury of being picky).
Let's hope Bob is positive and doesn't Play 1 up front at home and have 3 strikers on the Bench as he did against Blackpool.
Need to play attacking football in a 4-4-2 formation.
No passing across centre circle and back to the keeper.
Vetokele must start
Church must not.
But more than anything I feel the tempo needs to be raised significantly, right from the off, and that is something that we the crowd can play a (small) part in.
;0)
It would be great if the crowd could relive the spirit of last seasons cardiff game, regardless of the recent slump, build that atmosphere and we would be the 12th man.
Bob
They've got a week to re-focus. Watt may play but he may come off the bench. Either way that's a boost of a new player. We have to be positive, that I do agree.
All the loons on here wanna get behind the team but in general our support is subdued at the best of times
Come on let's be havin ya
You know it makes sense .
In support of Charlton fans, When the Players give 100% like 2nd half against Cardiff,
or take their chances like the Derby and Bolton games, we make as much noise as most teams.
If you go to away games you must know most home fans are quiet until they get a goal or at least start to create
a few chances.
For all the "noise" generated on this & other sites it is ultimately about supporting the guys who pull on our shirt on match days . Whatever your views on the owner, coach or individual players, we do (though reading most internet comment it is hard to believe), share the same interest and same goals.
In my last comments on the club in June I offered the following:
" ...I have no idea if the Duchatelet approach will work. It may all end in tears. So no head in the sand ..... just an acknowledgement the club restructuring is a work in progress and likely to remain so for a while yet.
I, .....will not denigrate a guy who has effectively ensured our ability to operate this season in the Championship. He paid in large part the debt incurred by the previous owners used to secure our promotion to, and retention of a Championship status.
I respect ...... the man owns the club I have supported for over 50yrs, ..... he is in position to provide the club some financial stability, ....he is showing the intentions of exploring a successful sustainable future for the club."
I will (based on my modest knowledge/ability of coaching football) now add my respect for the coach.
No matter the rising paranoia about the squad it is precisely what it has always been. Good results at the start of the season were not a matter of good luck, nor are the recent results a question of bad luck now. A few weeks ago some chastised the club for not buying 2 - 3 players to keep us top 6, now some suggest we face a crossroads or crisis. After 6 months of a new start all that has happened is the reality has set in.
The current squad is NOT built for a promotion challenge. In truth it never was.
To build a "top of the table Championship" team let alone squad in one season you must spend (risk) significant money or be very lucky. Some refer to Brentford & Bournemouth. We are 1 - 2yrs behind them in team building. They have spent to build on the momentum created by their L1 promotion. We had the same opportunity but not the finance. S & J had their sums wrong. We have had to start again.
Despite the expectations of many and the insanity of the internet rumour mill the coach with the squad available has performed very reasonably. He really is doing THE job he was recruited to do as “described on the tin.” The team sits mid table. He has introduced a host of young players to the 1st team squad. In such circumstances I am comfortable with his coaching approach. He has tried to shuffle the squad/ playing pattern to best develop/ explore ALL options AVAILABLE to him.
To me those preaching an attacking policy with just 3 quality players in the front 6 are simply wrong. Such a consistent approach is in no way sustainable when one injury or suspension removes 30% of your potency. The depth of talent is not there. Every sane coach on the planet plays to the squad strengths.
The frailty of the 1st team squad has long been there for all to see. Several younger players are (at present) not yet ready to make a positive 1st team contribution on any regular basis. It was ever thus. The longer the absence of any of the established senior players then the greater the burden (& frustration) on the remaining senior players.
The "in built" need to manage the Solly injury, the intermittent Vetokele appearances, the long term absences of Wiggins & Henderson and yes even Church, the regular injury niggles of others, and the return of Coquelin to Arsenal have reduced options and in the short term stretched a very small squad of senior players to the limit.
The question, as always, is do you seek to “immediately acquire” or do you work to develop “long term in house” remedies.
Our current plan is staring you in the face.
The club indicates it is committed to upgrading the academy to Cat.1 status incurring significant operating cost to develop talent to contribute to the club. RD does "invest" in infrastructure. It seems such expenditure fits his business psyche, you get to see something tangible for your money. Despite his age his approach appears geared to the longer term. The benefits accruing to such investment will take time to deliver.
The enhanced academy facilities are not even planned to come on line until late 2016.
Today 21 academy lads are currently on or committed to full pro’ contracts. With U21 recruits 27 young pros are trying to build a career with us. The approach is to give as many as we can a chance to make the grade. It IS a steep learning curve. Respect is due to the coach who has accepted the remit and apparently has the balls and patience for the journey. It seems many fans do not share his fortitude. Sadly if fans do not have the stomach for the same ride they may need to revisit how they support the clubs future fortunes.
RD to succeed however has to recognise if building the new foundations takes too long people will tire of being exposed to the reality of the professional football marketplace without the protection of the "walls, roof, windows and doors" to go with those foundations, no matter how good they may ultimately be. As per his political dalliance he may find his attempt to build a "special" business model in football being similarly condemned to the margins and footnotes of history.
In financial terms it is not as if we have not been here before. The tight financial model we operated during the early Murray years meant it took Curbishley 3yrs to take us to the PL - going from the play offs – to 15th and then back to then win the play offs. Only with subsequent relegation & promotion did we finally achieve a PL ready squad. As supporters we used to understand these things can and more often than not do take time.
I retain respect for what RD is trying to achieve. Respect however is a two way street.
RD has the need to respect;
- the world of professional football for what it is
- the specific environment in which the club operates - the English Championship
- the traditional values and roots of the club
- the interests of the thousands of fans, supporters, followers and the communities the club serves
- the people he has chosen to serve the club as executives, coaches and players by suitably empowering
them to do their jobs to the best of their ability
M Duchatelet regularly reaffirms he knows nothing of football. He has recently made a number of changes to the hierarchy of Standard Liege to "strengthen" their football management. In terms of recent events there is evidence he may need to consider addressing a similar realignment in meeting the needs of a club based in London SE7.
I believe he has the resources available to engineer a prosperous future for our club.
On several levels I fully endorse his vision but he needs to ensure people are able to see, support and contribute to the value proposition he seeks to deliver.
If he is unable to rise to this challenge then it is likely the people of talent he needs to deliver the vision will find they probably have better options to pursue elsewhere.
That would be a major disappointment for us all.
Another measured and erudite post.
I doff mine to him for the time he has taken to make this contribution and for the clarity of his thinking.
I take on board everything he writes & there is little to question IMO.
The statement that stands out for me is that the current squad is NOT built for a promotion challenge.
Perhaps we should, in light of the 2 signings yesterday and the rumours around Delort & others, believe that it is also NOT merely cobbled together for a relegation fight ?
The proof of the pudding is in the eating of course and only time will tell whether these additions to our squad and (hopefully) the return to fitness of Wiggins & Henderson will sufficiently strengthen it to ensure a worry free end to the season.
With purely the remainder of the current term in mind, my fervent hopes are that Bob is able to field his strongest team for each game , tweaked at times to combat the threats that specific opposition sides pose ; that the squad is united on & off the pitch and that supporters remain "on side" through the squeaky bum times.
But, I DO believe the time is ripe for our owner to face his customers as I suggested in another thread only a few days ago. Whether this is at the annual VIP Q & A or on another occasion - IMO an appearance to "update" the faithful on his vision, to point out the positives thus far and to engage in dialogue with the faithful so that fences can be mended and ideally, fears overcome. Call me naïve to think this might happen but I live in hope.....
And as such, I'm keeping the faith.
The best example I can give at the moment is Brighton. They went for it both last season and the season before. They are in a relegation battle. I think they'll get out of it, but they definitely won't go up this season.