We've already forgotten about the meaningless C1C exit. Glad focus has returned to the important. We can't afford to get distracted by that other overrated cup comp conp January.
We've already forgotten about the meaningless C1C exit. Glad focus has returned to the important. We can't afford to get distracted by that other overrated cup comp conp January.
I don't understand what people were expecting? Reading are flying and beat Boro 2-0 in their last home game. We are having a massive wobble and are missing a number of key players. Why on earth would Luzon do anything other than set us up to get a point and perhaps nick it late on?
If we'd gone there and been open and expansive we'd have been beaten out of sight with the players we had available today.
Reading had loads of shots, but the vast majority ended up in the stands behind either goal. I only remember Pope making 1 save in the first half.
If we'd have had 11 players on till the end I firmly believe we would have come away with what we went there to get - a point.
We didn't look overly troubled by what was, until we went down to 10 men, a pretty average looking Reading team. I agree that the last 10 mins weren't great, but put it into context. We worked our nuts off for the proceeding 80mins to keep tight and to stifle Reading. That was done with two players who have barely played and one who was carrying a knock from 20mins in and who was playing his 3rd game in a week. Reading played 10 men well and simply kept the ball.
I've noticed the current scapegoat (Bergdich) getting a hammering again. He did little wrong today, but people have decided he's shite and that's him potentially screwed. Why hasn't Jordan Cousins, who did nothing but give the ball away for the first half, been called out?
Plus points for me, were a busy performance from Moussa and Jackson adding some organisation. Diarra MOM by some distance. Also relieved to see that Bauer was two yellows and not the straight red I thought it was at the time.
To say we aren't trying is nonsense and to me indicates that Luzon still has the dressing room. At the moment our paper-thin squad is over stretched. We just need to ride it out and hope that Makienok, Kashi, Igor and Henderson are back sooner rather than later.
Encouraging that we are looking at free agents, hopefully if things don't improve on the injuries front we'll see some short-term deals sorted out.
At the moment I'm genuinely not worried.
Well said that man. Reading are flying high and it was always going to be an uphill struggle. Does anyone know how long before the injured key players are back to strengthen the squad? It is a bit worrying, though, that JBG & Watt are not scoring regularly.
\interpret it how you like. However with 11 men it looked a good chance we could have had a draw. Why you think a shot 20 yard wide, made out of frustration due to our solid defending and closing down, shows them likely to win the game is beyond me.
Not fully feeling the post match drama to be honest. Most expected us to get dicked. Had we kept 11 men we may have got a point and everyone would be saying solid return. Win today and we would have been up to about 13th.
Things are clearly strained at the mo. Starting with just a rookie up top supported by a player not fully match fit leads you to know it's going to be a negative approach and an uphill battle.
We've big games coming up. Keeping my pallet dry to see where we are post them, but not going to go overboard on today's result, disappointing another defeat is.
Just to add, I wasn't there today.
Very much appreciate it is ten times easier to take a pragmatic approach when you are not there.
On a whole it was pathetic. So hard to swallow such lack of fight when we went one down regardless of circumstances.
You could almost feel everyone shouting "AT LEAST EFFING TRY!!"
But it was an attitude of "we have a man sent off therefore we will just hide".
Pathetic. No character and a squad destined for the drop unless some minerals are shown.
I don't understand what people were expecting? Reading are flying and beat Boro 2-0 in their last home game. We are having a massive wobble and are missing a number of key players. Why on earth would Luzon do anything other than set us up to get a point and perhaps nick it late on?
If we'd gone there and been open and expansive we'd have been beaten out of sight with the players we had available today.
Reading had loads of shots, but the vast majority ended up in the stands behind either goal. I only remember Pope making 1 save in the first half.
If we'd have had 11 players on till the end I firmly believe we would have come away with what we went there to get - a point.
We didn't look overly troubled by what was, until we went down to 10 men, a pretty average looking Reading team. I agree that the last 10 mins weren't great, but put it into context. We worked our nuts off for the proceeding 80mins to keep tight and to stifle Reading. That was done with two players who have barely played and one who was carrying a knock from 20mins in and who was playing his 3rd game in a week. Reading played 10 men well and simply kept the ball.
I've noticed the current scapegoat (Bergdich) getting a hammering again. He did little wrong today, but people have decided he's shite and that's him potentially screwed. Why hasn't Jordan Cousins, who did nothing but give the ball away for the first half, been called out?
Plus points for me, were a busy performance from Moussa and Jackson adding some organisation. Diarra MOM by some distance. Also relieved to see that Bauer was two yellows and not the straight red I thought it was at the time.
To say we aren't trying is nonsense and to me indicates that Luzon still has the dressing room. At the moment our paper-thin squad is over stretched. We just need to ride it out and hope that Makienok, Kashi, Igor and Henderson are back sooner rather than later.
Encouraging that we are looking at free agents, hopefully if things don't improve on the injuries front we'll see some short-term deals sorted out.
Do all clubs have so many fans who have so little knowledge of football? Comments like "inept performance" and "players didn't even try" show such a lack of understanding of the game. Can't pretend it was great but if we hadn't had a player unluckily sent off we would have got a point away at the team who were 3rd in the table!
Do all clubs have so many fans who have so little knowledge of football? Comments like "inept performance" and "players didn't even try" show such a lack of understanding of the game. Can't pretend it was great but if we hadn't had a player unluckily sent off we would have got a point away at the team who were 3rd in the table!
They're phrases so favoured by the brave pundits we see and hear on MOTD and Sky these days who dont have the guts to go into Management.
Sadly too many fans see these comments as being the truth and forget that Alan Shearer one pundit who tried Management was so poor at Newcastle has been too scared to try again
I know everyone is entitled to a life outside of work but not sure it's wise of Patrick Bauer to be posting pictures of himself on a night out at the O2 with his arms around a couple of young ladies on a day when the fans are so pissed off at a performance like that.
Do all clubs have so many fans who have so little knowledge of football? Comments like "inept performance" and "players didn't even try" show such a lack of understanding of the game. Can't pretend it was great but if we hadn't had a player unluckily sent off we would have got a point away at the team who were 3rd in the table!
Have to agree with this. Hated our lack of goal threat and backward passes, hated the last ten minutes when it was so easy for them to keep the ball, took a strong dislike to the homer of a ref. But it was looking like a hard fought and valuable point until the sending off. Frustrating but we go again Tuesday, surely with a more positive approach.
I know everyone is entitled to a life outside of work but not sure it's wise of Patrick Bauer to be posting pictures of himself on a night out at the O2 with his arms around a couple of young ladies on a day when the fans are so pissed off at a performance like that.
Nope... Be much better if he were to go home, brood over the match, mulling oved it again and again... The moment the decision has happened what can he do about it? Nothing!! The best thing he can do is move on, forget about it and concentrate on the next match.
Hate this with fans these days who expect players to have no lives because they've made a mistake at work.
Bet if a fan made a mistake at work and then got a phone call from a mate asking if they wanted to go for a few drinks afterwards, their response then wouldnt be: No I made a mistake at work, Id best go home and think about it.
And if a Senior Manager (i.e. the equivalent of the fan as they pay your wages) saw you out enjoying yourself after that mistake and told you that you should be at home reflecting on the incident rather than enjoying yourself, I bet you wouldnt listen then either!!
Plus had Bauer let the Attacker go, Reading may have scored then (i.e. in commiting the foul he was taking one for the team).
That decision could have seen us hold out for a point which we didnt but Bauer being on the pitch at the time would have made no difference to the goal
i.e. Blackman always had a better chance at getting the ball because the cross was well played meaning he could attack the ball whilst our player had to make a standing jump
What pisses me off is players such as Henry from wolves who clearly would have helped were keen to join , yet we always go for the cheapest option ie mcleany , frustrating
What pisses me off is players such as Henry from wolves who clearly would have helped were keen to join , yet we always go for the cheapest option ie mcleany , frustrating
Yet Wolves werent keen to sell... Bit of a big sticking point that...
Came for a point (the right thing to do) with 11 I think we'd have got it. Haven't seen the sending off close up, so don't know if it was a red, but the ref was gunning for us and was quick with his yellow cards all day.
Only read as far as Clem's post as we're just back from the match.
And his short but sweet summary of this afternoon says it all for me.
Of course we didn't set the world alight ....we don't have enough fit players or a settled team to be capable of doing this.
But , for the first 70 mins, we did OK.
JJ made a huge difference in midfield & his very presence seemed to have a calming influence when the Royals threatened to out muscle and unsettle us. Young Jordan was his usual industrious self , Alou & Patrick did little wrong at the back ( although the ******ref clearly didn't agree ) and Nick coped well with any shots they had on target , which were few TBH. Row Z seemed to be their favourite target on the whole...
For the remainder of the team, I have to admit that I was surprised to see McAleny exit the tunnel after the break. The general opinion around us was that Guy would replace him with TWW, whilst pushing Moussa wide but what do we know ? The opposition appeared to target our left side where Bergdich & our Toffee loanee were somewhat lightweight, I'm afraid. But the former was as gobsmacked as those of us in the away end when the ******ref booked him for repositioning the ball as he was about to take a corner right in front of us! Unbelievable ! But only one of the many times we had reason to question the clown in the middle's parentage this afternoon. 12 men versus 11 is always going to be a clear advantage ....
But when our fecking big German had a 2nd yellow waved in his face, the disadvantage became insurmountable. And the rest is history. The Royal faithful, full of meaningless jeers in our direction all afternoon , raised the roof- possibly more in relief than anything else as we were odds on for a point until the sending off. Certainly, theirs is NOT the best team we've encountered thus far this season.
Two final points ( I wish !) from Fanny....
There was a deal of moaning from our fans during the final 10 mins or so of the game. Why didn't we go for it ? Why weren't we busting a gut to get the equaliser ? As you are all aware, I know nothing but my grey cell still functions well enough to tell me that the game was lost - end of. Our final line up was a shadow of that which started the match due to substitutions of players either out on their feet ( JJ) or not doing the business (McAleny) and as such, posed little threat and with 2 important home games over the next 7 days, we could ill afford any further injuries to our threadbare squad through ill timed tackles etc. I didn't see that final period of play as capitulation but more as common sense in the circumstances. Of course I want the lads to play their hearts out until the final whistle and give themselves every chance of gaining something from a game but today I was willing to turn a blind eye to their shortcomings towards the end. But come Tuesday evening there'll be no such generosity.
Finally, I wondered what Steve Clarke would have to say at the post match press conference. He's always struck me as an honest , straightforward kind of guy - no mind games for him - and I'll be interested in his take on the game. He'll know that his team was forced to shoot from distance and at times must have wondered if they'd score at all. He'll also be aware of the number of free kicks awarded to his team and , more contentiously , the yellow cards shown to our players. Without doubt, he'll praise his lads for their long periods of possession and in the end, for scoring the crucial goal. But I won't be surprised if his positive comments are tinged with some degree of embarrassment at the antics of some of his players in gaining numerous soft free kicks and at the generosity of the blinkered *******ref. Just my opinion of course.
I AM concerned about the way this season is starting to falter and, more pertinently, with the small, injury prone squad we have currently. As to turning our fortunes around, apart from continuing to give as much support as we can from the sidelines, it's in the hands of our owner, our manager and our players themselves. Our next 2 games before the trip to Boro' are crucial as we are well aware. Let's hope that they provide a springboard for the rest of the season & that with hard work & dedication we slowly, but surely claw our way up the league.
Keep the faith.
Sorry Fanny, but I have to disagree with you on a couple of points:
Firstly Bergditch may have been gobsmacked, but it wasn't for re=positioning the ball, but for taking about 30 secs to wander over to the corner flag to take the corner, and then once there deciding to take another 10 seconds to pull up his socks - blatant timewasting.
Secondly, it only takes a second to score a goal & no matter how much you may be in control of a match, being 1-0 up is always a precarious position to be in. It wouldn't have taken match for Watt or AHG to force a corner, or a free kick just outside the area, and for someone to pop-up with a last gasp equalizer.......I'm sure that they happen & \i know you've witnessed a few down the years, so thats why a few of us were asking for a bit more effort when down to 10 men.
Do all clubs have so many fans who have so little knowledge of football? Comments like "inept performance" and "players didn't even try" show such a lack of understanding of the game. Can't pretend it was great but if we hadn't had a player unluckily sent off we would have got a point away at the team who were 3rd in the table!
Have to agree with this. Hated our lack of goal threat and backward passes, hated the last ten minutes when it was so easy for them to keep the ball, took a strong dislike to the homer of a ref. But it was looking like a hard fought and valuable point until the sending off. Frustrating but we go again Tuesday, surely with a more positive approach.
Interesting point this. Heard a few WBA fans on the radio whilst driving home say they'd rather get rid of Pulis and go down than stay up watching his boring, defensive long ball tactics.
Sorry to hear this game was over when we conceded as we only had ten men, but I seem to remember us equalising with nine not many years ago (and we had played a whole half two men down). Still we had Miguel Llera then ... those were the days. Apparently!
I don't understand what people were expecting? Reading are flying and beat Boro 2-0 in their last home game. We are having a massive wobble and are missing a number of key players. Why on earth would Luzon do anything other than set us up to get a point and perhaps nick it late on?
If we'd gone there and been open and expansive we'd have been beaten out of sight with the players we had available today.
Reading had loads of shots, but the vast majority ended up in the stands behind either goal. I only remember Pope making 1 save in the first half.
If we'd have had 11 players on till the end I firmly believe we would have come away with what we went there to get - a point.
We didn't look overly troubled by what was, until we went down to 10 men, a pretty average looking Reading team. I agree that the last 10 mins weren't great, but put it into context. We worked our nuts off for the proceeding 80mins to keep tight and to stifle Reading. That was done with two players who have barely played and one who was carrying a knock from 20mins in and who was playing his 3rd game in a week. Reading played 10 men well and simply kept the ball.
I've noticed the current scapegoat (Bergdich) getting a hammering again. He did little wrong today, but people have decided he's shite and that's him potentially screwed. Why hasn't Jordan Cousins, who did nothing but give the ball away for the first half, been called out?
Plus points for me, were a busy performance from Moussa and Jackson adding some organisation. Diarra MOM by some distance. Also relieved to see that Bauer was two yellows and not the straight red I thought it was at the time.
To say we aren't trying is nonsense and to me indicates that Luzon still has the dressing room. At the moment our paper-thin squad is over stretched. We just need to ride it out and hope that Makienok, Kashi, Igor and Henderson are back sooner rather than later.
Encouraging that we are looking at free agents, hopefully if things don't improve on the injuries front we'll see some short-term deals sorted out.
At the moment I'm genuinely not worried.
A shot on target? Maybe even a couple more shots than 1? How confident must teams get up against a team who are bringing absolutely no threat to the game? I understand attempting a clean sheet and working from there, but you need some form of counter attacking football or similar, we literally just waited on ourselves to make a mistake to lose the game, that happened when our best CB got sent off.
I don't blame Luzon as he hasn't the tools, he's stuck in a plan B that he doesn't want to be in.
Do all clubs have so many fans who have so little knowledge of football? Comments like "inept performance" and "players didn't even try" show such a lack of understanding of the game. Can't pretend it was great but if we hadn't had a player unluckily sent off we would have got a point away at the team who were 3rd in the table!
This is a team 3rd in the CHAMPIONSHIP. This is a league renown for the 'anyone can beat anyone' approach, as it's true. We shouldn't be playing them as if they were Barcelona in the CL Final. We can expect them to be the better team but one shot in 90 mins? Even if you're setting up for a 0-0 that is piss poor. Guy Luzon said at the start of the season we are going to go for every game and try to win - we didn't today. He also said he was confident we had a chance of taking full points here, we didn't..
Yes it would have been a well earned 0-0 but we lost, and because they got a goal we needed to match that to equalise - can't do that without shooting.
Anyway, enough about it - I hope Roland reverses his 'if we're up there we'll invest' approach to the 'if we're struggling we'll invest a bit to stay in the Championship'. The LAST thing we need is a relegation under this regime, the absolute last. It will be devastating for the progress we've been making these past few years.
I know everyone is entitled to a life outside of work but not sure it's wise of Patrick Bauer to be posting pictures of himself on a night out at the O2 with his arms around a couple of young ladies on a day when the fans are so pissed off at a performance like that.
Nope... Be much better if he were to go home, brood over the match, mulling oved it again and again... The moment the decision has happened what can he do about it? Nothing!! The best thing he can do is move on, forget about it and concentrate on the next match.
Hate this with fans these days who expect players to have no lives because they've made a mistake at work.
Read what I said for Christ sake. My first sentence starts with "I know everyone is entitled to a life outside of work...."
My point being that he will probably get a ton of stick for it, and therefore probably isn't the best idea.
"It was the kind of game we were expecting. We'd prepared the team a little bit in the manner to expect that type of game.
"We knew that if we didn't get the early goal, which we're not going to get every week, it would be a test of patience.
"For me, it was a really important win, but also a very good win for us. Charlton were really organised, we knew they would be. We'd watched the videos and saw their away performances had been decent.
"It was always going to be one of those days, but we never really looked like conceding at any stage."
Charlton Athletic manager Guy Luzon:
"I think we had a game plan and we prepared well for this game. Reading are a team with a lot of quality and we knew that before the game.
"When we played with 11 players, we really gave everything and organised well. We didn't let them create easy chances and, for part of the game, we were also patient with the ball.
"The red card changed the game and gave them the advantage because, with 11 against 10, it was difficult to hold them.
"We made it difficult for Reading to play against us, it was a tough game for both sides and a fair fight and, as I say, the sending off changed things and gave them the boost they needed to take the three points."
Positives - defensively we were very organised and might well have held on without the sending off. Moussa seems to have recovered well from the injury and there's a place for him in the team - maybe to solve our left midfield problem.
Negatives - zero attacking threat because of the game plan. The left side of Bergdich and McAlany was woeful.
But, ultimately, it's not games like this that will decide our fate. The next 2 games now look huge in the context of our season - anything less than 4 points and we're in deep trouble.
Whilst we have the injuries Luzon has to take a risk this coming Tues/Sat. I'd put Fox back on the left side of defence and bring Moussa to left midfield. Jackson and Cousins in the middle is too negative. JBG needs something to spark his form so why not put him in the centre to try and bring us creativity. On the right? Not sure on that one. KAG and bring a young lad in up front? Risky, I know, but he's got to change something significantly.
I know everyone is entitled to a life outside of work but not sure it's wise of Patrick Bauer to be posting pictures of himself on a night out at the O2 with his arms around a couple of young ladies on a day when the fans are so pissed off at a performance like that.
Get a grip ffs. He lost a football match and got sent off. I doubt he was chuffed at that but he does have a life to lead which I doubt includes sackcloth and ashes.
I know everyone is entitled to a life outside of work but not sure it's wise of Patrick Bauer to be posting pictures of himself on a night out at the O2 with his arms around a couple of young ladies on a day when the fans are so pissed off at a performance like that.
Get a grip ffs. He lost a football match and got sent off. I doubt he was chuffed at that but he does have a life to lead which I doubt includes sackcloth and ashes.
Yeah agree.
Damn him for having any plans outside of football... That may have been a pretty planned night out.
Not fully feeling the post match drama to be honest. Most expected us to get dicked. Had we kept 11 men we may have got a point and everyone would be saying solid return. Win today and we would have been up to about 13th.
Things are clearly strained at the mo. Starting with just a rookie up top supported by a player not fully match fit leads you to know it's going to be a negative approach and an uphill battle.
We've big games coming up. Keeping my pallet dry to see where we are post them, but not going to go overboard on today's result, disappointing another defeat is.
Wait till next Saturday evening and then go again with your thoughts. If we pick up 4 points against Preston and Brentford then things will calm down for a bit. No wins from the next 2 and the problems will esculate
Comments
Glad focus has returned to the important.
We can't afford to get distracted by that other overrated cup comp conp January.
Reading are flying high and it was always going to be an uphill struggle.
Does anyone know how long before the injured key players are back to strengthen the squad?
It is a bit worrying, though, that JBG & Watt are not scoring regularly.
For those who didn't go don't be fooled by the fact it sounds like we went for a point and were unlucky. We weren't.
That was the most inept performance I've witnessed from our team. I don't blame the players as the tactics were the problem.
The crowds will dwindle at home and I'd be surprised if many who went today will be queuing for tickets for future away games.
It's time for Roly to give up on his project and start taking advice from people who understand this league. He won't though
So bored of this experiment.
Comments like "inept performance" and "players didn't even try" show such a lack of understanding of the game.
Can't pretend it was great but if we hadn't had a player unluckily sent off we would have got a point away at the team who were 3rd in the table!
Sadly too many fans see these comments as being the truth and forget that Alan Shearer one pundit who tried Management was so poor at Newcastle has been too scared to try again
Hate this with fans these days who expect players to have no lives because they've made a mistake at work.
Bet if a fan made a mistake at work and then got a phone call from a mate asking if they wanted to go for a few drinks afterwards, their response then wouldnt be: No I made a mistake at work, Id best go home and think about it.
And if a Senior Manager (i.e. the equivalent of the fan as they pay your wages) saw you out enjoying yourself after that mistake and told you that you should be at home reflecting on the incident rather than enjoying yourself, I bet you wouldnt listen then either!!
That decision could have seen us hold out for a point which we didnt but Bauer being on the pitch at the time would have made no difference to the goal
i.e. Blackman always had a better chance at getting the ball because the cross was well played meaning he could attack the ball whilst our player had to make a standing jump
Sorry Fanny, but I have to disagree with you on a couple of points:
Firstly Bergditch may have been gobsmacked, but it wasn't for re=positioning the ball, but for taking about 30 secs to wander over to the corner flag to take the corner, and then once there deciding to take another 10 seconds to pull up his socks - blatant timewasting.
Secondly, it only takes a second to score a goal & no matter how much you may be in control of a match, being 1-0 up is always a precarious position to be in. It wouldn't have taken match for Watt or AHG to force a corner, or a free kick just outside the area, and for someone to pop-up with a last gasp equalizer.......I'm sure that they happen & \i know you've witnessed a few down the years, so thats why a few of us were asking for a bit more effort when down to 10 men.
I don't blame Luzon as he hasn't the tools, he's stuck in a plan B that he doesn't want to be in.
Yes it would have been a well earned 0-0 but we lost, and because they got a goal we needed to match that to equalise - can't do that without shooting.
Anyway, enough about it - I hope Roland reverses his 'if we're up there we'll invest' approach to the 'if we're struggling we'll invest a bit to stay in the Championship'. The LAST thing we need is a relegation under this regime, the absolute last. It will be devastating for the progress we've been making these past few years.
My point being that he will probably get a ton of stick for it, and therefore probably isn't the best idea.
"It was the kind of game we were expecting. We'd prepared the team a little bit in the manner to expect that type of game.
"We knew that if we didn't get the early goal, which we're not going to get every week, it would be a test of patience.
"For me, it was a really important win, but also a very good win for us. Charlton were really organised, we knew they would be. We'd watched the videos and saw their away performances had been decent.
"It was always going to be one of those days, but we never really looked like conceding at any stage."
Charlton Athletic manager Guy Luzon:
"I think we had a game plan and we prepared well for this game. Reading are a team with a lot of quality and we knew that before the game.
"When we played with 11 players, we really gave everything and organised well. We didn't let them create easy chances and, for part of the game, we were also patient with the ball.
"The red card changed the game and gave them the advantage because, with 11 against 10, it was difficult to hold them.
"We made it difficult for Reading to play against us, it was a tough game for both sides and a fair fight and, as I say, the sending off changed things and gave them the boost they needed to take the three points."
I've been to five away games so far and not seen a single win
Negatives - zero attacking threat because of the game plan. The left side of Bergdich and McAlany was woeful.
But, ultimately, it's not games like this that will decide our fate. The next 2 games now look huge in the context of our season - anything less than 4 points and we're in deep trouble.
Whilst we have the injuries Luzon has to take a risk this coming Tues/Sat. I'd put Fox back on the left side of defence and bring Moussa to left midfield. Jackson and Cousins in the middle is too negative. JBG needs something to spark his form so why not put him in the centre to try and bring us creativity. On the right? Not sure on that one. KAG and bring a young lad in up front? Risky, I know, but he's got to change something significantly.
Damn him for having any plans outside of football... That may have been a pretty planned night out.