Now that this has become KM and Luzon's main reason for our failings it is worth looking at the nature of our injury problem.
It may be bad luck, or it could be because we have recruited or retained players who are not physically or mentally prepared for the rigours of Championship football.
So taking the main injuries one by one:
Henderson-injury prone and has never played more than 30 games in a season
Makionek-already played more games this season than in the whole of last season, so probably not ready for a full Championship season
Kashi- only played 15 games last season and new to the Championship
Vetokele- not been fit for a year now
Jackson- unlikely to play more than a supporting role due to age and injuries
Moussa- recovering from a serious injury
Ceballos and Reza are peripheral squad members who fit or not would not be expected to make much of an impact.
It is also worth noting that the uninjured ones (fingers crossed) are the ones who had a full season last year either with us or elsewhere:
Pope, Solly,Bauer, Fox, Gudmundsson,Watt and Cousins
Looked at like this it is not surprising that our injury list is long and that those who have been arguing for more players with Championship experience may have a good case on that basis alone.
5
Comments
Strongest first 11 we are a top 8 side.
Sadly we have no depth.
Also having both Moussa & Celabos out injured means we have no width on the left
We can just about put out a decent 11 - but the bench is too weak & lacks any experience or game changers )except when jj is there)
Kashi played 22-games last season according to TransferMarket
Henderson granted he is injury prone but he was never a Guy Luzon signing
Vetokele... Again another player who wasnt signed by Luzon yet previously his record per season was 43-matches (2014/15) / 35-matches (2013/14) / 23-matches (2012/13) so he could be like Watt, someone who has never been injured before so is struggling to get over it
“We will not look at these injuries as excuses,” said PNE manager Grayson.“Whoever is available, we will go to Charlton looking to try and win the game. We have been unfortunate with injuries but it is something we have to deal with.”
"We will use these injuries as excuses," said Guy Luzon, as Katrien Miere stood behind him, poking the tip of her dagger into his back. "Whoever is available, we will roll over like a lame poodle and accept the inevitable thrashing. We have been unfortunate with injuries and it is something that I am unable to deal with and that Katrien is unwilling to deal with."
Should we have a bigger squad?... Yes, Guy wanted one but couldn't get any more signings before the deadline.
I want to be wrong, but there is something about Igor and Kashi being injured that troubles me. I certainly think that an on fire Igor and Ahmed would transform us.
The idea of a squad is that you are generally prepared for injuries and loss of form.
If the squad is insufficient or lacking quality then that is a problem, not just the injuries per se.
There is also the issue of the coach motivating and organising the players that he does have at his disposal.
On Tuesday Simon Grayson succeeded where Guy Luzon failed.
Tony Watt and JBG for the most part haven't been injured - yet Watt is labouring and JBG has lost his mojo.
These are our best players and have been mostly available during this injury "crisis"
Fans beginning to question the manager’s ability.
Team not won for six games.
Manager blaming injuries.
Guy Luzon?
Mick Mcarthy Ipswich.
Again, there is a bigger problem than just the injury.
We only have one professional right back on the books and unfortunately there is scepticism that he can play 40+ games a season.
I will say again we are a Pro team in the 2nd tier of the most popular league in the world not the Dog and Duck team from the Tandridge League.
(apologies to the lads from the Dog and Duck who have to work for a living)
We don't need to buy British, but we need to have a strategy that takes us somewhere. We need to have more than a competitive first XI with kids behind it. We need two Championship-ready and -capable players for every position. What we have is:
GK: Henderson, Pope - check
RB: Solly - * no cover
LB: Fox, Bergdich - *cover not good enough
CB: Diarra, Bauer, Sarr, Lennon - *cover not good enough
RM: JBG - *no cover
LM: Moussa - *usually injured, cover out on loan
CM: Kashi, Cousins, Jackson, Ba - *cover barely good enough
FW: Watt, Makienok, Vetokele, Ahearne-Grant, Reza - *cover questionable
You can see this is a flawed strategy, because injuries and suspensions are inevitable in this league. By all means give kids their chance, but recognise that even Fox is still learning the game, let alone kids like Holmes-Dennis and Charles-Cook. They need strong senior players around them, so they can make mistakes and be covered whilst they learn.
I would like to hear the club say something like this:
- We - the board and the manager - have a 3-5 year strategy.
- We will start with an adequate squad (not there today) and look to build on it each transfer window.
- A key criterion for bringing a first team player in is that he improves the position he comes into
- We won't promise to retain everyone, but we won't let anyone go if their replacement isn't there or ready.
- We will sell a player every 1-2 years to cover operational losses, but ensure they are adequately replaced.
- There will be ups and downs and regular reviews, but our aim is to improve a minimum of 3 places each year.
- Over 3-5 years we expect our first team to be ready to challenge for promotion.
That would be something I think we could all buy into, provided they meant it of course.EDIT: Meant to add that Luzon can hardly be blamed for the squad if he's not party to its construction. That's his out at the moment, but he's still responsible for ensuring the players he picks go out there and play to a system they understand and with a commitment to the plan and to the effort required. If he's no longer able to do that, it's hard to defend him.