Sounds like Ajose fluffed his lines again late on which would have put us 2-1 up. Whether he has found it difficult to settle, I really don't know but he is clearly not the same player who was scoring with regular ease last season. People defended him under Slades stewardship citing the lack of service but when chances have come his way he more often than not screws up and his confidence is dealt a further blow.
If he doesn't start scoring soon he's in danger of being labelled a dud like McLeod and if he is going to be played wide left and asked to do more work off the ball as he was last Saturday I can't see his fortunes changing anytime soon. He was bought as a 20 goals a season striker and this has not been evident to me with nearly half a season gone. I hope I'm wrong I really do but one thing is for sure KR's man management skills will be tested to the limit getting the best out of him.
Didn't Ajose do the same at Leeds? Bigger club like us and its getting to him! Or we just don't make enough chances! I seem to remember Andy Hunt sometimes missing 2 changes to score the 3rd! Do we make 3 changes a game for 1 player!,? Ajose did very well last season for Swindon but I think didn't pull any trees up before that, could be wrong! Mendonca for instance scored regularly for Grimsby season after season then signing for us and going the same!
Sounds like Ajose fluffed his lines again late on which would have put us 2-1 up. Whether he has found it difficult to settle, I really don't know but he is clearly not the same player who was scoring with regular ease last season. People defended him under Slades stewardship citing the lack of service but when chances have come his way he more often than not screws up and his confidence is dealt a further blow.
If he doesn't start scoring soon he's in danger of being labelled a dud like McLeod and if he is going to be played wide left and asked to do more work off the ball as he was last Saturday I can't see his fortunes changing anytime soon. He was bought as a 20 goals a season striker and this has not been evident to me with nearly half a season gone. I hope I'm wrong I really do but one thing is for sure KR's man management skills will be tested to the limit getting the best out of him.
Didn't Ajose do the same at Leeds? Bigger club like us and its getting to him! Or we just don't make enough chances! I seem to remember Andy Hunt sometimes missing 2 changes to score the 3rd! Do we make 3 changes a game for 1 player!,? Ajose did very well last season for Swindon but I think didn't pull any trees up before that, could be wrong! Mendonca for instance scored regularly for Grimsby season after season then signing for us and going the same!
Who knows mate, it could be that he's trying too hard to replicate last season's achievements, is worried about the price tag or is it that he just had one of those seasons like Clive Allen did one year scoring 49 for the Spuds. He certainly worked harder last Saturday than I've seen so far and for sure if his conversion rate was better he would be playing in a higher league.
He scored with a speculative shot at Bristol Rovers and I thought that'll do him the world of good but still no real improvement evident for me.
Sounds like Ajose fluffed his lines again late on which would have put us 2-1 up. Whether he has found it difficult to settle, I really don't know but he is clearly not the same player who was scoring with regular ease last season. People defended him under Slades stewardship citing the lack of service but when chances have come his way he more often than not screws up and his confidence is dealt a further blow.
If he doesn't start scoring soon he's in danger of being labelled a dud like McLeod and if he is going to be played wide left and asked to do more work off the ball as he was last Saturday I can't see his fortunes changing anytime soon. He was bought as a 20 goals a season striker and this has not been evident to me with nearly half a season gone. I hope I'm wrong I really do but one thing is for sure KR's man management skills will be tested to the limit getting the best out of him.
Didn't Ajose do the same at Leeds? Bigger club like us and its getting to him! Or we just don't make enough chances! I seem to remember Andy Hunt sometimes missing 2 changes to score the 3rd! Do we make 3 changes a game for 1 player!,? Ajose did very well last season for Swindon but I think didn't pull any trees up before that, could be wrong! Mendonca for instance scored regularly for Grimsby season after season then signing for us and going the same!
Didn't really get much of a chance at Leeds but then again, there might've been a reason why.
Swindon could be an outlier in his career but I really hope not. There are bits of his play that are very promising, there just seems to be something missing in there.
After giving them a soft lead I thought we was the better side for 90mins, and what a great chance for Ajose near the end, with so many changes and a tiring side always only 1 winner in extra time, pity..
So there goes my 'Looking forward to meeting up with my Brighton mates' hopes. Charlton stumble on, going nowhere. #concentrateontheleaguehahahaDontbother
Another Ajose type example is Garry Nelson at Brighton. Scored 37 goals for them one year, yet through the rest of his career never came close to that once. Also another Charlton old boy Mike Small, had one great year for Brighton and then sunk without trace.
Another Ajose type example is Garry Nelson at Brighton. Scored 37 goals for them one year, yet through the rest of his career never came close to that once. Also another Charlton old boy Mike Small, had one great year for Brighton and then sunk without trace.
No no no you can't say Nicky Ajose and Garry Nelson in the same since! Nels a legend Nicky will get nowhere near
Charlton lose; roll up, roll up! for the grand Post-Defeat Competition to be the most scathing! Early promise from blackpool72, but perhaps a little too self-knowingly witty for the judges?
@Leuth I dont normally comment on your posts, I try to stay objective across all opinions. However KR had to play what he has tonight, due to sickness and injuries, substitutions were not to blame. What is to blame, or should I say who is to blame is RD and KM. We have a small squad, the above 2 were hoping we could get by using our youth as replacements and hoping we wouldn't get to many injuries in the squad!! that wont work, men against boys and all that!! Once again they have been caught out. So what can they do? Reports are saying that Konsa and Lookie are off in January for circa £10m. I have no idea if this is true or not, but, lets assume it is. If RD sells them but only 'dabbles' around the edges with replacements, would you be happy then? If KR says he needs decent top quality replacements and wants to increase the squad size but is unable to do so, will you be happy then?
However If RD/KM are serious about getting us back to the Championship, where we were when they took us over, and they back up their words with actions in January then fine, I will say good on them and thanks, however past performance and actions suggest they wont, lets hope they not only admit mistakes but actually do something about them!! Without positive PLAYER action we are I fear stuck in this League for at least another season, and yes I do like KR and his philosophy, but he needs RD support!!
A very good post RM. To be fair to our kid @Leuth, I believe that particular post was tongue-in-cheek, and his later comment of "this just seems to be the wrong match to lay in after" speaks to that. I wholeheartedly agree that our squad lacks quality cover in certain areas. I personally believe Slade has to take some of the blame for that, bringing in Crofts and Foley who must be on decent wages, plus waiting on Louis Thompson until literally the 11th hour. He also spent a large transfer fee on Jason Pearce when we were incredibly deep at CB.
All of that said, even if had better cover, if ever there is a game to give the kids a run out it's an FA Cup 2nd Round replay away to MK Dons with Brighton away next up in the 3rd round. Even if we had a deeper squad, to me it was a good evening to see what Aribo and Hanlan can do from the start against L1 opposition. I'm also glad Konsa got a run out in central midfield, as I think he could be an option there, and he may be our most natural defensive midfield (as opposed to Crofts and Foley who are more holding midfielders). I would rather we have seen RCC come on instead of Fox. I wish Lookman didn't play 120 minutes after being ill at the weekend. But Novak getting hurt forced Robinson into an early sub, and when he had one sub left, well we know JJ doesn't have 120 minutes in the tank anymore, and probably doesn't have 90 in central midfield.
We're going to learn a lot more about Robinson in the next two weeks. He has inherited a tough run of games. How I wish we'd brought him in before the AFC Wimbledon, Oldham, and Rochdale run after the second (I think) international break. But we still have a back five good enough to keep teams out and attacking players capable of changing games, and he should be able to get some decent results out of this squad.
I didn't get a chance to say it on the match thread, but thank you as always for everything you do RM. There are no words that can repay the amount of time and effort you selflessly give to us. As Davo said, I hope your holidays are filled with wonderful family and fond memories of your mum.
Robinson just another clueless PUPPET bringing off captain JJ for 'f**k off' Roger Moneybags, complete contempt for the fans travelling north in the freezing rain, paying for their tickets! I don't care if we could have won it, bottom line is RESULTS, we got beat 3-1 by a shit shit Franchise FC, shouldn't even be a football club, 3-1 is shit, Robinson is SHIT. Just fell apart like we're going to against Millwank. RD OUT KM OUT ROBBO OUT get Curbs and Powell back
Bit early in the thread to be going full Leuth isn't it?
This absolutely made my day.
And Leuth, to be fair to you, you have a very endearing ability to laugh at yourself. Never lose that, it's an incredibly admirable trait.
Back home after just about every motorway being closed between MK and Shropshire. Its always a bit empty and 'unique' at MKD but this really felt like a training match. Having said that considering the eleven that was selected I felt we passed the ball around well and should of been up at half time. Chicksen's goal was great and before the substitutions there was some great link up play on the left, again involving Chicksen. Even though it was a bit of a weakened team we did seem to have players that found flowing patterns of play and knew where each other were on the pitch to pass to. Lookman was a bit frustrating some brilliant moves but his play often ending up in a cul de sac. We don't really seem to have found a way to use his skills as part of the team. Tex and Konsa were great at the back. Overall we seemed to lack anyone with confidence racing into the box and some bite in midfield, what a difference a Cousins would of made to this team, sigh. Anyway some experience and matches notched up for the likes of Aribo and Hanlan and hopefully we won't have to watch Johnson ever again. Three points on Saturday and this will all be forgotten.
Ref was disgusting!! Foley booked really early on then MK Dons proceeded to kick and foul their way through Konya and Lookman in particular without any recourse from the ref at all! It was a joke. He eventually booked their number 6 near the end.
As for the game? Quite decent in the first half in particular, although Botaka just tries to do too much at times and is showing why, at best, he is probably an impact player only. Lookman was buzzing around all over the place and caused them problems (hence the regular assaults) and Chicksen was particularly effective pushing forward on the left, then cutting inside to hit a good equaliser. Aribo was at fault for their opener (too much playing around at the back) with a John Stone-esque mistake, but he looks a real talent.
Should have won it near the end of 90 minutes, but Ajose missed a good chance after doing really well to set himself up. Other than that, his cameo appearance was totally ineffective.
Sloppy defending for both of their extra time goals, but tired legs and all that. Johnson continues to steal a living though by masquerading as a professional footballer and when he fell over near the end, the fella near me shouting 'no, don't get up' just about summed Johnson up in all honesty.
This was nothing more than him using the game to get a look at people. I suspect from what I heard and now read he realises why Johnson warms the bench at best,
Hopefully results pick up, but if Robinson's not careful he'll have a worse record than Slade before long...... imagine being the 3rd manager of a season and having the worst record...... not sure who thats more embarrassing for the manager or the owner ......
Ajose seems poor, i'm sorry but i just havn't seen anything to suggest otherwise
It would be OK if he brought something else to the team, but he doesn't. The problem is we don't have much of an alternative in that role unless we play Lookman through the middle which I would prefer but I think I'm in the minority.
hang on for 90 mins then melt in the 1st period of et, oh well just 7 days till we can lose our bottle again, kr needs a win saturday desperately i think, call me negative but a draw at bradford is hardly setting the world on fire.
Have a sinking feeling that KR will prove to be a complete clown - hoping I'm wrong!
Disagree, wasn't there last night but was at Bradford on Saturday and I was very impressed with both the starting line up and the "in game management" from Robinson. Let's be honest we're not going to be appointing Pep or Klopp - we're a League One side and I can't imagine there are six better managers in this league and I'm sure there aren't six better squads on paper. If, and it's a big if, Robinson can demonstrate some nous in the transfer window and get us a solution to our central midfield problem then we should be good for a playoff place.
I can't believe that there are people writing Robinson off already after a few games. Jesus Christ it's embarrassing, give the man a chance before you string him up.
was 74 points to get playoffs last season, 78 are still up for grabs and we currently have 28, if close to last season 50 are still required to get playoffs, 26 games to play win 15 of them and draw a couple and think we will be there abouts.
I worry that Robinson's Master and Mistress have ordered him to play Johnson for the rest of the season as money is on the table for one or more of our other centre half options.
Call me a cynical old git if you like but is it so beyond the realms that she'll do a BOGOF with a Premiership club for Lookman and Konsa and also realise a little cash with one or more of Tex and Bauer?
On the other hand maybe Johnson's reappearance for Jackson is no more sinister than needing a bit of height to defend set pieces given that Charles - Cook etc are comparative midgets. Not succeeding in convincing myself though!
Comments
He scored with a speculative shot at Bristol Rovers and I thought that'll do him the world of good but still no real improvement evident for me.
Swindon could be an outlier in his career but I really hope not. There are bits of his play that are very promising, there just seems to be something missing in there.
Charlton stumble on, going nowhere.
#concentrateontheleaguehahahaDontbother
All of that said, even if had better cover, if ever there is a game to give the kids a run out it's an FA Cup 2nd Round replay away to MK Dons with Brighton away next up in the 3rd round. Even if we had a deeper squad, to me it was a good evening to see what Aribo and Hanlan can do from the start against L1 opposition. I'm also glad Konsa got a run out in central midfield, as I think he could be an option there, and he may be our most natural defensive midfield (as opposed to Crofts and Foley who are more holding midfielders). I would rather we have seen RCC come on instead of Fox. I wish Lookman didn't play 120 minutes after being ill at the weekend. But Novak getting hurt forced Robinson into an early sub, and when he had one sub left, well we know JJ doesn't have 120 minutes in the tank anymore, and probably doesn't have 90 in central midfield.
We're going to learn a lot more about Robinson in the next two weeks. He has inherited a tough run of games. How I wish we'd brought him in before the AFC Wimbledon, Oldham, and Rochdale run after the second (I think) international break. But we still have a back five good enough to keep teams out and attacking players capable of changing games, and he should be able to get some decent results out of this squad.
I didn't get a chance to say it on the match thread, but thank you as always for everything you do RM. There are no words that can repay the amount of time and effort you selflessly give to us. As Davo said, I hope your holidays are filled with wonderful family and fond memories of your mum.
And Leuth, to be fair to you, you have a very endearing ability to laugh at yourself. Never lose that, it's an incredibly admirable trait.
As for the game? Quite decent in the first half in particular, although Botaka just tries to do too much at times and is showing why, at best, he is probably an impact player only. Lookman was buzzing around all over the place and caused them problems (hence the regular assaults) and Chicksen was particularly effective pushing forward on the left, then cutting inside to hit a good equaliser. Aribo was at fault for their opener (too much playing around at the back) with a John Stone-esque mistake, but he looks a real talent.
Should have won it near the end of 90 minutes, but Ajose missed a good chance after doing really well to set himself up. Other than that, his cameo appearance was totally ineffective.
Sloppy defending for both of their extra time goals, but tired legs and all that. Johnson continues to steal a living though by masquerading as a professional footballer and when he fell over near the end, the fella near me shouting 'no, don't get up' just about summed Johnson up in all honesty.
Hopefully results pick up, but if Robinson's not careful he'll have a worse record than Slade before long...... imagine being the 3rd manager of a season and having the worst record...... not sure who thats more embarrassing for the manager or the owner ......
If you want to hear positives I thought the players were playing with freedom and reflected KR's positivity.
Plenty of pressing and got a lot of second phase ball where we've often been consistently poor.
Passing and movement ten times better than Bristol performance. Magennis would have made a huge difference.
Negatives Ajose and Relegation Roger.
we're a League One side and I can't imagine there are six better managers in this league and I'm sure there aren't six better squads on paper. If, and it's a big if, Robinson can demonstrate some nous in the transfer window and get us a solution to our central midfield problem then we should be good for a playoff place.
Jesus Christ it's embarrassing, give the man a chance before you string him up.
Call me a cynical old git if you like but is it so beyond the realms that she'll do a BOGOF with a Premiership club for Lookman and Konsa and also realise a little cash with one or more of Tex and Bauer?
On the other hand maybe Johnson's reappearance for Jackson is no more sinister than needing a bit of height to defend set pieces given that Charles - Cook etc are comparative midgets. Not succeeding in convincing myself though!