We wont get far without creative players, especially if CBT has left. I've not seen the recent recruits so can't really say what Bakinson, Coventry or Fiorini bring to the table but if they aren't creating many chances throughout a match I can't see us winning many games.
I know I've bleated on & on about our general lack of strikers but it now seems I'll be moaning about our general lack of creativity. Doesn't help that it seems we will now be playing without wingers & crossing the ball into the box will now fall to Watson (T) and Edun. I wonder if they have ever practice crossing in their careers before ??
How come you’re not watching the games any more? Too depressing?
I didn't buy a ST this year for the first time since the Premier League years. Partly due to the last 3 seasons of mid table mediocrity but also because my son now works at the Valley on matchdays so I'd be sitting on my own (although @LargeAddick does still go & sits in the same Stand). I will be buying the stream on Tuesday & looking forward to seeing the new players. I'm also planning on going to both the Derby & Pompey home games next month. After that....who knows.
We are a disillusioned fanbase but some success will see many fans return. The owners can't expect anything else. One goes along with the other.
Up to a point but the ownership also needs a narrative to go with the player investment. Presumably the management are waiting for their consultants to tell them what it is.
Awful display in the second half, only thing that made me chuckle at the end, was the Burton sponsors in hospitality, giving the man of the match award to their goalkeeper, they must have been well Brahms.
Thanks to @Blucher for doing more of a match report for those of us who didn't watch and wondered how a team with 75% of possession( I know it means nothing if you don't take or create chances ) managed to lose and make the mandatory defensive mistakes while being punished in transition by long passes(as opposed to long hoof ball) which find their target.
Never managed in adult football only youngsters but I never wanted to be out thought by the opposition manager even if they had the badges. It feels like Michael Appleton gets out thought most weeks which has surprised me because of his experience. In a crowd of only 3000 there's no excuse for not getting your views across to the team during the match. Think on your feet FFS. How to attack and defend set pieces should be practised ad nauseam at Sparrows lane. New players in and we don't want them Charltonised after one match or slagged off.
Charlton Athletic are know as a soft touch in recent years and every club in League 1 knows that. The mentality needs to improve and Andy Scott and the new manager( sooner rather than later) need to set the agenda for that.
We are a disillusioned fanbase but some success will see many fans return. The owners can't expect anything else. One goes along with the other.
Up to a point but the ownership also needs a narrative to go with the player investment. Presumably the management are waiting for their consultants to tell them what it is.
I agree but I am minded that our attendances in 2019 shot up and then you can build the narrative and keep them. I live in Hertfordshire, I have to fork out over £50 for me and my son not including petrol, food and drinks, try to make it through the F*ing Blackwall Tunnel and get to a game I know will be a worst experience than being hit on the head with a cricket bat. That is a banker in recent years, take the lead, sit back and lose it. Make a mistake and get beaten by a team not far up from a pub team. If we play a decent team, they generally outplay us. It is a virtual banker and it makes it hard to go. I go to the odd game and get the same awful experience time after time so I often buy the stream and I can turn it off rather than have that journey back where I am spitting feathers throughout. Throw me a bone and I will come to more games. I accept there will be setbacks but I don't accept the game is a guaranteed setback.
Even when we beat Cheltenham, we were lucky the ref made a crap decision. I got no pleasure from that. When we beat Fleetwood, which we scraped through, I went to that one and only got to see the last five minutes and added time due to the Blackwall tunnel and I read it is going to be closed nearly every game I plan to go to. If I see just a bit better I will be there. The experience is everything and the upward trajectory allows the club to provide a narrative that is believed. Many others will come when both happen but you need both.
Too much crab /safety first football with us , no one wants to gamble, Louie Watson is a front foot positive footballer, yes he may not be in the best of form but looks to make things happen . With CBT gone we have limited ability to make something out of nothing , Rak Sakyi saved us from this shitstorm last season . We may just need a new manager bounce to get us to safety . More comfort chocolate , more poo, no sleep ffs i can highly recommend Marks & Spencer’s chocolate covered custard creams , not for the faint hearted , super expensive 6 for £2.50 ffs can be sickly if you’re not hardcore but it’s a king of biscuits and worth a gamble , enjoy .
I get that your gut issues are part of your biography as you often refer to it on here and have for a long while. Has no-one ever pointed out how 5 a day (fruit and veg) could help solve your issues, and fermented foods, including the benefits of live yoghurt?
We are a disillusioned fanbase but some success will see many fans return. The owners can't expect anything else. One goes along with the other.
Up to a point but the ownership also needs a narrative to go with the player investment. Presumably the management are waiting for their consultants to tell them what it is.
I can give them one for free. We have a top striker in Alfie May and we decided we needed a formation that would allow us to play two up top. We needed a striker who could hold play up but also go direct, and we invested in Ladapo. We also agreed with Michael that we needed more bite in midfield and Conor Coventry and Bakinson provide that.
We don't believe 4-4-2 works as a regular formation and so are looking for options out wide to supplement our existing players.
We had hoped Michael was going to get the best out of our existing players and out of our investment but it's become increasingly clear that he is not the right man for the job at this time. Unfortunately his recent teams have frequently been less than the sum of their parts and the players are going backwards, often literally rather than progressing as we would expect.
Having lost the few fans who were prepared to give him a go with once reinforcements arrived, and now in danger of losing the remainder of the dressing room, we have decided that to protect our investment and to move forwards both this year and next, it's time for Michael to move on.
Changing managers twice in a season is not what we had in mind and in hindsight, we should have invested more at the time of Michael's appointment. We wish him all the best for the future, we have agreed terms with Gary Rowett who will take charge of first team coaching responsibilities from tomorrow. We will continue investing in the team through the transfer window and are confident of a strong finish to the season.
We are a disillusioned fanbase but some success will see many fans return. The owners can't expect anything else. One goes along with the other.
Up to a point but the ownership also needs a narrative to go with the player investment. Presumably the management are waiting for their consultants to tell them what it is.
I can give them one for free. We have a top striker in Alfie May and we decided we needed a formation that would allow us to play two up top. We needed a striker who could hold play up but also go direct, and we invested in Ladapo. We also agreed with Michael that we needed more bite in midfield and Conor Coventry and Bakinson provide that.
We don't believe 4-4-2 works as a regular formation and so are looking for options out wide to supplement our existing players.
We had hoped Michael was going to get the best out of our existing players and out of our investment but it's become increasingly clear that he is not the right man for the job at this time. Unfortunately his recent teams have frequently been less than the sum of their parts and the players are going backwards, often literally rather than progressing as we would expect.
Having lost the few fans who were prepared to give him a go with once reinforcements arrived, and now in danger of losing the remainder of the dressing room, we have decided that to protect our investment and to move forwards both this year and next, it's time for Michael to move on.
Changing managers twice in a season is not what we had in mind and in hindsight, we should have invested more at the time of Michael's appointment. We wish him all the best for the future, we have agreed terms with Gary Rowett who will take charge of first team coaching responsibilities from tomorrow. We will continue investing in the team through the transfer window and are confident of a strong finish to the season.
All the optimism over our new signings blown away after 90 odd minutes. Makes no difference who we sign with this clown in charge. Get rid now and give the new bloke a chance to see what's needed in the summer
The definition of madness, according to Einstein, was "... doing the same thing over and over and over again and expecting a different result" .
What you are asking for here, according to Einstein, is madness.
The second things go wrong in toxicvalleyworld is a cry to sack the manager. Appleton has proven he can bring success at this level. He isn't the problem.
Alperton should be judged on a fit fiest team. If he is fired for not getting results without Chuks and Leaburn up top then it I simply a repeat of September again. We've learned nothing.
Alperton should be judged on a fit fiest team. If he is fired for not getting results without Chuks and Leaburn up top then it I simply a repeat of September again. We've learned nothing.
I don’t think we can wait until Chuks and Leaburn are fit..
if we’re going to persist with the 352 we surely need an attacking midfielder quickly. All our CMs are incredibly samey and too defensively minded.
L Watson and Fiorini not enough? Let's not judge the latter hastily
Louis Watson isn't a 10 for me, never scored a league goal. He's more attacking than Coventry, Dobson, Bakinson but more of a CM. I know next to nothing about Fiorini but clearly isn't fit enough to play 90 mins.
if we’re going to persist with the 352 we surely need an attacking midfielder quickly. All our CMs are incredibly samey and too defensively minded.
Agree the midfield looks a bit unbalanced with Bakinson, Dobbo and Coventry. It's too sideways. Watson may not be a 10 but he at least he's positive.
With Watson back in the team against Port Vale we scored three. Granted our defensive lapses cost us again but with new CBs in the team plus Bakinson, surely worth another try.
if we’re going to persist with the 352 we surely need an attacking midfielder quickly. All our CMs are incredibly samey and too defensively minded.
Agree the midfield looks a bit unbalanced with Bakinson, Dobbo and Coventry. It's too sideways. Watson may not be a 10 but he at least he's positive.
With Watson back in the team against Port Vale we scored three. Granted our defensive lapses cost us again but with new CBs in the team plus Bakinson, surely worth another try.
I'd 100% rather play Watson than those 3 all together. I'll be honest I think Fraser would be good in the 10 with some freedom and not having to play CM
if we’re going to persist with the 352 we surely need an attacking midfielder quickly. All our CMs are incredibly samey and too defensively minded.
Agree the midfield looks a bit unbalanced with Bakinson, Dobbo and Coventry. It's too sideways. Watson may not be a 10 but he at least he's positive.
With Watson back in the team against Port Vale we scored three. Granted our defensive lapses cost us again but with new CBs in the team plus Bakinson, surely worth another try.
Yeah, which leads us to the extremely difficult conversation of which one of the three we drop. Bakinson has added something
I'd drop Dobbo. Might be controversial. But with our run of form, time to freshen things up.
I said the same earlier up the thread. That midfield three probably doesn’t work together (Haven’t seen Coventry or Bakinson, but from comments hear they are very similar). Would bring L Watson back in for Dobson.
Bring pressure on Watson/Edun to create in the final 3rd in this formation. Imagine we will see some changes in the back 3. It’s tough for Ness having barely played the whole season and two matches later being dropped again.
Comments
Never managed in adult football only youngsters but I never wanted to be out thought by the opposition manager even if they had the badges. It feels like Michael Appleton gets out thought most weeks which has surprised me because of his experience. In a crowd of only 3000 there's no excuse for not getting your views across to the team during the match. Think on your feet FFS. How to attack and defend set pieces should be practised ad nauseam at Sparrows lane. New players in and we don't want them Charltonised after one match or slagged off.
Charlton Athletic are know as a soft touch in recent years and every club in League 1 knows that.
The mentality needs to improve and Andy Scott and the new manager( sooner rather than later) need to set the agenda for that.
I have a horrible feeling MA will still be here Tuesday.
Just does not feel like an announcement from the club is imminent.
Even when we beat Cheltenham, we were lucky the ref made a crap decision. I got no pleasure from that. When we beat Fleetwood, which we scraped through, I went to that one and only got to see the last five minutes and added time due to the Blackwall tunnel and I read it is going to be closed nearly every game I plan to go to. If I see just a bit better I will be there. The experience is everything and the upward trajectory allows the club to provide a narrative that is believed. Many others will come when both happen but you need both.
Onwards & upwards with Gary !
100% this. Watson made a difference on Saturday, but it was too late. MA should have done that as soon as the second went in.
With Watson back in the team against Port Vale we scored three. Granted our defensive lapses cost us again but with new CBs in the team plus Bakinson, surely worth another try.