Time for some straight talk...!

[Phileas Fogg]

10 minutes ago, spudski said:

Been 'depressed' for a long time. 'Black hole' meaning depressed.

 

7 minutes ago, cidered abroad said:

I've been in a black hole for a long time.

Hmm thanks. Slightly concerning, easy to forget he's only 25 so hope the club are making sure he's ok. 

Sounds like it could be the goal drought getting to him - hopefully when he scores it'll be a weight off his shoulders.

[Kid in the Riot]

47 minutes ago, spudski said:

If Diony was that unwell and unfit, no way would he have been used for 45 mins. Give some credit to the coaching staff, they aren't dumb. He would have only been used if fit and healthy. Especially as Bobby wanted to play on.

Other players have played this season when not 100% fit and it's even been publicised by the coaching staff. It's very unusual that a manager is able to name a starting 11 where all the players are 100% fit. Reid was injured too don't forget. Have sent you a PM

[Major Isewater]

44 minutes ago, Phileas Fogg said:

@Major Isewater aren't you a French speaker? This has been posted elsewhere but if you could give a good translation..

Came from Diony's instagram last night.

Literally I've been in a black hole for too a long time .

I've been depressed for too long . 

[Major Isewater]

37 minutes ago, cidered abroad said:

I've been in a black hole for a long time.

For ' too ' long .

I understand this means he's had enough of being there and is about to change or he's still in it ( which means so are we if we are counting on him to lift  the team ) 

[cheshire_red]

The OP has been officially verified has he?

[Phileas Fogg]

3 minutes ago, Major Isewater said:

For ' too ' long .

I understand this means he's had enough of being there and is about to change or he's still in it ( which means so are we if we are counting on him to lift  the team ) 

Thanks, in English the normal nuance of 'too long' would mean he's had enough and wants to change. 

Does it retain the same meaning in French?

@cheshire_red yep this is the real McIndoe.

[BigTone]

2 minutes ago, cheshire_red said:

The OP has been officially verified has he?

I believe he has

[BigTone]

2 minutes ago, Phileas Fogg said:

Thanks, in English the normal nuance of 'too long' would mean he's had enough and wants to change. 

Does it retain the same meaning in French?

Pretty much, yes

[Gert Mare]

The question that I have is "When is it right to assume that you are strong enough for the PL?".

Everything in football these days is geared towards the short term, and whilst I understand the need to build over time players contract lengths don't always enable this to happen. Agents are looking for their next commission cheque and players get their heads turned.

If we don't go up this year I expect to see departures of key players such as Aden Flint who is a rare goal scoring CB, Joe Bryan and possibly Bobby Reid for starters. Our cup run has put these players firmly in the shop window and if City don't go up there are other clubs who would be able to accommodate those players and offer them Premier League football next season.

For City, to replace those players will cost a considerable amount of money, and the clubs aim is to promote from within. So does the club really want Premier League football, or sustainably? I think it is sustainability and if promotion comes with that then it is a bonus.

We won't be tempted to go all out for the £200M+ potential purse. Our activity in the January transfer window indicated to me that it is all about sustainability, and not whether LJ thinks his team is good enough for the Premier League at this moment in time.

[Major Isewater]

32 minutes ago, Phileas Fogg said:

 

Hmm thanks. Slightly concerning, easy to forget he's only 25 so hope the club are making sure he's ok. 

Sounds like it could be the goal drought getting to him - hopefully when he scores it'll be a weight off his shoulders.

It's not just the goal drought .

He was St Etienne's record signing by a mile ( think of Kodjia and the hopes we had for him but then imagine he does nothing and worse sulks around the place stinking it out , think Tomlin. ) there was huge expectancy for him . 

It was a toxic situation made worse for him by the change of coach who hadn't signed him .

 I have a nagging doubt  about his mentality but hope he can sort himself out with the help of the club Fammy and Arnie who he knows .

If it doesn't work here with this group he is in big trouble.

 

[Major Isewater]

7 minutes ago, Phileas Fogg said:

Thanks, in English the normal nuance of 'too long' would mean he's had enough and wants to change. 

Does it retain the same meaning in French?

@cheshire_red yep this is the real McIndoe.

Yes but we can only assume because it is in the intonation of the spoken sentence where the meaning can be taken .

He isn't really doing himself any favours though with this type of public statement.

 I preferred when he announced that he wanted to find his smile again .

I hope we get behind the lad and give him encouragement and don't destroy him like many did with the poor Liam Fontaine .

 

[Bris Red]

2 hours ago, Kid in the Riot said:

Bored of saying it, but Diony was unwell the week before the game which would explain a lack of match fitness...

Fair enough. Well i look foward to a fully fit Diony playing soon then, i have to be honest i wont hold my breath as to seeing him putting in the sort of shift Reid does.. he just doesn't seem the type. We shall see.. as i said no excuses when he is fully fit, its not rocket science or technical ability that allows Reid to do what he does its hard work and endeavour that any player can do if they WANT too.

[Phileas Fogg]

5 minutes ago, Major Isewater said:

It's not just the goal drought .

He was St Etienne's record signing by a mile ( think of Kodjia and the hopes we had for him but then imagine he does nothing and worse sulks around the place stinking it out , think Tomlin. ) there was huge expectancy for him . 

It was a toxic situation made worse for him by the change of coach who hadn't signed him .

 I have a nagging doubt  about his mentality but hope he can sort himself out with the help of the club Fammy and Arnie who he knows .

If it doesn't work here with this group he is in big trouble.

Interesting. He was in many pundit's Ligue 1 squad for team of the season last year so he's clearly no mug. 

It is interesting we've chosen to bring him in if he has had an attitude problem at St. Etienne, but apparently we've been tracking him for a while so must feel as if we know his character.

He's pretty young really, his birthday within a few weeks of both Reid and Diedhiou, so plenty of time for him to get his career on track. Hopefully that can be here.

I get the impression that Diedhiou is a very good influence so I really hope he can help Diony settle in.

A French pundit on Twitter made the claim that Diony is potentially better than both Diedhiou AND Kodjia which is reassuring. Apparently Brighton were interested in the summer which is a good sign.

Hope it can come good for him.

[Phileas Fogg]

4 minutes ago, bris red said:

Fair enough. Well i look foward to a fully fit Diony playing soon then, i have to be honest i wont hold my breath as to seeing him putting in the sort of shift Reid does.. he just doesn't seem the type. We shall see.. as i said no excuses when he is fully fit, its not rocket science or technical ability that allows Reid to do what he does its hard work and endeavour that any player can do if they WANT too.

I don't think he's been bought in to play like Reid. It's clearly not his natural game. 

He's a totally different style of player - he's more like a Kodjia or a Maynard. He's not going to drop deep and hassle defenders, he's not going to be operating in that pocket of space that Reid occupies. 

He wants to play on the shoulder and obviously wants balls in behind (like Diedhiou's first goal).

I wouldn't expect him to be looking anything like Reid stylistically, even when he's up and running. That's fine though, we don't need a replacement for Reid. We needed another type of forward, one with pace who will play on the shoulder, and that's what he is.

[Major Isewater]

3 minutes ago, bris red said:

Fair enough. Well i look foward to a fully fit Diony playing soon then, i have to be honest i wont hold my breath as to seeing him putting in the sort of shift Reid does.. he just doesn't seem the type. We shall see.. as i said no excuses when he is fully fit, its not rocket science or technical ability that allows Reid to do what he does its hard work and endeavour that any player can do if they WANT too.

I don't know how close he is to match fitness but he wasn't playing regularly, can't have been overmotivated  in training with the bad atmosphere in the camp and is/was carrying too much weight .

I think that he is the right player at the wrong time , for him and the club.

 I understand why they signed him up , him having been on the recruitment list and suddenly looking a do able deal but I fear that it may take too long for him to make an impact .

 I hope I'm wrong .

 

[Gert Mare]

1 hour ago, Phileas Fogg said:

@Major Isewater aren't you a French speaker? This has been posted elsewhere but if you could give a good translation..

Came from Diony's instagram last night.

This isn't good. This kid has obviously got some serious issues going on and that is a concern. Hopefully he is getting the support that he needs to turn his head around. He has every opportunity to do that with Bristol City. It's up to him to lift himself out of this mood. If the ball doesn't come to you Lois go looking for it and make your own luck! Confidence will come from that.

[Chappers]

With those issues, not sure him signing for City is the right move. Championship is a tough League, whereas he sounds like he needs to step down for a few months to a lower level and regain confidence and form. Would have been a better signing in July when we could have given him a pre-season to get his head right. What do we do now? Persist and hope, or rely on the less talented players who will do a job? Either way could be bad for Lois. And the Championship is not a League for mucking around trying to set up chances for a particular individual.

[spudski]

10 minutes ago, Phileas Fogg said:

I don't think he's been bought in to play like Reid. It's clearly not his natural game. 

He's a totally different style of player - he's more like a Kodjia or a Maynard. He's not going to drop deep and hassle defenders, he's not going to be operating in that pocket of space that Reid occupies. 

He wants to play on the shoulder and obviously wants balls in behind (like Diedhiou's first goal).

I wouldn't expect him to be looking anything like Reid stylistically, even when he's up and running. That's fine though, we don't need a replacement for Reid. We needed another type of forward, one with pace who will play on the shoulder, and that's what he is.

Well I hope we don't adopt to playing 'his' way with no pressing from the front line.

It's been our strength all season.

You only have to see how weak we are when we don't do it...hence a poor Sunderland side being able to play through our midfield and get out wide when not opposed in their own half.

We might be ok going forward, but if we don't play our pressing game from the 'high line' then I fear more results like Saturday.

Diony didn't press enough, or when he did, too late and not on the trigger. Famara laboured, and so did Kent and Pato in the second half.

You get to the bye line against Bryan to cross the ball, and you've a 50/50 chance of beating him in my book.

This is a reflection of all the problems we had when we played with Tomlin.

Poor tracking and pressing, others not knowing who to mark, or covering for others. Remember those days Philly...awful to watch. And so were the results.

If he plays his way, in trying to break the line, in a different way, then so be it, it's another club in the bag....however imo, we still have to play our pressing game, and when not in possession he has to work as hard.

[Mr Popodopolous]

9 minutes ago, Badger08 said:

 

I said this after the Manchester United game, but of course, I was talking rubbish.  That game plus the Manchester City games have taken their toll.  That United game turnt our season.  Look at our results since that match. 

I said it then, and I'll say it again, that game lost us focus and energy on the league.  

The Dubai trip came at just the right time, and we looked good vs Sunderland bar the 2 freak goals. 

 

I'd say the Wolves game turned our season if anything- even after Man Utd we got a point at Loftus Road where we usually lose, then we beat Reading and did what we needed to...

A combination of injuries, fatigue and similar saw us lose to Wolves and then go into a bit of a slide from there. In fact, after an hour v Wolves we were a goal to the good and playing well- v 10 men at home. We were 5 points off Wolves themselves and that could have changed everything, not just for us but in terms of pressure on Wolves as they would have seen their gap above us go from 10 points to 5 points in a week, with a tricky game v Brentford a couple of days later and some hard games in Jan/Feb.

I'm not apportioning any blame to anyone, just stating an observation- the turning point IMO was Wolves coming back to win. Had it remained 1-0, they would have been 7 ahead of 3rd and 5 ahead of us...with every chance the gap from both would have been cut further by the time they next played.

To add, that was a huge, huge win for them and an equally big loss for us! Kind of moments that can make or break seasons...applies to both. I think they knew when they did that they would win the League IMO.

[downendcity]

1 hour ago, spudski said:

LJ said in hindsight, that he wouldn't have taken Reid off.

He's been carrying a knock on the ankle for a while. Yes, I saw him hobbling at one point, and then not long after sprint after the ball.

A player isn't going to risk further injury and have time out of the game. He knows his body and would only play if it was ok.

Of course I was at the game, I wouldn't give such forthright observations otherwise.

We will have to agree to disagree re Diony. I can try my best...doesn't mean I'd be good enough.

What Diony shows in training might be completely different to what he did on Saturday. You can't blame the manager for that.

If Diony played like that in training, do you honestly think he's say he was ready to play?

He was playing a completely different game to everyone else.

Yes he was making moves, but inappropriate to how we were playing. Even in the short highlights you can witness it.

Regarding Diony's performance, do you think it was perhaps part of the collective team performance second half. It seemed to me that at 3-0 up the team thought that Sunderland were there for the taking and we could " turn ion" in the second half and score a few more with ease.

At half time, and before the substitution was announced I commented that it would interesting to see what Diony could do with a 3-0 lead and against a poor and tiring Sunderland defence. However, instead of sticking to the style that has served us so well through the season  we seemed to embark on kore of a "gung ho" approach and especially when we got past the half way line. I thought Kent looked dangerous, but on many occasions his mazy runs ended with jim losing the ball in an isolated position enabling Sunderland to build attacks with space t work in from the back and I have to say that there was an inevitability to their comeback.

I have  feeling that had Diony come on with the game still tight, the team would have maintained it's discipline and shape much better and within that we might have seen Diony playing the pressing role much more.

Wolves last minute goal was a sickener, and I think it's had a big effect on us since then, but Saturday feels more of a defeat than that one and I worry that LJ has a big job on his hands to recover players' confidence and get us back to playing solid football the way we were before Christmas. Despite our poor rune since Christmas we are still in the hunt and this time last year LJ turned it around from a far worse situation and produced promotion form for the remainder of the season - fingers crossed he can repeat that magic touch.

[Nogbad the Bad]

9 minutes ago, Cheesleysmate said:

The question that I have is "When is it right to assume that you are strong enough for the PL?".

Everything in football these days is geared towards the short term, and whilst I understand the need to build over time players contract lengths don't always enable this to happen. Agents are looking for their next commission cheque and players get their heads turned.

If we don't go up this year I expect to see departures of key players such as Aden Flint who is a rare goal scoring CB, Joe Bryan and possibly Bobby Reid for starters. Our cup run has put these players firmly in the shop window and if City don't go up there are other clubs who would be able to accommodate those players and offer them Premier League football next season.

For City, to replace those players will cost a considerable amount of money, and the clubs aim is to promote from within. So does the club really want Premier League football, or sustainably? I think it is sustainability and if promotion comes with that then it is a bonus.

We won't be tempted to go all out for the £200M+ potential purse. Our activity in the January transfer window indicated to me that it is all about sustainability, and not whether LJ thinks his team is good enough for the Premier League at this moment in time.

I agree, and if we lose 3 of our top players as above it'll take time for their replacements to reach the same heights, if they ever do, so we're unlikely to challenge to the same extent next season.

Every season we don't get promoted will probably set us back for a while as we lose our most sought after players and integrate new ones in an attempt to build to the same challenging level.

Then if individuals shine 1 or 2 of our best players are likely to get picked off again if we don't go up.

That's our lot imo.

It could become a frustrating cycle but the health of the club is paramount. As long as we don't stagnate and go backwards, we can see the club overall is robust at all levels, the football is entertaining, and we keep an eye out for the main chance, we have to accept it.

 

[Phileas Fogg]

27 minutes ago, spudski said:

Well I hope we don't adopt to playing 'his' way with no pressing from the front line.

It's been our strength all season.

You only have to see how weak we are when we don't do it...hence a poor Sunderland side being able to play through our midfield and get out wide when not opposed in their own half.

We might be ok going forward, but if we don't play our pressing game from the 'high line' then I fear more results like Saturday.

Diony didn't press enough, or when he did, too late and not on the trigger. Famara laboured, and so did Kent and Pato in the second half.

You get to the bye line against Bryan to cross the ball, and you've a 50/50 chance of beating him in my book.

This is a reflection of all the problems we had when we played with Tomlin.

Poor tracking and pressing, others not knowing who to mark, or covering for others. Remember those days Philly...awful to watch. And so were the results.

If he plays his way, in trying to break the line, in a different way, then so be it, it's another club in the bag....however imo, we still have to play our pressing game, and when not in possession he has to work as hard.

I think that style of forward was the one we missed. There's been a few times this season where I've wished our forwards had more genuine pace.

Prior to Diony's arrival, none of our forwards could be described as particularly quick, perhaps with the exception of Engvall. I felt we lacked that as an option.

I think given the runs he clearly wanted to make, he'd play well with someone like Reid behind him, perhaps Paterson too.

I think the Diony x Diedhiou partnership could work too once they're on the same wavelength.

The pressing game takes time to understand, ideally you'd bed someone like him in with a full pre-season which makes his transfer a bit of a risk considering.

I really believe he should be given more time by our fans, he's played a total of 85 mins - 25 of them against 10 men after 1 day's training, 20 of them vs Bolton with them sitting deep and us playing terribly and 45 of them after having flu all week. I appreciate it sounds like i'm making excuses for him, but I don't think he's had a fair go.

[Mr Popodopolous]

4 minutes ago, Phileas Fogg said:

I think that style of forward was the one we missed. There's been a few times this season where I've wished our forwards had more genuine pace.

Prior to Diony's arrival, none of our forwards could be described as particularly quick, perhaps with the exception of Engvall. I felt we lacked that as an option.

I think given the runs he clearly wanted to make, he'd play well with someone like Reid behind him, perhaps Paterson too.

I think the Diony x Diedhiou partnership could work too once they're on the same wavelength.

The pressing game takes time to understand, ideally you'd bed someone like him in with a full pre-season which makes his transfer a bit of a risk considering.

I really believe he should be given more time by our fans, he's played a total of 85 mins - 25 of them against 10 men after 1 day's training, 20 of them vs Bolton with them sitting deep and us playing terribly and 45 of them after having flu all week. I appreciate it sounds like i'm making excuses for him, but I don't think he's had a fair go.

Thinking about it a bit more, dust settled a bit etc- I tend to agree with this.

One way could be him with Reid and Paterson behind them in a 4-3-3/4-3-2-1- i.e. those 2 going central when needs be, out wide a bit defensively especially Paterson could be yet another interesting tactical ploy. Okay maybe I need to think it through but it could make for a fluid front 3.

[Fatalist]

54 minutes ago, Phileas Fogg said:

I don't think he's been bought in to play like Reid. It's clearly not his natural game. 

He's a totally different style of player - he's more like a Kodjia or a Maynard. He's not going to drop deep and hassle defenders, he's not going to be operating in that pocket of space that Reid occupies. 

He wants to play on the shoulder and obviously wants balls in behind (like Diedhiou's first goal).

I wouldn't expect him to be looking anything like Reid stylistically, even when he's up and running. That's fine though, we don't need a replacement for Reid. We needed another type of forward, one with pace who will play on the shoulder, and that's what he is.

For ages, our problem has been not having anyone who can consistently play those sort of passes.

[Nogbad the Bad]

2 hours ago, spudski said:

If Diony was that unwell and unfit, no way would he have been used for 45 mins. Give some credit to the coaching staff, they aren't dumb. He would have only been used if fit and healthy. Especially as Bobby wanted to play on.

At 3-0 up and the way Sunderland were playing, it was the perfect opportunity to give the new signing 45 mins.

Little did anyone know, that he'd put in such a poor performance that effected the whole energy, dynamic and front shape of the team.

As for going up and signings in January...nobody knows what's in the budget for wages available. Buying in January with a hope of going up is never a good idea imo, everything is over inflated and you can get left with someone on high wages, with no motivation and a whole lot of change in the summer.

 

Give some credit to the physio re. BR too.

It won't have been a 2 man conversation in the dressing room between Bobby ( 'I can carry on Gaffer, honest') and LJ.

The physio will have assessed his injury and likely said, 'Well, he could go back out but there's a strong possibility he'll make it worse and I couldn't guarantee him for Leeds next week'

LJ, 'OK, Bobby, in that case best if you come off, no point risking it at 3-0 up.'

Bobby Reid 'wanting' to play on doesn't come into it imo.

[Kid in the Riot]

9 minutes ago, Nogbad the Bad said:

Give some credit to the physio re. BR too.

It won't have been a 2 man conversation in the dressing room between Bobby ( 'I can carry on Gaffer, honest') and LJ.

The physio will have assessed his injury and likely said, 'Well, he could go back out but there's a strong possibility he'll make it worse and I couldn't guarantee him for Leeds next week'

LJ, 'OK, Bobby, in that case best if you come off, no point risking it at 3-0 up.'

Bobby Reid 'wanting' to play on doesn't come into it imo.

Rugby players want to carry on when they've suffered concussion or head injuries, boxers want to carry on when they've broken a hand or have a massive gash above their eye with blood pouring out....I'm sure Bobby did want to carry on but it doesn't necessarily mean it'd have been the right thing for him to do. LJ has to make the calls, not his players 

[Esmond Million's Bung]

16 hours ago, Alessandro said:

I think all too often some fans have an attitute of “we are 4th, they are 18th, we should beat them”. We beat Man Utd, we should beat most teams in this league.

It is very very easy to forget these guys are not machines. They make mistakes. They have good games, they have bad games. There are so many variables going on ‘behind the scenes’ that we don’t know about. Fitness, general conditioning, personal issues, opposition(!) etc etc. Too often we think if a player isn’t at their best, they’re clearly not trying hard enough.

Having said that - although I can see LJ wants to have a smaller squad and respect the players that got us this far, I’m of the opinion you’re right here, and we probably should have strengthened a little more in January than we did, for the reasons you said above. Not necessary the Jermone’s, Grabben’s or Madine’s but more depth. But that is done now and too late, so we have what we have.

We are going about things the right way. We have a system that will bring success. Maybe not this year, but in the years to come. 

I firmly believe that LJ and the board wouldn’t see another year or two in the Championship a failure in anyway.

And I think some fans shy away from the obvious, Paterson 3 poor games on the trot should have been dropped 2 games ago, playing Smith or Brownhill (2 of our best midfielders) at full back + not signing even a loan right back in January, having a supposedly specialist international CB sat on the bench whilst Baker is suspended. What it has done is severely weakened our midfield, a midfield that for most of the season has stood up to the challenge from the more robust of opponents but is being over run and uncharacteristically bullied, resulting in 2 very poor performances against 2 of the worst sides in the division.

And that represents the poor side of LJ's management, like for instance Bailey Wright has been ok at right back and we have gotten away with it, oops Baker is sent off and banned for 3 games, I know let's push my luck again and see if Smith can play at right back without buggering the midfield up, well that never worked, I know let's try Brownhill.

The answer is the same now as it was in January, LJ believed that that Zac Vyner was an adequate back up, but Reading away earlier this season proved that to be wrong, so bring in Pisano almost certainly far to early from his injury and that backfired, I think everybody in January expected that at least a loan right back was a must but no LJ winged it again and lo and behold Baker gets sent off and suspended for 3 games, ok not LJ's fault that Baker was sent off but surely a scenario that a central defender might get sent off and a loaner until the end of the season is a necessary expense.

Of course the plan B could have been continue to play Wright at full back, but of course that would mean playing Magnússon a player that many believe is great but LJ (the most important person in the selection process) obviously does not rate.

LJ has impressed me greatly this season and he has built up a great reputation but, he does sadly carry some of his father faults of trying to patch things up with square pegs in round holes (don't get me wrong, when they come off ala Reid, then brilliant, but it is a risk) and he is incredibly stubborn about playing 'certain' players no matter how poor they are playing and not using some of the players that he doesn't rate, when it MAY be the lesser of 2 evils.

I agree with the OP 8th to 10th for me i'm afraid, but hopefully huge lessons learned.

 

[Phileas Fogg]

10 minutes ago, Esmond Million's Bung said:

And I think some fans shy away from the obvious, Paterson 3 poor games on the trot should have been dropped 2 games ago, playing Smith or Brownhill (2 of our best midfielders) at full back + not signing even a loan right back in January, having a supposedly specialist international CB sat on the bench whilst Baker is suspended. What it has done is severely weakened our midfield, a midfield that for most of the season has stood up to the challenge from the more robust of opponents but is being over run and uncharacteristically bullied, resulting in 2 very poor performances against 2 of the worst sides in the division.

And that represents the poor side of LJ's management, like for instance Bailey Wright has been ok at right back and we have gotten away with it, oops Baker is sent off and banned for 3 games, I know let's push my luck again and see if Smith can play at right back without buggering the midfield up, well that never worked, I know let's try Brownhill.

The answer is the same now as it was in January, LJ believed that that Zac Vyner was an adequate back up, but Reading away earlier this season proved that to be wrong, so bring in Pisano almost certainly far to early from his injury and that backfired, I think everybody in January expected that at least a loan right back was a must but no LJ winged it again and lo and behold Baker gets sent off and suspended for 3 games, ok not LJ's fault that Baker was sent off but surely a scenario that a central defender might get sent off and a loaner until the end of the season is a necessary expense.

Of course the plan B could have been continue to play Wright at full back, but of course that would mean playing Magnússon a player that many believe is great but LJ (the most important person in the selection process) obviously does not rate.

LJ has impressed me greatly this season and he has built up a great reputation but, he does sadly carry some of his father faults of trying to patch things up with square pegs in round holes (don't get me wrong, when they come off ala Reid, then brilliant, but it is a risk) and he is incredibly stubborn about playing 'certain' players no matter how poor they are playing and not using some of the players that he doesn't rate, when it MAY be the lesser of 2 evils.

I agree with the OP 8th to 10th for me i'm afraid, but hopefully huge lessons learned.

 

Good post - If desperately felt we needed a right back. I like Pisano but his selection record (especially when you consider his age) means he isn't looking like a good long term buy.

Was a real shame to see Cyrus Christie go to Fulham. He's a top right back and although Fulham have the obvious London advantage and will pay the wages, I would have loved to see us splash out on him. Good age, proven in the divison, scope to improve and would instantly improve the starting 11. He's the sort of signing worth investing in but he could've been asking for wages out of our reach.

I think LJ is very wary of playing Magnússon and Flint together, I don't think he believes they work as a pairing. I would have liked to have seen us try it though, and keep Wright at RB whilst we get through Baker's suspension. 

 

 

 

[reddoh]

4 minutes ago, Kid in the Riot said:

Rugby players want to carry on when they've suffered concussion or head injuries, boxers want to carry on when they've broken a hand or have a massive gash above their eye with blood pouring out....I'm sure Bobby did want to carry on but it doesn't necessarily mean it'd have been the right thing for him to do. LJ has to make the calls, not his players 

2008 Bradley Orr

[Son of Fred]

16 hours ago, Michael McIndoe said:

I have to say @ChappersI am extremely surprised that given the team's position in January, the board/Lee didn't bring in some real quality. I can only think the reasons behind this were that they do not feel the club is ready to take that jump into the PL yet. 

Sadly I feel you could be right-but it's leaving a sour taste..

You have to grab these opportunities with both hands for fear of when next such chance arrises.. we've missed a trick here....time & tide wait for no man.