Yellow&Blue&Red

I can't remember after which match it was that Pearson moaned about our strikers failing to shoot. I think the improvement has a lot to do with that managerial and coaching clarity about what's expected. Ever since then it feels like he's just much more willing to pull the trigger. And is much more focused on getting into positions where he can shoot. And success has followed.

I do see that and it's a fair point, but I don't think I agree because Mel Morris isn't getting the punishment. The regulation has now been tightened up and there are good proposals to tighten it up further so the chance of exactly this happening agains is less now than I think it was. But if someone was to do exactly what Mel Morris did and everything was the same again, then that dodgy **** wouldn't get punished either. Also - as a side point, it's not the EFL's choice, it's HMRC. If you were to say the EFL punishment for Derby should be stronger - mandatory relegation instead of points for instance - I'd definitely agree with that. Can't say I'm happy with the possibility that they'll dig themselves out of trouble and keep their Championship place. That really would stink.

Yep - completely agree.

It's really unfair that Derby are getting away without paying their full debts but forcing them to fail doesn't help anyone. This way HMRC get £xM tax back which would otherwise be lost. Wycombe and Middlesbrough get their claims adjudicated and possibly awarded damages (I really hope they do in Wycombe's case). And the club gets to live on. Mel Morris's crazy failed gamble shouldn't be at the cost of the whole club - all the people who work for it and all the people who support it. I know lots of the supporters were cheering him on, but it's him that's responsible, not them. Putting it out of business punishes people who weren't responsible, in the harshest possible way. Even if the supporters were responsible, forcing it out of existence isn't remotely proportionate!

Couldn't agree more. Looked determined to help the team and impress the boss. Looking to link play and get forward is standard for him. But he also chased and closed down well and even won an aerial duel which made me laugh. I think he's running a lot faster than he was earlier in the season.

I don't think the fan led review is unrealistic or undesirable. Lack of regulation has brought us to where we are now with most clubs losing money and a steady trickle of clubs going bust. We're seeing potential political interference in the case of DCFC's administration because for very good reasons it's not politically easy to let clubs go bust. Instead of the politicians rushing in with barely thought through interventions at the last minute when things go wrong, as they surely will again and again, wouldn't it be better if we had a regulatory framework to reduce the likelihood of that happening in the first place?

Just cannot believe how badly this has been handled by the administrators. They've got a weak negotiating position and they've decided to take it public! They've complained about how unfairly they're being treated by the EFL, by WW and MFC and all three have come out with well argued presentations of their positions. As a result - a direct result - of the administrators poorly thought through tactics, WW's and MFC's positions have strengthened.

His shots per game looks like it's gone way up (I haven't checked). I think he's been a little overawed by the Championship and Pearson has told him in no uncertain terms that his job is to get through on goal and shoot. And now we're seeing the benefit.

Quantuma have really screwed this! By taking the debate public, they've invited MFC to rebut them in public. That PR from MFC looks more credible than any presentation I've seen before and undermines the arguments they've made to potential buyers (and their reputation with those buyers) that the claim has no merit. And makes a deal less likely. The EFL's statement earlier makes clear that there are two serious bidders when Quantuma have said 3. Either one of them is only at a preliminary stage, or they're exagerating the level of interest. Either way, they're being caught-out in public and the price competition that they're trying to stimulate is further undermined. Can anyone estimate the value of this work to Quantuma? Very roughly obviously. And I read - perhaps here - that other firms had turned the work down. Beyond reputational damage, is there some risk to Quantuma?

Lots of good ideas. Points deductions for PPs OR salary caps if properly implemented would both work to level the playing field. But I can't imagine either being successfully introduced whilst football is regulating itself. All of the solutions involve the richer clubs recognising the wider interests of football and football fans... which they're not going to do! The Crouch Review recommends an independent regulator to ensure fairness and financial stability. And a golden share to protect fans' interests and to guarantee that clubs are treated like community assets. With those protections in place football will be in a much better place. Just don't expect representatives of big clubs to come out agreement!

One thing's certain - we definitely play better when they're on the field.

I wondered earlier in the season whether Pearson had made pointed comments about players not giving it their all - I can't remember when or precisely what he said - in a game when Jay had seemed to me to be running much more slowly than he used to. It made me think that Jay might be protecting his injury (Jay's perspective) or nervous about trusting his body (Pearson's perspective) and whether this was frustrating to Pearson. I wonder whether the same might be happening with Atkinson.

The graphic is too low resolution on my phone so went here to see the original. Bristol City had the 86th worst set of results in the top four divisions during 2021. Worst in the championship.

Emma Hayes was linked with Wimbledon job but I don't think that came from Wimbledon, I think that came from Emma Hayes' agent. At the time that she said women's football wasn't a step down (what do you expect her to say, she's got to keep the respect of her players!) she also said that Wimbledon couldn't afford her. A couple of months later she signed a new contract with Chelsea. Looks to me like women managers can play the contract renegotiation game every bit as well as the men.

I'm pretty sure the Stoke fans were right the time they complained the most. His foot was well over.

Whilst points deductions are never ideal...

Some think the squad is so poor that the manager and coaches get a pass, that you can't polish a turd. I think there's blame to go around and that on field performances reflect badly on off field preparation. If the coaching hasn't been up to standard then for the younger players that will be hurting their development. II'd take Vyner, Bakinson and Dasilva off that list.

Chris Martin has played every game this season and you've mentioned ALL of his highlights in 3 short lines. Nearly all - he's got a second assist which I can't remember. Given he's played as a target man, who has the job of holding it up or knocking it down to set up the other strikers, the assist numbers are more disapointing than his goals. But my post wasn't really about his contribution, it was about who I'd prefer to watch. And I'd prefer to watch Palmer. I keep reading here that the best we can hope for this year is mid table mediocrity but I've paid for entertainment and Palmer for all the frustration he brings, has a better chance of providing that. And a higher ceiling.

It's disappointing that KP hasn't realised his full potential. But he can be exciting and creative and if we're committed to paying millions for him over the coming years, we ought to be doing all we can to help him reach his potential. I'd rather watch him giving it a go - and hopefully settling into some form - than watch Chris Martin lumbering about ineffectively.

I thought we did try to play more this way on Saturday. Wells was playing on the shoulder and got lots of off-side calls against him. And both our goals came from balls played through from midfield.

It's been so sudden at the bottom of L1. Nearly everyone's burst to life. Rochdale have won 9 points in a week and Wigan and the Dons have both earned a quarter of our total points for the season in the last week and a half! Perfect storm for Rovers who've responded by imploding. Exciting nail biting stuff for the rest of us.

My dodgy analysis suggests they're facing a struggle to survive. Over the last 6 games their form has been the 22nd worst in the league. In 5 games they have left to play the teams they are facing are doing pretty well with an average position of 8th in the form table. Wigan and Northants have got similarly difficult run ins, but have slightly better form themselves. Northants have 2 more points than them, and Wigan have got 1 game more left to play. The truth is that it's super close and anything could happen, but based on form, they're in a tight spot.

I think it's an excellent forum and I look at it a lot. And I do follow City as well. So it's only fair.

We're playing very slightly better as well. And not too bad a run-in. I think we've got half a chance of getting ourselves out of the shit again. Unfortunately - for the Dons - I think Northampton are going to do better than the rest of the following pack and are more likely to pull themselves out of it. Whether one or, fingers crossed, both of us - Dons and Cobblers - get out of the relegation zone, it's obviously bad news for Rovers.

Hey pillred - I know exactly what you mean. It feels bleak. But I think, hard as it is to believe, we're already seeing massive benefit from the lockdown. The numbers of deaths were doubling every 3 or 4 days not so long ago and that's stopped. On the 8th April there were were 938 UK coronavirus deaths. If the death rate had doubled even twice in the past 9 days since then - as it likely would have if we hadn't locked down - we'd be at nearly 4,000 deaths a day!! And still rising. Instead deaths per day is slowly, far far too slowly, drifting down. Keep the faith mate - our sacrifice is working. (And I'm embarrassed at how little sacrifice I'm making when I say that, compared to others who have lost jobs or who are facing horrible risks on the front line of this battle.)