Edgy Red

18 minutes ago, Percy Pig said:

Not having that, he miscontrolled one in the first half and got caught out of position maybe twice second half. Both of those were when our midfield had completely ran itself into the ground and he was exposed to more than is tolerable.

He won everything in the air against a long ball team, he progressed the ball excellently all game and showed good leadership with Pring next to him. 

It wasn't a 10/10 by any stretch, but he was far from poor.

Agree on James though, he was utterly majestic in there. Covered every blade despite being booted about by that thug Hogg. Won every header, retained possession, moved it fast and is fast becoming our most important player. 

 

I agree with this... i'll admit that i've still got question marks regarding Zak, but i thought him and Cam did well last night (against a very poor side).

I said on another thread recently that for all his improvement this season, it is still an area that i think we need to bring in someone better if we want to push for the play offs next season.

That was an awful game but as the away team with a host of players missing, we have to be pleased with the commitment and a point.

Huddersfield were absolutely terrible and if Warnock keeps them up he's a magician.

We maintained possession reasonably well but couldn't make the most of the few openings we had.

Lets take the point and never talk about the game again.

Centre back is our biggest issue in the summer. Zak has improved this season but i still think we need better if we want to be serious play off challengers next season (i appreciate others may disagree).

With Big Rob out for a while and Kalas out of contract, i think we need 2 physically dominant centre backs.

1 hour ago, Midred said:

Just watched our match again and seen the inconsistency in Marriners decision making. Free kick just outside our box for a nothing foul and playing on after Sykes was wrestled to the ground just outside their area!

I'll be honest and admit that the penalty on Sykes would have been soft (Roy Keane summed it up perfectly) but Dias clatters straight through Bell just outside the area in the 2nd half and Marriner gave nothing!

10 minutes ago, Fordy62 said:

I’d like him on a new (reduced) contract really. He’s probably our best defender still. 

Totally agree. I think he is likely to get other offers, but hopefully he feels settled in Bristol and we could offer a new 2 year deal with a 3rd year if he plays a certain number of games.

Its VERY early days for Cornick so i will reserve judgement, however the early glimpses don't fill me with much enthusiasm. He certainly doesn't look like a central striker and needs time in his comfortable position in the wide area of a front 3.

Weimann struggles when he's got time to think about what he's going to do. He's more of an instinctive player rather than an intelligent user of the ball.

I think a front 3 of Sykes, Wells and Mehmeti is our best option at present

It was a poor game and it didn't suit the way we want to play.

We're not great in posession of the ball and always look better when counter attacking and winning the ball back high in midfield.

Credit to Nige for improving results over the past 6 weeks but we're not a convincing side yet.

Guy Havord is commentating on the Luton vs Cardiff game on the red button and just said that Cornick is in Bristol completing a move to us.

I think its a done deal... just about timing now

53 minutes ago, Percy Pig said:

I just don't see it. He's poor. 

Take the good footwork when he was scythed down on the halfway line today. When he received that pass he had about 20 yards of space, he had a completely open side of the pitch to run into at pace. Instead he puts his foot on the ball, runs into a blind alley and kills a really dangerous attack.

Now, benefit of the doubt could let you say "it's 3-0, he's protecting the lead". But he does it every single time. It's just really poor full back play.

He's too small, he got caught out of position 3 or 4 times in the first half and it was only that Jed Wallace had an absolute nightmare that he wasn't punished. 

He's lethargic in the press, he's languid on the ball. He's the antithesis of what our team is about. We are becoming a powerful countering side, we progress through the thirds quickly. 

Stick him in Swansea's team and he'd look tidy. But for us, no. He's just not the right type of player. 

He's also on a massive wedge and lightyears behind Pring. 

It's the most obvious "release" imaginable. 

Perfect summary (unfortunately)

He's very good and certainly one of the best i've seen in my 40 years of following City.

In terms of a fee, we have to remember that he's playing Champ football and The Prem is a different beast all together.

I would say 20mill with a number of performance related/sell ons is about right. If he goes on to become a full England international (and it is an if) then as long as we benefit from it, thats all we can ask.

I think he's at his best when he's got a bit of freedom in midfield and having Naismith and James behind him gives him that.

Its hard to believe that he's only 19 and we need to enjoy him over the next few months because he's unlikely to be with us next season.

Its disappointing when we lose players to The Prem but we should be very proud when they've come through our academy.

Really disappointed to see him leave but it makes complete sense. A decent fee which releases FFP pressure and allows us to bring 1 or 2 fresh faces in.

We are going to miss his power and direct running, as we don't have anyone else who offers that.

I hope he does well for Bournemouth and helps to keep them in The Prem

Confidence is massive in football and his recent performances really appear to have helped. I think he believes in himself more now, and that has improved the way he plays.

If we're honest, we've been a pretty poor team for the past few seasons and have conceded alot of goals, which can be difficult to deal with if you're not strong minded.

Massive credit to him for his improved performances and consistancy.

I thought Zac had a good game and he has improved massively this season.

I still worry about him slightly in physical one on ones, but his overall game is getting better and he's at an age where he can hopefully continue to improve further.

I thought we were more than worthy of a draw so credit to the boys.

For me, that was the best starting 11 we can field. There is an argument for Wells instead of Semenyo and Kalas instead of Vyner, but he picked the best side available and with a bit of luck we could have won it.

A completely different type of game against Cov coming up but hopefully we can produce another solid performance

I'm very much 50/50. I appreciate the situation he inherited, but i have been disappointed with the lack of any progress on the pitch over the past 2 years.

A new manager (whoever that may be) would bring new ideas and that could improve things, if even in the short term. I think the squad does have ability but the confidence seems to be drained.

I don't think his stubborness helps him and defeats at Millwall and Cov will be difficult to ignore.

8 hours ago, Kid in the Riot said:

Dave, you continue to portray a terrible situation. Pretty much EVERY other club in the division is in a similar situation. 

Gould claims we have a top 10 wage budget. We have paid fees for a few players.

We are close to FFP failure due to covid. Lots of other clubs in the same situation. 

IMO, and also in the view of Swiss Ramble etc, LJ had a lower wage bill but achieved top half twice. 

Mark Robins at Coventry. Gary Rowett at Millwall. Blackburn, QPR, Preston... 

We should be doing better.

Absolutely spot on... A managers job is to work with the players at his disposal (a large number of which are his own signings).

The FFP card has been used as a shield to protect him from day one and while i understand that finances are incredibly tight, that is the same for many clubs in the football league.

He has to be judged on the product on the pitch and sadly, we are a weak disorganised team that lacks physicality. He has had 2 years to put his stamp on things, but if anything, we look worse than when he joined.

His recent interviews and team selections indicate that his time may be coming to an end. I just hope that a new manager can instill some confidence and organisation to the group (quickly).

I agree he wasn't very good but once again the opposition were in a position to waste time and run down the clock due to our poor game management and decision making.

Sadly, I think our problems lie far deeper than the poor refs in the EFL.

Semenyo isn't great technically and his football intelligence needs work, but these are things that he can work and improve on.

What he does have is pace and power and they are things that can't be taught.

I really do think there is a good player in there and i would like to see him develop further with us, but he could be one we trade if the offer is right

3 minutes ago, The Dolman Pragmatist said:

Apparently not.  Pearson made it clear he was not in the squad because he ‘didn’t trust him’.

I think this is one of my biggest concerns with Nige.

When finances are so tight, the recruitment has to be spot on, and to date, Nige has a pretty poor record.

Klose has fallen out of favour  Atkinson appears to have fallen out of favour, Tanner is still raw, Sykes has been 50/50, Kane Wilson couldn't get a look in when he was fit and Andy King (sadly) is way past his best.

For what its worth, i think Atkinson is a decent centre back and is certainly the most physically dominant option we currently have available. If Nige is saying that he doesn't trust him, i find that very worrying

4 minutes ago, Ska Junkie said:

Could someone answer a question that's been on my mind for a while please?

Even if we had new owners, am I right in saying we couldn't spend anything anyway, regardless of intent, due to financial fair play constraints?

Is it just fresh ideas we would be getting?

Spot on.... Elon Musk could buy the club tomorrow and we still couldn't spend any major money on new players, unless the FFP experts can advise otherwise?

We are in a serious relegation battle and if Nige is still in charge in 6 weeks time then i really hope we have been creative in the transfer market and have managed to bring a few new faces in, or Accrington away is a distinct possibility next season

48 minutes ago, Major Isewater said:

Better opposition ?

they were above us before today ! 

That says more about us than them. Rotherham are a bottom 6 team and you know exactly what i meant.

3 hours ago, GrahamC said:

Re Klose just look at the players who were unavailable today, Wilson & Kalas both injured, Vyner & Dasilva both ill, yet he still doesn’t even make the subs bench.

This is Bakinson levels of out in the cold, if the finances stack up I expect him to return home next month.

I agree with this Graham... Klose was one of Nige's signings and yet now doesn't even make the squad. He took a risk with the back 3 today and we got the win, but i wouldn't be confident with the team selected today against the majority of sides in the division.

I find it strange that Atkinson was on the bench too. He is our most physically dominant defender who Nige paid alot of money for. 

We got the 3 points today which was much needed, but against better opposition, i fear it could have been a diiferent outcome

3 hours ago, The Journalist said:

As someone who’s very much pro-Pearson, I do think there’s an interesting and worthwhile conversation to be had around his future. I’m probably a bit closer to the middle of the two polarising views you generally hear on this (his record his dreadful v it’s not his fault).

There’s no doubt he inherited an absolute mess and, in my opinion, we needed an experienced leader more than we needed a top football coach to guide us through that and begin building something more sustainable.

The whole culture needed to change and it went far beyond signing talented players. To use an example, there were numerous occasions during his first 6-12 months when he picked an XI that was clearly about improving culture rather than improving results - Nathan Baker had a spell at left-back, not because he was our best left-back but because he did a good job when thrown in as an emergency and his application and performance merited keeping the shirt. It was a selection purely to send a message.

This is why many argue - and I agree - his results during that period are bordering on completely irrelevant and shouldn’t be used as a stick to beat him with now.

When I look at the bigger picture, I see a far healthier club and squad than we had two years ago. I see a Mark Ashton-less hierarchy making better decisions, a group of players giving their absolute everything, an academy being properly utilised and some of the best young talent we’ve had in years.

I think people forget the absolute apathy that engulfed the fanbase during the Holden ‘era’ - that, in my view, has gone. Whatever you think of him as a football coach, Pearson has created something we can get behind. And THAT is what we 100% needed above all else.

I guess the key question, though, is when the free pass on results expires - and this is very much subjective and quite hard to quantify.

For me, and to take this full circle, I do think it’s at least a conversation to now be had.

I’ve always felt - and said this on this forum from quite early on - that while Pearson was the right person to set us on the path we needed to be on we wouldn’t complete that journey with him. He’s a leader and a manager, by his own admission, but there’s a point when, without the riches of other clubs, you need more than that at this level to be successful.

So, ultimately, is it fair to think he should now be getting more out of what he’s got/created and could someone else pick up the baton and do a better job on the pitch? Well, quite possibly…

The one massive ‘but’ hanging over that is next summer. And with the last of the legacy high earners out of contract and a strong likelihood we’ll at least lose our best player Scott, possibly Semenyo too, I’m genuinely unsure where that’ll leave us. For the record, I think Pearson will keep us up this year.

I’ll stop rambling now but in summary… I do think it’s fair to start holding the manager to account much more for performances and results and entertaining the idea of moving on from Pearson is worthwhile, but the situation remains more complicated than many make out and it’s probably (but an uncomfortable probably) still safer to stick than twist.

Thats an excellent summary and sums up pretty much where i'm at too.

We appear to have a very split fan base (which reflects life in general), with half wanting him out and half being more understanding given the issues at the club.

I do feel that he's now approaching his "tipping point", as after nearly 2 years in charge and numerous signings of his own, we appear to be regressing again.

I still don't really see a style of play (brief moments aside) and defensively we are weak, infact our team as a whole, is physically weak.

NP is a bullish and abrasive manager with strong views and i think this can cloud peoples judgement. Ultimately, football is a results business and we are in serious relegation trouble.

This is clearly now his team and he is responsible for the players that go out on the pitch. I am still (just about) in the stick with him 50%, but as i said, his tipping point is getting closer if things don't improve.

12 minutes ago, Show Me The Money! said:

Sadly the problems are far deeper than just replacing the manager

I'm seriously not fishing here but what are the deep issues?

I appreciate that we aren't in a great place financially, but the same can be said for more than 80% of clubs in the football league.

Fortunately we have a chairman that has built an incredible infrastructure and continues to bail us out every season.

Mark Ashton has left and we appointed Pearson nearly 2 years ago and yet we have seen zero improvement. 

Defensively we are embarrassing and apart from a few promising performances early on this season, we have generally been very poor.

I'm honestly not sure what the answer is, but Nige has to shoulder most of the blame and even his most ardent followers must see that?