DaveInSA

1 hour ago, Sir Geoff said:

Current form isn't bad. Draw with Watford, away win at Rotherham.

In our next 6 fixtures we should be winning at least 2 of them. (1 win every 3 games on average will see us safe).

I think you may be surprised at the activity this January. Pretty sure there will be movement in and out.

 

I wonder if the activity you speak of is what is destabilising the squad.

I understand why we have the transfer windows, to stop rich teams just buying players at the end of the season.

For me the windows are manufactured click bait nonsense for the media hype. 

It’s not like we’re a rich club or ever in the mix to win anything! So I say they should be abolished.

That was the day I landed back in the UK.

Needless to say, it’s all been downhill since then!

I’m enjoying the way this thread has moved from bashing Pearson, to the nuances of formations. I’m learning a lot.

My view on Pearson. He was dealt a poor hand. 

There is stuff he’s done well versus stuff not so good. He steadied the ship but we’re unable to kick on. 

I think he may be testing the character of the squad. Maybe he’s challenging Atkinson to see what he’s made of. Can he respond? And if he does will that make him a better player? 

Maybe it’s crude, but Vyner, Pring and Wells have all returned to this team and performed. So is there method in the madness - at least trying to figure out who he can build around this summer.

But.

He might have overcooked it.

Why?

Because I think our players (in the main) are fragile and they need to feel comfortable in order to perform. They had it at the start of the season but it’s gone now. We go a goal up in games and then it falls to bits. We’re a soft touch and have a weak underbelly.

I still think that collectively this squad is so unbalanced and inconsistent that we really have to just survive. If everyone has their day, we can beat any team in this division. The problem is this rarely happens and we often have 2 or 3 players at a 4 or 5 out of 10. Which inevitably means giving away at least one soft goal a game.

The squad is miles away from challenging week-in-week-out in this division - absolutely miles away. 

People need to face this reality and see it for what it is.

I guess that will be 16 teams from Europe, ten from LATAM, and two each from Africa, Asia-Australia and North America.

More of a non-world-cup.

I was a bit worried that they didn't have bins oop North. But good work spotting them in picture 3.

A nice touch of including some road workers in full hi-viz

Thank you and goodbye.

I can’t stand the bloke.

I can now like the Portugal team again. Man Utd - not so much.

What a top bloke.

I think we all make mistakes. If they don’t impact negatively on others and if we learn from them that’s all part of life.

Footballers have such massive profiles and anything they can do to positively impact the life of others is fantastic.

At times like these, and in these discussions, we need the late Brian Clough.

If a player is not interfering with play, why are they on the pitch.

It's almost as if the "penalty area" has different laws to the rest of the pitch. At least they seem to for Bristol City and England.

On 18/11/2022 at 13:07, spudski said:

I well aware of what you are saying. However... I think you've completely missed my point.

It's not just the LBGT rights...it's the human rights across everyone. 

Female genital mutilation still goes on, huge numbers of rapes. Witch camps and death to woman they think practice witchcraft FFS  

Showing forms of affection in public regardless of sex.

Death sentences... Etc, etc.

To name just a few.

To say ' it's a different culture'...is true. To say it's average and just accept it isn't imo.

We have Ghanaians living in this country. We are told to accept them and their culture.

I'm happy to accept anyone...but I'll be damned if Im going to accept someone who believes in that idealogy, just because it's their culture.

This is where it's so hypocritical.

As a nation we are told to be accepting of everyone's religion, sex, culture and beliefs, and live side by side in the same country happily...yet in the same token, we have cultures living here that don't believe in any of that. 

How is it meant to work?

The Club continually back the rainbow brigade...and want Inclusivity across all peoples.

How does it work, if for example, one of our players who comes from a different culture, like Ghana,  says he won't be part of the Clubs backing of rights...as it goes against his religious beliefs and culture?

Can you see the conflict of interests? 

In one breath saying be accepting of all cultures and beliefs...but in another breath, saying you have to support something that goes against your beliefs and culture.

It's ridiculous when you think about it.

and what is the most hypocritical of all, is that I believe that "white men" gifted all of this to Africa.

I'm watching this on the catch up. very fascinating stuff.

almost 40 years on from Thatcher's assault on Football Hooligans, the very same conservatives are assaulting almost everything and everyone. brutal.

and Colin Moynihan, what an abolute bell-end.

I’d love to go for nine pints and a curry with @Davefevs and @Mr Popodopolous.

I’m almost certain that I’d be able to understand everything then.

1 hour ago, petehinton said:

It’s more people who really thought Dyche/Wilder/Edwards would’ve answered the job offer with “oh yes, I’d love to take this job with a mediocre squad and absolutely no money, not even for loans. Count me in”

This in spades.

I didn't realise HOW BAD IT WAS.

Reading this thread should put the willies up everyone. We need to sell our key assets to be within FFP next year. This, coupled with 11 players being OOC at the end of the season (some of them senior pros) means that season 23/24 will be very "interesting".

If we're still in the Championship at the end of season 24 that will be a massive achievement. 

I wonder if Qatar is the beginning of the end for international football tournaments.

The money from TV deals in the Premier league probably dwarfs the World Cup and in my mind FIFA's shot themselves in the foot with Qatar. So what is the point. I'd rather watch City than England any day of the week.

I will now rush to get my tin hat and no doubt that England will win the last ever FIFA world cup.

I’m gonna bite too.

On the one hand, the fragility of this squad is there for all to see. Without key players, it all unravels. And we’re left in tatters with low confidence, which leads to individual mistakes and poor decision making costing us goals and a lack of attacking threat. The worst of all worlds. In addition, against big physical teams we just don’t compete - there’s at least 6 sides like this in the division.

On the other hand, with a fully fit squad, we’re a match for the best teams in the division.

We’ve got a Jekyll and Hyde squad and we have since the LJ days. My view and I’ve said this numerous times, is that the players individually are mid table championship players. But as a collective they aren’t.

I don’t think this is down to coaching alone, it’s down to the character and psychological make up of the players.

What I really don’t understand is perseverance with JD and Sykes, when in those positions they just don’t have the quality. And can someone please learn how to take free kicks and corners. 

Last night was a freebie in my view, can we compete with our B-Team. It’s clear we can’t.

1 minute ago, Robin101 said:

I guess, like, Dublin have quite a shit football team. 

I think we’re undoubtedly the most under-performing club in England/Scotland though. Comfortably. Can anyone name someone worse??

The fewers.

19 hours ago, ExiledAjax said:

Interesting article. Some of the quotes are from the Fans Forum, or at least the author clearly watched that as well as interviewing Pearson directly. If you've watched the Fans Forum then there's not too much truly new here.

One bit interested me though: “You need a couple who are – not wrong uns – but highly strung ones. You need mavericks.” An Anthony Knockaert? A Riyad Mahrez? “A Jamie Vardy,” he adds. “Otherwise, it is boring.”

Do we have a Knockaert, Mahrez or Vardy type? From a personality side maybe Kalas? From a skill/flair side maybe..Scott? But no he's not really fitting that bill for me.

Is this something we're missing in order to get to that next level?

When I watch Nige speak, I think he thinks that Semenyo is that player. 
 

He’s gone a bit off the boil recently, but when you see Nigel say Semenyo in an interview, there’s always a little grin.

20 hours ago, Harry said:

 

These 2 posts kinda sum up how I feel about the best way to use Semenyo at the moment. 
I mentioned in another thread during the week how I feel we should use the 5 subs in a more tactical sense. 
Semenyo, for me, is best at the moment being the ‘impact’ player to come on and brutalise a tired defence. 
When we say that we are struggling for a ‘switch-up’ I think Semenyo should be that switch up. Let Wells, Conway and Weimann tire the defenders out for an hour with their superior movement and energy and then hour mark, unleash hell. 
 

As long as unleashing hell doesn't involve actual hell - hopeful hoof ball

4 minutes ago, The Dolman Pragmatist said:

Absolutely.  The squad doesn’t explain the inconsistency.  We beat West Brom comfortably on Tuesday, doing a real job on them.  So how do you explain today?  They should hardly need motivating, but if they do then whose job is that?

All I ask is that our players give maximum effort in every match they play, and I don’t see that being the case.  The fact is that Pearson seems sadly unable to get the best out of them week in week out, which is I’m afraid a damning indictment of him as a manager.

The squad does explain the inconsistency.

Your opinion that Pearson can't get the best out of them week in and week out, doesn't take into account that we play another team that stops us trying to do what we are good at.

We're mid table. I think people are actully deluded to think that this squad of players is capable of any better. I really do.

2 minutes ago, And Its Smith said:

Getting a bit bored of the lack of money argument. Plenty of teams in this league have a lack of money but at least they look organised on semi consistent basis

And i'm bored of folks not understanding that we have a small number players eating up the majority of the wage bill. And THAT is why we can't bring in new faces and that is why the squad is imbalanced and we're inconsistent.

Those are the facts.

I think one of the problems we have with the squad, is that we have to all absolutely perform on the day. When we don't, like Reading away today, we're awful.

We're consistenly inconsistent. It's where we are. And it's actually OK.

Big rebuild in the summer with potentially 8 outgoing (maybe more), which makes room for maybe 10-12 incoming (assuming we sell Scott and Semenyo)

That 10-12 incoming is the bit that worries me. We should have them tee'd up already, with deals to be signed as soon as the window is opened.

But we're bristol city. And we'll leave it until september. And our first game we'll have three U15s playing

I literally have no clue what's going on here. none. and for OTIB, that's quite an achievement.

20 hours ago, Champfan45 said:

Do people really feel confident that we will be able to attract a manager that is significantly more qualified than NP? I have my doubts 

Steve Bruce is available i hear 

I thinks it’s about combinations.

The players on paper are good enough for most championship teams outside the top 6. But the combination of these players just doesn’t have the bite and bottle needed.

They’re weak mentally, have very little resilience and can’t cope with ‘bad times’. I don’t see too many leaders on the pitch. Who can wrap their arms round players or gee them up. When your U19 player is the senior pro, that says something about what you are missing.

This isn’t a new thing by the way. We actually recruited this DNA of nice lads deliberately so we could have clubs in the bag.

What Pearson has to work with is no depth either. It’s where we are.

Once Kalas and Naismith are fit, surely we have to move to a back 4 with Naismith just in front? 
 

4 minutes ago, Robbored said:

It’s a crap Premiership in Scotland with only two clubs that can win it. 

Better than the England premier league, where only one team will win it.