Supersonic Robin

That's that point though, it's not necessarily as simple as giving an instruction. Changing our club culture is a slow and painful process that will take time. Also worth bearing in mind that even if a manager tells us to play a certain way, the opposition are focused on stopping us doing exactly that. Equally, we can't fully focus on playing how we might want to as we also have to deal with stopping the opposition. Weirdly, I've made a similar point in the past but the other way around: You're right, they're not 11 year olds kids that should need chaperoning by Pearson, so how much responsibility should fall on Pearson for things like player motivation, commitment and application? A lot of it should come from professional/personal pride and respect for your employer and colleagues. If a player is "ignoring instructions" then criticism should surely fall on the player rather than the manager.

(1) I think that's part of the point here - one of the useful things about stats is that they can show that what we think we're seeing isn't always entirely accurate. (2) I don't necessarily disagree with you, but I do think it's a little more complicated than you make it sound. IMO Pearson has the CV and experience to resolve such issues, but it's a long arduous process that requires fundamental changes in our club culture. Other fans comment on issues of confidence/mentally/motivation in a way that suggests that a rousing Pearson speech in the dressing room will suddenly resolve our problems. I don't see it as quite that simple.

Actually the opposite is true if anything (though my fault for not being clearer). When I say "statistically", I mean to refer to our underlying stats (predominantly xG numbers), as oppose to our actual results/league position. The two happen to be the same thing right now - we're 18th in the league, and InfoGol has us as roughly the 18th best team in the league performance wise so far. That xG (or xP) prediction attempts to assess how many points you "deserve" based on performances, so it accounts for the effect of "lucky wins". Obviously it's not perfect, but it generally gives a reasonable estimate across larger ranges of data. We are poor, but most teams in the bottom third are! When you include the effect of points deductions, I do think there are at least 3 worse teams than us, even if it's closer than we'd like. IMO our survival is very much in our own hands. The Derby and Hull games feel important though.

It's a bit of a tough one to judge NP with the wage bill. We've certainly overpaid relative to the team's output, and that's the fault of Pearon's predecessors, not Pearson. Kasey Palmer is an obvious example - he's likely on around 15-20k pw, but how much of an "asset" is he to Pearson in practice? It actually gets worse, because every pound tied up in paying a player like Palmer is a pound that NP is unable to spend elsewhere.

This isn't really true IMO. Fans simply forget how bad we were last season. Last season we were, statistically, the worst team in the league. Ignore big shiny stadiums, attendances, wage bills, transfer fees, size of clubs etc for a moment. The actual on field side that Pearson inherited was performing at lower standard than all 3 relegated teams - financially crippled Sheffield Wednesday, perennial Championship relegation fodder Rotherham, and resource-less Championship newbies Wycombe. Imagine we were neutrals looking on at Pearson inheriting that Wycombe side for a Championship season - what would our expectations have been for him/them? Of course we have much better resources than a club like Wycombe, but from a purely footballing performance based perspective it's a reasonable comparison. Statistically, we're no longer the worst team in the league, we're about the 7th worst team in the league (depending on your source of data). Personally, I also think we look a little bit better than last season - that small improvement is visible to the eye IMO. We've also cut the wage bill in making that change. This is technically progress and improvement. I appreciate that it's relatively slow, frustrating progress. I also appreciate it's depressing that being the 7th worst in the league constitutes progress for us, but that's where we are.

It would be very interesting to hear Steve Lansdown's deepest honest thoughts on it all (obviously that'll never happen quite understandably). One has to imagine that he's feeling very disheartened and downbeat given how the last few years have panned out. I think part of his aim has been to leave a bit of footballing legacy here, and he's perhaps now realising that's unlikely to happen.

It's fair to point out that it isn't Kasey Palmer's fault that he's on a massive wage here (it's Mark Ashton's fault). However, I have zero sympathy for him not getting game time. It's clear that he's the issue - similar things have happened with almost every manager Palmer has played under. If he's disheartened, upset or annoyed, then it's time for him to finally take responsibility and at least attempt to address the issues that multiple managers have surely made clear to him.

Poor performance today, really frustrating. Thought we really missed Williams/James in midfield. No shame in losing away to Sheffield United, but a lot of shame in failing to compete with a team in the same division as us.

No doubt Downsy will tell us that this was an even game and we were unlucky to lose ?

Unbelievable inconsistency isn't it

Poor half. Youthful midfield really struggling. Deservedly behind. Downsy on Robins TV saying "it's been very even" - do you think he's consciously lying, or is he genuinely just clueless?

4.5 year deal!?!?! Wow.........

Think commentators can often get caught out by pre-game narratives. They come into a game thinking "Team X is good and Team Y is bad", or "Team X plays attractive passing football, and Team Y plays long ball", then commentate on the game in a way that suits that belief. We're likely all guilty of it at times, but commentators on the EFL can be some of the worst for it IMO. And also worth remembering that many "professionals" talking about our games are pretty clueless, as illustrated above. As soon as someone refers to "Bristol" or "Sheffield" I almost immediately question their familiarity with EFL football.

There was another O'Dowda header earlier in the half from which he won a free kick around the half way line. Won the ball knowing full well that he'd take a clattering - he chose to "take one for the team". Another illustration of commitment and bravery that he's perhaps lacked in the past. Played well today. Hopefully we see more performances like this out of him.

Think it's easy for people to forget that there's 2 teams trying to win sometimes. Of course it's disappointing to drop points from winning positions, but it's a relatively common feature of football (granted, we've done it in an unacceptable manner at times this season). It's not embarrassing to draw 1-1 after being 1-0 up at HT. Blackburn are a decent side - at KO they were 7th and we were 18th. It's normal to have periods where you have to defend in games, certainly against teams notably above you in the table. Despite defending a lot in the 2nd half, we still created a very good chance for Wells and were the team pushing to win it at the end. Obviously it would be great to be on the front foot all game, but even the best teams in the league can't do that, and we're a LONG way away from being one of the best in the league.

Amazed to see so much negativety after that. Certainly an improvement on the games pre international break. Not spectacular, but we were okay. Obviously a shame we didn't see the game out for a win, but play like that every week and we won't have to worry about relegation IMO. 1-1 draw with the team in 7th isn't a bad result at all.

Obviously it's not always quite as simple as "attack is the best form of defence", but I do agree that we'd really benefit from having some kind of outlet to relieve the pressure. Even just being able to keep the ball for a few minutes would help. One of the biggest frustrations for me is simply how messy it gets. Even if we can't threaten that much going forward, we can still be solid and manage the game (I remember Mourinho talking a lot about controlling the game whilst out of possession). Unfortunately we fail to do that - we lose composure and it just becomes a bit of a mad panic.

In theory, very happy (and hopefully we'd be finishing above them). It would be good for both us and Bristolian football (obviously). That's the important thing though - it would be good for us. I'd love for City and Rovers to be the new Liverpool vs Everton, or even just WBA vs Wolves. Of course that's all pie in the sky though, Bristol can't even get 1 team there yet! Back to reality - as things are, we need every possible resource to help us towards the Prem. If Rovers being 2 leagues below us means a tiny boost for us in resources drawn from the city, and makes us 1% more likely to achieve success, then I'm all for it......even if that means no Bristol derbies.

Monopolising football in the City can only be good for us IMO. It's probably a necessary step in us hopefully realising our potential at some point. Granted, there'd be a bit more drama involved if we and Rovers were closer in competition, but it's really not worth it when we'd effectively be sacrificing our advantages over them. Saying that we want to be in the same division as them for the excitement is arguably the biggest possible compliment to Rovers. We're better off 2 leagues above them with bigger fish to fry.

After the last few weeks I'd sit through just about anything to stay up. It's not like we've been good to watch over the last 2 years anyway!

Spot on. I was saying exactly this in another thread last night. Opposition teams know that we'll crumble under a bit of pressure. We're now in a position of double jeopardy with it - not only is our confidence diminished, the confidence of our opponents is enhanced. As Harry says, it's an embarrassment. It's hard to have pride in a team who are just not respected, and who are known as the pushovers of the EFL.

Yeah I've seen a few people say this. Surprises me as I've always thought of Coventry at the Ricoh as a dreadful place for atmosphere. My recollections are of the ground always looking half empty, which photos appear to show was also the case yesterday. I suppose it demonstrates the effect that a positive feeling around a club can have on the atmosphere! Coventry fans must be loving life right now - contrast that with the feeling around Ashton Gate.....

Spot on. I was talking about this in another thread earlier. I'd really struggle with the embarrassment of it on a professional level. Imagine your colleagues, your mates, your wife/gf, your family etc knowing you play for that side that everyone takes the piss out of (granted the money helps, but it still doesn't replace classic male pride). I'm not convinced that our players (or any professional athletes) are that devoid of self respect. The core issue must be rooted in the club's culture, hence why it has appeared to persist despite varying combinations of managers, coaches and players.

Very true. There are numerous examples of individuals in the football world making reference to "soft Bristol City" over the last few seasons. Teams know that we're soft, mentally weak, not up for a battle etc. Unfortunately it's at the point where it has a double jeopardy effect on us - not only is our confidence diminished, the confidence of our opponents is potentially enhanced (the Lyle Taylor situation is a good example). I find this one of the most frustrating and depressing things about us right now. It's hard to have pride in a team who are just not respected, and who are known as the pushovers of the EFL. What I'd give to be considered a "tough side to play against" or a "tough place to go"...........

This. How much motivation do you need from your manager? Fair enough if the players fundamentally don't give a crap about Bristol City Football Club, I don't expect them to love the club like we do. But have some professional pride. Do it for yourself if not for the club. I ****ing hated losing games playing for my local team, or even playing on the school field at lunchtime FFS! Not being embarrassed was sufficient motivation. Not having people take the piss was sufficient motivation. Being able to be proud of myself was sufficient motivation. The idea that anyone with so little self pride and self motivation could actually become a professional athlete is beyond me. If our coaches need to "motivate" our players not to be battered by 10 man Coventry, then our issues with club culture are far greater than I thought possible.