4 without a win

[Mr Popodopolous]

We've gone backwards, by a year or 2.

Apart from the abysmal position NP inherited, when half the squad was injured, a third of the squad out of contract, behind closed doors...

This is the joint 2nd worst winless run out of NP and Manning. His worst was 5 in the League from the start of 2021-22, then 4- when downsizing and rebuilding.

Manning has already hit 4, from a 40% win ratio, 1.4 PPG and a slowly declining injury list.

How far can we fall.

[GrahamC]

Incorrect!

Edited December 12, 2023 by GrahamC

[AshtonGreat]

3 minutes ago, GrahamC said:

1 point from the last 15.

4 actually

[GrahamC]

4 minutes ago, AshtonGreat said:

4 actually

Yep apologies 1 point from the last 12.

[mozo]

1 minute ago, GrahamC said:

Yep apologies 1 point from the last 12.

The important thing is we've seen some good stuff in those games, unfortunately not across the full 90, attackers not taking their chances and some unforced individual errors. Not really anything Manning can do about the last two. 

[The turtle]

I'm just not convinced we have the players to play the way he wants. (Right now)

All our best stuff seems to come with a version of the hand break taken off.  Either attacking or counter, the best stuff when the goal is to be a threat.

Every time we seem to play control football to build a base. The other team creates their moment moment and score.

We seem to have to work so much harder for control football chances! Reason being, we just don't have the players to do so. Their first goal is a great example. Great movement, great pass into feet to a player dropping into a hole, excellent one touch into his path who knew exactly where to be(through his feet) and composed finish. It looked like poor defending, but it was so well executed. We just don't really have players who do that, in that way.

The second half had a lot of positivity, but was it really playing with control first football? To me it was not, it was threat first football v a team who were holding on.

 

[formerly known as ivan]

1 hour ago, mozo said:

The important thing is we've seen some good stuff in those games, unfortunately not across the full 90, attackers not taking their chances and some unforced individual errors. Not really anything Manning can do about the last two. 

Could you point out the “good stuff” please? I think I missed it…

[W-S-M Seagull]

1 hour ago, mozo said:

The important thing is we've seen some good stuff in those games, unfortunately not across the full 90, attackers not taking their chances and some unforced individual errors. Not really anything Manning can do about the last two. 

The good stuff we saw today was when we thought "**** Manning ball, let's go back to how we previously played" 

[Davefevs]

I said before the game that I wanted to see our identity show tonight - in response to someone saying we might need to play on the counter.

I’m a bit lost for words tonight!

[Mendip City]

9 minutes ago, W-S-M Seagull said:

The good stuff we saw today was when we thought "**** Manning ball, let's go back to how we previously played" 

Exactly. Massive challenge for manning. Can he adapt his philosophy to meet this squad’s ability/strengths?  
I don’t understand why, having inherited a squad not struggling, he chose to immediately completely  change the style of play rather than evolve it over a period of time. 
 

Oh hang on Brian and Jon told him to. 

[Davefevs]

35 minutes ago, Mendip City said:

Exactly. Massive challenge for manning. Can he adapt his philosophy to meet this squad’s ability/strengths?  
I don’t understand why, having inherited a squad not struggling, he chose to immediately completely  change the style of play rather than evolve it over a period of time. 
 

Oh hang on Brian and Jon told him to. 

I really hoped he wouldn’t either.  Foster what Nige built, get your feet under the table.  Evaluate what you have.

[Bris Red]

2 hours ago, Mr Popodopolous said:

We've gone backwards, by a year or 2.

Apart from the abysmal position NP inherited, when half the squad was injured, a third of the squad out of contract, behind closed doors...

This is the joint 2nd worst winless run out of NP and Manning. His worst was 5 in the League from the start of 2021-22, then 4- when downsizing and rebuilding.

Manning has already hit 4, from a 40% win ratio, 1.4 PPG and a slowly declining injury list.

How far can we fall.

Agreed mate. As i have said on previous posts, manning has come with a philosophy (not knocking it) however our current squad doesn't have the ability to do it at this level and get the results that are required.

It's painful as another rebuild is clearly required to get footballers that can carry out Mannings philosophy (whilst getting results) to match the boards stated plans. It's painful and unrealistic and IMO Manning has been set up to fail. 

[Dr Balls]

39 minutes ago, Mendip City said:

Exactly. Massive challenge for manning. Can he adapt his philosophy to meet this squad’s ability/strengths?  
I don’t understand why, having inherited a squad not struggling, he chose to immediately completely  change the style of play rather than evolve it over a period of time. 
 

Oh hang on Brian and Jon told him to. 

Maybe because he doesn’t know any other way than being a “mini Pep”? Has anyone confirmed why his MK Dons team imploded? Could it be that he was trying to play a way that didn’t work any more given the players available? If that is the case then that doesn’t augur well for what is likely to happen during the rest of the season. Look where MK Dons are right now - more worried about losing their league status completely…

[BCFC Rich]

5 minutes ago, Dr Balls said:

Maybe because he doesn’t know any other way than being a “mini Pep”? Has anyone confirmed why his MK Dons team imploded? Could it be that he was trying to play a way that didn’t work any more given the players available? If that is the case then that doesn’t augur well for what is likely to happen during the rest of the season. Look where MK Dons are right now - more worried about losing their league status completely…

The few fans who commented did seem to imply he didn't get too much of a say in recruitment and players didn't suit. However, Oxford fans credit him with having a big say in recruitment and that being when things really started to get going. So hard to know exactly. He does genuinely seem to be well thought of by most MK fans and (apart from leaving them!) Oxford fans. 

[W-S-M Seagull]

4 minutes ago, Dr Balls said:

Maybe because he doesn’t know any other way than being a “mini Pep”? Has anyone confirmed why his MK Dons team imploded? Could it be that he was trying to play a way that didn’t work any more given the players available? If that is the case then that doesn’t augur well for what is likely to happen during the rest of the season. Look where MK Dons are right now - more worried about losing their league status completely…

Our fans have been very keen to overlook his sacking from MK. "His best players were sold" is the common excuse. So what? We sold our best players, we didn't get relegated. 

For me what is bigger than MK being relegated, is that he took a team from the verge of promotion, to relegation. 

Some have said he wasn't involved in the recruitment of new players when Twine etc was sold. I'm not sure thats entirely true. 

But if it is true, it worries me that he wasn't able to get a tune out of players that he didn't sign. Cos that's that job he has on his hands here! 

[W-S-M Seagull]

Just now, BCFC Rich said:

The few fans who commented did seem to imply he didn't get too much of a say in recruitment and players didn't suit. However, Oxford fans credit him with having a big say in recruitment and that being when things really started to get going. So hard to know exactly. He does genuinely seem to be well thought of by most MK fans and (apart from leaving them!) Oxford fans. 

 

 

He's got a squad of players here that he didn't recruit nor do they suit his style! 

At Oxford he was I believe given one of the top budgets in league one. 

[Mendip City]

17 minutes ago, Davefevs said:

I really hoped he wouldn’t either.  Foster what Nige built, get your feet under the table.  Evaluate what you have.

And worse still he’s damaged us defensively…. he inherited a solid side defensively… call me old fashioned but isn’t that still the starting point of building a good team? 

[The turtle]

8 minutes ago, Mendip City said:

And worse still he’s damaged us defensively…. he inherited a solid side defensively… call me old fashioned but isn’t that still the starting point of building a good team? 

It was also the very first thing he worked on adjusting.

[Fammyfan]

I’m seeing positives in some of the stuff played but we aren’t currently in a position to capitalise.

It may be that the squad needs to settle into the system or that we need to recruit 2/3 first team players to get the best out of the system.

The season looks to be a write off and it’s feeling like an increasingly outrageous decision to sack Nige because the reasoning behind it suggested that promotion was the intention which doesn’t seem feasible this season.

When considering that Nige had our injury hit squad at mid table, with players on their way back, it would have been worth assessing in a few months time. At this point, it would have been reasonably expected that we would be in the top half. If not, I believe Nige would have at least had us in a position of safety.

It would be understandable if we were planning to make signings in January but the board have already announced that their preference is to wait until the summer.

I see the positives and promise in what Manning is trying to do but it feels a longer term project. At present, we’re trying a new system, we’re not picking up many points and we haven’t got enough points to feel safe with being 7 points above the relegation spots, with a much improved QPR having a game in hand and if that’s won then we’d be looking over our shoulders at Huddersfield, who we are only 5 points above.

[bexhill reds]

3 hours ago, Fammyfan said:

The season looks to be a write off and it’s feeling like an increasingly outrageous decision to sack Nige because the reasoning behind it suggested that promotion was the intention which doesn’t seem feasible this season.

Not sure you can describe a potential relegation fight as season write off, as that’s where will be if this lot can’t get their collective acts together… 

[mozo]

9 hours ago, GrahamC said:

Yep apologies 1 point from the last 12.

Nige got 3 points from his last 12 so not a massive difference 

[Mr Hankey]

I think a major issue is that the players were coached and set up to play a certain way, particularly over last season and this pre-season (counter attacking, fast paced), to now have to have all of that ripped up & play a completely different style (possesion based, keep the ball, pass pass pass) which unfortunately some just aren’t up to that standard of play in this division, especially the likes of Williams and our wide players (barring Sykes).

Whilst i am pretty confident we won’t be relegated or end up in a scrap (fingers crossed!) it certainly won’t be a final 6 months of challenging for top half. Manning really needs some serious backing in the summer if he is going to succeed & transfer his methods over to this division.

[GrahamC]

28 minutes ago, mozo said:

Nige got 3 points from his last 12 so not a massive difference 

Two & we might be grateful for them in May..

I know you don’t want to hear this but we were decimated by injuries in those 4 & faced two of the top three in them.

We have just played a side that has lost 6 at home, another who will finish bottom two, not remotely similar.

[Fammyfan]

3 hours ago, bexhill reds said:

Not sure you can describe a potential relegation fight as season write off, as that’s where will be if this lot can’t get their collective acts together… 

It’s a write off in terms of promotion aspirations but you’re right, it’s not a write off when we’re currently nose diving towards the relegation battle

[Super]

9 hours ago, formerly known as ivan said:

Could you point out the “good stuff” please? I think I missed it…

I think there was a spell last night after going 2 down and making the subs we played well for 25 mins. sadly the other 65 mins we were pretty poor.

[TV Tom]

11 hours ago, Mr Popodopolous said:

We've gone backwards, by a year or 2.

Apart from the abysmal position NP inherited, when half the squad was injured, a third of the squad out of contract, behind closed doors...

This is the joint 2nd worst winless run out of NP and Manning. His worst was 5 in the League from the start of 2021-22, then 4- when downsizing and rebuilding.

Manning has already hit 4, from a 40% win ratio, 1.4 PPG and a slowly declining injury list.

How far can we fall.

You can play with figures and statistics as much as you like (no mention of Pearson's involvement in 16 home games without a win) personally i think if anything the performances have improved and have deserved more points than we've got despite our strikers under-performing.

This forum has become so depressing. 

[Garland-sweden]

2 minutes ago, TV Tom said:

You can play with figures and statistics as much as you like (no mention of Pearson's involvement in 16 home games without a win) personally i think if anything the performances have improved and have deserved more points than we've got despite our strikers under-performing.

This forum has become so depressing. 

Five points from six games is depressing.

[Mr Hankey]

1 hour ago, mason said:

There was a certain LJ who had serious backing, could talk the talk, but not walk the walk. Made no difference was given too much money and time, can you not yet see we are about to go down the same road, next window/summer break /time to bed in signings etc,etc.

The proven exp manager JL sacked was not given serious backing, yet had us primed to do so in this next window fools at the top could not see that so here we are about to enter another LJ couple of seasons of talk and promises but nothing else.

JL  will not see the light or admit he made a mistake so round and round we will go, going no-where.

Of course i can see the warning signs......but there's not much we can do about it as the powers that be don't give a shit what we think. Also, i believe Manning has a lot more substance than LJ ever has & ever will have. I have been calling for the Lansdown's to leave this club for a number of years, despite people screaming "careful what you wish for". But there needs to be some hope for the summer otherwise what's the bloody point?

[TV Tom]

6 minutes ago, Garland-sweden said:

Five points from six games is depressing.

Not as depressing as having to sit through 16 home games without a win

[Garland-sweden]

13 minutes ago, TV Tom said:

Not as depressing as having to sit through 16 home games without a win

Can understand that but no good feeling about this mess. Think of we lost in Cardiff with eleven players injuried and NP sacked on Sunday.