Why I am worried

Half the problem is some fans on here are negative, Need to bring back the positivity/no expectation and fans have some enthusiasm to get behind the team. At the end of the day we are 15th which is isn't bad.

Excellent post.

Half the problem is some fans on here are negative, Need to bring back the positivity/no expectation and fans have some enthusiasm to get behind the team. At the end of the day we are 15th which is isn't bad.

As I pointed out pre season, its hard to not have expectation when you spend £50m in a season and a quarter.

Half the problem is some fans on here are negative, Need to bring back the positivity/no expectation and fans have some enthusiasm to get behind the team. At the end of the day we are 15th which is isn't bad.

As I pointed out pre season, its hard to not have expectation when you spend £50m in a season and a quarter.

But you are always wrong anyway. Last year you run a thread before the start of the season saying we were more likely to be relegated than promoted.
What a prediction that turned out to be.

Can't argue with the OP too much there, he echoes my thoughts...

Positivity's all well and good, but the facts are there for all to see - we're using a system at the moment that's not entirely suited to the attacking players we have; the few balls being put into the box are being swept up by opposing defenders or missed entirely, so we need some pacier wingers or at the very least, a big fella to hold the ball up for our main striker.

Step up Cornelius...

Half the problem is some fans on here are negative, Need to bring back the positivity/no expectation and fans have some enthusiasm to get behind the team. At the end of the day we are 15th which is isn't bad.

As I pointed out pre season, its hard to not have expectation when you spend £50m in a season and a quarter.

But you are always wrong anyway. Last year you run a thread before the start of the season saying we were more likely to be relegated than promoted.
What a prediction that turned out to be.

You missed out something pretty big there sunshine... "With that current squad" and I stand by it. You then went on to spend net more than any other team in the league

Half the problem is some fans on here are negative, Need to bring back the positivity/no expectation and fans have some enthusiasm to get behind the team. At the end of the day we are 15th which is isn't bad.

As I pointed out pre season, its hard to not have expectation when you spend £50m in a season and a quarter.

But you are always wrong anyway. Last year you run a thread before the start of the season saying we were more likely to be relegated than promoted.
What a prediction that turned out to be.

You missed out something pretty big there sunshine... "With that current squad" and I stand by it. You then went on to spend net more than any other team in the league

Ok.

Half the problem is some fans on here are negative, Need to bring back the positivity/no expectation and fans have some enthusiasm to get behind the team. At the end of the day we are 15th which is isn't bad.

As I pointed out pre season, its hard to not have expectation when you spend £50m in a season and a quarter.

Agreed.

The main thing that worried me against norwich was near enough every single defensive header out found a norwich player.

Oh and a very good OP!

Roathie, when you aren't making multiple accounts and on a blatant wind up you do post some articulate things tbh, although the same could be said of myself.

The main thing that worried me against norwich was near enough every single defensive header out found a norwich player.

Oh and a very good OP!

So did every pass.

i disagree with a lot of the OP said to be honest, but maybe im a bit more positive and realistic...

we are a year or two behind the norwich swans and stokes in the premier league, we havent got the squad to offer too much attacking options right now, especially without cornelius who i feel is a perfect fit for malkys 4-5-1 and was always his intention to let him lead the line with people like campbell and odemwingie off him on either flank.

I dont think malky is tactically inept which is basically what is being hinted, its just that we dont have that much on the bench that is realistically going to work.... campbell and odem up top as a 4-4-2 for example just wouldnt work, they are just the calibre of for intance of SaS at liverpool where two smalls work.

Malky is sticking to our squads strengths and that is defensive, thats all we have right now, yes im a little bit disapointed with the lack of width in the summer recruitment but with the suqad we have now were playing the only way i feel we can effectivley

i disagree with a lot of the OP said to be honest, but maybe im a bit more positive and realistic...

Optimistic you are indeed. Realist, I don't think so. A realist would have, like myself, no problem identifying the faults that Malky has made. I am a realist and I make decisions on fact and logic. Thats why I am not an optimist and I don't think for the best at all because I analyse things in great detail and build a picture from that.

we are a year or two behind the norwich swans and stokes in the premier league, we havent got the squad to offer too much attacking options right now,

We are a year or two between 17 teams in this division. The only teams we are not behind are the ones that come up with us.

especially without cornelius who i feel is a perfect fit for malkys 4-5-1 and was always his intention to let him lead the line with people like campbell and odemwingie off him on either flank.

Which is a fault. Malky, rather than get in the required players, is using makeshift wingers (strikers) to fill a void for his failings in the summer. Thats a fact. Was Moody sacked for failing to scout enough players as backups in those positions? Who knows? Its a plausible answer if true. We had Medel as a back up to Capoue and we had others in the pipeline also in terms of defence. He was HoR so it makes sense that if any player is failed to be brought in its his fault. Malky was sure of Ince signing yet it fell through. Was this a break down in communication or a failing by Moody?

Ian Ayre at Liverpool has for years got loads of stick from their fans for failing to budge. They failed to recruit players like Dempsey and he was lambasted as part of the Dalglish signings. I know as my mate in uni who supports Liverpool doesn't stop moaning FFS and I have had to put up with his whining about Liverpool's transfers for 2 years.

The simple fact is, we have been left short in areas.

I dont think malky is tactically inept which is basically what is being hinted, its just that we dont have that much on the bench that is realistically going to work....

No its not being hinted. What's being hinted is that the required players were not brought in, in the summer to fit a number of systems that could be implemented as pointed out in the OP. Im starting to believe Malky has been given full control now because of Moody's failings in the summer. Can we afford the same failings from a HoR in January? No! We need the signings in and who better than Malky to convince them to join?

campbell and odem up top as a 4-4-2 for example just wouldnt work, they are just the calibre of for intance of SaS at liverpool where two smalls work.

Depends entirely on the system implemented. If you play with a creative centre attacking midfielder and two pacy wingers and play a counter attacking system it can work. It has done in the past and still works on the continent. Watch the RPL and other European leagues and you'll see teams set up with a solid foundation, fast wingers and then in the final third they have a creative player from outside Russia and up top often they have strikers from Brazil or Africa who are fast. These are teams who have played at higher levels than us in Europe so the system would most certainly work at domestic level.

CKSA Moscow are a perfect example - They have wingers in Gonzalez and Elm, both of whom are not Russian and are nifty in terms of footwork. They have Dzagoev (arguably Russia's best player) and Honda (Japanese) in the middle to play the box to box as well as create and they have Musa (Nigerian) and Doumbia (Ivorian) up front, both of whom are fast.

That's a set up thats become well known on the continent. I can name plenty of players who've been utilised in that type of set up. Martins, Eto'o, Vagner Love, etc. These teams keep their solid core and then they have 'flair' and 'pace' players to make them a constant live threat on the counter.

We have a solid defensive structure and are hard to break down - tick
We have a solid defensive midfield unit to protect the back line - tick
We have the creative players to provide an outlet on the counter and hurt teams - nothing
We have the strikers to suit the creative players game to provide an outlet for them to assist - nothing

Whats the problem? Failings in the summer transfer window.

That is a fact and I am not afraid to identify the failings made so far whether they are Malky's, Moody's or a collective.

Not a bad post, bit long winded but I have to disagree.....
Firstly, Norwich who have great players and a plan B are 1 point behind us and with all their chances on Saturday still ended up coming away with the same point as us.
Secondly, Stoke who have great wide players and a great target man are 1 point behind us and have picked up 1 point out of the last 9 and ....
Lastly, Hull who play with 'no fear' are only 2 points ahead of us and have only picked up 1 point out of a possible 12 in their last 4 games.....
We have played 3 teams away from home who will probably be fighting to avoid that last place, Fulham, Norwich and Hull and picked up 5 points.
Did anybody think we realistically had a chance of picking up points against Man City, Spurs an Chelsea????
The season will play out and we will get better, I'm sure, and we'll pick up enough points to survive....... Let's be fair that's all we wanted at the start of the season......

Not a bad post, bit long winded but I have to disagree.....

Fair enough mate. We are all different. I will debate your points though.

Firstly, Norwich who have great players and a plan B are 1 point behind us and with all their chances on Saturday still ended up coming away with the same point as us.
Secondly, Stoke who have great wide players and a great target man are 1 point behind us and have picked up 1 point out of the last 9 and ....
Lastly, Hull who play with 'no fear' are only 2 points ahead of us and have only picked up 1 point out of a possible 12 in their last 4 games.....

My point isn't the current points tally but more the direction of where things will go when they click. It takes time to get acclimatised to the Premier League and the other teams are playing with a better air of confidence around them. They look far more likely to click and start banging goals in than we do. Our play at the moment is cause for concern in my opinion in how things to come are looking. Thats the point mate.

We have played 3 teams away from home who will probably be fighting to avoid that last place, Fulham, Norwich and Hull and picked up 5 points.

Fair point and thats good but did we deserve a point against Norwich really? If we were David Marshall FC, yes! As a collective team we were very fortunate. We need players in, in January who, when the time comes to play these teams at home, can hurt them and we can collect at least 7 from the 9 points on offer. That'd be a return of 12 from 18 and (66%) and that's a good tally to take from them 3 clubs equivalent to 3 wins and 3 draws vs them teams.

Did anybody think we realistically had a chance of picking up points against Man City, Spurs an Chelsea????

No but then I did expect us to at least have a go at teams and try and take the game to them.

f**k reading that

I'm sure it is very interesting!
However, I'm on my lunch break so I won't be reading it yet...

f**k reading that

I'm sure it is very interesting!
However, I'm on my lunch break so I won't be reading it yet...

Back in my day we didn't have lunch breaks. The food used to come along in rations along the same belt as the product we'd have to be putting together. Those were the days in the factories working the production line. You soft lefties have cafeterias and all sorts now. Don't know how good you got it.

f**k reading that

I'm sure it is very interesting!
However, I'm on my lunch break so I won't be reading it yet...

Back in my day we didn't have lunch breaks. The food used to come along in rations along the same belt as the product we'd have to be putting together. Those were the days in the factories working the production line. You soft lefties have cafeterias and all sorts now. Don't know how good you got it.

I remember those days... My great great grandad told me those stories

I think it's fair to say that Malky should have used some of the 35 million he spent on some creativity during the summer.
I remember saying to Polo at the beginning of last season that malky was probably building foundations then he would decorate it with style later, but what he seems to do each summer is build foundations then next summer tear it down and build stronger foundations!

What worries me even more than that is that the mistakes from previous games are not being rectified. My biggest problem is the gap between frazier campbell and the midfield. I know a lot of people think campbell is the problem but personally I'm not having none of it. The poor lad has got the most thankless task a forward could ever have. He asked to chase 4 defenders for 90 minutes like a jack russell terrier then if he does get one chance be alert enough to score.

The midfield is too deep and people like whitts are hiding. He is supposed to be on of our creative players yet he will ALWAYS choose the safe option and never back himself. If he has a chance to put a delivery into the box but taylor is free 3 yards away he'll roll it to taylor every time.
Gunnar is yet to prove if he can cut it at this level. Mutch is young and drifts in and out. Kimbo is easily nullified because teams know he is our only creative player. Bellamy is just about retired. And our only two wildcards, kadeem harris (sent on loan to brentford) and craig noone has yet to get any game time!

I'm not expecting us to go hell for leather and all out attack teams, neither am I expecting to go to places like norwich and guarantee 3 points. What I am expecting is to pose some sort of threat against teams, and to be able to show some coherence as a team.

Excellent post. However I just feel Malky feels we are better team without the ball than with it. And the stats tend to sum this up. Even last season we would tend to let teams attack us and play counter attack and set piece football. You can dominate a game by your defensive set up, the game is not all about having possession of the ball. I read somewhere this week Norwich have had more than 50% possession 5 times this season and have yet to win any of them games, so owning possession of the ball isn't a given to winning any football match.

We scored last season more goals from set plays than any other side in England and Wales. Its a controllable of a match, so as a manager you need to concentrate on these opportunities as they can provide opportunities and goals against any opposition.

Talking about new signings and players is very premature as the windown doesn't open for another 2 months and very rarely are the players you want available during January. I think they are getting consistency in selection and a lot of players are still finding there feet in English football, (Kim, Medel,Corneillius) and this may take time but we as supporters should understand that Taylor blocking a cross or Turner heading a clearance right now is as important to us as Whittingham playing a through ball through to Frazer.