by marlowuk »
26 Apr 2015 01:59
Last season - in consecutive home matches ...
Reading 7 Bolton 1
Reading 5 Blackpool 1
We win - we score goals. In fact that is 12 goals in 2 games whereas this season we have only scored 5 league goals in the whole of 2015. What is the difference now?
Then we played McCarthy in goal not Feds but that doesn't explain our lack of goals. Similarly we played Gorkss in defence and now we play Hector. That also doesn't explain our lack of goals and I'd argue that Hector strengthens our defence compared with Gorkss.
Then we played Le Fondre and McAnuff and now we play Mackie and and HRK! The rest of the team in those 2 memorable wins are Gunter, Obita, Williams, Pearce, McCleary, Pog and Akpan. All those (except maybe Akpan - but Chalobah or Jem are both better than Akpan!) have been regular starters for us in 2015. There is not that much difference between the 2 sides though!
I don't think anyone can criticise Mackie for his contribution to our present side but it seems to me we miss the guile of McAnuff and the understanding between Pog and Le Fondre. ALF didn't contribute very much to our overall game but he could score. And he worked well with Pog.
Maybe, also, it is a question of confidence? I don't know but it is a problem as to how a side , once so prolific in goals, now seems totally unable to put the ball in the net. I appreciate that SC has tightened up our defence and needed to do so but you only win matches if you score goals. At the moment our performances in the final third of the pitch have been woeful for some time.