Back from listening to the game v preston on the radio

[RoyalBlue]

We have two of the worst fullbacks in the championship. Gunter and Blackett were utterly clueless and are easily beaten for pace. Blackett has the turning circle of an oil tanker. I know we are fifth but I feel the playoffs are slipping away. Fulham are on the march and I think we may be the ones who suffer and drop out.

Blackett was playing centreback.

Indeed you are correct but he's been playing in the full back role most of the time, and when you saw his mistake yesterday and the speed of recovery you realise that....like Gunter....he is so slow and its costing us points whether he's fullback or central defence.

What ever else is thrown at Gunter, I really would challenge the assertion that he is slow. I suspect he is amongst the faster players in our squad. Perhaps someone has access to the data to confirm or shoot down that claim.

[blythspartan]

I was really heartened with our performance against Newcastle but I just had a feeling we'd lose this one. Especially as Liam Moore was injured in that game and for me he has been our player of the season.

I don't love our style of football yet but to have a chance of making the playoffs with 9 games left is a great achievement in itself. At the end of the day we are very much a work in progress and having watched some of Fulham's games on TV I'd have no complaints if they pip us to a playoff spot. How they play is how I hope we do next season, a decisive passing game that has an end product.

Deby, Villa and Norwich spent big bucks this season but where are they. Stam has done wonders on a shoe string budget and not making the playoffs might mean we get to keep him for another season to build something special.

[Hound]

Agree with pretty much all of that

[Ian Royal]

Mostly agree, but I don't think you can really describe any manager who's been able to bring in 14+ players over the course of a season as operating on a shoe string. Especially when at least one of them reportedly cost well over £1m. And in recent years we've had a manager who had to go through a transfer window without being able to make a single signing. Our wages inevitably remain very competitive too.

Jaakkola, Moore, Blackett, Ilori, Oxford, Berg, Mutch, Swift, Weiser, Beerens, Harriott, Meite, Mendes, and Grabban. There's some pretty big talent and potential in there.

It's a bit of an insult to the likes of Burton.

[Hound]

Those were funded by losing Tish and Norwood though before the Season though

The fact Brighton and villa massively overpaid for them is irrelevant

I don't think we are comparing to Burton, but I reckon we've spent less than most other sides in the division

[Ian Royal]

Those were funded by losing Tish and Norwood though before the Season though

The fact Brighton and villa massively overpaid for them is irrelevant

I don't think we are comparing to Burton, but I reckon we've spent less than most other sides in the division

Many clubs will also have made sales. I'd like to see the evidence to back your speculation up. Personally, I suspect we're not that low in transfer fees paid (although how can anyone tell seeing as they're all so opaque and labyrinthine ... maybe. But time and again the wages come out and we're in the top 10 at least, often knocking in around 5th-8th iirc.

Take this article from 2015 for 2013/14 season for example.
https://www.insidermedia.com/insider/national/146518-insider-football-finance-championship-wage-bill-tops-500m Our own accounts since have generally shown only a relatively small reduction in our wage budget.

There's no doubting some clubs have massively outspent us in wages and transfers, but in the context of the whole division, and our own recent managerial spending history, I maintain it's misleading and inaccurate to suggest it's anything like a shoestring. It's like arguing McDermott got us up on a shoestring... yeah he didn't spend much in transfers, but he had plenty of talent available and we were one of the highest wage payers in the division still. And we all know wages are generally a better correlation for success than transfer fees.

[Eric Hitchmough]

I was really heartened with our performance against Newcastle but I just had a feeling we'd lose this one. Especially as Liam Moore was injured in that game and for me he has been our player of the season.

I don't love our style of football yet but to have a chance of making the playoffs with 9 games left is a great achievement in itself. At the end of the day we are very much a work in progress and having watched some of Fulham's games on TV I'd have no complaints if they pip us to a playoff spot. How they play is how I hope we do next season, a decisive passing game that has an end product.

Deby, Villa and Norwich spent big bucks this season but where are they. Stam has done wonders on a shoe string budget and not making the playoffs might mean we get to keep him for another season to build something special.

Good post. Fulham have to travel to Huddersfield and Wednesday as well as a possibly tricky derby with Brentford in there last three games of the season. It's going to be tight going into April especially if our games against Wednesday and Leeds don't go well.

Baring a total collapse I just can't be disappointing at how this season has gone even if we were to miss out on the play offs. A year ago today we were 15th and a dodgy penalty took us out of the FA Cup.

[mambo3]

I'm guessing Stam got money in the transfer window from the Thais on the promise of staying in the playoffs. Thais
Not known to give money on no return so Stam I guess is under pressure to keep to his side of the bargain. Stam gambled on premiership players to get automatic promotion (bet they didn't come cheap) still time for them to come good once they play in there natural positions.

[Elm Park Kid]

I'm on the side that thinks that Stam has done pretty well to craft a new team and get it playing this well in the space of half a season. It's usually takes time for new players to gel and it's hardly surprising that the January signings haven't made an immediate difference. In the games i've seen recently we look a lot more confident and solid team than we were for the last few years.

We're still conceding too many goals though. In the last 10 games we conceded more than Blackburn and WIgan and only one fewer than Bristol City. But I suppose our defence has been in flux - you'd assume that once everyone is fit that (given time) Stam will be able to craft a pretty solid back 4/5 .

[NewCorkSeth]

Have our results actually been worse recently? In terms of ppg are we not roughly the same?

[genome]

Deby, Villa and Norwich spent big bucks this season but where are they.

Exactly.

[tidus_mi2]

I suppose I'm less fussed about this loss, even the scale of it because I've come to accept that despite how well we are doing this season versus what was expected, we have still been terrible away from home to the better sides in the division, it's why I'm expecting us to lose to Sheffield Wednesday on Saturday as well which will probably see us drop to 7th.

That said, after that game, all our remaining games are either at home or away to bottom half sides so I'd feel comfortable that we'll get back in the play-offs and stay there.

[MoorgateRoyal]

I went on Saturday.

For the first 30 minutes we looked really good going forward, creating a lot and testing their keeper a couple of times. They had a couple of forays forward and I thought we handled it well enough, then Blackett got caught in two minds on a ball over the top, didn't deal with it and Hugill nipped in, squared it to the striker who then smashed it in. From that point, we lost it at the back. Blackett seems to have no mental strength; one mistake and he is all over the place, with another poor touch which could have resulted in a goal and lots of poor control and wayward passing. I thought he was OK until the first goal, and played well against Newcastle too as one of the back three.

The second goal was a handball but the officials couldn't have seen it. In any case we should have dealt with it. Third goal was just shit and really from the moment they went in front we never looked like we would get back into it.

I thought Ali's distribution was good on the whole and he had no chance with the goals. Defensively, we were OK until Blackett melted down after the first goal. McShane was OK until the injury, JvdB looked good throughout, and I thought Gunter was crap. McGeady beat him constantly, and I think he may have stopped one cross. Did shit all going forward. Obita was good but faded with the rest of the team.

Swift was OK but couldn't quite create enough to really cause danger, whilst Grabban looked entirely uninterested for most of the game. He went on one run where he committed a few Preston players and I think we got a corner, then he did nothing else. Mutch was crap and got a suspicious-looking injury just after they scored their second. Williams couldn't influence the game when he came on, McCleary looked good and had a couple of decent efforts, but again faded late on, and Beerens came on at 3-0 which I don't see the point of.

Kermorgant was shit in my opinion. He made really unintelligent runs, either away from the play into a position into which a midfielder is going, or right out to the wing for some reason. Then he crosses the ball and complains there's no one in there to head it, not seeming to realise it should be him. He has looked good with someone playing just off him or alongside him, but on his own he causes almost no danger and for me with his experience he should be able to modify his game at least a little bit. He also whinges at the ref and lino too much and is almost constantly offside. I think he's a decent player but he just can't effectively play up top on his own.

Oxford wasn't on long but he looked very composed on the ball. I think we'll be seeing more of him in the next few weeks but it was a decent enough start.

All in all, we started really well but the wheels came off when they scored and we couldn't recover to get back in the game. Preston were functional and looked dangerous going forward, but if we'd had a little bit more guile in the first half especially, we might well have gone in front and things would look different now. We've still had a good season though and progress is there to be seen.

On a personal note, I won a signed Preston shirt in the raffle. I got to go on the pitch to pose for a picture with my spoils, and they offered to frame it for me and have it sent down south and everything. I politely declined their kind offer and gave the shirt to the steward who'd escorted me down to pick it up.

[Sutekh]

Anyone know how serious McShane's injury looked

Could be fun at Sheffield with both McShane and Moore missing. Could have Berg and Reece as the centre backs and Blackett in at left back

[MoorgateRoyal]

Anyone know how serious McShane's injury looked

Could be fun at Sheffield with both McShane and Moore missing. Could have Berg and Reece as the centre backs and Blackett in at left back

I couldn't really tell but he was not moving very well when he went off.

There didn't seem to be a particular tackle or incident where it happened (that I saw anyway) so it may be a muscular one instead of a knock.

If he is out against Sheff Wed I imagine Oxford will go straight in and Blackett will be the other centre back, whilst JvdB will continue operating in between.

[cp]

I went there with a friend who is a Preston fan. Up to the first goal we had the better chances. But we just couldn't finish.

There's a lot of talk about Blackett, but rightfully so unfortunately, He completely missed a clearance that allowed the opposition to just run pass him for the first goal and then made several unforced errors, passing the ball straight to Preston.

I don't think it was the first mistake that unsettled him, it looked as though he was either too causal or his mind was elsewhere, right from the start. Which is why the first goal happened and then he continued playing that way. Certainly it was worrying every time the ball came towards him.

Hopefully Stam will help him with his mental game.

[muirinho]

Anyone know how serious McShane's injury looked

Could be fun at Sheffield with both McShane and Moore missing. Could have Berg and Reece as the centre backs and Blackett in at left back

I couldn't really tell but he was not moving very well when he went off.

There didn't seem to be a particular tackle or incident where it happened (that I saw anyway) so it may be a muscular one instead of a knock.

If he is out against Sheff Wed I imagine Oxford will go straight in and Blackett will be the other centre back, whilst JvdB will continue operating in between.

And that backline isn't scary at all....

Martin O Neill named McShane in the Ireland squad this morning though - so either the he and the club don't talk to each other, or whatever it is, isn't seen as a long-term issue.

[MoorgateRoyal]

I guess if McShane does turn out to be a little more serious, we could see Dickie on the bench, presuming Ilori is still out.

We've got to work with what we've got, I guess.

[Ian Royal]

Have our results actually been worse recently? In terms of ppg are we not roughly the same?

Our ppg over the last 18, split into 6 game periods is

1-6: 2.0
7-12: 1.8
13-18: 1.2
season: 1.7

So yeah, we're basically on our worst run of the season and doing significantly less well.

[NewCorkSeth]

Have our results actually been worse recently? In terms of ppg are we not roughly the same?

Our ppg over the last 18, split into 6 game periods is

1-6: 2.0
7-12: 1.8
13-18: 1.2
season: 1.7

So yeah, we're basically on our worst run of the season and doing significantly less well.

Interesting. Just a shite February really. No chance the January loan signings are damaging the squad in any way?