RTG

[ZacNaloen]

I'd say it's actually two completely seperate problems.


Rodgers team are still learning the ropes and every team we've played against has been quite negative (apart from Sheff UTD who were just better on the day) and Coppells team were just utterly dire and forgot how to play football for the second half of the season.

[Still Hate Futcher!]

Do you think the ground is cursed or something?? How can Rodgers have inherited the fact we haven't scored many goals this season, when there's hardly any players left from last season. I'd understand it, if he had the same players.

My point is Rodgers hasn't taken a free scoring team and turned it into a shot shy shower - we've had problems for a while. I just think it's asking a bit much to introduce a whole new team and new tactics/formation and expect them to click in the first half a dozen games. Rodgers doesn't even know his strongest 11 at the moment and he probably won't for a few games yet.

[floyd__streete]

And once again the line that we have played the top teams and "been right up there" - ha! We got stuffed 3-0 by Newcastle and are yet to play Boro and West Brom - the only 3 real top teams this year. If you include Cardiff and Sheff Utd in his proclamation we've still lost to all 3 of those and failed to beat 3 other mediocre teams.

Of course, the teams we have played are only up there at this early stage partly due the very generous donation of three points from RFC .

I am also increasingly unimpressed with anything Rodgers has to say; it is all very well having your bumper book of soccer tactics and trying to thread delicate passes on to the onwalking Gzregorz Rasiak but failure to score in 5 of our 7 league games tells its own story. I don't really tend to give two hoots as to the style of play - this is the Championship, not the Champions League after all - I come to football to see excitement, shots on goal, goalmouth action.....goals. We are seeing precious little of any of that. Still, we made 527 sideways passes in the game, so Rodgers and his coaching staff can high-five over the pro-zone stats.

[brendywendy]

I come to football to see excitement, shots on goal, goalmouth action

all of that in abundace last night i thought

.....goals.

well you got one

stop moaning!

[floyd__streete]

I come to football to see excitement, shots on goal, goalmouth action

all of that in abundace last night i thought

Which game did you attend then? Not the Reading one, I assume. Most of our 'chances' yesterday were shots from range, on the rare ocassion that Matejovsky wasn't failing with intricate threaded balls through a blanker defence; it was like watching someone attempt to push a basketball up a wall using a toothpick.

Tbf, I quite like you Brendy and your boundless optimism, but I get the feeling that you are also the kind of bloke who is delighted all week if he finds 20p on the floor.

[Maguire]

Tbf, I quite like you Brendy and your boundless optimism, but I get the feeling that you are also the kind of bloke who is delighted all week if he finds 20p on the floor.

[brendywendy]

I come to football to see excitement, shots on goal, goalmouth action

all of that in abundace last night i thought

Which game did you attend then? Not the Reading one, I assume. Most of our 'chances' yesterday were shots from range, on the rare ocassion that Matejovsky wasn't failing with intricate threaded balls through a blanker defence; it was like watching someone attempt to push a basketball up a wall using a toothpick.

Tbf, I quite like you Brendy and your boundless optimism, but I get the feeling that you are also the kind of bloke who is delighted all week if he finds 20p on the floor.

youd have a point, but you didnt say chances, you said shots on goal


& there was plenty of excitement, as witnessed by the loudest and excitable crowd of the season
and loads of goal mouth stuff, crosses fizzing across the 6 yard box, some fantastic breaks by us and them and an overhead kick from our keeper!

matejovski made loads of great passes, missed a couple, but far outweighed by his good stuff-best game in a reading shirt IMO

thanks fLOLoyd, im a generally optimistic person, but i can and have moaned when i see something wrong.
but i get the feeling you are the kind of bloke who would slit his wrists if he found 20p on the floor, cos it wasnt a tenner.

[winchester_royal]

I come to football to see excitement, shots on goal, goalmouth action

all of that in abundace last night i thought

Which game did you attend then? Not the Reading one, I assume. Most of our 'chances' yesterday were shots from range, on the rare ocassion that Matejovsky wasn't failing with intricate threaded balls through a blanker defence; it was like watching someone attempt to push a basketball up a wall using a toothpick.

Tbf, I quite like you Brendy and your boundless optimism, but I get the feeling that you are also the kind of bloke who is delighted all week if he finds 20p on the floor.

Ah, about time all this postivity from last night was turned on it's head.

We're shit, Rodgers out.

[Maguire]

I will agree to a point Scaface, but he is trying to put a team together with a formation that suits

And unfortunately that's where I think he's currently going wrong - he's using a system that doesn't suit. We showed 4 years ago that traditional 4-4-2 was the best way EVER to win the Championship. Last year Wolves were clearly the best team, with a traditional 4-4-2. I'm sure you'll find that historically this will also be the case.

Now just as Coppell and McCarthy each said once in the Premier League you have to be more tactical. Rodgers is thinking as if he is in the Premier League (fair enough, most of his experience has been in the backroom of Chelsea), but he fast needs to understand that won't work here and now. Particularly if he has already been told this once last year at Watford and had to change his beliefs slightly to bring success.

End of the day a system will only work if you've got the players to work it. For the first time last night we actually looked like we were playing a shape that suited the players picked. A midfield diamond which requires good technical players with a combative defensive player at its core and enabled us to actually play with 2 strikers. The only issue we had really was that it needs the full-backs to provide width which one can & did and the other (who has been here barely a fortnight) seemed reluctant to do. There was plenty of positive play yesterday and chances created. In my view we need to settle on a style for at least a short period rather than chopping and changing every game.

Rodgers has used 24 players in just 7 League games so far. Thats complete madness really regardless of what style you want to play.

Spot on with the first paragraph as I've been banging on about on various thread here.

Not sure you can really have a pop about the number of players used though - that's an upshot of the close season turmoil and deconstruction of the previous season's playing staff. If he uses 24 players in the next seven games then i'll be agreeing with you though.

[Vision]

And unfortunately that's where I think he's currently going wrong - he's using a system that doesn't suit. We showed 4 years ago that traditional 4-4-2 was the best way EVER to win the Championship. Last year Wolves were clearly the best team, with a traditional 4-4-2. I'm sure you'll find that historically this will also be the case.

Now just as Coppell and McCarthy each said once in the Premier League you have to be more tactical. Rodgers is thinking as if he is in the Premier League (fair enough, most of his experience has been in the backroom of Chelsea), but he fast needs to understand that won't work here and now. Particularly if he has already been told this once last year at Watford and had to change his beliefs slightly to bring success.

End of the day a system will only work if you've got the players to work it. For the first time last night we actually looked like we were playing a shape that suited the players picked. A midfield diamond which requires good technical players with a combative defensive player at its core and enabled us to actually play with 2 strikers. The only issue we had really was that it needs the full-backs to provide width which one can & did and the other (who has been here barely a fortnight) seemed reluctant to do. There was plenty of positive play yesterday and chances created. In my view we need to settle on a style for at least a short period rather than chopping and changing every game.

Rodgers has used 24 players in just 7 League games so far. Thats complete madness really regardless of what style you want to play.

Spot on with the first paragraph as I've been banging on about on various thread here.

Not sure you can really have a pop about the number of players used though - that's an upshot of the close season turmoil and deconstruction of the previous season's playing staff. If he uses 24 players in the next seven games then i'll be agreeing with you though.

Its a contributory factor of course but 24 is still a huge amount to use in just 7 games and it only includes 2 players that were subsequently sold. I think its mainly an indication of his attitude that the first few games were still "pre-season" and in my view thats not helped the situation.

[Man Friday]

I come to football to see excitement, shots on goal, goalmouth action

all of that in abundace last night i thought

Which game did you attend then? Not the Reading one, I assume. Most of our 'chances' yesterday were shots from range, on the rare ocassion that Matejovsky wasn't failing with intricate threaded balls through a blanker defence; it was like watching someone attempt to push a basketball up a wall using a toothpick.

Brilliant. Again. Spot-on and incredibly amusing perspective that sums up most of Reading's matches this season.

[Maguire]

Rodgers has used 24 players in just 7 League games so far. Thats complete madness really regardless of what style you want to play.

Spot on with the first paragraph as I've been banging on about on various thread here.

Not sure you can really have a pop about the number of players used though - that's an upshot of the close season turmoil and deconstruction of the previous season's playing staff. If he uses 24 players in the next seven games then i'll be agreeing with you though.

Its a contributory factor of course but 24 is still a huge amount to use in just 7 games and it only includes 2 players that were subsequently sold. I think its mainly an indication of his attitude that the first few games were still "pre-season" and in my view thats not helped the situation.

Mills, Cummings, Rasiak, O'Dea, Howard are all new so could hardly have held down places all season. Rosenior and Harper are gone. That's seven.

Injury forced some of the selections too - Cisse playing centre-half and Noel Hunt being injured at the start of the season for example.

Suddenly 24 doesn't seem like such a high number, although granted that within that there was tinkering and juggling which I'd expect from a manager who'd never seen his players in competitive action before.

As I said, if it's still 24 over the next 7 games then i'd worry about it. Just think it's part of the bedding in process thus far.

[Archie's penalty]

Tbf, I quite like you Brendy and your boundless optimism, but I get the feeling that you are also the kind of bloke who is delighted all week if he finds 20p on the floor.

I'm sure Floyd has used that line before.

[brendywendy]

Which game did you attend then? Not the Reading one, I assume. Most of our 'chances' yesterday were shots from range, on the rare ocassion that Matejovsky wasn't failing with intricate threaded balls through a blanker defence; it was like watching someone attempt to push a basketball up a wall using a toothpick.

Brilliant. Again. Spot-on and incredibly amusing perspective that sums up most of Reading's matches this season.

incredibly amusing is pushing it slightly, floyds other user name.

[brendywendy]

Tbf, I quite like you Brendy and your boundless optimism, but I get the feeling that you are also the kind of bloke who is delighted all week if he finds 20p on the floor.

I'm sure Floyd has used that line before.

i think thatwas to me too

[Dirk Gently]

Do you think the ground is cursed or something?? How can Rodgers have inherited the fact we haven't scored many goals this season, when there's hardly any players left from last season. I'd understand it, if he had the same players.

The supporters know it and that tension does transmit itself to the players - and you can be ure Tim Nice but Dim made it a cause last week to make sure all the players knew how big an issue it was, even the new players.....

That's why we're shot-shy and seem to want to walk the ball into the net at times - no-one wants to take a shot and bugger it up....

[Maguire]

Tbf, I quite like you Brendy and your boundless optimism, but I get the feeling that you are also the kind of bloke who is delighted all week if he finds 20p on the floor.

I'm sure Floyd has used that line before.

Prolly, but it seems a shame to only use it once.

floyd is, of course, so negative that it's practically impossible to have a discussion about football with him. He doens't even like Sir James Kebe

[rhroyal]

Rodgers has used 24 players in just 7 League games so far. Thats complete madness really regardless of what style you want to play.

Very telling. Most successful teams have a spine and a shape. This constant chopping and changing won't help the team gel and grow together.

[Dirk Gently]

Rodgers has used 24 players in just 7 League games so far. Thats complete madness really regardless of what style you want to play.

Very telling. Most successful teams have a spine and a shape. This constant chopping and changing won't help the team gel and grow together.

True, if it was midway through a season. But at the start of a season with a new manager, lots of departures, and lots of new players coming in then it's perfectly normal.

The number of changes should massively decrease now as Br establishes who is the spine and what is the shape.

[CMRoyal]

Rodgers has used 24 players in just 7 League games so far. Thats complete madness really regardless of what style you want to play.

Very telling. Most successful teams have a spine and a shape. This constant chopping and changing won't help the team gel and grow together.

True enough, although with each game it's getting easier to predict the next line-up so things seem to be gelling slowly.