BFTG - Blackburn Rovers

[bluerinse]

Vydra was a waste of time. Can we send him back to Watford in January and get a partial refund on the loan fee.

[windermere_royal]

Vydra was a waste of time. Can we send him back to Watford in January and get a partial refund on the loan fee.

oxf*rd off newbie

[CrowthorneRoyal]

Heard on the radio something about Vydra making a quick escape in his car just after the game - surely not a good sign?

Also heard Brian on the radio after and like his attitude of "it's all about the group, no one individual is bigger than the group".

He didnt seem in a bad mood after the game. He was one of the first into his car but not by a huge margin. But then he would have had longer to get showered and changed after he came off than the others....

[bobby1413]

Bobby would you boo him if he shagged your missus?

Absolutely not. I'd have a lot of respect and admiration for him, and I'd ask him to please explain in detail how he accomplished such a feat as I can't even raise a smile out of her these days

[tidus_mi2]

I clapped Guthrie off, idgaf if you think I was wrong to do so, after the Sunderland incident he didn't just decide to cut his ties and burn all his bridges, he was still here and did alright when called upon. If you can't forgive him for his Sunderland tantrum then fine, don't applause, boo him if you want, guess what we're all different people and we read situations differently.

[Sanguine]

A scrappy 1-0 win? Welcome back Brian.

Second half was better than the first, we got the ball down and passed it a bit, Norwood came right into the game and Ola John made a very direct impact when he came on. Reminded me a little of a very early Mass Sarr, Rovers couldn't get near him. Quinn our MOM.

Blackburn - looked tidy enough, but little penetration in the final third. Almost what you might expect when you start with Guthrie and Akpan in central midfield.

Koita (?) was real handful. I don't think I've ever seen McShane lose so many headers.

[Forbury Lion]

Disappointing turnout and atmos for Bri's return.

T'was a Sunday, clashed with Church for the many thousands of fans who dream of appearing on songs of praise (It's the X-Factor for Christians).

[leon]

I clapped Guthrie off, idgaf if you think I was wrong to do so, after the Sunderland incident he didn't just decide to cut his ties and burn all his bridges, he was still here and did alright when called upon. If you can't forgive him for his Sunderland tantrum then fine, don't applause, boo him if you want, guess what we're all different people and we read situations differently.

yeah but he was shit as well

[Forbury Lion]

Piazon - A guy behind me said "He's a good player, too good for the Reading fans who forget he's only a young lad" - wise words, However a great player for the future isn't going to be much help to us if that future is with Chelsea

Assistant Referee Mr Kingsley - Wasted opportunity for a chant of "Kingley is a Royal"

Danny Williams goal - What a cracker and I had the good fortune to be sat right alongside him in the West Lower as he took his shot. Very Glen Littlesque IMHO.

HRK - Getting a lot of praise in twitterland, However I can't think if a worse player to have work the number 9. I would like to see us play with an actual striker up front going forward.

[winchester_royal]

A really good win that. Blackburn were clearly a team high on confidence, Lambert's got them playing well, and their front 4 is probably as effective as any in this league, so given the injuries we have at the back it was a very impressive clean sheet.

First half wasn't great. The lack of confidence in the team in comparison to Blackburn was quite clear, and we struggled to get any kind of foothold on the game. Too often taking the easy option of lumping it down the channels for HRK (who I thought put in a fantastic shift up front) to chase.

However Brian did his usual trick of changing the game to good effect (something the previous two managers seemed incapable of doing) and in the second half I thought we were terrific. It was vintage Bri McD football, playing direct with tempo, but on the ground with intelligence. The two substitutions were bang on, with Piazon showing up quite nicely playing in the Sig role.

Happy faces all round the place too, it's good to have him back.

[Esteban]

Good, solid enough win yesterday, just what the doctor ordered. I wasn't surprised to see us play 442, but I didn't expect us to line up the way we did. That said, you can see why McDermott set us up that way - HRK playing the role he does for Wales (and where he's had most of his best performances), with Vydra playing off him in a fairly free role. Blackman and McCleary on opposite wings was a bit of a puzzler, but they both have a good shot on them and cutting in on to their stronger foot brings that I to play a bit more, I suppose. It didn't quite work, but there is sense to it.

Great goal by Williams, either him or Quinn were MOM for me.

Good early change made a difference and second half we were better. There was a 10 minute spell where we played some really good football and the crowd got into it. That's the first time I've felt the whole place pulling together in a long time. It didn't last for long, but it's been missed.

Brian didn't have long to work with the squad, so making any long term judgements so soon is a bit daft. But his players put a shift in, we played to our strengths for the most part and his changes definitely had a positive impact on the game. A solid 7/10 for his first game back. Let's see how we get on at Wolves, but I'm pleased Brian is back.

[CountryRoyal]

Bobby would you boo him if he shagged your missus?

Absolutely not. I'd have a lot of respect and admiration for him, and I'd ask him to please explain in detail how he accomplished such a feat as I can't even raise a smile out of her these days

Just a point on Vydra. It's fairly apparent that he is lacking confidence and doesn't feel comfortable which is partly due to his own form and partly due to how we've been set up and playing as a team. As has been commented all he ever does is little touches, layoffs.. Etc. That quicker tempo style of play was exactly what we needed after the last couple of seasons and his influence was instantaneous and clear to see in our 5-1 over Ipswich.

My own problem is that he seems to be a one trick pony in that regard, and his decision making of late has been poor. He seems to be on a different wavelength to most, at times, and whilst he was obviously playing with technically gifted players at Watford with forestieri and co, I refuse to believe our own players are not of a high calibre to be able to competently link up with him. I'd suggest Clarke's inconsistent team selection hadn't helped the situation.

You can discount all the "send him back" sentiments as utter tripe as if we can get him playing well and scoring it will be a massive boost to our promotion chances. If not then, as McD said, the team is everything and sometimes the best team doesn't involve the best players, but Vydra would still be a good option to have off the bench to stretch defensese. I think he'll come good though for us, even when little has gone his way he's still worked tirelessly and never stopped running - an attitude that I believe will be rewarded in due time.

[Sanguine]

Seems to be a simple solution to the Vydra problem would be to move Blackman, he of short, neat passes, flicks, and turns and runs, back into the central role where he scored so many goals. He appears obviously the most natural partner to Vydra in the middle.

[russyb]

I don't get the hate for HRK on here, i thought he was great last night. Worked as hard as any other player out there.

Yes he didn't score a goal , but he worked his backside off last night, collect the ball well ran at the defence , kept them busy all night, flicked on for williams goal. Had a shot himself, for me that was a real hard working performance. If SA had been in the same position doing the same thing which ultimately he probably will be would you be saying the same?

[CountryRoyal]

I'm excited to see what McD comes up with the longer he's with and the more he gets to know the squad. I hope that HRK up top, whilst done to fair yet unspectacular efficiency, was more a case of tried and tested rather than anything else, especially considering Sa and Liburd - the latter of which I would really like to see get a start.

[LoyalRoyal22]

Did Brian say after the game if Vydra was injured? Big statement to sub him if not

Also, I didn't see the game, but HRK is perfect to play the Roberts/Long role if he can reach the standards he has done with Wales. Blackman/Vydra upfront together is too lightweight.

[Jano]

I wondered if the half time sub was more a chance to take a good look at both Vydra and Piazon. That however was firmly quashed when Brian only made two subs as I thought he'd at least want to look at Sa when HRK seemed to be struggling, and then the reports that Vydra left rather quickly.

[Woodcote Royal]

I believe Blackburn were on an 8 match unbeaten run (W4 D4) Why do some of you get so rooted in this "If we can beat them they must be sh*t" mind set

We, on the other hand, hadn't won for how long On this basis alone Brian's first 3 days in charge have been little short of priceless.

If you can't win pretty you win ugly but, first and foremost, you find a way to win and that, above almost everything else, is the McDermott way. In my book this renders him tactically superior to all the Adkins's and Rodgers's who insist on playing their way regardless of whether they have to the players to do so or not.

As for individual performances, it beggars belief how much stick our current 'keepers get given the love meted out to Fcuk Up Fed throughout is decade of regular poorly positioned, lacking in command and Al Dropsy displays. Bond has almost a decade to prove he will be a far superior stopper than the current Bournemouth Bench Warmer and I'm praying desperately here that the thought of bringing Skippy back has not entered Brian's head

I thought Quin was outstanding at full back. He is truly one of the best players in what must be the most talented squad in our history. Could this be a way of keeping him and others in the side when we have a fully fit squad and was it just coincidence that he was fit enough to last 90 minutes as soon as Clarke was out of the door

Like most of you, I think Blackman has earnt the right to play upfront but are we a stronger team with him on the flank? That's what matters to McDermott.

We were back to defending from the front with Blackman and McCleary showing the commitment tracking back that we came to expect from Little and Hunt in the glory years.

It is the immensely talented Vydra who is the enigma right now and Brian was quite right to sub him at half time, with the much maligned Piazon getting a chance where his defensive frailties are less exposed. Some astute decision making here from our supposedly tactically clueless manager after less than a week back in the hot seat and FWIW I don't believe we would have beaten a decent Blackburn outfit with Adkins or Clarke in charge.

Brian is a winner, he has the stats to prove it, great to have you back, Christmas has, indeed, arrived early!!!

[Royal With Cheese]

Feds is on too much money in the Prem to even consider a downward move.

I'm not convinced by Bond though. I think we need to change at least one of our keepers at least so I presume Al Habsi's on bigger wages and will go.

Shot stopping for Bond is acceptable. Kicking and commanding his area (where his awareness of where the ball is and how he needs to react) is pretty dire at the moment. These urgently need worked on.

[Hoop Blah]

Seems to be a simple solution to the Vydra problem would be to move Blackman, he of short, neat passes, flicks, and turns and runs, back into the central role where he scored so many goals. He appears obviously the most natural partner to Vydra in the middle.

Didn't Blackman score most of his goals coming from out wide in the front 3, not through the middle?

I think Sa and Vydra are our most obvious pairing as it happens, but I could see Vydra leading the line with Piazon playing as he did yesterday as a decent combination too.

There's no real doubt that Vydra is a quality player, it's just our ability to get the best from him and the team around him that's the problem.