Will Hughes Hair

The players made a collage of things they felt represented what the didn't like about him.
Unconfirmed rumours that the work is set to be displayed on the dance of Steven bywater's house.

Any views on the Battle of Waterloo, Scott reaching the South Pole or any other events you didn't actually witness?
 

The 21 year old attacking mid with 14 goal contributions in 95 games, only 4 of which in the Championship, or, the 22 year old CM with just 2 goals and 6 assists in 86 first team games, none higher than League 1.
Bird has 15 goal contributions, with 4 of those coming in his most recent season in the Championship whilst playing as the deepest midfielder with little licence to push forward, and 6 last season. As I also pointed out recently, no CM under 23 had more open play assists than Bird in League 1 or Championship last season.

He’s literally the only midfielder capable of driving forwards with the ball (highlights from last night show that despite a disappointing performance he was able to shimmy his way through 3 Blackpool players before laying it into the forward as just 1 example). 
He has got a killer pass on him (Stoke pre season for just 1 example). 
He is technically gifted and completely 2 footed. 
 
Obviously I’m talking about him in the context we find ourselves but he’s impressed Cocu, Lampard, Rooney, Rosenior and Warne. Regardless of thoughts on individual managers that is 5 managers in a row who have rated him. 
 
I’ll ignore any lazy tropes about ‘always goes sideways’ too. 

I’ll be boarding the Warne out wagon if it turns out his comments last night are the difference between Bird staying and leaving. 
 
Class player. Didn’t do enough last season but isn’t his fault rosenior bought in 2 very similar CMs to play with him. No coincidence our form fell off a cliff without him in the side though.
 
A shame he’s perennially underrated by our fans. 
 
He may well have been on his way without those comments but he’s one we should h e been aiming to build a team around moving forwards. 

I want Paul to succeed, I like him and his back room staff. I understand that they are working under restrictions as we’re are a club on the rebuild and appreciate that it’s not an easy job.
The only issue for me is tactics. I don’t like how we seem to be defending currently, I think we’re over exposed for the counter. Our three centre backs should play as centre backs and if both wing backs are pushing on one of the midfielders needs to screen the back three.
Attacking wise I’d like us to take a step back slightly from the high press to allow us a little more room to create space in the build up to an attack.
My only managerial experience in football comes from decades of FIFA so my opinions worth nothing. Apologies to Paul and all if my suggestions sound like nothing but anal dribble.
Up the Rams

Think this is an odd thread as surely by suffering a lifetime of angst as Derby fans we are as opposite to fickle as it is possible to be? 

First of all, I am still with Warne and think we all must give him more time and support but I can also see why a fair few fellow supporters are getting a bit worried with our overall direction as a club:
Signings: None of the new additions looks like good business at the moment except maybe Vickers. I think many hoped for Warne et.al to identify a bit more unkown up and coming players in a different age group after last seasons interview. The players signed doesn't really bring to much re-sell value and when they also under perform well that's a concern. Last years loans of White and Springett turned out to be 1/10 unfortunately. 
Tactics: It's been quite hard to understand how Derby County under Warne are supposed to be playing. Last season was a bit like give the ball to McGoldrick and hope for something to happen. This season has started, at least to me, a bit like the same but without McGoldrick. I do not claim to be a football manager in any way but it's been hard to see what we try to execute on the pitch in terms of passing patterns, team pressure, recapture and possession etc. For some reason our players seem unable to perform as a TEAM on the pitch which surprise me a lot from a Warne team. 
Comments: I am a bit worried regarding the perceived differences between Warnes comments and actual outcomes so far. Type of signings as stated above, the talk about great characters who doesn't show up for the teams second game a Tuesday in August and the talk of endeavour and commitment from the team not really showing on the pitch. A hard-trained team that seems to run out steam well before the opposition.
Player development: A main concern is the lack of player development under Warne. This is hard to evaluate since he only has been here for a season but how many players (except McGoldrick) actually developed under Warne. Sibley, Bird, Knight (sold now) and Cashin do not seem to have taken any major development steps during that first year. At least it's not showing yet. 
Results: You could live with all of the above if results would have been good but when the results are mediocre to bad then we seem to have some serious problems. 
I truly hope Warne and his team can turn this around because they seem to be honest hard working genuine  good people. And I think results are the minor problem if they could hit correct on signings and tactics all could turn upwards in a heartbeat. We have lashed ourselves at the mast with Warne so now I see it as the only constructive thing to support him and say a silent prayer to Lady Fortuna that he gets things right soon.

We needed players all over the pitch, to be fair. Cashin and Forsyth was left as our only senior defenders. We’re still 2 short (defenders) for my money. I do think the lack of pace at the back is a problem, but it was last season and didn’t cause us too many problems. Knight was obviously a good player, but feel like you don’t really miss what he gave us last season. I’d feel similarly to Bird. You don’t want them to go, of course, but at the same time they were/are part of the problem. When I look at the midfield I just feel like we should be getting more, I don’t think any of them are necessarily bad players at this level but they’re not exactly producing much of a tangible output. 
The budget is a cause of contention, because if it was so thin then we should’ve really leaned on the recruitment staff a little more - looked at non-league players, tried to find a couple diamonds in the rough rather than going cap-in-hand to players released by Championship clubs. The transfer approach adapted by ourselves is most certainly different to Barnsley and Bolton who are expected to be up there - in fact there is no other team in League One who followed our approach.

Been a busy day and I haven't got time to read every page of every thread!
It was a genuine question, just wondering how many people you think actually actively want Warne out? 
I think there's a bit of a tendency to automatically assume those criticising him are in that camp, rather than it merely being the case that they're frustrated and worried that there are signs of him not learning from last season... in their opinion 

Oh I didn't say it had any effect on me 😀
I would add that not everything has to polarised opposites. You can criticise Warne without calling for him to be sacked. You can question our budgets without wanting to spunk £6m on Bradley Johnson. You can suggest we have bought very slow. CB without personally trying to melt him down for glue. Most people are putting together constructive criticisms and are being met with scorn and personal attacks.
The main issue is we have a manager who wants to play a high tempo pressing game and we have bought slow, ageing players to add to an already slow ageing squad.
If anyone has a convincing solution to that quandary, which involves a slow back line and a pedestrian CM supporting slow CFs in a successful and cohesive high press, I'll have more faith.
Till then I'll remain a sceptic.   
 

It would save us looking all around the world

There is a difference between saying “I take responsibility” and actually taking responsibility.

Year right cause he is sick not.

Yes, though allegedly relaxed a little this summer. I think people, including me, are frustrated at having by far the biggest income stream and having the smallest squad amongst the top 8 tipped clubs. 
 

He was feeling depressed and sought solace in guaranteed good times I think. 

A badly managed workforce is far more likely to make personal mistakes than a well managed one. However, yes, some mistakes are inevitable no matter what.
What matters then, is whether you've managed your team well enough that an individual mistake from one of your workforce doesn't totally undermine the solid work done by others.
If you've built & managed your team well and everyone understands and is suited to their roles, one worker's mistake can easily be covered for, and your operation will continue to run smoothly, despite this hiccup.
If you've just thrown a workforce together with little thought for their individual skills, and managed them poorly to the point where nobody really knows what they're supposed to do or what they're supposed to do doesn't suit their skills, then that individual mistake is far harder to recover from and productivity will grind to a halt. That's where we are under Warne right now.

While this might be true, what players are we chasing and what money is available?
The only names we hear are the likes of Rhodes and Smith. I'm sure Smith is a decent striker but he's 31, essentially a slightly better version of Collins, and apparently isn't available. Rhodes is older and arguably the same type. 
We are absolutely crying out for energy, pace and creativity in both the midfield and forward positions. We all said this last year. Since then we've sold Knight (energy) and McGoldrick (creativity). 
These positions should have been absolute priorities if we had limited money to spend.
Either Warne thought he had more money than he did or - as I suspect - he thinks that what really matters is having three strong centre backs and wing backs as your main creators of goals. So he prioritised signings in those positions and used most of the available budget there.
If so I think that was a terrible mistake and I just hope Clowes can be persuaded to give him the funds to rectify it. 

There is a big, big difference to giving players critiques/bollockings behind a closed door of a changing room, and questioning their commitment publicly on a BBC Radio station.

I’m hoping there isn’t a knee jerk reaction and Brent brings in more journeymen to fight the fire. He seems to lack vision and has no idea on how to beat semi decent teams who have (better) tactics and a game plan

What an utter shambles that first half was tonight. I don't think it was so much lack of effort that did for us, but the system. 
Someone commented that Blackpool also play three at the back and made it look easy, but actually they had a five man defensive unit across the pitch and a solid midfield in front of them.
This isn't helped by our painfully slow build up play. It takes us an age to play out from the back because neither Nelson nor Bradley are comfortable on the ball. So the Blackpool defence was set, and coped easily with our balls in to two attackers who don't look match-fit.
Blackpool in contrast just got the ball forward quickly and because we were only playing three at the back -at best - often two as Nelson and Cashin are being encouraged to play forwards - we were caught flat-footed on numerous occasions and there could have been a few more goals against us than there were. 
Wilson plays so far forward that he might as well be a winger. Except Mendez-Laing is a much better winger, if we want someone to play that high. (I know he's injured tonight, but just making that general point.) 
Why was Hourihane on the left wing getting in Elder's way? The whole set-up was bizarre.
Second half we could have made more subs but Tommo and Fozzy made a big difference. Tommo because he moved about looking for the ball and played it quickly. Bird came to life with him at the side of him. Fozzy because he is far more assured in defence, Cashin immediately relaxed and he too had a better second half. Ward was much better than Wilson, not least because he can defend a bit, too! 
I could put up with slow centrebacks if they were doing their jobs but they aren't at the moment. And they aren't much of a threat from set pieces either, I don't think we got a head on any of those first half. Fozzy is also pretty slow, but his positioning and reading of the game is just so superior to Bradley's so far that his lack of pace isn't the same issue.
I would have liked to see Collins and Brown on at half time too, as Wash and Waggy were tiring and not able to take advantage of our increased momentum in the early part of the second half. As it was, we huffed and puffed but didn't create a lot. At least we looked more solid at the back. 
I didn't enjoy Warne's post match interview on Radio Derby. If he wants to throw players under the bus, then he'll need to take responsibility for finding some better ones. Even if we don't know for certain who they are, the players will and that might be the final push they need to decide to walk away. On his track record so far, I'm not sure what sort of quality we're going to get in to replace them. 
Disappointed. 

What a week - and it’s only Tuesday! 
Stupid comment to make by Warne, for sure, who is clearly very angry. The whole situation just looks fraught to me at the moment, we’ve painted ourselves into a corner with the EFL budget and we have players who want to leave that we can’t replace if they go. Now, unfortunately, it just seems like there is a cloud over the club at the moment compounded with that Warne interview. If we hadn’t banned our entire budget on experience, it probably wouldn’t be so disappointing. The truth is that we’ve made a very significant investment on getting promoted this season and we look absolutely miles off it. 
Where we go from here, that is the question? My opinion is that any Bamford who doesn’t want to be here can get to f***, we’re literally talking about League One footballers - I care slightly more about some more than others, but ultimately I can’t wait for the day where this level of player simply can’t get a deal at Derby County. As I said, it’s just a shame we’ve invested most of budget in players here for one or two years to get the club up rather than spend our time developing something.

Out of the cup, I'm really not fussed about that. Usually I can keep my emotions in control at the match, go away and think about it.. Not tonight sadly. 
First half was one of the worst I've seen for a couple of years, possibly since Blackburn at home during COVID, nearly hiding behind my sofa. Blackpool to their credit played football how I would want to watch it. Nice slick passes on the floor, great movement, awareness of player runs. First goal was a nice cross and finish. They should have scored 3 or 4. Our defending was hideous and wouldn't look out of place on Chad Park on a Sunday morning. The worst moment for me was the hoof up the field from the Blackpool goalie and their striker escaped our 3 centre backs and nearly scored. I was looking through my fingers. Reminding me of the horrible years of Clod and Andy Todd. Not one player could come out with any credit. 
Warne was mentioning how he didn't like how we past it sideways and backwards. I completely disagree. When we started playing it more patiently and actually made Blackpool run and close us down, we exploited their defence and had some good chances. This is why personally I'm always going to differ from how he wants to play football. Nothing personal against him. He's one of the most genuine men in the game. The way we tried to play it (hoof it) down the wing in the first 45 minutes was cringe worthy and amatuer. Zero skill, zero thought and our manager seemingly enjoys that standard of football. At least he agreed it was abject.
Second half was much better, when we got the ball down and started playing it on the deck. Much more control of possession and created some good chances. Brown and Thompson looked dangerous when they came on. Made a difference and hungry to play. Give them more game time.
When I watch a team like Blackpool pass rings around us at home, it hurts me. That period where they had 50 passes and dominated the play was embarrassing. It's clear to me Warne has his way and he won't change. He was so reluctant to change formation the first time round, he did it as a last resort. I can see this happening again if we're not careful. I'm not gonna start calling Warne out of a job because he might surprise me and go on another unbelievable unbeaten run. Watching him set his team out does test my patience but I'll never boo the team or degrade the players.
I can definitely see why he's always struggled to take a team to the next level and I think I'll leave it there.

I am making a point in response to p e that claimed our team having so many new players meant that it couldn’t be organised and comparing it to the two teams that we have played having a similar number of new players. I am basing this based on the highlights I have seen and talking to those whose views often align with my own. Having just seen the Blackpool highlights there are 3 or 4 occasions they are clear through on goal from just a huge punt forwards, I don’t think that screams a well organised defence and don’t think I needed to be there to come to that conclusion. The same happened in the Wigan game. As it did in other games last season. 

I thought Warne was big into sports psychology? Didn't sound it with those comments in public. Only going off the highlights but I thought Waggy looked quite lively and does genuinely give us another dimension to the attack.