AlvoRam!

Think Rosenior needs a club that isn’t seen as a scalp by 90% of the division if I’m honest. most clubs happy to watch us pass between Cashin and Davies pick their moment to press and punish us on the counter or by forcing an error. 
 
some great football at times but how much is down to him? You put 11 good players at this level together and they’re going to occasionally click and produce good play. 
 
I like Rosenior but like others I was a little concerned when I saw his team talks. Doesn’t look like he’s got a bollocking in him. I think he’ll be a successful manager but I think he’ll need to do it out of the limelight at a smaller club where he can overachieve. Overachievement probably isn’t possible here due to the size… 
 
 

The thing that best pleased me today was Rosenior knowing he has to mix it up and not be afraid. 
 
That gives me hope that we can adapt our style of play when needed. 
 
He’s still got a lot to learn though. 

Just bought tickets for Saturday, expecting a high scoring game.
So stick a fiver on 0-0. 

I'm getting slighty concerned by your posts lately.  You make Mel's decision making seem sensible. Will you be calling for Clowes to go if he doesn't get rid of Rosenior on Saturday eve?

He's gone full "Campy's Dad" hasn't he? 
No-one is bigger than the club/team, even if he's your favourite player. 

So I'm putting this post together because since the start of the season there have been question marks on Knight starting at RB which have ranged from mildly questioning to outright ridiculing. 
But very frequently what gets missed is why Knight is starting there, why he's good at it and why it actually relies on his skillset. So I'm going to play devil's advocate and argue for Knight should start there.
Tactics
I think that Rosenior identified that a few things going into the season; we have talent in midfield, we likely have technical superiority and teams are likely going to sit back and try to counter or press and try to counter. And so he's built tactically from that point.You can see this in how our flanks are set up.
Wingers play high and wide and are both fast, phsyical and good 1v1. A compact opposition has to stretch or leave a man free. A team that presses always has to be wary of that threat in behind if they overcommit. Also it helps provide space in the centre for our midfield to take advantage of.
Meanwhile our fullbacks essentially play as midfielders when we have the ball. They tuck right into the middle operating from a much more central postion and given the responsibilities of a deep midfielder in getting the play going and supporting the play. This provides extra functional bodies in the build up play making it theoretically easier to pass through a press and it allows other midfielders to go take up dangerous positions further up field as they don't have to worry so much about the build up. Same applies to the wingers who can play high and wide because the fullbacks are functionally midfielders.
This isn't something revolutionary that Rosenior has done. In fact it's almost identical to what Guardiola has done in the past (who often would play midfielders like Delph at fullback).
Inverted fullback
The demands on this role are different that was is typically called for. They need to very comfortable on the ball in central areas, their passing needs to be good, they need to know what to do positionally when they are in midfield and they need that high energy to cover ground, support the attack and quickly get back into position. Functionally it operates a lot more like a wide midfield role on the ball.
Why Knight ? 
Simply put he excels at all of the above qualities is the primary reason whilst being sound defensively. There is a good reason why most our success in attacking has happened down the right. Playing him there essentially allows us to cheat and play another midfielder
The second reason is with a decent number of midfielders going into pre-season but no right back in sight with restricted dealings in the window. It made sense to coach someone into the role and Knight ticked the most boxes.
Why not X instead of Knight ? 
Odurah - Seems a decent prospect but looked a touch raw and shaky in pre-season. Likely isn't ready just yet.
Smith - This could work but Knight has more energy and crucially Smith hasn't had the same coaching time to coach him into the role.
Thompson - isn't as phsyical as Knight which could get exposed defensively and would need coaching into the role.
Stearman - This is a joke right ? He looks too awkward at CB on the ball never mind in midfield areas and would get exposed for pace.
Roberts - The role benefits from someone playing on their stronger side so they can open their body easier. Also needed at LB as Fozzy can't really play that role reliably.
New Right Back - Well yeah... but that's increasingly unlikely to happen but it won't be for a lack of trying.
Should he play midfield anyway ? 
Now that's a tricky question. Because we have a balance problem in midfield (at least some of the time) that you can point to Knight as a fix. And Id agree with that to a large degree that Knight as one of the three would help. The two counterarguments I might make are that problem might be better solved by playing either Sibley or a fit McGoldrick and by moving Knight from there you might be just shifting a problem rather than fixing it overall.
TLDR; The way we play calls for someone comfortable in midfield at right back. And Knight is likely the best at it we have.
(PS you may be able to tell I'm bored because I'm ill at home) 

Types Every Word With A Capital Letter At The Start Which Is Really Annoying. Send Him Back.

Come on then David, why do you think these companies are spending their cash putting their names on the front of our shirts?

From the highlights i've watched on YouTube, can confirm he's the best player in the league

Do modern day players see a need to beat their marker, then stop to let the marker get back goal side?
 

I love your dress ?

Hourihane feels the most surprising. 
But the cheesy answer is that first raft of signings and new contracts a couple days after Clowes took over were critical. It sent out the message that we'd stabilised, that players are safe to come to us and that the players we have here aren't for sale for peanuts.

Yes he was the stand-out player. Very clever and brings other players into the game and is a presence even when he hasn’t got the ball he occupied the defenders. Hourihane too was like quicksilver playing “liquid football” all around the park with a wand of a left foot. Collins looked ring rusty. Max Bird looked superb and his long-range passing, arrowing down the flanks with seamstress’s precision. Knight and Thompson have both beefed up and Thompson danced his opponent into submission with clever turns and quick feet.
Pride Park pitch was lush, flat and even, with the ball moving over the surface with speed and even bounce. 

No. 1 new keeper kept out a certain goal 2nd half and Scott Loach got a Vg reception when he came on. 
 
A hot day, several pleasing Brunswick beers, liquid football at Pride Park and a 1-0 win for the Rams. If Carlsburg did Saturdays…

Well this team has so much attacking flair that teams will be scared to face us now if we can win next 2 pre season games that will improve confordance in the camp we could be total untouchable now maybe laim found the right balance that we have been missing for years now.

F*** it! Let's get carried away ?- we look to have lots of potential! #COYR

Yes someone said Knight had bulked up and grown a bit too. Must be the sun.

What we playing with 10 men ?‍♀️

It's so good to be back on the forum and reading discussions about teams and football again. I read all the above comments and I feel like I've arrived back in my football home!! ☺️

Right kwak

Early days yet but we just seem stronger than last season, I mean physically.

Looking forward to this. I like preseason games where there’s no pressure and you can just sit back in the sun and enjoy some football, whilst seeing some new signings.

Impressive stuff. Sign him up.

I'd love a Rams shirt with Rolls-Royce on the front!

Can Royces be persuaded?