Ten games in - what have we learned?

[mcsilks]

I have learnt the following from the first 10 games:

1. We overpaid for Ince by about 3M. 

2. Huddersfield must be laughing all the way to the bank when we overpaid for Butterfield.

3. Our football this season has been poor which just goes to show what an incredibly poor standard the Championship is when we can be in the top 7 after playing nothing better than bang ordinary.

4. Carson was a good signing.

5. The atmosphere at the PP is poor. I've heard louder libraries. (thanks for the periscope stream)

6. McClaren is an even poorer manager than I thought (and I thought he was poor)

7. Keogh has improved since losing the armband.

 

[Mafiabob]

I have learnt the following from the first 10 games:

1. We overpaid for Ince by about 3M. 

2. Huddersfield must be laughing all the way to the bank when we overpaid for Butterfield.

3. Our football this season has been poor which just goes to show what an incredibly poor standard the Championship is when we can be in the top 7 after playing nothing better than bang ordinary.

4. Carson was a good signing.

5. The atmosphere at the PP is poor. I've heard louder libraries. (thanks for the periscope stream)

6. McClaren is an even poorer manager than I thought (and I thought he was poor)

7. Keogh has improved since losing the armband.

 

I would disagree with you on Ince. 

[mcsilks]

I would disagree with you on Ince. 

 

I rate him as a player Bob, but I just don't think he turns up often enough. He's been anonymous for most of our first 10 games. 

I want him to be the player he was when he won games on his own. He's too inconsistent. 

When he was awarded the MOTM after the Dons game, I nearly fell of my seat. Bar scoring at the end, he was anonymous and by his own admission, had a poor game.

 

[Mafiabob]

 

I rate him as a player Bob, but I just don't think he turns up often enough. He's been anonymous for most of our first 10 games. 

I want him to be the player he was when he won games on his own. He's too inconsistent. 

When he was awarded the MOTM after the Dons game, I nearly fell of my seat. Bar scoring at the end, he was anonymous and by his own admission, had a poor game.

 

I can totally understand what your saying. And agree with your statement regarding MOM against the Dons, but I'd rather have him be anonymous for 75 minutes and then create something out of nothing.... Or set up like the Dons game. Set one, scored one.... Than going all guns blazing trying to be something he isn't. 

 

I always come back to comparing him with Russell... The difference between the two is ones a match winner I feel. And thats why I think he'll be worth the money in the long run. 

[Warren Hobhead]

I've learnt that far too many on here are far too quick to make a judgement, on anything. 

 

I think the signings of Carson and Johnson in particular 'look' masterstrokes. 

 

And I really like Butterfield. I know, it's not cool to like him, apparently he was poor in the four games he's played in, despite us conceding just one goal and getting 10 from 12 points. I was there, in attendance in each of those games, he did okay, sometimes better than ok, but never worse than that. But yeah, he's had four games and so it's a perfect time to say that £4m (it was £5m rising to £6m actually) was overspent, and he's a poor mans Will Hughes, yadda, yadda, yadda. He's taking longer to settle in, as PC admitted. I know from my source that he's still commuting every day, 4 hour round trip until he finds a place. It has an effect. Bradley meanwhile, he's bought a place here already, as has Carson. It helps. And so I will continue to have faith in Butterfield, Johnson and Carson, who've all contributed to our recent good form. Have we lost lately? No. And, Hendrick has done the beautiful thing of getting his head down, responding to the fight for his position, and is currently in possession of the shirt. That's what a good squad is about, and, what good management is about. 

 

 

Keogh has always been our standout defender, despite the judgmental idiots prevalent on this msg board, and he's proving that yet again so far this season. Having Shacks back, well, that's just wonderful. 

 

Martin doesn't look in good nick to me, but he's scoring, and so if he gets back to his best.... wow. 

 

 

I've learnt that we'll be fine. I fancy a top six finish. We've a decent manager with a squad of players that I enjoy watching. 

 

Sooner the internationals are over, the better. 

 

|COYR|

[DesertRam]

Almost started a thread on this the other day, Baird as captain may have been Clements first mistake, although not one that I will hold against him. Pre season Baird was great, and despite Shackell being the fans favourite option he arrived pretty late into the squad to be seriously considered. 

I don't think Baird is anywhere near as bad as people are saying but I don't see him as an obvious starter with a full strength team with Thorne fit and Christie returning to form. 

Thankfully the team is littered with players that have captained other teams so maybe not a big deal. I get the feeling that we maybe looking at a Baird club captain situation like Barker was and Martin on the pitch. 

How much it all matters anyway I don't know, one for the players to answer, I'd be surprised if Baird wasn't popular behind the scenes and at an age, just a day older than me would be fairly intelligent again like me enough to not rock the boat with not playing.

I see Baird playing when we need to be a bit more defensive minded ie, playing Boro/ Hull  away from home, but only

in place of Christie at RB - although now he's back on form Im not sure about that anymore!

 

[Bris Vegas]

Not really a fair comparison is it, Weimann has played 308 minutes of football which is almost 3 and half games, Bent even less at 131 minutes.

Phil Brown was in charge of the lineup, formation, tactics, substitutions for the entire games. 

*Stats are taken from http://www.transfermarkt.co.uk, if they differ from the OPTA stats you have I will stand corrected.

Why isn't it a fair comparison? There is a reason why Weimann hasn't featured much.

I'd think it would be unfair to call him a poor player - after all he's largely playing out of a position in a system which doesn't suit him. But I haven't said that, I said he's a poor buy.

No different to calling for Phil Brown's head after ten games, or calling Claude Davis a donkey after a handful of games.

Good players can be poor buys.

And for those that say scouts need years and years to judge a player... They don't. We all knew Wayne Rooney was destined to be an elite player after one match.

SAF bought Ronaldo off the back of one game too.

 

 

[Guest]

Pretty sure it was you also telling us Bris, after a few more than 10 games, that there was hundreds of players better than Hughes plying their trade in Spain.

Not that I'm saying you are wrong, but based upon your past posts, I'm going to agree with the posters that are willing to give it more than 10 games.

[RamNut]

Perhaps we wasted the first few games by excessive tinkering - trying to prove to the powers that be that we knew what a diamond was etc.

we've learned that if you take shotton, albentosa, and grant out and put carson and shackell in - that this seems to solve the defensive frailties.

we seem to have rediscovered the value of width and overlapping full backs.

we've learnt that a chequebook can sort out the gaps and cracks. 

In the end the answers seemed to lie in selection and personel rather than tactics and tinkering.

We haven't learnt much about PC. He seems quite serious, stern and headmasterish.

Bringing Kevin Phillips in seems like a necessary correction to engage with and maybe motivate the players. 

I don't yet understand the choice of Baird as captain or the liking for Shotton.

On the other hand shackell is a rock, keogh is remotivated, johnson looks good and i personally like the look of butterfield too. 

[Mostyn6]

We're 10 games in with a new head coach, new to the job, new ideas, still finding out his best team whilst suffering huge injuries in the process. Writing any player off as a bad signing after 10 games is just ridiculous, really it is. I'll wait until the end of the season.

remind me of your opinion on Leon Best...

[Day]

remind me of your opinion on Leon Best...

Nice teeth, slight body odour problem, was crocked, never recovered fully but no doubt his mum loves him 

[Mostyn6]

I've learnt that fans are very easily pleased and can delude themselves very easily.

Carson's goalkeeping has made both Keogh and Shackell look better than their performances have actually been.

Keogh has improved but is still prone to 3 daft errors a game.

[Day]

remind me of your opinion on Leon Best...

By the way....my thoughts on Best the other day came after he left the club, his time was up, finished, done and dusted, no more, bye bye Pedro. 

If Weimann left in January without making any further contribution I would agree he was a poor signing. Not 2 months into a 4 year contract, that is ridiculous.

[Derbados]

I learned that people actually 100% wanted clement sacked 4 games in to the season. .  . 4 games!!  

the same said people were the ones jumping for joy on Saturday and now saying how good we are, and how we will piss the league. . . until we lose again of course. . . 

[TheDeadlySaul]

I've learnt that fans are very easily pleased and can delude themselves very easily.

Carson's goalkeeping has made both Keogh and Shackell look better than their performances have actually been.

Keogh has improved but is still prone to 3 daft errors a game.

I can't remember any errors that Keogh has done and other than the MK Dons game Carson really hasn't been called into action that much.

[RamNut]

I don't remember anyone calling for Clement to be sacked

[cloughandtaylor]

What have we learned?

Spending millions and bringing in an assit coach from Real Madrid - doesn't mean we'll walk the league.

Spending the amount we did on Johnson and Ince, shows if you want quality, it costs - and worth every penny!

We have tightened up that defence so much!

That we now have the best midfield in the division in Thorn, Johnson, Butters and Hughes

With Ince, Martin, Russell and Bent shows we do have real quality up front.

So what have we learned?..... That we are heading in the right direction.......

[RamLad1884]

What have we learned?

Spending millions and bringing in an assit coach from Real Madrid - doesn't mean we'll walk the league.

Spending the amount we did on Johnson and Ince, shows if you want quality, it costs - and worth every penny!

We have tightened up that defence so much!

That we now have the best midfield in the division in Thorn, Johnson, Butters and Hughes and Hendrick (sorry but he's been a real asset to this team and he's showed a 4m player doesn't necessarily automatically get picked ahead of him)

With Ince, Martin, Russell and Bent shows we do have real quality up front.

So what have we learned?..... That we are heading in the right direction.......

[Mansfield Rammie]

Learned that £20 million pounds gets you to 7th after 10 games. Not good enough. Should score more than 2 past a poor Brentford team if we're all honest. Our team against any premier league team would get punished. We would be hit on counter attack all the time. 

On a positive note, I learned that we might actually get the play offs, but winning them is a different story 

[TheDeadlySaul]

Learned that £20 million pounds gets you to 7th after 10 games. Not good enough. Should score more than 2 past a poor Brentford team if we're all honest. Our team against any premier league team would get punished. We would be hit on counter attack all the time. 

On a positive note, I learned that we might actually get the play offs, but winning them is a different story 

We should just expect teams to roll over and beat everyone 9-0 and we should just look at positions and not that we are 3 points off second and 1 point off third.