v Stoke City (H) - Matchday Thread

[Ramos]

A lot of positives I felt today - but we have to start scoring goals and winning games. We need at least one win out the next two or the last 5 games unbeaten will have been for nothing really. 

[Ram-Alf]

Another day and that may have been 3 points, Stoke don't concede too many away from home...9 clean sheets, A little disappointed not to win, But certainly not dejected, Stoke are no mugs, We all know the issue, January is a very important month for us.

[NottsRam77]

10 minutes ago, Carl Sagan said:

Glad Jordon Ibe got on for a couple of minutes but way too late. Give someone 20 minutes plus to change the game. Again we can't score for love nor money yet leave our natural born goalscorer Jack Stretton on the bench.

We need to score goals so we need to play goalscorers.

U mean the kid that missed that free hit from 6 yards out the other day ?

no knocking him ... but natural born finisher ?? Not sure about that so early in his career with nothing at first team level to suggest he is 

For comparison , whitiker who looks the bomb in the u23 as we all know got hauled off today from being subbed on ... 

let’s just remember what a big step up it is from u23 football before we start heaping our hopes on another unproven kid 

not having a pop just think it’s reaching for the stars a bit 

[Dava75]

15 minutes ago, Andicis said:

How you manage players at this stage of their career is important, the most important time for them. More important than a singular match. It's poor management.

Agree with the first part of your post. So if Rooney talks to Morgan after the game and explains to him the reason for taking him off then no big deal. Good management. 

He added nothing to our attacking threat and gave the ball away cheaply in our own half a few times. I was crying out for him to be taken off and glad he was.

I think Rooney’s mistake was putting him on instead of Waghorn in the first place. I have nothing against MW it’s just today wasn’t his day and we needed to change it. 

 

[Millenniumram]

1 minute ago, brady1993 said:

Thing I bet diamonds we react to this by going more defensive against Swansea rather than experimenting with getting more attacking players on the pitch at a given time.

I fear the same. Will probably be Shinnie back in for Bird, and Holmes in for Lawrence.

[Mucker1884]

7 minutes ago, ramit said:

Think i may be losing touch with reality

Predicted a 4-1 win for us

Ridiculous!
At least my 3-1 prediction was full of realism, and void of bias!

[Gritstone Ram]

First half we should have put the game out of sight. Second half too much poor decision making poor touches poor balls and poor general play. It got really scrappy at the end. I think Bielik is the key. Good to see Ibe on the pitch. 

[jono]

5 minutes ago, ramsbottom said:

Frustrating watch last 15 minutes, too many changes, disrupting the flow a bit. Had the beating of them today, shows you how average the league is. 
 
Thought Bielik, and Juzwiak were good in fits & starts. Knight MOM for me, never stopped running and trying to push us forward, need a couple more of his ilk. Not sure what was up with Whittaker, but Rooney’s shot himself in the foot now, as he’s probably just crushed what little confidence the lad had. With Waghorn, Ibe & Sibley available to replace Lawrence he never should’ve been put on in the first place. 
 

But hey, it’s another point. Just gotta find a few goals between now and the new year

But you have to admire him making what must have been a hard decision. It was doing something and when it didn’t work, admitting your mistake, taking action to correct it.

it’s really tough on Morgan but he needs to learn from it. The team is bigger than a player or the manager. 

[Leicester Ram]

That’s a stinker of a result.

Stoke are sitting ducks and we can barely muster a shot on goal. If CKR’s chance goes in, it’s a different game but I’m a bit 4-2-3-1’d out. It’s starting to look negative.

Rooney so far has succeeded at sorting out the defence, who look twice as solid as when Cocu was sacked but his next job is restarting our attack. Knight doesn’t see enough of the game at 10, our all action midfielder is wasted running around like a headless chicken while the ball ends up nowhere near him. Thought Bird coming in for Shinnie might change it but no such luck.

Would like to see more attacking emphasis, there’s potential in this team and you feel they just need one game to open the floodgates. Too many touches, not enough decisive attacking play and a clear lack of confidence. Hoping Sibley gets more game time as the season goes on.

While ultimately I’d snap your hand off if you offered me safety right now, we should be aiming to be clear of the relegation zone sooner rather than later and start making something of this season, even though it will never be a playoff push. There are players to develop and a team to build.

[Ramarena]

A point is always welcome but it's deffo 3 dropped. 

Started off too negatively in midfield, didn't need Bird in there with Beilik against a team that were always going to sit back and defend. Should play the 4-3-3 in games like today where we need extra bodies breaking through the lines. 

Some decent build up play but no real threat/cutting edge as usual due to insisting on playing two deep lying midfielders when we don't really need them.

So an o.k result and performance but could have been more!

[Chellaston Ram]

I can’t believe Stoke are 8th they were very average it’s so annoying we still aren’t hitting form.

[Andicis]

Just now, Dava75 said:

Agree with the first part of your post. So if Rooney talks to Morgan after the game and explains to him the reason for taking him off then no big deal. Good management. 

He added nothing to our attacking threat and gave the ball away cheaply in our own half a few times. I was crying out for him to be taken off and glad he was.

I think Rooney’s mistake was putting him on instead of Waghorn in the first place. I have nothing against MW it’s just today wasn’t his day and we needed to change it. 

 

Pretty sure it's still going to knock his confidence even if Rooney talks to him. What player of ours did offer attacking threat? Maybe if some of the players around him got into more space it'd actually aid attacking play and link up? 

[Chris_Martin]

2 minutes ago, TexasRam said:

We so so desperately need a goalscorer, if we don’t in Jan we are down. Played well today just need those goals 

honestly don't think a goalscorer will change that much as we just aren't creating enough. We desperately need creativity. 

I look back at Lampards season and he played Dave Nugent up front for the first 6 months of the season. We didn't struggle scoring goals because we had the creativity. 

Don't think the 4-2-3-1 helps as it's quite defensive but on the other hand it's important we don't lose anymore games. 

[Chris_Martin]

5 minutes ago, ariotofmyown said:

Eventually perhaps. Will take him some time I think.

maybe. but how long can we afford to wait?

[Tamworthram]

4 minutes ago, GenBr said:

Don't want to be accused of being a wrist slasher, but thought we were poor again today. We're harder to beat now, but that's to be expected when you start with 4 defenders, 2 defensive mids and Jason Knight as the number 10. We're toothless up front and that isnt going to change as long as we continue like this.

Also don't agree with taking Whittaker off. Didnt think he should have come on in the first half, but taking him off like that is going to destroy his confidence.

We're not going to stay up drawing 0-0 every game.

I don't think we were poor. Good in places, average a lot of the time and didn't create enough in the final third. But no poor IMO.

[Duracell]

It’s never easy to rebuild or reorganise, but it’s still easier to make a defence more solid than it is to reverse a side’s fortunes in front of goal.

I’m not sure we can fix this with the players we have.

[ollycutts1982]

Disappointed only to come away with a point. Poor substitution bringing Whittaker on. Both our wide players had looked threatening then just lost that threat down one wing. Had to be Waghorn or Ibe for me. 

[Grumpy Git]

2 minutes ago, Chris_Martin said:

honestly don't think a goalscorer will change that much as we just aren't creating enough. We desperately need creativity. 

I look back at Lampards season and he played Dave Nugent up front for the first 6 months of the season. We didn't struggle scoring goals because we had the creativity. 

Don't think the 4-2-3-1 helps as it's quite defensive but on the other hand it's important we don't lose anymore games. 

But we had Mason Mount as an attacking MF

[brady1993]

19 minutes ago, Mucker1884 said:

Rooney has been given one job to do... and it ain't child minding.

No, it ain't all gonna run smooth, and some of his staff may occasionally feel hard done by, but if he doesn't get the results, he don't keep his own job!

#livebythesword...

It'd be bad if it was a senior player never mind an academy, in fact I doubt it would have happened to a senior player. 

He needs results but 1) it didn't change the result today and 2) right now the way to get results heading the wrong direction is building confidence in the squad, dragging off an academy player after 20 mins is basically saying "1 mistake and you're off " it gets players playing with fear and is completely the wrong thing to do.

[AndyinLiverpool]

4 minutes ago, Dava75 said:

Agree with the first part of your post. So if Rooney talks to Morgan after the game and explains to him the reason for taking him off then no big deal. Good management. 

He added nothing to our attacking threat and gave the ball away cheaply in our own half a few times. I was crying out for him to be taken off and glad he was.

I think Rooney’s mistake was putting him on instead of Waghorn in the first place. I have nothing against MW it’s just today wasn’t his day and we needed to change it. 

 

I agree with this. It's as if Rooney had a plan to put Waghorn on in the second half and when Lawrence got injured early, he didn't want to deviate from his plan.