Match Thread - Oxford United (A) - Tuesday 22nd October 2024

[YorkshireRam]

10 hours ago, HecMacTod said:

He did. He said he feared that zenzo.. his signing...would get ', smashed up' by Vault. What a vote of confidence in the player. And if that was Oxfords master plan what was to stop them moving vaults back yo mark zendo. Fair point...and accepted ...about 'idiot,,' but I just happen to think our manager is tactically inept. I am of a declining generationb of fans fortunate and indeed privileged to watch the Clough side and do not accept that our current squad cannot play better football and still stay up. Unfortunately it's in my DNA 

A 'tactically inept' manager could not have got us promoted using only free transfers after coming out of administration.

We'll have to disagree about the playing better football and staying up bit. We haven't got the individual quality to compete with the better footballing teams. Just look at the millions spent by them compared to us...

[Eoghan1884]

11 hours ago, DiggerB said:

Luckily Rooney seems to be working his way close to a 1st team return. 90mins last night I think I read.

Yes, hopefully he can come into the side soon and get back up to speed.

[Eoghan1884]

I genuinely don’t think I’ve ever seen worse home fans in my life than oxfords last night. Really strange how quiet they were, makes their unbeaten home form even more impressive as it’s certainly nothing to do with the atmosphere. 

[JuanFloEvraTheCocu'sNesta]

43 minutes ago, YorkshireRam said:

A 'tactically inept' manager could not have got us promoted using only free transfers after coming out of administration.

We'll have to disagree about the playing better football and staying up bit. We haven't got the individual quality to compete with the better footballing teams. Just look at the millions spent by them compared to us...

I do slightly disagree with this. I think the consensus of the footballing world would be that Bristol City are a better footballing team than us, who have also spent millions (relative to us), and we played them off the park.

Our squad isn't some second rate collection of journeymen, it's a decent championship squad which the club has done a really good job of assembling with a limited budget.

I take the point with parachute payment clubs, they are orders of magnitude better off than us, but we should have nothing to really fear from two thirds of the teams in this division.

[DavesaRam]

1 hour ago, Magicman said:

Scarlett looks far better than Brown infact scores in each of his games this year whereas Brown offers no goal threat ( yet ) 

Because he is getting the chances.

[Magicman]

AS I said Brown has been given chances mostly as sub but scored zero and never looks like scoring IMO. 

[DavesaRam]

1 hour ago, Crewton said:

Then again, two mates of mine who watched on TV couldn't believe Warne substituted him, because he was our main threat. So I'm definitely getting mixed messages about him.

 

He was subbed because he was on a yellow and being provoked by crap decisions, and therefore likely to snap again and end up with a red. A wise move, I think. 

[Anag Ram]

Just now, DavesaRam said:

He was subbed because he was on a yellow and being provoked by crap decisions, and therefore likely to snap again and end up with a red. A wise move, I think. 

His booking followed a perfectly legitimate decision by the officials. He was just frustrated he had run the ball out of play under no pressure. 
I think PW and Co got concerned at that point and hooked him.

[Rich3478]

I do think we have to trust Warne on brown, if he’s as good as people on here think then surely he’d be playing or off the bench? What reason would he have not to play him?

Most likely is that brown had a good six months in the national league, training with us be a much higher level. Warne sees him every day.

i get you need chances to make a breakthrough, but also needs to be the right time. If comes too early and struggles badly could be the end of him at derby.

[Anag Ram]

16 minutes ago, Rich3478 said:

I do think we have to trust Warne on brown, if he’s as good as people on here think then surely he’d be playing or off the bench? What reason would he have not to play him?

Most likely is that brown had a good six months in the national league, training with us be a much higher level. Warne sees him every day.

i get you need chances to make a breakthrough, but also needs to be the right time. If comes too early and struggles badly could be the end of him at derby.

I think sometimes it’s good to allow young players to watch the senior team to teach them what’s expected of them when they get on the field.

 I always felt Brown looked a bit overwhelmed when he came onto the pitch, like a schoolboy who’d won a competition.

Centre forwards need to be aggressive, by which I mean their very presence should be a threat to defenders. 

Dajaune for me needs to demand the ball and take defenders where they least expect to go. He can learn that by watching Yates.

Collins always comes onto the field like a Labrador who’s just been released from the back of an estate car. He knows he wants a sheet but not where, so just races up and down for a bit.

I’m not sure how he really fits our style of play.

 

['Rambe33]

1 hour ago, YorkshireRam said:

A 'tactically inept' manager could not have got us promoted using only free transfers after coming out of administration.

We'll have to disagree about the playing better football and staying up bit. We haven't got the individual quality to compete with the better footballing teams. Just look at the millions spent by them compared to us...

I've had this debate for some time regarding the football on show. I really don't think the style of play is really that bad compared to other manager's teams or am I mad? 

Cocu's tenure was some of the most boring displays I've ever seen as a fan and I'd take our approach now over that sideways/backwards passing continuum any day. Clough Jr as well particularly away from home was always a tough visual - while many will say its similar to now, we carry a much better goal threat now than we did then. 

What I really like about our side at the moment when it is going well is the high intensity, willingness to attack at speed and directness of our play. By directness I don't mean aimless long balls. For example, when Cashin gets those diagonal balls right we can switch so quickly it kills teams. Liverpool particularly under Klopp did this for years either via Van Dijk or Trent yet never get tainted for the style of play. 

What I do gripe at and think most fans share this is the seemingly lack of care in possession once we do turnover the ball. Decision making is also the key thing that needs improving but I think that goes hand in hand with the quality of player- the better they are the fewer mistakes and better decisions they make. E.g. Ebou Adams - for all his qualities he does make rash judgments at times like his shooting last night but he is also a ball-winning midfielder not a 20 goal a year striker. 

I do think we still don't know the potential this team can achieve in terms of the league and final target position. The fact we are more than competing and leaving games thinking we should have got more shows there is still more we can get from this lot. 

They mentioned on the Radio grading the current performance at this point. To be sitting mid-table based on the budget of what we spent to put this squad together we'd surely all have taken that? B minus I'd give for the record. 

I think we are genuinely unluck not to be 6 points better off and perspective would be very different. 

Win Saturday and this will be a decent return from 2 aways and 1 home fixture. 

[Wignall12]

14 minutes ago, Anag Ram said:

 

Collins always comes onto the field like a Labrador who’s just been released from the back of an estate car. He knows he wants a sheet but not where, so just races up and down for a bit.

😂😂

[MadAmster]

Lackustre first half. Why didn't PW get the message to them in the opening 45 that they needed to up the pace, put some urgency into it? Why wait till half time to gee them up?

Better 2nd half, which wasn't a difficult thing to achieve. By the end, we'd had more shots, more shots on target but a draw, roughly, was the right outcome for both sides, I can't, however, help thinking that "een beetje peper in hun reet" in the first half would have seen us win 3 points rather than the feeling I now have that we lost 2.

NML may have had an excuse having been away, 2 games for Guatemala and the long flights involved but he looked sluggish. Couldn't go with his man so gave up the ghost and pointed at Kenzo to go get him. Before he could get there, the cross came in and it was well put away to give the U's the lead. I would rest NML for the Hull game. Allow him the time to properly recover from his Guatemaling.

[Crewton]

2 hours ago, BaianoPOTY98 said:

For a big fella he goes down way too easily

If he'd worn an Oxford shirt, the ref would have treated him like a favourite son, by all accounts, but I take your point.

[jono]

3 hours ago, DavesaRam said:

That’s my point - Scarlett is being given a chance, Brown isn’t.

I’m all for it too, but I think last night was the wrong arena given the balance of play. 

[jono]

1 hour ago, 'Rambe33 said:

I've had this debate for some time regarding the football on show. I really don't think the style of play is really that bad compared to other manager's teams or am I mad? 

Cocu's tenure was some of the most boring displays I've ever seen as a fan and I'd take our approach now over that sideways/backwards passing continuum any day. Clough Jr as well particularly away from home was always a tough visual - while many will say its similar to now, we carry a much better goal threat now than we did then. 

What I really like about our side at the moment when it is going well is the high intensity, willingness to attack at speed and directness of our play. By directness I don't mean aimless long balls. For example, when Cashin gets those diagonal balls right we can switch so quickly it kills teams. Liverpool particularly under Klopp did this for years either via Van Dijk or Trent yet never get tainted for the style of play. 

What I do gripe at and think most fans share this is the seemingly lack of care in possession once we do turnover the ball. Decision making is also the key thing that needs improving but I think that goes hand in hand with the quality of player- the better they are the fewer mistakes and better decisions they make. E.g. Ebou Adams - for all his qualities he does make rash judgments at times like his shooting last night but he is also a ball-winning midfielder not a 20 goal a year striker. 

I do think we still don't know the potential this team can achieve in terms of the league and final target position. The fact we are more than competing and leaving games thinking we should have got more shows there is still more we can get from this lot. 

They mentioned on the Radio grading the current performance at this point. To be sitting mid-table based on the budget of what we spent to put this squad together we'd surely all have taken that? B minus I'd give for the record. 

I think we are genuinely unluck not to be 6 points better off and perspective would be very different. 

Win Saturday and this will be a decent return from 2 aways and 1 home fixture. 

Great post, it’s how I feel too. The seeming lack of care in possession is curious. Is it that we are trying things a bit more so the error quotient is rising, or is it carlessness, or lack of skill, or the quality of the opposition ? It’s there though, and it needs sorting.
 

One thing I am sure about (although only from seeing home games) is that this team is developing. What we get on Saturday will not be the same entity that we got on the opening day. They are learning and I am enjoying the journey.

Edited 1 hour ago by jono

[Anag Ram]

4 minutes ago, jono said:

Great post, it’s how I feel too. The seeming lack of care in possession is curious. Is it that we are trying things a bit more so the error quotient is rising, or is it carlessness, or lack of skill, or the quality of the opposition ? It’s there though, and it needs sorting.
 

One thing I am sure about (although only from seeing home games) is that this team is developing. What we get on Saturday will not be the same entity that we got on the opening day. They are learning and I am enjoying the journey.

Bizarrely, I think we are better when we try instinctive first time flicks and passes than when we have time to think about it.

When we pick up the tempo, things seem to improve.

Drives me mad when we break the line then hold onto the ball for too long and get robbed. Once you’ve got past your man it should be first priority to make a safe pass and keep going forward as an option to get it back.

 I think at times we struggle to run and think at the same time.

At home, things seem to get a little easier.

Not as easy as for us perfect players from the comfort of our seats though 😋

[May Contain Nuts]

It's not really much of a flex to point out that our tactical aim against a team who hadn't won in 5 games was to use a defensive player in an attacking role to nullify their deepest midfielder, when doing so meant we fluffed so many possible attacks of our own. Pointing out what the manager knows his players strengths and weaknesses after a performance where all of Adams' & Goudmijn's weaknesses were on show and neither was able to properly utilise their strengths!

Don't get me wrong I think there was some value in it as an idea, just that ultimately it didn't actually help us in this game because we focused more on what Oxford could do than what we could do.

2 hours ago, Rich3478 said:

I do think we have to trust Warne on brown, if he’s as good as people on here think then surely he’d be playing or off the bench? What reason would he have not to play him?

Most likely is that brown had a good six months in the national league, training with us be a much higher level. Warne sees him every day.

i get you need chances to make a breakthrough, but also needs to be the right time. If comes too early and struggles badly could be the end of him at derby.

You've asked and answered your own question. He won't be given minutes until there's absolutely zero chance he'll be able to have any sort of negative impact on the match, unless the result is already beyond doubt. (and even then, sometimes he hasn't been used)

You can frame is as protecting the player and waiting for the right time, but is there ever a right time? Sticking him on there in a dead game where we've stopped creating chances with the rest of the team coasting is just as damaging as a bad experience because it's telling the player you don't trust him.

If the mentality is to not play young players in case they do something bad rather than to play them in the hope they do something good then you're you're going to stall the development of a lot of young players.

Edited 1 hour ago by May Contain Nuts

[Rich3478]

5 minutes ago, May Contain Nuts said:

It's not really much of a flex to point out that our tactical aim against a team who hadn't won in 5 games was to use a defensive player in an attacking role to nullify their deepest midfielder, when doing so meant we fluffed so many possible attacks of our own. Pointing out what the manager knows his players strengths and weaknesses after a performance where all of Adams' & Goudmijn's weaknesses were on show and neither was able to properly utilise their strengths!

 

You've asked and answered your own question. He won't be given minutes until there's absolutely zero chance he'll be able to have any sort of negative impact on the match, unless the result is already beyond doubt. (and even then, sometimes he hasn't been used)

You can frame is as protecting the player and waiting for the right time, but is there ever a right time? Sticking him on there in a dead game where we've stopped creating chances with the rest of the team coasting is just as damaging as a bad experience because it's telling the player you don't trust him.

If the mentality is to not play young players in case they do something bad rather than to play them in the hope they do something good then you're you're going to stall the development of a lot of young players.

I think there’s a lot of assumptions there, maybe he just thinks is little chance of him positively influencing the match compared to the other options available.

[Ghost of Clough]

29 minutes ago, Rich3478 said:

I think there’s a lot of assumptions there, maybe he just thinks is little chance of him positively influencing the match compared to the other options available.

And Collins' positive influences so far this season are?

He's pretty much in the side to win a tackle or two and clear from our own box. He's yet to have a shot on target (in any competition), has provided a key pass for a teammate (only 1 in the cup), and has an aerial win rate of just 29.8%

In the only real game time he's had this season (the cup), Brown has equalled Collins' defensive contributions, but hasn't been part of the 'defending our own box team' to make any clearances. Brown's actually hit the target with a shot, provided a key pass (and an assist), and has won 75.7% of his aerial duels.

 

4 appearances this season, and his only start was 10 weeks ago. Only 1 appearance (6 mins) since the transfer window shut!