Ismael

[TipperaryBaggie]

Good point Matt especially as a few Barnsley supporters I have spoken to did mention that Val did lack a plan B sometimes when things were not working out. As you all say, it's early days but the signs are positive,

[SwedishBaggie]

Early yet, but looks promising.

IF we had a committed and interested owner, who was willing to invest in the future of the club, I’d be really positive…

FOL

[boingy]

Hopefully if we go up we sign better players to play this same style.

Pressing isn’t just about the physical effort, the higher the level the more game intelligence you need to play that system.

In a nutshell Mick.

[baggieal]

You can only comment on what you have seen so far - Val has been a f uckin revelation compared with previous managers! Entertaining - my way - communication - getting on with it!

Credit where it’s due - the guy deserves a medal for what he’s done so far!

PS - to be fair even Klopp or Pepe would lack a plan B with the Barnsley squad which were going no-where and had a distinct lack of quality!!!!!! How the f uck can a Barnsley fan say Val lacked a plan B when it was a miracle he got them in the play offs with that squad!!!

[BaggieSingh]

Too early to judge
I like his personality, he did incredible stuff at Barnsley, and seems a cracking type of person you’d want as your manager
We still look shaky at the back, I’m not convinced we can manage games well and dictate
We have been a little lucky, which all good teams are

Good start but it’s a marathon not a sprint

[renno]

Don’t forget he got us in 5th and came in after 7 games, no wins or preaseason under the belt. We didn’t spend any money. He doesn’t seem the sort that would demand a big budget and would work within the constraints given - as he did with us. This could be the reason why he was a popular choice with your board.

[Acido]

.. How the f uck can a Barnsley fan say Val lacked a plan B when it was a miracle he got them in the play offs with that squad!!!

As daft as it sounds Al, most of the time we didn't need a plan B because as we played and beat each team, they didn't know which way to turn and what to do against us.
But there were some games towards the end of the season where it became more of a struggle as teams started to find us out, and he was as stubborn as hell when something needed doing about it.
The Swansea Play off games are the big example here, he tried changing it in the 2nd leg away to them, when we had them on the back foot at the time and it was a case of too little far too late. And that as it turned out was his and Mowatt's last game with us!.

[baggieal]

As daft as it sounds Al, most of the time we didn't need a plan B because as we played and beat each team, they didn't know which way to turn and what to do against us.
But there were some games towards the end of the season where it became more of a struggle as teams started to find us out, and he was as stubborn as hell when something needed doing about it.
The Swansea Play off games are the big example here, he tried changing it in the 2nd leg away to them, when we had them on the back foot at the time and it was a case of too little far too late. And that as it turned out was his and Mowatt's last game with us!.

Get your point Acido but expectation will have gone through the roof too! Because of what Val achieved many appear now to be talking about promotion as opposed to avoiding the drop! Teams will work out the strategy but they would find it difficult still to overcome if players had quality which should shine through. There will be times when a ball over the top or a breakaway will work against the high press!

Plan B should not be difficult if like for like players on the bench are rotated. Diangana for example was on the bench today but when he came on - he looked electric and had more energy than some who started.

What Val did for Barnsley last year Acido was a miracle when you think where that team was when he took over.

[Acido]

.. What Val did for Barnsley last year Acido was a miracle when you think where that team was when he took over.

We had an amazing relegation escape act the previous season, and we helped a certain other team clinch the runners-up place lol. This meant we had no right to be thinking about a top half finish even, let alone a Play off place for season 20-21.
Val was brought in after about 6 or 7 games, and he had a tough job on his hands just keeping us up, or so we thought.
I/we really liked the no nonsense approach and it became clear he would be getting rid of some of the so called dead wood in the squad pretty quickly.
And as the season wore on you could clearly see a togetherness within the squad, they were enjoying playing and winning, and basically sticking the middle finger up at the so called elite clubs who had us down as nobodies etc. That's what Val does bring to a squad.

[9goals2hattricks3pen]

Too early to judge
I like his personality, he did incredible stuff at Barnsley, and seems a cracking type of person you’d want as your manager
We still look shaky at the back, I’m not convinced we can manage games well and dictate
We have been a little lucky, which all good teams are

Good start but it’s a marathon not a sprint

In what way BS do you think we have been 'a little lucky?'

IMO we have been clearly the better team in every game, hit the woodwork on numerous occasions, had 3 goals disallowed one of which should have counted and would probably have us sat on maximum points.