Do We Have One Decent Player?

[baggieal]

Was leaving it for you 🤣

No mate - I am realistic as Bruce is the best short term option that we were going to get! Not his fault he came in after the transfer window closed and not his fault the team are devoid of any quality!

The biggest problem is the midfield so can’t believe why it’s not clearly obvious!

[soulman101]

We have played 3 up front all season and 16 teams have scored more goals than us.
We have the joint best defence and all season Townsend and Furlong have had to do 2 jobs , because our 2 wide players are not up to the job.
We need to play 2 up front, Cleary is raw and young but feeding of Carol he will score goals.
Think once O'shea is up to speed he will revert back to 3 centre halves.
Blackburn played 3-4-1-2 much better balance than us

[BaggieBlood]

Our players are brilliant Al.

Val was stopping them from playing obviously and now they have been unleashed they are tearing it up.

I have said it before and say it again that this is the worst Squad we have had for 20 years.

Absolutely devoid of any skill and genuine pace.

It will be quite miracle if make the play offs.

Same old s hit over and over. Contracts keep on being given the liked of Livermore and Bartley like we are scared of life after they go as we are so useless in the transfer market.

We are now trying to play Reach as a playmaker.

FFS.

[baggiematt]

We have parts of a good squad. We're a bit like a car without a steering wheel and exhaust. We're crying out for a playmaker and a bit of speed.

This is my issue with Val, we can say the squads bad but a good manager should identify key positions to improve and use the money available to make the right improvements. He clearly had some wages free for half a dozen players and £8-9 million to spend (which he chose to use in Jan). We ended up with ball winners, defenders and a striker 6 months too late!

[SwedishBaggie]

Our players are brilliant Al.

Val was stopping them from playing obviously and now they have been unleashed they are tearing it up.

I have said it before and say it again that this is the worst Squad we have had for 20 years.

Absolutely devoid of any skill and genuine pace.

It will be quite miracle if make the play offs.

Same old s hit over and over. Contracts keep on being given the liked of Livermore and Bartley like we are scared of life after they go as we are so useless in the transfer market.

We are now trying to play Reach as a playmaker.

FFS.

Agreed mate, have been saying the same for a long time now.

Why do people ”from outside” see us as promotion contenders?

Well, I think they look at some/a few pretty famous names (in the context of this division), where some players have played before (clubs), where we played last season (PL), money spent on certain players, the money some players are on etc, etc.

But they forget that it is what the squad and players are like now, how they perform now etc that counts. Just to name a few players fitting the criteria mentioned above: Livermore, Grant, Zohore…

Reach as Pereira - laughable!

And maybe some players have a deplorable attitude, bad work ethics, bad infuence on moral, team spirit etc, I don’t know?

[Barrera]

Actually thought Clarke is playing decent. Ajayi also doing ok on his return from banishment. Thought he handled their star man Bremerton Diaz pretty well. Johnstone is doing ok. Problem is midfield - no creativity - but what to expect when you have Reach, Mowatt and Molumby in the engine room. Blackburn had a bunch of zippy creative midfielders who ran rings around our lot at times. Upfront we haven’t worked out how to use Carroll yet - but think this will happen as he spends more time with us. But the big miss is a creative midfielder - haven’t re-laced Pereira and too late to do so now for this season.

[Yarmbaggie]

We have parts of a good squad. We're a bit like a car without a steering wheel and exhaust. We're crying out for a playmaker and a bit of speed.

This is my issue with Val, we can say the squads bad but a good manager should identify key positions to improve and use the money available to make the right improvements. He clearly had some wages free for half a dozen players and £8-9 million to spend (which he chose to use in Jan). We ended up with ball winners, defenders and a striker 6 months too late!

Even if you are right I am not too sure what the Manager could do about it.

We will never know for sure, but I don’t think Dike would sign for us in January, and if he did would we have been prepared to pay more for 8m, because he would have cost more in the summer window.

The six players as you imply will have to be loan or free transfers. Hardly shopping in the quality markets! Yes he got 3 loanees in, Clarke, no complaints from me but definitely a Championship centre half no more. Molumby, record shows all starts at Millwall and Preston, not good enough for Brighton and so no surprise at his level. Hugill, we’ll just a joke. Panic buy at the last minute because we couldn’t get Dike.

As for the fees, Carroll, Again panic buy to cover Dike, Reach, not good enough for the Owls but always plays well against us and Mowatt, Vals enforcer! Couldn’t get any young up and coming players to come. No doubt the top clubs didn’t fancy them plying in Vals style, but could be other reasons.

Bryan, nearly forgot him but as with Dike we were very unlucky that he got injured immediately but to be honest not good enough for Sheff U so wasn’t expecting much from him either.

If you shop in the basement you ain’t going to be going forward as a club for very long and let’s be fair at the start of the season we were doing remarkably well to be in the top 2 until obviously lack of a plan B, along with a poor squad,saw us being found out.

[Leicesterbaggie]

I was very anti Ismael and rightly so as the football was dire. Having said this, in the two games under Bruce, I feel that there has been a definite improvement. We lost to Sheffield because of Livermore's indiscipline and last night because of our problems when we get into the opposition's penalty area. i appear to be more optomistic than many on here. Bruce has only been in charge for two games so let's give him a chance. No, we won't go up automatically, but we are only one win from a play-off place with 15 or 16 games to go. Surely not that difficult a task.

[Omegstrat6]

I was very anti Ismael and rightly so as the football was dire. Having said this, in the two games under Bruce, I feel that there has been a definite improvement. We lost to Sheffield because of Livermore's indiscipline and last night because of our problems when we get into the opposition's penalty area. i appear to be more optomistic than many on here. Bruce has only been in charge for two games so let's give him a chance. No, we won't go up automatically, but we are only one win from a play-off place with 15 or 16 games to go. Surely not that difficult a task.

At the risk of sounding optimistic I agree with much of that. Bruce clearly thinks we still have a chance of the play offs and whilst that is logically true so much depends on not just getting this lot to perform but on the results of other teams around us. Our biggest issue is clearly the lack of creativity in midfield but its too late now and we have to deal with what we have and think that Gardner Hickman needs to play as at least he brings some energy to the side. Hopefully O'Shea can replicate his earlier form once back to fitness as he can drive things too. Good to see Furlong have a better game last night but Robinson and Grant continue to underperform and underwhelm so surely time to at least try Cleary. Pity Dike out as I believe-missing that sitter aside- he at least can hit a barn door but maybe Carrol can improve his woeful goal ratio with better service.

Bruce may not be a long term option but there has been an improvement since he has taken over. We very clearly have an average Championship side squad over-all and a lack of quality particularly in midfield and in front of goal but too many of the players are also underperforming and if Bruce can rectify this we still have a (very) slim chance of play-offs. Even if we do go up it wont be enjoyable watching them being slaughtered most games but at least we stand a better chance of gaining a new owner if we can gain promotion and be rid of Lai . Time is running out but there are still enough games left to turn things around to make the play-offs - I want to believe still!

[Yarmbaggie]

I am far from negative that we can’t reach the play offs.

As I have said before I think this is the worst Championship I can remember. The money in football has lined the pockets of players and agents but in my opinion it hasn’t done much for the quality, except the top 3 in the PL.

Definitely if we can only get someone to increase their number of chances created and get some of the forwards to take the opportunities we are well capable of getting in the top 6, even with this squad because the opposition squads, outside of Fulham aren’t any better imo. Says a lot about the league when Fulham are so dominant.

What I am negative about is football full stop! That said I will still be going to a few games each season. Following the club through thick and thin, and getting frustrated when we can’t win games I think we should. However, you never win matches if you can’t score goals.