Len
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Everything posted by Len
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[quote user="iron_stan"][quote user="tenpenny"]Typical kick and rush rubbish from Norwich so far. We can''t pass or play with any fluency, hence we can''t punish teams.[/quote] what game have you been watching passing hasnt been bad at all, in fact the short game weve been playing in our own half is working very well, all round its been much much better, unfortunately bradley johnson wasnt strong enough to stop chris martin dumping him on his ar53 before creating the goal what we do need to do is bring on redmond, we are getting skinned alive by their wingers, our full backs cant keep up, we need to give them something to worry about going down the wings in the opposite directing[/quote]We''ve been worse this season, but we keep giving the ball away cheaply. As soon as we get into a tight corner it''s a speculative punt forward instead of passing our way out of trouble and Derby usually end up in possession. Ignore the trolls, I just want to see good quality football and if that winds people up then tough.
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A decent team would stop messing about and get the ball down and play. Right from kickoff after their goal we hoof the ball straight into no man''s land. We''ve been awful.
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Typical kick and rush rubbish from Norwich so far. We can''t pass or play with any fluency, hence we can''t punish teams.
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[quote user="tenpenny"]I think a repeat of the Wigan lineup is on the cards with Hoolahan, Murphy and Redmond on the bench. But this is probably the sort of game to play one up front and five in midfield.[/quote]The exact lineup minus Murphy on the bench.
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[quote user="Herman "]Sadly it wasn''t a myth, and I am/was a big fan of Chris.[/quote]It''s all an opinion at the end of the day. Martin at the time was more of a provider rather than an out and out goalscorer, and as such was never going to be appreciated in comparison to someone like Holt. That said most strikers would score more goals in the Championship, whether or not they were prolific in the top division. I would expect that Derby will go up this season automatically and Martin to be a success in the PL next season.
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[quote user="lake district canary"]Martin was given chances by Lambert in the prem. He simply wasn''t competitive enough at that stage at the highest level. He either didn''t have the belief or the maturity to know what to do to be effective. Lambert couldn''t get results out of him and stopped picking him. By the time Hughton arrived, we had moved on again and Martin was simply going backwards in his career. It was far from a poor decision to release Martin. He has matured away from home, got his confidence - and as you say a good manager - so it is all good........apart from if he scores tomorrow.........[/quote]He had Holt ahead of him that season and was only getting on as sub. During his actual game time in the prem under Lambert he actually played very well, his hold up play, layoffs and link up play were very neat. It would have been interesting to see what would have happened if Lambert had remained, but the idea that Martin didn''t play well, was ineffective or obviously sub prem standard is a myth.
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I think there has been a fair bit of revisionism regarding Chris Martin since he moved to Derby. That he apparently wasn''t hungry, settled or mature enough seems a tad speculative and based on events that happened a fair while before he left. Quoted goalscoring stats often don''t take into account a long spell out injured in our Championship promotion season or the fact that he rarely started in the PL. He took a short time to settle in at Derby after a spell in League One at Swindon and an uninspiring stint in a mediocre Palace side. It isn''t really the case that he took time to develop after leaving Norwich, rather he took time to find the right club and manager (McLaren took over as boss shortly after he signed permanently for Derby).Hughton often played Holt as a lone striker and either didn''t seem to think Martin would fit into his system or wasn''t ready for PL football. Once it was decided to bring more experienced strikers in such as Elmander and RVW there would be no room in the team for Martin. Becchio ended up taking Martin''s bit part role. Unlike Hughton, other managers like Clough, Di Canio and McLaren could see something promising in Martin''s game and were willing to give him a chance.I can''t help but think some people are trying to justify a poor decision to release Martin when they give somewhat spurious reasons for why letting him go was the right move at the time. It''s like the polar opposite of deciding that a poor player was in fact excellent the moment they have left the club. It would probably be safer to say that Hughton sucked big time in his decision making when it came to strikers.
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I don''t think the board will be in the mood for gambling if we have a poor christmas and lie far below the top two. They''ll try and flog off the unwanted players like Bassong and Becchio and maybe buy one (if the price is right) and get a loan in. Fail to go up and we could see top players start to leave for less than we want to sell them for, plus have a bigger rebuild in the summer.We go into the window desperately needing a midfielder (ideally two), having paid the price for failing to strengthen in the summer. I think we were caught off guard a bit by Surman leaving given that Pilks was probably expected to depart. We were hamstrung to an extent by Bassong not leaving.Selling a big name if we get offered silly money might give us a bit more headroom to get out of the hole we''re in and provide a headstart in the (likely) event that we fail to go up. It could also show the rest of the team that we mean business promotion or not. We might not need to sell, but it could be a useful option if it allows us to inject life into a poor midfield.
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We''d still have Bunn if Rudd got injured, plus a new third choice. We''d be in the same situation if Ruddy got injured but if we sold him we''d be a few £m in profit and better able to strengthen in future. We could do with a couple of midfielders and show a bit more ambition than would otherwise be the case. At the moment we''re unbalanced and I would think that''s more likely to put players off from staying than if we sold Ruddy.
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A poor set of Christmas results could force the club to look at strengthening for next season and beyond in the case of some of our older players who will eventually need replacing. If we were in pole position then the situation would be different regarding likely future income and hence future transfer budgets.Not needing to sell and having the parachute payments means we''re in a good bargaining position to take a profit in order to help us rebuild in the long run. January might be a good time to cash in with transfer fees often higher than in the summer because of clubs desperate to stay in the prem.If we took a profit on Ruddy we already possess two capable replacements and would only need to acquire a third choice, possibly someone on loan until the end of the season.
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[quote user="bus"]first thing Adams should do is cancel Hooivelds loan as we''ve got cuellar, turner, bennet, martin and miquel can''t even make the bench (if he really cost 1.5 mill that''s not great business). Seems like we''re over stocked in central positions but short on wide options. Ofoe still to come back too, hopefully he''s decent. We should get a good right back and a left winger. Loan out mcgrandles, loza and some other young guys.[/quote]The fact that we brought in too many central defenders is a glaring error which brings into question the role of the football board for allowing this situation to arise. We''re arguably at least two short in midfield and could have done with at least one more to cover for injuries instead of an extra centre back. Indeed another midfielder would have come in handy during our sticky patch when Ofoe was out. Come the end of the season this tactical blunder might cost us a place in the playoffs.
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I thought the team looked desperately poor, unable to do the basics such as keeping possession or constructing basic passing manoeuvres. I''m not sure how long the non-senior players have been at the club but I''d imagine most have been here for quite a while and hence become used to the low quality style that unfortunately now pervades the club. Last night showcased a side which lacked technique, lacked the ability to play as a team and all too frequently resorted to long balls when in any kind of tight corner.There wasn''t any evidence of there being a footballing ethos like you''d find running through all levels of a club like Ajax, so it appears that the young players aren''t being taught basic technical skills at a young age. In my opinion producing a young generation of generic kick and rush merchants isn''t really a productive use of our academy.
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None of our strikers were really suited to the long ball game we''ve played this season and until we get the midfield sorted we''ll probably remain inconsistent up front.
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I think a repeat of the Wigan lineup is on the cards with Hoolahan, Murphy and Redmond on the bench. But this is probably the sort of game to play one up front and five in midfield.
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[quote user="City1st"]The automatics are highly unlikely so we ought to look to build for next season like Derby and Bournemouth did last season absolute twaddle on stilts !In 2101/11 we were 4 points off an automatic place, we are currently 6 points offThere is NO evidence that B''mouth or Derby were looking to rebuild before the season was even at the halfway stage !How on earth can you tell players that there is no need to worry about winning or picking up points because we are not interested in getting promoted ! So fark your win/promotion/playoff bonuses.Or even the fans come to that.I could comment on how fans accuse the board of having no ''hambition'', but in this case it is a matter of having NO grasp on reality We play to win...week in week outThat''s what the players are paid for and that''s why fans pay for tickets[/quote]What''s more likely?a) Not finishing in the top two.b) Finishing top with 100 points and 100 goals.
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[quote user="ricardo"][quote user="tenpenny"]The automatics are highly unlikely so we ought to look to build for next season like Derby and Bournemouth did last season and look to offload a couple if we get offered silly money by a desperate PL side.[/quote]We have the same number of points after 21 games as in our promotion year but with a plus 7 better goal difference.We were 8 points adrift of top spot then but only 6 now.39 points after 21 games is the lowest ever leading total after 21 games in Championship history.A little over 80 points will be enough for an auto spot this year.[/quote]There are lots of differences between our last Championship season. Back then we had a manager with experience and a team playing well with a winning mentality that had won League One the previous season. This season we had a rookie take over a relagated team playing badly with a losing mentality. In 2010-11 we built up and got better without having the terrible wobble that Adams has experienced.The top end of the league looks set to continue the trend whereby there''s more competition for playoff places than was the case in 2010-11. Although a slightly arbitrary measure, look at the number of teams within 7 points of 6th place from back then until last season - 2, 2, 7, 5. Things currently look set to be very close as with the past two seasons. Any slip-ups or bad runs and we could have our work cut out finishing in the playoff places due to the increased competition.There are perhaps four teams who lie ahead of us: Derby, Bournemouth, Watford and Middlesborough. In 2010-11 we had three: Cardiff, QPR and Swansea and did unbelievably well to finish above the two Welsh sides, especially Swansea who were a superior footballing outfit. This season we''re up against two or three better footballing sides who''ve had time to build and I just don''t think we have enough quality to overhaul them.Today''s similarlity in the raw stats with 2010-11 might not be indicative of where we''ll finish as things are much changed from back then. The quality of the football, the mentality of the team and the competition from the teams around us look indicative of us missing out on the automatic spots imho.
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[quote user="Festive Canary"]Yesterday was about how bad Huddersfield were rather than some miraculous transformation of our form. Adams is hapless and nearing the half way point of the season and with our squad he is proving it week after week[/quote]The recent ''improvement'' has come about from negative Hughton-like tactics. It was a good win but there''s not yet evidence that Adams has produced anything to write home about in terms of quality. To some fans this would be irrelevent as long as we''re winning and near the top 6. -
It was never likely that we''d turn it round after the previous two seasons and suddenly start playing football, especially with a novice in the hotseat. The automatics are highly unlikely so we ought to look to build for next season like Derby and Bournemouth did last season and look to offload a couple if we get offered silly money by a desperate PL side.Sometimes you need to take profits and reinvest in order to move on, so I''d look to sell Ruddy if a large bid was made and give Rudd an opportunity to bed in for next season. We''re short of quality in midfield and ought to be looking at players whose contracts are up in the summer. There must be a few players at sides like Wigan who could be going relatively cheaply.This season we should have gone for it in terms of looking to play football but instead we''ve been split between that and playing ugly to get results. Hence we''re already behind where we ought to be in terms of rebuilding. If we had strengthened the midfield in the last window then we might have had a more realistic chance of pushing for the automatics and a better chance of going up through the playoffs.
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It''s going to take more than today''s win to reverse the damage the present owners have inflicted. We''ve got to be able to do more than scrap if we want to get promoted and unless Phelan produces a miracle we''ll keep sinking as better teams overtake us. But even if he delivers it must be remembered that the club has an alarming tendency to shoot itself in the foot when things appear to be going well.
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I wouldn''t get too excited just yet. We had some good results earlier in the season but rode our luck whilst playing poor quality football. Huddersfield caved in after getting a man sent off, we thumped them, but our football hasn''t substantially improved. Let''s see if we can play with more quality and avoid the traditional post new year slump before getting out the party poppers.
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I''m gutted for the wally who posted the 100 points, 100 goals thread. Good result today but I doubt we''ll reach that target or get promoted.
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Adams is finally getting the rub of the green. The crowd has been booing and we''ve been awful, but we''ve managed to score some goals at last.
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There are always a large number of fans who fall for this sort of pie in the sky hype. With the club''s board shooting themselves in the foot every five minutes I can''t see us being anything other than a mid table championship side.
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[quote user="splutcho"]It''d be the first step in accepting that we''re not leaving this league for a long time.[/quote]I think giving the manager''s job to our U18s coach would predate that by several months.
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Still no firm idea on what kind of style we''re supposed to be aiming for. If we had a plan and have ripped it up already in favour of a Hughtonesque game then it''s not a good sign. We may as well have kept Hughton in the job.