Opposition fans back from the game

[Snowflake Royal]

Rotherham had the same problem a lot of teams had, and will probably continue to have, against us.

We let them play nice looking football in the middle of the pitch whilst giving them absolutely nothing in our final third and being utterly ruthless in theirs when we got there.

Might cause us problems against the really good attacking teams, or mean some draws with the really strong defensive ones, but a fair few middling teams are going to come away wondering how they played well and lost.

[Zip]

Rotherham had the same problem a lot of teams had, and will probably continue to have, against us.

We let them play nice looking football in the middle of the pitch whilst giving them absolutely nothing in our final third and being utterly ruthless in theirs when we got there.

Might cause us problems against the really good attacking teams, or mean some draws with the really strong defensive ones, but a fair few middling teams are going to come away wondering how they played well and lost.

It will be interesting to see how we react when the opposition score first.

[Snowflake Royal]

Rotherham had the same problem a lot of teams had, and will probably continue to have, against us.

We let them play nice looking football in the middle of the pitch whilst giving them absolutely nothing in our final third and being utterly ruthless in theirs when we got there.

Might cause us problems against the really good attacking teams, or mean some draws with the really strong defensive ones, but a fair few middling teams are going to come away wondering how they played well and lost.

It will be interesting to see how we react when the opposition score first.

Obviously some quite different circumstances, but Colchester scored first, as did Luton, not that Luton was in anyway the first team.

I wouldn't worry about conceding 1 first. Game plan doesn't really change. At 1-0 down, keeping it tight and waiting for quality to tell will still pick up a fair few draws and some wins. You're never out of the game at one. Two and we absolutely have to change. Mind you, you'll lose most the you're 2 down no matter what you do.

[Stranded]

Rotherham had the same problem a lot of teams had, and will probably continue to have, against us.

We let them play nice looking football in the middle of the pitch whilst giving them absolutely nothing in our final third and being utterly ruthless in theirs when we got there.

Might cause us problems against the really good attacking teams, or mean some draws with the really strong defensive ones, but a fair few middling teams are going to come away wondering how they played well and lost.

It will be interesting to see how we react when the opposition score first.

The one thing about Paunovic I really like is he seems to have plans for most situations, I expect there is already a style embedded in training that the team can switch too quickly.

[From Despair To Where?]

He always talks about having flexibility to adapt to situations. His tactics definitely seem to revolve around containment in the first half then becoming more expansive in the second half as the opposition tire.

As others gave said, it will be interesting to see what we do when we concede early. I suspect it will be little tweaks and nothing fundamental will change.

[Zip]

Agree about the first half containment part. Let the opposition play a high press in the knowledge that they won’t be able to maintain it in the second half. We could have scored five or six after the break yesterday.

There is much more balance to this side. We know there are players in the team who are technically right up there with the best in this division, Ejaria, Olise, Swift and Joao. Esteves may well end up in that list too. However we have been defensively too weak through the middle of the pitch in recent seasons so haven’t benefited enough from their talents. Playing Rinomhota and Laurent together has worked a treat.

[Snowball]

Feel bad for them. Lots of comments saying that's the best football they've played for years.... and they still lost 3-0 to a Reading playing like crap and couldn't get into any kind of stride.

I for one was a believer in possession (as long as it was meaningful possession) but seeing sides with 60-70% possession lose so often now it is clear that either it never meant much or game-tactics have moved on.

Arsenal being man for man sometimes streets better and being parked on the edge of the opponent’s penalty-area for (it felt like) 90% of the game but losing 0-1 was a great example.

Packed defences these days seem much harder to break down.

I think there is a natural tendency to equate possession and passing movements with playing well, but, apart from the obvious metric of goals, there is shots on target and the QUALITY of those SoTs.

Meite’s fluffed chance v Wycombe and his first goal v Rotherham were near-certain goals, seriously good chances, the striker with a free shot or header and 5-10 yards out.

A very high percentage of our shots conceded have been long shots from just inside the box, or outside it. Two of our goals yesterday OUGHT to have been scored. Did Rotherham have such chances?

Even Rafael’s good save was to a shot from, what, 15 yards? Much higher chance of a miss or save. EDIT, the shot was from NINETEEN yards

(EDIT: Just remembered Moore’s clearance of a shot from 10-12 yards)

EDIT, watching it again, Rafael looks unperturbed. Was he flat-footed or did Moore say" I got this"?


Sometimes you see shots ten yards wide and ten yards high where every fan knows the goal isn’t threatened. We also see powderpuff “shots” or headers that are meat and veg for keepers, not really likely goals unless the keeper totally fluffs it.

The only time I felt we MIGHT concede was early on when their wingers got behind.

But the quality of the final pass wasn’t there. Because they were, overall, at best a top of the bottom third side and lacked quality.

Ultimately our quality showed when Ejaria for the second game on the trot gave Meite a free strike on goal.

How many free strikes on goal have we given opponents in seven games?

Our quality showed when Joao won a penalty. Defenders will panic when Joao has the ball in the box because they know his conversion rate in such situations this season is ridiculously high.

People say 3-0 flattered us. I’m not so sure. We worked two “cast-iron” chances and scored from them.

We also had two excellent “classy” shots tipped onto the bar by their keeper

And of course Meite’s worldly

So genuinely worth 2-0 and surely deserving of one more goal from those attempts by Esteves/Meite/Olise

Just look beyond bumbling round in midfield or Stan ball and ask how often we actually have looked like conceding?

Watford, maybe, but they as yet aren’t firing up front (and we have ATM the clear best defence in this league) AND the best GD

I GUESS, just about, only seven games in, we can still argue that the data set is too small, but the signs are very strong. Six clean sheets from seven games (and the goal conceded was scrambled in) is quite remarkable and our eyeballs tell us that Morrison, Moore have been outstanding, full backs very decent, Rhino-Laurent great at shoring up the middle.

If and when we are undone it may well be by top-end wing play combined with our strikers having an off day.

We are doing this without Swift and Yiadom, too, with a manager who is very new to the Championship

With McIntyre, Holmes and a highly-rated loanee as cover for CB, with Esteves likely to improve, Olise growing with age...

We will get beaten, maybe Tuesday night, but I find it hard to believe we won’t AT LEAST be challenging for top six.

What will matter is how we respond to our first bad defeat. If it’s not Ruesday, say game 37

[Snowball]

Ruesday

I like that

[Zip]

Feel bad for them. Lots of comments saying that's the best football they've played for years.... and they still lost 3-0 to a Reading playing like crap and couldn't get into any kind of stride.

I for one was a believer in possession (as long as it was meaningful possession) but seeing sides with 60-70% possession lose so often now it is clear that either it never meant much or game-tactics have moved on.

Arsenal being man for man sometimes streets better and being parked on the edge of the opponent’s penalty-area for (it felt like) 90% of the game but losing 0-1 was a great example.

Packed defences these days seem much harder to break down.

I think there is a natural tendency to equate possession and passing movements with playing well, but, apart from the obvious metric of goals, there is shots on target and the QUALITY of those SoTs.

Meite’s fluffed chance v Wycombe and his first goal v Rotherham were near-certain goals, seriously good chances, the striker with a free shot or header and 5-10 yards out.

A very high percentage of our shots conceded have been long shots from just inside the box, or outside it. Two of our goals yesterday OUGHT to have been scored. Did Rotherham have such chances?

Even Rafael’s good save was to a shot from, what, 15 yards? Much higher chance of a miss or save.

(EDIT: Just remembered Moore’s clearance of a shot from 10-12 yards)


Sometimes you see shots ten yards wide and ten yards high where every fan knows the goal isn’t threatened. We also see powderpuff “shots” or headers that are meat and veg for keepers, not really likely goals unless the keeper totally fluffs it.

The only time I felt we MIGHT concede was early on when their wingers got behind.

But the quality of the final pass wasn’t there. Because they were, overall, at best a top of the bottom third side and lacked quality.

Ultimately our quality showed when Ejaria for the second game on the trot gave Meite a free strike on goal.

How many free strikes on goal have we given opponents in seven games?

Our quality showed when Joao won a penalty. Defenders will panic when Joao has the ball in the box because they know his conversion rate in such situations this season is ridiculously high.

People say 3-0 flattered us. I’m not so sure. We worked two “cast-iron” chances and scored from them.

We also had two excellent “classy” shots tipped onto the bar by their keeper

And of course Meite’s worldly

So genuinely worth 2-0 and surely deserving of one more goal from those attempts by Esteves/Meite/Olise

Just look beyond bumbling round in midfield or Stan ball and ask how often we actually have looked like conceding?

Watford, maybe, but they as yet aren’t firing up front (and we have ATM the clear best defence in this league) AND the best GD

I GUESS, just about, only seven games in, we can still argue that the data set is too small, but the signs are very strong. Six clean sheets from seven games (and the goal conceded was scrambled in) is quite remarkable and our eyeballs tell us that Morrison, Moore have been outstanding, full backs very decent, Rhino-Laurent great at shoring up the middle.

If and when we are undone it may well be by top-end wing play combined with our strikers having an off day.

We are doing this without Swift and Yiadom, too, with a manager who is very new to the Championship

With McIntyre, Holmes and a highly-rated loanee as cover for CB, with Esteves likely to improve, Olise growing with age...

We will get beaten, maybe Tuesday night, but I find it hard to believe we won’t AT LEAST be challenging for top six.

What will matter is how we respond to our first bad defeat. If it’s not Ruesday, say game 37

Good post that.

[Snowball]

Feel bad for them. Lots of comments saying that's the best football they've played for years.... and they still lost 3-0 to a Reading playing like crap and couldn't get into any kind of stride.

I for one was a believer in possession (as long as it was meaningful possession) but seeing sides with 60-70% possession lose so often now it is clear that either it never meant much or game-tactics have moved on.

Arsenal being man for man sometimes streets better and being parked on the edge of the opponent’s penalty-area for (it felt like) 90% of the game but losing 0-1 was a great example.

Packed defences these days seem much harder to break down.

I think there is a natural tendency to equate possession and passing movements with playing well, but, apart from the obvious metric of goals, there is shots on target and the QUALITY of those SoTs.

Meite’s fluffed chance v Wycombe and his first goal v Rotherham were near-certain goals, seriously good chances, the striker with a free shot or header and 5-10 yards out.

A very high percentage of our shots conceded have been long shots from just inside the box, or outside it. Two of our goals yesterday OUGHT to have been scored. Did Rotherham have such chances?

Even Rafael’s good save was to a shot from, what, 15 yards? Much higher chance of a miss or save.

(EDIT: Just remembered Moore’s clearance of a shot from 10-12 yards)


Sometimes you see shots ten yards wide and ten yards high where every fan knows the goal isn’t threatened. We also see powderpuff “shots” or headers that are meat and veg for keepers, not really likely goals unless the keeper totally fluffs it.

The only time I felt we MIGHT concede was early on when their wingers got behind.

But the quality of the final pass wasn’t there. Because they were, overall, at best a top of the bottom third side and lacked quality.

Ultimately our quality showed when Ejaria for the second game on the trot gave Meite a free strike on goal.

How many free strikes on goal have we given opponents in seven games?

Our quality showed when Joao won a penalty. Defenders will panic when Joao has the ball in the box because they know his conversion rate in such situations this season is ridiculously high.

People say 3-0 flattered us. I’m not so sure. We worked two “cast-iron” chances and scored from them.

We also had two excellent “classy” shots tipped onto the bar by their keeper

And of course Meite’s worldly

So genuinely worth 2-0 and surely deserving of one more goal from those attempts by Esteves/Meite/Olise

Just look beyond bumbling round in midfield or Stan ball and ask how often we actually have looked like conceding?

Watford, maybe, but they as yet aren’t firing up front (and we have ATM the clear best defence in this league) AND the best GD

I GUESS, just about, only seven games in, we can still argue that the data set is too small, but the signs are very strong. Six clean sheets from seven games (and the goal conceded was scrambled in) is quite remarkable and our eyeballs tell us that Morrison, Moore have been outstanding, full backs very decent, Rhino-Laurent great at shoring up the middle.

If and when we are undone it may well be by top-end wing play combined with our strikers having an off day.

We are doing this without Swift and Yiadom, too, with a manager who is very new to the Championship

With McIntyre, Holmes and a highly-rated loanee as cover for CB, with Esteves likely to improve, Olise growing with age...

We will get beaten, maybe Tuesday night, but I find it hard to believe we won’t AT LEAST be challenging for top six.

What will matter is how we respond to our first bad defeat. If it’s not Ruesday, say game 37

Good post that.

I’m going to lie down....

[Hound]

We have plenty of attacking options from the bench if we did go one down. Could easily throw on Puscas, Aluko etc and go 4-4-2 or whatever without fundamentally changing the way we play

[TiagoIlori]

Somewhat a refreshing thread instead of the usual in the pre match Blackburn forum(so far). Seem to think they’re in for a difficult game https://www.brfcs.com/mb/index.php?/for ... ual-ewood/

[CountryRoyal]

Somewhat a refreshing thread instead of the usual in the pre match Blackburn forum(so far). Seem to think they’re in for a difficult game https://www.brfcs.com/mb/index.php?/for ... ual-ewood/

Not sure how we’re flat track bullies if we’re the only team to have beaten Watford but ok.

It worries me though I’d rather be underestimated

[WTRoyal]

Somewhat a refreshing thread instead of the usual in the pre match Blackburn forum(so far). Seem to think they’re in for a difficult game https://www.brfcs.com/mb/index.php?/for ... ual-ewood/

Not sure how we’re flat track bullies if we’re the only team to have beaten Watford but ok.

It worries me though I’d rather be underestimated

They are positioning themselves as the flat track bullies playing a team "in a much higher position than them"

[Norfolk Royal]

Somewhat a refreshing thread instead of the usual in the pre match Blackburn forum(so far). Seem to think they’re in for a difficult game https://www.brfcs.com/mb/index.php?/for ... ual-ewood/

Not sure how we’re flat track bullies if we’re the only team to have beaten Watford but ok.

It worries me though I’d rather be underestimated

I think the poster was saying that Blackburn are flat track bullies rather than us tbf.

[NewCorkSeth]

Somewhat a refreshing thread instead of the usual in the pre match Blackburn forum(so far). Seem to think they’re in for a difficult game https://www.brfcs.com/mb/index.php?/for ... ual-ewood/

Sensible fans!

[Snowflake Royal]

Good post snowball.

Got a fair bit of time for Blackburn. Decent club, not up themselves, been through times good and bad.

Wouldn't be sorry to be playing them in the PL next season.

At the moment, we seem pretty unbeatable. But we've had a lot of false dawns (none anywhere near this good - there a hints of Stam1 boreball, but we seem less fragile and there's more exciting players).

As well as we are performing right now, a couple of key injuries where our depth is weaker and a couple of poor results and I can't shake off 5he feeling we could easily spiral into a rut again. These are mostly the same players who've gone on poor runs a plenty.

For example, extended injuries to a couple of Joao, Meite, Rino and Laurent I could see the balance going all wrong or the goals drying up.

But I'll be enjoying this whilst it lasts. And maybe that'll be all season.

[CountryRoyal]

Somewhat a refreshing thread instead of the usual in the pre match Blackburn forum(so far). Seem to think they’re in for a difficult game https://www.brfcs.com/mb/index.php?/for ... ual-ewood/

Not sure how we’re flat track bullies if we’re the only team to have beaten Watford but ok.

It worries me though I’d rather be underestimated

I think the poster was saying that Blackburn are flat track bullies rather than us tbf.

Ah fair.

[bcubed]

Agree about the first half containment part. Let the opposition play a high press in the knowledge that they won’t be able to maintain it in the second half. We could have scored five or six after the break yesterday.

There is much more balance to this side. We know there are players in the team who are technically right up there with the best in this division, Ejaria, Olise, Swift and Joao. Esteves may well end up in that list too. However we have been defensively too weak through the middle of the pitch in recent seasons so haven’t benefited enough from their talents. Playing Rinomhota and Laurent together has worked a treat.

We no longer have a powder puff midfield and that combo has a lot to do with it.

Watching on Saturday I was actually thinking Laurent could be our most important signing. Really like his play. Nothing fancy, doing the basics really well and great positioning. Add Olise and that midfield looks really strong.

[leon]

Agree about the first half containment part. Let the opposition play a high press in the knowledge that they won’t be able to maintain it in the second half. We could have scored five or six after the break yesterday.

There is much more balance to this side. We know there are players in the team who are technically right up there with the best in this division, Ejaria, Olise, Swift and Joao. Esteves may well end up in that list too. However we have been defensively too weak through the middle of the pitch in recent seasons so haven’t benefited enough from their talents. Playing Rinomhota and Laurent together has worked a treat.

We no longer have a powder puff midfield and that combo has a lot to do with it.

Watching on Saturday I was actually thinking Laurent could be our most important signing. Really like his play. Nothing fancy, doing the basics really well and great positioning. Add Olise and that midfield looks really strong.

As I’ve said previously. This is the best midfield we’ve had for 10 years.

And actually it’s reminding me of the 2006 team - the level of activity.

Good times.