Brian: The right decision?

[Basingstoke Royal]

Definitely the right decision. The passing game is what we need and our players are now beginning to learn how to do it even if we do lack a cutting edge at the moment. That will come.

The Hoofball that leeds served up is horrible to watch and will never work in the premier league as was proved last season.

Considering they had more possession than us they can't have been hoofing too much. They weren't better than us tonight and they weren't any worse either.

Possession doesnt mean that they didnt play the big boot almost every time. Pass across the back line and then whack it long. Changing the style of play is about improving our chances of staying up if/when we get there.

Brians brand of football doesnt work in the prem.

[Who Moved The Goalposts?]

Possession doesnt mean that they didnt play the big boot almost every time. Pass across the back line and then whack it long. Changing the style of play is about improving our chances of staying up if/when we get there. Brians brand of football doesnt work in the prem.

Quite. And on the evidence of last night, it may not even be enough in the Championship.

It was a game between two very average teams. I met a Leeds fan in the Megastore before the game who was going on about how much they love Brian ("In Brian we trust", he said, which made me smile). He said he did well to keep them up in the four games he had at the end of last season - I said I didn't even realise they were in danger of going down!! But given the lack of investment there, I think Brian has a real struggle on his hands. In particular I thought the marking at set pieces was shocking - if they had been playing a team with more accomplished finishers than us, they would have been buried by half time. They also didn't seem to have the same pace about them as Brian had in Kebe and McAnuff at Reading, something which made us a threat on the counter.

If we finish below Leeds I'll be surprised, but if that does happen it will mean we'll be flirting with relegation!!

[melonhead]

Brians brand of football doesnt work in the prem.

......with the players he had at his disposal, which were all he could really afford

[Cureton's Volley]

Brians brand of football doesnt work in the prem.

......with the players he had at his disposal, which were all he could really afford

No 'brand of football' would have been effective with the players we had at our disposal!

[floyd__streete]

Considering they had more possession than us they can't have been hoofing too much. They weren't better than us tonight and they weren't any worse either.

That right? Murked, Brian h8rs, then.

They weren't a lot worse than us yesterday, because Adkins is trying to impose a style of play on footballers who don't really seem up to it. While that continues to be the case, 'percentage' sides such as Leeds will not be too far away from turning us over. I left early yesterday but I understand they missed a gilt-edged 95th minute chance before we ultimately mugged them. Some wouldn't be quite so smug about things today if that had gone in, eh

Only partly agree with the general sentiment that a 'percentage' style won't have much long term success in the Prem these days - Stoke did ok for several seasons did they not? But we have to get their first of course

[RoyalBlue]

I'm really surprised that Leeds fans aren't bemoaning the fact that all their team did was keep hoofing the ball down the throats of our centre backs who easily dealt with it!

The few occasions when I felt worried by Leeds occurred when they moved the ball around smartly in the final third and pulled our defenders out of position a bit.

[Who Moved The Goalposts?]

I'm really surprised that Leeds fans aren't bemoaning the fact that all their team did was keep hoofing the ball down the throats of our centre backs who easily dealt with it!

The few occasions when I felt worried by Leeds occurred when they moved the ball around smartly in the final third and pulled our defenders out of position a bit.

They currently love him. Unbelievably, one of their fans said that the football under him is better than they've had for the last 10 years! Jeez, they must have had it bad in recent times.

[melonhead]

I'm really surprised that Leeds fans aren't bemoaning the fact that all their team did was keep hoofing the ball down the throats of our centre backs who easily dealt with it!

The few occasions when I felt worried by Leeds occurred when they moved the ball around smartly in the final third and pulled our defenders out of position a bit.

agreed again

was also pretty amazed brian brought on a giant towards the end, since we soak that up all day
which youd guess he should have known

[andrew1957]

No one has been a bigger supporter of Brian than me and I thought his sacking was wrong as I thought he could learn from his mistakes and take us forward again.

However, I would say that last night I thought that there were genuine signs that the new style was beginning to work - and I would have said that even if it had remained 0-0. It is still at a very early stage and will take some time but the 4-3-3/4-3-2-1 does make us hard to break down at the back - however, we are not yet getting it to work very well going forwards.

I just hope the injury to Karacan does not set us too far back as we now look very thin on the ground for players who can form the midfield 3.

[MouldyRoyal]

Well I think last night showed conclusively whether it was the right decision or not.

[Ouroboros]

Hi Mouldy.

[mr_number]

I'm just worried we're going to have to w8 til either we or Leeds win the Champions League to prove this conclusively.

[Ouroboros]

I think you're forgetting that a lot of the debate centres over which manager would attain the best results in the Premiership.

[Alexander Litvinenko]

Not even that'll be long enough. We need to wait until the careers of both NA & BMc have finished and do a retrospective review then.

[windermere_royal]

I'm just worried we're going to have to w8 til either we or Leeds win the Champions League to prove this conclusively.

Christ no, another 100 pages of this shit ?

[mr_number]

I think you're forgetting that a lot of the debate centres over which manager would attain the best results in the Premiership.

So we're never going to find out?

[Alexander Litvinenko]

I'm just worried we're going to have to w8 til either we or Leeds win the Champions League to prove this conclusively.

Christ no, another 100 pages of this shit ?

We haven't got to the first 100 pages yet .........

[mr_number]

'greed. I imagine the next 2.5 pages are going to have some pretty high-brow, incisive deb8

[mr_number]

And, much like BM or NA, it would be unfair to judge this thread before it has had a fair crack at playing a nice passing game with suitable players to do achieve that aim

[Pepe the Horseman]

Agreed