[Archived] Blackpool vs Rovers

[den]

Not really true. He said "I can agree with all the fans believing that Robbo looks unfit but if you drop important players in a bad run of form after 5 great years you will never have the commitment from the team."

He's right. Not exactly 5 great years, but his point is spot on. In a struggling team you need to keep your experienced keeper behind you. You need to back him and try to get the best from him. Throwing untried youngsters into the fray isn't the right move - IMO.

[thenodrog]

Everyone did? Even you then?

Some did, some didn't. That's all there is to it.

where did I say everyone did? When Allardyce got sacked most polls showed 80% support for him. Unfortunately the 20% were noisy keans.

[RevidgeBlue]

The booing that rained down from the terraces during the last 5 mins of our 3-0 victory over Wolves was not a tiny minority and Allardyce was sacked the week after. Granted we'd been thumped by MU the week before but don't tell me that those numpties were not used by the dark forces operating behind the scenes to persuade the Slumdogs to sack him.

The booing on that occasion was entirely justified. The team had one or two clear cut opportunities to make it four or five nil when two on one but deliberately spurned them and passed the ball backwards.

It certainly was not booing at the overall performances or result or calls for Allardyce's head. You're blowing it out of all proportion Gordon.

[Howler]

Very poor result. Worryingly a lack of changes when we were struggling, and a failure to read where things were going wrong in the second half are black marks against Berg. Shabby's influence or not those things must remain under his control - and it looks like he fluffed it.

Clearly the players aren't at all arsed. Black marks all round - even with shambolic management they should be able to put more of a shift in. However management also need to look at why an entire squad look like they can't be bothered.

Personally I think this squad DOES have talent. Unbalanced yes, but this is the championship and many players should be more than good enough for this level - especially if managed correctly:

Olsson (the good one) plays lb for Sweden. He's also played lb in the prem for a few years under hughes and allardyce. granted he's much better at left mid (and should be played there) but to think he can't cut it at left back in the championship is wrong.

Equally, poor game aside, we've seen Givet look imperious and has shown his quality before.

Pedersen plays for Norway - he's a capped play for an ok country, and was an integral - or at least regular part of allardyces team. Again the idea he can't cut it seems a bit weak.

I could go on and on. Even Robbo's problems seem to be simply fitness ones, and Lowe may just have energy but then so do a lot of other centre mids in this division. I bet most managers of this division would love our squad despite it's imbalance, if not our situation.

Which leaves us with the question of why we're not doing better. The answer obviously is there are things badly wrong behind the scenes. Not a revelation or shock to anyone. Just think when we consider the squad we have and our current position that it's a massive sign that the problems lie deeper than the squad and team selected.

Add Vukcevic who exels for the Montenegran national team, Kazim who played for Turkey a few times and Murphy who played almost every game last season for a respectable Premier League team . We'll ignore the scottish internationals...... Yet having played practically every team in this league we have only consistently outplayed Peterborough. That says everything about how good our squad, combined with our three managers this year, really is.

Berg, or whoever picks the team, has got to take a lot of blame here. Etuhu and Lowe is a disastrous midfield pairing. From the ~7 games I've seen this season Etuhu is totally atrocious and has no positive qualities. while Lowe only works if he plays at RB or alongside a creator.

Perhaps more worryingly the changes made today (Robbo out, Givet and Vukcevic in) have all been championed on this board and look sensible. Yet no upturn in results or performances

[thenodrog]

The booing on that occasion was entirely justified. The team had one or two clear cut opportunities to make it four or five nil when two on one but deliberately spurned them and passed the ball backwards.

Justified? Keeping possession is perfectly valid and practised by all the better teams as they wind the clock down. Light Brigade tactics are for losers.

[Howler]

simon if you put the entire squad into a big bag, tied the top up, shook it up for 2 minutes and then twatted it with the biggest stick you could find...... whoever got hit would fully deserve it!

take henley and rhodes out of your bag and i would agree

[RevidgeBlue]

simon if you put the entire squad into a big bag, tied the top up, shook it up for 2 minutes and then twatted it with the biggest stick you could find...... whoever got hit would fully deserve it!

Agreed.

Unfortunately though Gordon the Brian Clough school of man management probably doesn't work with modern day players these days as they're delicate and sensitive little flowers.

Hence the barrack room lawyer Bradley Orr reportedly leading a full scale mutiny when Shebby correctly but indiscreetly labelled MGP "a pensioner"

[John]

Agreed.

Unfortunately though Gordon the Brian Clough school of man management probably doesn't work with modern day players these days as they're delicate and sensitive little flowers.

Hence the barrack room lawyer Bradley Orr reportedly leading a full scale mutiny when Shebby correctly but indiscreetly labelled MGP "a pensioner"

Said it before but Shebby is not a positive influence - he is seen as a complete joke - a lot of players after his MGP comments were absolutely livid.

Who knows what else he has been doing too that we are not aware of.

[booth]

where did I say everyone did? When Allardyce got sacked most polls showed 80% support for him. Unfortunately the 20% were noisy keans.

Below...

Remember at this point that many of our supporters actually coined the term 'hoofball' under Big Sam and are under some illusion that we are too good to play football that way. To many on that Blackburn End have 'Champagne tastes on beer money'.

Stop dragging this up it's boring now. Not everyone had a go at Big Sam yet you constantly make out like 20k people hounded him. Change the ####### record.

They bloody well did.... and plenty still do! . When you are discussing the rovers in various company just slip in the sentence 'we desperately need Big Sam back' and see the reaction you get. I do it frequently .... amazing how many thick keaners there are out there.

[Blue n White Rover]

No more away days for me. Never have I seen such a passionless performance by a bunch of talentless, overpaid, arrogant and useless players.

My left ball has more graft when I'm busting one than those idiots out there today.

Shocking. Time for Berg to go. It may have been Kean's players etc but the organisation of the team is shocking and that is down to Berg. Eric Black managed to sort these lot out in 5 games. What excuses does he have?

[RevidgeBlue]

Nothing worth discussing on the football really, much bigger issues need addressing. Until the Global Advisor and Venkys leave we're stuffed. nothing else will fix this.

Disagree Paul. The right manager and assistant should be able to get this squad performing to an acceptable level.

If there are off the field problems, that won't make them go away overnight but it's a separate issue.

[RibbleValleyRover]

Disagree Paul. The right manager and assistant should be able to get this squad performing to an acceptable level.

If there are off the field problems, that won't make them go away overnight but it's a separate issue.

You really think this squad is good enough Rev? I wish I could agree with you but I can't - unless "an acceptable level" is mid-table at best?

Getting this squad back to a decent standard is going to take years IMO. Getting rid of dross isn't as easy as it looks, we will have to wait until some of these contracts run down.

[Rovers_Dan]

Is it true there was a big bust up between Hanley and Robinson before the game ?

[broadsword]

Disagree Paul. The right manager and assistant should be able to get this squad performing to an acceptable level.

If there are off the field problems, that won't make them go away overnight but it's a separate issue.

We'll never know because they'll never hire a decent manager, *and that is the point*.

I think there is some talent in that squad, but it's unbalanced, dispirited and unmotivated. And overpopulated with wasters.

Discussing hypothetical situations whllst Venky's and singh are still here is, in my opinion, a total waste of time.

[Muddboy]

Michel Salgado said on twitter that the players will never give their all for this club

Make of that what you will

Salgado was making reference to Robbo being dropped. He said that is you get dropped like today after giving four years of excellent service to the club, the players will side with Robbo in thinking he's been hard done by and not put the effort in.

Pathetic really but just goes to show how much players stick together – if that was the reason for today's kean poor performance.

[RibbleValleyRover]

Is it true there was a big bust up between Hanley and Robinson before the game ?

Arguing over a Venky's big bucket of chicken?

[broadsword]

Is it true there was a big bust up between Hanley and Robinson before the game ?

Must've been a real sumo match-up, that one.

[booth]

You really think this squad is good enough Rev? I wish I could agree with you but I can't - unless "an acceptable level" is mid-table at best?

Getting this squad back to a decent standard is going to take years IMO. Getting rid of dross isn't as easy as it looks, we will have to wait until some of these contracts run down.

Is the squad worse than Blackpools?

A decent manager would get better results from these players but we will probably never know if that is true.

[RevidgeBlue]

Shocking. Time for Berg to go. It may have been Kean's players etc but the organisation of the team is shocking and that is down to Berg. Eric Black managed to sort these lot out in 5 games. What excuses does he have?

Don't understand the Black love in.

He fluked 9 points from 6 games but it could just have easily been four points from 6 games had Sheff Wed taken their chances and we not scraped an undeserved winner in injury time v Watford. Plus the players looked like they couldn't be arsed under him.

As the players haven't responded to either him and Kean or him and Berg I can only assume he is a major part of the problem.

[Blue n White Rover]

Ian Holloway wanted the Rovers job. He wanted it that badly that his position at Blackpool became untenable. Berg couldn't organise a kean up in a brewery, let alone a squad.

[RibbleValleyRover]

Is the squad worse than Blackpools?

A decent manager would get better results from these players but we will probably never know if that is true.

I think it probably is, especially when you look at the balance of it. We have a larger squad, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's better. Their defence isn't brilliant but that midfield is balanced in terms of defence and attack. I bet from our lot they wouldn't mind Rhodes and that's about it.

[RevidgeBlue]

You really think this squad is good enough Rev? I wish I could agree with you but I can't - unless "an acceptable level" is mid-table at best?

Yes. Play off positions at the worst and even then I'd say they were underperforming.

[RibbleValleyRover]

Yes. Play off positions at the worst and even then I'd say they were underperforming.

I guess we will have to agree to disagree then. If our central midfield was far better than it currently is I might be more likely to agree, none of the options we have instil me with any confidence. The central midfield has been a problem area for some years.

[Paul]

Disagree Paul. The right manager and assistant should be able to get this squad performing to an acceptable level.

If there are off the field problems, that won't make them go away overnight but it's a separate issue.

Yes the right manager could improve the performances, my point is until Shebby and Venkys leave this won't happen.

Shebby doesn't have the knowledge or experience and he is the Venkys advisor. His advice was to appoint the wrong manager which leaves us in the position of having an idiot in charge for 18 months followed by a rookie. Henning was a great player for Rovers but he should not have been made manager.

Venkys themselves are not investing in the club and are highly unlikely to take any decisive action. There main interest seems to be to protect their cash and take what they can out.

Consequently till Shebby and Venkys leave we are stuffed. Administration could be a blessing.

[Alan75]

The heart has been ripped out of the club over the last 2 years.

Players that could have kept us up last year were disposed of by the previous manager (if you can call him that ) and replaced with fancy pants passionless mercenaries.

Just imagine the steel in the team with Salgado, Samba, Nelsen, Nzonzi - just check the team in the first post to this topic and then weep.

Robinson, Nelsen, Samba, Salgado, Jones, Givet, Pedersen, Nzonzi (Andrews), Diouf, Kalinic (Benjani), Biram Diouf (Emerton)