I can't disagree with the first paragraph - but what nobody knows is how much the injuries have taken their toll. His fitness levels may be good - but can he twist and turn like he used to, has he still got that little burst of pace that used to create space for him. I wouldn't be surprised if his relatively large salary is playing a part - but if he is 100% fit (in all ways) - would it not be better to play him, potentially improve the team, and then get a bigger transfer fee if we sell him in January ? If that is the case - then why aren't they ? Without wishing to open up the debate - Rhodes was a brilliant goal scorer, but I always felt his lack of pace and hold up play had a detrimental impact on our team play. JDT is all about the team - maybe he sees Dack as not being a good fit for the team pattern and overall team play. People seem to think he has singled out Dack - but John Buckley has largely disappeared from the first team picture.

It was interesting to hear commentators on Radio Lancs say recently, how they have seen few Championship sides that have put in a 90 minute performance - and that can definitely be leveled at Rovers. What I find difficult to judge - especially in the last two matches - how much of our second half struggles are down to us just sitting back on our lead, hoping to hit on the break and conserve energy - or how much is down to the opposition stepping up and us struggling to cope. Over the last few games JDT seems to have decided on a preferred formation - 5-3-2 - which seems to suit players at his disposal. We do lack depth up front - and I do fear if either BBD (ESPECIALLY BBD) or Gallagher were out for an extended period. So much will decide on the World Cup break and January transfer window (especially if we get a half decent offer for BBD). Are we any good - jury is out for me - has JDT brought the club closer together, and by promoting youth helped fans to reconnect with the team - do I see a team pattern and general approach - a definite yes.

I would counter what you have put - unless you have actual evidence that he is being frozen out based on orders from "higher up the food chain". Bottom line, nobody knows if Dack is performing well in training - and importantly whether he is training to the new team pattern. It is interesting that for a number of youngsters that have made debuts - he always quotes how they understand the team structure.

Plus - do we not have a year option on his contract ?

I am sure Dack isn't happy at not playing, and I think many on this MB have speculated he doesn't fit JDTs style and we may look to off load - so not really news. I just hope we don't sell on the cheap - be interesting to see what the asking price would be. Even given injuries would personally be looking for £2m to 3m or even more linked to appearances

Would have been an interesting couple for VAR - for the penalty not given, it took Sky quite a few goes before they decided it should have been given. Would VAR have been able to reach a decision quick enough to stop Diaz scoring ? For the offside - which was tight - Wharton was only offside as he had been pushed - so what would they have given. Either way makes no odds - we won 2-0 - and it is a refreshing change to get the rub of the green from officials 🙂

Not getting too excited at the moment - it was a good first half performance, second half was difficult to judge as we obviously sat back. At the end of the day, the game swung on the penalty decision. If it had been given this MB may have been a different place.

I agree with much of this - the first goal is so important in the Championship - had they scored one of their early chances this MB may have been a different place. I disagree about Travis - who I think does a Savage like role for the team. I will admit he doesn't have Rothwell like pace - but he did break their lines well on a number of occasions. Ayala did get away with a number of shirt pulls - but he wasn't alone. Interesting to see Rotherham attacking players pulling our defenders shirts to get an advantage.

IMO - this was part of the problem last night - we pressed high with the front four, but when they were bypassed they had acres into which to pass. Throughout the whole match we played far too deep - which in turn disconnected the midfield from the forward players. By contrast, Cardiff pressed as a team - which contributed to our poor performance. You are right about the tempo - IMO both midfield players contributed to that by hanging onto the ball for too long - though to be honest, given we had four forwards, they seemed to have limited options to pass forward. If we are to continue passing from the back - we seriously need to work on giving the receiving player options. Ayala held onto the ball for far too long, but I think this was due to lack of options. There is also nothing wrong with mixing it up - not certain if Cardiff got nervous - but we looked far better in the last 10 mins when playing a little more direct. Overall Dolan had a poor match - but it was nice to see him releasing the ball far quicker (most of the time) - so obviously JDT is getting through to him. You can see glimpses of what he is trying to do - but I think JDT has to mix it up a little.

Must admit I didn't think he meant the Cardiff fans 😉

I do wonder if we are playing Dolan up front so he can fit in Kipre's back pocket.

We are sitting far too deep

But it would be amazing if he showed a bit of loyalty to the club that paid his wages when he would have struggled to get in the San Marino side - let alone Chile. Not holding my breath though - even if we offered a big wage increase and reduced minimum fee.

Interesting to see which Rovers will turn up - and which formation. I would be tempted to rest Ayala and possibly Gallagher - there is also arguments to rest some of the midfleld. Normally don't like swapping and changing - but with so many matches in the run up to the World Cup - it would be sensible to rest players periodically.

Carter makes sense - as they would go long in the remainder of the game - the rest meh

Looks like Pickford will be No1. Pope distribution has been shocking in both matches - and now that mistake

Lol - hindsight

Can't believe we are 2 down - both Maguire mistakes. Sorry 2-1 down

I said good pace - not that he was Bellamy quick. You obviously thought he wasn't that good when you watched him play centre half for Rovers. The game is all about opinions - I thought he had potential to be an excellent centre half.

TBH - what IMO made Sutton a potentially very very good centre half wasn't just his heading ability. He also had good pace, excellent distribution and good positioning.

I did start by saying I agree that Philips current position is centre half. I was just pointing out that players sometimes start in one position - but end up in another. It would be interesting to know whether he has ever been deployed as a striker in his short career.

I agree - but history is littered with players switching - Hendry played up front initially in his career, Sutton as a centre half and Warhurst centre half, before centre forward and then Dalglish converted him to centre midfield (where, but for injury, I think he was probably potentially the best box to box midfield player in the country)

I remember turning out as centre half for Rovers during a centre half shortage - for the match I saw him play there it was probably one of the best centre halves performances I have seen at Ewood. Of course that may have been short lived if he had reverted full time to centre half - but there was enough in those few matches to suggest he had more chance getting in the England team as a centre half than he did centre forward.

IMO possession stats for a whole match are very misleading. Virtually every team in the Championship when ahead sits back, let's the opposition have the ball and tries to hit them on the transition (or on the break in old money terms). This leads to some misleading possession stats.

Interesting reading opinions - which see saw as much as our performances and results. As many predicted - 2nd half we struggled against a more robust team. If the early chance had gone in, we probably would have won (which seems to be the way for most teams in the Championship). Though I am already sick of hearing about the "project" - we do have to give JDT time.