Dreams of 1995

I like Hedges. Always have done. I think he is a tidy player and has a great left foot. When you watch him, he makes runs that drags players out and opens space up. He has scored some good goals for us in his time here. On top of that, he’s versatile and has shown he can player either wing and even fill in at full/wing back. And the full back must like playing in front of him because he will get back and help out. He will also make himself available to take that pass out wide, making it easier to play your way out His injuries hampered his time here. He played most in JDTs season and we finished 7th. This season, where he has been injury free, we look as though we could beat that finish. For me, that is saying something

Yeah, football is a game of opinions. That none of us work in the sport tells us where our opinion sits in the grand scheme of things Eustace has made Tronstad a better player because his system protects the team. It doesn’t allow for players to be left exposed. Certain players have looked far better under him than they did JDT - think Hyam, Tronstad, Pickering, Pears I think our best front four would consist of: Hedges, Cantwell and Beck with either Gueye or Ohashi up top I also think you could swap Dolan with Leonard, Weimann, Cozier Duberry or JRC and we’d be the same This leaves Pickering as left back - who really I don’t rate that much - but as above does look better under Eustace Like you, I have a controversial opinion. I don’t think Hedges is as bad as people say he is. He’s a gifted footballer but injuries have held him back

You can’t talk about bias when you are comparing Gallaghers record over a full season against Gueye’s half a season Gally got 3 goals all of last season in the league. Prior to that he hit around the 8/9 mark, but if memory serves me right in the season before last he only had 1 or 2 goals by Christmas. It was something daft like October to March without a goal. Gally played his part for Rovers but in plenty of Championship seasons he got over double figures only once. Gueye has had half a season, mainly from the bench, and so comparisons between the two goal records atm are pretty meaningless You have said that Gueye is a bad football player but he is really about there or thereabouts with Sam Gallagher. He is better than Gally in the air, he is stronger than Gally, he is a better passer than Gally and he has half a season to get 6/7 goals to equal his goal scoring. I don’t think that is outside of the realms of possibilities. Will you then go from calling him a terrible footballer with poor technique to saying he’s below average? I think, much like JRC, you are putting your opinion across too harshly too soon.

The last part is a bit unfair. He only signed last year, so any interest would only really start to be shown either in Jan or the summer as his contract is starting to run down I think Tronstad works incredibly hard too. He breaks up play better than any central midfielder we have had in our Championship days. Without him we would be worse off for sure. Whereas we could replace Dolan with a number of players in our squad and not feel the hit They play in different positions but for me Tronstad is twice the player that Dolan is and ever will be. I also think you could switch your Trav argument around - that Tronstad is next to him allows Travis’ game to improve. Tbh, I am just enjoying having a functional midfield pairing for the first time in recent memory

I am flabbergasted Rev You give Tronstad pelters for going invisible but Dolan drifts out of games for far longer spells and is way more inconsistent. I know they’re in different positions, but why give Dolan the credit but no Tronstad?

You are a better fan than me if you actually read those exchanges

Does not having a season ticket mean you can’t comment, Matty?

I didn’t give him credit for missing an open goal

For me it is time for Dolan to go. He’s given a good period of service in a Rovers shirt but if he wants the going rate for a starting top end Championship winger then we can go and get better quality He doesn’t do enough for me. I also think that he occupies some good spaces under Eustace but is then at fault for attacks breaking down far too often with either under hit passes or a baggy touch Dolan could be the the little girl with the little curl for when he is good he is very very good but when he is bad…he is horrid

I like Gueye. He looks like he would be an absolute nightmare to defend against. It’s all arms and legs flying everywhere but you’d be bruised by the end of it. He likes to leave a bit of a late one in as the defender clears. For the defenders amongst us, you know exactly what I am talking about - your ankles are wrote off He is also really good on the turn. Particularly if the ball is chest height. Two moments stand out to me for this one - his sending off at Burnley and the blatant penalty vs Sheffield Wednesday. On both occasions he turned the defender with ease. On another day, the Burnley centre half gets a booking (he should have done) and Rovers win a penalty (we should have done). Suddenly Gueye has one less red card and one more assist When you play football you also admire the players that seem to be in the right place. Some fans - not players - only want to see perfection. It’s too easy to ignore one of Gueyes assist because he didn’t mean it. Think of the butterfly effect - if Gueye was not there, he doesn’t back heel it and Beck doesn’t score. If Gueye wasn’t in that space against Sunderland then the ball may not have fell kindly to Leonard. Far too easy to sit at a keyboard and bitch about stats but when you’re on that pitch, you look at those players and think that something can come from them simply being in that box. I get that vibe from Gueye. His game will improve over time. It has to in order to remain at this level in England. His goal contributions are a good look for him; he clearly has a good work ethic and I think his overall game has been good. He just needs to get on the scoresheet more often

You have brought some festive cheer in those last couple of posts USABlue Lovely Christmas Eve to you too 👍😂

One thing I do know is that it was a great goal by Gueye

That's a tough conundrum You are right in every sense of the imagination......but 9-0 to that lot isnt even worth thinking about

The defence is superb Have to eat humble pie on the Danny Batth shout. I thought he was a waste of a wage and didn’t want him here. But he’s been solid and has made Hyam a better defender

Bannan is such a little prick Used to frequent a pub called the Litten Tree in Sutton Coldfield. He was a right weirdo. Definitely has small man syndrome

Absolutely buzzing for the lad. Cmon Pape!!!

Been a poor do hasn’t it I still think Dolan is our weak link despite a couple of good performances

I just don't think Dolan is good enough for the Championship tbh The days he shows up are too few and far between. That inconsistency puts him a league or two below Quite often he can misplace passes, run into danger and have such a baggy touch that the whole attack breaks down. He isn't a number 10. He isn't a striker. He isn't a winger. So I struggle to find a place for him. In the long-term we will need to find better

I watched the first hour or so yesterday. The wicket was bowlers friendly to say the least. But at the same time some of the shots Crawley played were horrendous It was as though he was playing 20/20 He came down the pitch twice to Henry and delivered a wild swing across the ball only to miss by a country mile each time. Couldn't believe what I was watching

The James Hill situation never made much sense for the player He was having a terrific season in Championship football but found himself playing cover for a team in the PL instead Since then, he has done nothing of note in football terms. He must be wondering when his chance will come. Footballers want to play. He will have played less than 50 games in 3 years if this continues. I'd take him here in a heart beat. Felt he was one of the more complete defenders we have had in recent memory

These are the games we struggle with. JE suits the games against the likes of Leeds. We do not have the attacking prowess to dominate many games and break teams down. Hull will make us work for every chance Feel it will be a tricky fixture but one we will come through. My head says score draw, my heart says 2-1 Rovers

You have called him dull on plenty of occasions What isn’t negative about calling someone dull?

When Ohashi made that pass I said “that’s a serious pass” - it was weighted to perfection which made Dolans first touch easier Our forward passing isn’t always so crisp but we played well in all areas of the pitch yesterday I like Ohashi. He sets the tone for everybody else. His commitment to the team shines through. There was a moment yesterday when he chased the midfielder back to the half way line to win the ball back and get a free kick. That sort of attitude is contagious Gueye on the other hand appears to be struggling to meet the demands of Eustace. It is unfortunate as I think there’s a player deep down in there but I have doubts he will make it at this level atm

Owen Beck makes such a difference to this side. He’s a terrific player. Covered Pickering whenever he needed to and the partnership between them looked good. He made Pickering look a better full back for sure Cantwell showing his class. I hope that injury isn’t serious and a bit of play acting. One of the best footballers we have had in recent times Im glad Dolan showed up. I’m one of his biggest critics but he had an excellent game today. The Leeds players couldn’t get near him. Fair play to him and well deserved MOTM These sort of games suit John Eustace. Being organised at the back and sneaking a result is his forte. Onwards and upwards

Dolan deciding to have one of his good games is timed as well as it can be