Ewood Ace

So this weeks excuse is that 'It was a team of boys trying to score against men.' If you thought that was going to be a problem Tony then probably not the most sensible idea to bring on an 18 year old, two 21 year olds and a 23 year old. He won't take responsibility for anything, nothing is ever his fault and his sole interest is not the football club but his own self preservation.

Only because he took us down. In the Championship Bowyer achieved 1.4 PPG. He also finished higher in the league twice than Mowbray has with us and unlike Mowbray he kept us up originally. Mowbray in the Championship has a PPG of 1.36. Mowbray 'success' has come in League 1 which is perhaps rather telling about his level as a manager.

Can't disagree with that.

He has done no better than Bowyer, in fact probably not quite as well. He has basically got us in the same position that Gary Bowyer did only via a different route way as Bowyer succeeded where Mowbray failed and kept us in the Championship. Also Mowbray has spent a lot more money than Bowyer ever did, in fact Mowbray spent more on just Gallagher than Bowyer during his entire tenure and Gallagher isn't even Mowbray's most expensive buy. As for centre back's dropping like flies it was obvious with the injury records of Lenihan, Ayala and Williams that we were going into the season a centre back light yet rather than rectify that he signed 3 goalkeepers instead.

Are we? Based on what?

We have to start off stopping conceding so many goals. I'd go back to basics to start with and play 4-4-1-1 which as we solidify at the back would evolve into a 4-2-3-1. But the priority now has to be tightening the defence up and I think playing with two banks of four would help achieve that because at the moment for me the shape is all over the place and looks very disjointed.

There does seem to also be a correlation perhaps coincidental perhaps not between those who moan about the job Sam did when we were a top half of the Premiership side and those who defend Mowbray and are happy to plod along in mid table of the second tier with him.

Talk about irony one of Mowbray's biggest defenders moaning about being bored watching a top half side in the Premiership.

We have to ditch the 4-3-3 it's not working and isn't producing results we have played it since the return from lockdown and have 38 points from 29 games which isn't going to get you near the play offs. And in that time he has taken them from bottom to 7th spending just £2 Million and he hasn't needed to go on a long journey to do so. Mowbray has had nearly 4 years over £15 Million and hasn't even threatened the play offs. The likes of O'Neill and Warnock just show what a manager with some tactical nous and the ability to organise a defence can do for you in the Championship.

And it was playing that sort of football under Big Sam that we were last successful. A solid defence and top half of the Premiership. The day Allardyce was sacked is without doubt one of the most disastrous days in this clubs history. How people can still criticise and moan about Sam's football after what has happened in the decade since really does beggars belief.

Is there anyone left out there who really thinks he can get us to the top 6 let alone promoted? Today really did lay bare many of his limitations. We had his stubbornness in refusing to drop Gallagher or at the very least play him in his best position, him on the wing hasn't worked for 18 months now and it is never going to. It's no surprise that in the 5 games Gallagher has started we have only won one and the winning goal in that game was scored after he had been subbed off. We also have the stubbornness of refusing to switch from the 4-3-3 it's not working, we have played it ever since the return from lockdown and from those 29 games we have 38 points which is not good enough for a side with top 6 ambitions. The neglect of the defence had a light shone on it more than ever today. After 4 years at the club and two and a half years after the defenders are coming speech we start with a back for of Nyambe who he inherited, Lenihan who he inherited, Johnson who is a midfielder and Douglas who doesn't resemble a defender in anyway. And what was the one sub he made in defence, take off his best defender and bring on a Buckley who isn't a full back and it again is clear as day to most that he is not up to this level. Most on here could see he needed another centre back given the injury records of Lenihan, Williams and Ayala yet he didn't and instead signed 3 goalkeepers only 2 of which have been required to play whereas 7 different players have played centre back already this season. The 5 subs are more of a hinderance than a help to him, it almost like he thinks he has to make use of them and it certainly feels like the subs in midfield are just for the sake of it, for example Trybull was having a decent game today and last week we had the changing of the entire 3 in one go. The same 'on a journey' crap again for the umpteenth time already this season. We are on a road to nowhere with him. O'Neill has taken Stoke from bottom to genuine play off contenders in 12 months spending a fraction of what Mowbray has done in his time at Ewood. Warnock has taken Boro from 21st to 6th in 6 months and barley spent a penny. As usual with Mowbray it is all about his own self preservation. The difference with those two managers compared to Mowbray is that they have some tactical nous and the ability to organise a defence and make a team hard to beat. In a club with ambition and aspiration he would have been gone a long time ago but I have not doubt that the owners and his mate Waggott will let him muddle along to another mid table finish and then into next season where I fear a tough season at the wrong end of the table may await, as we learnt previously you can only tread water in this division for so long.

How on earth does Gallagher keep his place he's been utterly useless the last 3 games yet Dolan had 1 or 2 quiet games and hasn't started for months since.

Rankin-Costello is not a right back he is very suspect defensively. Even if Lenihan is fit for every remaining game he has still been a liability this season. Also for the majority of the remaining season we only have two senior fit centre backs if we want to get into the top 6 then it is imperative that we sign a centre back, you can't expect to go through the next 3 months with only two centre backs especially two with unreliable fitness records like Ayala and Lenihan. But we won't sign any defenders this window let alone good ones even though some are desperately needed. Mowbray will continue to neglect the defence just as he has done for the last 4 years.

A centre back and a left back are urgently required but if we do bring anyone in I doubt that it will be a defender as Mowbray has neglected the defence throughout his 4 years here.

If you read my original post I said that it was probably because of one of two reasons why he only signed an extra year. Either Mowbray didn't have much faith in him or Nyambe only wanted to sign an extra year because he wasn't getting the game time he deserved. Lets remember when he signed his extension he was behind Bennett in the pecking order at right back. Even now he is only starting week in and week out because JRC is injured.

Kaminski Nyambe Lenihan Ayala Bell Rothwell Johnson Downing Elliott Armstrong Dolan

Read the post again. I am talking about the blame lying with the manager for him only signing a 1 year extension in the first place which has led us to this situation.

The most shocking thing about the whole Nyambe situation is that when we last gave him an extension it was just a one year extension. Given that at the time he signed it he was second choice behind Bennett, you'd have to conclude that either Mowbray only wanted to give him a one year extension as he didn't have much faith in him or Nyambe only wanted to sign an extra year because he wasn't getting the game time he deserved. Either way the blame has to lie with the manager. Even now he's only starting every week because JRC is injured.

Kaminski Nyambe Lenihan Wharton Bell Travis Johnson Elliott Dack Rothwell Armstrong

He'd still be well out of his depth in League 1.

Dear god no. He basically already acts as his own sporting director/director of football or whatever you want to call it. I doubt that there is a manager in English football who has as much control over their club as he does. I can't ever think of one. I also couldn't think of anyone less suited to the role than Mowbray his work in the transfer market is average at best, his approach to signings is rather scattergun and his big money signings have not seen a value for money return. Then we also have his rather generous approach to handing out very generous contracts to players who then aren't used.

After a defeat on Saturday where we played decently but lose he was a "performance related coach". Four days later after we win with a poor performance “Football’s about getting over the line, winning matches, finding a way to win." His so called footballing principles change dependent on how we get on. His only true interest is his own self preservation. "It was a scrappy game" - News - Blackburn Rovers

A very undeserved but very welcome 3 points. Rotherham were in complete control of that game and the treble substitution from Warne killed them and gave us a foot back into the game. The two centre backs were dreadful and must have been very relived when the 2 men that ran them ragged were subbed. Douglas was abysmal and I can't believe that I am going to say it but Bell is a better left back than him. Nyambe was totally isolated in the second half we had no one in front of him down the right. Johnson looked every inch a 33 year old who has played a lot of football of late. Buckley was completely out of his depth I keep saying it and the more I see of him the more I think it, he is a non league player. Rothwell was by far the brightest of the starting midfielders, I really don't know why he keeps getting subbed off early. Holtby was abysmal again, he only seems to be able to do it against 10 men. Downing added a touch of class when he came on and for the second time this season a bit of composure on the ball from him helped us to get a stoppage time winner, surely he has earnt a start on Saturday. Elliott classy again and Armstrong very subdued tonight but popped up when needed. Gallagher was bloody abysmal, I haven't seen many professional footballers with as bad a first touch as him practically every time the ball is passed to him it bounces of him. He's started 4 games in a row and the only time he has proven his worth was with his defensive work at Brentford in attack he has offered nothing. Yet Dolan had 1 or 2 quiet games and hasn't been given a start since. Tonight again though just showed how far away we are from being a top 6 team under this manager, if the club have genuine aspirations of making that top 6 this season then Mowbray has to go immediately.

Williams back playing for 2 games and already injured. He's becoming as big a waste of time as Evans is.

You won't get out of this division unless you can defend and Allardyce unlike Mowbray can organise a defence. Also I think Allardyce gets an unfair tag with his style of football. He showed at Bolton what he could do with flair players when he had the likes of Okocha, Djokaeff & Anelka, at Rovers he had Dunn playing his best football in a Rovers shirt. Tony Mowbray 1 season as a premier league manager, finished bottom. Mowbray 8 seasons in the Championship 2 top 6 finishes with 1 promotion. Sam Allardyce 15 seasons in the Premier League 7 top half finishes, highest finish 6th place and never relegated. Allardyce 3 seasons in the Championship 3 top 6 finishes with 2 promotions How on earth can anyone genuinely believe that Mowbray is a better manager than Allardyce is beyond me.