JCRovers

Seen the game now, my ratings: Toth (6,5) - did OK, can't be blamed for any of the goals conceded. Mostly opted for safety when in possession by booting long balls up the field. Ribeiro (7) - up against Gray and Osayi-Samuel but thought he handled it well together with Hedges. Apparently has a good shot as he powered one towards the bar in the first half (offside in the lead-up). McLoughlin & Hyam (both 7) - won a lot of aerial challenges together. Played it safe when on the ball. Alebiosu (7,5) - won the ball back quite a few times, tough in the challenges. Had a chance in the first half (foul in the lead-up?) where he displayed lack of vision for not squaring it to either Ohashi or Cantwell. Showed great work rate and athleticism throughout the game until his injury. Got left isolated a few times in second half when Kargbo didn't track back. Hopefully the rib(?) injury isn't too serious. Tronstad (6,5) - protected back four fairly well. Rarely seen having possession as we played more directly. Tavares (6) - surprised that he played full game (lack of options?) given he played 70 minutes in the cup a few days ago and having just returned from injury. Involved in the penalty conceded when he tripped Laird inside the box. Poor corner which resulted in a last-minute winning goal for Brum. Cantwell (8) - showed his quality and technical skill when scoring with a great strike from just outside the box. Delivered some good crosses from set pieces as well. Worrying that he seemed to have sustained an injury (groin?) and was substituted with five minutes left of normal time. Hedges (7) - put in a good shift. Better suited when we sit back and play more direct as he has the work rate to track back and provide a decent outlet out wide on the left during transitions. Kargbo (7) - good going forward with his threatening runs on the right hand side. Won the corner which led to the goal. Tired in the second and didn't have the energy to track back after 60 minutes. Will become more consistent if he can improve his work rate. Ohashi (7) - ran tirelessly throughout 90 minutes. Didn't get much to work with but battled well against the centre backs and did the pressing off the ball as usual. Subs: Miller (6) - once again showing his prowess with the long throws. Nearly got an assist in the end when finding Gueye inside the box. Wharton (N/A) - missed closing down Dykes in the last minute for their winning goal. Gueye (N/A) - nearly became match-winner when meeting Miller's long throw in stoppage time but keeper made a good save. De Neve (N/A) - was at fault for allowing Laird to turn and attack the box with pace, leading to a penalty. Henriksson (N/A) - had the chance to make a professional foul by stopping the counter-attack at the end but didn't get a connection/directional change on the ball. Overall tactics (8) - thought the team was disciplined by often sitting back in a mid block, frustrating the opponent, and taking no risks in possession by playing direct. This playstyle benefits many of our players as they're not particularly comfortable on the ball or playing out from the back. Negative aspects are that we didn't create a lot of chances and we (apparently) didn't prepare our routines regarding set pieces. Also felt substituting Hedges for Miller after 60 minutes was a bad call as we lost 'defensive control' after that. Would've been more natural to sub Kargbo off as well at that point instead of shifting him to the left hand side as he was tired and bring both De Neve and Miller on. Summary: restricted the opposition to few chances but need to improve our game during transitions as well as setting up better set piece routines.

Only seen the highlights so far, will have a look at the game later: - Great strike and goal from Cantwell, displaying his technique when hitting the ball from just outside the box. - De Neve is at fault for the equaliser/penalty conceded; way too eager trying to win possession from Laird, allowing him to turn on the other side and attack the box. Should've just closed him down, hold his back and force him to play a backwards pass. - I blame the corner setup more than any individual player for their winning goal. Why are there six players standing in the middle of the box, one standing next to the keeper, one at the near post but we have ZERO players outside the box ready to shoot/finish the attack should there be a clearance??? We only had ONE player standing relatively close to the corner taker being nowhere near the action and who had to make a panic run back to the goal facing FOUR Brum players. I don't care that the corner was poorly taken, you simply don't take risks like that deep into stoppage time having a draw in your hand. Yes, Henriksson should've made a professional foul at the beginning of the transition and Wharton should've been closer to Dykes inside the box but all of that mess could've been easily avoided.

Our transfer strategy is nothing more than a pile of garbage. Would argue that we have missed out on tons of good players from mainly the domestic market because we only look at foreign teams with relatively low status compared to ours: - Failure to sign anyone from Luton. This one is for me the biggest mistake. You're talking about a team who played in the PL only two seasons ago. The likes of Doughty, Morris and Adebayo (still at the club) could've been picked up for below market value prices. - Failure to sign anyone from Plymouth. The likes of Bundu and Mumba (still at the club) would've been cheap but good, Championship-proven acquisitions. - Failure to sign Gassama from Sheffield Wednesday for a cheap price before Rangers swooped in for him. - We haven't explored the free transfer market. We have missed out on McBurnie (Hull) who would've been a decent signing for us. The likes of Diangana is still available but rumoured to have now been offered a contract from another club. - We haven't explored players who did well at L1 last season (Kone - QPR, Poku - QPR, Barry - Sheffield Utd etc.). - We haven't explored the loan market, especially PL talents. Many of them have already gone out on loan to other Championship clubs instead (Doyle, Cashin, Rushworth, Lankshear, Devine, Barry, Collyer etc.) All these opportunities yet the club still hasn't signed a striker or, more alarmingly, a right winger knowing full well that Dolan was never gonna sign a new contract and we only have Hedges as senior player on that position. Instead, we cry foul because we no longer have any ESC slots left (see: Miyoshi). Disgusting.

Saw some highlights of their midweek cup match against Sheffield Utd. The pressing out of possession from Gray and Furuhashi was intense to say the least. Can easily see us concede within the first five minutes if we're not prepared for it and try to play it out from the back.

As expected, we're not offering competitive salaries to any of those having a year left on their contract. We offer the same as we did 3-4 years ago when the last contract agreement was made and now, basically, expect that the players will happily sign an extension to it. They probably asked LT to print articles about these "ongoing negotiations" with Brittain, Hyam, Travis, Tronstad etc. to make it seem like they're making an effort when in reality there is none. Then cry foul when some other club is offering better terms. We finished 7th last season in the Championship but the loser mentality of the board and owners belongs in the dustbin of football history. I'd rather take relegation to L1 over last year's result if it means a fresh start with new and ambitious owners.

After seeing Henriksson's and Gueye's abysmal performances last night, I've now changed my mind regarding the lineup: Toth Alebiosu Miller McLoughlin Ribeiro Tavares Tronstad Kargbo Cantwell De Neve Ohashi My patience is wearing rather thin with Kargbo as well but I'm still convinced he'd be much more of a threat on the right hand side making runs on the outside of defenders instead and crossing with his favored right foot. We would also be able to create overloads on the right flank using the mobility from Alebiosu, Tavares and Kargbo.

Seen the game now after much hesitation, my ratings: Michalski (4) - wasn't at fault for the first goal but the second one is schoolboy error stuff. Looked like he learned from it and started playing less risky afterwards. Still, he gives me no confidence being no.2 behind Toth and needs to go out on loan. Wharton (4) - first 90 minutes after a long-term injury. His first touch was poor many times which resulted in him getting caught out of position when losing the ball. Not a starter for me at this moment. Miller (5) - A bit up and down performance-wise. Showed again his prowess with the long throws which led to our goal but struggles a bit with athleticism. Would much rather see him playing at center back than right back, however. Pickering (6) - did fairly well. No real mistakes from his part. Provides good competition with Ribeiro at left back. Montgomery (1) - kinda brutal to throw this kid in and tout him as the next big thing coming from the academy. Was partially at fault for the first goal as he took Miller's position and marked a player centrally in the box when the cross came in. Several misplaced passes and robbed off possession in dangerous areas as well when moved into central midfield from right back. I would say his current level is National League (5th tier). Needs to be loaned out. Tronstad (5) - clumsy challenge for the booking as he should've dealt with the situation better. Otherwise quite anonymous. Tavares (7) - our best player for the night. Looked composed on the ball, played with one touch, good drive and vision as well. Bradford saw this though and starting fouling him with a couple of late challenges. Hopefully he came out of it unscathed after being substituted on the 70-minute mark. Definite starter for me against Birmingham. De Neve (6) - frustrating to watch at times. Has decent pace and engine, a willing presser as well but his crosses and set pieces are poor. One cross in particular looked more like a powerful shot that went straight to Gueye's head. Wasted an opportunity when trying to place the shot but later took his goal well when taking the ball past his marker inside the box with one touch. A starter but he seriously need to work on his end product. Henriksson (2) - this signing scares me for all the wrong reasons. His mobility on the pitch and lack of vision is reminiscent of JRC. Was partially at fault for the first goal for not scanning/checking for opposition player arriving at the far post. Looks clumsy, lacks technique and his overall movement/agility is slow. Mixed two decent passes forward to Gueye with several other misplaced passes as well. Not a starter for me. Tyjon (5) - looked out of his depth at times and didn't seem to have confidence in his abilities. One moment in particular in first half during a transition where he had the chance to go for goal but decided to turn and play a backwards pass instead. Not the quickest but made some intelligent moves on the pitch. Decent first touch and technique as well for his age but made some passing errors as well. Would like to see him sign a professional contract with us (and not Arsenal) to then send him out on loan to perhaps a L2 side. Gueye (3) - frustrating as hell in this game. His timing in the aerial challenges where at times poor, often even static leading to being outjumped by opposition centre backs. Even more frustrating is he constantly drops deep or drifts out wide to the flank to receive the ball, even in final third leaving no aerial presence inside the box. Just wonder if this is coming from Ismael's instructions or if he feels he needs to be involved at all times? His strongest abilities aren't being used at this point. He needs to play with his back towards goal, hold off challenges, win aerial duels, play simple passes and attack the box when ball is in final third. Subs: Alebiosu (6) - wasn't as effective/influential as in the game against WBA. Still, a clear starter for me at right back. Cantwell (6) - showed his class a couple of times with his technique, tempo and passing skills. Clear starter as he's a key player for the team. Kargbo (3) - more convinced than ever that he's being used on the wrong flank. One particular transition moment with Cantwell on the ball (centre), Gueye (out on the right flank for some reason) and Kargbo on the left; Cantwell opted to pass it to Kargbo, he then stops his run, cuts inside and immediately loses possession. Underutilized just like Gueye. A starter but only as a right winger. Ohashi (N/A) - came in relatively late, had a great opportunity to level the score but sent his header straight at the keeper from close range. Overall assessment: thought our pressing was poor and unsynced in the first half. Upped the tempo a bit in the second but quality in final third was lacking with keeper rarely tested. Worrying that a lot of players meant to be backups or competing for a starting spot weren't up to standards. Squad is looking fragile at the moment.

At this point, I would just drop every single player who has a year left on their contract (Tronstad, Travis, Hyam, Hedges) and perhaps hand the captain's armband over to McLoughlin. Ismael seems to have lost their confidence in him anyway and needs to build an entirely new squad by the looks of it. This game comes way too early for us, fear a big defeat honestly. Toth Alebiosu Miller McLoughlin Ribeiro Henriksson Tavares Kargbo Ohashi Cantwell Gueye This lineup have zero defensive cover in central midfield but it might be able to score a goal at least.

Owners to Pasha/Gestede: we want the club to be self-sustainable by increasing academy minutes and sell them later on for big money like with A. Wharton. We wont support the club with additional funds on the transfer market; you will have to generate it on your own with player sales and salary cuts. Gestede to Ismael: you need to start playing our youngsters. There will be an incentive strucure in place with bonuses paid out if we reach our target (3 000 minutes per season). Ismael to Gestede after cup exit: this is the current level of our academy players. As you can see, they aren't good enough to even compete with a newly-promoted L1 side who fielded six reserve players themselves for the tie. If we play these in the Championship, our standards will drop considerably and we'll struggle to pick up points in the matches. Can we please go back to recruiting players that we need to strengthen the squad? You know, 'Allez les bleus' and so on.

Could get really ugly come the end of this transfer window. VI is more or less accepting defeat on a number of players with one year remaining on their contract. Travis and Hyam could both be out, maybe that's why Miller played centre back today? Only one who looks like staying until the end of season is Tronstad. Pears and Buckley are no longer wanted, Dolan, Batth and Weimann already left on a free and Brittain got sold so we're basically clearing out the entirety of last season's squad. Recruitment team might be panicking a bit as well now that all the ESC slots are taken. We're gonna have to sign a whole lot more than just a winger and a striker I'm afraid.

Season is looking like a pending disaster already after two games. Team fielded tonight should've been more than enough to brush off a newly-promoted L1 side. - Michalski and Montgomery needs to be loaned out. - We need to go for an experienced keeper in the transfer market once(if) we sell Pears - Find it hilarious that we might have sign a THIRD right back this transfer window. Montgomery is way below Championship standard and today Miller was tested at centre back position. They can't really be that clueless when recruiting players?! - What kind of standards are VI setting on the training pitch? Can he discern which players are a level above others or do he need to see them in actual matches? Intensity level? Do they work on different match scenarios on and off possession? Do they work on how to break down different kinds of defensive lines (low-block, mid-block etc.)? Transitions? Set pieces? Or is it all about physical output and endurance training? Why are we struggling to create chances against L1 opposition? - We have lost a lot of Championship experience with the departures of Batth, Brittain and Dolan. There are genuine concerns that some of the signings are simply not up to standard (De Neve, Henriksson) but perhaps a bit too early to judge. - Those academy minutes emphasized by Gestede is turning out to be quite a joke now. The only talented and remotely close to be part of first team squad is Tyjon but my guess is he will reject our contract offer and go to Arsenal. - We need to strengthen our attack considerably before window closes. - We need to solve the Mafoumbi situation quickly if we're looking to sign players who needs to be allocated an ESC slot.

Really hope this isn't the case or he will never start a league game. Very common that wingers tire after say 60 minutes in due to constantly making high-intensity runs; think it's more important for Kargbo to improve decision-making and make those runs either when opposition fullback is isolated or during transition moments to create chances. Right now it looks like he just goes for it regardless of where he is on the pitch or how many he's up against.

Is he fully fit though? Played ten minutes last Saturday after recovering from injury. Wouldn't start him but rather have him play final half hour or something. Same goes for Miller.

Guess some of the youngsters will start tonight. Predicted XI: Michalski Montgomery Hyam Wharton Pickering Travis Tronstad Hedges Tyjon Kargbo Gueye Of course, they might decide not to play Travis if there's a pending transfer going on.

He should never have been signed in the first place. First professional contract with a foreign club at 19? Nothing suggested that he was an 'exceptional talent' just by looking at those facts. We got him because he was cheap but now the club has realised they made a mistake.

Alright, watched the game on RoversTV now, here's my ratings: Toth (6) - good shot stopping but poor distribution. Doesn't command his area well as he often went for punching the ball away from several crosses. Needs to stop chipping the ball in own half. Ribeiro (6) - is supposed to be part of a back three when in possession but got caught out of position a few times during first half when roamed into central midfield for some reason. McLoughlin (6,5) - looked solid, didn't make any clear errors from what I could see. Hyam (5,5) - doesn't look comfortable on the ball. A liability whenever we decide to play out from the back. Alebiosu (7) - good going forward when using his pace. Fouled in the lead-up to their goal as he was being held. Needs to work on his crosses. Tronstad (4) - surprisingly bad performance. Several misplaced passes in which one of them nearly led to a goal. Travis (5) - was at fault for not stopping Price going on the inside for their goal; looked like he didn't even try. Has great work rate but zero drive going forward. Has his mind elsewhere? Hedges (1) - Completely anonymous throughout ninety minutes. Zero attacking intent, zero quality going foward. The man is stealing a living at this point. De Neve (4) - struggled badly with the physical part of the game. Poor deliveries from set pieces as well. Henriksson (3) - thrown in straight away and looked way off it. Were more interested in fouling opponents. Ohashi (6) - Tried to work out chances on his own with limited service. Probably should've gotten a penalty in the first half. Subs: Kargbo (8) - possesses great pace, managed to get several WBA players booked whenever he made an attacking run. Poor crosses however and will have to work on it. Think he would be way more effective and dangerous playing on the right hand side instead to attack the half-space and drive into the penalty box as his decision-making isn't always that good when cutting inside from the left. Miller (6) - has a great long throw but doesn't look very athletic or technical. Is not suited playing as a fullback unless he forms a back three when in possession. Gueye (6) - won a few aerial challenges but didn't get enough service from his teammates when entering the box. Needs to be closer to opposition defenders to push down their defensive line. Tavares (N/A) - played last ten minutes but was rarely involved in the game. Tactical approach (3) - poor from Ismael tactically, thought the team were second-best in the first thirty minutes. WBA were more aggressive in winning the challenges, had more intensity and more attacking intent during that period. Tempo went down quite a lot during second half, we controlled possession but weren't particularly close in creating any chances of note. Felt there was a lack of ideas and creativity when entering final third and just went for long balls in the last ten minutes when chasing the game. Hopefully it gets better when Cantwell is back. Also find it laughable that we lost so many challenges and duels having recruited players for that specific purpose all summer.

Feels like our 'squad building' has been more about putting out fires than trying to strengthen areas that needs improvement: - Batth went so we signed McLoughlin (even if the club won't admit it) - JRC got sold and we brought in Alebiosu (perhaps a slight improvement and I guess it was part of the transfer plan as well) - Brittain got sold and we brought in Miller (pretty damn obvious this was a contingency plan they had in place which got immediately triggered once the bid for Brittain was accepted; a downgrade from the perspective of offensive contributions) - Weimann left so we signed Henriksson (time will tell if this is an upgrade or not) - Signed De Neve to provide competion at left wing position with Kargbo (worried that this is a "Hedges-type" signing who works hard and tracks back but lacks an end product; cheap signing but not an upgrade for the team) - Signed Tavares to provide competition for central midfield spots (probably the only real upgrade to the side once he gets match fit since I suspect he will be a replacement for Buckley) Here's what I think the squad planning has gone wrong though: - We had more than 30 days to sign a replacement for Dolan on the right wing before the opening game but failed to do so, leaving Hedges as the only option. - We have failed to sign a proper striker to compete with Gueye - We have failed to realise that Ohashi can't operate as a lone striker as he's a) not quick enough and b) doesn't have the physicality to compete with Championship defenders - Had we signed a proper striker, it would have made sense to move Ohashi to an attacking midfield role instead and compete with Cantwell We are short of options up front and on the right hand side which must be resolved before window closes. Getting a striker in now will not be easy; we might have to consider loaning in someone from a PL side. - William Osula (Newcastle): quite pacey, 6'3 striker who had limited gametime last season. Bought for big money from Sheffield Utd. a couple of seasons ago. Needs a loan to develop. Newcastle will likely not sanction a move before they have gotten replacements in for Wilson and (probably) Isak. - Chido Obi (Man Utd); probably needs a loan move now that they signed Sesko. - Grady Diangana (free); released by WBA, decent right winger and probably an upgrade on Dolan in terms of goals/assists. Has English citizenship so no issue regarding ESC-spots. Decent resale value as well given he's 27 years old.

My guess as to what will happen within the next week or so: - Travis gets sold - Mafoumbi gets sold or have his contract terminated to free up an ESC-slot. Shouldn't be an issue given they released Sigurdsson in advance last season when he was cut from the 25-man squad. - Baradji signs as replacement for Travis - Tronstad becomes new captain Nightmare scenario: Hyam becomes captain (again) and we start leaking goals for fun.

Predicted XI: Toth Alebiosu Hyam McLoughlin Ribeiro Travis Tronstad Hedges Cantwell De Neve Ohashi Pros: we have some impact players on the bench who can have an influence on the game (Kargbo, Gueye). Wingers have relatively high work rate and will track back most of the time to help the fullbacks. Cons: Right hand side looks depressing. Doubt Alebiosu is capable of beating his man (other than using raw pace) and putting in quality crosses into the box. Hedges lacks both pace and technique to provide any end product. Our attacking threat looks bleak overall, offering no bursting pace or technique among the wingers to beat their man in 1 v 1 situations or having any aerial threat inside the box and thus will struggle to break down teams who choose to sit and defend in a low-block. Preferred XI: Toth Alebiosu Hyam McLoughlin De Neve Travis Tronstad Kargbo Ohashi Cantwell Gueye Pros: Attacking threat increases having a variety of qualities among front four: Ohashi (poacher), Gueye (target man), Cantwell (playmaker), Kargbo (fast-paced winger). Kargbo will be able to cross from the byline on the right hand side using his preferred foot. Gueye can offer link-up play with Ohashi and Cantwell by winning aerial duels. Cantwell can attack the center by carrying the ball from out wide as opposed to trying to find pockets of space centrally and between the lines. Gueye will offer an aerial threat inside the box. De Neve can attack the left hand side from a deeper position while Alebiosu stays behind to form a back three when in possession. Cons: not as many impact players on the bench other than perhaps Henriksson. Striker (Gueye) will probably have to play 90 minutes as options will be lacking. Wingers (Cantwell / Kargbo) will probably struggle tracking back at times. I'm making the assumption that neither Miller nor Tavares are ready to start having just recovered from injuries. Also, neither any of Montgomery or Tyjon are ready to start in a Championship match from what I've seen. I would rather go for it and try to score the first goal as opposed to throwing in impact subs in the second half when we potentially have to chase the game.

https://www.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk/sport/25326841.blackburn-rovers-stance-brittain-middlesbrough-bid/ Above link is from LT posted on July 19th. Ismael states clearly in the article that he wants Brittain to stay and that he's important to him from a personal standpoint given they worked together previously at Barnsley. This is a serious problem that the club currently has and it doesn't go away by signing new players. Whilst I agree that we should cash in on players rather than having them leave on a free, it would be a lot better for the club from a tactical perspective to make important players sign new contracts and continue working with them to improve team cohesion and understanding on the pitch. We have had key players who would rather sign for Championship rivals than to extend their contract with us (Batth, Brittain, Lenihan etc.). If we can't keep hold of these types of players, then you're likely having to break up your squad building every 2-3 years and basically start from scratch with a new set of players coming in at a, presumably, lower quality compared to those who left. Not to mention spending fair amount of time and effort to make them understand their new roles and what is required of them in the different phases of a game. We should be fighting tooth and nail to stop other Championship clubs from getting stronger by taking some of our best players but we aren't. There's no foresight, no vision, and we keep changing the 'project' together with managers/head coaches because they feel that they can't take the team any further whenever the 'funding' stops.

Team is obviously being set up to be very physical and doing a lot of running out of possession. Biggest fear will be that Ismael won't be as good as Eustace in setting up the defensive structure. Another worrying factor is that we're currently lacking depth (and quality) amongst the front four; Cantwell is basically our only creative player and Kargbo the only winger with good pace. The rest doesn't really have that "x factor" to make a difference on their own but is heavily reliant on team effort and getting enough support around them to make offensive contributions. Ismael has spoken to media about his players going out to 'war' this season, so wouldn't surprise me if we see a team committing tons of fouls and bookings, relying on transitions (without any pacey players bar Kargbo) or set pieces (without any set piece specialist), and see next to nothing of skillful individual play but rather attempts at making combinations to break defensive lines: Alebiosu - has pace but doesn't have technical skills from what I've seen Miller - built like a brick wall. Seriously doubt he can provide anything offensively bar the long throws he appears to have in his locker. Technically limited as well is my guess. De Neve - decent athlete but seems to lack an end product. His stats from last season regarding offensive contributions (assists) is a concern. Henriksson - stated himself that he's not very technical in the interview. Has the height to be a threat inside the box as well as making smart runs but who is going to provide the crosses now when Brittain is gone? Tavares - bit of an unkown quantity since he's been injured. Seems to be a decent ball-carrier. This season smells like an endless stream of flying tackles and fouls sprinkled with a bit of shithousery on top to get results.

1. Winners of the Championship Southampton 2. Automatic promotion (runners-up) in the Championship Ipswich 3. Four Play off semi-finalists in the Championship Leicester Birmingham Norwich Coventry 4. Three relegated sides from the Championship Sheffield Wednesday Portsmouth Preston 5. Where will Rovers finish in the Championship? 17th 6. First Championship club to change manager (after the season starts) Preston (Paul Heckingbottom) 7. Winners of the Premier League Liverpool 8. A notable wild card prediction of something that will happen in the Rovers universe during the season (e.g. Donald Trump visits Ewood Park) Winning team of '95 including the likes of Shearer and Sutton to visit Ewood Park during club's 150th anniversary against Derby on November 8th.

I'm pretty sure the players who travelled today aren't too happy about it. To gather 6AM in the morning at Brockhall, presumably go by train or coach to Manchester Airport (1 hour), take flight to Amsterdam (1h 20 min), and finally travel by coach to Nijmegen (2 hours). Posters on here say they arrived by coach to the stadium around one hour before kickoff; not ideal at all from an injury-risk perspective as they would have limited time for any warm-up. After the game, they take the coach straight back to Amsterdam and later depart for Manchester or Blackpool. Players will have spent at least 8 hours travelling back and forth today and were most likely exhausted when they finally got back home around 10-11 PM; can't really say this was a 'friendly' treatment towards them.

Yes, Swedish media reported that he was diagnosed with the disease back in 2021 shortly after his knee injury. Medical staff at his current team (GAIS) have provided medication (immunosuppressants) to enable him to play more matches. Seems to be a resilient character given he was released by his former club (also in Allsvenskan / Swedish top tier) due to the knee injury only to prove them wrong by performing well last season.