I'd take a 0-0 at this rate. Completely bullied us first half. Hoping the switch will see some of these long balls going straight off for a goal kick. Seems to be holding up in the wind right and causing a lot of trouble for our defence. Can't see where a goal is coming from for us but if we stay tight you never know

Surely it only takes one source for something to catch on. Especially when he is out injured as there is an element of fact to it if he's not available. Not that you are but some fans will be slating him now when at this stage it is just a rumour. In saying that, it'd be phenomenally disappointing if true.

I've been Mowbray out for at least 18 months prior to this season but I do think he's earnt a new deal. He's got a formation that works, a squad that's grafting and his record in the transfer market has proven to be pretty decent of late. If we don't go up this season I want to see continuity of a similar formation and the attitude of this current group remain. I think he has a cock up in him, as seen vs Hull but he has blown away the majority of my main criticisms this season and I couldn't have imagined we'd be in 2nd late January. New deal for me please

Every player has an agent who's jobs are to find the best deals for their clients and make themselves very easy to contact. Nothing will be signed but they will certainly be aware of a rough figure that will be on offer. With Rothwell stating how much he is enjoying his football here its very much in his and his agents interests to share that info with rovers, effectively putting the ball in our court. It's the way football works. It doesn't mean we have to match it. But it does provide justification to be offering more than a %based increase as per our wage structure.

The club should really be looking at the offer Rothwell will have been presented by Bournemouth and use it as justification to break the rules we've imposed around our wage structure. I'm not meaning match it, but he does deserve to be one of our top earners. Bournemouth showing interest has turned potential earnings elsewhere from hypothetical into reality. Surely from a financial perspective that's a good business case to break only increasing players wages by certain percentages and show them that they are deemed a top player within our squad.

Buckley has been a false 9 all season and he's been superb at it

Huge game tonight. It really will signal what way the momentum is swinging and probably more than any other game, speak volumes about the character of this side. I'd be going back to basics. Kaminski Lenihan, Van-Hecke, Wharton Nyambe Edun Travis, Rothwell Buckley Khadra, Gallagher Everybody knows what their role is and what they are doing. Any attacking switches being like for like. Eg: Zeefuik on for Nyambe but in all honesty the options are limited. Thinking back to Hull last week, not only was the line up all wrong, but the subs felt very much, lets throw the kitchen sink at them which in reality gave us even less structure and even less threat.

I wonder how fit the bloke is and what his professionalism is like away from training. Mowbray has been consistent in what he'd require from Chapman without going into more detail which could be damaging for his future career prospects. Either way, he's been a massive waste of talent. Fingers crossed he gets his career back on track at another club but I have my doubts.

Just a really horrendous bit of luck. Not fair for us but most of all, really unfair on the player.

If we go back to the tried and tested for the rest of the season and regain form Mowbray may have cost us a shot at automatic promotion with his selection against Hull. Though the ref was atrocious that defeat lies with Mowbray. The selection was ill thought out and it certainly wasn't forced upon him. There was a like for like replacement with Davenport. His job for the rest of the season is stop fiddling with things. We've got a system that works. We've signed a couple of players thus far who can slot into it. I await the lineup vs Boro nervously. As there's a huge fear he's going to get himself way too involved. Teams generally get promoted from this division based on solid defences. As clunky as we've looked at times, we always looked solid. Keep that going with the formation which suited our players and we will always stand a very good chance.

This exactly. Though we laboured against Cardiff we still won. There are a lot of people sounding very twitchy and coming up with all kinds of possible changes. The tried and tested has seen us into this position. It's as we were with Nyambe and Travis back in with Gallagher in for Brereton. Anything else would be madness. If Mowbray continues to tinker it will be his worst failure since being here regardless of whether we eventually make the playoffs. All he has to do between now and the end of the season is not mess with anything. He may have already cost us promotion with the ludicrous decision to change the system against Hull. I'll be nervously awaiting the line up as I'm not sure I have faith in him not to continue fiddling.

I know our performance and formation was crap last night. But for a second can we all just rage a little more at that tosser in the middle. I want to see him back in League 2 or lower, getting paid crap money for a month after that crooked, absolute barrel of shite last night. He doesn't have the intellect to be involved in professional sport.

He did do last night. All Mowbray has to do is not fiddle with things and we stand an outstanding chance of promotion. He reverted to Tony Tinkerman last night. He'd best revert to our normal formation moving forwards or it will be the biggest failure of his management to date.

It was touch and go whether it was a red in addition to a penalty. As it could have been interpreted as a yellow under the double jeopardy rule, but also just as easily that he made no attempt for the ball and therefore a red. It's been said on here already. The change in formation cost us. Gallagher was totally uninvolved and our two creative outlets in Buckley and Rothwell were pinned deep. So like playing with 10 men and zero creativity. JRC was rusty and shouldn't have been playing. Allowing the cross to come in so easily for their first was abysmal. Mowbray cost us the game with his change in system. Davenport in my mind isn't as good as Travis. But he was a like for like option who wouldn't hamper our other key players. In saying all this the referee decided the game. The big decisions were as bad as I've seen and as poor as we were we'd have come away with 1 or 3 points were there somebody of some intellectual ability or competence in the middle. I hope, given it was on sky that he'll be demoted for the performance. As it simply wasn't good enough. The performance has to hit him in his pocket. Simple as. I don't think it's the start of a death spiral if Mowbray goes back to the tried and tested. But his decision making today was cause for concern. At the end of the day if either Mowbray or the Ref were on their game today, we'd have won.

Quite excited for the Fulham game tonight. Such an odd team who are likely to blow the opposition away but also liable to struggle if it doesn't quite click. We could be top tomorrow.

Davenport isn't bad but he is a bit Corry Evans. I've rarely seen him pass the ball forwards when he's played. Still think he's deserving of more minutes than he's seen though

Could be an obligation to buy. So we are essentially buying him now but it will be on next year's books

There does seem to be a few clubs in red hot form below us. Their form just happened to start a little later than ours did. We've a tough run coming up. I can see the gap we've created being narrowed relatively quickly if we stall. I'm surprised that Qpr keep on winning. A lot have been them snatching late winners, but they do look to be a real team rather than depending on any one individual. They look fairly comparable to us. The rest of January feels hugely important. Keep the momentum for now as the current bunch need some reinforcements

Boom, boom, boom, let me hear you say Deyo. Deyoooooooo

Maja fits those criteria. Imagine he's still under consideration. One thing which has taken me by surprise if we do get Markandy over the line is that will be two first team additions secured relatively early in the window. I was expecting any incomings to be touch and go before the deadline.

I think the only time the lancashire telegraph is used by the club is as a mouthpiece to downplay how much we have in the way of funding, presumably to try and seek a better deal for our targets

Continuing on the Qpr theme. Keeper Diang has now left for African Cup of Nations. And his replacement in his first game today looked as though he popped his shoulder saving the penalty which sent them through. Worrying for them.

Personally I'd have rather seen a much weaker side. Wet conditions will be tiring. Even if we don't pick up an injury it was an opportunity to rest some first team players. If we pick up an injury or two here it could derail our season. Any other season and yes. Go for it. Not this season.

All the more reason to keep Rangnick in charge. As at least it means the players aren't. It was clear from Solskjaer's demeanour that the players ran the club and he just tried to keep everybody happy. It kept the club ticking to an extent but meant there was always a glass ceiling as nobody was pushing the squad for that extra 5%. The culture among their players needs breaking up even if it damages results temporarily. All quite funny to watch though.

I know nothing about this guy apart from the YouTube video posted a couple of pages back. First impression. In the very first clip after galloping past a player he looked up and deftly chipped a perfect cross in. Something I've never seen Nyambe do. Next impression. Boy does he like a tackle. Then, geez he really does like a tackle. Then, bloody hell this bloke is a bit reckless. He looks like a red card waiting to happen in that video. Also made a great recovery challenge after being fast asleep at one point. Rapid as anything though and looks super strong. Essentially he looks physically very similar to Nyambe. Better going forward, but suspect defensively.