Stuart

We’ve got no shape whatsoever.

Our hearts just are not in this.

Sorry bud. Yep, we are just that bad. Rotation worked in L1 because our squad was just that much better than everyone else. This division needs players to get into a rhythm and generate momentum. (Ideally a winning momentum rather than a death spiral one of course).

Embarrassing

Genuinely feel like our young lads who have come through in the last few years have all had spells out. As @Exiled_Rover said though it’s probably more to do with the squad in general though. Never mind we’re just softening them up for a pulling in the second half. Will finish 3-0, you can stick a Mercer on that one.

I feel like there is a theme of players coming through the ranks and being injury prone.

Someone remind me how many international we have in today’s starting line up? We look as though we have played three games in the last week. Not to worry though, as they old adage goes: anyone can beat anyone in this division. With that in mind, I firmly believe that, today, we can be the pigeons rather than the statues.

You would be right, if you weren’t not. If the marketeers were right then we’d be selling shirts to every single Rovers fan. I’ve not bought one for years because they are so badly designed.

Because?

Couldn’t disagree more. That’s not the real world of football, it’s the fake and reality-removed world of marketing and why Rovers shirts are always being sold off cheaply at the end of each season, while we end up with fewer fans and unable to afford to pay for the basics. It’s the same reason I shake my head when people say football is a business. In both cases, making money is a byproduct of the football and the connection fans have to their club, not the main aim. We don’t support Blackburn Rovers Football and Athletic Ltd, we support Blackburn Rovers Football Club. Forget that at your peril. You and Waggott.

What a ridiculous notion calling football fans “end users”.

Is the person with the massive sense of humour failure who is deleting posts this morning?

You can bet your neck Armstrong will win it.

Yes. But more likely split over two or three players.

Interesting observation. Maybe Armstrong needs to go first...?

Astonishing really. Don’t they know the rules? Rovers have one win in 12 and “the club and owners still [have] every faith in his management” and at least one cheerleader pleading for “caution” in any decision. At least “morale remains high”. And that while that one win Preston had in their last nine was against Huddersfield, their previous win, ten games ago? Yes, you guessed it, Neil out-witted Tony Mowbray.

Well spotted. Now corrected.

I’ve never said whether he is a bad egg. I’ve no idea one way or the other. However we look more like a team when he doesn’t play. If you can’t see that then I don’t know what to tell you. From your post I also have to infer that you think when Armstrong leaves we won’t score any goals - even if Mowbray leaves. That’s a ridiculous notion. ”Without his goals we’d be...” is the “if my auntie had balls...” argument. If Mowbray had played another player in that same role, sticking by him through several barren spells, and just told them to shoot we would have done similar. Armstrong is a decent striker but hugely over-rated. He is the only player who has been given a consistent role in the side with freedom to shoot and without defensive responsibilities, and his ‘competition’ have been marginalised as wingers in favour of him. It’s no wonder he has looked good. We are where we are because of Mowbray being useless at setting up a team to win football matches, and his obsession with a possession-based style that champions backwards and sideways passing over more effective options. Since the start of February our record has been W1D4L7. Armstrong played in 8 of those games, 6 of those being defeats. He scored twice, out of five goals total. Without him we have 2 draws and a win from 4 games, scoring four. We have avoided relegation because of a great start to the season with some very high scoring wins and a purple patch in January. We have 12 other goal scorers this season, 7 of whom have scored three or more. Given a the chance and support that Arma has none of them could have scored as many? We could equally argue that without Elliott’s ten assists we would be in the relegation places. For comparison (shots per goal - on or off target) : Dack 4.33 Elliott 4.40 Dolan 5.00 Gallagher 5.17 Armstrong 5.58 Rothwell 6.67 Brereton 8.20 Bear in mind he is front and centre and takes our penalties (four in league games, without which his ratio drops to 6.80). Out of interest, what evidence is there that with someone else playing in that role instead of Armstrong we won’t score goals?

It’s a fallacy Tony. The way we set up is form Armstrong to shoot at every opportunity. His strike rate isn’t actually that great. We have the players to create chances and score but need a manager to get the best out of them. Our Achilles heel is not scoring ability but a a lack of consistency at the back - largely due to lots of chopping and changing. Nyambe having to make way for Bennett and then JRC for example.

When we are in the bottom three and six points from safety.

So be it? What is going to change by the end of the season? The target this year was the play-offs, Mowbray said as much. Apart from Warren Lucy, everyone knows that we’ve already missed that one. We are not yet safe from relegation. However, if we do ‘survive’ then is that a success? Does that change the judgement? The fact that we are even potentially involved in a relegation debate with 8 games left is utterly damning of Mowbray. But maybe that is all Mowbray needs to do to be allowed to continue. Sadly, our judgment doesn’t count for anything. Our judgment is a mere annoyance. The international break is the last chance to get in a new manager to allow any kind of assessment before the end of the season. However, our CEO is far more concerned about “upgrading the academy” than the short term future of the first team. We are on a journey and in four years we will be as good as Brentford. Although curiously an academy is not in Brentford’s planning so how can it be in ours? Mowbray needs to go, and he needs to go now. I guess it isn’t mathematically impossible for us to make the play-offs but in two games time it probably will be. Will that be the time? I’m going to say no. I suspect that not being in the relegation places is more important than not being in the play-offs. Which suggests that a loss-making Championship side is the height of Venkys ambitions.

Just remind me... these are his players that he is calling kids [who aren’t good enough] right? As Tom points out he has spent a lot of money on two players and a better manager could have brought in four or five better ones. At least better after some proper coaching.

It’s almost like tall lads shouldn’t be on the wing. 🤷🏻‍♂️

Don’t beat yourself up. He’s going nowhere even if we were to lose 10-1.

Gally!