He did ok at Southampton and Benfica both clubs had off field issues going on and i think he was seen as more of a troubleshooter at that point. Gets tarred with the stint at Liverpool and admits he made mistakes but they were a team going through a transition themselves. He still won the FA cup there. He was far from a bad manager but he was never going to be a stability plod along type it was all or nothing my way of the highway with Mr Souness. No wonder he can't be bothered with some of the characterless pampered shite these days.

He'll know people are questioning the signing i'm sure he browses social media it's almost like he's replying to this board at times. So he'll be trying to figure a way to shoehorn him in.

Always remember the BBE concourse bustling around pre games with anxious chatter and buzz then almost silence when Souness came on the tv screens. He really did stop everybody and make them listen i bet some of the dressing room motivational -and bollockings- was something to behold. One of if not THE fav all time Rovers manager of mine and my kind of guy. Even his time came to an end though.

For the past few seasons they was no real defense for him other than the fear of what comes next. Even those who'd had him living off promotion had had their fill with the crap he was coming out with last season. Now though there are many variables even beyond the fear factor of what might come next. The situation is more complicated than its been for the past few seasons.

We will not get a better right back in this league than Nyambe i'm amazed that opinion is still being trotted out. That doesn't mean he's perfect but who is in this division. I'd suggest that the club hasn't been keen on making him a good offer because all along TM has that position with JRC's name on it.

We'll start with nil and end with nil the key is if Derby do the same on not.

Under Mowbray i'd say very little chance of turning them over however the set of lads we have now would be up for it regardless. Sadly by the time we might play them half will be gone. I'd love to see Van Hecke in a dingle derby he'd revel in it.

Hes had heaps of praise this season from plenty who wanted him gone, me included. Win together, lose together and that includes him on both counts. The one thing that always losses him respect is his ability to totally absolve himself of any responsibility when things are going south. Players are missing chances, not his fault obviously. Players continue to be played in positions that don't really appear to get the best out of them, that's down to him. As is the Jan recruitment and lack of a central striker in the entire club. There is still hope however as when we win under him we tend to go on a little run so this latest death slide will end. Just hope it's soon and two or three wins follow.

Well them playing that guy at right back or wing back or whatever he was actually worked. Point us to when its worked here ? Maybe he's just a good player who knows what hes doing, that helps. Our bloody wing backs can't even play wing back half the time.

Non of who haven't contributed much to date. As someone else said i expect they'll all turn into world beaters when the beach is in sight and we are vying for a top ten finish.

Is Rothwell under instruction to do that though ? There isn't much space to run into when opposition sit back and pack the middle and 1st half yesterday there was more sideways passing from Rovers. Presumably to try and draw them out a bit but 2nd half Britol started pushing forward a bit more and Rothwell started having a few runs as it opened up a bit. Personally instead of just rotating around the front like praying something works i'd just try with swapping round Buckley and Rothwell. Let him get in where he can do some damage and by the same token Buckley is then in a position to try and make some good forward passes. Providing he isn't starting with Dack why not try that and think out of the box a little bit instead of same old same old that isn't working.

I very much doubt there is another manager in this league who would pay 5 million and 15k pwk for a forward like Gallagher only to use him the way he is here. Least of all a manager whose team scores one in 8 and still doesn't think we are missing a striker. Bizarre is too polite a word for it.

Hit them hard enough to rebound though and smashed that it. If you're going down the middle it should never ever be powder puff.

I think the Diaz saga will sadly become more about getting him fit and performing in the bigger shop window that is international football. If the promotion tilt continues to slip away it won't be long before TM starts saying he doesn't want to lose him in summer. Whilst virtually inviting bids in with every other next breath, it'll all start with the local rag blaming the player and his agent as per.

Gates have gone up 3 or 4k since first half of the season and yesterday was virtually all home fans. These little initiatives seem to add about 500/1000 tops although only around half of those will have been tempted. Other half will probably have been trapping up anyway. So walk ons have doubled in recent months and now they have a real ST deal needs hatching for next season. If they can't come up with something on the back of this season to get the figure to 10k and above again they need to feck off. Support is still there, not what it was pre venkys but 12/13k regular can be achieved if they price it right and keep having a real go on the pitch. Yesterday was frustrating and the end heartbreaking but it was still absorbing full on stuff in the 2nd half, that's what football is all about.

The Hedges saga had always looked odd it looks even odder now. Was it a case of get him in and on a contract asap in case we get potted in summer ? Why make such a fuss of signing a player you then don't want to play ? Similar to resigning the boro winger then freezing him out this looks. What's the betting he ends up loaned out next season.

Todays gate of 13500k including not many from Bristol was a respectable one. How long have you been going on Ewood ? You should know better, your recent self appointed attempt at club PR man needs to stop. You are to fan representation what Agnew was to club directorship.

Rothwell should never take a corner again they are abysmal. Sunday league lads with stinking hangovers hit better ones.

Time to parrot again but as said this morning about the rotating of the forwards nothing highlighted it more that it doesn't work than that first half. Disjointed rubbish all playing as individuals again and absolutely nothing in the middle and ..yet again..Buckley showing that although it worked for a brief spell he has no idea how to play that false 9. Of course the complete lack of striking options was there for all to see, the world didn't begin and end with Maja, no plan b there though. Upped the tempo second half and looked more like they wanted it, helped by brizzle fancying it on the counter. That opened things up for Khadra who was his usual good/bad/theatrical. The team then looked so much better and balanced when he went to a version of 442. Suddenly Gallagher is causing problems and we are pulling Bristol down both sides, on comes Dack. A man, even a half fit one actually in the box and the chances start flowing it seemed only a matter of time before one flew in. It did, in the wrong end as threatened all afternoon. Ball kindly falling to a guy who can finish (remember those). Don't want to hear any waffle about bad luck you make your own in games like that. We blew it and collectively they are going to blow this season.

The only really forced one apart from BBD missing is at right back. The attacking players have mostly all been available odd games aside but in standard fashion they are just being rotated around now. He even tells people in the press that he's doing it according to opposition yet it gets ignored by some, that approach is a hark back to previous seasons. This is Mowbrays plan B although it used to be plan A. Brereton Diaz missing has massively hampered us as it was always obvious it would but right behind that is the sheer lack of striking options in the entire club. Only one person is responsible for that. We still ended up recently with a midfielder at right wing back (forced) , a midfielder playing false 9/forward (unforced), a 6'4" forward playing wide left, sometimes right. And of course a left wing back playing right wing and the left or right footed wide forward or whatever he is sat on the bench. The one they've chased ages and made such a fuss of signing and made sure they ended paying a fee for him. Non of this is stick beating it is all fact, then people wonder why we aren't scoring.

His hand hasn't been forced with Giles or swapping around Dolan, Buckley, Khadra, Gallagher on the front line. Nor has it been forced to not use Hedges. I wish people would actually read posts as i did include the line 'where possible' in regards to unchanged. Surely even you can see that since there was a few forced changes we have crept back into last season territory of mumbo jumbo on the pitch. There is no balance nor fluidity in attack they are all playing like individuals again. I agree we all saw it coming, as we usually do but pity the manager is always ignorant to certain things. You can get further when the owners give you rare opportunity in a Jan window. It's how you chose to use it that is the key.

That is him all over and he's happy if it works once just so he can justify it. We've all been pleasantly surprised this season, shocked in fact with his sticking to the same team and system where possible. Holding off the rotation and keeping more square pegs in square holes its played a massive part in getting us where we were. Slowly though and predictably standard Tombola Tony has crept back in. The only thing keeping it together is the 3 center backs staying fit and the lack of options to rotate them.

He's a good one the best we've had for a decade but i don't think hes ever fallen into super keeper mode. Nowhere near the amount of clangers in him that Raya had though. The Fulham goal looking at it from his angle wasn't as easy as it first looked it took a little scuff up just in front of him. Yes he should have done better but keepers in general are taught to parry now. They don't take balls in like they used to probably on account of lighter balls nearly always having spin on them. On another day a defender toes it away but fair play to the Fulham lad, if only we had someone in the box alert enough !

Despite his good points one of the main issues with TM is he isn't pro active enough he's mostly always reactory. Whenever theres been chance to put the foot on the gas or do something bold in a window he has always taken the safe option. Then it's back to the old stability versus having a real go argument. We know were most inside Ewood are more comfortable to be, the risk v reward doesn't look like it's worth the hassle.

The real left wing back he has craved and the team has needed has now arrived, to play right wing. Fact is good as he can look hes neither scored nor created anything yet so to sum up we might assume he isn't in his correct position.