Bell has started well ... feels like I've found a new appreciation for him after Douglas. 

Brereton has the laziest first touch I've ever seen. Miscontrolled the ball multiple times in the first 5 minutes already.

That team looks comically unbalanced! I guess it's the best we can muster right now. 

Good to see Trav back... I must have missed the news about him because I wasn't expecting him back and in the starting 11.

5 hours ago, jim mk2 said:

If body language spoke volumes then watching Mowbray on the bench tonight you'd have to say he would probably resign in the morning (he won't of course).

His facial expressions were that of a man who hadn't a clue what was going on or how or why his team were playing so badly. I'm sure he was wound up inside but on the surface there was no passion whatsoever. Spitting every few minutes doesn't count I'm afraid.

Two defeats in the next 2 matches and I would say Tony's position would be untenable. 

 

There was a moment last night where the camera panned to him and he was sitting on the bench picking his ear.

Thought that summed it up perfectly. 

That was the last straw for me personally. We needed to win both of these next 2 games to have a chance of staying on target. Losing this one means it’s all over for this season (IMO), even if we pick up some form later in the season.

I said a few days ago that we need to be working to targets and TM has missed them now for me. I don’t think he will go this season but we need to look elsewhere for next season.

It was really hard to watch today. We looked clueless.

We need to be amassing 1.5 points per game at the very minimum and looking towards a 50% win rate to really be challenging for promotion. We are not achieving that at the moment.

For me, we need to win the next 2 games. Anything less is grounds for dismissal. We’re going to have another season of mediocrity otherwise.

There have to be some real targets to work towards and if we’re not hitting them we need to look elsewhere.

That said, I am not convinced as a lot of people are that another manager will get significantly more out of this squad. There’s every chance we go the way of Ipswich after sacking McCarthy.

22 minutes ago, LDRover said:

Early in the season our first thought when getting the ball was to pass forward, now we go safe and look sideways.

If that's down to the players I question their bottle but also question the manager because he has to set the players' mindsets to being more positive. For me I think this change is led by the manager and his muddled thinking regarding possession stats. I've said it before and I'll say it again, dominating the ball is not the same as dominating the opposition.

I think one of our biggest problems last season was being caught out on the counter attack. I think our more cautious play is a result of trying to not over commit. Tbf, it's worked quite well. I don't think we've conceded many on the counter recently, we're just conceding stupid, sloppy goals.

I don't know how much Mowbray can do other than drop players like Douglas. It's hard to mitigate individual mistakes. His quotes above are spot on. Our defence goes to sleep for a second and Stoke score. Douglas heads the ball into Ayala and suddenly they are through and produce a great goal.

We have no way back imo. We were too good early in the season so teams now know to park the bus when they play us. It's exactly the type of strategy we used to employ under Allardyce. Often coming away with all 3 points.

We have shown in games we can beat the parked bus but we need to find a way to do it more frequently. My main gripes with Mowbray right now is that Douglas is shite and he's not getting enough out of Gally. We also need to be at least drawing with the teams above us if we can't find a way through. The amount of points dropped to playoff rivals is inexcusable.

What happened to Trybull? Not in the squad at all?

25 minutes ago, Ewood Ace said:

Your net spend is going back nearly 6 years to when Bowyer was manager. I said look at our net spend since we got back into the Championship and if you do I expect that we do have one of the highest ones of all the clubs that have been in the division for those 3 seasons as well. What makes our net spend positive during that 6 year period that you posted is because of the period where we sold the likes of Cairney, Rhodes, Gestede, Duffy, Hanley, Marshall and King. Whilst replacing them on the cheap with the likes of Guthire, Akpan, Delfouneso, Williams, Feeney, Stokes, Greer and Koita. 

Since Mowbray became manager we certainly have a negative net spend as unlike Bowyer and Coyle he hasn't seen his best players sold and he has been given funds that they could have only dreamed of to improve the squad on top of not losing his key players. 

Our net spend is in line with our current position.

4 minutes ago, Exiled in Toronto said:

Monumentally crap defending. Nyambe nowhere near his man for the throw and Rothwell, who is supposedly marking the scorer, isn’t watching either the ball or the man! He wouldn’t have beaten him in the air but should’ve impeded the run.

The worst thing about Nyambe is undoubtedly his marking. We’ve been in trouble many times this season and previous seasons due to Nyambe being in no mans land and leaving his player unmarked.

2 hours ago, tugayislegend said:

Gallagher can score goals if he is played as a number 9 and given the service.

Reason we signed is because he did so well for us in his loan spell. 

Watch this clip for a reminder:

TM is simply not getting the best out of him. It wouldn't hurt to let him play as the number 9 even if it is off the bench for the last 30 mins in a game.

Looked like he was playing with a smile on his face back then as well. He never looks happy now even when he scores.

I just don’t understand why TM doesn’t try changing it around now and then and move him central and Arma out wide. Elliott is playing out wide but he has no problems scoring right now. 

Nyambe off for Buckley lol

1 minute ago, booth said:

Why has he replaced the entire midfield?! Just Gallagher for Dolan would have done for now. Fecks sake.

He's taken off our 2 best passers when we're 1-0 down against one of the best defensive teams in the league - go figure.

Gallagher needs to come off half time. It's like playing with 10 men at the moment. He's not offering anything. 

We need a moment of magic to unlock the defence. Either need to get Dolan on, or give Chapman/Butterworth a chance. 

We're actually playing quite well against a very organised Stoke side that have kept 10 clean sheets this season. Things just aren't clicking all the way.

Trybull having his best game for us so far.

Douglas hits the post lol 

All these 'nearly' chances and 'nearly' passes are driving me insane. Can someone actually have a shot on target?

Take Douglas off now.

I think credit has to go to Mowbray because his subs changed the game around at the end of the day. Downing, Trybull and Holtby controlled the midfield when they came on and their passing and movement of the ball was far better than what we had. 

Buckley needs a loan to League One. He is just not up to the standard physically right now and it hurts us. With Dack and Travis to come back, and Downing now available, Buckley would fall down the pecking order anyway.

All in all, I was pleased with the win. I had a bit of a shit day, so to see us get a winner in the 98th minute felt really good!

That is unbelievable. Arma on 98 minutes...

Dolan coming on way too late now.

1 minute ago, jim mk2 said:

The deflected goal killed it for us. The players' heads were down after that

The deflected goal was a definite kick in the teeth, but the subs were the nail in the coffin. 

Lenihan was dreadful. He should have been kept out of the team after his red card. Ayala would not have let Pukki control the game as much as he did.

Just feeling disgusted right now. Those subs absolutely killed the game for us. Taking off 3 of your key players for 3 fringe players is outrageous.

Lenihan can absolutely fuck off as well. He should not have started ahead of Ayala. He has to be dropped for the next game.

Take a bow Harvey Elliott!!! What a run. What a goal.

3 minutes ago, Fraserkirky said:

Johnson and Douglas two of the slowest players in the championship surely 

I'm surprised at all the criticism for Johnson and Douglas. Thought Douglas one of the best players on the pitch with several great deliveries.  Johnson also controlling much of the midfield with several great challenges and passes out wide to Elliott.

Gally has been too quiet for me and also leaving Douglas exposed on the left flank. Elliott has looked good but he's picking the wrong decision too often. 

I think this might be a game for Buckley to have an impact in, as it feels like the right pass could unlock their defence and give us a goal. 

Douglas has put in about 4-5 great deliveries so far, but noone able to get on the end of it to finish. 

We really don't deserve to be losing this. Kaminski having a bit of a stinker today.