Yes, undoubtedly a poor spell of results.10 points from 10 games since the World Cup, 9 games if you go from Norwich away when I think we started playing 4231. And the aforementioned slip down the table. Around 1 point a game is bottom of the table fare. Im talking specifically about your strange justification that because Tomasson has stuck with 4231 recently, that no changes should be considered. Our recent run of results has been factually crap, as have performances which is subjective but most would agree. I am not even saying that we definitely should change formation. But change in general must be considered because our recent results using this formation have been shite.

Why would people who spend so much time and presumably money supporting Rovers take pleasure in us struggling? Never made any sense.

As @bluebruce sums up better than me, some of them are really stretching it. For a start, Clarkson went back in January and Poveda got injured before that, so we havent lost those 2 AND say Giles and Zeefuik because we only ever had 2 of them at a time available, although all 4 were ineffectual squad players anyway. Davenport barely ever played and Johnson was past it. The number of loanees going back will be no different to last season, indeed Morton, Mola and Hirst (who obviously has already gone) again wont be missed, Thomas might be. Lenihan and Nyambe have been successfully replaced with new replaements. Venkys prevented us from replacing Rothwell in January which made things harder and the choice to buy Szmodics and move Buckley has not worked out but that is not to do with what was left. Kaminski, Pickering, Wharton, Brereton, Buckley, Travis and Gallagher were all regulars, Dolan played very regularly too and Dack would have if not for injured. It is most of the side that finished 8th.

Was it a shambles of a squad, considering that the majority of it finished 8th? And has the work done in the transfer market this season (more than 50% being loans) any different an approach?

Yeah, why would you even consider a change after a poor spell of results and performances that have seen us slip from 3rd to 8th?!

Presuming Wharton and Rankin Costello are injured, if not I would probably keep Rankin Costello in. Wharton played well last night bar one lapse so he could feel hard done by. Pears Brittain Carter Hyam Pickering Travis A Wharton Thomas Dack Dolan Brereton

I always felt that relegation was never a realistic prediction personally, the majority of the side finished 8th last season. I have assumed that Rankin Costello is injured for a bit, otherwise he can alternate with Thomas. The wingers at the moment are playing like second full backs so im not sure they could end up with any more defensive responsibility. It was just an idea to try and change things up a bit. Your logic that Tomasson has stuck with it since Christmas would only make sense if our results have been good during that time, and they havent, nor have performances, so change should at least be considered, whether that is a new formation or at least tweaks within it.

I'm sure the delay is down to the EFL thinking about streaming matches in years to come.

In which time, we have lost more league games than we have won, winning only twice. I personally think that 4-2-3-1 can work with various tweaks (notably Brereton and Dack being the main 2 attackers with the formation often leaving the wingers working back) but I am not sure that the fact that Tomasson has stuck with it since Christmas is justification of its success. I do wonder if something like this could work: Pears Carter Hyam Wharton Thomas Travis A Wharton Pickering Dack Dolan Brereton Brereton closer to goal as a third attacking player and an extra centre back giving Thomas in particular more license to push on.

I don't think there is much in Dolan and Hedges but I would be happy to see the same 4 attackers start with a change of positions between Dolan and Brereton. It won't happen but I would like to try it. Thomas started taking Townsend on last night and having Brereton in the box would be a much better target for his crosses.

I think Dolan wide and Brereton would make more sense, we have no presence up front and Dolan is at his best running at players out wide.

He has shaken his head pretty much everytime he has been subbed, always followed by a hand shake with the manager. So hardly a full case of throwing his toys out of the pram, he is clearly happy to be back playing and wants to play longer. I don't think its a poor reflection of him as a person or as a leader. He quite visibly is a leader on the pitch and has been the one functioning member of an otherwise dysfunctioning attack since the World Cup, not only with his goals but with him having the ability to play one touch passes and flicks in dangerous areas that Szmodics is simply not capable of doing. We started the second half pretty well but once him and Thomas went off, we were shite.

He offers no goal threat and does his best work in wide areas. We have a big, strong and quick attacking player who can run in behind, who can pick up goalscoring positions, who can bring others into play and does offer a presence in the box. He has spent the last couple of months spending most of his time defending, miles away from goal. He hasn't played there very often but in the absence of other options, it surely is worth a go.

Even if the appeals succeeds, surely that extra week would only mean missing the QPR game as he would be cup tied for the Leicester game?

Dolan was ineffective as a number 9, he is not a striker in a million years. Most number 9's don't have to put the word "pressing" in front of it to justify their place. He is better out wide, he doesn't hold the ball up, he doesn't really run in behind and he doesn't offer a goal threat or a presence when we get the ball wide. He is at his best fronting up full backs and getting past them. Broughton fucked up both in the summer and in January regarding a striker so I don't doubt that our options are not as they should be, but Dolan and Vale cannot be the main 2 options. Brereton and Gallagher should be. You can't be entertained by Tomasson's Rovers, surely? The double sub on the hour seemed pre-planned to me and with no flexibility to how the game was going. I suppose we have to try and justify the outlay on Szmodics but he is such a downgrade on Dack who also came off with 15 to go at the weekend. Thomas was just starting to really test the full back and like Dack seemed unhappy to have to go off. The double change massively weakened us after we had started to look threatening, poor changes by the manager.

He made about 10 mistakes in his last season either. My point is that his development started to show properly in his second season after leaving.

Definitely audible booing and "you dont know what youre doing" when Dack went off.

Raya was far from the goalkeeper we see today when he was here, he made so many mistakes in that final season and the Kaminski we have had is far superior to the Raya we had. Even in his first season at Brentford he made a number of errors including 2 off the top of my head from a backpass from the halfway line and also the one in the play off final. He has since gone from strength to strength and there was talk of a Spanish goalkeeping coach there that they had/have that was part of his desire to go in the first place. That being said, how sure some people are that Lowe and Benson are terrible coaches has always been a little curious. Maybe it is the frustration that they seem immovable therefore it is not necessarily a case of managers wanting them but they would have to either way? Remember part of the rumoured reason that put Carvalhal off. Or an association with Mowbray (even though he too inherited them) with some seemingly unable to let their hatred of him wane?

Two solid points away from home that showed spirit above anything else. A great feeling to actually come back for the first time in the league under Tomasson even if it was off the back of a non existent response to their goal until their keeper chucked one in. Defensively showed a lot of character, the 3 centre backs all did well as did the full backs, with Pickering man of the match IMO. Pears was very good too, great save after a very decisive punch prior. Morton invisible until superb work for West Brom to help them score. A rubbish signing who plays regardless of form. Travis was impressively fighting a midfield battle alone and looks back to himself. Going forward it still isnt't right. Dolan is not a striker and never will be, Brereton was our main threat but coming from so deep and wide he is mainly left with pot shots, yet not even temporarily do they change around. The subs hindered us and I can only imagine were pre-determined. Szmodics is an expensive downgrade on Dack and Thomas was really starting to cause problems before getting hooked. Gallagher barely had a kick in his short cameo. These 2 points are good ones if we collect the next 6 points, if not then they are of little use.

If he does rate Morton then I'd question his judgement. Annoyed at the selection of Brereton? I don't think Buckley is great in central midfield but it is hardly a crazy conspiracy. Such clauses are regular I think in loans and I just dont rate him so just a theory.

Don't get the Morton selection so I can only assume the potential financial penalties are deemed not worth it. Potential for a good front 4 but only with Brereton down the middle, not in front of Pickering. Long night if he is.

I wonder if any clubs in the league have lost to as many of that group as we have, 4? Typical Rovers!

He most likely will do what most do and see a long contract and no sense of accountability from his superiors and carry on regardless.

Like Jon Dahl Tomasson's echo! We went into the international break with people very content as to our league position, but very few people were convinced about performances and the assumption/hope was that a month with the players would allow him to get his style across and it would push us on. Since from an attacking perspective, we have been miles worse even than before and we struggled even in the first few months to create many chances.

Again I take your point about how the club is run, and couldn't agree more. I would also take your point on Mowbray having built the squad, it isn't an overall "who is the better manager" debate or an insuation that Mowbray always had the perfect balance, I am just showing that the attacking players we have are capable of creating more chances that they currently are, of scoring more than they are at the moment and of being more entertaining. Not with wreckless abandonment, but we have the players to be more threatening than they are, and more potent than some of the teams I have mentioned. Tomasson also has Dack back fit, he has Hedges following a 6 month settling in period, he has Szmodics and had Hirst who he as far as we know he has agreed on the signings of. We have also become far less threatening after the manager had a full month with the players to work on things. That has to be a huge concern.