If Dack doesnt play pre Christmas which seems an overreaction then thats a huge blow.

Somewhat expected but not good news. We need him back as we only have one goal threat at the moment.

If Bennett plays in central midfield then we are in trouble. He is not a tough tackling defensive midfielder, he is a liability. Johnson is back training today so hopefully he will play. Failing that, we have Davenport.

He missed the first game, played the second in Lenihans absence, then got injured himself missing 4 games, came into a back 3 before being subbed after an hour v Milwall, didnt make the squad v Reading, then was sub for the next 3 games and only came back into the team upon another injury to Lenihan at QPR. Looking back, I wonder if and when he would have broke in had it not been for injury to Lenihan.

? bit slow today!

Yeah there seems to be imbalances which ever way we set up doesnt there. I am unconvinced that we have the mobility and energy in central midfield without Travis. I am not convinced for example that Johnson and Evans would compliment each other very well, Evans played with Downing I recall last season and there was not enough energy. When Holtby played in a midfield 2 last season, especially at Leeds (admittedly the toughest game) he was so poor, he kept giving the ball away. He needs 2 more working around him really. Getting him and Dack together will be tough. I just think with Dack and Armstrong, youd have to put probably both of them in unfamiliar positions to get them in a 4-3-3.

Dack is not a central midfielder either. If you move him too far away from the opposition goal he will not score with regularity as he does as a 10.

Does he?! Hes fast, hes tricky, hes skilful, hes very exciting but hes played a couple of cameos and an hour yesterday, I cant fathom how such a conclusion can have been made already.

Whiteman has become the new Maddison, the name wont go away but are we really gonna spend over 2m on a midfielder? I would be surprised (pleasantly) if Cunningham came back too.

Akinfenwa.

Yep, and ultimately both are solely promise at the moment rather than anything tangible.

It's not about asking to come off, even if there was a small risk, it was irresponsible to carry on and make it worse, especially as its an injury he has had problems with before.

He is a really poor pundit too. Kept forgetting players names!

Is it as black or white as that? Brereton took 2 players on and pulled a ball back for a goal v Doncaster which Armstrong couldnt finish first time, and Rankin Costello scored. A great bit of play but not an assist in the record books. Rankin Costello played a simple 5 yard pass and Johnson scored from 25 yards with a big goalkeeping error. I think the only real statistic that you can really treat with any objectivity is goals scored. Assists are of course important but in this instance, an assist isnt a straightforward assist. And of course, when you start looking at pass completions etc, they all need to be taken with a massive pinch of salt due to various factors, for example the style and quality of the side. Put Adarabioyo in Wycombes team and his pass success rate would be lower than Derrick Williams for us.

Breretons price tag in my opinion goes for him as much as it goes against him. Because of it, he has perhaps got more game time than his performances have warranted to date. Also, because people are so desperate for him to do well to justify the fee, if he does a nice run or something very small, people get more excited than if it was anyone else. The thing is, to warrant a place, he has to contribute goals. I don't think he will ever become prolific but he needs to at least chip in. Even if he gets 8-10 in a 46 game season, its not remarkable but if he is also is assisting, is taking people on, and Armstrong and Dack are the main 2 goalscorers getting the ma. It is infuriating to see him well outside the box when we have the ball near the oppositions goal. He cant continue to have reviews of, "went on a couple of nice runs but missed an open net," " went on a couple of nice runs but kicked out and got sent off," "went on a couple of nice runs but fell over the ball trying to take it round the keeper when gifted with a 1 on 1" and "went on a couple of nice runs but when the ball dropped to him he took too long and got tackled." I dont think he is capable out wide but his positioning and lack of bravery last night when he was played centrally was absolutely infuriating. In the 4-3-3 I do think that if he does play centrally we will be totally devoid of any goal threat. There is no way that it was a strategical ploy to have him stood so far away from the danger zone every single time. I dont think Dack would work as a number 9, then again, Gallagher out wide never worked and he continued to play it stubbornly!

I think that might be wishful thinking. I think that when Dack does return, he will go with Dack as a false 9, Armstrong left, Gallagher right, and then when that doesnt work, maybe revert back to 4-2-3-1, with Gallagher still wide.

Akinfenwa is injured I think but if we feared him in anyway, we may aswell pack it in now. Suspect he will be very much a parody figure in the Championship.

Is Dack back in full training, setback free? Was supposed to be in non contact training for 3 weeks.

I would say that there is very little in it in picking players to play alongside Armstrong in that front 3. We both put Gallagher straight back in our team and I know that neither of us are his biggest fan. I am also not a fan of judging players based on pre season friendlies, although there is plenty of credit to be shared based on ours. Chapman was excellent v Fleetwood and got a very good goal. Dolan impressed when he came on, putting in a great cross and also scoring after a blunder at Blackpool. Brereton got 2 lovely goals at Blackpool, he scored 2 in pre season last season v lower league opposition, the season gets underway and its back to runs that dont penetrate, ducking out of headers and standing 10 yards outside the box when players have the ball wide, offering no goal threat. Assists cant really be viewed black or white I suppose too, v Doncaster Brereton took 2 players on and pulled it back but because the initial shot was cleared off the line. Im sure you would agree that the work for that goal was more impressive than Rankin Costello playing a simple 5 yard pass before Johnson hits one from 25 yards that goes through the keepers hands. You say that Dolan "produced magic every time" which I think is again a little hyperbolic. He has been a refreshing bonus, and he should be part of the squad he has still a way to go to really push himself to the front of the queue, hes had 2 exciting cameos and one start, a near miss, a poor decision leading to an opponents goal, some step overs, but magic every time? i have seen demands of new 5 year deals, massive wage hikes (not from you) and lets take it one step at the time. I dont know about you but I think we need another player across that front line. I am not convinced between Rothwell, Dolan, Brereton, Rankin Costello, how much substance we will get from any of them this season. I am glad we have young talent, but I think there is a big burden on Armstrong, Dack who is yet to return and I fear may be shoved in a false 9 role that doesnt suit him, and Gallagher who himself has question marks over him, unless at least one of those 4 really has a breakthrough season and gets a few goals.

in 20 minutes Because you have a known dislike of Chapman for not being arsed when playing in the reserves, I think it clouds your judgement as to what consists of a chance. Giving him 20 minutes a couple of times every season isnt a fair chance really, we may aswell not bother at all. Fair play for the goal, the assist was very much a 5 yard square pass leading to a 25 yard shot so hardly warranting of massive praise. Like I said, I dont think he has been that effective, I am yet to see him impose himself much at senior level or demonstrate what his game is about. Hes a young lad, maybe a little overawed, in time hopefully that will change. To clarify, I don't think that Chapman is this unbelievable talent who will come in and make a massive difference. It is a judgement call really, 2 places in our front line are up for grabs at the moment. Armstrong is a very good player of course. Gallagher is average. Aside from that, Brereton, at the point now where a couple of tidy runs from deep and absolutely no goal threat is grounds for optimism, Rothwell, could play in CM or wide left but usually flatters to deceive, Dolan, perhaps as deserving as anyone although the unexpected nature of his first team inclusion has possibly garnered more excitement than maybe it warrants, although he looks bright for sure. As long as Armstrong plays, I am not really fussed about which 2 partner him, because no one stands out there really, none convince me at this stage that they will give us a cutting edge. And when Dack comes back, I suspect that the current 4-3-3 fad may have to come to an end.

Has to be a game that we win, the least difficult game we will face this season, Wycombe are a very limited team with a very direct style, their successful passing rate at the weekend was 30 odd % and we need to be getting a win to kick start our season. Kaminski Nyambe Lenihan Ayala Williams Buckley Evans Holtby Chapman Gallagher Armstrong Subs: Eastham, Rankin Costello, Wharton, Johnson, Rothwell, Dolan, Brereton Would give Ayala his first start, theoretically he shouldnt be overly worked. Williams not ideal at left back but better than Bell, Evans sitting in front of the back 4 and maybe a chance for Buckley who with Holtby could hopefully give us the craft to break down a side who will come for a point. Flip of a coin across the front line, maybe play Gallagher if he is fit with Armstrong coming from the left, Rankin Costello hasnt done enough for me to warrant a start in this game, maybe time to give Chapman a go. Still think we need another attacking player in this window.

Very disapointing but unsurprising.

Travis is going to be a big loss. Im surprised (well not actually) that journalists never questioned why he wasnt taken off earlier.

Lenihan was really average in central midfield when he played there for us, and wasnt really able to get a regular place there amidst some terrible players, Akpan etc. His attributes are far better suited to being a centre back, he is brave, he is good in the air but is really limited on the ball. We have seen in the last 2 seasons that when he starts at CB, we gain far more points and concede far less goals than when he is missing. He is far from perfect, he can be rash and he can make mistakes but we do far better with him in our defence than without and he could never pass the ball well enough even to be a more disruptive midfield player. I think that changes dependant on position though. A goalkeeper or a centre back having a quiet game doing very little is often a good sign. A more attacking player doing nothing is different and Rankin Costello didnt do anything productive. Agree that Bell was poor, not as mistake prone as on Saturday when his errors led to Bournemouth attacks, but his crossing was typically dismal.

Definitely a player of real promise, flair, skills, pace, very exciting from the very little that we have seen. Still think talk of 5 year deals, quadrupling his wages, its all a bit premature though.