Over the course of the season Mulgrews defending has been much better than Lenihans, without factoring in his goal return. Mulgrew will rightfully be back in the team sooner rather than later although it would be folly to drop either Rodwell or Lenihan at the moment so the 2 options are to keep Rodwell and Lenihan together until theres a reason to bring our captain back in or bring him back as soon as he is fit and push Rodwell forward one alongside Travis. Changing formation would be a brainless move on the back of 3 wins to a formation that requires repetitive training and full committment to. And one that has never worked in the past.

Mowbray has continued to downplay him wherever possible. He described him as a comfort blanket last week, he said any new deal is "up in the air" too. He was far more complimentary towards Lenihan in this last week. I suspect either downplaying expectations of him signing a new deal or trying to keep his progress on the down low.

Lamberts tactics of playing out from the back ensured one of his own signings was hung out to dry.

Off the top of my head did he not get an assist v Scunthorpe at home last year for Graham? I think hes better defensively than offensively personally. Doesnt dive in like Bennett.

Whilst you are right that the primary focus of under age football is development. Winning is still important and as Stuart says, there is a balance there, get relegated and we spend a season with our younger players not being tested in the same way that they are now. I must say our future looks a lot rosier than even a month ago. Travis has come in and even those championing his inclusion long before it arose could not expect a novice to come in and be so consistently excellent. His least effective performances were v Sheff United and on Tuesday for me and even then he was 7 out of 10. Armstrong has really come to the fore in the last few weeks aswell. Big question marks around whether he could come close to replicating his incredible strike rate and performance level from last season in a league where he has previously struggled and bar the occasional performance (Leeds and Rotherham) he was again struggling and not contributing enough. This last week has seen 2 goals, 3 assists and 3 excellent performances. Lenihan was one I had big hopes for but his rashness and incapability on the ball seemed to suggest that he perhaps wasnt good enough to justify the potential we thought he had. His performances recently have been the Lenihan we saw last season and lets hope it was just a (quite lengthy) drop in form. Nuttall I had written off in terms of his capability to step up but he has impressed in the last week and with his recent numbers in the under 23s and he is a goalscorer, he can sniff out chances and is always on hand for tap ins. Needs a loan at some stage I would suspect but at the moment we cant afford to let him go. Nyambe and Raya both still have a rawness to their game but both are more established prospects. Rothwell is very raw but theres potential there and he was excellent yesterday. The elephant in the room is Brereton. Hes the one who cost the most who has shown the least sadly.

Disagree on your analysis on Nyambe. I think he is a good one on one defender and its his attacking play that has improved most over time. When he came into the team he was terrified of driving forward.

Its a formation that needs repetitive training on though, it has proved difficult to implement in the past and we should be loathe to change a system we have won 3 on the bounce with.

I think as a one on one defender, he often proves a liability with his tendency to dive in. Quite simply, he is not a right back and it shows with regularity. I dont like shoehorning players in unnatural positions, even if it is an attempt to bring in experience or keep certain characters in the team. We need to be far more ruthless if we want to progress. I dont want that to come across as a criticism of Bennett. Like I said, for me his versatility is considerably overestimated, possibly due to his character. He is a midfielder and should be played there unless theres an injury crisis. Playing anyone outside of their natural position makes it difficult to judge. So the question then becomes, does Bennett deserves a place in his natural position? Armstrongs place in the side is I would suggest pretty safe considering his excellent recent form. I also though Rothwell gave Mowbray something to really think about with a superb impact off the bench yesterday. That being said, Bennett has made 3 quality contributions to goals in the last couple of weeks, so for me Armstrong and Bennett would get the wide roles v Hull, with Rothwell as an impact sub breathing down their necks. Such has been our upturn in form, I would suggest something that may have seemed crazy a few weeks ago, that Reed may be the one to give way in the starting 11. He is far less effective wide and his form has dipped with seemingly fatigue catching up with him. Central midfield is an area we are particularly strong in at the moment. Travis is one of the first names on the team sheet and credit to Mowbray for resisting the temptation to put Smallwood back in. (who is right at the back of the queue now) Evans was tidy enough again yesterday and compliments Travis well, but if Mulgrew is fit I would be tempted to drop Evans as well as Reed to make way for Nyambe and Mulgrew, with Rodwell in midfield.

Do you honestly think that if Nyambe is fit, that Bennett is a better right back than him? Barnes is a quality winger but hes not the only one to give Bennett the run around. His tendency to dive in and always try and win the ball worries me, its more of an asset further forward because it can be incorporated into a high press and he has the safety net of a full back behind him. He did improve his goal contributions right at the start of the season if I recall. His assists v Hull and Brentford helped to get us crucial 1-0 wins but then for me it dried up to the point where his place in the team should not have been guaranteed. His lack of goals is a big criticism too, 2 goals in 18 months of mainly League 1 football is indiciative of a team overly reliant on Dack and Graham for its goals and we know he can score goals. Like I said, for me theres a element of picking his best/favourite 11 players rather than picking them in their right position. Even yesterday, it would have made more sense to start Nyambe, play Bennett in midfield where he is more comfortable, and drop Evans or Reed, the latter whom looks shot of his normal energy levels at the moment. You make that one change and you have 2 more square pegs in square holes.

Regarding Mulgrew, its a difficult situation. I dont think theres anyway that he could play as a left back or midfielder anymore, but its very difficult to leave our captain out. Lenihan and Rodwell have been superb keeping clean sheets but lets be fair, the 2 sides they have faced have been pretty toothless. That being said, they have still been outstanding. When Mulgrew comes back (any doubt and we have the freedom of being able to not rush him) I suspect that the best suggestion would be potentially to move Rodwell forward one alongside Travis.

I know theres a hint of sarcasm here but no one has said he "is shit" but hes somewhat of a liability at right back. The main reason for that is because hes not a right back! He dives in far too much, his positioning is suspect, even this year he was given a torrid time by Harvey Barnes, he played a suicidal pass across the face of his own goal at Newcastle, and god knows what he was trying letting the ball run back to Raya. I think that Mowbray overplays his versatility, for example he certainly cannot do a job as a left wing back as he was expected to play on Tuesday, but hes got a good attitude so he gives it his all which I admire but you need more than that. He should only play in midfield (if theres no alternative at right back then fair enough) and thus he should only get into the midfield on merit, and not be an automatic pick. If we want to progress, we need to be ruthless enough not to automatically start players solely on character. I have been criticial of his attacking contribution many times before, there have been spells when he hasnt assisted and his goals tally has been poor in the last year and a half, but in the last few weeks, there has been the cross at Newcastle and the pass yesterday as mentioned, as well as an excellent pass for Armstrong at Millwall. Therefore I would suggest he would be right up there in terms of picking the 2 wide men.

Lambert is a genius, sadly for you not in terms of management, but in terms of manipulating the media and speaking to convince people that the situation is entirely unmanagable, thats theres nothing he could have done, and to make people praise his "honesty." In retrospect, he did it perfectly here. The job he did was entirely underwhelming, the football was poor, his transfers were mixed, and he spent the whole time deflecting blame and complaining. We will never know if his demands were reasonable but he played a blinder. He knew Venkys were hated by the fans and he announced that he was leaving 2 games before the end of the season. Amidst the revolt towards the owners, Lambert left as popular as hed ever been for "standing up to the owners" after an uninspiring time in charge with his reputation intact. He then went on to manage Wolves, Stoke and now yourselves and his knack for blaming all the reasons under the sun (dodgy owners and lack of investment usually) have remained strong as results on the pitch have been poor. On paper, some of his signings are potentially good albeit risky, with Judge and Collins both good at this level but also massively injury prone. His win record is Hurst level poor, which is why I am amazed that he is seemingly so well liked down at Ipswich, especially with his Norwich connections. Watching your team today and the insistence to play it out from the back with Collins and Chambers was baffling, and Mowbray was right, if we hadnt have been so tired after Tuesday im sure we would have robbed them of the ball deep even more than we did. I get the feeling that Ipswich fans relationship with McCarthy as a person (telling fans to fuck off was for me very much giving what he got) has left them unwilling to accept how good a job he did amidst a backdrop of penny pinching and lack of investment. You have a big, tall team but for me it seems like your fans would rather try to play "attractive football" even if it means worse results. Judge on set pieces, no risks at the back and going long would seem to make more sense than the senseless tactics I saw today from your team.

I think both teams were miles better than any one else in the league of course. They undoubtedly deserved their title too as a league is won over 46 games, but to add a bit of context in terms of comparison, our adaptation period was far more traumatic to League 1, with their squad having far more experience of being there. It took a dozen games (and 4 losses) for us to settle into the league. Dack had niggly injuries, Graham wasnt fully fit, Lenihan had a long term injury, and Mowbray was struggling to settle on his best team, hence the likes of Caddis and Ward making regular appearances, with Samuel and Antonsson up front. I may have got my perception of last season a little muddled up but we was at one stage 12 points behind Wigan (and Shrewsbury) and made 9 of those up in the final 3 quarters of the season. I personally would take our team over theirs. It frustrates me when Mowbray feeds the suggestion that we are doing well for a promoted club as he did last week by calling us "a league one side." I feel like it was an over simplied (although I suppose unarguable!) statement on last seasons side alone with the likes of Mulgrew, Graham, Evans, Bennett etc all Championship players, not to mention Dack. But he had 10m to spend further in the summer so it is a negative reflection on him if he wishes to suggest that is the case. Most of that money was spent on someone who has not shown any signs of improving that squad. Palmer has already returned, Davenport is forever injured. Reed, Rodwell and Rothwell have improved our options to varying degrees. Armstrong obviously was here last season.

I dont think thats a decent barometer at all considering the difference in resources that the 3 clubs have. I think its a lazy, commonly used statement. Rotherham and Wigan dont have a mid table wage bill, they didnt have 10 million to spend in the summer either, far from it. To add meat to the bones, our season in League 1 was very much a one off, following a particularly catastrophic managerial appointment. We kept our key players, spent around 2m (Dack, Samuel, Bell, Gladwin, Hart) and once a sense of normality returned (Mowbray) and we got over the initial shock we romped to promotion. We then spent a further 10 million on more players in the summer. He also has the advantage of a Premier League standard academy (the likes of Raya, Lenihan, Nyambe and Travis all key members of our team) and within the financial restraints previous managers have had to deal with, high earning bits of quality have managed to be kept.(Evans, Graham, Mulgrew) Both Rotherham and Wigan had recent spells in League 1, and far less resources to invest in their squads. Thats not to downplay the progress we are making, or to suggest anything other than Mowbray is doing a good job. I just dont think thats a fair barometer.

It was intended to prove that it is far from impossible to improve a Championship side in the January window. For what its worth I feel that the majority of signings on that list would improve us. One or two are blatantly unrealistic (Casilla a prime example) but quite a few would have definitely been welcome additions. I suspect any budget may be minimal due to the Brereton deal.

Criticism of Bell is not due to people setting unrealisticly high standards of him. Defensively, he allows wide men to get crosses in far too easily, and is very half hearted in preventing them. Going forward, he is undoubtedly quick but is so reluctant to take full advantage of such an attribute, even when space opens up in front of him he very rarely does anything but pass it to the side or slow play down. Technically he is very poor and on the occasions that he does find himself in advanced positions, his crosses are almost universally poor. He was much improved in the second half (untested defensively but more prominent on the ball) and put in a teasing ball at the end of the first half but in general we do need better and he is the weak link in our team.

For me the right back role is an easy decision, we only have one natural there! As you say, Bennett is being shoehorned in. He should be in midfield or on the bench. Great pass but never a right back. Rodwell is a conundrum. Mulgrew has to play, Rodwell and Travis would be an interesting combination ahead of them. Its Travis AND another for sure...

Yes. Villa have spent 7m on a Croatian international keeper in Lovre Kalinic and Leeds have brought in Real Madrid sub keeper Kiko Casilla, 2 teams that desperately needed improvement in that position. Boro have signed Rajiv Van La Parra on loan, a proven quick winger at this level, and Millwall have signed Ben Marshall, 2 wingers with proven track records in a position we need that I would have liked to see sign here. Ipswichs signings have been hit and miss with crap like Keane, Elder and Dawkins, but also James Collins, Alan Judge and Colin Quaner, 3 players who undoubtedly improve the spine of their team, albeit with the rest of the team its pissing in the wind. Bristol City have signed Kasey Palmer on loan who has had an impact straight away there, gettin g the winner last weekend. Preston were desperately in need of bodies, 2 of their new signings in Potts and Stockley had a big impact in a very impressive win today. 2 very impressive players in the lower leagues. Sheffield United have added Dowell from Everton and Gary Madine to give them more attacking options in their promotion push. Wigan have signed Anthony Pilkington who was crucial in their win v Villa last week, and West Broms signing of Holgate is a very shrewd one. Of course its always difficult to sign the right players, January is a particularly difficult month. But that is no excuse, I've given plenty of proof that potential improvements ARE out there and we CAN improve the squad if we have the finance and also if Mowbray is shrewd enough. I suspect that spending 7m on one player who has started one league game and has yet to score is always going to cause major strain on the budget. Maybe the pot is dry. We need at least a left back and a winger to come in. Theres a squad with a core of vital experience and a growing pocket of talented younger players supplementing them, but there is weakness within the side that needs addressing for us to really kick on.

Good win v a terrible team whose fans derided McCarthys style and love Lambert despite naively trying to get Collins and Chambers to play the ball out, with horrendous results, but hey he did pay for away travel! First half performance was shocking by us, constantly lumping it and playing it into their hands (or heads) with a total lack of energy after Tuesday, Second half we played it on the ground more and were far better and deserved to win. Our obvious weakness is at full back, Bell did improve second half to be fair and Bennett did fire a wonderful pass in the build up to the second goal, but his indecision nearly cost us one in a mix up with Raya, and I feel like Nyambes exclusion is unfair solely to shoehorn Bennett in somewhere. Centre backs were very impressive. Lenihans distribution at times was poor but he is a warrior, and Rodwell was superb. Big conundrum when Mulgrew returns, I'd personally consider Rodwell and Travis in central midfield which would have a good blend of tenacity and composure. Deserves a longer deal. Moving on to Travis, he again was outstanding, his energy, composure and desire to look forward make him an automatic pick for me. Evans was pretty tidy alongside him, Reed wasnt that good and looks fatigued to me. Armstrong was pretty quiet first half but in the second half he was unplayable. His pace and directness are now being coupled with more of an end product. Glad to see him coming to the table after a poor start to the season. Dack had a quiet game, should have done better with his chance in the first half, but a couple of bits of quality in the second almost leading to goals. Graham nullified by counter-productive tactics but ice cool from the spot. Subs had a big impact too. Rothwell was much improved, he was a constant threat and deserved that goal when his shot hit the post. Nuttall has to be ahead of Brereton now, his game is far from complete but he has a knack of being in the right place at the right time. Still think we need 2 or 3 additions, something else going forward (a wide man) and a left back are definites, and the play offs will be beyond us IMO but green shoots showing in the last couple of weeks, the form of the likes of Travis and Armstrong being very promising looking forward.

Certainly needs to be more drive in terms of continiously signing players to improve. Dishing out contracts to the likes of Williams and Smallwood as "rewards" for promotion is totally sending out the wrong message. I agree on Bennett and Smallwood too. Mowbray overstates Bennetts versatility as he has shown really that he cannot play as a right back, and I'm even more sure that he cannot play left wing back. He is a midfielder, and one who should be chosen on merit dependant on form etc rather than at the moment where he is one of the first names on the team sheet, with the form and availability of the others chosen to pick the team determining where he actually plays! Both Bennett and Smallwood have parts to play going forward and are very good to have around due to their characters, their experience and the trust Mowbray has in them but if they remain automatic picks regardless then we will struggle to progress much further in the near future.

Whilst obviously mentality plays a key role and shocks can happen, there is no reason not to be frustrated, annoyed and dissappointed at anything other than 3 points tomorrow. You need to be targetting no less than maximum points when playing bottom of the league at home in any league. You mention the unpredictability of the league and you are right but there is plenty of crap near the bottom, of which Ipswich are bottom of.

The thing is, there isnt quantitative data as to how much the scheme of offering surcharges makes or loses the club because we dont know how many other people have decided against attending due to the raised price on the day. Saying x people still pay the surcharge therefore it isnt putting people off is factually incorrect, it doesnt prove anything as no one has argued that the surcharge has or will cause a total absence of matchday sales. The whole "we like to know in advance how many people are going" argument goes in the face of any sort of desire to get as many people in the ground as possible, and makes it seem like loads of people deciding last minute (which in many occasions will be the case) is an inconvenience rather than a bonus. I dont really get the argument that it is "fleecing" fans as obviously if people are willing to pay extra theyd be stupid not to charge it in a way. The whole crux of the argument centralises around those people who are offput on the day by the increase, not around those who do still go in spite of it. It also doesnt justify it that other clubs also charge it. I find their policy equally as puzzling, except I dont really care as it doesnt affect us.

Whilst I do agree that he can perhaps consider himself unfortunate not to have played more minutes, especially considering the alternatives. And I do agree that we are sadly short of flair and creativity. I remain unconcinced that Rothwell is the answer at the moment. You compare him to Brereton and you can at least see raw ability, hes quick and he can beat people, theres definitely something there. But hes yet to be sculpted into a particular position, ive read that he sees himself as a central midfielder but id never trust him there, he needs to be in the final third where his risks are more likely to be rewarded rather than cost us going the other way. But the more hes played, the less convinced I become. Im not too sure hes had a particularly positive impact in admittedly mainly cameos, hes yet to score or assist (unlike Palmer who was derided in comparison) and hes just continiously run into blind alleys, often in dangerous areas. The Sheff United game was a prime example of why I can understand Mowbrays distrust.

Not necessarily true. We have conceded 18 goals in the last 15 minutes of games according to Sky and are right up there in the points thrown away table.

Good, constructive argument.