roversfan99

We had to change formation anyway, we should never have played 5 at the back in the first place. Ribeiro is not a wing back either.

But equally, how can anyone say he offers a goal threat. You could say Aynslea Pears offers a gosl threat but just has never been played in attack to prove it. Carter at right back is a big no. Proven in the past he cant play there.

Unsure whats worse. Michalski, Dunn and Tyjon all thrown in or starting with 10 men.

They seemingly arent doing that well in qualifying but im sure they will qualify and as the World Cup is over a year away form means nothing. Palmer, Foden and Bellingham have all been out of form but no worries there. But it doesnt require this narrative of England being unfairly perceived in comparison. I just think on paper they look strong all over. Alisson is a brilliant keeper, Gabriel is one of the best defenders around at the moment and Marquinhos is still a top defender. Bruno is one of the best midfielders doing what he does and its not just Vinicius in attack, him, Rodrygo and Raphinha are all top players and then youve got the likes of Cunha, Joao Pedro, Savinho etc around that.

Rankin Costello has 6 career league goals. Possibly deserves a start but not sure of much goal threat.

I think France, Spain and Brazil are the obvious 3 but obviously a long way away. The tournament is a farce with the increase in teams.

Archie Gray is a midfielder really but either way, we have always had promising players. But at the moment we feel like we are inbetween teams/generations. We have in recent years been built on a base of experienced defenders like Stones, Walker and to a lesser extent Shaw and Trippier but all of them seem to be past their best and/or unable to cope with the rigours of top level football anymore. They leave big voids and those wanting to take over are nowhere near that level yet. We still have some quality attackers but they all seem to want to play in the same position.

I suspect we will never fully agree, Hall is promising but its premature to say hes the complete full back, Guehi is a good Premier League centre back but nothing special and Konsa, meh. James has barely played for years and Stones was key but is unfortunately yesterdays man. Our defence has never been brilliant but its an area in decline and where we are in between generations with Stones no longer capable of regular top level football, Walker slowing down which for a player reliant on pace is trouble, Shaw a total write off and Trippier well below previous levels and no longer an option anyway. We lack options in central midfield hence Henderson being even a consideration and our attack is where all of our quality is but weve seen before that there is no balance to it so you are left reliant on individual moments. International tournaments though arent like a league where the best teams win as you touch on with Argentina. A fortunate draw as we repeatedly have had can see you go much further and alternatively a bad one can see you heading home early. One bad day and you are done. Sometimes you can grind yourself through without having the best overall team so that has to be the hope. When we have come up against good teams in the past we have fallen short and I think our available options now with certain players on the decline we dont look as strong as we have in the past.

You would say that as you have the chaddy style blinkers regarding England. A defence of say Trent Konsa Guehi and Hall is nowhere near a top level one. We have some very good attacking options but they mainly all want to play in that same area just off the striker. And Kane is included in that.

Right across the defence. Left back and centre back are particlarly weak especially with Stones so much on the decline physically and obviously Luke Shaw is a busted flush. Trent is the stand out right back but in a solid Liverpool side, theres less exposure defensively which is where he struggles. Central midfield we are again lacking in options especially ones to sit in. Most of our top attacking players want to all play in the same area. There is obviously some real quality in there but you are stuck either trying to force too many in or dropping some to bring in good players rather than top players but to add more balance.

Its a terrible squad but I suppose it doesnt really matter. We would beat these upcoming teams if we only selected from the Championship. And in terms of the World Cup, England look well short in a few areas so wont or shouldnt be one of the main favourites.

He couldnt buy a win. Most people praise managers when they get good results and criticise when they get bad ones. You defend regardless of results when in employment and criticise when they go.

Last season the results were shit. This season, very good.

I dont think its just an inability to deal with pressure, although that is part of it. A lack of quality and depth is as big a factor as any. We put a few wins together in the first half of the season when the squad is almost all fully fit, it was a 6 game spell this season, a 6 game spell under Mowbray and 4 under Tomasson. But in each season, the squad has been thin in quality and symptomatic of a tiny budget. That initial run of form does some heavy lifting for a while but eventually a prolonged second half of the season of bad results knocks us back away. I know you cant bring yourself to praise Eustace anymore but he was doing an excellent job to get this squad where it was.

Not a game that matters much to us, our play off "push" is in the bin, but very important to Cardiff. Hard to even see us winning this game.

Makes no difference who we appoint in recruitment. Theyll spend a window or two of cobbling together half a team on frees and loans and then move on.

So do you think Ismael got his team selection right or wrong? And do you think we WILL make the top 6? 4 wins in 16 suggests definitely not IMO. Limited squad but one that looked confused as to what it was supposed to do. One that lacked any sort of energy in the side and one that had little interest in attacking. Certainly wouldnt have started Sanderson or Forshaw. Cantwell too. Forget the back 5. Its hard to come up with 11 players at the moment.

We arent showing any fight for a play off place. But we are where we are because of a now departed manager getting so much out of a limited group and our best performers have predominantly been players already at the club. We dont know if Kargbo is good quality, hes barely played and is now out for the season. The other 2 have been average and both have suffered long goalless spells. The budget is what it is. A huge reason why we cant ever build a squad capable of sustaining a play off push over a whole season.

Why do we need behind the scenes footage of our recruitment? Its all about the players we can see. Most of them have been crap or totally pointless. I suppose the only question is how much of that is just down to the pathetic budget.

Any criticism of the manager for his ridiculously slow and negative team selection and tactics? Any chance of the play offs?

Fair play to Ismael. Hes making a shit squad of players look considerably worse than it actually is. Picked the slowest, most lethargic side imaginable against a vulnerable Stoke side with 3 wins in 23 before tonight. You look at the new signings. Forshaw, woeful. Sanderson, shite. Cantwell, shite. Ribeiro and Gueye, bang average. Some recruitment but you get what you pay for.

That team is not a pleasant read. Sanderson, Forshaw and a back 5? Such a slow team too. Lets hope its genius.

Grim.

Interviews like that mean nothing in that regard, even if you are a body language expert. But how anyone could come to the conclusion that he ISNT happy with him based on one bad performance, considering he has had a very good season under him before is utter rubbish.