Painful first half. This squad are completely bereft of confidence to take a game on and be on the front foot. Three things are really costing us imo:
1. The continuous mix and match at centre half is failing to give us a solid platform 2. Magennis is so important to us and has completely lost his way as a goalscorer 3. We struggle to play 'any other way'
I only really dig the manager for the last one. Despite the shocking first half we had enough chances to win the game second half let alone draw. KAG and Aribo benefited from Gills playing deeper and both gave us impetus for the last twenty, but it was not to be.
Some things are awful, but equally things are not going for us at the mo
New Year, same old Charlton. Beyond dreadful in the first half. KR must take the blame, he won't change style of play, and seems to be rushing players back, just to get them even more badly injured. Reeves is one of the worst players ever to wear a Charlton shirt, and there's been a few. Hope the takeover is soon, we need a change in all personnel imo.
Lookman not playing or on subs bench for Everton tonight....did I read somewhere that someone said he was coming to us on loan?
Dunno where that rumour's come from, but he's comfortably good enough to go to a Championship club. Why on earth would he want to come and play for a mid-table league one side, and why would Everton want him to come here - hardly gonna help with his development?
If he signs for us I'll drive up to Sheffield and take Katrien out for dinner.
Even without all the shambles off the pitch, this kind of run would put far more capable managers under extreme pressure. I suspect our lack of appeal to anyone with a coaching certificate is the main reasons he remains firmly in situ.
I doubt Karl will change the line up for the next game afte we played better in the second half. First half was the worst again with players like Reeves and Marshall looking lightweight, Magennis getting zero service and Holmes trying to beat the whole Gillingham team. They should have been 3 up by half time were it not for a decent Amos one on one save from Eaves shot. Other than the Aribo goal it was all a bit despair aye towards the end Andrew had Aribo taken one of his chances first time instead of taking a touch the result might have been different. Fed up with Karl and I would not be sad to see him go.
Gillingham totally and utterly deserved to win that, they totally deserved to do the double over us, in every department of their team they were better than us, and they have several players who I wished played for us. It was not the referee, it was not a depleted squad, it was not in game injuries, it was Gillingham FC coming to the Valley and giving us a sound and proper beating. We were crap in the Southendish sense, and just like the Blackpool game it is once again on this occasion down to Karl Robinson. I have just got home, (aware of the Katrien stuff which I will bone up on in a minute) and made a mug of tea, so I don't know what other posters have said, and especially what Robinson has said, but he is on extremely thin ice with me, and if his reasons are poorly disguised excuses, with no credible suggested solutions I will probably shift from deeply pissed off to apoplectic, especially fuelled by having been to Southend United the other day. The problem this time seems to be a kind of managerial vanity. In the close season, and earlier in the season when the weather was warm and leaves only just beginning to change, when Robinson was talking of signings, he intimated in his cheeky schoolboyish grin kind of way that players would have to fight for their places. We even had the 'two players for each position' mantra. However he was secretly thinking that his two eager signings, Marshall and Reeves would blow competition for places out of the water in their positions, and he now feels he must play them come what may. Robinson if they don't deserve to get picked, don't blimmin well pick them! So Marshall and Reeves start today, with an iffy central defence to look after, and the fragile return of JFC. Yet Reeves is nowhere near form, and Marshall is not utilised well, but an improving KAG and Aribo are dropped. Why? because they're young and easy to drop? Because they weren't his signings. So we have Joe Aribo for one half today playing better in that time than all the last five Reeves performances put together with the bad bits taken out. At least Marshall indicated today that if his role is to get it wide and cross he has something to contribute, and it isn't Marshall's fault Fosu got injured, but you can bet your bottom dollar that if Marshall had been fit at the beginning of the season he would have started ahead of Fosu, but anybody can see that Fosu, the man of the mystery absence, is a better pick than Marshall. In terms of managerial acumen we at least went 442 for two minutes at the start of the second half, but even if Best had played on, the damage was done, and anyway KAG was decent enough, but by then Gillingham had the appropriate blue wall established and we had no chance whatsoever. I don't want to hear about injuries and fixture congestion, I don't want to hear about in for training at 4am tomorrow, I really don't want to hear any of the old cliches. I want ten wins in a row starting on Saturday. The best thing about today was I made a lovely bread pudding and shared it out around me and it was the dogs, as everybody agreed...mind you they would be too polite to say that actually it was more dogs arse than bollocks. The bollocks was on the pitch.
I doubt Karl will change the line up for the next game afte we played better in the second half.
This takes me back to the darkest days of Fraeye when we resorted to taking satisfaction when we won a half, regardless of the hammering we had taken (and goals shipped) in the other half.
We should have approached this the same way we approached the Wigan game. Robinson is not a good manager - he's average, at best.
Agree with the comments about the team (and club) coasting until we know who the owner is going to be.
However - with regret, I think we can forget about promotion this season.
You think we should approach a game away against the league leaders the same way we approach a bottom half team at home who’ve never beaten us here? I guess I can see why you might say that but blimey that’s a sad state of affairs.
First half was as poor as I can remember us playing, taking into account the opposition. Nothing in attack and outrageously slack defending.
I was surprised how much we improved in the second half. Going 4-4-2 and dropping Reeves obviously helped but individual players also got better - Sarr's distribution, Holmes' crossing, Marshall's crossing, Magennis putting himself about. How does that happen? Could've scraped a draw but didn't deserve to.
We weren't outstandingly good when we were winning and we are not exceptionally bad now we're losing. Upper-mid table is our level I reckon. I also think it will take more than another season to turn us into Championship material, takeover or not.
We keep setting the standard in terms of how to be utterly inadequate as a set of professional footballers. The first half was right up there with some of the worst performances ever farted out by a Charlton eleven. The second half wasn't much better.
The manager needs to take some blame, the main cause of this is the way the club has been run over the last 4 years but at some point the playing staff and management need to show up. The same lack of desire to win a challenge, win a first time ball, or to want to receive the ball were all missing which is unforgivable whatever level of football you play.
And a new low was watching one of our own fans lob a bottle of lager onto the pitch and hit Sarr. Now I've witnessed what our big brave stewards do to people who stand in the wrong seat or swear. So I found it incredible they didn't do a thing about that. Really shitty behaviour that was.
I just feel sorry for the young lads! Part of a great performance at Wigan on Friday and then dropped today for unfit players to come in! Aribo took his header brilliantly. One of Forster Caskeys biggest fans but didn’t see the need to bring him back in!
For as much as Sarr scares the living daylight out of me (and yes his defending was shocking for the goals) I really didn’t feel he deserved the abuse he got, he gives everything and is actually one of the only players who looks to be positive and go forward!
All in all, the first half was one of the worst charlton performances I have ever seen and by god did we pay for it!
I went today at the tail end of a nice holiday period expecting a post Wigan bounce on the pitch and a post Katrien bounce around the ground. But the latter was flat as a pancake with a poor crowd seemingly subdued despite the imminent hope of a change of regime. As for the former, I have to say that the first half performance, given the alleged caliblre of player we had on the pitch, was up there with the worst I have seen in my time at the Valley (and believe me I’ve seen some shyte!). Utterly devoid of passion, commitment, organisation or awareness. Torn apart by a mediocre, albeit organised Gillingham with a talented big lump at centre forward (oh how we need one of those!). I’ve never been closer to walking out at half time.
Second half better. A change of formation born of desperation rather than managerial naus. A rolling up of the sleeves from the Holmes and Marshallls and the subs stepping up to the plate (Best did more in his five minutes that Magennis did in his 96!) and the removal of the utterly pointless Reeves. But the inevitable defeat to a poor team from whom I’d only take one player (Eaves) on the face of it to replace what we have available in our squad.
This smacked loudly of a club in a vacuum. We know a change is imminent. So does Karl. So do the players. Our early season promise has long since evaporated. We’ve been unlucky with injuries but we were stinking the place out before they happened. We need to see the back of this odious regime before anything will change and it’s gonna take a while. I hated that today. It’s gonna be a long winter.
Absolutely terrible 1st half. In fact it started with the team selection. Play KAG up top where he can run the defence, play Aribo as a man on form and play Jacko for some leadership on the pitch. Magennis is becoming a waste of space and Reeves and JFC are not fit. Our central defence was dreadful. They were superb against Wigan but defenders need to be consistent. Much better 2nd half but can't expect to be as poor as we were in the 1st half and not get beaten.
reeves could be the reason the tide is turning against robinson. If he continues to play reeves like slade played ajose then he wont be here for much longer because you rarely win a game with ten players. His continual substitution of reeves is admission that he has not done what was asked of him. As others have said jackson, and aribo deserved a start. The first half angered everyone because the tactics were all wrong and defensively we were all over the place and he should not have started Lennon. There is no leader in the team other than JJ and it matters. Robinson needs to get the in form players to start games and not the ones he has hyped up. Marshal will be worth starting but why cant we play like the second half in the first half. Forget injuries Robinson has to admit that this loss was down to him. I have suspended my hope of play offs until next season. Such a shame.
New Year, same old Charlton. Beyond dreadful in the first half. KR must take the blame, he won't change style of play, and seems to be rushing players back, just to get them even more badly injured. Reeves is one of the worst players ever to wear a Charlton shirt, and there's been a few. Hope the takeover is soon, we need a change in all personnel imo.
You totally undermine your post when you write crap like this.
Reeves is obviously not one of the worst players to ever wear the shirt FFS.
Absolutely shocking first half "performance" which could have seen us three or four down.
Reeves non- existant, Lennon knackered, Sarr a liability, formation all wrong.
Reeves can go to Sheffield Wednesday or wherever. Just not good enough. I'd even have Danny show pony Green over him.
Why was JFC rushed back to get injured again when Aribo was on the bench? Another injury caused by bringing players back to soon like Fosu and how many more?
Second half a miracle occured. We went four, four f******* two and lo and behold it nearly got us a point.
It didn't but regardless, the team and players looked far more comfortable, Aribo gave us 10 times what Reeves had, Best looked sharp until injured (again) while KAGs pace gave us another option.
With two strikers the centre halves had to stay central so Marshall was often one on one so could get decent crosses in.
All the players looked happy with 442 and we were in their final third most of the time unlike with 4231 where we played in our own half or crossed from deep.
We were often wasteful and a good, well organised Gills team defended well.
Deserved win for them. Parker and Eves good forwards for this level and Zakini (spellings?) Solid at the back.
Former Charlton youth coach Steve Lovell doing a good job there. Echo of Foley and Nelson perhaps to come?
8 games without a win, closer to relegation than promotion, takeover coming? Pressure building on Robinson whether you rate him or not. Just win games.
Only reason we created chances in second half is because Gillingham withdrew knowing that with our powderpuff attack we would be unlikely to score two.
The sooner the new owners come in and have a complete clear out the better, the first half was embarrassing. Nobody had a clue how to deal with a journeyman centre forward.
Thought their second goal was about a yard offside but defensively we were poor. Sarr was not good, but Lennon was awful. Where was he for the first? And why didn't he at least make an effort at the ball for the second?
Genuine question, what are Harry Lennon's strengths? I know this is probably his fifth or sixth game in the last two years (he was dropped around this time two years ago and has been out almost the entire time since). But he was constantly outmuscled. He gets caught under the ball, and his heading is often poor. I know Sarr will be the scapegoat, but he's the one playing on his weaker side with a far inferior partner.
Another question, have we won since Bauer came out of the team?
Second half was the best football we've played in weeks if not months and the ball just wouldn't go in the net. Credit to Aribo and KAG for helping to change the game. Amidst a run of good form you'd chalk it up to being unlucky. But amongst our run of form it looks appalling.
We're still very much within touching distance of the playoff with half a season to go. The bigger issue is this run of poor performances, poor form, and lack of goals seems to be effecting the players, and it looks like they have the yips.
Last but not least, is Robinson good enough to reverse a slide? I am deeply worried he is not...
Neither Holmes nor Marshall were effective at all in the first half. Both improved in the second, with Holmes improving more than Marshall. Holmes to a 7 and Marshall to a 5.5 overall IMO.
@seth plum's bread pudding was indeed magnificent. It was a veritable oasis in the otherwise barren desert of watching Karl Robinson's Charlton Athletic.
Comments
Don't bring your political or personal grudges on to footie threads, Chips, nobody needs it. Especially after shit like today. Which I paid to watch.
1. The continuous mix and match at centre half is failing to give us a solid platform
2. Magennis is so important to us and has completely lost his way as a goalscorer
3. We struggle to play 'any other way'
I only really dig the manager for the last one. Despite the shocking first half we had enough chances to win the game second half let alone draw. KAG and Aribo benefited from Gills playing deeper and both gave us impetus for the last twenty, but it was not to be.
Some things are awful, but equally things are not going for us at the mo
If he signs for us I'll drive up to Sheffield and take Katrien out for dinner.
I doubt Karl will change the line up for the next game afte we played better in the second half. First half was the worst again with players like Reeves and Marshall looking lightweight, Magennis getting zero service and Holmes trying to beat the whole Gillingham team. They should have been 3 up by half time were it not for a decent Amos one on one save from Eaves shot. Other than the Aribo goal it was all a bit despair aye towards the end Andrew had Aribo taken one of his chances first time instead of taking a touch the result might have been different. Fed up with Karl and I would not be sad to see him go.
Gillingham totally and utterly deserved to win that, they totally deserved to do the double over us, in every department of their team they were better than us, and they have several players who I wished played for us. It was not the referee, it was not a depleted squad, it was not in game injuries, it was Gillingham FC coming to the Valley and giving us a sound and proper beating.
We were crap in the Southendish sense, and just like the Blackpool game it is once again on this occasion down to Karl Robinson.
I have just got home, (aware of the Katrien stuff which I will bone up on in a minute) and made a mug of tea, so I don't know what other posters have said, and especially what Robinson has said, but he is on extremely thin ice with me, and if his reasons are poorly disguised excuses, with no credible suggested solutions I will probably shift from deeply pissed off to apoplectic, especially fuelled by having been to Southend United the other day.
The problem this time seems to be a kind of managerial vanity.
In the close season, and earlier in the season when the weather was warm and leaves only just beginning to change, when Robinson was talking of signings, he intimated in his cheeky schoolboyish grin kind of way that players would have to fight for their places. We even had the 'two players for each position' mantra. However he was secretly thinking that his two eager signings, Marshall and Reeves would blow competition for places out of the water in their positions, and he now feels he must play them come what may. Robinson if they don't deserve to get picked, don't blimmin well pick them!
So Marshall and Reeves start today, with an iffy central defence to look after, and the fragile return of JFC. Yet Reeves is nowhere near form, and Marshall is not utilised well, but an improving KAG and Aribo are dropped. Why? because they're young and easy to drop? Because they weren't his signings.
So we have Joe Aribo for one half today playing better in that time than all the last five Reeves performances put together with the bad bits taken out. At least Marshall indicated today that if his role is to get it wide and cross he has something to contribute, and it isn't Marshall's fault Fosu got injured, but you can bet your bottom dollar that if Marshall had been fit at the beginning of the season he would have started ahead of Fosu, but anybody can see that Fosu, the man of the mystery absence, is a better pick than Marshall.
In terms of managerial acumen we at least went 442 for two minutes at the start of the second half, but even if Best had played on, the damage was done, and anyway KAG was decent enough, but by then Gillingham had the appropriate blue wall established and we had no chance whatsoever.
I don't want to hear about injuries and fixture congestion, I don't want to hear about in for training at 4am tomorrow, I really don't want to hear any of the old cliches. I want ten wins in a row starting on Saturday.
The best thing about today was I made a lovely bread pudding and shared it out around me and it was the dogs, as everybody agreed...mind you they would be too polite to say that actually it was more dogs arse than bollocks.
The bollocks was on the pitch.
Agree with the comments about the team (and club) coasting until we know who the owner is going to be.
However - with regret, I think we can forget about promotion this season.
It got to the point in the First-Half where EVERY ball was lumped out of Defence for Magennis to try and win
We shouldn't have to be doing that against Gillingham!!
We've got the quality within our Squad to beat some Championship teams let alone relegation battling League One teams!!
I was surprised how much we improved in the second half. Going 4-4-2 and dropping Reeves obviously helped but individual players also got better - Sarr's distribution, Holmes' crossing, Marshall's crossing, Magennis putting himself about. How does that happen? Could've scraped a draw but didn't deserve to.
We weren't outstandingly good when we were winning and we are not exceptionally bad now we're losing. Upper-mid table is our level I reckon. I also think it will take more than another season to turn us into Championship material, takeover or not.
The manager needs to take some blame, the main cause of this is the way the club has been run over the last 4 years but at some point the playing staff and management need to show up. The same lack of desire to win a challenge, win a first time ball, or to want to receive the ball were all missing which is unforgivable whatever level of football you play.
And a new low was watching one of our own fans lob a bottle of lager onto the pitch and hit Sarr. Now I've witnessed what our big brave stewards do to people who stand in the wrong seat or swear. So I found it incredible they didn't do a thing about that. Really shitty behaviour that was.
I just feel sorry for the young lads! Part of a great performance at Wigan on Friday and then dropped today for unfit players to come in! Aribo took his header brilliantly. One of Forster Caskeys biggest fans but didn’t see the need to bring him back in!
For as much as Sarr scares the living daylight out of me (and yes his defending was shocking for the goals) I really didn’t feel he deserved the abuse he got, he gives everything and is actually one of the only players who looks to be positive and go forward!
All in all, the first half was one of the worst charlton performances I have ever seen and by god did we pay for it!
Second half better. A change of formation born of desperation rather than managerial naus. A rolling up of the sleeves from the Holmes and Marshallls and the subs stepping up to the plate (Best did more in his five minutes that Magennis did in his 96!) and the removal of the utterly pointless Reeves. But the inevitable defeat to a poor team from whom I’d only take one player (Eaves) on the face of it to replace what we have available in our squad.
This smacked loudly of a club in a vacuum. We know a change is imminent. So does Karl. So do the players. Our early season promise has long since evaporated. We’ve been unlucky with injuries but we were stinking the place out before they happened. We need to see the back of this odious regime before anything will change and it’s gonna take a while. I hated that today. It’s gonna be a long winter.
Our central defence was dreadful. They were superb against Wigan but defenders need to be consistent.
Much better 2nd half but can't expect to be as poor as we were in the 1st half and not get beaten.
Reeves is obviously not one of the worst players to ever wear the shirt FFS.
Reeves non- existant, Lennon knackered, Sarr a liability, formation all wrong.
Reeves can go to Sheffield Wednesday or wherever. Just not good enough. I'd even have Danny show pony Green over him.
Why was JFC rushed back to get injured again when Aribo was on the bench? Another injury caused by bringing players back to soon like Fosu and how many more?
Second half a miracle occured. We went four, four f******* two and lo and behold it nearly got us a point.
It didn't but regardless, the team and players looked far more comfortable, Aribo gave us 10 times what Reeves had, Best looked sharp until injured (again) while KAGs pace gave us another option.
With two strikers the centre halves had to stay central so Marshall was often one on one so could get decent crosses in.
All the players looked happy with 442 and we were in their final third most of the time unlike with 4231 where we played in our own half or crossed from deep.
We were often wasteful and a good, well organised Gills team defended well.
Deserved win for them. Parker and Eves good forwards for this level and Zakini (spellings?) Solid at the back.
Former Charlton youth coach Steve Lovell doing a good job there. Echo of Foley and Nelson perhaps to come?
8 games without a win, closer to relegation than promotion, takeover coming? Pressure building on Robinson whether you rate him or not. Just win games.
One to watch if we get stuck at this level!
Only reason we created chances in second half is because Gillingham withdrew knowing that with our powderpuff attack we would be unlikely to score two.
The sooner the new owners come in and have a complete clear out the better, the first half was embarrassing. Nobody had a clue how to deal with a journeyman centre forward.
Thought their second goal was about a yard offside but defensively we were poor. Sarr was not good, but Lennon was awful. Where was he for the first? And why didn't he at least make an effort at the ball for the second?
Genuine question, what are Harry Lennon's strengths? I know this is probably his fifth or sixth game in the last two years (he was dropped around this time two years ago and has been out almost the entire time since). But he was constantly outmuscled. He gets caught under the ball, and his heading is often poor. I know Sarr will be the scapegoat, but he's the one playing on his weaker side with a far inferior partner.
Another question, have we won since Bauer came out of the team?
Second half was the best football we've played in weeks if not months and the ball just wouldn't go in the net. Credit to Aribo and KAG for helping to change the game. Amidst a run of good form you'd chalk it up to being unlucky. But amongst our run of form it looks appalling.
We're still very much within touching distance of the playoff with half a season to go. The bigger issue is this run of poor performances, poor form, and lack of goals seems to be effecting the players, and it looks like they have the yips.
Last but not least, is Robinson good enough to reverse a slide? I am deeply worried he is not...