That first half was absolutely brilliant. Simply one of the best halves of football I’ve seen us play in a long time. Maybe Walsall at home on New Year’s Day. We were fantastic.
However, we should have been more than 1-0 up. That is really what hurt us.
Bow shouldn’t ever have made the subs when defending a corner. It sends panic and disorganisation throughout. Let’s deal with the corner and get it out of play. Then make the subs. It really disappointed me. But he will learn.
Overall, I thought Oztumer was excellent, Oshilaja too. I don’t think Aneke really done anything when he came on but Leko was tired.
It’s a good point against a decent side, but we made them look poor tonight because we were that good at times. Two points dropped but we must take confidence and the positives because it was a thoroughly enjoyable game where we were outstanding in long periods.
That football we witnessed deserves a new song to be sung and ladies and gentlemen may I suggest appropriately for the Valley it’s by The Who...Pinball Wizard...that football tonight was like watching a pinball, but only faster
ever since I was a young boy i’ve watched them play football from Carlisle down to Brighton I must have seen them all but I ain’t seen nothing like it in any amusement hall those Bowyer football wizards sure play a mean pinball...
Magnificent first half. In fact, best I’ve seen since we outplayed Spurs at the valley many years ago ( can’t remember when ). Bowyer starting to look as if he is putting together a jigsaw. Once all the pieces are in place we will see his dream, we are capable , with some January help from Belgium, of a play off place and another trip to Wembley. I really do think so.
Best half of football for many years, total domination.
Bloody unlucky not to win, but Bowyer and co are building something special here.
Bring on Brentford.
You can't wing the way we played in the first half - you have to be a bit special. Bowyer just has to tweak things and get the team 10% fitter and we will see more of that I'm sure. How many other sides can play like that is the valid question? Forest ultimately got a point, because they defended well and their keeper (Who it feels to me always has a mistake in him btw) had a very good game. I had them as one of the better sides in the division before today and I still have them there. They are just not as good as us.
Proud of the lads tonight, thought they put in a shift.
I thought we dominated for 60 odd minutes, and were the better side.
However, You’ve got to put your chances away, if you want to win matches.
Thought Deji looked really good, like he’d played there all the time , and Oztumer, wow what a debut, different gravy, and dare I get carried away and say will give Johnnie Williams a run for his money in the performance stakes.
Which is a good thing, if it means players know they are going to be tested and pushed to keep their place in the side.
Thought we played some lovely stuff at times, said to my son, wow we are miles better than last season.
If we play like that for the rest of the season, we’ll have no worries with staying up.
We just seemed to run out of steam a bit, we needed that 2nd goal, not going to get on Leko’s Back for the miss, as we know that’s a part of his game that needs improving, rather have him than Harriott any day, he makes things happen.
Bit disappointed with Chuks, hoped for more, and have seen him play better, thought Field looked good, will be interesting to see what team selection Lee goes for against Brentford.
The first half was so dominant that it reminded me of Huddersfield away a few seasons ago. It was disappointing we couldn't sustain it in the second half but at least we now know we've got it in the locker.
I should be pissed off after dropping two points but am still buzzing after that. Shame we couldn’t finish them off but if we play like that each week we will scare the living daylights out of a lot of teams. Adomah is quality.
I don't understand it...'don't make a sub at a corner.'
Everybody kept concentration apart from an unfortunate mistake by Lockyer. So stop trying to be Gary Neville in his inaccurate analytical truck and maybe read the ACTUAL passage of play that occured.
I thought the draw was overall probably a fair result, and impressive that we could give Forest such a good game while resting 3 of our best players this season.
We were brilliant in the first half, some superb football but it's not as if we created and missed loads of chances, as there was some excellent defending from Forest in the box and their keeper was excellent at actually keeping (and terrible at kicking!). The one bad miss was Leko's in the second half, but other than that Forest dominated after the restart as we somewhat faded, maybe we put too much effort into the first half?
Was really impressed with Oshilaja, the way he played tonight he's wasted as a CB. He looked a really good footballer, one of his passes to Taylor showed lovely touch. Oztumer had an excellent debut, we didn't miss Williams at all. Field was ok but nothing special. Cullen was busy as ever, but his dead balls were disappointing tonight.
Thought we went a bit route 1 when Chuks came on, but that was also partially down to the midfield tiring.
This was my first game of the season, so please take that into consideration when reading.
I haven't written post match views for a little while, and between fourteen signings; a break between seasons; some truly phenomenal football; potential red card controversies; and a whole host of other what-ifs, I don't really know where to start. I suppose I'll start at the beginning.
In digesting the team news, I quietly thought - based on what I had seen and heard of previous games and player qualities - that Bowyer had gone for a very expressive team meant to impose from the off. I was surprised at Pearce's and Pratley's omissions given how well they had apparently acquitted themselves previously, but Sarr and Field being included was a clear statement that we would be playing as true a passing game as we could.
And boy was I proved right in that blazing first half-hour. We were extremely unlucky to only score the one goal in the first half. Josh Cullen appears to be farther up the pitch than last season (than this season? I wouldn't know), and he looks very tidy in attacking situations indeed, when I've always viewed him as more an N'Golo Kante-style midfielder. The intricacies he; Gallagher; and Oztumer pulled off in the middle were fantastic. Sam Field was a bit more of a water-carrier, maybe more in the Pratley role, and played with assurance if slightly less imagination.
I think the diamond shape was fantastically conducive to quick interplay and we used it very effectively, especially with the pacy Oshilaja - great performance at right back - a threat on the overlap. And Jonathan Leko, too - what a bag of tricks he has! Even he doesn't know what he's gonna do sometimes though. The dummy he sold the defender for the cross for that man Lyle Taylor Baby to power in, though, was class. Taylor played like a leader today. Maybe a little quieter tonight than he was in League One, but that's to be expected a league up. He still looks a nightmare to play against. Totally not a criticism, either.
In the rare instances Forest had possession in the first half, I wasn't ever that worried. We chased the ball like men possessed - something we probably paid for in the second half, but more to come on that. Silva (their 28) looked off, while Semedo and Ameobi were imposing without threat. Lockyer showed good defensive sense - anticipation and positioning - to marshal balls forward, while Sarr was given a lot of freedom as they didn't press. Also looked a rock in defence. Phillips didn't actually have much to do tonight, so forgive me for glossing over him. Purrington was steady and gave them bits to think about first half going forward.
Lockyer's challenge to stop an otherwise certain goal was one of the very best tackles I've seen by a Charlton player. Costa-esque. We should have been two up by that time though, probably.
Come the second half, and Forest seemed to have been given a kick up the backside. They started playing with more attacking threat, exploiting the narrow shape by relentlessly targeting the wings. Fair enough strategy and one we were coping with fairly well. But I thought their catalyst came through pushing Silva further forward, who was having an otherwise really rather indifferent game. Not that he played overly well, but it gave their attackers much more freedom, and they got a bit of a foothold in the game.
We played surprisingly well on the counter, and it was that sort of situation that gave rise to the Leko opportunity. His miss was so unfortunate, but maybe Taylor should have shot himself from the narrow angle?
Ameobi should have been sent off. No idea about the one on the edge of our area but a couple of Forest fans have said it was a very poor challenge.
We were gassed by 60-odd minutes, though. This was where the mood shifted from "score another" to "don't concede", quite fairly enough, but sustained defensive competence may be our Achilles' heel this season. Lockyer isn't tall enough to consistently win the battles, while the narrow shape we play - coupled with a lack of physicality - will always allow for opportunities. And Forest look good on the ball when they have time.
The big mistake from Bowyer to make a double sub at a defensive corner has already been covered. He's got so much credit, though, that I won't hold it against him. After all I think it's a good point on balance. They seemed to have more in the tank after their goal (standard tails-up confidence, coupled with probably better stamina), and Williams as an outlet was chopped consistently so we had no flow in attack. Pratley played his role well I would say, while Aneke's physical presence gave them something to mull over but he didn't really impact the game as much as I thought he might.
Overall, especially as we had slightly battened down the hatches near the end, I think a draw was fair. But if we're able to capitalise on the phenomenal football we are eminently capable of playing, this could be a very good season indeed. Too early to say where that might land us in the league - but the good will from players, staff and fans is palpable. A very happy Valley indeed.
I don't understand it...'don't make a sub at a corner.'
Everybody kept concentration apart from an unfortunate mistake by Lockyer. So stop trying to be Gary Neville in his inaccurate analytical truck and maybe read the ACTUAL passage of play that occured.
Said it above. Pratley was slow to react and Adomah got there first after it bounced off Lockyer.
Cullen and the midfield in the first half were just mesmerising.
Forest always felt a threat though, so a draw was in the end not a surprise. Expect them to be up there at the end of the season. The subs they brought on were particularly strong and had an impact.
That football we witnessed deserves a new song to be sung and ladies and gentlemen may I suggest appropriately for the Valley it’s by The Who...Pinball Wizard...that football tonight was like watching a pinball, but only faster
ever since I was a young boy i’ve watched them play football from Carlisle down to Brighton I must have seen them all but I ain’t seen nothing like it in any amusement hall those Bowyer football wizards sure play a mean pinball...
Have a Tommy film night organised with mates tomorrow night. Spot on I say.
Unbelievable first half, probably the best I've seen us play. Our passing and movement was excellent and we were so quick to press them when they had the ball, we should have been 2 or three up by ht. It was always going to be hard to keep it up for 90 minutes and unfortunately we let them back into it. Frustrating, but a great game to watch and the players can be proud of their efforts and the way they played.
Phillips - Didn't have anything to do, couldn't save the goal Oshilija - MOTM for me, outstanding performance, in both halves of the pitch Lockyer - Fantastic but was poor for the goal Sarr - 2 or 3 terrible passes but largely untrobled and dominant Field - Wasn't fit enough, tidy first half, awful second and lucky not to give away a pen Gallagher - Tired and ineffective last 20 and should have done better with early chance (great touch to turn away from defender). Decent overall Cullen - Usual self, very solid Oztumer - Tidy but faded. Taylor - Great finish and brilliant work for Leko's chance. Overall not one of his best games though. Leko - Frustrating but showed glimpses of quality, will imagine that's going to be the norm with him.
Overall we were very unlucky not to win. That first half was outstanding. Only slight criticism of Bowyer's selection as it was obvious that both Field and Oztumer would need to be substituted. But we played excellent first half and had a couple of decent chances. Not finishing those cost us but showed we can be competitve. If Hemed gets one of those chances tonight he scores and we win.
We played them off the park with Kayal, Williams, Hemed, Aneke, Pearce and Solly not playing, we have outstanding strength.
Special mention to Oshilija, I thought he was absolutely brilliant. Maybe we need another CB and Oshilija competes for the RB spot?
Cullen and the midfield in the first half were just mesmerising.
Forest always felt a threat though, so a draw was in the end not a surprise. Expect them to be up there at the end of the season. The subs they brought on were particularly strong and had an impact.
Great game and atmosphere.
Be interesting to see who he starts on Saturday.
Disagree with that, I genuinely didn't feel threatened all game (maybe only Adomah who showed flashes but still did little other than score!). The only time they had a chance was lucky or we played ourself into trouble. Thought Lockyer was great but should have done much better with the goal.
I admire Phil Parkinson, but it baffles me that Oztumer was such a bit part player for Bolton last season when you saw what he did tonight when not even fully fit.
1-1 was a disappointing result to say the least. But there were a lot of positives to take from the performance. However, what really infuriated me was Aneke's work ethic when he came on. Didn't live anywhere near up to Bowyer's standards in terms of effort.
Comments
However, we should have been more than 1-0 up. That is really what hurt us.
Bow shouldn’t ever have made the subs when defending a corner. It sends panic and disorganisation throughout. Let’s deal with the corner and get it out of play. Then make the subs. It really disappointed me. But he will learn.
Overall, I thought Oztumer was excellent, Oshilaja too. I don’t think Aneke really done anything when he came on but Leko was tired.
It’s a good point against a decent side, but we made them look poor tonight because we were that good at times. Two points dropped but we must take confidence and the positives because it was a thoroughly enjoyable game where we were outstanding in long periods.
Bloody unlucky not to win, but Bowyer and co are building something special here.
Bring on Brentford.
ever since I was a young boy
i’ve watched them play football
from Carlisle down to Brighton
I must have seen them all
but I ain’t seen nothing like it
in any amusement hall
those Bowyer football wizards
sure play a mean pinball...
I thought we dominated for 60 odd minutes, and were the better side.
However, You’ve got to put your chances away, if you want to win matches.
Thought Deji looked really good, like he’d played there all the time , and Oztumer, wow what a debut, different gravy, and dare I get carried away and say will give Johnnie Williams a run for his money in the performance stakes.
Which is a good thing, if it means players know they are going to be tested and pushed to keep their place in the side.
Thought we played some lovely stuff at times, said to my son, wow we are miles better than last season.
If we play like that for the rest of the season, we’ll have no worries with staying up.
We just seemed to run out of steam a bit, we needed that 2nd goal, not going to get on Leko’s Back for the miss, as we know that’s a part of his game that needs improving, rather have him than Harriott any day, he makes things happen.
Bit disappointed with Chuks, hoped for more, and have seen him play better, thought Field looked good, will be interesting to see what team selection Lee goes for against Brentford.
Everybody kept concentration apart from an unfortunate mistake by Lockyer. So stop trying to be Gary Neville in his inaccurate analytical truck and maybe read the ACTUAL passage of play that occured.
We were brilliant in the first half, some superb football but it's not as if we created and missed loads of chances, as there was some excellent defending from Forest in the box and their keeper was excellent at actually keeping (and terrible at kicking!). The one bad miss was Leko's in the second half, but other than that Forest dominated after the restart as we somewhat faded, maybe we put too much effort into the first half?
Was really impressed with Oshilaja, the way he played tonight he's wasted as a CB. He looked a really good footballer, one of his passes to Taylor showed lovely touch. Oztumer had an excellent debut, we didn't miss Williams at all. Field was ok but nothing special. Cullen was busy as ever, but his dead balls were disappointing tonight.
Thought we went a bit route 1 when Chuks came on, but that was also partially down to the midfield tiring.
I haven't written post match views for a little while, and between fourteen signings; a break between seasons; some truly phenomenal football; potential red card controversies; and a whole host of other what-ifs, I don't really know where to start. I suppose I'll start at the beginning.
In digesting the team news, I quietly thought - based on what I had seen and heard of previous games and player qualities - that Bowyer had gone for a very expressive team meant to impose from the off. I was surprised at Pearce's and Pratley's omissions given how well they had apparently acquitted themselves previously, but Sarr and Field being included was a clear statement that we would be playing as true a passing game as we could.
And boy was I proved right in that blazing first half-hour. We were extremely unlucky to only score the one goal in the first half. Josh Cullen appears to be farther up the pitch than last season (than this season? I wouldn't know), and he looks very tidy in attacking situations indeed, when I've always viewed him as more an N'Golo Kante-style midfielder. The intricacies he; Gallagher; and Oztumer pulled off in the middle were fantastic. Sam Field was a bit more of a water-carrier, maybe more in the Pratley role, and played with assurance if slightly less imagination.
I think the diamond shape was fantastically conducive to quick interplay and we used it very effectively, especially with the pacy Oshilaja - great performance at right back - a threat on the overlap. And Jonathan Leko, too - what a bag of tricks he has! Even he doesn't know what he's gonna do sometimes though. The dummy he sold the defender for the cross for that man Lyle Taylor Baby to power in, though, was class. Taylor played like a leader today. Maybe a little quieter tonight than he was in League One, but that's to be expected a league up. He still looks a nightmare to play against. Totally not a criticism, either.
In the rare instances Forest had possession in the first half, I wasn't ever that worried. We chased the ball like men possessed - something we probably paid for in the second half, but more to come on that. Silva (their 28) looked off, while Semedo and Ameobi were imposing without threat. Lockyer showed good defensive sense - anticipation and positioning - to marshal balls forward, while Sarr was given a lot of freedom as they didn't press. Also looked a rock in defence. Phillips didn't actually have much to do tonight, so forgive me for glossing over him. Purrington was steady and gave them bits to think about first half going forward.
Lockyer's challenge to stop an otherwise certain goal was one of the very best tackles I've seen by a Charlton player. Costa-esque. We should have been two up by that time though, probably.
Come the second half, and Forest seemed to have been given a kick up the backside. They started playing with more attacking threat, exploiting the narrow shape by relentlessly targeting the wings. Fair enough strategy and one we were coping with fairly well. But I thought their catalyst came through pushing Silva further forward, who was having an otherwise really rather indifferent game. Not that he played overly well, but it gave their attackers much more freedom, and they got a bit of a foothold in the game.
We played surprisingly well on the counter, and it was that sort of situation that gave rise to the Leko opportunity. His miss was so unfortunate, but maybe Taylor should have shot himself from the narrow angle?
Ameobi should have been sent off. No idea about the one on the edge of our area but a couple of Forest fans have said it was a very poor challenge.
We were gassed by 60-odd minutes, though. This was where the mood shifted from "score another" to "don't concede", quite fairly enough, but sustained defensive competence may be our Achilles' heel this season. Lockyer isn't tall enough to consistently win the battles, while the narrow shape we play - coupled with a lack of physicality - will always allow for opportunities. And Forest look good on the ball when they have time.
The big mistake from Bowyer to make a double sub at a defensive corner has already been covered. He's got so much credit, though, that I won't hold it against him. After all I think it's a good point on balance. They seemed to have more in the tank after their goal (standard tails-up confidence, coupled with probably better stamina), and Williams as an outlet was chopped consistently so we had no flow in attack. Pratley played his role well I would say, while Aneke's physical presence gave them something to mull over but he didn't really impact the game as much as I thought he might.
Overall, especially as we had slightly battened down the hatches near the end, I think a draw was fair. But if we're able to capitalise on the phenomenal football we are eminently capable of playing, this could be a very good season indeed. Too early to say where that might land us in the league - but the good will from players, staff and fans is palpable. A very happy Valley indeed.
COYR!
Forest always felt a threat though, so a draw was in the end not a surprise. Expect them to be up there at the end of the season. The subs they brought on were particularly strong and had an impact.
Great game and atmosphere.
Be interesting to see who he starts on Saturday.
He improved passing and tackling second half, but certainly not enough for a 9.
P.s NO COMMENTS ON THE PLAYER RATINGS THREAD - as requested by Lancs.
Phillips - Didn't have anything to do, couldn't save the goal
Oshilija - MOTM for me, outstanding performance, in both halves of the pitch
Lockyer - Fantastic but was poor for the goal
Sarr - 2 or 3 terrible passes but largely untrobled and dominant
Field - Wasn't fit enough, tidy first half, awful second and lucky not to give away a pen
Gallagher - Tired and ineffective last 20 and should have done better with early chance (great touch to turn away from defender). Decent overall
Cullen - Usual self, very solid
Oztumer - Tidy but faded.
Taylor - Great finish and brilliant work for Leko's chance. Overall not one of his best games though.
Leko - Frustrating but showed glimpses of quality, will imagine that's going to be the norm with him.
Overall we were very unlucky not to win. That first half was outstanding. Only slight criticism of Bowyer's selection as it was obvious that both Field and Oztumer would need to be substituted. But we played excellent first half and had a couple of decent chances. Not finishing those cost us but showed we can be competitve. If Hemed gets one of those chances tonight he scores and we win.
We played them off the park with Kayal, Williams, Hemed, Aneke, Pearce and Solly not playing, we have outstanding strength.
Special mention to Oshilija, I thought he was absolutely brilliant. Maybe we need another CB and Oshilija competes for the RB spot?
From the half we seemed to lose control in midfield and lost presence up top.
Oshilaja man of the match.
https://www.londonnewsonline.co.uk/lee-bowyer-fears-it-will-be-impossible-to-hang-on-to-charlton-hotshot-lyle-taylor-in-january/
He'll walk in the summer to a club at the top of the Chempionship/low end Prem club.