The best/least worst option going forward would be to tighten things up with a defensive 4 2 3 1 but our recruitment (or lack there of) has burnt that bridge entirely. We don't have the defensive full backs, new competent CB's or defesive midfielder's to play alongside Dobson to pull it off. On top of that our marquee signing is a midget who was specifically signed to play in a pair up top. The management and owners should be hanging their heads in shame.
It took Methven until the end of October to sack the manager in Sunderland’s relegation season. The only thing the football side of this club is good at is making the same mistakes. So he’ll be gone then, which may be too late.
Not sure that is correct. Sunderland were never relegated under the Donald and Methvan ownership.
The best/least worst option going forward would be to tighten things up with a defensive 4 2 3 1 but our recruitment (or lack there of) has burnt that bridge entirely. We don't have the defensive full backs, new competent CB's or defesive midfielder's to play alongside Dobson to pull it off. On top of that our marquee signing is a midget who was specifically signed to play in a pair up top. The management and owners should be hanging their heads in shame.
We've literally signed the most in-demand free agent DM in League One? (And hardly played him)
The shape and setup we switch to, in hope of getting back into a game / making something stick, always ends up producing better moments than what we’ve planned and worked on! 🚩
Im conflicted. We have some fans saying he has a decent squad and we should have won most of the games so far therefore Holden out, and others are saying the squad is too small and injury ridden for anyone to get a tune out of so we are stuck.
Bowyer managed to get a promotion winning side from a squad that looked like relegation strugglers in August 2018, so it's possible to do better I think. LB had advantages that season that Holden hasn't got (maybe disadvantages too?), so it's not an apples to apples comparison. So yeah..... I don't know what to think.
My perspective is that it’s not a great squad (it’s very unbalanced for a start) but he should be doing better than relegation form with it. Mediocre squad and poorly performing manager is a bad combination, but it’s easier to change the latter part of that combination than the former.
For me we’re three players off having a decent-to-good squad:
A dominant/commanding, organising centre half.
A box to box, inspirational/captain type midfielder.
A target man who can hold the ball up.
But we need a backroom team who’d know what to do with them.
McGrandles has also performed the role with distinction elsewhere. I'm convinced we're somehow way worse than the sum of our parts, and I don't quite understand it
It took Methven until the end of October to sack the manager in Sunderland’s relegation season. The only thing the football side of this club is good at is making the same mistakes. So he’ll be gone then, which may be too late.
Different role at Sunderland, It’s not in Charlie’s gift to fire Holden, he does not have the authority.
The shape and setup we switch to, in hope of getting back into a game / making something stick, always ends up producing better moments than what we’ve planned and worked on! 🚩
Playing CBT as a wing back should be a sackable offence and written into any future managers contracts
We played well in the first 2 games with Terrel Thomas at LCB/LB behind Blackett-Taylor playing as a wing back/winger. Why did we change that for the next 3 games?
Isted Jones Hector Thomas Dabo Camara Dobson CBT Chem Leaburn May
Once we have a striker hopefully Holden goes back to his original plan. The back 3 is still a huge concern but I like the look of this team. Could even see it on Saturday if we get a good striker in this week
As it stands, I'd argue fairly strongly that while recruitment hasn't quite been what it could have been, a combination of us driving players to injury and Holden's poor in-game management and a lack of organisation is what's really fucking us right now. There's a big question mark over the owners, but they're not the ones who are making this bunch of really pretty good (in theory) League One players look like a rabble
It took Methven until the end of October to sack the manager in Sunderland’s relegation season. The only thing the football side of this club is good at is making the same mistakes. So he’ll be gone then, which may be too late.
Different role at Sunderland, It’s not in Charlie’s gift to fire Holden, he does not have the authority.
It took Methven until the end of October to sack the manager in Sunderland’s relegation season. The only thing the football side of this club is good at is making the same mistakes. So he’ll be gone then, which may be too late.
Methven wasn’t at Sunderland in their relegation season. He and Donald took over after the relegation
The best/least worst option going forward would be to tighten things up with a defensive 4 2 3 1 but our recruitment (or lack there of) has burnt that bridge entirely. We don't have the defensive full backs, new competent CB's or defesive midfielder's to play alongside Dobson to pull it off. On top of that our marquee signing is a midget who was specifically signed to play in a pair up top. The management and owners should be hanging their heads in shame.
I’m not seeing why Edun wouldn’t be comfortable in a back four? Taylor’s also a DM as others have said. I can see us playing 4-3-3/4-2-3-1 more often as a back 3 just doesn’t seem to work for the players we have. With 4-3-3/4-2-3-1 May is really the only player not suited to either of those formations.
It took Methven until the end of October to sack the manager in Sunderland’s relegation season. The only thing the football side of this club is good at is making the same mistakes. So he’ll be gone then, which may be too late.
Different role at Sunderland, It’s not in Charlie’s gift to fire Holden, he does not have the authority.
How would you inow that?
He’s a minority investor, and by his own admission is not involved in the day to day running of the club, merely the conduit between the majority investors and the SMT. No doubt he will have an opinion and a vote if that’s how it will go for DH, but he does not have the authority to remove Holden on his own, ie, he could not roll up at SL Tuesday morning and sack him on a whim himself.
Im conflicted. We have some fans saying he has a decent squad and we should have won most of the games so far therefore Holden out, and others are saying the squad is too small and injury ridden for anyone to get a tune out of so we are stuck.
Bowyer managed to get a promotion winning side from a squad that looked like relegation strugglers in August 2018, so it's possible to do better I think. LB had advantages that season that Holden hasn't got (maybe disadvantages too?), so it's not an apples to apples comparison. So yeah..... I don't know what to think.
My perspective is that it’s not a great squad (it’s very unbalanced for a start) but he should be doing better than relegation form with it. Mediocre squad and poorly performing manager is a bad combination, but it’s easier to change the latter part of that combination than the former.
For me we’re three players off having a decent-to-good squad:
A dominant/commanding, organising centre half.
A box to box, inspirational/captain type midfielder.
A target man who can hold the ball up.
But we need a backroom team who’d know what to do with them.
So the spine of the team then? I’d add a commanding goalkeeper to the list just to be sure.
The last successful team we had was bowyers 443 diamond.
Agree. But the diamond is very different to a flat 442.
A diamond enables you to have 4 central midfielders packing that middle area. And for it to work you need two strikers mobile enough to pull out wide. Like we had in 18/19 with Lyle and Karlan.
A flat 442, would get overrun with CBT and Tyreece on the wings.
The alternative way of playing 442 would be like the Powell side, where you have a winger on one side, and a wide midfielder on the other, who can tuck in to add an extra body in midfield.
442 is rare these days (and for a reason). The only team I can think of that have played it consistently with any success is Simeone's Atletico Madrid. And that style of football wouldn't go down well here, neither has it been replicated elsewhere.
442 is rare these days (and for a reason). The only team I can think of that have played it consistently with any success is Simeone's Atletico Madrid. And that style of football wouldn't go down well here, neither has it been replicated elsewhere.
Yeah true, and even then, they played with 3 central midfielders, and one winger. Often Koke was on the right side, but didn’t play as a winger.
442 is rare these days (and for a reason). The only team I can think of that have played it consistently with any success is Simeone's Atletico Madrid. And that style of football wouldn't go down well here, neither has it been replicated elsewhere.
Yeah, I'd be mightily pissed off if we replicated "that style of football" down the Valley! Can't stand a winning style...awful haha!
Comments
We can't keep doing it.
We've got to find a manager that can withstand the slump and be brave enough to stick with him through it.
But we need a backroom team who’d know what to do with them.
either way it is his tactics that have been poor this season.
Jones Hector Thomas
Dabo Camara Dobson CBT
Chem
Leaburn May
Once we have a striker hopefully Holden goes back to his original plan. The back 3 is still a huge concern but I like the look of this team. Could even see it on Saturday if we get a good striker in this week
Isted
Dabo(!) Hector Jones Edun
Mcgrandles Dobbo Taylor
Campbell May. CBT
No doubt he will have an opinion and a vote if that’s how it will go for DH, but he does not have the authority to remove Holden on his own, ie, he could not roll up at SL Tuesday morning and sack him on a whim himself.
Agree. But the diamond is very different to a flat 442.