What would you ask Nathan Jones to do?

I would ask Nathan Jones to block out the external noise and remain committed to the methodical approach that delivered promotion. Short-term fluctuations in form are inevitable at Championship level, particularly with injuries, but the priority should be maintaining clear principles in selection, tactics and standards. Stability of decision-making now is more important than reactive change.  

I would also ask him to continue strengthening the club incrementally, not just through results but through the underlying health of the squad. That means building depth, developing younger players and recruiting with a long-term view rather than chasing immediate fixes. Sustainable progress in the Championship is built on improving the floor of the squad as much as raising the ceiling of the first XI. (If developed well, Ibrahim Fullah will become a far better Charlton player than any player Nathan Jones could ever persuade to sign for the club this month or this year).  

Finally, I would ask him to stay true to the diligent yet passionate leadership that has reconnected the team and supporters. If Charlton avoid relegation, steering the club to its highest finish since 2015 would represent tangible progress, even amid inconsistency. That won't be enough for some, of course.  But it will be more than enough to prove that he's the right choice now and for the future. 

The task now is not to rush the journey, but to keep moving forward - slowly, permanently, and with conviction.

Chizz said:

I would ask Nathan Jones to block out the external noise and remain committed to the methodical approach that delivered promotion. Short-term fluctuations in form are inevitable at Championship level, particularly with injuries, but the priority should be maintaining clear principles in selection, tactics and standards. Stability of decision-making now is more important than reactive change.  

I would also ask him to continue strengthening the club incrementally, not just through results but through the underlying health of the squad. That means building depth, developing younger players and recruiting with a long-term view rather than chasing immediate fixes. Sustainable progress in the Championship is built on improving the floor of the squad as much as raising the ceiling of the first XI. (If developed well, Ibrahim Fullah will become a far better Charlton player than any player Nathan Jones could ever persuade to sign for the club this month or this year).  

Finally, I would ask him to stay true to the diligent yet passionate leadership that has reconnected the team and supporters. If Charlton avoid relegation, steering the club to its highest finish since 2015 would represent tangible progress, even amid inconsistency. That won't be enough for some, of course.  But it will be more than enough to prove that he's the right choice now and for the future. 

The task now is not to rush the journey, but to keep moving forward - slowly, permanently, and with conviction.

NabySarr said:

Chris_from_Sidcup said:

                   Kaminski

Clarke  -  Burke  -  Jones  -  Chambers

         Coventry   -   Docherty

    Apter   -    Carey   -   Campbell

                     Leaburn

Chambers is an attacking full back. He gets forward and then you’re asking Jones to cover that space, taking him away from being the middle of our defence. It just doesn’t work when you’re taking our most important player out of where we need him and exposing him to that space. He’s so good in the middle of a 3 but if we played the above he’d struggle a lot more 

If we want to play 4 at the back we need a new LCB, or we need Bell to be fit at LB. You can’t have Jones next to an attacking full back 

And that’s before we even start on the rest of the problems here. Burke can’t play 2 games in a row, so what do you do for the next game? 

And then we have no cover for Apter and TC. Tanto and Fullah are not wingers at this level

jimmymelrose said:

NabySarr said:

Chris_from_Sidcup said:

                   Kaminski

Clarke  -  Burke  -  Jones  -  Chambers

         Coventry   -   Docherty

    Apter   -    Carey   -   Campbell

                     Leaburn

Chambers is an attacking full back. He gets forward and then you’re asking Jones to cover that space, taking him away from being the middle of our defence. It just doesn’t work when you’re taking our most important player out of where we need him and exposing him to that space. He’s so good in the middle of a 3 but if we played the above he’d struggle a lot more 

If we want to play 4 at the back we need a new LCB, or we need Bell to be fit at LB. You can’t have Jones next to an attacking full back 

And that’s before we even start on the rest of the problems here. Burke can’t play 2 games in a row, so what do you do for the next game? 

And then we have no cover for Apter and TC. Tanto and Fullah are not wingers at this level

If you’re playing a flat back four then the full backs don’t need to attack much as the whole difference with the system is to allow Apter and Campbell to concentrate on attacking.

When attacking, the full back, in your example Chambers, can come beyond the half way line and support Campbell but he no longer needs to be he one actually doing Campbell’s job.

Jones may like to play in a back 3 because he has the support of 2 other defenders while the two wing backs are up the pitch. With a proper back four, he has the same if only one full back goes forward on the side the attack is being built on. The other full back drops back as a fully fledged defender.

soapboxsam said:

Radostanradical said:

NabySarr said:

Radostanradical said:

NabySarr said:

Radostanradical said:

Go four at the back. Its incredibly clear to anyone who has played the game at a professional level we do not have the CBs capable of playing in a 3, the gqme plan was so clear yesterday for Millwall - Bully Ramsey and Expose Macca hence why Coburn lined up againg LR and Azeez against Macca. When we play 3cbs there is an imperative for the WBs to get forward to provide and putlet but that exposes Macca.

Equally if go back 4 that gives us the chance to actually play with wingers, but that means he would have to admit he was wrong and play Apter in his actual position. Also the experiment has been run and the results are clear TC is not a striker, in fact the only time he looks effectives is when he is forced to go out to the wide. Lets just play him as a winger.

I don't think NJ will do any of this because he is a stubborn man and changing would admit he was wrong, also would mean binning off Kelman who he spent a lot of money on as dont think he can play up
top by himself.

So how come all of our centre backs have only done well in a back 3 in their careers? Plenty of people that have played in the professional game have signed them to play in a 3 and played them in a 3. But there’s actually very little evidence that any of them can be centre backs in a 4 vs plenty of evidence they’ve been successful in a 3 at past clubs and here 

What’s actually clear is that we don’t have the defenders capable of playing in a 4. And if we are to switch our setup to a back 4 (I doubt this is the plan) we’d need to sign 2 good defenders at a minimum this week

We’ve switched to a 4 recently in a couple of games. Middlesbrough (disaster) and yesterday (another disaster) 

Luckily for you I have a bit of time today so will educate you. Firstly you cant compare going to a back 4 when we are actually chasing the game to starting in a 451 or 433, I dont think I need to expand on why.

Where was Macca successful playing as a CB in a back 3? He got promoted at from L1 with plymouth ill give you that and then was dropped once they got to championship, as for Kayne he was a RWB? Lloyd can play on a back 3 I accept and maybe Burke but thats no good when he is injured every 2 mins.

If we insist on staying witha back 3 we need to sign another 2 cbs who can actually play that formation and arent injury prone plus another WB or 2.

Look it’s cute you thought you had a point but my advice is not to die on this hill, arguing in favour of something that has no factual bearing.

Gillesphey got promoted playing in a back 3 at Plymouth, he was then left out when they changed to a back 4 in the championship. He also obviously was promoted with us in a 3. Very obvious from his career that he’s better in a 3, he’s not good enough for the championship doing that but in a back 4 he’d be absolutely terrible at this level

Lloyd Jones didn’t really do anything in his career until he played well in a 3 at Cambridge and then signed for us, where he didn’t do well in a 4 (in fairness we were shite) but has been excellent in a 3 and it really suits his game. 

Amari’i Bell started out as a wing back, while at Luton he also started playing LCB in a 3 which he has continued to do very well for us. Really suits his game perfectly 

Burke in his recent career has played well in a 3 at Luton. Don’t know much about his earlier career but maybe he’s played well in a 4 before. Unfortunately he can’t play back to back games so that rules him out 

So out of all of our centre backs, only one maybe has played well in a back 4 in their entire careers, and he’s not fit enough to start 2 games in a row. Yet according to your “professional experience” we don’t have the players to play a 3 (despite all the evidence of their whole careers playing in teams that play 3) and instead should be in a 4 (which virtually none of them have ever done well at in the past). Makes sense 

Lol how arlbout you respond to the points I actually made and not just make up ypur own counter arguments to arguments I havent made or already debunked. Look this is a waste of my time and I jave no desire to derail this thread for my fellow addicks. I have givin my experienced, professional and expert opinion, you have your opinions and its free country even illogical opinions are allowed.

I have already throughly explained on this thread (and another) why I am right. Feel free to review them. I shant respnd anymore to you unless you respond showing you have actually read mynposts and are replying to what I have wrote not what you wish I have wrote

Can you explain how you have a professional opinion Rado ? Don't be shy. If you have explained it before tell me what thread it's on if you don't want to repeat yourself. 

I have listened and watched Professional coaches at work and most of them are mainly copying who ever was their coaching mentor.  Three of the guys now have top coaching jobs at Chelsea and they have skilful footballers plus a conveyor belt of talent from around the world to chose from. Polar opposite to cafc.

I think I learnt more when i coached and managed  about "man management" even if they were youngsters ! Parents could be the problem as any coach of kids will know. My manta was you had partnerships all over the pitch and you couldn't have a weak link in the chain; CAFC chain is broken. 

At least Nathan Jones doesn't have the parents in his ear BUT if it's true that he has had a big fall out with Docherty, plus Ramsey has gone from Potential Premier player to Harrogate player in a few games  then there are major man management issues and it's not just down to the Bell/Edwards partnership on the left not being available even if that has been the catalyst for our slide down the table.

Confidence is always tenuous unless you are winning but NJ decision making is looking as frantic as his jack in the box antics on the touchline.

Big week at Sparrows lane before the Leicester game for some team bonding because we are going down if anymore displays like Saturday which was humiliating and utter capitulation.